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New e-ID cards and e-passports by the end of 2019

March 26, 2019, 8:45 am
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Identity Malta will kick start the process to have all passports and e-ID cards replaced with technologically advanced new e-ID cards and e-passports by the end of 2019. In her address to the Reconnaissance High Security Printing Conference being held in Malta, Parliamentary Secretary for Citizenship Julia Farrugia Portelli said the new designs and specifications were being finalised. The ID document will incorporate all features laid down in the EU proposal to strengthen identity card security and, unless there are any radical changes to the draft regulation, Malta plans to be among the first member states to start rolling out the new documents later this year. The new travel and identification documents will be printed on a polycarbonate card using high definition laser technology. Furthermore, the new e-ID card will incorporate a contactless chip in order to capture additional biometric data. Additional security features will further prevent document counterfeit and the fraudulent use of other people’s identity. Contrary to the 2014 nationwide mass roll out, the issuance of the new e-passport and e-ID is set to take place in gradual manner and over a number of years. Existing...
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New cars could be fitted with speed limiting technology from 2022

March 27, 2019, 2:15 am
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All new cars sold in Malta would have to be fitted with technology that stops drivers from exceeding speed limits under proposed new vehicle safety rules being laid out in Brussels.The speed limitation technology is one of a range of safety features to be made mandatory from 2022, along with automated emergency braking and electronic data recorders, after a provisional agreement was reached by the European Commission.The package of measures still needs to be ratified by the European Parliament, which could see it toned down.Speed limitation devices, called intelligent speed assistance, or ISA, uses GPS data and sign recognition cameras to detect speed limits where the car is travelling.These normally sound a warning and automatically slow down the vehicle if it is exceeding the limit.However, drivers will be able to override the device simply by pushing hard on the accelerator. Motoring groups have argued that in certain situations, such as when trying to swiftly overtake a vehicle in front, speeding up could be safer.“Every year, 25,000 people lose their lives on our roads. The vast majority of these accidents are caused by human error. We can and must act to change this,”...
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Refalo fires broadside at minister’s ‘fibre’ monuments in Gozo

March 26, 2019, 12:10 pm
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Former Gozo Minister and Labour MP Anton Refalo has fired a new public broadside against his successor, Justyne Caruana, for placing ‘fibre’ monuments in the centre of Gozo’s capital, Victoria. Dr Refalo, currently the government-appointed chairman of Heritage Malta, called the recent unveiling of a monument dedicated to sculptor Wistin Camilleri by Dr Caruana as “shameful” and “degrading”. Resorting to his social media page, the ex-Labour heavyweight said that it was “shameful” that the Gozo capital now had monuments made out of fibreglass. While showering sculptor Camilleri with praise for his outstanding career, he said that a bronze monument should be commissioned in respect to this outstanding artist and not use cheap material such as fibreglass to be placed right in the centre of Gozo’s capital. Many of Dr Refalo’s ardent supporters joined in, writing critical comments of “the authorities” for this decision. Sources close to the Gozo Ministry said that although they respect the former minister’s ‘expertise’ in the subject, his comments were “uncalled for” as the monument unveiled by  Dr Caruana was not a ‘new’ monument as described by the former minister. “The monument of...
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Another dumping site in the making, with the blessing of the Environment Ministry

March 26, 2019, 11:01 am
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A large site in Naxxar that hosts tarmac batching plants and private bitumen storage facilities is being used by the government’s waste management company as a storage facility for electronic waste. Sources close to Wasteserv, which falls under the responsibility of Environment Minister José Hererra, said that the government has rented out storage space at Bitmac Ltd to store electronic waste from civic amenity sites. A €1 million contract was awarded to Bitmac Ltd without a call for tender. Bitmac is owned by three major companies involved in road construction. “It is very odd that such waste is to be stored on site of a batching plant with all the possible vulnerabilities that such a site offers,” sources said. “Large storage tanks of flammable bitumen are located on this site. Although an incident related to electronic waste is not common, one would not recommend storing such waste in an area where tarmac and bitumen are held,” they added. READ: Overflowing civic amenity sites No Planning Authority permit has been issued yet, but Wasteserv has already started transferring fridges, freezers and all kinds of electronic waste from its bulging civic amenity sites. “Truckloads of...
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AUM plans to turn public car park into dormitories

March 27, 2019, 12:06 am
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The Cospicua council is among  the objectors to plans by the American  University of Malta to turn a public car park in the locality into student dormitories and accommodation. According to the new plans, submitted by architect Edwin Mintoff on behalf of the Sadeen Group, the Jordanian construction company that owns the AUM, a public car park at the back of the campus, next to the Palumbo dockyard, is set to be dug up.  Instead, the AUM wants to build a private underground car park over which several storeys of student dormitories will be constructed. The plans include a large rooftop swimming pool. Representations made during the ongoing consultation process lamented the “takeover” of public space. Cospicua mayor Alison Zerafa Civelli said her council would only support the project if there was a guarantee that 50% of the new 180 car park spaces would be reserved exclusively to residents, who would be able to use them free of charge. Half of the parking slots at street level should also be given to residents, she added. Noting that it was not against the proposed project, Ms Zerafa Civelli said her council was very concerned about the impact on the traffic flow. “The acute...
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Watch: Malta metro 'only feasible in Sliema, unless we grow' - Muscat

March 27, 2019, 3:46 am
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Updated at 11.55am with more videos With Malta’s current population, a mass transport system would only be feasible in the Sliema area, Joseph Muscat told a business sector crowd on Wednesday. “Would we have a system that just links Sliema to St Julian's?” he asked rhetorically when discussing the possibility of Malta ever having a metro system.  Read: Valletta to Gozo in 30 minutes: what a metro in Malta could look like “The key question is: do we want to grow, or not? Where do we want to go as a country? To stay the same? Or to truly become metropolitan?” Dr Muscat was being interviewed at an event organised by consultancy EMCS Malta and held at the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry titled ‘state of the Maltese economy’. He told the crowd that the government’s first priority was for the country to have an improved road network. This he said, was a must. Read: Drones to be used to analyse roads' condition Beyond that, it was no secret that the government had commissioned a report detailing the cost and feasibility of having a large-scale metro system. That report, conducted by UK engineering firm Arup, was now being updated, he said.  Costings had been...
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Customs seize two more containers with €5.8m worth of cocaine

March 26, 2019, 7:39 am
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Just a week after a €32.4 million cocaine haul, Customs officers found 51.6kg of cocaine hidden in reefer containers at Malta Freeport on Tuesday.During routine screening of containers transiting Malta, seven containers with a high-risk route were selected for scanning by the Container Monitoring Unit, the Customs Department said.  Following preliminary scans, two reefer container had irregularities which pointed to possible narcotics hidden behind panelling. Physical searches revealed 20 packets of cocaine, weighing 24kgs and worth approximately €2.7 million in one of the containers.  The second contained 23 packets of cocaine, weighing 27.6kgs worth €3.1 million.Both containers were loaded with fruit and had come from South America en-route to Albania.The case was handed over to the Police Anti Drug Squad, who are conducting investigations. The duty magistrate is leading an inquiry assisted by a team of experts from the Police Forensics Unit. 
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Majority of university students oppose abortion, study indicates

March 25, 2019, 9:30 am
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Updated at 5.40pm  The majority of students are against the legalisation of abortion, according to a university-wide survey.  A total of 58.4 per cent of the 733 university students who participated in the University Students' Council's survey believe that abortion should not be legalised, with 41.6 per cent in favour.  A fifth of all respondents do not even think it should be legalised when the mother’s life is in danger. Opinion is split equally when it comes to cases of life-threatening illness on the child. A quarter strongly disagree with abortion in such cases, while another quarter agree. Another 16.2 per cent and 16.6 per cent disagree and agree respectively. Cases of rape also split opinion: one third strongly disagree and one third strongly agree with abortion in such cases. 15.8 per cent disagree and 11.5 per cent agree. Read: Abortion taboo broken on Facebook At the moment, only Malta and Andorra prohibit abortion under any circumstance, with Nils Muižnieks, former Council of Europe’s commissioner for human rights, noting that the island’s ban on abortion contradicted the norms of international human rights law. The ban denied women a range of fundamental human...
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Watch: Delia dodges reporters' questions about FIAU report

March 27, 2019, 5:43 am
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Updated at 2.03pm with video Opposition leader Adrian Delia on Wednesday did not answer questions about his alleged involvement in a money laundering racket, inviting reporters to set an appointment with him instead. The Sunday Times of Malta has reported that financial crimes investigators had found there was a reasonable suspicion that Dr Delia had been involved in laundering the proceeds of London brothels in the early 2000s.Shortly after receiving detailed questions about the FIAU’s findings from Times of Malta, Dr Delia called a press conference in which he said that he had learnt that financial transaction documents dating back to that period had been forged with his fake signature.  Asked whether he would be calling for a magisterial inquiry into the FIAU findings , Dr Delia said he had already asked a magistrate to look into whether or not his signature had been forged on the documents. On Wednesday, the Opposition leader was evasive when asked questions on the matter, insisting he was late for another appointment. Journalists were instead directed to make an appointment with him.Dr Delia has yet to reply to the questions sent to the PN last week.  More to follow
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Raw sewage dumped close to campsite in Armier

March 25, 2019, 1:15 pm
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An investigation into claims that sewage from the Malta Campsite facility in Armier was being discharged into adjacent garigue land drew a blank as it could not be established who was responsible. A few months ago, the same facility made headlines after it was slapped with an enforcement notice over a long list of planning breaches that are being contesting. The probe over illegal dumping of raw sewage was launched in the wake of photographs received by the Times of Malta from an anonymous source. The images were forwarded to the Environment and Resources Authority last Wednesday. The photographs photos featured murky liquid waste from a cesspit being dumped into the open by means of a hose jutting out from a manhole. The anonymous source who supplied the images claimed such an operation was not a one-off occurrence but something that had already happened before.  Contacted by Times of Malta, Malta Campsite administrator Vince Vella denied any wrongdoing saying the photos had been sent with the sole intention of tarnishing the facilities’ reputation. An ERA spokeswoman confirmed that an investigation had been launched. An onsite inspection was only carried out on Friday...
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AFM on alert as hijacked ship heads for Maltese waters

March 27, 2019, 8:04 am
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Updated at 7.13pm Migrants have taken over a merchant ship off the Libyan coast and are headed north, towards Malta.    The El Hiblu 1 tanker was taken over by 108 migrants when it was six miles off the Libyan coast. The ship's captain had been heading for Libya after rescuing the migrants at sea when it was taken over by some of the people it rescued. It then veered north.  An AFM spokeswoman confirmed reports of a "pirated ship".    Two Libyan coast guard ships are understood to be tailing the vessel, which flies the flag of Palau, a small island state in Micronesia. Its last known contact was an alert sent out by its captain warning that it was under piracy.  The ship had set sail from Turkey and a number of Turkish nationals are among its crew.  Their condition is not known.  Malta's AFM will refuse to allow the vessel to enter local waters, a spokeswoman said, adding that units were on standby for any eventual development.  At current speed, the ship is expected to reach Malta early on Thursday.           A government source told Times of Malta that around 77 of the ship's 108 rescued passengers are believed to be men, with the other 31 being women and children.  Can...
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Watch: Malta needs a metro 'now' - Delia

March 27, 2019, 8:28 am
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Opposition leader Adrian Delia thinks a mass transport solution is needed sooner rather than later.

The government was dragging its feet on the introduction of a mass transportation system while Malta had the worst air quality in Europe, Opposition leader Adrian Delia said on Wednesday. Speaking during a conference organised at the Chamber of Commerce, Dr Delia said transport was one of the island's most pressing problems. The only thing the government had done to address this was pour tarmac and widen a few roads.  Malta needed a real solution now, and this was clearly a mass transportation system, he said.  The government however seemed to be using this as yet another excuse to fill the island with more foreigners.  The solution to all of the country's problems seemed to be to import more foreign workers, he said.  "Pensions - get more foreigners; tunnel to Gozo - get more foreigners to make it feasible. Soon we are going to be a tiny island, filled with foreigners," Dr Delia warned. He was reacting to Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, who earlier told the same conference that a metro system would require a much larger population to be economically viable.   The government was confusing the public with proposals that were sensational and meant only to grab votes at election...
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Alleged loan shark cleared of demanding €150,000 for €7,800 loan

March 27, 2019, 5:45 am
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A suspected loan shark who had allegedly demanded some €150,000 for a loan of €7,800, was cleared by a Magistrates’ Court declaring that the evidence put forward fell far short of the moral certainty required by law. Anthony Galea, 56, had been arraigned alongside his 27-year old son Gilbert on Christmas Eve in 2017, pleading not guilty to charges of having loaned money at excessive rates of interest, threatening their victim and causing him to fear violence, almost driving him to commit suicide. The alleged victim had reportedly turned towards the younger man, requesting a loan of some €10,000 to refurbish his bakery and purchase equipment for the business. Mr Galea junior had subsequently released a statement recounting how he had involved his father who had allegedly agreed to a loan of €7,800, signing a private writing to this effect with the alleged victim. Yet, the borrower had eventually ended up facing demands of repayment to the tune of some €150,000. He was driven to such despair that he had even contemplated taking his own life were it not for the timely intervention of the police. Criminal action was instituted against both father and son who were arraigned jointly,...
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Mt Carmel Hospital hired twice as many clerks as planned, then gave them different duties

March 27, 2019, 8:21 am
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Mount Carmel Hospital issued a direct contract to hire 60 people for clerical work but ended up engaging 134, with many actually performing maintenance work and security duties, an investigation by the Auditor-General has found. Furthermore, in some cases, government officials were directly involved in referring individuals to the service provider so that they may be engaged and deployed at Mount Carmel Hospital under this contract.  In a report presented to the parliament, Auditor-General Charles Deguara said his investigation had found irregular engagements, contractual design flaws and a weak contract management function.  The National Audit Office (NAO) said the hospital was acquiring these services through a one year negotiated procedure, since a new tender was not awarded before another contract’s expiry in July 2018.   "Although the contract under review originally called for the deployment of approximately 60 full-time equivalents (FTEs), 134 FTEs were deployed as at September 2018," it said. "NAO found that 47 of these outsourced personnel, although engaged through a contract for clerical services, have been deployed to carry out non-clerical responsibilities, such as...
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Motorcyclist grievously injured as he skids to avoid bent traffic lights

March 26, 2019, 4:45 am
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A 50-year-old motorcyclist was grievously injured in a traffic accident in Luqa on Tuesday. The accident happened in Triq l-Avjazzjoni at 9.45am. The police said a 27-year-old man from Attard was driving a Fordson van when he crashed into the traffic lights. To try to avoid the pole, the motorcyclist lost control of his Honda CB600. He was taken to Mater Dei Hospital by ambulance. The police are investigating.
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'Hijacked' ship stormed by AFM, heading to Malta

March 27, 2019, 11:03 pm
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A vessel "taken over" by a group of migrants was stormed by Maltese rescue forces early on Thursday and the vessel is expected to arrive in Malta shortly, the Armed Forces of Malta said.  The Maltese authorities established contact with the captain of the tanker ELHIBRU 1 when it was about 30 nautical miles away and proceeding towards Malta. The captain repeatedly said he was not in control of the vessel and that he and his crew were being forced and threatened by a number of migrants to proceed to Malta, the army said. A total of 108 migrants are believed to be on board. A Maltese patrol boat stopped the tanker from entering the Maltese territorial waters.  A special operations unit team, supported by patrol boats and a helicopter was dispatched on board and secured the vessel, handing control of the ship to the captain, the army said in a statement. It is not known how many migrants were behind the action though it is believed to be a small group. The rest are believed to be seeking asylum. The tanker, its crew and all migrants are being escorted to Malta to be handed over to the police for investigations.  Migrants are being instrumentalised - NGO On Wednesday, the EU said...
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Customs seize two more containers with €5.8m worth of cocaine

March 26, 2019, 7:39 am
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Just a week after a €32.4 million cocaine haul, Customs officers found 51.6kg of cocaine hidden in reefer containers at Malta Freeport on Tuesday.During routine screening of containers transiting Malta, seven containers with a high-risk route were selected for scanning by the Container Monitoring Unit, the Customs Department said.  Following preliminary scans, two reefer container had irregularities which pointed to possible narcotics hidden behind panelling. Physical searches revealed 20 packets of cocaine, weighing 24kgs and worth approximately €2.7 million in one of the containers.  The second contained 23 packets of cocaine, weighing 27.6kgs worth €3.1 million.Both containers were loaded with fruit and had come from South America en-route to Albania.The case was handed over to the Police Anti Drug Squad, who are conducting investigations. The duty magistrate is leading an inquiry assisted by a team of experts from the Police Forensics Unit. 
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Watch: Activists camp outside PA offices in protest

March 27, 2019, 11:43 pm
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Updated at 8.55am with video  Some 25 activists set up tents outside the Planning Authority's main office in Floriana on Thursday morning and said they would camp there in protest until at least Sunday, in a symbolic siege against planners' lethargy.  Activists are angry that a promised fuel stations policy revision, which has been on the cards for more than a year, has not yet been published. On Thursday morning, they set up tents outside the PA driveway, held banners and chanted.   The authority has barred the gate and PA security officials are keeping an eye on activists from the other side of the gate, but there is no other interaction.  Four uniformed police officers arrived at around 8.15am and asked protesters to ensure employees could still access the building. No further action was taken. At one point, security guards came out with water and coffee but the activists refused them. When PA board chairman Vince Cassar arrived, he walked past the protesters without stopping. Environment and Resources Authority chairman Victor Asciak arrived and watched from a distance before getting back into his car and driving off. He returned later. A number of PA board hearings are...
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Customs seize two more containers with €5.8m worth of cocaine

March 26, 2019, 7:39 am
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Just a week after a €32.4 million cocaine haul, Customs officers found 51.6kg of cocaine hidden in reefer containers at Malta Freeport on Tuesday.During routine screening of containers transiting Malta, seven containers with a high-risk route were selected for scanning by the Container Monitoring Unit, the Customs Department said.  Following preliminary scans, two reefer container had irregularities which pointed to possible narcotics hidden behind panelling. Physical searches revealed 20 packets of cocaine, weighing 24kgs and worth approximately €2.7 million in one of the containers.  The second contained 23 packets of cocaine, weighing 27.6kgs worth €3.1 million.Both containers were loaded with fruit and had come from South America en-route to Albania.The case was handed over to the Police Anti Drug Squad, who are conducting investigations. The duty magistrate is leading an inquiry assisted by a team of experts from the Police Forensics Unit. 
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Ministry hits out at PN for leaking MoneyVal document still in draft form

March 27, 2019, 11:32 am
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The Finance Ministry has hit out at the Nationalist Party for 'seeking to interfere' in an evaluation of Malta by MoneyVal - the Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering Measures and the Financing of Terrorism. It was reported on Sunday that Malta’s anti-money laundering regime received a poor grade in a draft Moneyval evaluation, with the government now scrambling to push up its final score before the summer deadline. On Wednesday and on previous occasions, Opposition leader Adrian Delia called on the government to take concrete action to strengthen Malta's reputation. The Finance Ministry said the PN's latest attempt to interfere with the due process being carried out by MoneyVaL was ample proof that it was set to harm the country on the pretext of concern for Malta’s reputation. "This Council of Europe mission has been carrying out such circa two-year evaluations about Malta, for the last 20 years. The Nationalist administrations have experienced these missions starting in 1998. The missions have always in the past carried their task serenely without undue pressure or interference from the political class," the ministry said.  "Not this time. While in...
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