All of Italy became a mask-free, "low-risk" zone for coronavirus Monday, marking a dramatic milestone for the first European country to be hit by the global pandemic in February 2020. In a decree that took effect Monday, the health ministry for the first time classified each of Italy's 20 regions as "white", signifying low risk, under the country's colour-coded classification system that evaluates Covid-19 risk.  That means facemasks will no longer be compulsory in outdoor areas - welcome news across the country where an ongoing heatwave is expected to push temperatures past 40 degrees Celsius in some southern areas this week. Once a symbol of the coronavirus crisis in the West - where images of army trucks transporting coffins from the overflowing morgue in the northern city of Bergamo were seen around the world - Italy has seen Covid-19 infections and deaths plummet in recent weeks.  A third of Italy's population over the age of 12 has been vaccinated as of Sunday, or 17,572,505 people, according to the government. Long prohibited from entering the country, tourists from the European Union, Britain, the United States, Canada and Japan are now back after the government removed...

The abolition of roaming fees is one of the major successes of the European Union. The EU roaming rules that will expire in June 2022 ensure that people can use their mobile phones to make calls, send SMS and use data when travelling in the EU for the same price as at home. While most are aware of this initiative, most are not conscious that the existing rules will soon expire. If there is no extension by June 2022, it will mean that consumers once again need to start paying roaming fees abroad, possibly even with higher prices. The current revision proposed by the European Commission is also an opportunity to see what worked and what more can be improved in the legislation. I was recently appointed by the S&D Group as the negotiator for the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee to work on this revision on extending the current ban on roaming charges beyond 2022. There is no doubt that the EU’s rules have benefitted both telecom markets and consumers. Last year was difficult for travellers and tourists but, once the pandemic is under control, people will start travelling again and they will want to continue enjoying this right.  This consumer-friendly policy should...

The following are the top stories in Malta's newspapers on Monday. Times of Malta leads with news that the Lands Authority’s chief audit officer has slammed transparency and good governance failures which saw her shut out ofboard meetings and documents being withheld from her. In a separate piece, the newspaper also reports that the proportion of Maltese 25-34 year-olds with a tertiary level of education has jumped from 26 per cent to 40 per cent in the last 10 years - one of the biggest rises in the EU. The Malta Independent meanwhile notes that Malta has the highest percentage of early school leavers in the EU, while the newspaper also publishes a reminder about further relaxation of COVID measures today.  l-orizzont quotes Prime Minister Robert Abela claiming Malta will strive for a certificate of excellence, following the FATF's greylisting of the country.  In-Nazzjon refers to comments by Opposition leader Bernard Grech who on Sunday also reacted to the greylisting, saying he would be listening to all stakeholders to be able to take the necessary decisions for the good of the country.

Novak Djokovic begins his bid for a sixth Wimbledon title and 20th Grand Slam on Monday as the grass court showpiece returns following its cancellation in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Having already captured the Australian and French Open titles this year, world number one Djokovic is halfway to becoming just the third man in history to complete a calendar Grand Slam. It’s a feat so rare that Rod Laver was the last man to achieve the sweep back in 1969. In what could be a record-breaking year for Djokovic, there is also the chance of an Olympic title which could pave the way for a Golden Slam of all four majors and Tokyo gold. “Wimbledon, Olympics, and US Open can be fun to watch Novak play because he’s going to put everything on himself to try to make it,” said world number two Daniil Medvedev. Continue reading this article on SportsDesk, the sports website of the Times of Malta

World Cup holders France are in Euro 2020 action on Monday as they face Switzerland in Bucharest looking to secure a place in the quarter-finals, while Luka Modric leads Croatia into battle against Spain. The pre-tournament favourites, France have so far struggled to find their best form in this competition after following a narrow opening win over Germany with draws against Hungary and Portugal. Kylian Mbappe has not yet found the net and coach Didier Deschamps has been hit by injuries to a number of fringe members of his team, but Les Bleus are still expected to have too much for their Swiss neighbours in the Romanian capital. Continue reading this article on SportsDesk, the sports website of the Times of Malta  

The death toll after the collapse of a Florida apartment tower rose to nine, with more than 150 people still missing and their weary families waiting nearly four days for information as to their fate. The outlook grew increasingly grim by the hour, however, as the slow rescue operation, involving workers sorting nonstop through the rubble in torrid heat and high humidity, carried on. Four new bodies and other human remains were found after rescuers dug an enormous trench - 38 by six by 12 meters - through the mountain of debris, according to the Miami-Dade County mayor. "As of now, the number of confirmed fatalities remains at nine," Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told reporters in Surfside, near Miami Beach. She had said earlier that one victim had died in hospital. "We have identified an additional four of the victims" for a total of eight identified, she said during a Sunday evening press conference. "We're working to notify those next of kin first." Six to eight squads, backed by two huge cranes and aided by sniffer dogs, are "on the pile actually searching at any given time," she added. She also said that "we did give all of the families an opportunity to privately visit the...

It is almost a truism that adults underestimate the ideas and opinions of children and young people. Routinely, society refers to the importance of its young people while simultaneously limiting their rights and opportunities. While preparing its framework for assessing how individual countries promote the rights of children, the Council of Europe noted that societies frequently do not understand the benefits of their participation. Since coming into force in 1990, the Convention on the Rights of the Child has become the most widely ratified human rights treaty worldwide. It has offered a platform to encourage governments to make or change laws and policies to protect and promote children.  Most notably, the Convention has helped ensure that increased numbers of children get the health care and nutrition needed for survival and human development. It has also helped promote stronger international safeguards that protect children from violence and exploitation. At its best it has inspired young people to find their voice and have it heard and increased their participation across society.  The idea of children’s rights is based around a number of key principles which reflect...

Simonds Farsons Cisk plc’s 74th annual general meeting was held remotely for the second time due to the restrictive measures related to the COVID-19 environment. Farsons Group chairman Louis A. Farrugia said at the AGM held last Thursday that the results achieved are commendable given the enormity of the challenges that have been faced since March 2020. The past financial year will go down as one of the most challenging in the group’s history. The pandemic has also had severe implications on the trading performance of the group. The Farsons Group was able to manage the sizeable reduction in its trading activities without having to declare redundancies or take other very tough measures due to the fact that it faced the crisis from a position of strength, having also just completed 10 years of growth in turnover and profits as well as implementing a very significant investments programme that modernised and transformed its facilities. Group turnover for the year ended January 31, 2021, fell from €103 million to €73 million, a decrease of 29.4 per cent which was experienced across all sectors, with the higher drops being registered in the beverage import operations and the...

Having missed out on their annual appointment at San Anton Gardens in 2020 due to the pandemic, the Malta Amateur Dramatic Club (MADC) will finally make its eagerly anticipated return to the local theatre scene this summer. The club had intended to stage The Merry Wives of Windsor; however, due to COVID-19 restrictions, the initial plan was postponed to July 2022 and is being replaced by Midsummer by David Greig and Gordon McIntyre.  A collaboration between playwright Greig and singer-songwri­ter McIntyre, Midsummer is a short play featuring some songs that originally opened at Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre in October 2008. Then, in 2018, it received much acclaim in a revival at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Directed by Chris Gatt and with Maxine Aquilina, Chris Dingli and Paul Portelli forming the cast of three, the story unfolds over a rainy midsummer’s weekend in Edinburgh. One evening, Bob, who earns a living by running errands for a local gangster, meets Helena, a high-powered divorce lawyer who is having an unsatisfactory affair with a married man. Bob and Helena have absolutely nothing in common, yet still get together for a one-night stand. Their worlds are turned...

Malta International Airport boss Alan Borg talks to Diana Cacciottolo about travel restrictions, vaccine checks and a post-COVID future ahead of an expected influx from the island’s largest tourism market.  The British are coming – 150,000 of them. That’s the prediction of Malta International Airport CEO Alan Borg on the numbers of UK tourists that will descend on Malta between July and the end of this year. Amid a stubborn pandemic that has decimated the tourism industry, Malta’s addition to the UK’s quarantine-free travel list last week is a “game-changer”, Borg says, in an interview ahead of Wednesday’s expected bulk arrivals from Britain. Even before the announcement of quarantine-free travel, arrivals from British airports were increasing. There were around 8,000 UK passengers in the first three weeks of June – equivalent to the number of arrivals for the first five months of the year. “I was eagerly waiting for the UK to put us on the green list. So, I’m happy that we finally are now,” Borg says.  “I’ve been working in the airport for 14 years – the UK market has been our number one market during that entire time.”   In pre-pandemic 2019, arrivals from Britain accounted...

Belgium coach Roberto Martinez said Eden Hazard and Kevin De Bruyne will both undergo scans on Monday to diagnose the extent of their injuries suffered in Sunday’s 1-0 win over Portugal at Euro 2020. De Bruyne was taken off just after half-time with an ankle injury while Hazard departed in the 87th minute due to a muscle problem, with Belgium now facing an anxious wait ahead of the quarter-final against Italy on Friday. “We need 48 hours to find out the extent of the injuries,” said Martinez. “KDB is his ankle, it was a really bad tackle. Eden is more of a muscle feeling. We will go back to Belgium tonight and do scans tomorrow.” Belgium edged into the quarter-finals thanks to a sizzling strike from Eden Hazard’s younger brother Thorgan towards the end of the first half. Continue reading this article on SportsDesk, the sports website of the Times of Malta

Updated 1.45pm A man has been charged with a string of cannabis offences after Customs authorities intercepted three boxes containing around 18,000 cigarettes containing the drug.  Marc Paul Bradley Crimeni, a 62-year old Canadian-born company director living in Malta, was charged over alleged importation, trafficking and aggravated possession of cannabis after the anti-drug squad were alerted to the boxes on Friday. The cigarettes they contained turned out to be filled with cannabis and further searches at his Swieqi home led to the discovery of other products containing cannabis extracts, as well as more cigarettes similar to those that arrived by post.  The alleged importer pleaded not guilty and was granted bail.  His lawyer, Renè Darmanin, explained that the accused traded non-nicotine cigarettes and had sent for the products as samples. He had told Customs authorities beforehand about product specifications and also discussed the excise duty to be paid on them, his lawyer argued.  Prosecutors strongly opposed a request for bail, arguing that 18,000 cigarettes were not “samples” and that there was a fear that Crimeni would abscond, given his foreign ties.  Investigations...

Sydney McLaughlin delivered a sizzling world-record breaking 400m hurdles victory as the weather-disrupted US Olympic track and field trials drew to a thrilling close in Oregon on Sunday. The final day of the 10-day meeting in Eugene was disrupted by brutal triple-digit temperatures which blasted Hayward Field with furnace-like conditions and forced organisers to postpone afternoon events to the evening. When the action resumed in slightly cooler temperatures on Sunday evening, it was McLaughlin who stole the show, scorching to a stunning victory in 51.90sec after an epic battle with rival Dalilah Muhammad. The 21-year-old McLaughlin became the first woman ever to duck below the 52-second barrier after a superb tactical race against reigning Olympic and world champion Muhammad. Continue reading this article on SportsDesk, the sports website of the Times of Malta

The nephew and heir of Times of Malta founder Mabel Strickland has been awarded €85,000 in compensation after a constitutional court found that the old rent laws breached his rights to the enjoyment of an inherited Valletta property. Chief Justice Mark Chetcuti, presiding over the First Hall of the Civil Court in its constitutional jurisdiction, ruled that Robert Hornyold-Strickland’s human rights have been violated.  Hornyold-Strickland inherited his aunt’s estate after she died in November 1988, including an apartment in Merchants Street which was being rented out to Ciantar Brothers Limited for the last 40 years for a measly €186.35 a year.  A court-appointed architect testified that the apartment, in such a strategic place, had a potential annual rental income of €18,000.  Chief Justice Chetcuti noted that the substantial difference in this rental income and the automatic renewal of the rent against the owner’s will was infringing his fundamental rights and the free enjoyment of his property, as guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights. The court ruled that Hornyold-Strickland was being deprived of his property without being given fair compensation. It noted...

New coronavirus cases popped up in cities across Australia on Monday, prompting local authorities to impose restrictions in areas not used to living under strict COVID-19 rules. Australia has been broadly successful in containing virus clusters, but is now battling flare-ups in at least four cities across the vast continent nation.  Brisbane, Darwin, Perth and Sydney have all reported new cases of the highly contagious Delta variant, which first emerged in India and has spread in Australia after escaping from hotels used to quarantine returning travellers.  The largest outbreak is in Sydney, where 130 people have tested positive for COVID-19 since a driver for an international flight crew was diagnosed in mid-June, with the city's residents now under stay-at-home orders for two weeks. A 48-hour lockdown of Darwin and surrounding areas - due to end Tuesday - was extended to Friday after a cluster linked to an outback gold mine grew to seven cases. Northern Territory Chief Minister Michael Gunner said that for the first time during the pandemic there were exposure sites in the city, which is home to a large indigenous population feared to be more vulnerable to COVID-19. "The risk...

Netherlands defender Matthijs de Ligt said he felt he was the player to blame for his team’s Euro 2020 last-16 exit after being sent off in Sunday’s 2-0 loss to the Czech Republic. The Juventus centre-back was dismissed 10 minutes into the second half in Budapest for a deliberate handball after he was forced into an error by Czech striker Patrik Schick. As De Ligt fell to the ground he pushed the ball away from Schick to deny his opponent a goalscoring opportunity. He initially escaped with just a booking, but received a red card following a VAR review. “I had it under control. The ball came and I let it bounce. I fell to the ground and got pushed, which made me use my hands,” De Ligt told Dutch public broadcaster NOS. Continue reading this article on SportsDesk, the sports website of the Times of Malta

Robert Abela must immediately denounce his predecessor Joseph Muscat in the wake of Malta’s FATF greylisting, Bernard Grech said on Monday.  In a fiery speech in parliament, Grech placed the greylisting blame firmly at the Labour government’s feet.  “This is your legacy,” Grech told Labour MPs, days after Malta became the first EU country added to a list of jurisdictions deemed untrustworthy in the fight against financial crime.  He challenged the prime minister to immediately distance himself from Muscat. “Denounce Joseph Muscat, admit Muscat got us into this state, kick him out of the party. Show us you are not looking for continuity. This is his legacy…  “What is holding you back? If you do not do this, you are happy with what your predecessor got us into,” Grech charged. He demanded that the government immediately publish all correspondence and documents from the FATF, including the action plan given to Malta by the global anti-money laundering body.  Opposition to take further action Grech warned that the opposition would in the coming days be taking a series of actions in parliament to ensure accountability.  He proposed the setting up of a specific parliamentary...

The world of sports is back in full swing. This year, we’ve seen our favourite events back in action from football to Formula 1, horse racing to tennis. Sport’s lovers have given a collective sigh of relief to be spectating once again, but more importantly, betting on their favourite team to win is back on the table. Malta’s leading retail sports betting brand, IZIBET, has launched an incredible new online platform, bringing the best sports odds and bonus features all around. If that’s not enough, click on the casino option offering the world’s hottest games.  To kick things off IZIBET are offering a 100 per cent match free bet of up to €100 to be used on the sports market of your choice. Simply make your first deposit on the new platform and claim your free bet. Pretty simple, right? What do you fancy? Your team to win? A footy acca? A horse in a big race? A driver in F1? The year still holds a lot of excitement as far as sporting events are concerned. The Ryder Cup, the Tokyo Olympics, and the cricket T20 world cup are all still coming up, and IZIBET has you covered! For betting newbies and for seasoned players, the new website offers ease of use for streamlined wagering. The...

A wall in Ħamrun is being transformed into a mural depicting two subjects that have a special place in the locality’s history - St Ġorġ Preca and a train. The painting in Triq Il-Franġiskani, was the brainchild of the Ħamrun local council which approached graffiti and tattoo artist Justin Bonnici.  Bonnici, better known as Justinks, told Times of Malta that Ħamrun mayor Christian Sammut asked him to have a traditional theme for the mural which represents the locality.  After designing a couple of sketches, they chose the Maltese saint and the train, for the mural. Both date back to the 19th century and are an important part of Maltese culture and history.  Why the saint and the train? Born in Valletta in 1880, St Preca grew up and lived most of his life in Ħamrun. He celebrated his first mass on Christmas Day, 1906, at the St Cajetan parish church in the locality.  He is the founder of the Society of Christian Doctrine, better known as M.U.S.E.U.M., a Catholic society that teaches catechism, and which held its first meeting in Ħamrun. Ħamrun was also one of the key stations for the Malta Railway service, which was the only railway ever on the island, and consisted of a single...

Argentine prosecutors will on Monday question Diego Maradona’s personal physician, accused along with six other medical professionals of having neglected the ailing football icon in his final days. The appearance of Leopoldo Luque, 39, will close a two-week process of interrogating the seven, who appeared one by one to defend themselves against the accusations. Luque, who has described Maradona as a friend, was in charge of his medical team, which a board of experts found had provided inadequate care and abandoned the idolized player to his fate for a “prolonged, agonizing period” before he was found dead in bed. A judge will next decide whether to order a trial, in a process that could take years. The suspects risk between eight and 25 years in jail if found guilty. Continue reading this article on SportsDesk, the sports website of the Times of Malta