A man was critically injured in a traffic accident in Marsa on Sunday evening, the police said.The man, aged 24 from Paola, was going into a car in Worker’s Street, a Ford Focus, when he was hit by a Toyota Aygo driven by a 30-year-old from Qor...

Constitutional law expert Kevin Aquilina has said that the law regarding the Commissioner for Standards in Public Life should be changed, arguing that it should not be a Parliamentary Committee that takes decisions on a breach of ethics report.Aquili...

Rescue groups and the Vatican are decrying the latest deaths of migrants who put to sea in traffickers’ unseaworthy boats, amid laments that central Mediterranean nations are choosing not to dispatch vessels to save them.Aid group Alarm Phone s...

Two people were injured after a rider lost control of his motorcycle on Sunday evening, police said.Police said that there were informed of an accident at around 8pm on Sunday in Triq San Pawl tal-Pitkali in Dingli.Preliminary investigations showed t...

A Spanish man with COVID-19 symptoms who coughed on work colleagues and told them “I’m going to give you all the coronavirus” has been charged with intentionally causing injury after allegedly infecting 22 people.Spanish police said...

Chloé Zhao’s “Nomadland,” a wistful portrait of itinerant lives on open roads across the American West, won best picture Sunday at the 93rd Academy Awards, where the China-born Zhao became the first woman of color t...

In these trying times, social distancing is the name of the game and fortunately this fits very well with birdwatching, which is best done alone or in very small groups of twos. This is so because birds are easily disturbed and scared away by people....

Italy’s gradual reopening on Monday after six months of rotating virus lockdowns is satisfying no one: Too cautious for some, too hasty for others.Allowing outdoor dining comes too little, too late for Italy's restaurant owners, whose survival ...

A technical issue that affected fundraising events recently came to light and caused a lot of concern for NGOs and organisations affected.Earlier this month, service provider Go admitted that a technical issue led to the double registration of pledge...

A number of Covid-19 restrictive measures will be lifted on Monday, including the opening of non-essential shops.Non-essential services will be able to resume, he said, while adding that the number of people who will be able to be out in public in gr...

Prime Minister Robert Abela has defended Malta's new Residence and Visa Programme (which replaced the IIP scheme), stating that "We have a programme that ticks all the necessary boxes."The Prime Minister was asked about recent revelations regarding t...

Pope Francis on Sunday decried as shameful the deaths of 130 migrants in the Mediterranean, saying they pleaded for two days for help for their overcrowded, foundering rubber dinghy in the sea off Libya but potential rescuers choose “to look th...

25 new cases of Covid-19 were reported on Sunday and one more person has died.The latest victim was a 67-year-old man who died at Mater Dei Hospital while positive for the virus. The total number of deaths has risen to 413.The number of active cases ...

Receipts for Pastizzi from Rabat's famous Crystal Palace Bar and for a Red Bull from a nightclub in Paceville were amongst the so-called "genuine links" presented by IIP candidates in order to prove the ties they had developed to Malta as they sought...

Parliamentary Secretary for Citizenship and Communities Alex Muscat has claimed that the Passport Papers investigation is an attack on Malta.The Passport Papers is a collaborative investigation by a number of local and international newsrooms, of whi...

Alex Muscat, now Parliamentary Secretary for citizenship, was named by Henley & Partners as their “contact person” at the Office of the Prime Minister. He was asked to discuss what resources were necessary to ensure a “positive ...

The PN will not negotiate with hackers, Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said on Sunday.The PN was recently hacked, with hackers threatening to publish sensitive information if the PN does not cooperate with them. Grech responded that the PN remains a...

A loss at home to promoted Benevento. A draw with city rival Torino. Another defeat at Atalanta.And now a 1-1 draw at relegation-threatened Fiorentina.There’s been nothing “super” over the last six rounds from nine-time defending Se...

Part one of Manchester City's treble chase has been ticked off.Aymeric Laporte headed in Kevin De Bruyne's free kick in the 82nd minute to give City a 1-0 victory over Tottenham on Sunday that clinched the League Cup for a fourth successive season.Ci...

A 19-year-old resident from Żabbar was arrested after attacking police during a beach inspection in connection with violations of Covid-19 regulations, police said.Yesterday, at around 6.30pm, Police from the Environmental Protection Unit (EPU) ...

Manchester United could be coming to Malta, Net TV's Replay has reported.The team is expected to come for a training camp in Malta, and are expected to play at least one local team, Replay said on Facebook. Manchester United were last in Malta back i...

From Pilatus Bank to Nexia BT venture BT International, Henley & Partners sought to set up introduction agreements across Malta in the hopes of raking in as many clients as possible, documents and correspondence seen by the Malta Independent on S...

Malta has seen a drastic drop in Covid-19 case numbers as of recent weeks. Deputy Prime Minister and Health Minister Chris Fearne believes that this is both down to the vaccination drive and the restrictive measures that were put in place. He also no...

Transport Malta has refused to answer questions about the controversial 3-year extension given to a harbour ferry operator, citing the fact that the contract is currently under review. The government recently gave an extension to Marsamxetto Steamfer...

Having a community attending Mass is much better than delivering the service in an empty church, priests contacted by The Malta Independent on Sunday agree.Last Sunday, the church in Malta was given the go-ahead by health authorities to hold in-perso...

We knew all along that Malta’s passports-for-cash scheme, the Individual Investor Programme, was a sham.Over the years, there have been several reports exposing how the supposedly serious citizenship programme failed in every aspect bar one &nd...

Today is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand. Remembrance services and wreath-laying ceremonies linked to Anzac Day are however also held in many other parts of the world, including Malta, where the first Anzac Day was commemor...

The reproduction rate of COVID-19 in our community is stable at 0.5 and this is thanks to all the measures taken since 11 March, statistician Vincent Marmara said.In his weekly blog for The Malta Independent on Sunday, Marmara said statistics show cl...

The Malta National Autism Strategy 2021-2030 is Malta’s first ever strategy for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The strategy, titled ‘Respect Diversity: Safeguarding Equality’, was published by the Ministry for Inclusion and Social ...

Many were disappointed this weekend as the weather was more like late autumn than mid-spring, with rough seas and not so warm temperatures.But early swimmers could be in for a treat next weekend as, within the next seven days, the temperature is set ...

With record-high numbers of COVID-19 patients in critical care, Greece announced the reopening of its tourism industry from mid-May. Spain's prime minister says the state of emergency that allowed for curfews and travel bans won't be extended wh...

Twenty new Covid-19 cases were recorded today, while 57 patients have recovered, health authorities said.No deaths were reported, with the number of victims still at 412.In all, 30,149 cases of Covid-19 have been registered in Malta, with 29,261 reco...

The Lands Authority is investigating the situation at Fort Bingemma, which has been illegally occupied by a family since 2009.The Malta Independent recently reported about the squatters’ hold on the fort. The fort was built by the British in 18...

Chelsea has made a significant move in the English Premier League's frenetic race to qualify for the Champions League, a competition the club's hierarchy secretly tried to destroy in its ill-fated attempt to form a European Super League.A 1-0 win at ...

Prime Minister Robert Abela has pledged the government's assistance to organisations who were negatively affected because of a technical fault during fund-raising telethons.Earlier this month, service provider Go admitted that a technical issue led t...

Valletta: Royal Pharmacy, 271, Republic Street; Ħamrun: Lister Pharmacy, 678, St Joseph High Road; Qormi: St George's Pharmacy, 21, Main Street; Birkirkara: Brown's Pharmacy, 32, Fleur-de-Lys Road; Pietà: St Luke's Pharmacy, St Luke's Roa...

Messages indicating that people over 40 can turn up at health centres to get vaccinated without an appointment are fake, health authorities told The Malta Independent.Over the past hours people have received messages that as from today and for the ne...

The European Medicines Agency said Friday that people who have received a first dose of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine should also get the second one despite the rare risk of blood clots that have been linked to the shot.In new guidance, the European...

A 22 year old, Somali man was arrested early this morning after the Police received reports that two persons were stealing from vehicles.The allegedly theft was happening in Triq il-Qattus in Ħal Għaxaq around 1:45 this morning.Police from ...

The Labour MEPs have nominated the environmental Non-Governmental Organisation ACT for the European Citizens’ Prize 2021. Every year, the European Parliament recognises individuals and organisations for their outstanding contribution to society...

Malta has received an A+ rating by Scope Rating - a German rating agency, the government said in a statement.Even though the pandemic did hit Malta as it did other countries, this agency has confirmed that our country has a strong growth potential a ...

U.S. health officials lifted an 11-day pause on COVID-19 vaccinations using Johnson & Johnson's single-dose shot on Friday, after scientific advisers decided its benefits outweigh a rare risk of blood clot.The government uncovered 15 vaccine reci...

Changing the way we live and work is not something that came about easily at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.Indeed switching to remote and teleworking for many was no easy task. Covid-19 brought the country to a standstill. 2020 passed by in the ...

A report negotiated by Maltese MEP Josianne Cutajar on behalf of the Socialists and Democrats, was successfully voted upon during yesterday’s meeting of the European Parliament’s Committee on Regional Development. This report promotes equ...

A €1 million investment in solar energy generation in Burmarrad has been inaugurated by Minister for Energy, Enterprise and Sustainable Development Miriam Dalli. The investment was carried out by Powerezi, a subsidiary of Vassallo Group.This inv...

Italian singer Milva, popular in the 1960s and 1970s, has passed away, aged 81, Italian media report.Her daughter Martina Corgniati told Italian news agency Ansa that the singer had been ill for several months.Milva was born on 17 July 1939 and lived...

A Henley & Partners representative said that they advise potential Maltese passport buyers that they only need to do the “bare minimum” when it comes to satisfying the criteria for the scheme.In an undercover video shot by The Guardia...

PN MEP Roberta Metsola shared a heart-breaking letter which she said that she received from a six-year-old Maltese boy, who described how some children at his school were going hungry because their parents could not afford food for them.In the handwr...

The board of the Environment and Resources Authority has unanimously approved the Final Assessment for the proposed db Group’s City Centre multi-use development on the ITS site, “in accordance with all the mitigation measures present with...

33 new cased of Covid-19 were found overnight and one patients have died, the health authorities said on Friday.More details were given by Health Superintendent Charmaine Gauci during her weekly briefing.The number of active cases is now 513 and the ...

More than 100 Europe-bound migrants are feared dead in a shipwreck off the Libyan Mediterranean coast, independent rescue groups said.SOS Mediterranee, which operates the rescue vessel Ocean Viking, said late Thursday that the wreck of a rubber boat,...

A treasure trove of data from the servers of Individual Investor Programme concessionaire Henley & Partners has revealed the places that some of those who bought Maltese passports call home – and many of them are far from the luxury that th...

Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo announced two new incentives aimed at supporting sport tourism as well as the diving sector in order to attract tourists to Malta. Addressing a press conference on Friday, Bartolo said that the a total of €1...

Prime Minister Robert Abela and his wife Lydia Abela have both applied to get the Covid-19 vaccine, as Malta’s roll-out continues to gather pace.The couple applied for the jab after the government opened the vaccine rollout to all those over 40...

 A family accused of selling a toxic industrial bleach as a coronavirus cure through their Florida-based church has been indicted on federal charges.A federal grand jury in Miami returned an indictment Thursday charging Mark Grenon, 62, and his ...

 Former Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, Keith Schembri, has won €300 after a court found that his rights had been breached by a freezing order over his commercial activities.The order listed 91 people and companies, includin...

ow long does protection from COVID-19 vaccines last?Experts don't know yet because they're still studying vaccinated people to see when protection might wear off. How well the vaccines work against emerging variants will also determine if, when and h...

The ticket prices for the Gozo fast ferry services, set to launch in June, are still being finalised, The Malta Independent can confirm.So far two companies have confirmed that they will be operating fast ferry services between Malta and Gozo, these ...

The news that 12 European clubs wanted to break away from established UEFA competitions and form their own league was a mighty earthquake in the football world these past few days.The clubs in question, from England, Spain and Italy, are among the mo...

The Police Sergeant who was charged with raping a burglary victim has been suspended, the police confirmed with The Malta Independent.On Thursday, Glenn Carabott, 40, from Mtarfa was arraigned before magistrate Gabriella Vella on charges of rape...

The Public Consultation for the National Autism Strategy has ended this week.The strategy elicited a healthy response, as, in fact, 185 responses from NGOs, governmental organisations, parents and persons on the autism spectrum were received in the s...

A member of the Saudi royal family successfully saw his name removed from the Government Gazette after personally raising the concern with former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, despite there being a government obligation to publish the names of all na...

A Gozo apartment block was being rented out to prospective IIP applicants despite not having been finished yet, an investigative journalistic collaboration has revealed.The Vista Point apartment block, situated in Marsalforn and managed by Trident Pr...

A police sergeant with 18 years of service under his belt has been charged with raping a burglary victim this afternoon in a heated sitting during which his defence lawyer accused the prosecuting inspector of lying.Glenn Carabott, 40, from Mtarfa was...

The court has found enough prima facie evidence to place Florinda Sultana and Albert Buttigieg (not the St Julian's Mayor) under a bill of indictment and charge them with fraud and money laundering, TVM reports.Florinda (Floren Sultana), 29, and a fo...

The PN said that the published stories regarding the sale of Maltese citizenship confirm that for Robert Abela, anything goes.The Nationalist Party was reacting to a series of articles published by newsrooms both local and internationally in what has...

Thirty-three new Covid-19 cases were registered, while the number of vaccination doses is edging closer to 300,000.Health authorities said today that there were no Covid related deaths, with the number of victims remaining at 411.In all, 30,096 cases...

The AFM was found by the courts to have been negligent in the tragic death of gunner Matthew Psaila, who died after finding himself in difficulty during a training exercise at Chadwick Lakes.An expert appointed by the courts found that the soldier, w...

The Malta College of Family Doctors (MCFD) said today it understands the need for decriminalization of the possession of small quantities of cannabis for personal use, but it is felt that legalizing its use must be better balanced with the effects of...

Environment Minister Aaron Farrugia has apologised for his reaction over a satirical Facebook post.It all started on Wednesday evening, when a post making fun of the fact that Farrugia’s parents often step in to defend the minister was publishe...

Politician Arnold Cassola has filed judicial protest which will lead to a constitutional case over recent legislation regarding the corrective mechanism on proportionality and the gender top-up in the electoral law, arguing that it is discriminatory ...

A man was arrested by the police on Wednesday after he was caught in possession of synthetic drugs.The police said the arrest of the 19-year-old Egyptian was made in Herbert Ganado Garden in Floriana at 12.45am.Officers on patrol noted a few men who ...

Ten-man Atalanta wasted a chance to move into second place in Serie A with a 1-1 draw at Europa League semifinalist Roma on Thursday.Still, Atalanta extended its unbeaten streak to six matches.Also, Napoli beat visiting Lazio 5-2 to move within two p...

A protected 19th century fortress that is in desperate need of repair has been occupied illegally for decades and the authorities seem to be powerless to do anything about it. We are speaking about Fort Bingemma, which has been occupied by the Buttig...

Four new judges were sworn in by President George Vella.They are (from left) Christian Falzon Scerri, Neville Camilleri, Ian Spiteri Bailey and Audrey Demicoli.This was the first time in Maltese judicial history that judges were appointed after a cal...

A number of new services for victims of criminality were announced on Thursday at the launch of the Victim Support Agency.These include a care plan, legal services by lawyers and professionals who accompany victims during court hearings, a follow-up ...

A group of NGOs have teamed up together to form Volunteer Action Group (VAG) to call for the withdrawal and rethinking of the legislation on public collections and charity shops.This was announced in a press conference addressed by Stephania Dimech S...

Minister for Energy, Enterprise, and Sustainable Development Miriam Dalli has urged businesses to make use of Malta Enterprise’s schemes and support in their recovery plan post- pandemic. During a visit to the family-owned Techniplast Ltd, Mini...

Nexia BT's Brian Tonna told a parliamentary committee that he had "little to no contact" with the Labour Party before the 2013 election, although he said he did meet Keith Schembri and Joseph Muscat informally back then.Tonna was speaking at a Public...

In 2019, 2,565 individuals made use of services available to those experiencing domestic violence. Of these, 80.2 per cent were females, the NSO said today.When compared to 2016, the number of persons in 2019 who used services offered to those experi...

The Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry said that Marthese Portelli will be joining its dynamic staff complement in the role of Chief Executive Officer as from 1 June 2021.A graduate in law, former PN MP Portelli brings with her a weal...

The tourism sector on Gozo said it is keenly awaiting the day when the island starts receiving the first foreign arrivals in its accommodation. It is hoped that the targeted date of 1 June, 2021 for the reopening for foreign tourists will be the...

Slow out of the gate, the European Union has ramped up its COVID-19 vaccination efforts, with the distribution of the Johnson & Johnson one-shot product this week adding to the momentum amid doggedly high infection rates on the continent.The EU's...

One of the largest reports on COVID-19 vaccination in pregnancy bolsters evidence that it is safe although the authors say more comprehensive research is needed.The preliminary results are based on reports from over 35,000 U.S. women who received eit...

India reported a global record of more than 314,000 new infections Thursday as a grim coronavirus surge in the world's second-most populous country sends more and more sick people into a fragile health care system critically short of hospital beds an...

The Super League is far from dead and its clubs have not given up on the idea of the breakaway competition despite having to shelve the project just a few days after it was announced, Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez said on Thursday.P&e...

24 new cases of Covid-19 were reported by health authorities on Wednesday as 65 more people recovered from the virus.No new deaths were registered in the last 24 hours.The number of active cases of the virus in Malta currently stands at 522.1,992 swa...

People aged 40 and over are eligible to apply for their vaccine as from this Friday, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Health announced on Wednesday afternoon.Registration for this group will be made possible through SMS and online applications,...

A lawyer who was given a lucrative government direct orders before she received her warrant has terminated her contract, Transport Minister Ian Borg said Wednesday.Times of Malta reported earlier this week how Adreana Zammit had been awarded a €...

Just two days after Vince Muscat spoke to the police, while in prison, the Degiorgio brothers showed him that they knew of the contents of his conversation, the court heard yesterday.Muscat was testifying in the compilation of evidence against brothe...

The government should reopen restaurants next week and vaccinate all hospitality workers by 1 June, the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association said.It said restaurants, including those at hotels, which are currently not even allowed to serve breakf...

The idea of creating clear guidelines regarding adverts would help, but the laws is still clear and should be followed, Standards Commissioner Gerorge Hyzler told the Standards Committee.This comes after a report published by Hyzler had found that.OP...

Standards Commissioner George Hyzler has fired back at Labour Whip Glenn Bedingfield, dismissing claims by the MP as ‘unfounded.’On Monday, Bedingfield tore into the Standard Czar’s office, saying that Hyzler was failing to abide by...

A tough week for Manchester City and Tottenham, two of the rebel clubs in the aborted Super League project, got even more difficult when they fell behind on their return to Premier League action on Wednesday.Both teams recovered to register vita...

Inter Milan was held to a 1-1 draw at relegation-threatened Spezia but still extended its lead at the top of the Serie A table on Wednesday.Ivan Perišić canceled out Diego Farias’ opener for Spezia as Inter moved 10 points above sec...

All accommodation and catering taxes due for 2020 and 2021 would be paid over a period of 5 years (2022-2027) under a PN Government, the PN said as it announced its tourism strategy today.The PN launched a 10-year plan titled ‘2+8’, signa...

In recent days, graffiti vandals have targeted the Curia offices in Floriana as well Independence garden in Sliema, defacing premises by spray painting anti-vaccine messages on the walls. The spray painted on the recently-restored façade ...

Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said that the proposed reforms with regards to pre-1995 rents are “beneficial as it is always better to do something rather than nothing, but they are not enough.”Speaking in Parliament on Wednesday about t...

Atlético Madrid, Inter Milan, AC Milan and Juventus all dropped out of the Super League on Wednesday, leaving the new competition essentially extinct before it even started.Only Spanish clubs Real Madrid and Barcelona are still officially invo...