A former high-ranking minister in the government of Saudi Arabia who is currently exiled in Canada and who claimed to be the victim of a state-sponsored assassination attempt is one of the names which has appeared on the most-recent list of people gr...

It will likely take around two to three years for the country to reach the economic levels seen in 2019, President of the Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry David Xuereb told The Malta Independent.Xuereb, along with the CEO of the Chamber o...

In their memoirs, all Prime Ministers in office during 2020 will probably write that the year which has just ended was the most difficult for them.The Covid-19 pandemic brought with it a variety of unprecedented problems which forced tough decisions,...

Unions representing workers and employers contacted by this newsroom attribute the confusion that ensued about the number of vacation leave days for 2021 to conflicting information given by the government in the aftermath of the budget presented in O...

New research carried out by Vincent Marmara shows that the opening of schools results in a reduction in the number of cases of Covid-19, with the statistician saying that teachers and school employees are essential when it comes to controlling the vi...

Fuel stations policyKey changes to the Fuel Station Policy were announced in what was deemed as a very positive albeit long overdue move. The new policy was welcomed by various stakeholders and environmentalists mainly due to the strict restrictions ...

Two men were injured in a fight on Saturday night in St Paul's Bay, the police said.The incident took place at 9pm near Misraħ il-Bajja and involved a group of people.The group attacked a 28-year-old man and a 34-year-old man who live in the loc...

The police have arrested a 31-year-old man from Valletta, after he was found to be in possession of cocaine and cannabis.The police yesterday searched a hotel room in St Julian's and found the drugs. From a search in the man's Valletta home, more wer...

André Schembri was born on 27 May 1986. He is married to Clarissa Ellul, a well-known TV personality. They currently live in Cyprus due to André’s football commitments.At the age of 34 it’s not a long way to recall his child...

Britain’s new U.N. ambassador says the government is feeling “gung ho” about continuing its role as an important player on the world stage despite its exit from the European Union.Barbara Woodward pointed to the United Kingdom&rsquo...

Another grim record has been set after 245 cases of Covid-19 were reported by health authorities on Saturday.It is the highest ever number of cases reported in a single-day in Malta, surpassing the 224 cases reported last Wednesday.Coupled with 69 re...

The Union of Professional Educators – Voice of the Workers (UPE) has claimed that the Malta Union of Teachers (MUT) and the Ministry for Education and Employment are currently conducting ad hoc agreements behind closed doors without consulting ...

Two more Covid-19 patients have passed away, taking the total number of deaths in Malta up to 232.In a statement, the Health Ministry said that an 85-year-old man who tested positive for the virus on 7 January and a 77-year-old woman who tested posit...

Jeffrey Pullicino Orland has thrown his hat into the ring for what will certainly be a hotly contested three-way fight in the casual election for the seat vacated by former Finance Minister Edward Scicluna.Pullicino Orlando submitted his nomination o...

Valletta: Empire Pharmacy (Branch), 46, Melita Street; Ħamrun: Thomas' Pharmacy, 796, St Joseph High Road; Santa Venera: Collis Williams Sta Venera Pharmacy, 532, St Joseph High Road; Birkirkara: Herba Pharmacy, 183, Main Street; Pietà: S...

The number of attempts by migrants to enter the European Union without authorization dropped to its lowest level in seven years in 2020, the EU border and coast guard agency Frontex said Friday.Frontex said it detected around 124,000 “illegal b...

Indonesian divers on Sunday located parts of the wreckage of a Boeing 737-500 at a depth of 23 meters (75 feet) in the Java Sea, a day after the aircraft with 62 people onboard crashed shortly after takeoff from Jakarta.“We received reports fro...

Milan bounced back from its first Serie A loss by beating relegation-threatened Torino 2-0 and extending its lead in the standings on Saturday.Milan, which is bidding for a first league title in a decade, was firmly in control at halftime following a...

Straining to reach the high notes of an Adele ballad, Chorley's footballers have become the part-timers heard around the world as an incredible run in the FA Cup continues.In a knockout competition — the oldest in world football — that be...

Hibernians  moved to the top of the BOV Premier League after beating basement side Senglea in the first match played at the Hibs Stadium on Saturday afternoon. The Paolites were coming from a last-gasp win against Balzan by a 2-1 scoreline. This...

A man was seriously injured on Friday night when he was hit by a bike in Gzira, the police said.The accident happened in Sliema Road at 11.45pm.The pedestrian, a 37-year-old from Belarus and resident in Msida, was hit by a bike ridden by a 28-year-ol...

The Commissioner for Mental Health has welcomed the initiative taken by a patient to speak up about mental health issues, saying that changes are needed to improve the situation.The setting up of the Office of the Commissioner within the remit of the...

The governing Labour Party could lose yet another Parliamentary seat in what looks to be another blunder by its leader, Robert Abela. We are speaking, of course, about Tuesday’s casual election, during which Edward Scicluna’s recently vac...

A man was injured after a fall in a construction site in Gozo, police said on Saturday.In a short statement, the police said that at around 10:30 in the morning on Saturday, police were informed that a man had been taken to hospital after an incident...

A jet carrying 62 people lost contact with air traffic controllers minutes after taking off from Indonesia's capital on a domestic flight on Saturday, and debris found by fishermen was being examined to see if it was from the missing plane, officials...

@realDonaldTrump, the Twitter feed that grew from the random musings of a reality TV star into the cudgel of an American president, has died. It was not quite 12 years old. The provocative handle was given birth by a New York real estate tycoon ...

International agency DBRS has confirmed Malta’s rating at A (high) level with stable outlook. This means that our country continues to enjoy the best rating ever given by this agency, the government said.The report by these international expert...

President-elect Joe Biden says that President Donald Trump isn't “fit for the job,” but he repeatedly refused to endorse growing Democratic calls to impeach him a second time.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a letter to members of her c...

Schools will physically reopen their doors on Monday after an agreement between the government and the representatives of teachers was reached.A number of strengthened measures related to the reopening will come into being as of Monday when students ...

By the end of 2022, The European Union is aiming to introduce a European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS) program to its tourism industry. The ETIAS will act as a visa waiver system for passport holders from countries whose citizen...

191 new cases of Covid-19 and two more deaths related to the virus were reported by health authorities on Friday.77 people have meanwhile recovered from the virus, meaning that the number of active cases has now surpassed the 2,000 mark again - stand...

Gavin Gulia has thrown his hat into the ring for what could well be a hotly contested casual election for the seat vacated by former Finance Minister Edward Scicluna.Gulia submitted his nomination on Friday.Currently the Malta Tourism Authority chair...

The Covid-19 vaccine has started being administered to around 4,400 elderly people residing in 37 elderly care homes around Malta, the government said in a statement.Earlier this week, the vaccination process had also started in the St Vincent de Pau...

The shift for state schools to online lessons depends on the members of the Malta Union of Teachers, Education Minister Justyne Caruana claimed on Friday, as the teachers’ strike entered its second day.The strike was called by the MUT and then ...

The Church has disassociated itself from a local religious sect which has allegedly caused “psychological and spiritual abuse” to its members.In a statement, the Malta and Gozo dioceses said they were reaffirming the decision to disassoci...

Your FuturEU, a campaign aimed at raising awareness and engaging students and young adults to participate in policy discussions and proposals, has been launched by Kunsill Studenti Universitarji (KSU). The campaign, which was launched during a p...

President Donald Trump said Friday he won’t attend President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration on Jan. 20, undercutting his message a day earlier that he would work to ensure a “smooth, orderly and seamless transition of power” t...

An 81 year old woman had to be taken to Mater Dei Hospital after she was injured in a traffic accident in Triq Giuseppe Stivala, Naxxar. The accident happened at around 15:30pm and the woman is from Birkirkara. Preliminary investigations re...

New research suggests that Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine can protect against a mutation found in two highly contagious variants of the coronavirus that erupted in Britain and South Africa.Those variants are causing global concern. They both share a...

A man whose car ended up in the sea had a lucky escape on Friday.His car ended up in the sea in Cirkewwa at around 2.15pm. News reports read that his brakes might have failed.The man swam to shore after getting out of his vehicle, the police told thi...

The Pro-Trump riot that erupted at the US Capitol in Washington DC is equivalent to an attempted coup which is reckless, irresponsible and illegal, US political expert Dr George Vital Zammit told the Malta Independent, adding that "there is...

Britain has authorized a coronavirus vaccine developed by Moderna, the third to be licensed for use in the country as it ramps up a vaccination program critical to lifting the U.K. out of the pandemic.The Department of Health said Friday that the vac...

A 55-year-old man from Cospicua has been remanded in custody after he pleaded not guilty to shooting at two people on Wednesday.Carmelo Calleja was arraigned on Friday in connection with the shooting that took place on 6 January.The police had said t...

The European Union's drug agency on Friday approved doctors drawing one more dose from each vial of the coronavirus vaccine made by Pfizer-BioNTech, in a move that — combined with the purchase of 300 million extra shots of the serum — cou...

The Malta Union of Teachers said that in yesterday's meeting with the government, it was confirmed that a communication that was sent by a high ranking health authority official regarding its position on the opening of schools exists."This was confir...

A 13-year-old boy is in hospital after he was hit by a car in Rabat on Friday morning.The police said that the incident happened in Vjal il-Haddiem in Rabat at around 8:45 in the morning on Friday.Preliminary investigations indicated that the boy had...

President-elect Joe Biden has denounced the rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol as “domestic terrorists” and he blamed President Donald Trump for the violence that has shaken the nation's capital and beyond.The riot by Trump supporters w...

The Malta Employers’ Association has called on the Government and the MUT to seek an immediate resolution to the current dispute “which is depriving children of education, and which is also creating hardships for companies and parents who...

Malta International Airport announced plans for two power shutdowns. The first shutdown will take place between 11pm of 11 January and 4am of 12 January, while the second shutdown will take place on 15 January  between midnight and 3am.The plann...

164 new cases of Covid-19 were reported by health authorities on Thursday, as the number of active cases continues to increase.73 people have recovered, while one more Covid-19 patient has passed away – news which was announced earlier on Thurs...

To say that the scenes witnessed on US TV stations on Wednesday were disturbing is a huge understatement. Footage of heavily armed Donald Trump supporters storming the Capitol – the home of the US government – in a bid to stop a democrati...

A meeting between the Malta Union of Teachers and the government last night to resolve the strike action was inconclusive and is set to continue today, the union said on its Facebook page.As such, the strike that began yesterday is set to continue to...

A planning application has been filed proposing the construction of 71 apartments in Nadur, Gozo.The application will see the development take place on fields, in an area within the development zone on Triq il-Qortin having been part of the 2006 rati...

Ten NGOs and several academics have come together to formulate a document in which they urged the government to rethink and revaluate its plans for the Msida Creek project while providing their own proposals in anticipation of a public consultation.T...

The Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry said that keeping schools closed will 'have long-lasting impacts on the students'.The Chamber had stated in August and September that it was crucial for schools to remain open during this scholas...

As of Monday, people older than 85 years of age are set to start receiving their Covid-19 vaccination appointments, the health ministry said in a statement. The letters will include the place and time of both the first and the second dose.The letters...

Opposition leader Bernard Grech learnt about the €500,000 donation presented by PN MP Adrian Delia on behalf of Catco Group Capital Investment only after it was presented to id-Dar tal-Providenza, a PN spokesperson told The Malta Independent.Fol...

Ambjent Malta and Heritage Malta have been collaborating closely to ensure the protection and upkeep of an olive grove with significant importance in Bidnija, with trees as old as 1,800 years.  This was announced by Minister for the Environment,...

Two people were arrested on Thursday for allegedly robbing a 67-year-old man in the early hours of New Year's Day.The investigation was being carried out by the major crimes unit of the Police Force and together with the district police officers of H...

Zejtun gained an important win against Tarxien Rainbows to move above Balzan and send their opponents into more troubled waters. It was a well deserved win for the Corinthians who had Vieira and Reid in fine form and caused a lot of havoc to the Rain...

Another Covid-19 patient has passed away, taking the total number of deaths related to the virus up to 228.In a statement, the Health Ministry said that the patient was a 74-year-old man.He tested positive for Covid-19 on 20 December, and passed away...

The new wage supplement scheme promotes more fairness, representatives of the business sector told to The Malta Independent, noting that the future for businesses depends on the vaccine’s rollout, investment in businesses and the restructuring ...

The Malta Union of Teachers has said that the strike they ordered last night for this morning was a “big success” as teachers remained at home on the first day that state schools reopened for students.The MUT said that it is clear that ed...

The government has not attempted to set up any meetings with the Malta Union of Teachers to try and resolve the issues which led to Thursday’s strike action, the union's President Marco Bonnici told The Malta Independent.The Malta Union of Teac...

Last week the world saw the UK leaving the European Union, with a deal in hand. Dayna Camilleri Clarke spoke with British High Commissioner, Cathy Ward to discuss what Brexit means for the financial services sector.“The finalised Free trade agr...

Three people have been arrested after a shooting incident in Cospicua, though nobody was injured, police said.In a statement, police said that at around 9pm, Cospicua district police were informed that there had likely been a shooting during an argum...

President Donald Trump now says there “will be an orderly transition on January 20th” after Congress concluded the electoral vote count certifying President-elect Joe Biden’s victory and after a day of violence when his supporters s...

National unity, protecting the environment, promoting the Maltese language, and working against the stigma of mental health are amongst the goals of the President for the coming year.New Year’s resolutions are something of a yearly tradition, a...

Charles Azzopardi, who is in the running for Labour’s parliamentary seat to replace former Finance Minister Edward Scicluna is reportedly now a member of the Nationalist Party, according to the Times of Malta. Azzopardi, formerly the mayor of R...

Government schools are opening this morning in spite of a two-day strike ordered by the Malta Union of Teachers.The government said it is following the guidelines of the health authorities. In a meeting on Wednesday, it was explained to the Malta Uni...

A violent mob loyal to President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday and forced lawmakers into hiding, in a stunning attempt to overturn America’s presidential election, undercut the nation’s democracy and keep Democrat Joe...

The southbound lanes of the Marsa-Ħamrun Bypass Flyover in Qormi will be closed today and Sunday after Infrastructure Malta found that the asphalt used was sub-standard.The announcement was made yesterday on Infrastructure Malta’s (IM) soc...

Teargas and bullets in the U.S. Capitol building. Outrage and condemnation from leaders across the world.“What is happening is wrong,” New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said in a statement Thursday. “Democracy — the ri...

Ten months have passed since the Pace family was struck by tragedy. Yet so many months down the line, Miriam Pace’s husband and children are still waiting for the findings of a report four court-appointed experts were charged with writing up. A...

Government schoolteachers will strike on Thursday and Friday over plans to reopen schools amid a new spike of Covid-19 cases.The news came after the Malta Union of Teachers held talks with Prime Minister Robert Abela on Wednesday evening. An industri...

If the number of Covid-19 cases remains consistently high over the coming days, then the government may be constrained to implementing more restrictive measures to stop the spread of the virus and alleviate pressure on Malta's hospitals, Health Minis...

Church schools will start to give lessons to students online instead of in-person for the new semester, the Curia announced on Wednesday.In a statement, the Secretariat for Catholic Education in consultation with the Church Schools Association said t...

A police superintendent tested positive for cocaine after taking a drugs test, MaltaToday reported.Answering questions on the case from The Malta Independent, the police said that a Police Superintendent had been suspended and that proceedings agains...

A record high 224 new cases of Covid-19 were found overnight, health authorities reported on Wednesday during their daily update.The new tally is a record, surpassing the recent record of 218 which was registered on 2 November.80 people have recovere...

The European Union's medicines agency gave the green light Wednesday to Moderna Inc.'s COVID-19 vaccine, a decision that gives the 27-nation bloc a second vaccine to use in the desperate battle to tame the virus rampaging across the continent.The app...

The Nationalist Party has urged caution on the reopening of schools and has called on the government to ensure that the wellbeing of students and teachers is not endangered “capriciously” as a result of new circumstances and government in...

Gzira United started the new year in top shape easily disposing of bottom of the table side Senglea in a one sided affair.It was rather too easy for the Maroons who returned to winning to keep up chasing the top teams in the standings.Senglea were ne...

AC Milan's 27-game unbeaten run in Serie A ended Wednesday with a 3-1 loss to Juventus that gives the defending champion renewed hope of a 10th straight title.Federico Chiesa scored twice for Juventus with American Weston McKennie adding the third go...

The Malta Union of Teachers (MUT) said in a statement that it was informed that the health authorities had advised the Education Ministry that schools should not open. “This, in light of the increase in Covid-19 positive cases expected to ...

Students will return to their classrooms from the Christmas recess as per usual, with state schools opening their doors tomorrow once more for the commencement of the second semester of the scholastic year. Speaking to The Malta Independent, an ...

Two 17-year-old boys were injured on Tuesday in a biking accident in Gozo, the police said.The accident took place in Salvatur Street, Xewkija, at 5.45pm.The two boys, both from Xewkija, were riding on a bike which went out of control and crashed.The...

A Eurostat study has shown that Malta is one of the countries with the lowest percentage of overcrowded households within the European Union. Malta was surpassed only by Ireland and Cyprus. The statistics show that within the European Union in 2019, ...

Rebecca Zammit Lupi will be remembered for her resilience, stamina, and lovely smile, Archbishop Charles J. Scicluna said on Wednesday morning.Giving the homily in her funeral, Scicluna quoted the second letter from St. Paul to Timothy (4:7) to descr...

Despite growing vaccine access, January is looking grim around the globe as the coronavirus resurges and reshapes itself from Britain to Japan to California, filling hospitals and threatening livelihoods anew as governments lock down businesses and r...

Nearly two weeks after most other European Union nations, the Netherlands on Wednesday began its Covid-19 vaccination program, with nursing home staff and frontline workers in hospitals first in line for the shot. Sanna Elkadiri, a nurse at a nu...

A woman lost her battle with Covid-19 just four days after giving birth, the New York Post reports.JoEllen Engelbart, a 32-year-old assistant prosecutor for Jackson County, had been fighting the virus for two weeks before she died from complications ...

Bars and clubs continue to be the main victims of the government’s idea to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic. An extension of the legal notice issued last year will keep them closed at least until the start of February. A decision on whether to with...

President George Vella received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine on Tuesday, and appealed for the public to follow his example when it is their turn.Speaking before receiving the vaccine, Vella said that he was taking the vaccine because he had...

Let’s look at what the mind is shall we? The mind is memories of the past, the realization of today and the planning for tomorrow. All three of these things have the same importance and should be exercised constantly. Having said that, here are...

158 cases of Covid-19 were found overnight as the number of active cases of the virus in Malta has increased to 1,702.74 people meanwhile have recovered from the virus, while another four, reported earlier today, have died.The tally of new cases is t...

Former Rabat mayor Charles Azzopardi has submitted his nomination for the casual election to fill the seat vacated by former Finance Minister Edward Scicluna.Azzopardi was not allowed by the Labour Party to contest the 2019 local council elections af...

A magistrate hearing the compilation of evidence against the alleged Daphne Caruana Galizia assassination mastermind Yorgen Fenech has ordered contempt of court proceedings to be instituted against the authors of certain online articles.Magistrate Ra...

Minister for Energy and Enterprise Miriam Dalli said that the government will be looking into diverse methods as to how to obtain the funds for a ‘hydrogen-ready’ gas pipeline, after its application for funding was turned down by the...

Former Bond actress and Charlie's Angel Tanya Roberts has died in hospital in Los Angeles at the age of 65, the BBC reports.Roberts appeared with Sir Roger Moore in his final Bond film, 1985's A View To A Kill, and had a recurring role in That '70s S...

The government’s new wage supplement scheme will be tiered according to how much losses businesses have faced as a result of Covid-19.In a press conference on Tuesday, Minister for Energy and Enterprise Miriam Dalli and Malta Enterprise CEO Kur...