Former Labour minister Carmelo Abela told The Malta Independent on Sunday he cannot say whether the HSBC heist allegations levelled against him had any bearing on the PM’s decision to leave him out of the 2022 Cabinet. He argued, however, that ...

The Opposition plans to press for a number of issues from the first day Parliament convenes, including to change the frequency of Parliamentary sessions allocated for discussing Private Members' Bills or motions presented by the Opposition and to int...

Now that in the last election we saw the implementation of the gender-corrective mechanism, we know that the concerns that were being expressed when Parliament was debating the issue and later amended the Electoral Law were justified.As expected, the...

Speaker Anglu Farrugia is likely going to be nominated for his third term as Speaker of the House, and while he would prefer to have unanimous backing, he has indicated that he would accept the position even without the backing of the Opposition. Pri...

International Workers’ day, which occurs on 1 May every year, is celebrated in over 80 countries around the world.Although it has been remembered on a yearly basis since its first European celebration in 1890, its scope hasn’t changed; th...

People from all walks of life will participate in the ALIVE cycling adventure around the coastline of the island of Sicily, to raise funds for cancer research and awareness.This year, after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, ALIVE Charity Foundat...

Parliament is set to convene on Saturday, the first time after the election which solidified the Labour Party’s grip on the nation with a record majority, the third in a row.MPs will be wearing their best suits and we will see a fashion parade ...

Paula Mifsud Bonnici is back in Parliament. She was one of the six Nationalist Party candidates who were given a seat via the gender-corrective mechanism. She has since been also named as assistant whip and a spokesperson for active ageing.She loves ...

The Labour Party leadership was confirmed in a general conference vote which took place over the weekend.The conference started Friday and will come to an end with an activity in Valletta, which is also linked to the Workers’ Day celebtration.I...

An interdisciplinary group of researchers has completed a study of the underwater remains of the iconic Tieqa tad-Dwejra, or as it was commonly known, the ‘Azure Window’, which collapsed on the 8th of March, 2017, and has since become a p...

Ukrainian forces fought village by village Saturday to hold back a Russian advance through the country’s east, while the United Nations worked to broker a civilian evacuation from the last defensive stronghold in the bombed-out ruins of the por...

KYIV, Ukraine -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy switched into Russian in his nightly video address to urge Russian soldiers not to fight in Ukraine, saying even their generals expected that thousands of them would die.He said Russia has been...

Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said on Saturday that the Nationalist Party will fulfil its commitment to those who invested in the party’s ċedoli scheme.In an interview with Andrew Azzopardi on 103 Malta’s Heart, Grech said that des...

Pharmacies open today9am to 12pm & 4 to 7pmValletta: Collis Williams Pharmacy, 15, Republic Street; Ħamrun: Brown's Pharmacy, 706, St Joseph High Road; Qormi: Pinto Pharmacy, 43, St Sebastian Street; Birkirkara: Mint Care Pharmacy, 5B-71 Bra...

Health authorities said today that 136 new Covid-19 cases were registered.No deaths were recorded, leaving the number of victims at 698.No details have been provided on how many people are in hospital with the virus.In all 91,741 cases have been regi...

 In a dominating season for Real Madrid, it was fitting that it didn’t even need its best players to win the Spanish league.Using its backups before the Champions League semifinals, Madrid earned a record-extending 35th Liga title with a c...

 It’s still advantage Manchester City in the English Premier League title race after the league leader and Liverpool won tricky away matches at in-form teams on Saturday.First up was Liverpool, which won at Newcastle 1-0 despite resting se...

Napoli salvaged some pride as it crushed Sassuolo 6-1 on Saturday to consolidate third place in Serie A and bounce back from a miserable run.Dries Mertens scored twice, while there were also goals from Kalidou Koulibaly, Victor Osimhen, Hirving Lozan...

Mosta will be playing once again in the Premier League next season when they gained a much important win over Valletta. Three points which they needed in order to be mathemically safe and sound.After losing to Sliema in the first match from the Play-...

The call for applications for the post of Nationalist Party leader closed on Saturday at noon, with Bernard Grech the only nominee.Grech took over the PN leadership in October 2020, and is set to be confirmed when the general council is held.A due di...

A lawmaker from Britain’s governing Conservative Party has been suspended after colleagues alleged he watched pornography on his phone in the House of Commons chamber.The party’s whips — officials responsible for enforcing disciplin...

Nationalist Party Spokesperson for the maritime sector and employment Ivan Castillo has called for immediate action to be taken to save the Madonna tal-Aħrax statue.The Madonna tal-Aħrax statue is located in front of the Immaculate Concepti...

The European Commission has said that it is taking action to improve protection of journalists and human rights defenders from abusive court proceedings.Finally, some sort of action is going to be taken against Strategic lawsuits against public parti...

Mino Raiola, the influential and often controversial sports agent to some of soccer's biggest players, has died. He was 54.Raiola died after a long illness, his family confirmed on Saturday. He had been undergoing treatment at Milan’s San Raffa...

Five new deacons were ordained on Saturday during a ceremony led by Archbishop Charles Scicluna at St John’s co-Cathedral in Valletta.The five deacons are three seminarists and two religious members.During the homily, Scicluna urged t...

A woman was grievously injured when she was hit by a car which rolled towards her after the brakes failed, the police said.The car, a Volkswagen Golf, was parked in a complex in Luqa Road, Luqa.The police said the vehicle rolled towards the 28-year-o...

Ukrainian forces fought to hold off Russian attempts to advance in the south and east, where the Kremlin is seeking to capture the country’s industrial Donbas region, and a senior U.S. defense official said Moscow's offensive is going much slow...

PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron has conveyed to Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy his “wish to actively work to re-establish the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine during his second mandate,” in coordinatio...

On the occasion of Worker's Day, The Left think - tank organisation Zminijietna urged the government to close a loophole surrounding exploitation of food delivery couriers, domestic workers and assisted migrants.  "In relation to all this, ...

A biker was injured after he lost control of the Kymco he was riding and crashed, the police said.The biker, aged 41 of Birzebbuga, was taken to hospital for treatment.The accident happened on the Marsa-Hamrun bypass at 3am Saturday.

A woman was grievously injured in a traffic accident in Paola early Saturday morning, the police said.The accident took place in Santa Lucija Avenue at 1am.It involved a Mercedes Benz driven by a 46-year-old man of Zebbug and a Renault Clio driven by...

Minister for Finance Clyde Caruana said on Friday that Malta's corporate tax regime will go through a major overhaul and a new structure and rates will be adopted by the year 2025.Speaking at a press conference, Caruana said that a draft of the docum...

UHM Voice of the Workers CEO Josef Vella on FRiday called on the government to lead by example in the fight against precarious work by ensuring that employees of contractors engaged in public entities, benefit from the protection offered by trade uni...

The Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has approved and made public a report on a complaint against Maltese MP Rosianne Cutajar, concerning a breach of t...

Now is the time for the Labour government to work on implementing its electoral manifesto, Prime Minister Robert Abela said while addressing the party's General Conference on Friday.The party's General Conference launched on Friday at its headquarter...

By the end of March 2022, the Government’s Consolidated Fund reported a deficit of €371.6 million, the NSO said Friday.At the end of March 2022, Central Government debt stood at €8,466.3 million, a €1,170.8 million rise from 2021...

Co-CEO of CC Finance Group and Founder Alan Cuschieri today launched Malta’s first ever digital payments, titled ‘Moneybase.’“Moneybase is focused on making finance easier for the consumer and redefines how people make use of,...

No new Covid-19 related deaths were recorded Friday as health authorities registered 178 new cases.The total number of Covid-19 cases in Malta has now reached 91,605, of whom 86,759 have recovered.The number of victims remains at 698, while the numbe...

A teacher's water bottle at the San Ġorġ Preca College secondary school in Ħamrun was allegedly spiked with a chemical, LovinMalta reports.It reported that a teacher allegedly foamed at the mouth and vomited. LovinMalta reported that t...

In a brief message addressed to Archbishop Charles Scicluna, Pope Francis thanked Malta for the commitment that was exhibited during the preparations for his visit in April."I greet the priests, the Catholic people in Malta and the laity who worked t...

Inflation hit a record in April for the 19 countries that use the euro as skyrocketing fuel prices boosted by the war in Ukraine weigh on the region's economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.Annual inflation reached 7.5% for the month, toppin...

For the quarter ended 31 March 2022, the Group and the Bank posted a pre-tax profit of €1.9 million (same period 2021: €3.8 million) and €8.7 million (2021: €3.9 million), respectively. These contrasting outcomes emerge from a mix...

Tennis great Boris Becker was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison on Friday for illicitly transferring large amounts of money and hiding assets after he was declared bankrupt.The three-time Wimbledon champion was convicted earlier this month on four c...

Russia pounded targets from practically one end of Ukraine to the other Thursday, including Kyiv, bombarding the city while the head of the United Nations was visiting in the boldest attack on the capital since Moscow's forces retreated weeks ago.Nea...

The US-funded broadcaster Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty says one of its journalists was killed by a Russian missile strike on Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, Thursday night.Vira Hyrych died when the building she lived in was hit and her body was fou...

The Local Enforcement System Agency recently issued a statement saying that two speed cameras were to be installed on the southbound carriageway on the Coast Road.In a statement to announce its plan, LESA said that the cameras form part of a road saf...

A man was arrested after he was found to be in possession of drugs during a police search on Thursday.The police said during traffic inspection in Mdina Road, Qormi, at around 10.45pm, officers noticed the driver of a Toyota IQ stopping the car and b...

Minister for the Economy, European Funds and Lands Silvio Schembri launched the Malta Intellectual Property Award 2022.This €60,000 prize is aimed at recognising and promoting the creation of Intellectual Property in Malta, including patents, tr...

The European Commission has just published the list of 100 cities to become climate neutral by 2030, PN spokesperson and MEP Candidate Peter Agius has said."Among cities like Rome, Madrid and Paris, Gozo is also within the EU's ambitious target.""Thi...

Minister for the Environment, Energy and Sustainable Development Miriam Dalli said Thursday that the government wage supplement scheme has been extended to the month of May, as well as revealed that the total government investment for the scheme was ...

Minister for Energy Miriam Dalli did not disclose the amount spent by government on energy subsidies to date, despite saying that the government remains fully committed to abating rising energy costs. Answering journalists’ questions during a p...

A woman on trial for complicity in the fatal mugging of an elderly woman in Sliema, 12 years ago, has told the judge that she had only been sitting in the car used by the mugger because she was accompanying her boyfriend, who had hit her in the face ...

The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a €80 million Guaranteed Co-Lending Scheme for small and medium-sized enterprises in the context of the coronavirus pandemic, a statement by the Commission said. The scheme is aimed...

The Wild Bird Regulation Unit said that the 1,500 quota Turtle-dove (Gammiema) quota has not been reached, contrary to reports.The unit said that it is continuously following the hunting season.Earlier in the day, BirdLife Malta said that it believes...

European leaders blasted Russia's decision to cut natural gas shipments to Poland and Bulgaria as “blackmail,” saying the cutoff and the Kremlin's warning that it might cease shipments to other countries is a failed attempt to divide the ...

During 2021, the Occupational Health and Safety Authority (OHSA) carried out over 4,000 inspections in various workplaces and issued 1,065 improvement notices, 574 stop orders and 780 administrative fines.Minister for Public Works and Planning Stefan...

Bernard Grech has applied to contest the election for the leadership of the Nationalist Party, a position he has held since October 2020.Grech is likely to be the sole contender for the post. Nominations close on Friday.Grech became PN leader after o...

Eintracht Frankfurt is a step away from reaching its first European competition final in more than 40 years after beating West Ham 2-1 in the first leg of the Europa League semifinals on Thursday.The German team had knocked out Barcelona in the quart...

A man was grievously injured on Thursday morning after he was hit by metal objects that fell off a truck.The accident took place in a site in Triq Triq Ġuże D’Amato, Paola, at around 11am.The casualty, a 26-year-old Turkish man, was u...

Festivals Malta has unveiled its programme of events for this summer's cultural calendar, with four summer festivals taking place between June and July.These festivals are RITMU, formally known as Għanafest, The Malta International Arts Festival...

Two more people have died with Covid-19 as 206 new cases were reported, figures released by the health authorities show.No details are being given about the victims; neither are any statistics provided about the number of people with Covid who need h...

The high profile football agent Mino Raiola is in critical condition, international media report.First reports had indicated that the 54-year-old had died.But as the news spread, a doctor at the San Raffaele Hospital said that Raiola is not dead, but...

KYIV, Ukraine — In the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, a series of explosions boomed near the television tower late Wednesday and at least temporarily knocked Russian channels off the air, Ukrainian and Russian news organizations reported.T...

The Malta Police Union has filed a Constitutional court case to obtain full Collective Bargaining and Action Rights.In a statement, the union said that it was always, and will remain at the forefront to do whatever is needed to obtain rights for its ...

Hector Spiteri, the Court-appointed Administrator for Zenith Finance Limited, has announced to clients last week that the Court has approved the release of their assets by way of transfer of holdings to CiliaFormosa Financial Advisors Ltd."The announ...

With some thought and good will, Maltese toponyms can be prioritized and used, instead of being forgotten.This is the message that the Facebook page ‘Il-Malti Madwarna’ is passing on, calling out concerned authorities after a road directi...

Minister for the Economy, EU Funds and Lands Silvio Schembri is the first minister to have invited to his office five Nationalist Party shadow cabinet ministers who shadow his extensive portfolio.In an unprecedented move, Minister Schembri welcomed I...

British filmmaker Ridley Scott has returned to Malta to film Napoleon, the biopic that the nine-time Oscar winner (with Alien, Thelma&Louise, The Gladiator and Black Hawk Down) has decided to make giving the role of Bonaparte to Joaquim Phoenix a...

The government will be pressing ahead with what it has described as the Covid exit roadmap.Last Friday, Health Minister Chris Fearne held a press conference in which, together with health superintendent Charmaine Gauci, he said that as from 2 May alm...

MEP Josianne Cutajar has once again been entrusted to continue her work as Standing Rapporteur on Gender Mainstreaming in the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) at the European Parliament on behalf of the Socialists and Democrats.In th...

From 23 to 27 May, a delegation from the EP’s Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) Committee will visit the headquarters of several companies (Meta, Google, Apple and others) in Silicon Valley in the United States.MEP Alex Agius Salib...

An investment of €1.5 million went towards a new showroom of the DARI establishment, an enterprise which manufactures local products by Maltese people. DARI’s new showroom in the Ħandaq industrial estate was visited by Prime Minister ...

On the 80th anniversary of the sinking of HMS Urge, President of Malta George Vella, together with British High Commissioner Katherine Ward, unveiled a monument commemorating the death of its crew while on duty.During a commemorative event at Fort St...

The European Commission said Friday it is taking action to improve protection of journalists and human rights defenders from abusive court proceedings. Strategic lawsuits against public participation, commonly known as ‘SLAPPs', are a particula...

Malta is set to remain in deficit until at least 2024, yet the GDP is predicted to grow by 6% this year as it steadily recovers from the effects of Covid-19, according to the Central Bank of Malta.At the presentation of its annual report on Wednesday...

European Parliament President Roberta Metsola said on Wednesday that the European Parliament will not be blackmailed by Russia.This after the Kremlin cut off gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria – two NATO nations.“The EU will not be black...

The Archdiocese of Malta today categorically denied an allegation made by The Shift News website that Archbishop Charles Jude Scicluna requested a postponement of the visit to Malta by His Holiness Pope Francis. A spokesperson for the Archdiocese sai...

The summoning by the UK Speaker of a newspaper editor has sparked a debate on free press, with journalists defending their right to report without interference and the Speaker being criticised for his attempt to muzzle the media.Commons Speaker Sir L...

Russia opened a new front in its war in Ukraine on Wednesday, cutting NATO members Poland and Bulgaria off from its gas, a dramatic escalation in the conflict that is increasingly becoming a wider battle with the West.One day after the United St...

Newly appointed Infrastructure Minister Aaron Farrugia said on Wednesday that studies are ongoing so as to better understand what is happening in our roads in the hope of reducing the number of road accidents.From the beginning of this year, a signif...

Three more people have died with Covid-19, taking the total number of victims to 696, statistics published by the health authorities show.No information is being given on the gender and age of the victims, and neither is the government providing deta...

Two fully electric, zero-emissions buses are being added as part of the scheduled public transport fleet in Malta.This was announced on Wednesday by Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Capital Projects Aaron Farrugia together with Malta Public...

Liverpool looks like being one European giant too many for Villarreal.Wins in the Champions League semifinals are rarely as routine as Liverpool’s 2-0 first-leg victory on Wednesday over the Spanish underdog, which appears to have finally come ...

For four months, Inter Milan had been pointing to its postponed match at Bologna as a chance to gain ground in the title race.Yet a goalkeeping blunder handed Bologna a 2-1 win Wednesday as Inter wasted a lead and a chance to reclaim the Serie A lead...

MOSCOW — The Kremlin says that Russia may halt gas supplies to other European customers following a cutoff to Poland and Bulgaria if they also refuse to switch to payment in rubles.Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Pesk...

As of the second week of May, voluntary organisations can apply for the energy and water efficiency scheme issued by the Energy and Water Agency and Malta Council for the Voluntary Sector, the government said.With an investment of half a million euro...

In the first quarter of 2022, the stock of licensed motor vehicles increased by 1,650 over the previous quarter, the NSO said Wednesday.At the end of March 2022, the stock of licensed motor vehicles stood at 414,669. Out of this total, 75.6 per cent ...

The U.S. pressed its allies Tuesday to move “heaven and earth” to keep Kyiv well-supplied with weapons as Russian forces rained fire on eastern and southern Ukraine amid growing new fears the war could spill over the country's borders.For...

Yorgen Fenech has failed to obtain bail in constitutional proceedings after claiming that he suffered human rights breaches because he has not been released on bail since his arrest in 2019.Fenech has been under arrest since November 2019, when he wa...

On the 28 October 2021, the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”), in delivering a ruling in the case of Varchev Finans' EOOD v. Komisia za finansov nadzor, clarified that the relevant provisions of Commission Delegated Regulati...

The above title is a quote taken from a speech delivered by the chief of the European Union’s financial crime watchdog.Last week, Laura Codruţa Kövesi said that Malta is paying lip service in its efforts to crack down on EU fraud and ...

Ryanair today announced a new route for its Malta Summer’22 schedule from/to Bournemouth. This new route, which will begin on 2 July, will operate twice per week on Tuesday and Saturday, further supporting Malta tourism recovery ...

Minister for Public Works and Planning Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi said that €800,000 will be spent on works on the roof and windows of the main workshop of the Directorate of Manufacturing and Services in Kordin industrial estate.The works, which w...

The European Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) revealed through a survey that the material and social deprivation rate stood at 9.8% in 2021.The National Statistics Office reported on Tuesday about material and social deprivation, ...

Qala Mayor Paul Buttigieg has been attacked by an employee of a well-known Gozitan developer, he wrote on Facebook.Buttigieg is well known for his defence of Hondoq ir-Rummien."Buttigieg was reviewing cleaning works in the locality when a truck drive...

Between 2020 and March 2022, “no fewer than 75 people” were arraigned for cases related to online hate speech, a spokesperson for the Home Affairs Ministry told The Malta Independent.This newsroom sent questions to Home Affairs Minister B...

President George Vella said on Tuesday that the second edition of the State of the Nation survey will provide insight into not only who the Maltese are, but who citizens have become.President Vella, together with statistician Vincent Marmara and Stra...

One more patient has died with Covid-19, health authorities said, as the number of new cases reported Tuesday was 259.No details are being given about the victims, the number of which has now reached 693.In all, 91,032 Covid cases have been reported ...

It was the coolest of penalties at the end of one of the wildest matches in Champions League history.With his cheekily dispatched “Panenka,” Karim Benzema might just have kept Real Madrid's chances alive against Manchester City in the sem...

The Nationalist Party’s former head of its media arm Pierre Portelli has said that the party needs to go into ‘forced administration.’Portelli spoke out in a tweet on Monday, following the revelation that the Nationalist Party is &e...