Infrastructure Malta says progress done on Msida Creek project
Work on the Msida Creek roadworks project is progressing rapidly, Infrastructure Malta said. The Authority confirmed that it is currently in the process of grounding 86 pillars for a new road linking Ta’ Xbiex seafront to Pietà, while installing sheet piles for a water channel and reinforcing the quay wall for dredging. In the coming days, part of Triq Mikiel Anton Vassalli (Regional Road) will be cleared to create space for temporary lanes towards the Birkirkara bypass, and part of the southbound carriageway will be closed overnight for road line markings. Trenching will also begin around the workers’ monument to install a stormwater channel. (Times of Malta)
Government expenditure reaches €7.5bn – NSO
Government expenditure in 2023 totalled €7,501.4 million, an increase of €611.7 million compared to 2021, according to the latest data from the National Statistics Office. However, when expressed as a percentage of GDP, government spending decreased from 37.7% in 2022 to 36.5% in 2023. Social protection remained the largest area of expenditure, accounting for 27% of the total, rising by €235.7 million from 2022. The largest single spending category was old age support, with €1,231.1 million allocated, representing 16.4% of total spending. Other significant allocations included €619.3 million for executive and legislative bodies, financial and external affairs, and €570.4 million for hospital services to support healthcare infrastructure. (Maltatoday)
MUT expresses anger and disappointment on collective agreement impasse
Malta Union of Teachers PPresident Marco Bonnici expressed the union’s frustration and disappointment as talks over a new collective agreement for MCAST lecturers remain unresolved, three years after the previous agreement expired. Speaking to a group of lecturers protesting outside the Education Ministry on Tuesday, Bonnici criticised the lack of progress, stating that neither the college nor the ministry had moved forward in the past three years. He revealed that it was only after Joyce Cassar, Permanent Secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister, became involved in the negotiations that the process advanced, but in the most recent meeting, she rejected the union’s proposals, stating that she had already made her decisions. (The Malta Independent)
