Good morning
This is a review of Malta’s newspapers’ leading stories for Thursday.
The Malts Business Weekly leads a report by the European Parliament charging seven EU members, including Malta, of behaving like tax havens. A year long inquiry based on accountancy data showed how global countries secretly set up complex companies in EU member states.
The Times says that the number of materially deprived people in Mala stands at 40,000, increasing for the first time since 2013. Material deprivation is measured according to a set of criteria including inability to pay for unexpected expenses or to afford durable household goods.
The Malts Business Weekly, too, picks up the report on income and living conditions and says that while the rate of material deprivation in 2018 stood at 8.7 percent, severe material deprivation stood at 3 percent. Compared to the previous year, material deprivation increased by 0.7 percent and severe deprivation decreased by 0.3 percent.
The Malta Independent quotes Equality Minister Helena Dalli who described gender quotas as ‘necessary evil’ to facilitate the participation of women in male-dominated areas. The Minister was addressing a conference by the National Commission for the Promotion of Equality.
The Times reveals that senior officials within the MFSA have been offered retirement packages as the authority prepares to make way for new recruits. The paper says that the vacant posts are expected to be filled by people close to CEO Joseph Cuschcieri.
The Malta Independent says that the Planning Authority will today decide on an application to erect additional floors on a Sliema townhouse. The local council and other NGOs have raise objections to the development on the Grade 2 scheduled property.
L-Orizzont reveals that the government does not exclude the creation of a national gas system. The paper also says that authorities are carrying out a series of tests on gas distribution operators and equipment.
In-Nazzjon quotes Opposition Leader Adrian Delia who declared that his side will support George Vella’s nomination for President of the Republic. Delia said that the Opposition is putting the national interest first.
In other stories, L-Orizzont says that a man and his son were found guilty of neglect of their wife and mother, leading her to die. The paper also reports on the resignation of General Workers Union official Jeremy Camilleri.
In-Nazzjon covers a Nationalist Party press conference unveiling a series of proposals to reinforce the civil service. The party says that specialised training is needed especially for Malta’s representatives in European technical fora.
In other news we read:
Expert panels will advise the government on developing alternatives to the Irish backstop in Brexit talks. A new report on the state of the US economy has dealt a blow to Donald Trump’s deficit reduction plan. The deficit between the US and the rest of the world reached a 10-year-high last year, clocking in at $621bn. Manfred Weber, the European Peoples Party’s (EPP) lead candidate to be the new EU Commission President , Wednesday insisted that Turkey will not become an EU member.
ISTAT, the Italian National Institute of Statistics, on Wednesday announced that the Italian economy is continuing to experience difficulty after slipping into recession in the second half of 2018. Reuters reported that the Libyan government based in the east has sold bonds worth more than $23 billion (around 32 billion Libyan dinars) to fund its wage bill, bypassing the central bank in Tripoli and creating a potential financial black hole if the countryand creating a potential financial black hole if the country reunifies. Counter terror police officers have said the suspect package found at Glasgow University is linked with devices discovered around London. Bomb disposal officers detonated the item after it was found in the mailroom on Wednesday morning. Chinese telecom giant Huawei has filed a lawsuit against the US government over a ban that restricts government agencies from using its products.The lawsuit is part of a wider push by the company in recent months challenging claims its products pose security risks. Manchester United secured a place in the Quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League after beating Paris St Germain 3-1 in Paris.
