Today’s news round up is being issued now, prior to the budget.
The budget will be covered with updates on the announcements and reactions.
In the meantime, these are what the main news portals have covered till now.
Newsbook carries a story about a mother and child who rent a rooftop room for €400 a month. The report says the child has ‘serious problems’ and that the mother works overtime everyday in a factory to earn €1,000 monthly. Speaking about the case, Caritas Director Anthony Gatt said the woman is an example of the ‘working poor.’
MaltaToday andNet News feature a developing story after fires engulfed a St Paul’s Bay apartment this afternoon. No one is reported injured, but a mother and her infant were rushed to hospital for treatment. Residents in the area said they heard an explosion and shattering windows; the fire has since been put down by the Civil Protection Department.
The Times says that sources close to Prof. Joseph Mifsud contradicted claims he was dead. The mysterious Maltese academic has been named in the Mueller probe into allegations of collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign before the 2016 US elections. An Associated Press investigation uncovered a series of disappearing acts by Prof. Mifsud, says the article. Story is also featured by Corporate Dispatch
One News says that Malta generated an economic surplus of more than €390 million in 2017, at 3.5 percent of GDP. The portal quotes Eurostat which says the figure is the biggest rate in the EU, twice as big as that registered by Cyprus, which places second.
The Malta Independent reports on an X-Factor contestant who set social media alight by calling same-sex marriage ‘sinful’ on the show. Singer Matthew Grech said he led a homosexual lifestyle until he found God. LovinMalta adds that River of Love pastor Gorndon Manche called criticism of Grech’s comments ‘hypocrisy made in Malta.’
The Shift News says that Arnold Cassola has started a petition asking the European Commission to invalidate the sale of the former ITS site to db Group by the government. The previous Alternattiva Demokratika chairperson argues that the reduced price the private company paid for the public land constitutes state aid, breaching EU rules.
TVM reports that a woman is in critical condition after being hit by a car in Triq il-Kunsill tal-Ewropa, Luqa. The accident happened at around 1:30 this afternoon.
