Good morning on another warm day!
The heat seems to persist in the coming hours as the Met Office at the MIA is forecasting a high 28 degrees temperature during the day.
The Independent reports that Ombudsman Anthony Mifsud has warned against the “systemic refusal or stubborn reticence to disclose information” that undermines good governance and the democratic process after noting that the public administration, including the public authorities, have appeared to adopt “a generally negative approach” towards disclosing information and the citizen’s right to be informed in his Annual Report for 2017.
MaltaToday we read that Gżira mayor Conrad Borg Manche has warned developers his council will not stop attacking abuse and urged them to respect residents, during a protest yesterday evening.
“It made little sense for the MDA to present a cheque of €150,000 to l-Istrina in an attempt to show how generous developers were when residents were disregarded all year round”
The protest in Gżira was called in the wake of an incident in which Nationalist Party councillor Jeremy Cardona was almost run over by a developer last week. The developer was identified as Ivan Stivala, the brother of Malta Developers Association secretary, Michael Stivala. He also criticised Malta Developers’ Association Sandro Chetcuti’s reaction in an attempt to minimise the incident as disappointing, to say the least.
We read that more than 500 medical doctors have signed a declaration expressing their opposition to the government’s plan to introduce embryo freezing, insisting that life starts at conception. The move came just a month after a group of 100 academics from the University of Malta expressed concern about the proposed amendments to the law regulating in vitro fertilisation (IVF). (The Times).
In-Nazzjon and The Times write about the private works carried at the residence of Minister Carmelo Abela. In-Nazzjon reports about the Prime Minister which keeps defending Keith Schembri following revelations of a deposit of $430,000 in his account following a visit to Baku.
L-Orizzont Economic Minister Chris Cardona reacting positively to statistics showing economic growth. It also carries reflections by Oliver Friggieri in Joseph Muscat’s 10th anniversary as Labour Party Leader.
In his first speech in Parliament, Italy’s new prime minister Giuseppe Conte, vowed to bring radical change to the country, including more generous welfare and a crackdown on immigration, as the two party bosses who hold the keys to his anti-establishment government nodded their approval.
Donald Trump’s former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, has been accused of trying to tamper with potential witnesses ahead of his trial. Robert Mueller, who is also investigating alleged Russian election interference, said Mr Manafort had contacted people related to his money laundering and tax fraud case in breach of his bail terms.
The European Parliament set up a group of lawmakers who will monitor the investigations into the murders of Daphne Caruana Galizia in Malta last October and Jan Kuciak in Slovakia in February.
In Libya, Misrata and Tawergha signed a historic peace treaty to end dispute between the two cities and allow Tawergha IDPs to return “immediately” to their town, ending a seven-year long chapter of conflict and displacement. The treaty was signed in Misrata by Misrata mayor and head of Tawergha Local Council. The Tawerghans apologized to the Misratans about the atrocities committed by their sons in 2011 in Misrata.
German politicians are calling for U.S. Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenellto be recalled, following a controversial interview in which the diplomat claims he is seeking to boost anti-establishment parties across Europe.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has come under pressure at home over what is deemed to be a growing scandal related to the country’s migration agency, which is charged with having granted asylum to more than 1,000 refugees in exchange for bribes at the height of the refugee crisis in Europe. In another story from Germany, police gave the all clear on Tuesday after sealing off and searching a primary school in Berlin and the surrounding area, prompted by a phone call alerting the authorities to two ‘suspicious people’ entering the school.
Mariano Rajoy announced he will quit as head of the conservative Popular Party (PP)and politics. Rajoy was voted-out as Prime Minister last week.
Initial IDF investigation finds that Razan Najjar, the Palestinian medic shot dead on Friday during clashes along the Gaza border was not intentionally targeted.
Fashion designer Kate Spade was found dead at her New York apartment on Tuesday morning. According to AP Spade was found hanged in her Park Avenue apartment in an apparent suicide, law enforcement officials said.
Simon Cowell revealed that he hasn’t touched his mobile phone in 10 months because it was making him distracted and irritated. He became more aware of the people around me and way more focused and happier.”
Judy Perkins, a 52-year-old mother of two, was given months to live after seven types of chemotherapy failed and she had developed tumours the size of fists in her liver. According to a number of media reports, Perkins, has been “cured” by an injection harvested from her own immune systemin what scientists have described as an “extremely promising” world first.
A 17-year-old citizen of Malta, who was driving without licence, fatally hit a cyclist in Bielawa, near Warsaw. The accident occurred on Powsińska St. before 17.00 on Sunday and the teenager was arrested. The irony of this fatal incident stems from the fact that Malta is currently facing a debate after an incident where an under-age 17 year old is being accused of attempted murder on a police constable and last weekend, a cyclist died in a fatal traffic accident, despite calls for more security on the roads.
A rather ‘freak’ traffic accident, which claimed the life of a 22 young woman took place in Novara. The woman was jogging at the side of the road when she was hit by the hearse, which was carrying a corpse, after its driver died of a heart attack while driving.
Jesmond Saliba
Managing Editor
