Air Malta has received 15,000 booking cancellations for travel during the month of July since Malta introduced restrictions on travel earlier this month.In June, Malta actively opened up for tourism, allowing both fully vaccinated and unvaccinated to...

Sammut’s appointment to the post of President of the General Council is part of a number of changes in top party positions that have been announced, having replaced Ċensu Galea. Another PN Stalwart who will be stepping aside is Franci...

The financial services watchdog will be led by a non-Maltese CEO for the first time since it was set up in 2002, The Malta Independent on Sunday can reveal. A new CEO has been chosen and will be announced in the coming days, sources have confirmed wi...

The Labour Party has recently presented a list of what it described were 100 ideas that were based on the principles of the past with a view to the future.The document is divided into 10 sections which deal with wealth, a just society, the environmen...

The fast ferry service which operates between Valletta’s Grand Harbour and the Mġarr Port in Gozo has had a “significant” impact on the Gozo Channel service since it started operating, Gozo Channel Chairperson Joe Cordina told ...

Site works for the Luqa Junction Project will begin shortly after having been approved by The Planning Authority, a spokesperson for roads agency Infrastructure Malta told The Malta Independent on Sunday. The project is expected to reduce travel time...

Malta cannot rest on what it has achieved so far, as doing so would endanger all of it, Prime Minister Robert Abela said on Sunday about the Covid-19 pandemic situation.The vaccine was also mentioned by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).  Ma...

MEP candidate and EU expert Peter Agius is expected to lead PN efforts to reach out to a wider electorate.He is expected to be appointed as the PN's Chief Spokesperson in charge of coordinating the PN message to effectively reach out to sectors of in...

Malta’s reputation and the future of our financial services sector have taken another severe blow after the UK placed Malta on its high-risk list for money laundering and terrorist financing. The move comes hot on the heels of Malta’s gre...

With all British schools now closed for the summer, airports and airlines were looking a tad more normal on Saturday, although the number of families heading off for warmer climes remains way down from before the coronavirus pandemic.This weekend tra...

The Latest on the Tokyo Olympics, which are taking place under heavy restrictions after a year’s delay because of the coronavirus pandemic:Iranian defector Kimia Alizadeh has shocked two-time Olympic gold medalist Jade Jones at the Tokyo Games,...

171 cases of Covid-19 were found overnight and an elderly woman died in hospital while positive for the virus, the health authorities said.The woman who died was 73 years old.This was the first Covid death in over a month, with the last one reported ...

This Voxpop was conducted over two days in mid-July at Bizazza Street, Sliema and Republic Street, Valletta. Several females in their 20s stated that even though vaccinated, they believe one should continue to wear a mask outside − even when al...

The European Medicines Agency on Friday recommended authorizing Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 12 to 17, the first time the shot has been authorized for people under 18.The EU drug regulator said research in more than 3,700 childr...

Earlier this week, Justice Minister Edward Zammit Lewis announced that certain petty crimes will be dealt with by the Justice Commissioners, rather than the Court of Magistrates. The move aims to increase efficiency at the Courts of Law by easing the...

Both the Attorney General as well as two architects have appealed a court judgment in which the two men were found guilty of the involuntary homicide of Miriam Pace when her house in Hamrun collapsed next to an excavation site.Last month Perit Roderi...

Floriana: Floriana Dispensary,29, Vincenzo Dimech Street; Ħamrun: Lister Pharmacy, 678, St Joseph High Road; Qormi: Anici Pharmacy, Anici Street; Birkirkara: Brown's Pharmacy, 32, Fleur-de-Lys Road; Ġżira: Tony's Pharmacy, 100, Sir Pat...

Tens of people gathered in Valletta this morning to protest against vaccination and other measures implemented to combat the spread of Covid-19.The protestors, many of whom did not wear masks, walked from Castille Square to the Parliament building, c...

The British government has sought to ease food supply pressures in England by exempting more than 10,000 workers from quarantine rules that led to staff shortages and empty shelves and fears of panic-buying.However, it has come under criticism Friday...

The Latest on the Tokyo Olympics, which are taking place under heavy restrictions after a year’s delay because of the coronavirus pandemic:Beach volleyball player Phil Dalhausser has had a rough start to the Tokyo Games.The four-time Olympian a...

A motorcyclist was grievously injured after he lost control of the bike he was riding and crashed, the police said.The accident took place in Valleya Road, Iklin, at 6.15pm on Friday.The biker, a 25-year-old man resident in Iklin, was taken to hospit...

It is a shame that the tourism industry is expecting special treatment, taking advantage of the Covuid-19 pandemic, ADPD The Green Party said. At a press conference in Floriana today, Deputy Secretary General Sandra Gauci noted that it is a shame tha...

Voluntary organisations have benefited from a quarter of a million euro investment thanks to two schemes issued by the government to enable them to install photovoltaic systems on their property for free.Through the second call issued by the Ministry...

The quarantine period for fully vaccinated people who come into contact with Covid-positive persons will soon go from 14 days down to 5.The announcement was made by Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne during an interview with Times of Malta. Fearne sa...

Following the rehabilitation works of the main façade of the Archbishop’s Curia in Floriana, a new lighting system was inaugurated. This coincided with the feast of St Calcedonius, which is being celebrated today (24th July), whose remai...

Prime Minister Robert Abela took aim at the opposition during his closing speech of the PL's General Council, calling the PN amateurish and criticising the PN's actions during the pandemic."Less than two months after I took over, the pandemic hit," h...

The Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry, and the General Workers’ Union signed a framework agreement on active ageing and intergenerational approach to ensure a healthy, safe, and productive working environment to enable workers ...

A search and rescue operation continued into the night Friday off the coast of the Greek island of Crete for several people believed missing a day after a sailboat carrying dozens of migrants sank in high winds.Greece’s coast guard said 37 peop...

The Environment and Resources Authority has approved the Environmental Impact Assessment for the construction of a Malta-Sicily gas pipeline.The authority held a public meeting on the proposal, which consists of the construction of a new access road,...

A group of Marsaskala residents have written to Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo, expressing their concerns about the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA) Design Contest and its ‘regeneration plans.’ The letter was also sent to Prime Minister Ro...

8,323 vaccines were administered at walk-in clinics this past week, Health Minister Chris Fearne has said.Hundreds of people turned up for vaccination against Covid-19 in a walk-in temporary clinic in Spinola Bay, St Julian's today.This is the third ...

Roselyn Borg Knight has submitted her nomination for the post of the PN's International Secretary.She currently holds the post, and thus if chosen, she will retain it.In a post on Facebook, Borg Knight said that she submitted her nomination after hol...

A man has been charged with sexually molesting a young girl with the court hearing how she suffered severe psychological trauma from three alleged incidents.The 42-year-old from Żurrieq, who cannot be named by court order, was arraigned this aft...

One hundred and seventy two new Covid-19 cases were registered on Thursday, health authorities said.In all, the number of cases have edged closer to 3,000 - 2,497 to be precise - as the patients who recovered totalled 65.Since the first case was regi...

The ICT sector in Malta is expected to require an increase in nearly 22 per cent employment opportunities in the next 10 years, it was announced today.Whether the number of people required will be supplied for the expected increase however remains to...

A major emergency drill was held at Delimara Power Station (DPS) today.This drill simulated a fuel leakage in a tank while maintenance works were taking place. Civil Protection personnel together with Enemalta's emergency response team were called on...

Belated and beleaguered, the virus-delayed Tokyo Summer Olympics finally opened Friday night with cascading fireworks and made-for-TV choreography that unfolded in a near-empty stadium, a colorful but strangely subdued ceremony that set a striking to...

Prime Minister Robert Abela’s way of leading as if everything is “business as usual” is not working, Opposition and PN leader Bernard Grech said.On Thursday, Malta was placed on the high-risk list in the UK for money laundering and ...

On Wednesday, the St John’s Co-Cathedral Foundation inaugurated the completion of the restorative works in the oratory and the opening of the Caravaggio Wing, at St John’s Co-Cathedral in Valletta.The ambitious oratory restoration and con...

Malta has been placed on the UK’s high-risk countries for money laundering and terrorist financing.This blow to Malta’s reputation comes weeks after Malta was placed on the grey list by the Financial Action Task Force.Ghana has been taken...

Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said he does not like it when people say that the Maltese people get the government they deserve.When he closed the Nationalist Party’s general council meeting on Saturday, Grech said that if one were to endorse ...

The Malta Chamber today urged the health authorities to rethink the existing quarantine measures which should be focused on a risk-based approach for fully vaccinated people.As over 81% of the adult population in Malta is fully vaccinated against COV...

Diabetes was a fatal disease before insulin was discovered on July 27, 1921. A century ago, people diagnosed with this metabolic disorder usually survived only a few years. Physicians had no way to treat their diabetic patients' dangerously high bloo...

“Whilst we need to work hard for a better and carbon-free environment, we cannot ignore the social impact this transaction will have,” MEP Josianne Cutajar said.Whilst intervening during the last meeting of the Committee on Industry, Rese...

The Latest on the Tokyo Olympics, which are taking place under heavy restrictions after a year’s delay because of the coronavirus pandemic:___Tennis star Naomi Osaka has lit the cauldron at the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Games, ending the fl...

The 166 new Covid-19 patients registered today have taken the tally of active cases to nearly 2,500, health authorities said.The total number of cases registered in malta has now climbed to 33,198, with 30,291 people who have recovered and 420 people...

Some €16 million in vouchers have been spent in the first six weeks since the second scheme was introduced, while 37,851 people are still to collect them from their respective post branches, Minister for Economy and Industry, Silvio Schembri, sa...

The Malta Tourism Authority (MTA) has issued a call to find a second quarantine hotel as the one currently in use is nearing full capacity. Currently, the Corinthia Marina in St Julian’s is being used as a Covid-19 quarantine for tourists. Sour...

The Malta Tourism Authority plans to continue flying Covid-positive English language students back to their home countries, a spokesperson for the authority told The Malta Independent.The first flight is scheduled for today, where around 100 positive...

The Superintendence of Cultural Heritage intervened on works being carried out by Infrastructure Malta in the vicinity of Wignacourt Aqueduct in Attard."The Superintendence has instructed the contractor to halt works until a site visit could be carri...

More than 500 of the 2,300 cases of Covid-19 students are students in Malta to learn English, while the first 58 Italian students have been repatriated, describing their return home as the end of a nightmare.Italian news agency Ansa reports that some...

A court has rejected a bid by four environmental NGOs and a number of landowners to challenge a decision exempting the release of large parcels of land for development, from a strategic environmental assessment.Flimkien Għal Ambjent Aħjar, ...

The International Monetary Fund has raised gross domestic product projections for Malta this year from 4.7% to 5.8%, a government statement said.As for next year, the growth is expected to be 6%, more than half a percentage point larger than the prev...

Reports of athletes, lawmakers and others getting the coronavirus despite vaccination may sound alarming but top health experts point to overwhelming evidence that the shots are doing exactly what they are supposed to: dramatically reducing severe il...

What is a COVID-19 vaccine “breakthrough” case?It’s when a fully vaccinated person gets infected with the coronavirus. A small number of such cases are expected and health officials say they're not a cause for alarm.COVID-19 va...

The Planning Authority Board has approved a new development in the area next to the former Trade Fair grounds in Naxxar.The site consists of an existing vacant plot at il-Gwejdja, partly facing Pjazza Celsi and is just off Triq il-Markiz Scicluna, wi...

The Corradino Correctional Facility has admitted that it had blocked a landline and mobile number of a journalist so that prisoners would not be able to call him, the Institute of Malta Journalists (IGM) said on Thursday.In reply to a complaint filed...

Malta stands out as a country with exceptionally fertile soil for the development of most forms of gambling, and the industry poses as one of the biggest contributors to its GDP. In fact, Malta was the first European country to come up with a legisla...

The Bank of Valletta branches of Balluta and Mqabba were closed today after an employee in each branch tested positive for Covid-19, BOV said.BOV said that the branches will be disinfected according to guidelines issued by the Health Authorities. It ...

Former Chamber of Commerce president David Xuereb has been appointed chairman of the Occupational Health and Safety Authority, the government said.An architect by profession, Xuereb has worked for years in sustainable design and green industry.He was...

Church bells rang out across Norway on Thursday, marking 10 years since the country’s worst ever peacetime slaughter as commemoration ceremonies took place throughout the day.On July 22, 2011, right wing extremist Anders Breivik set off a bomb ...

The Latest on the Tokyo Olympics, which are taking place under heavy restrictions after a year’s delay because of the coronavirus pandemic:A third athlete from the Czech Republic has tested positive for COVID-19 at the Tokyo Games.The Czech tea...

COVID-19 cases nearly tripled in the U.S. over two weeks amid an onslaught of vaccine misinformation that is straining hospitals, exhausting doctors and pushing clergy into the fray.“Our staff, they are frustrated," said Chad Neilsen, director ...

It’s the second summer which we are facing under the ever-present eye of the Covid-19 pandemic, and it’s the second summer where Malta has managed to bungle its tourism strategy.Two different ministers – Julia Farrugia Portelli last...

The Tokyo Olympic organizing committee fired the director of the opening ceremony on Thursday because of a Holocaust joke he made during a comedy show in 1998.Organizing committee president Seiko Hashimoto said a day ahead of the opening ceremony tha...

Libya's coast guard intercepted Wednesday four boats in the Mediterranean Sea carrying migrants trying to reach Europe, a U.N. official said. According to the migrants, 20 people from one of the vessels had gone overboard earlier in the day and were ...

Despite both government and Opposition MPs saying they are available to resume a meeting of the standards committee to discuss a report on Rosianne Cutajar, no date has been set yet for the next meeting. Parliament’s ethics committee is current...

Prime Minister Robert Abela has said that he is “heartened” by the positive reviews given to Malta’s fiscal and economic status by rating agencies, as he also vowed efforts will be “redoubled” so that Malta gets out of t...

199 cases of Covid-19 have been reported by health authorities, as active cases continue to increase but hospitalisations decrease.30 people have recovered from the virus, with no new deaths being recorded in the last 24 hours again.This means that t...

Although the financial industry has been thriving in Malta for a number of years, today Malta lacks the trust, credibility and reputation that it needs in order for the industry to continue to thrive, Opposition leader Bernard Grech said. Grech was s...

Over 1,800 people received the Covid-19 jab at the mobile centre, which was stationed in Zejtun on Wednesday.Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne said 1,824 had taken the vaccine. The mobile unit will be at St Julian’s on Friday.On Monday, over 2...

A man on Wednesday tried to pay a fine with just 1 cent coins at the Naxxar local council, an act which saw him end at the locality’s police station for his troubles.In a status on their Facebook page, the Naxxar local council said that the man...

To enable the courts to more efficiently tackle serious crimes, a reform has been announced that will see a number of “less serious” breaches of the law being handled by the Justice Commissioners.Justice Minister Edward Zammit Lewis said ...

The 2021 European Commission Rule of Law report has highlighted that “serious challenges remain as regards the efficiency of the justice system in Malta, in particular the length of court proceedings.” The report also found that the ...

Minister Michael Farrugia has been discharged from Mater Dei Hospital hospital after he was admitted to hospital on Tuesday.Farrugia announced that he had tested positive for Covid-19 on Sunday and as a result he was admitted to hospital for further ...

The Commissioner for Standards in Public Life, George Hyzler, has concluded that the government’s decision to lease the Downtown Hotel in Rabat, Gozo, for use as a home for the elderly did not represent an abuse of power or a breach of ethics.T...

Investing in innovation should encompass the principle of leaving no one behind, MEP Josianne Cutajar said.Speaking during the last plenary, the Socialists and Democrats MEP said that she was committed to research and innovation policy. "Research in ...

A new family park will be created in the area of Bengħajsa, in Birżebbuġa, through a €4 million investment, Minister for Energy and Enterprise Miriam Dalli, and Minister for Tourism and Consumer Protection Clayton Bartolo announce...

It will be Health chief Charmaine Gauci who will decide for how long Malta's travel restrictions will be retained, Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo told The Malta Independent on Wednesday.Under the current travel restrictions, all unvaccina...

Repubblika President Robert Aquilina has called on Police Commissioner Angelo Gafa not to fall for the political pressure exerted upon him by former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and his successor Robert Abela, and urged him to be the commissioner to ...

New vaccination certificates from foreign countries and territories are now being recognised by the Maltese authorities, a government statement read. As from yesterday, 21st July 2021, Malta officially recognises the digital Covid-19 vaccine cer...

Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Capital Projects Ian Borg visited the Malta National Park in Ta’Qali, where work is currently underway on three areas of this €20 million project, a government statement read. “It is good to...

The newly-completed €3 million Marsalforn waterfront project was inaugurated by Prime Minister Robert Abela together Minister for Gozo Clint Camilleri on Wednesday.This followed works conducted in the Menqa area. The deteriorated pier in Menqa h...

John Dalli has demanded an apology from NGO Repubblika for associating him with corruption during a protest outside the police headquarters on Tuesday. Dalli’s face was one of numerous to be placarded onto the gates of the police headquart...

The Latest on the Tokyo Olympics, which are taking place under heavy restrictions after a year's delay because of the coronavirus pandemic:Top-ranked shooter Amber Hill has tested positive for COVID-19 at home in Britain and will miss the Tokyo Olymp...

The number of licensed motor vehicles in Malta is increasing by an average of 43 per day, the latest statistics issued by the National Statistics Office show.The latest release provides information as to the second quarter of 2021. “At the end ...

217 new cases of Covid-19 were reported by health authorities on Tuesday – a tally which sees the number of active cases soar over the 2,000 case mark.Just three people were reported as having recovered and no new deaths were reported in the pa...

Emerging data shows that economic and social inequalities have persisted, indeed grown in the EU in recent years, with peripheral regions especially affected, Alfred Sant has stated in the European Parliament.In an intervention during the European Pa...

Malta being placed on the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control’s (ECDC) red list will not have direct consequences on the country’s tourism sector, Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo told The Malta Independent.Malta was placed...

Prime Minister Robert Abela is saying what he was saying a year ago – that the Covid-19 situation is under control.When he said these words last year, Malta was heading into the second wave of the pandemic, which led to more than 400 deaths and...

Minister Michael Farrugia has been admitted to hospital, days after testing positive for Covid-19.A spokesperson for his ministry confirmed with The Malta Independent that Farrugia is currently in hospital and that he is under observation.Farrugia an...

A court has ordered that DNA tests be carried out on the remains of Tumas Fenech after a prisoner claimed that he is the late businessman’s illegitimate son.TVM reported that prisoner Victor Buttigieg filed a case before the Family Court in 201...

Melvin Theuma has told a court that he had rented a flat to one of the men accused of carrying out the failed HSBC headquarters heist in 2010 as the compilation of evidence reopened this morning.Theuma testified in front of Magistrate Monica Vella in...

Malta needs to be open to negotiations with other countries regarding the international minimum level of taxation, with Finance Minister Clyde Caruana sure that the country will not "give up what it has achieved throughout the past decades -- fa...

Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo has defended the government’s decision to offer vouchers as an incentive for English language students to choose Malta.The way the vouchers for English students worked was that for every night that an English la...

Prime Minister Robert Abela continues to fail when it comes to taking the necessary measures to tackle the spread of Covid-19,  PN Leader Bernard Grech said.Malta was placed on the red list by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Contr...

A toddler suffered serious injuries after falling a storey and a half out of a window on Tuesday morning, police said.In a statement, the police said that at around 10:30am it was informed that assistance was needed in Triq ir-Rattan in Mellieha.Prel...

The lifelong disability of a child like Down syndrome no longer needs to be re-evaluated by a medical board at Agenzija Support when the child turns 16 in order to receive social security benefits, it was announced today.Till now, the guardians of th...

Corks popped, beats boomed out and giddy revelers rushed onto dancefloors when England’s nightclubs reopened Monday as the country lifted most remaining coronavirus restrictions after more than a year of lockdowns, mask mandates and other pande...