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...

Prime Minister Robert Abela has expanded on his €700 million green spaces proposal during a press conference on Monday.This investment will see a Labour government give the people more public parks, one of the biggest urban greening projects in ...

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

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 ic-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 decade...

An already landmark court case on Thursday took another incredible twist, after the prosecution’s star witness refused to name some of his accomplices in a heist on a bank.Some weeks ago, Darren Debono, known as it-Topo, was the beneficiary of ...

ADPD - The Green Party said today that it was the only political party which consistently insisted that the ‘golden passports’ scheme was not acceptable because citizenship should not be up for sale. In a press conference on Saturday, ADP...

Rescue specialists boarded a burning ferry in Greece to free two truck drivers who had been stranded inside the vessel for more than 15 hours Friday, but hope was fading for 11 others were reported missing.The rescuers descended from a helicopter ont...

The second major storm in three days smashed through northern Europe on Friday, killing at least nine people as high winds felled trees, cancelled train services and ripped sections off the roof of London's O2 Arena.The U.K. weather service said a gu...

Daren Debono it-Topo was arraigned before Magistrate Victor Axiak this morning over his refusal, whilst under oath, to identify all of his accomplices in the 2010 HSBC armed robbery.Prosecuting Inspector Mario Xiberras summoned several witnesses, inc...

PN MP Jason Azzopardi said today that he has spoken to the Financial Crimes Investigations Department (FCID) about the claims he made about alleged kidnapper Christian Borg, with the hope that investigations into this matter will be carried out. In P...

Repubblika is calling for the resignation of Attorney General Victoria Buttigieg after Darren Debono refused to identify all of his accomplices in the 2010 HSBC armed robbery.The NGO on Friday evening held a protest outside the AG's office in Vallett...

The Attorney General, The Justice Minister and the Home Affairs Minister must all carry responsibility over the Darren Debono plea bargain situation, PN Beppe Fenech Adami said.Darren Debono, known as it-Topo, sensationally pleaded guilty to his...

Independent candidate Arnold Cassola has asked Standards Commissioner George Hyzler to investigate whether it is ethical for Agricultural Minister Anton Refalo to have archaeological and historical finds in his property, "without having informed in t...

The court presided by Magistrate Caroline Farrugia Frendo has found sufficient prima facie evidence for former EU Commissioner John Dalli to stand trial.John Dalli was charged with trading in influence and bribery in connection with the snus scandal,...

79 new Covid-19 cases were reported by health authorities on Friday, as the number of active cases dipped below the 1,000 mark.No new deaths as a result of the virus were reported for the second day running.288 people meanwhile have recovered from th...

Chris Scicluna, more known as part of the Chris and Moira duo – has died, his wife has said.He was 62."With a shattered and a broken heart we say goodbye to my beloved husband.. CHRIS", Moira has written on Facebook."Father to our daughter Mich...

Malta 28 Ireland 4 (5-0, 8-0, 7-1, 8-3)Malta started its committments in the Group C qualifying group with a massive win over Ireland at the national pool at Tal-Qroqq.In the other match Romania, the favourites to win the group, defeated Lithuania 14...

Torino captain Andrea Belotti scored to give his team a 1-1 draw at Juventus in a hard-fought Turin derby in Serie A on Friday.The Italy forward created space for himself by slipping away from a defender and volleyed home Josip Brekalo’s cross ...

The Nepalese community has launched an online fundraiser to collect money for the family of Ajay Shrestha, to cover the repatriation expenses and send his body back to Nepal. 28-year-old Ajay Shrestha was killed on Wednesday morning, after metal...

Steward Health Care has chosen to halt current proceedings in Malta against a former VGH investor for now given the particular circumstances of this case, a spokesperson for the company told The Malta Independent.Steward Malta had unexpectedly ceded ...

The Wage Supplement will be extended in its current format during March, Minister for Energy, Enterprise, and Sustainable Development Miriam Dalli announced while addressing a press conference of a €14.4 million investment by Federated Mill...

Minister for the Economy and Industry, Silvio Schembri, announced that Cabinet has approved the enactment of legal amendments which aim to rationalise and simplify the current Lands Authority processes for the transfer, allocation, disposal, and gene...

Moviment Graffitti has filed a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the Planning Authority’s (PA) FOI Officer to demand access to all electronic communication between the PA’s CEO Martin Saliba, all members of its Executive Council, an...

A traffic accident in Għajnsielem, Gozo, left an English woman grievously injured.The accident occurred at 11.15am on Triq Mgarr.A 28-year-old English man lost control of a quad bike. The 25-year-old woman was also on the bike. Both were taken t...

Spiking tensions in eastern Ukraine on Friday aggravated Western fears of a Russian invasion and a new war on the edge of Europe, with a humanitarian convoy hit by shelling and pro-Russian rebels ordering the evacuation of civilians from the conflict...

The Ministry for Health and the Maltese Medical Association (MAM) have signed a new sectoral agreement covering the years 2022 – 2026.This agreement will affect 1,600 medical professionals, including consultants, specialists and general practit...

Millions of people in the U.K. were urged to cancel travel plans and stay indoors Friday as the second major storm this week prompted warnings of high winds and flying debris across northern Europe.Britain’s weather service said Storm Eunice, k...

The number of claims in respect of non-fatal accidents at work in the second half of 2021 decreased by 26, or 2.1 per cent, compared to the corresponding period in 2020, the NSO said today.Three fatal accidents at work were reported in the second hal...

Convicted bank robber Darren Debono told a court this afternoon that he would not testify about his accomplices, despite benefiting from a plea deal over the 2010 HSBC heist, saying he feared for his son’s safety.Magistrate Monica Vella ordered...

The Labour Party often boasts of having been the party to set up the Office of the Commissioner for Standards in Public Life. And Robert Abela has often said that he is a PM who takes decisions, who can make heads roll when required, as seen in the c...

The route favoured by the organisers of the Malta Marathon was “not compliant with today’s realities”, Transport Malta chairman Joe Bugeja said on Thursday at a press conference where the marathon’s replacement – a chari...

Quarantine for primary and secondary contacts of positive cases could be removed as from 7 March, Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne has announced.Fearne said that, as from 21 February, quarantine for primary contacts in the same household will be re...

Robert Abela’s government is a tool in the hands of criminals and a threat to the Maltese public’s security, said the Nationalist Party in a statement on Thursday, following the news of the re-arrest of convicted bank robber Darren Debono...

The NGO Repubblika has called for the resignation of Attorney General Victoria Buttigieg following the re-arrest of convicted bank robber Darren Debono, known as ‘it-Topo’, after he refused to answer questions about his accomplices in the...

No Covid-19 related deaths were reported for the first time in a month, statistics issued by the health authorities show.The last time no deaths were reported was on Monday, 17 January.It is only the third time this year that no deaths related to Cov...

We have lost the best people from the disciplined forces, and this situation needs to be addressed, PN MP Beppe Fenech Adami said today.The PN last week announced that should it be elected to government, it would allow members of the disciplined forc...

A former soldier dismissed after a video emerged of him making fun of the army had faced over 20 disciplinary charges during his military career, Brigadier Jeffrey Curmi has testified.Godwin Schembri, who was a bombardier, had faced discipl...

After dropping out of the Champions League, Barcelona now faces a difficult task just to qualify for the round of 16 in the Europa League.In its first appearance in the second-tier European competition in nearly two decades, the Catalan club was held...

Sports development in Malta will receive a boost as all proposed sports infrastructural projects will be exempt from needing to pay the Planning Authority’s (PA) Development Planning Fee (DPF) and an Environment Fee.This was announced by Minist...

Inflation is expected to rise to 2.7% in 2022, up from 0.7% in 2021, the Central Bank of Malta said in its Outlook for the Maltese Economy 2021-2024.This will largely reflect the impact of import price pressures on all subcomponents of inflation exce...

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Health Chris Fearne provided details on refunds for in-vitro fertilisation medications during a press conference on Thursday.Prime Minister Robert Abela has announced on Sunday that the government will be refund...

British authorities will offer a coronavirus vaccine to almost six million children from age 5 to 11, officials said Wednesday.The government said young children will be offered a low-dose COVID-19 shot on a “non-urgent” basis beginning i...

VIENNA (AP) — The Austrian government said Wednesday that it plans to end most of the country's COVID-19 restrictions on March 5, though wearing masks will remain obligatory in some places.Chancellor Karl Nehammer announced the decision at a ne...

The Nationalist Party has often been accused of changing its mind quickly. The Labour Party has been very much in the forefront in pointing out times when the PN says one thing one day, and then says the opposite the next or else puts forward a diffe...

The priest was beloved by his parishioners — yet for years he made a one-word ritual mistake, repeatedly, that has caused confusion and anxiety for thousands of Catholics in the Phoenix area now worrying that they were improperly baptized.Under...

The Nationalist Party, if elected to government, plans to work together with the Commission on Aging to conduct research that will lead to a better inclusion of elderly LGBT people in the community. The aim of the research is to help identify recomme...

A woman was grievously injured after she lost control of the car she was driving and it overturned, the police said.The accident took place in Gharb Road, Ghard, on Wednesday at 11.30pm.The woman, aged 31, of Zebbug, Gozo, was taken to Gozo General H...

An undisclosed amount of cash was stolen from a shop in Paola on Wednesday evening, the police said.A hooded man armed with a knife entered the shop, in De Paule Square, at 10pm, demanding money from the cashier, a 50-year-old woman.He then made off ...

Alleged kidnapper Christian Borg used two individuals inside LESA and Transport Malta to help erase around €3million in traffic fines which a car hire company which he owned had against it, PN MP Jason Azzopardi claimed in Parliament on Wednesda...

A motorcycle rider died on Triq Aldo Moro in Marsa this morning, after metal objects being carried by a truck fell over him as the vehicle overturned.The victim is a 28-year-old man from Nepal who resides in Msida.  He was named by TVM as Ajay S...

The visit by Pope Francis in April could be one of the last official appointments for Archbishop Charles Scicluna before he is given a top appointment at the Vatican.In January, The Malta Independent had reported that the possible promotion of Sciclu...

An organising committee with the participation of Transport Malta and Sport Malta has begun meeting to organise a marathon on 6 March, 2022, the Transport and Sports ministries said in a statement.The marathon will be called: TRAN|SPORT MALTA CHARITY...