A biker died early this morning in a crash in Sliema, the police said.The man, an Italian aged 45 resident in Gzira, lost control of the Honda bike he was riding and crashed.The man fell of the bike and hit the pavement, the police said.He was certif...

Mandatory wearing of face masks is back as from Saturday as the number of daily registered cases, active cases and hospitalisations has shot up.Malta has registered 2,240 cases of Covid-19 in the last 28 days, according to statistics on the Johns Hos...

DBRS Ratings GmbH (DBRS Morningstar) confirmed Malta’s Long-Term Foreign and Local Currency – Issuer Ratings at A (high), but says that the impact of Malta’s grey-listing by the Financial Action Trask Force “remains unclear&rd...

A passenger in a car was grievously injured in a collision which took place in St Julian’s this morning, the police said.The accident took place in Mikiel Anton Vassalli Street at 7am.It involved a Toyota Corolla driven by a 38-year-old man of ...

In the resurrection of an issue which dominated the news cycle for quite a few days earlier in the year, environmental activists have again been proven right by independent institutions – this time on the building of a road in Dingli by Infrast...

Tighter restrictions to curb the coronavirus came into force in Britain on Friday, as the government faced new allegations that officials flouted rules they had imposed on the nation with lockdown-breaking parties last Christmas.Face masks are once a...

Facing a cold-weather surge in COVID-19 infections, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Friday that masks will be required in all indoor public places unless the businesses or venues implement a vaccine requirement.Hochul said the decision to reinst...

Cyrus Engerer has been entrusted by the Group of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament to lead negotiations on the Waste Shipment Regulation, a Labour Party statement said.This is the tenth report that the Member of the European Parliam...

The Responsible Gaming Foundation has provided financial assistance to the Baden Powell Scout Group of Żebbuġ, through which kayaks will be purchased enabling the scouts of this locality to continue with their work, which is complementary t...

The winners of the Premju Soċjetà Ġusta, which celebrates the work, commitment and dedication of various individuals in the disability sector, were announced on Friday.This is an annual event forming part of the activities organised ...

The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries, Food and Animal Rights Anton Refalo has launched the ‘Sajjar Frisk u Lokali’ campaign to promote the use of local products and to appreciate products from Maltese and Gozitan farmers.The minister e...

For the thirteenth time in a row, Malta has been elected to the Council of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the United Nations’ governing body in charge of regulating the maritime sector. This election took place yesterday in Lond...

Education Minister Justyne Caruana breached ethics when her ministry gave a €15,000 contract to former footballer Daniel Bogdanovic. Independent candidate Arnold Cassola said he had been informed by Standards Commissioner George Hyzler that...

88 new cases were reported by health authorities on Friday, as an elderly man became the 470th victim of the pandemic in Malta.Authorities said that the 470th victim is a 73-year-old man.59 people have meanwhile recovered from the virus, meaning that...

A petition calling for changes to the proposed cannabis legalisation law will not be discussed by Parliament’s petitions committee because it has till February before it elapses, the chairman of the committee said.Long-time PL MP Joe Mizzi, who...

A Briton who had spent time hiding in Malta and was eventually arrested and extradited has been convicted of torture and murder by a UK court. Harrowing details about the case emerged in court, including how Christopher Guest More had tried to slice ...

Italian critic Vittorio Sgarbi has described Maltese European Commissioner Helena Dalli as a “moron” and a “cretin” for attempting to cancel Christmas from the official European jargon.Speaking during Bruno Vespa’s highl...

The Court of Appeal has confirmed the 2018 judgement rescinding two contracts through which businessman Mark Gaffarena and his wife Josielle had received around €1.65 million through an irregular expropriation of their share of the part-ownershi...

The Met Office has issued a warning on strong winds that are to hit the Maltese Islands over the weekend.The Force 5 wind on Friday afternoon will increase to Force 7 by tonight and further to force 8 on Saturday.Rain is expected on Friday and Saturd...

MEP Alex Agius Saliba has launched the ‘Adopt a Tree’ Campaign in collaboration with Callus Garden Centre.This initiative will be implemented across a two-year span. The aim of this campaign is to increase the awareness and the need of mo...

The President of the Malta Institute of Accountants has called for a timely exit from the FATF grey-list, but not at the cost of stifling business with “over-regulation and excessive bureaucracy.” President of the Malta Institute of ...

The Minister for the Economy and Industry Silvio Schembri opened the new Ta’ Qali Crafts Village Scheme in a press conference on the site on Friday.The government acknowledges the true work and commitment which workers of businesses in Ta&rsquo...

A 58-year-old man was grievously injured on Friday after falling off a ladder, police said.In a statement, the police said that the accident took place at around 11:30am inside a residence in Triq Fra Guzeppe in Pembroke.Preliminary investigations sh...

The Nationalist Party harshly criticised the civil service chief’s “attack” on the Ombudsman, while accusing the government of undermining the institutions.In comments to the media earlier this week, the Principal Permanent Secretar...

Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar urgently called on Environment Minister Aaron Farrugia, responsible for the Planning Authority, to immediately stop the ongoing destruction of a farmhouse in Xewkija by issuing an Emergency Conservation Order wit...

The Nationalist Party is seeking an urgent meeting of parliament’s petitions committee to discuss the cannabis law before a vote is taken on Tuesday.In a statement, the PN said that it had made a formal request on 7 December and had also made c...

The Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry appeals for caution and to keep in mind the national interest in matters related to energy provision.It is therefore imperative that we find ways of addressing concerns related to the existing ag...

As of Saturday, families and pensioners will start receiving the first payments related to Children’s Allowance, aid for Children with Disabilities, Supplementary aid and Financial aid for Individuals without a fixed address, Minister for Solid...

Rescue workers rushing to a highway accident found a horrific scene of death and injury after a freight truck jammed with as many as 200 migrants tipped over and crashed into the base of a steel pedestrian bridge in southern Mexico.The migrants insid...

Maltese European Commissioner Helena Dalli was in the international news for the wrong reasons these past few days.Her office came up with the idea of eliminating the use of the word “Christmas” in official greetings, going as far as to s...

The wearing of face masks will once again become mandatory in all public places as from this Saturday, Health Minister Chris Fearne announced.People walking in the street - both vaccinated and unvaccinated -  in their own will also be required t...

A British appellate court opened the door Friday for Julian Assange to be extradited to the United States by overturning a lower court ruling that found the WikiLeaks founder's mental health was too fragile to withstand the American criminal justice ...

The Nationalist Party has called on the government to scrap its contract with Electrogas, saying that failing to do so would be putting Malta’s EU funding at risk.The PN said that it had strongly criticised the Labour government when it jeopard...

Yorgen Fenech’s lawyers have asked the Criminal Court to declare 'inadmissible as evidence' the information Fenech had disclosed to the police whilst in a “vulnerable state”, after being promised that it would only be used in o...

A 64-year-old man has become the 469th person to die while positive for Covid-19 in Malta, as the country reported 81 new cases of the virus on Thursday.107 people have recovered, meaning that the number of active cases has decreased to 1,336.27 pati...

Claims that the government would have to pay €100 million to Electrogas if it builds a gas pipeline are “factually incorrect”, Energy Minister Miriam Dalli said on Thursday. Dalli said the government would only be paying the energy c...

A planning application to redevelop the existing Naxxar trade fair grounds car park into two medium-raise mixed use buildings was approved by the PA board on Thursday.The proposed development will include two separate buildings, one of 9 floors and a...

The courts have cancelled planning permission for a waterpolo pitch and other ancillary facilities in Marsascala Bay, following an appeal by NGO Moviment Graffitti.The same NGO announced that the permit – which was granted by the Planning Autho...

Rent subsidy scheme aimed at providing for up to 50% of businesses warehouse and storage rent expenses has been expanded and amended to include multiple sectors. CEO of Malta Enterprise Kurt Farrugia announced that throughout 2021, 16 businesses...

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Health Chris Fearne launched Crisis Resolution Home Treatment, a new mental health service in attempt to improve mental health care in the country.“The stigma around mental health has over the years been e...

Villarreal clinched the final place in the last 16 of the Champions League on Thursday, while Leicester failed to advance in the Europa League.Villarreal beat Atalanta 3-2 away in a game postponed from Wednesday because of heavy snow in northern Ital...

The World Health Organization says early evidence suggests the omicron variant may be spreading faster than the highly transmissible delta variant but brings with it less severe coronavirus disease -– though it’s too early to make firm co...

The last three months of 2021 (especially October) were encouraging for Air Malta, a spokesperson told The Malta Independent, but problems have since cropped up.“Ongoing lack of customer confidence in making bookings, social uneasiness, the con...

The Education Ministry has failed to make a distinction between the national education curriculum, the Malta Union of Teachers said in a statement on Thursday.In a statement reacting to an Education Ministry announcement on Tuesday – which said...

US President Joe Biden has nominated businesswoman and philanthropist Constance J. Milstein as Ambassador to Malta. The announcement was made on the official website of the White House. According to a biography uploaded on the website, Milstein is an...

Vaccine makers are racing to update their COVID-19 shots against the newest coronavirus threat even before it’s clear a change is needed, just in case.Experts doubt today’s shots will become useless but say it’s critical to see how ...

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced tighter restrictions Wednesday to stem the spread of the omicron variant, urging people in England to again work from home and mandating COVID-19 passes for entrance into nightclubs and large events.John...

A planning application seeking permission to redevelop the existing Naxxar trade fair grounds car park into two medium-raise mixed use buildings, with underlying four interconnected basement levels goes before the PA board, Thursday.The proposed deve...

Rachel Attard has resigned from The Malta Independent and has joined the Malta Chamber of Commerce as media and communication strategist.For the last eight years, Attard worked at TMI as news editor, editor-in-chief and lately as media consultant.The...

New Zealand's government believes it has come up with a unique plan to end tobacco smoking — a lifetime ban for those aged 14 or younger.Under a new law the government announced Thursday and plans to pass next year, the minimum age to buy cigar...

An elderly woman was seriously injured on Wednesday after falling in a street in Santa Venera, the police said.The accident took place in Ferrovija Street at 1pm.The woman, aged 93, from Santa Venera, was taken to Mater Dei Hospital with serious inju...

42% of businesses that responded to a survey by the Chamber of SMEs expect to see better sales during the festive season than 2020, while a further 11% of businesses feel that this festive season will be closer to 2019 levels.This shows that the majo...

The Commissioner for the Environment and Planning within the Office of the Ombudsman, Alan Saliba, has found that Infrastructure Malta did not follow procedure over road works in Dingli.The works in question had seen Moviment Graffitti organise prote...

The Courts of Malta issued new guidelines regarding the erasure of court judgements from the court's website.The removal or alteration of any judgements will take place if the director-general of the court believes there are valid grounds to do so. T...

Matthew Caruana Galiza has said that the issue concerning EU funding of a proposed gas pipeline connecting Malta and Sicily has brought about a "moral emergency" for the EU.Daphne Caruana Galizia's family has joined forces with two MEPs, Claudia Gamo...

87 new cases of Covid-19 were registered on Wednesday as 61 people recovered from the virus.This brings up the number of active cases in Malta to 1,363.Currently, 26 people are being treated at Mater Dei Hospital, four of whom are in the ITU.978,775 ...

Following the presentation to Parliament of a petition signed by 56 constituted bodies, organisations and individuals proposing a number of amendments to the cannabis reform Bill, the general public now has the opportunity to sign a petition directly...

On 25 November 2021, the Court of Justice of the European Union (the “CJEU”) delivered a preliminary ruling in StWL Städtische Werke Lauf a.d. Pegnitz GmbH (“StWL”) v. eprimo GmbH (“eprimo”) (C-102/20) on cert...

Through the GiFluid project, the Rabat local council will benefit from a €1 million investment to implement community projects to increase the efficient use of water, a government statement read.This project is being financed by the programme In...

A 66-year-old woman was seriously injured after falling from a height of one storey, the police said.The accident occurred at 11.15am in a residence on Triq ir-Ramla, Nadur. The woman fell down a shaft.She was taken to the Gozo General Hospital. Inve...

24 local councils ended the year 2020 with a deficit, while the capital cities of both Malta and Gozo were found to be in a most alarming financial state, the National Audit Office said in a report on Tuesday.22 out of the 24 local councils which inc...

Notice the way politicians answer questions put to them.They hardly ever give a straight answer, preferring to go round in circles, often arriving nowhere. By the time they finish answering, they would not even remember the question that they had bee...

53% of businesses expect to see better sales during the festive season when compared to the same period in 2020, a survey by the Malta Chamber of SMEs shows.The majority, at 42%, expect to see better sales than 2020. 11% of businesses feel that this ...

Pope Francis blasted EU Commissioner Helena Dalli’s controversial Christmas language guide as an “anachronism”, not much unlike that which was tried by dictatorships such as that of Nazi Germany.The European Commission last week ret...

International media and press freedom organisations have written to Prime Minister Robert Abela and Minister for Justice, Equality and Governance Edward Zammit Lewis to express concern about Legal Notice L.N. 456 of 2021 and the online publication of...

86 new cases of Covid-19 were reported by health authorities on Tuesday.62 people meanwhile have recovered, and with no new deaths reported for another day the number of active cases of the virus currently stands at 1,337.22 patients are currently re...

Three red cards, on-field brawls, countless chances and a flurry of late goals. A wild, win-or-bust match in the Champions League between Porto and Atletico Madrid had it all on Tuesday.In the end, it was Atletico celebrating a place in the last 16 o...

A court has been told how a man accused of a shooting in Iklin had admitted to the crime immediately and that the Police had also arrested the victim, whilst he was still in hospital, after receiving information that he had been trying to s...

Malta's decision to administer the Covid-19 booster shots early was a wise decision to combat the virus, Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne said.He spoke during a meeting of the EU Council of Health Ministers. He stressed the need for EU citizens to ...

The government has announced the final Single-Use Plastic Strategy and Long-Term Waste Management Plan.Environment Minister Aaron Farrugia said that Malta has reached a better position in the waste management scale amongst European member states, add...

‘Extravagance’ in the use of public funds by the Malta Film Commission (MFC), coupled with poor budgetary controls led to a negative working capital of over €1 million in 2020, the National Audit Office has said.This emerged in the A...

The Nationalist Party has asked Parliament to convene the Petitions Committee to discuss a petition regarding the cannabis reforms that was received on Tuesday.A vote was taken on the third reading of the bill today, but a division was called, meanin...

A Christmas attraction outside City Gate in Valletta has been temporarily closed because of damage caused to some structures by the wind, the organisers said.The attraction was due to be officially opened by Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo this even...

The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries, Food and Animal Rights announced Adopt a Pet Day on the 16th of January 2022, a day where the public and several animal rights NGOs are invited for a day of appreciation for animals, as well as get the opportu...

As the omicron coronavirus variant spreads in southern Africa and pops up in countries all around the world, scientists are anxiously watching a battle play out that could determine the future of the pandemic. Can the latest competitor to the world-d...

The Government of Malta has donated 131,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses to the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Health Ministry and Foreign Affairs ministry said in a joint statement.This sharing of vaccines was undertaken with the assistan...

The U.S. will stage a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing t o protest Chinese human rights abuses, the White House confirmed Monday, a move that China has vowed to greet with “firm countermeasures.”Whit...

San Gwann residents are complaining about loud Christmas carols being played from loudspeakers in the streets of the locality, which they say is causing an inconvenience.Residents writing in the San Gwann Residents group on Facebook have said that th...

Transport Malta has suspended all driving tests pending further notice.The agency said on its Facebook page that as a precautionary measure and to align with the guidelines issued by the Maltese Health Authorities, the DPTTU (Driver Permits, Testing ...

Malta’s position on the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) grey list is an issue that, as more time passes, will see more negative effects on the country.FIAU deputy director Alfred Zammit told The Malta Independent on Sunday during an ...

The Chamber of Pharmacists has joined a chorus of voices calling on President George Vella not to sign the cannabis reform Bill. The Bill has reached it third and final reading stage. Several NGOs, the Church and the Opposition have complained that t...

A 71-year-old man from Valletta who was charged late last month with sending threatening letters to public figures was released on bail on Monday after a court heard more victims testify in the criminal proceedings against him.Joseph Mary Borg had be...

Minister for Equality, Research and Innovation Owen Bonnici said today that there will be adequate fines for those who expose cannabis to minors, both publicly and in private residencies.Speaking to the Malta Independent, Bonnici said that there are ...

81 new cases of Covid-19 were reported by health authorities on Monday, as the number of hospitalisations increased.61 people meanwhile have recovered, and with no new death reported it means that the number of active cases has risen to 1,313.22 pati...

Alessandro Farrugia has resigned as Communications Director of the Nationalist Party.In a statement, the PN said Farrugia has resigned due to “personal reasons.”Simon Vella Gregory has been appointed Acting Communications Director of Info...

WasteServ has appealed to people to separate their waste in a more effective manner, although they noted that while landfilling remains high, 2021 was a productive year for recyclables.Although the landfilling figures are an improvement over prior on...

Money laundering proceedings filed against Yorgen Fenech continued briefly on Monday, with the court reprimanding the prosecution for failing to summon sufficient witnesses to fill the hour-long sitting.Fenech stands accused of committing acts o...

The Auditor General, Charles Deguara, presented the Annual Audit Report on the Public Accounts for 2020 to Speaker of the House of Representatives Anglu Farrugia yesterday.It comprises 42 write-ups on the operations of several Government Ministries, ...

The Nationalist Party is presenting a motion in Parliament with the aim of annulling Legal Notice 456 regarding the Regulation on the Online Publication of Court Judgements.The Legal Notice gives complete discretion to the director-general of the cou...

Malta International Airport on Saturday welcomed the first two flights from Zagreb and Parma, which will be operated on Tuesdays and Saturdays throughout winter by Lauda Europe and Malta Air respectively, both of which are part of Ryanair Holdings.&n...

A corporate service provider has been handed a fine by the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) over their failure to submit a suspicious transaction report and/or a suspicious activity report to the authority in relation to three of their cli...

An 84-year-old man is in danger of dying after he lost control of his car and crashed in a traffic accident in Gozo on Monday morning.Police said that they were informed of the incident at around 10:15am, in Triq Tas-Srug in Xaghra, Gozo.Preliminary ...

A €200,000 investment by the Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST) was crucial for the creation of a collaborative project between scientists from the Department of Physics (including members of the Electromagnetics group) and the Inst...

The Labour Party has collected €577,221 in its last fund-raising activity of the year, held on Sunday.In a statement, the PL said party leader and Prime Minister Robert Abela thanks all those who contributed.

Italy is making life more uncomfortable for unvaccinated people as the holidays draw near, excluding them from indoor restaurants, theaters and museums to reduce the spread of coronavirus and encourage vaccine skeptics to get their shots.Starting Mon...

The Nationalist party today issued several proposals to help the voluntary sector.PN MPs Kevin Cutajar, Claudette Buttigieg and Ivan Bartolo presented an extensive list of the party's proposals for the sector. They said that the PN will exempt VAT wh...

Politicians, businessmen and other top officials managed to avoid paying traffic fines for the last five years after a LESA employee continuously deleted them from the authority’s database.According to a report in the Times of Malta, the offici...

Gwida, the oldest magazine in Malta, will stop being published in the current format as from 2022, its outgoing editor said in the last edition.The magazine, which largely covers entertainment and television, was first published in 1962. For many yea...

The students at Marsaskala’s St. Anne primary school are the latest from the local community to voice their concerns against the government’s proposed yacht marina at the locality’s bay.The Marsaskala St. Anne Primary School took to...

After a prolonged campaign of public opposition, Captain Morgan on Saturday finally listened and dropped its plans to build a ferry jetty at Balluta Bay in St. Julian’s.The company said that they had taken the decision because “the sentim...