Updated 1515
Court annuls contracts awarded to Vitals and Steward – Reactions pour in
Government reaction: In a short DOI statement, Government said that it was analysing the decision handed by Court and gave its assurance that jobs at the three hospitals will be safeguarded.
Opposition reaction: Nationalist Party leader Bernard Grech thanked Adrian Delia for opening the case “If it wasn’t for the Opposition, the public would still be robbed of hundreds of millions of euro.” He added that the Opposition will make sure that government follows the court’s ruling and ensure that those who abused of their position face justice. ”Whoever does not fight corruption, is himself corrupt” he added.
Former PM Joseph Muscat also had his say, making sure in his comment to insist that the decision to award the concession to Vitals was taken with full support of his former cabinet colleagues.
EP President Roberta Metsola described the decision as a victory for Malta.
Earlier:
The court has nullified all contracts awarded to Vitals and Steward, and ordered all property to be returned to government. This is a landmark decision after five years of court hearings. Judge Franco Depasquale noted how all agreed projects were never completed and some were not even started. The Court also had harsh words for the government, arguing that when it was evident that when it was clear that Vitals were not fulfilling obligations, the government “incredibly” went on to re-negotiate the deal. The final decision on whether the concession should be annulled had not been given at time of publication. Times of Malta and Maltatoday provided an in-depth review from the Courtroom.
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Malta will continue standing by Ukraine – President Vella: Malta will continue standing by Ukraine, President George Vella said on Friday, insisting that the island’s neutrality did not imply indifference to suffering. In a statement, commemorating one year from the Russian invasion, Vella said the war has shaken the international community to the core.”Twelve months have passed since the unjustified invasion of Ukraine by Russia. The scenes we have witnessed over this past year should have us all recoil in shame and reflect on human frailty in the face of the brutality of war,” he said. In a tweet, prime minister Robert Abela also pledged Malta’s support.
Deficit tops €120m in January: By the end of January 2023, the Government’s Consolidated Fund reported a deficit of €120.9 million, the NSO said today. In January 2023, Recurrent Revenue amounted to €352.0 million, slightly lower than the €352.1 million reported a year earlier. The largest drop was recorded under Grants (€8.9 million), followed by Miscellaneous Receipts (€7.4 million), Licences, Taxes and Fines (€5.1 million), Customs and Excise Duties (€3.3 million) and Sales-Goods (€0.1 million).
State system failed Bernice Cassar – inquiry: An inquiry tasked with establishing whether the state failed femicide victim Bernice Cassar has concluded that the state ‘system’ failed the mother-of-two, particularly because of a lack of resources and a heavy caseload. The inquiry report was compiled by retired judge Geoffrey Valenzia. (Newsbook)
Morning Briefing
D-Day for Steward’s hospital concession
Court is expected today to deliver an imporant judgement on the validity of the government’s €60 million deal to privatise the St Luke’s, Gozo and Karin Grech hospitals. The case dates back to 2018, when it was filed by Adrian Delia, then leader of the Opposition, in a bid to force the cancellation of the 99-year emphyteutical concession agreement on the basis that the concessionaire, Vitals Global Healthcare and their heirs in title, Steward Healthcare, had not fulfilled their contractual obligations. Dr Delia had argued that the contract itself – one of the most controversial for Labour – was vitiated because, he claimed, Vitals were in talks with the government before the tender process had even started. (Maltatoday).
US interest in citizenship scheme on the increase
Wealthy Americans have become increasingly interested in acquiring foreign citizenship, including from Malta, according to Henley & Partners. Henley’s managing partner, Mehdi Kadiri, says in the report that the most sought-after options in Europe by Americans are the residence programme in Portugal followed by the citizenship scheme in Malta. Kadiri said Henley & Partners received the most enquiries from US citizens on record in 2022, a 447 per cent increase from 2019. However, Portugal has since decided to terminate this programme, leaving Malta as the only country to sell passports. Data published in Parliament earlier this month shows that a total of 1,532 main applicants have become Maltese citizens under the scheme, according to figures tabled in parliament by Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri this month. (Times of Malta)
Incubation centre inaugurated at Ta’ Qali Crafts Village
An Incubation Centre has been inaugurated at the Ta’ Qali Village of Crafts, providing space for several classrooms and workshops for school children to learn about traditional Maltese crafts and where local and foreign artisans can share their skills. Minister for the Economy, European Funds and the Arts Silvio Schembri, said that “with the inauguration of the Incubation Centre, we are one step closer to offering a complete experience at the Ta’ Qali Village of Crafts, not only for tourists but also for Maltese families who can spend a day exploring various traditional crafts. It was a pleasure to see students attending workshops in this building, which will serve to introduce our youngsters to traditional Maltese crafts.” (The Malta Independent)
Inflation, unemployment drop
Fresh NSO data has shown that Malta’s annual inflation in January dropped to 6.8%, the third lowest in the EU. The NSO reported that the largest upward impact on annual inflation in January was measured in the Food and non-alcoholic beverages index. Separate data provided by Jobsplus shows that in January, the number of people who were registering for employment went down by 45, bringing it down to 1,072, when compared to the same time last year. (TVM)
