Updated 1110
L-Istrina commencing shortly: At Noon today the traditional Christmas fundraiser, L-Istrina returns for its 27th year. This 12 hour fund-raising telethon will start at 12pm today to collect money for the Malta Community Chest Fund. After a two-year hiatus relating to the pandemic, the public is invited to attend the activity being held at the Kirkop Sporting Complex. In Gozo. there will be an activity at Villa Rundle, Rabat.
Restaurants report positive Christmas: Restaurant reservations for Christmas and the New Year may surpass pre-COVID 2019 levels, the head of the sector’s biggest lobby group has said, though other operators gave a lukewarm verdict. Hotel occupancy is expected to be slightly below 2018 and 2019, “those being the strongest years”, said Tony Zahra, president of the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association. (Times of Malta)
Police stop 560 cars on Christmas eve: Traffic inspections across Malta and Gozo led police, together with members of the Armed Forces of Malta, to stop around 560 vehicles on Christmas eve. In a statement, police thanked the public for their cooperation and for following traffic regulations. (Maltatoday)
Gozo Bishop appeals for reflection ahead of abortion changes: Bishop of Gozo Anton Theuma used his traditional Christmas message this year to make an appeal to the authorities to “stop and reflect” ahead of the planned introduction of changes to the provisions on abortion in the Criminal Code. (Newsbook)
Morning Briefing
Fire breaks at Gozo Hospital IT room
Patients were evacuated from the Gozo Hospital on Sunday evening when a fire started in an IT room and smoke spread to different wards. The fire was immediately brought under control by the Civil Protection Department and patients were returned to the hospital after midnight. No one was injured. (Times of Malta)
Money and property are not everything – President
President George Vella has insisted in a Christmas message that money and property are not everything, and society in the new year needs to focus more on solidarity and helping one another. Dr Vella in his annual broadcast on Christmas eve said society in the coming months needs to give more attention to issues which, unless tackled, will continue to harm those already suffering. “We must put aside the attraction of material achievements and strive more towards the common good. Poverty exists, and in many different forms and degrees”, he added. (Times of Malta)
PN leader appeals for social justice
PN and Opposition Leader Bernard Grech appealed for social justice in his Christmas message, appealing for the protection of women who faced domestic violence and of the unborn. During a recorded Christmas message, Grech remembered his late father, who passed away this year, saying that he understands and shares the sorrow of all those who couldn’t properly celebrate Christmas, as they were mourning someone they loved. The PN leader recalled that many were not keeping up with inflation and that many could not even afford vital medicine. “The rising cost-of-living stripped away those that barely had anything. Man needs dignity and deserves to have peace of mind during Christmas.” (Maltatoday)
A mother’s womb needs to be a place that protects – Archbishop
Archbishop Charles Scicluna said in his Christmas message that a mother’s womb needs to be a place that protects. Another word that explains ‘Malta’ is a ‘place of safety’, he said, a place that offers protection, as the mother’s womb also needs to be a place that protects. “I wish to pray over our country, so that the Lord will continue to gaze upon us with a look of mercy, that we may remember the sweetness of Malta”, he added. (The Malta Independent)
