There are no negotiations currently taking place between the government and Steward Health Care Malta over the hospitals concession agreement, a spokesperson for the company confirmed with The Malta Independent.The government had often said that it w...

Eurowings and the Lufthansa Group have decided to establish the Maltese company Eurowings Europe Ltd. in March 2022 and to apply for an Air Operator Certificate in the country, Eurowings told The Malta Independent.Eurowings is a Lufthansa subsidiary....

The Labour Party is pledging to give €1,000 per year to first-time buyers for 10 years from when they have bought their home.Prime Minister and PL leader Robert Abela announced the proposal while addressing a press conference on Wednesday mornin...

Prime Minister Robert Abela said that the scrapping of the Marsascala marina project is not a vote of no confidence in Minister Ian Borg, who was defending the project until last week.On Tuesday, Abela said that the government was cancelling the plan...

Prime Minister Robert Abela announced on Tuesday evening that after numerous discussions held with Infrastructure Minister Ian Borg as well as Marsascala residents, the Marsascala yacht marina plan has been scrapped.The project has been the topic of ...

Nationalist Party leader Bernard Grech said on Tuesday that the PN, alongside NGOs, local councils and pressure groups, have succeeded in pressuring the government to finally stop the Marsascala yacht marina project.Prime Minister Robert Abela announ...

The Labour Party and the Nationalist Party came out with their first major proposal on Monday, and both hit the ground running.The PN have pledged to invest €1 billion to generate 10 new economic sectors. This is a large amount of money. Ha...

Nationalist Party leader Bernard Grech said that he has not asked any electoral candidates to leave the party or not to contest the upcoming general election.He made this statement while maintaining that he wanted new faces and a youthful element in ...

PL Leader Robert Abela has a 22.2% advantage over PN Leader Bernard Grech in terms of who people think is the best person to lead the country, the results of a survey released by statistician Vince Marmara reads.The survey was carried out between 17 ...

A Labour Party in government pledges to widen the tax bands to leave €66 million in people’s pockets, Prime Minister Robert Abela said.This will be the largest ever widening of the tax bands, which will hit mostly people with low and mediu...

Prime Minister Robert Abela was coy when asked whether he would be involving Joseph Muscat in his electoral campaign, saying that – unlike the PN – he does not reject those whom he disagrees with. Abela was very cautious in answering...

A new Nationalist government will give an annual grant of €300 to parents of students under the age of 18 who take part in a structured extracurricular programme, Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said on Tuesday.The programme must be registered w...

An investment of almost €40 million in the construction of a new apron, which will equip the airport with the aerodrome infrastructure needed to handle future growth, was today given the green light by Malta International Airport's Board of Dire...

The tax refund and supplementary cheques promised in February will be distributed before election day, said Prime Minister Robert Abela on Tuesday.Asked by The Malta Independent whether the distribution of the two "gifts" from the government during t...

Dusan Vlahovic needed just 31 seconds to show Europe why Juventus chose him to fill the void left by Cristiano Ronaldo.The Serbia striker had a dream debut in the Champions League on Tuesday, scoring a superb goal after his first contact with the bal...

Chelsea could rely on Christian Pulisic and Kai Havertz for goals with misfiring Romelu Lukaku rested.The London club resumed its Champions League title defense by cruising to a 2-0 victory over Lille on Tuesday to take control of the round of 16 mat...

Today, ADPD - The Green Party Chairperson Carmel Cacopardo introduced the election campaign theme and slogan: Xkupa Ħadra Tnaddaf - Green Sweeps Clean.The country requires a good clean-up, he said. "Our message is one which proposes a commi...

Prime Minister Boris Johnson says Britain is slapping sanctions on five Russian banks and three wealthy individuals over Russia’s latest military moves on Ukraine.Johnson told lawmakers that sanctions would hit Rossiya Bank, IS Bank, General Ba...

Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said that he will sack anyone who taunted outgoing MP Mario Galea with his medical condition.Grech was reacting to a report in which Galea told MaltaToday that people close to the leadership "called out my mental healt...

Ninety new Covid-19 cases were recorded Tuesday, with one more death.With 91 patients who recovered, the number of active cases dipped by one, to 763.In all, there are 50 patients in hospital, of whom three are in intensive care.The latest victim is ...

Malta has condemned the decision of the Russian Federation to formally recognise the independence of the non-government controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk. This decision is a violation of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine, is ...

Plans for the site of the former Jerma Palace Hotel will not see an emphasis placed on building height, meaning that Marsascala’s St. Thomas Tower will be visible from the sea, the locality’s mayor Mario Calleja has been told.Asked about ...

Russia announced Tuesday that its recognition of independence for areas in eastern Ukraine extends to territory currently held by Ukrainian forces — further raising the stakes amid Western fears that Moscow a full-fledged invasion of Ukraine is...

Cheekily, someone on the social media asked whether Pope Francis will be addressing a mass meeting held to celebrate the election victory when he comes to Malta, just one week after the Maltese decide which political party will lead them for the next...

Reported profit before tax for HSBC Malta for the year ended 31 December 2021 was €26.9m. This represents an increase of €16.4m or 157% compared to prior year, the bank said in a statement. Adjusted profit before tax of €29.7m increase...

Almost a third of respondents in a Malta Communications Authority survey reported an increase in the number of parcel mail items received in the preceding 12 months, up from 27% in 2018.The main reason behind this increased parcel activity is the pre...

An American officer of Maltese descent was the only victim of a helicopter crash in California on Sunday.Nicholas Vella, a 14-year veteran, died in the crash, police Chief Eric Parra said Saturday night. Vella, 44 and of Maltese descent, leaves behin...

The Electoral Commission notifies voters registered in Gozo and who wish to collect their voting document/s from Malta and, vice-versa, voters registered in Malta wishing to collect their documents from Gozo, that they need to submit their written re...

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is scrapping the last domestic coronavirus restrictions in England, including the requirement for people with COVID-19 to self-isolate, even as he acknowledged Monday the potential for new and more deadly variants...

This Feb. 22, the world hits an unprecedented milestone. It’s the date itself: 2/22/22. And this so-called “Twosday” falls on a Tuesday, no less. It’s true the number pattern stands out, impossible to miss. But does it mean an...

Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said on Monday that Prime Minister Robert Abela announced a general election because he feared that the Labour Party would lose the majority vote.Grech was addressing a PN activity in Valletta.He reiterated the Nationa...

President George Vella has urged electoral candidates to honest and transparent about what they represent, and called on voters to fulfil their democratic right and vote in favour of the common good, not “sectoral or personal interests.”I...

Prime Minister Robert Abela said on Monday that the Labour Party campaign for the upcoming election has the sole aim of increasing the investment the government makes into the people. Addressing a political event in Qormi, he stated that a clear...

PN MP Claudio Grech said Monday he will not be contesting the upcoming general election in order to make space for newer candidates.He was the fourth MP to announce that he is pulling out of the election. The announcement was made during a PN ac...

The Labour Party has increased support over the 2017 general election, while the PN has lost further ground, according to an election survery by statistician Vince Marmara.The survey, the first to be released by Marmara in this election campaign, giv...

Former Nationalist Party Secretary General Clyde Puli and his fellow PN MPs Kristy Debono and Mario Galea have announced that they will not be contesting the forthcoming general election.Puli had already been listed on the PN’s website as a can...

A long-feared Russian invasion of Ukraine appeared to be imminent Monday, if not already underway, with Russian President Vladimir Putin ordering forces into separatist regions of eastern Ukraine.A vaguely worded decree signed by Putin did not say if...

Substitute Victor Osimhen headed in a late equalizer and Napoli drew at relegation-threatened Cagliari 1-1 on Monday to move within two points of the Serie A lead.Cagliari dominated for long periods before Osimhen redirected a long cross from Mario R...

Those eligible to vote in the upcoming 2022 general election can travel to Malta to cast their vote for €90 via Air Malta, the Department of Information has announced.In a statement on Monday, the DOI said that Air Malta will be making available...

The Court of Criminal Appeal has once again denied bail to brothers George and Alfred Degiorgio, who are indicted for carrying out the assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia 2017, saying the risk of public disorder should they be released...

Two more Covid-19 related deaths were recorded Monday, as the number of victims climbs to 598.The latest two victims were two men aged 68 and 78.The number of new cases registered Monday was 74, with 123 people who recovered.This brings the total num...

ADPD - The Green Party has officially announced its list of candidates for the 2022 election.District 1Dr Anthony ButtigiegDistrict 2Mario MalliaDistrict 3Brian DecelisDistrict 4Perit Carmel Cacopardo and Brian DecelisDistrict 5Dr Melissa BagleyDistr...

Nazzareno Bonnici, better known as Żaren tal-Ajkla, will be returning to the ballot sheet in the 2022 general election as a candidate.He will be a candidate on the 3rd and 13th districts.“I am proud to be among the big parties, and I am re...

Two elderly men were injured in a multi-car crash in Valletta on Monday morning.Police said in a statement that they were informed of a traffic accident involving a number of cars at around 11:15 on Monday in Triq Papa Piju V in Valletta.Preliminary ...

A pilot scheme, ‘Irrinova Darek’, for the renovation of privately-owned residential buildings will promote the sustainable regeneration of residential buildings of the Maltese islands and further safeguard our built heritage.Thi...

The Labour Party has expanded on its €700 million green spaces proposal during a press conference on Monday.This investment will lead to, among other things, St Anne's Street in Floriana being turned into a public garden and traffic being redire...

Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said Monday that a Nationalist government will obtain half of the €1 billion to be invested in the generation of 10 new economic sectors from public funds.Addressing his first press conference of the 2022 election...

Daren Debono has been jailed for six months and fined €4,600 for refusing to honour the conditions of his plea deal. His lawyer, Edward Gatt, gave notice of appeal as the sentence was handed down by Magistrate Victor Axiak this morning.Daren Deb...

Gozo has gone from "one extreme to another": from seeing a lack of investment a few years ago, to being overtaken by overdevelopment in the present day, Munxar Mayor Damien Spiteri has said.Spiteri was speaking during an interview with The Malta Inde...

Meikayla Moore scored a hat trick against the U.S. — of own goals.A perfect hat trick entirely in the first half: left foot, right foot and header.“She had a tough day at the office," New Zealand coach Jitka Klimkova said after the Americ...

Commissioner for Animal Welfare Alison Bezzina has called for increased awareness about the prejudices surrounding pitbulls after Foreign Affairs Minister Evarist Bartolo compared the canine breed with violent connotations."Will you vote for a pitbul...

Total outbound tourist trips between January and December 2021 numbered 303,067, an increase of 54.2% over 2020, the National Statistics Office said in a statement.The statistics relate to outbound tourism, which comprises of the activities of Maltes...

Robert Abela on Sunday finally sounded the starting claxon for Malta’s 2022 general election.  We knew it was coming – we just didn’t know exactly when.Now, after weeks, or months actually, of speculation, we know that Malta wi...

Prime Minister Robert Abela this evening presented what he said were the Labour Party’s first five proposals it pledges to carry out if elected to govern the country again.In a press conference given hours after he announced that the election w...

The Nationalist Party has pledged to allocate a billion euros to create 10 new economic sectors as its first electoral pledge.The Nationalist Party held a rally for its supporters on Sunday evening in what can be viewed as the official opening of its...

Prime Minister Robert Abela has finally revealed that Malta will go to the polls on Saturday 26 March, in just over a month’s time.The announcement came while Abela was addressing the Labour Party faithful in a political rally on the Granaries ...

President George Vella has officially dissolved Parliament, Prime Minister Robert Abela announced on Sunday afternoon.Abela went to San Anton Palace to recommend Parliament’s dissolution after he announced during a political party rally in Flor...

Opposition Leader Bernard Grech has said that “through joint work and effort between the Nationalist Party and this country’s population, we have a chance to give Malta the dignity and name it truly deserves.” This was PN leade...

Marsascala mayor Mario Calleja has lambasted Transport Malta’s proposed plans for a gigantic yacht marina in the locality’s bay, but left the door open for a “reorganisation” of the bay as long as it keeps key points which the...

People with COVID-19 won't be legally required to self-isolate in England starting in the coming week, the U.K. government has announced, as part of a plan for “living with COVID” that is also likely to see testing for the coronaviru...

Two men have died while positive for Covid-19, as health authorities announced 77 new cases of the virus in their daily update on Sunday.The authorities said that two men, aged 70 and 87 respectively, had died while positive for the virus between Sat...

The Malta Entertainment Industry and Arts Association (MEIA) has reiterated its call for the removal of all event restrictions and ongoing discrimination against the industry. This call comes after emerging photos of both political events organi...

Queen Elizabeth II tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday and is experiencing mild, cold-like symptoms, Buckingham Palace said.The palace said the 95-year-old British monarch will continue with light duties at Windsor Castle over the coming week.&ldq...

A Bill regulating the legal profession, which was presented last year, has been scrapped as government is holding discussions with the Chamber of Advocates which will lead to an overhaul of the legislation, sources told The Malta Independent on Sunda...

The Tourism Ministry has continued to refuse to answer questions about the cost of the Malta Film Awards, prompting The Malta Independent to file a Freedom of Information (FOI) request on the topic.The Malta Film Awards were held on 29 January this y...

Floriana gained another three precious points and are now just a point adrift of league leaders Hibernians. It was an entertaining match with opponents Gżira, after a rather difficult first half playing much better in the second period.In fact t...

Celebrating scoring Manchester United's fourth goal, Anthony Elanga held a finger to his lips. No way were the Leeds fans being silenced, though.No chance. Not when they'd waited 19 years to see their fiercest rival at Elland Road in the Premier Leag...

Inter Milan was upset 2-0 at home by midtable Sassuolo on Sunday, wasting a chance to leapfrog city rival Milan and go top of the Italian league.Leader Milan stumbled Saturday with a 2-2 draw at last-place Salernitana. Inter remains two points behind...

Political parties are drawing up their election manifestos, which they will then present to the public once the Prime Minister announces the date of the next election.Electoral programmes are the parties’ pledges to the people. They are the pro...

Russia extended military drills near Ukraine's northern borders Sunday amid increased fears that two days of sustained shelling along the contact line between soldiers and Russa-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine could spark an invasion. Ukraine's...

The newly-appointed Commissioner for Children, Antoinette Vassallo, sat down with journalist Semira Abbas Shalan from The Malta Independent on Sunday to discuss her new role as commissioner, as well as certain issues children are facing on a variety ...

15,769 reports of crime were received by the police in 2021, The Malta Independent on Sunday can reveal.The information was provided by the police in response to questions sent by this newsroom.According to the CrimeMalta Observatory’s Annual C...

What if museums didn’t have to have a passive, showcase-style approach with panels of information hiding the beautiful stone of the old walls? What if you could interact with the Knights of St John, watch them work, and even take pictures with ...

MALTA………….. 4Romania …… 18(1-5), (0-2), (2-3), (1-8)Malta ended its commitments in the European qualifiers with a heavy 18-4 defeat against Romania.It was a reality check for Karl Izzo's boys who could do lit...

Speculation is rife that Prime Minister Robert Abela will announce the election today or tomorrow. It is his last chance if an election is to be held next month. If that doesn’t happen, the PM would likely dissolve Parliament after Pope Francis...

Emma Muscat will be representing Malta at the Eurovision Song Contest with her song Out of Sight.Emma obtained 92 points, beating Aidan with the song Ritmu and Nicole Azzopardi with the song Into the Fire to second and third place with 72 and 36 poin...

The origins of the APS Summer Festival go back as recent as 2020, pandemic in full swing whilst lives and jobs were put on hold due to the partial lockdown. The artistic and creative industry was one of the worst hit industries, where in an already f...

Media personality John Bundy has too many favourite bands, so he picks more than one when asked about the one he likes the most.He cannot go by without knowing what time it is and is known with a particular nickname in his own home.Check out what inv...

William Chetcuti was born on 7 January, 1985. He is the son of Joe and Carmen Vella. Chetcuti is married to Stephanie Chetcuti nee’ Vella and has two children, Leah and Jade.How was William’s childhood? ‘My early days were at Manika...

The US Embassy will continue to assist local partners in building Malta’s capacity to strengthen its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing regimes, an embassy spokesperson told this newsroomThis newsroom contacted the embassy af...

Crews cleared fallen trees and worked to restore power to about 400,000 people in Britain as Western Europe cleaned up Saturday after one of the most damaging storms in years.At least 12 people were killed, many by falling trees, in Ireland, Britain,...

The British government confirmed Saturday that people with COVID-19 won't be legally required to self-isolate starting next week, as part of a plan for “living with COVID” that is also likely to see testing for the coronavirus s...

“Practically all” remaining COVID-19 restrictions will be removed by the beginning of May, Health Minister Chris Fearne said Saturday.Speaking on ONE Radio’s Sibt il-Punt this morning, Fearne said the plan is for standing events to ...

The number of new Covid-19 cases has continued to drop and, for the third day running, no deaths were reported, statistics issued by the health authorities said.Seventy-two cases were recorded, while the number of people who recovered was 162, bringi...

Enemalta on Saturday announced a €90 million investment to “ensure better supply of electricity in Maltese homes and buildings”, as well as the improvement of certain equipment and the quality of electricity reaching people’s h...

A points system has been introduced as part of a revision of the hunting law, the Gozo Ministry, which is also responsible for hunting, said Saturday.The amendment announced today mean that hunters who accumulate 12 penalty points over two years will...

Valletta: Chemimart, 20/21, Republic Street; Ħamrun: The Cross Pharmacy, 859, St Joseph High Road; Santa Venera: Fatima Pharmacy, 82, Ferrovija Street; Birkirkara: St Anne Pharmacy, 24, Sant’Elena Square; Pietà: St Luke's Pharmacy, ...

Flimkien Ghal Ambjent Ahjar coordinator Astrid Vella has resigned from the Intelligent Planning Consultative Forum, "as we cannot continue to form part of an organisation that is essentially a sham to give credibility to the environmental author...

Prime Minister Robert Abela and his government are only in politics “to become millionaires and to protect their criminal friends,” Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said on Saturday.Speaking on Net FM, Grech said Abela was wasting his time...

82.3% of participants in a survey about how the public views the media in Malta say that state broadcasting such as TVM and Radju Malta should operate independently from the government, with 77.5% saying that the quality of reporting would improve if...

President of Malta George Vella appealed for politics to be implemented for the benefit of the people. At the launch of the book ‘Kollox Politika? Governanza, Reliġjon, Ekonomija, Amministrazzjoni Pubblika’, by Dr Mario Tho...

Malta Lithuania (5-2), (4-3), (2-0), (8-0)Malta: N. Grixti, J. Muscat (5), A. Galea (1), J. Gambin (1), Da. Zammit, M. Zammit (5), B. Plumpton (2), J. Camilleri, J. Abela (2), N. Zammit (1), Z. Mizzi, Di. Zammit (2), J. TantiLithuania: S. Motuzas, K....

Birkirkara handed the first defeat of the season to leaders Hibernians beating the paolites by the odd goal in five in a spectacular match. The Stripes took a twogoal lead by the end of the first half, but Hibernians made a great comeback in the seco...

The Premier League title race really is back on.And it's all because of Harry Kane.The striker Manchester City wanted to sign in the offseason last year consigned the leaders to their first league loss in nearly four months by scoring twice for Totte...

Italian league leader AC Milan dropped crucial points in the title race after drawing 2-2 at last-place Salernitana on Saturday.Milan is two points ahead of defending champion Inter Milan, which has played two fewer games, and three points ahead of t...

Former European Commissioner John Dalli has said that not one shred of evidence was brought against him in two sittings.He was reacting to the decision taken on Friday by Magistrate Caroline Farrugia Frendo that enough evidence has been brought forwa...

Infrastructure Malta installed the first three frequency converters as part of the Grand Harbour Clean Air Project.This was announced by Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Capital Projects Ian Borg during a visit on site where these frequency...

Manchester United and VisitMalta are once again collaborating on a promotional campaign aimed at enticing Manchester United fans to choose Malta as their next travel destination.“Escape to Malta” takes us to the Maltese Manchester United ...

Musician and jazz pioneer Charles Gatt, known as 'is-City', has died aged 77. Gatt was instrumental for the creation of the Malta Jazz Festival, and served as its musical director for 15 years.He also led Malta’s school of music for a deca...