LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Malta continued to register an increase in Covid-19 cases and in the number of patients referred to medical treatment at Mater Dei hospital.
The local health authorties confirmed that in the last 24 hours, 415 new cases were registered and 131 patients recovered from the virus. This brings the total number of active cases to 3.253.
Meanwhile, more patients were hospitalized for medical treatment bringing the total number of patients being treated for Covid-19 in hospital to 75. Two of the patients are being treated at the Intensive Care Unit. In the last 24 hours no deaths were registered due to coronavirus. The total number of deaths since the beginning of the pandemic in Malta remained at 626.
1.254.115 vaccine doses have been administered thus far, 349.154 of which are booster doses.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Maltese health authorties confirmed that COVID-19 cases and patients receiving treatment while positive for coronavirus are on the increase.
The medical bulletin published on Wednesday confirms 375 new cases bringing the total number of active cases to 2,969.
Meanwhile during the last 24 hours there was an increase of 20 patients who needed medical treatment at Mater Dei hospital. 63 patients are being treated for COVID-19, while two more patients, aged 87 and 93, lost their life due to the pandemic bringing the total number of deaths to 626.
1,253,673 vaccine doses have been administered so far, 348,922 of which are booster doses.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Malta Financial Services Authority announced that more than 100 licensed firms and funds renounced their operational license since Malta was grey-listed by the Financial Action Task Force.
Maltese Finance Minister Clyde Caruana recently declined to give such information to Parliament. Prior to grey listing, the Finance Minister answered questions with all relevant details on firms who opted to close their Malta operations.
This negative trend which started in 2018, includes surrendered licenses related to operation of financial services firms, specific sub funds and SICAV companies.
Last October, an EY Malta survey revealed that Maltàs attractiveness for business reached an all-time low.
A delegation from FATF is expected to visit Malta next month to assess the government’s anti-money laundering measures and the fight against the financing of terrorism.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – LThe President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, casted her vote for the Maltese general election on Saturday morning, urging those eligibile to vote to fulfil their democratic duty and do the same. Voting a week prior to the official date, Metsola told the press at the Naxxar Counting Hall Complex that she had carried out her duty and voted, a duty which she said “was an important democratic process which our predecessors fought hard for.”
She also remarked that the Russian invasion of Ukraine shows how important it is to safeguard and defend the democratic process every single day, allowing it to function and thrive. “”It is most important that we all participate in the democratic process, especially in the light of what is happening in Ukraine, with a war that is occurring at our door. This proves that democracy should be fought for every day”. The general elections in Malta will be held on 26 March 2022.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela announced that experts from the Financial Action Task Force will be visiting Malta ahead of a plenary session schedule in June. He was addressing students as part of the general election campaign. In June 2021, the international group of anti-money laundering included Malta in the list of countries under enhanced monitoring, often referred as the “grey list,” becoming the first and only EU country to be grey listed by the FATF. Earlier this month, the FATF plenary confirmed that Malta “addressed or largely addressed the action plan at the technical level”. In an action plan agreed with the FATF, Malta made a political commitment to focus its financial intelligence capabilities on tax evasion and money laundering and increase transparency on anonymous shell companies. Maltese Prime Minister Abela said that the government managed to address the 85 points raised by the FATF over a short period of time in spite of the coronavirus pandemic. He added that after the visit which would verify if Malta implemented its anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing reforms, a plenary would be held in June. It would then be decided whether Malta would be kept on the grey list or otherwise.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Maltese health authorities continued to register an increase in COVID-19 cases for the third consecutive day. This is the first increase in two months since last January while the Maltese government continued to ease the restrictions in public places.
In today’s medical bullettin, the health authorities announced 304 new cases and 115 recoveries, bringing the total of positive cases to 1,861.
The Superintendent of Public Health Charmaine Gauci said that the increase in positive cases shows that “the pandemic is still here” and appealed for responsability particulary during political mass events as Malta is heading to a general election on March, 26.
Covid-19 has claimed the life of an 84-year-old woman, taking the total number of deaths since the beginning of the pandemic in Malta to 619. 50 patients are receiving treatment for Covid-19 in hospital, with one patient in intensive care.
Meanwhile, the government announced that mask wearing is no longer obligatory in outdoor public spaces. However mask wearing remained obligatory for indoor spaces such as offices and shops, and for mass events.
Malta is expecting to remove almost all preventive measures against the pandemic by the beginning of summer.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Due to the United Kingdom leaving the European Union, the European Commission has allocated over 35 million to Malta. By the end of the month, the Maltese government will be receiving over 13 million for 2021, another 10.5 million for 2022, and 10.7 million for 2023.
The Maltese government said that this fund will be used as soon as possible to alleviate the economic burden that many businesses adversely affected by Brexit, will face. The Member States may use the funding until 31 December 2023 to cover expenses incurred and paid since 1 January 2020.
According to the European Commission, this money will help member countries’ economies to alleviate the extra costs of the impact of Brexit on various economic sectors – small and medium-sized enterprises, job creation, and training, among others.
European Cohesion and Reform Commissioner, Elisa Ferreira, said Brexit has had a negative impact on the lives of European citizens, and said the Brexit Adjustment Reserve would be making up for the social and regional economic repercussions.
The Brexit Adjustment Reserve of 5.4 billion has been put in place to support all Member States with a strong focus on those most affected.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Maltese government is estimating that Malta will suffer an economic loss of €200 million as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Maltese Finance Minsiter Clyde Caruana declared his worries during a debate organised by the Malta Chamber of Commerce. “I am more worried about the war, than I was worried about COVID-19, in economic terms. This is not just a war with bombs, but it is an economic war and its impact will not be small,” Caruana explained. However he added that the Maltese government put aside funds to buffer this economic shock.
Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela pledged to guarantee stable prices in gas, fuel and energy for the foreseeable future.
Altough Abela said that Malta was facing a problem to source LPG used in households as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Liquigas Malta said that it has secured supplies of LPG to meet the demand in Malta for the foreseeable future, thanks to the support of SHV Energy, a Dutch company shareholder of Liquigas Malta.
As the Ukraine crises deepens, the Opposition Leader Bernard Grech is proposing a temporarily fix of the price of bread.
Both Russia and Ukraine are among the world’s top five wheat exporters and a prolonged war will lead to shortages and steep increases in the price of basic foods such as bread and pasta.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The European Commission and the European Parliament are putting more pressure on Malta to put an end to its golden passport scheme.
While the European Commission is not excluding to take further steps against the Maltese government following the decision taken by the Maltese Prime Minister not to publish the personal details of Russian nationals who bought the Maltese citizenship, the European Parliament will be taking a vote on Wednesday on a report prepared by Dutch MEP Sophie In’t Veld calling for the stoppage of all citizenship-by-investment scheme by 2025, through a gradual phasing out, proposing that proceeds of such schemes should go towards the EU budget since they are based exclusively on the benefits of the union membership.
The European Parliament has been calling for a ban on the golden passports schemes since 2014. The European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reydners confirmed that the European Commission already started taking action on the schemes and wants to eliminate these programmes. Two years ago, the European Commission launched infringement procedures against Malta and Cyprus regarding the golden passport schemes. While Cyprus stopped its scheme, Malta has only suspended the scheme for Russians and Belorussians following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Nationalist MEP David Casa said that in the context of the invasion of Ukraine, once there are oligarchs close to Putin who have already acquired European citizenship, sanctions might be avoided. He insisted that those who “already bought their way into Europe through the backdoor” should be investigated thoroughly. “Now that these have become a security issue, enough is enough”.
Following the decision taken by the Maltese Prime Minister not to provide the list of Russians who bought the Maltese citizenship, the European Commission said that such schemes raise inherent security, money-laundering, tax evasion and corruption risks for the Member State concerned and for the Union as a whole. The European Commission added that EU states that systematically offer citizenship in exchange for pre-determined payments and investments, without a genuine link, violates EU law.
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – As Malta is considered by the Russia Federation as one of the “unfriendly” nations following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Maltese Prime Minsiter confirmed that the government is taking all the necessary precautions against cyberattacks.
“Maltàs IT agency is prepared for the eventuality of a cyberattack as the west is bracing itself for such attacks in retaliation to the sanctions imposed on Russia,” the Maltese Premier confirmed. Russia has significant cyber capabilities and the Russian regime has resorted to such attacks in the past.
Meanwhile, the Maltese Prime Minister Abela added that Malta is also preparing itself for the probable food and energy crisis as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
He reassured that Malta is well prepared for the expected increase in international food and energy prices as it had done in previous months to mitigate the increase in gas prices by subsidising utility bills, gas and fuel prices.
Abela also declared that his government will be taking an immediate action against Russian nationals with a Maltese passport on the international sanctions list. “At present no Maltese citizen features on the list,” however he added that “if Russians with a Maltese passport are included on the list Malta can revoke their citizenship.”
Later this week, Robert Abela will be flying to France to attend a summit called by the French presidency of the EU council, with the Labour leader saying that although Malta is in the middle of an electoral campaign “my first priority is to fulfil my duties as prime minister.”
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews