Yamaha’s Frenchman Fabio Quartararo won Sunday’s Dutch MotoGP to stretch his lead at the top of the drivers’ standings with a dominant display in Assen. Two Spaniards in Maverick Vinales and champion Joan Mir completed the podium as Quartararo claimed his fourth race victory of the campaign before the mid-season break. Quartararo, 22, in just his third term at the top table of racing extended his advantage to 34 points ahead of second-placed Johann Zarco, who had to contend with a fourth place in the Netherlands.    Continue reading this article on Sports Desk, the new sports website by Times of Malta

French police appealed for witnesses Sunday as they launched a probe into the giant domino-effect pile-up that marred the opening stage at the Tour de France, caused by a spectator who leant into the path of the speeding peloton holding up a sign. The woman held up a sign with ‘Granny and Grandad’ written in German and looked up the road towards the race’s motorbike cameras, crucially, with her back to the speeding peloton.   Continue reading this article on Sports Desk, the new sports website by Times of Malta

Max Verstappen tightened his grip on the Formula One driver standings as he cruised to victory in the Styrian Grand Prix on Sunday with his closest challenger Lewis Hamilton a distant second. The Dutchman started from pole in his Red Bull and led throughout to finish more than 35 seconds head of British reigning champion Hamilton in his Mercedes.  Finn Valtteri Bottas was third for Mercedes, chased home by the second Red Bull of Mexican Sergio Perez. Continue reading this article on Sports Desk. 

Chelsea midfielder Kai Havertz says Germany are once again ready for another penalty shoot-out against England if Tuesday’s Euro 2020 last 16 clash is decided by spot-kicks. Joachim Loew’s side head to Wembley looking to extend England’s miserable run of 55 years since they last beat Germany in the knockout stages of a major tournament. The Germans triumphed over England on penalties in the semi-finals of both the 1990 World Cup and Euro 96, the latter of which was also at Wembley. It was current England manager Gareth Southgate who missed the crucial spot-kick as the Germans went on to win the Euro 96 title.   Continue reading this article on Sports Desk, the new sports website by Times of Malta

The authorities are not enforcing a legal requirement for commercial outlets to engage a private contractor to collect their rubbish which is now overflowing onto the streets of St Julian’s, according to the mayor. Albert Buttigieg said the lack of enforcement is turning St Julian’s into a shabby town, with mountains of black bags and carton boxes used by commercial outlets turning the streets into an eyesore.  “According to law, all commercial outlets must have a private contractor to collect the rubbish they generate but this is not being enforced so the rubbish is being left on the street. Malta is sadly not only turning into a cement island but a dirty one too, full of trash,” he said.  “If we need to promote the island for high-end tourists we must act fast. With all this trash placed outside, we are attracting low-quality tourists and giving visitors the wrong impression and a bad experience of our islands,” he added.  He explained that the enforcement of this legal requirement was the responsibility of the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA). Buttigieg said the local council’s contractor to collect residential waste cannot collect commercial waste as he would then be fined...

British police said they arrested several protesters, believed to be with climate activist group Extinction Rebellion, after manure was dumped outside the London offices of the Daily Mail newspaper on Sunday. "At around 6.40am (0540 GMT), a group of protesters emptied manure from a truck outside a commercial property in Young Street, Kensington," Metropolitan Police said in a statement. "They climbed scaffolding on the outside of the building and hung banners from it," the police added. "Police arrested five people for an offence under Section 148 of the Highways Act. Four of the five were also arrested on suspicion of causing criminal damage." Police also arrested a 54-year-old as he later attempted to empty manure onto the pavement outside commercial premises in Buckingham Palace Road, close to Queen Elizabeth II's residence. All six remain in custody.  The Twitter page of Extinction Rebellion UK posted a video of the Daily Mail protest, as the group appeared to claim responsibility for the action.

Gareth Bale has ruled out speculation he could have played his last match for Wales or even retire from football. The Welsh captain walked out of a TV interview after Saturday’s 4-0 defeat to Denmark ended his side’s run at Euro 2020 in the last 16. Bale said at the end of his one-season loan spell at Tottenham from Real Madrid last month that he knows where his future lies, but claimed it would “cause chaos” if he revealed it before the European Championship.   Continue reading this article on Sports Desk, the new sports website by Times of Malta

Serena Williams said Sunday that she will not compete at the Tokyo Olympics next month, joining fellow Grand Slam legend Rafael Nadal in withdrawing from the Games. The 39-year-old American revealed her decision at her pre-Wimbledon press conference. “I’m actually not on the Olympic list, so… Not that I’m aware of. If so, then I shouldn’t be on it,” she said. She refused to divulge the reasons for her decision. However, a ban on foreign fans as well as family members at the Olympics would have meant Williams being separated from her daughter Alexis Olympia.   Continue reading this article on Sports Desk, the new sports website by Times of Malta

This is part two in a two-part series. Read part one.  The second main character of the story is a Russian general with an illustrious military career and shades of corruption hovering over his fame. General Sergej Mihajlovich Brovtsyn appears frequently in Maltese contracts during the Russian-Turkish war of 1828-1829, through the agency of the Russian consul in Malta, Antonio Regnaud Carcas. He first took part in a contract by notary Charles Curry on January 4, 1829 and for the last time on September 12. The consul sometimes simply states he is acting on behalf of the Russian imperial fleet in the Mediterranean and sometimes appears as attorney of General Sergej Brovtsyn, intendant of the Russian imperial fleet. In some contracts, the consul styles himself chevalier. All the contracts are signed on behalf of Brovtsyn and there is no indication that he was ever personally present in Malta during that period. The role of intendant of a military entity refers to the officer responsible for supplies and services. Many of the Maltese contracts cover the provisioning of the imperial squadron stationed in the official Russian naval base on the Greek island of Poros. The former Russian...

Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel is self-isolating for 10 days after testing positive for COVID-19 shortly after a European Union summit, his office said Sunday. But none of the other 26 EU leaders who attended the Brussels summit Thursday and Friday is considered a contact case, a statement said. Under the rules in Luxembourg for containing the spread of the virus, close contact with a COVID sufferer is defined as spending more than 15 minutes with them at a distance of less than two metres without a mask. A spokeswoman for Bettel said he had respected the rules during the summit. "No head of state or government figures on the list of the prime minister's close contacts," she added. The statement from Bettel's office said he had "light symptoms" including fever and headaches but "he will continue to carry out his tasks and functions" from home. Bettel, 48, has so far received only a first vaccine dose.  The landlocked country of some 600,000 residents has recorded 70,600 cases of COVID and 818 deaths.

The Czech Republic reached the Euro 2020 quarter-finals Sunday after shocking 10-man Netherlands 2-0 in their last-16 tie in Budapest thanks to second-half strikes by Tomas Holes and Patrik Schick. A header by Holes and clinical finish by Schick came after Matthijs de Ligt was sent off in the 55th minute, securing the efficient Czechs a deserved berth in the last eight against Denmark in Baku on July 3. Having emerged as Group C winners with a 100 percent record after playing all three of their games in Amsterdam, Frank de Boer’s fancied Netherlands were on the road for the first time in the tournament. Continue reading this article on Sports Desk.

NEPTUNES 9 SAN ĠILJAN 8 (1-2, 3-1, 2-2, 3-3) Neptunes’ youngsters raised their game to strike a psychological blow on their rivals on the eve of the new season when they won the Enemed Cup in dramatic fashion. Early days these may be in waterpolo terms but the final turned out to be a fanastic ding-dong battle with Neptunes producing the last cheers as their team managed to outdo their rivals San Ġiljan in dramatic fashion. It was James Spiteri Staines who brought the accolades to his team with a last-gasp goal, 26 seconds to go, which was as exquisite as it was decisive. After Jeremy Abela had given Neptunes the lead, a speedy exchange of passes helped San Ġiljan take a 2-1 first-session lead through goals by Jake Bonavia and Matthew Zammit. Continue reading this article on SportsDesk, the sports website of the Times of Malta

When the police officer who killed George Floyd was found guilty of murder in April, the slain Black man's lawyer hailed the verdict as a "turning point in history," so rare is it for a cop to be found guilty in the United States. But a handful of police officers have since been indicted -- indicating the justice system may be a little less reluctant to pursue rogue officers. Although police kill an average of 1,000 people every year, only 110 officers were charged with murder between 2005 and 2015, according to a count by Bowling Green State University. Only 42 were convicted and, of those, just five were found guilty of murder. The legal framework is "very deferential" to police officers because it grants them "a great deal of discretion," said Seth Stoughton, a former police officer who became a professor of law at the University of South Carolina. Agents have the right to kill as long as their use of force is considered "reasonable" in the face of the perceived risk. In addition, any investigation is often conducted by their own colleagues and according to rules that are "very protective," added Stoughton, who testified at the trial of Derek Chauvin, the Minneapolis officer...

A rocket from Thorgan Hazard knocked reigning champions Portugal out of Euro 2020 on Sunday and earned Belgium a blockbuster quarter-final with Italy. Hazard’s swerving shot before half-time sealed a 1-0 win for Belgium and settled a scrappy contest in Seville that never really lived up to its billing as the stand-out tie of the last 16. Cristiano Ronaldo tested Thibaut Courtois with a dipping free-kick in the first half but the 36-year-old neither broke the international goals record nor added to his five for the tournament. Continue reading this article on Sports Desk. 

50 Shades of Clyde: Don't hate the Pleyer, hate the game. See more work by Seb Tanti Burlò.

Is Malta a bilingual country or not? Our country is proud to be a bilingual country and is advertised as such. Yet, we have numerous occasions where one really wonders if that is truly the case! Why, for instance, did we have my medical colleague, Charmaine Gauci’s recent excellent programmes about this awful COVID pandemic  only in the Maltese language, without English subtitles? We have a substantial proportion of English-speaking foreigners living in our country. The irony of it all is that when some journalists asked her questions in English she answered in Maltese, without the people directing her programme adding subtitles in English. An extremely peculiar and surreal situation! Finally, during my worldwide travels and living abroad for so many years, nowhere have I ever encountered a television programme where a person asks a question in a particular language and gets an answer in a different one, without subtitles in the original language used. The single, sensible and simple answer, in such a case in Malta, is to have English subtitles. Is that too much to ask for from our local television producers? Raymond Bencini – Żebbuġ Self interest I can understand Bernard...

The CMA CGM Fort St Georges from Aliaga to Algeciras, the As Svenja from El Dekheila to Algiers, the CMA CGM Corneille from Singapore to Koper (all CMA CGM Malta Agency Ltd), the Le Havre from Gioia Tauro to Pointe des Galets, the MSC Carolina from drydock to Gioia Tauro (both John Ripard and Son Ltd), the MV Eurocargo Palermo from Catania to Catania, the MV Eurocargo Malta from Genoa to Catania (both Sullivan Maritime Ltd) and the MV Elisabeth Russ from Genoa to Genoa (Gollcher Co. Ltd) today. The Kreta S from Piraeus to Koper, the Contship Gin from Misurata to Algiers, the CMA CGM Rivoli from Algiers to Singapore, the Bomar Milione from Algiers to Piraeus, the Corona J from Thessaloniki to Damietta, the Gerrit Braren from Venice to Thessaloniki, the Dina Trader from Marseille to Gebze, the Marina from Sousse to Sousse (all CMA CGM Malta Agency Ltd), the MSC Qingdao from Valencia to King Abdullah Port, the MSC Carlotta from Colon to Gioia Tauro and the MSC Brianna from Montreal to Gioia Tauro (all John Ripard and Son Ltd) tomorrow. The Charlotta from Tripoli to Catania, the APL Detroit from Singapore to Gioia Tauro (both CMA CGM Malta Agency Ltd), the Caroline Russ from Genoa...

In Memoriam BORG-BARTOLO. In loving memory of ENA, dearest mother and grandmother, today being the second anniversary of her death. Always remembered by her daughters Christine and Patricia, and her grandchildren Hazel, Joseph, Patrick, William and Michael Rafferty. May she rest in peace.  DELIA – JOHN. In loving memory of our dear father on the 10th anniversary of his passing. Patrick, Angela, John and their respective families. Lord grant him eternal rest. SCHEMBRI – JOHN. In loving memory of a dear husband, father and grandfather on his second anniversary to a better life. Always in our thoughts and prayers, his wife Grace, his daughter Elaine and her husband Adrian, his son James and his wife Joanna, his daughter Alexia and her husband Reuben and his seven grandchildren Nicholas, Kyle, Julia, Emma, Michael, Sarah and Adam. Forever missed. VASSALLO – LUIS. In loving memory of our beloved eldest brother on the 27th anniversary of his demise. Forever in our thoughts and prayers. Stephen, Peter, Joe, Christine and Francis and their families. To book an obituary or an ‘In Memoriam’ email classified@timesofmalta.com or night@timesofmalta.com after office hours.

The Lands Authority’s chief audit officer has slammed transparency and good governance failures which saw her shut out of board meetings and documents being withheld from her. The authority is tasked with administering public land in the best possible way on behalf of taxpayers. In a hard-hitting annual audit report concluded in February, the head of the authority’s internal audit directorate accused the board of impeding her work. The dispute escalated last summer when the Lands Authority’s board pushed back at the auditor’s continued requests to attend any board meeting of her choosing. Internal audit chief Charlene Muscat accused the board of failing to act on the advice they themselves sought from the advocate general about whether she had a right to attend any board meeting she wished to be present for.  According to the advice given last July, then state advocate Victoria Buttigieg said the board had no authority to impede the auditor’s right to attend meetings, as allowed by the law governing the Lands Authority. She said in the report that the board’s failure to immediately act on the state advocate’s advice directly impacted good governance and transparency at the...

Chamber of Advocates president Louis de Gabriele’s speech during the inaugural sitting of Mr Justice Ian Spiteri Bailey (‘Lawyers sound warning over “piecemeal” regulation of profession’, June 11) made interesting reading. He reiterated some fundamental aspects of the legal profession that can never be altered, no matter how much one may try and carry it to extremes and, at the same time,  called for certainty with regard to other lacking aspects. There is a fundamental distinction between a law graduate and an advocate. The former is one who has graduated from the university law course or a recognised law school. The advocate is one who, having graduated from a recognised academic institution, thus meeting the education requirements, subsequently successfully sits for the bar examination and is warranted by the president of the republic. This examination, to my mind, should be a holistic one, testing the knowledge of shared legal principles, including constitutional law, as well as testing the candidate’s knowledge of the laws, rules and regulations in effect at the time. Subsidiarily, there should also be a professional responsibility exam, which tests knowledge and...