Many young couples dream of being homeowners just like their parents. This dream has begun to look like a nightmare. Home and rental prices are skyrocketing, inflation is rising and wage increases are marginal at best, certainly not enough to allow people to keep up with rising house prices. Housing affordability has a direct impact on whether the serious demographic challenges facing the country will be resolved. Malta has one of the lowest fertility rates in the EU, a fast-ageing local population and limited physical capacity for more property development. So far, policymakers have no apparent plans to resolve this slow-burning issue that threatens the prospects of prosperity for present and future generations. Malta’s current economic model, which promoted growth through the mass importation of labour in the last decade, is the primary cause of the pricing frenzy in the housing market. Low interest rates for more than 15 years have also driven many cash-rich individuals to withdraw their money from banks and invest in residential property as demand for rental property for foreign workers boomed. This phenomenon has crowded out many young couples from the property market,...

The following are the main stories in Friday’s newspapers. Times of Malta leads with the Gżira’s Labour mayor accusing his party of betraying its socialist principles over plans to turn part of a public garden into a petrol station. In another story, the newspaper says a man awaiting trial for a murder committed 35 years ago has claimed a breach of his fundamental rights because the attorney general refuses to drop the charges against him.  The Malta Independent and In-Nazzjon say the Opposition will be filing a motion in Parliament insisting on a public inquiry to establish the truth on the Jean Paul Sofia tragedy. L-Orizzont says works on Triq is-Sejba in Mqabba are expected to be concluded in the second quarter of the year.

Malta went from having not a single actionable report of fraud related to EU funds to becoming the country with the most reports per capita in Europe in just a year, according to the EU’s anti-graft agency. The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) annual report published yesterday revealed that Malta ended 2022 with 14 investigations at the EPPO’s office over projects worth a total of €123.5 million. Three of those cases concern VAT fraud investigations of projects worth a total of €70.5 million. Four cases include cross-border investigations, another four concern corruption, two are about procurement expenditure fraud and one concerns money laundering. Possible fraud in agriculture, fisheries Three cases of possible fraud emerged from agricultural and rural development programmes, one emerged from maritime and fisheries programmes and another one emerged from mobility and transport, energy and digitalisation programmes. The EPPO was established in 2017 to investigate, prosecute and bring to judgment crimes against the EU’s financial interests, such as fraud, corruption or serious cross-border VAT fraud. It mainly investigates fraud in member states over EU funds. Last...

As China gears up for a meeting of its rubber-stamp National People's Congress (NPC) in Beijing, lawmakers are offering clues about what new proposals might be on the table. With voting tightly controlled and no legislation likely to pass without the approval of the country's top leadership, lawmakers have little to no scope to enact major changes.  Submitted proposals are nearly always approved overwhelmingly by the pliant chamber, and this year they run the gamut from geopolitical posturing to animal welfare. Here are some of the proposals: Taiwan NPC deputy Li Yihu told the China Review News Agency he will submit proposals on promoting "civil exchanges" between mainland China and Taiwan, a self-ruled democracy Beijing considers part of its territory that it will one day reclaim. Li said that over the past year Beijing's "overall strategy for resolving the Taiwan issue" had firmed up, adding that "the mainland will push national unification onto a fast track." The Chinese government has in recent years stepped up its rhetoric and actions towards the island, with President Xi Jinping saying last year that use of force would remain on the table and that "reunification of the...

Melita FC have embarked on an interesting project with Universita del Calcio with the aim of boosting the development of the football club holistically. Andrew Naudi, president of Melita FC, told a news conference yesterday that the Challenge League club’s goal has always been to improve all their teams from all aspects of the Beautiful Game, including technical, tactical, physical and mental, and to achieve that they have teamed up with Universita del Calcio on a partnership agreement. “The holistic development of our football teams has always been at the heart of our agenda,” Naudi said. “It has always been our ambition to help our players from all age groups to improve not only from a technical point of view but also from a physical, mental and tactical aspect. To achieve that we need to give our coaches the right tools to be able to maximise the talent of our young players with the aim of providing our senior team with the players so that they can compete at the top level in Maltese football. Read full story on www.sportsdesk.com.mt

Epic has announced the launch of Epic TV, a multiscreen IPTV platform launched in conjunction with Zattoo, a European television streaming provider. The service is a first for Epic in Malta and builds on similar launches by Epic’s shareholders, in Ireland, Switzerland, and Monaco.  The company said in a statement that the offering highlights its determination to bring a fresh approach to a market. CEO Pierre Etienne Cizeron said users will be getting real choice, better service, lower prices and faster speeds. Epic TV is available in one package, offering 39 live TV channels.  Epic TV has partnered with global names in the TV space – such as Discovery, Eurosport, and BBC, among others, to offer its customers much more than the standard local and Italian channels. The service also includes add-on features such as replay, a seven-day catch-up, up to 100hrs of recording at no extra cost, and HD streaming.  TV by Epic is the name of the dedicated app, available from the App store and Google Playstore.  Customers can watch the service through multiple devices at the same time. The TV add-on is available free from two-year commitments, and customers can benefit from the launch offer...

Wayne Shorter, the storied saxophonist considered one of America’s greatest jazz composers and among the genre’s leading risk-takers, died on Thursday in Los Angeles. He was 89. Shorter’s publicist Alisse Kingsley confirmed his death to AFP, without specifying the cause. The enigmatic jazz elder performed with fellow legend Miles Davis and went on to become a leading bandleader on both soprano and tenor sax, including with his group Weather Report. He was one of the last living jazz greats to have cut his teeth in the genre’s 1950s heyday when it was both the soundtrack at dance halls and gained ground in intellectual circles. Wayne Shorter and his best friend, pianist Herbie Hancock, performing in 2007 at the Paris ‘Jazz à la Villette’ music festival. Photo: Patrick Kovarik/AFP He won 12 competitive Grammys over his long career, the last of which came just last month, as well as a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy. Tributes quickly poured in, with keyboardist Herbie Hancock – one of Shorter’s best friends and regular collaborators – calling him “irreplaceable”. “I miss being around him and his special Wayne-isms but I carry his spirit within my heart...

Napoli coach Luciano Spalletti says his players are drowning out what he sees as premature title chatter despite knowing victory over Lazio on Friday would send them 21 points clear in Serie A. The league leaders have won eight games in a row and 19 of their past 20 in the top flight — a run that began with a 2-1 victory away to Lazio on September 3. “We’re not listening to those who want us to take our hands off the wheel and start celebrating, because there are still twists and turns to come,” said Spalletti. “Our fans must take to the field with us and not wait for us at the finish line.” Read full story on www.sportsdesk.com.mt

Women have been left waiting for up to a year for a breast screening appointment due to a backlog caused by the COVID pandemic. The health ministry said the national screening centre is “still catching up with the demand following the suspension of services”. All women aged between 50 and 69 are offered free screening every two-and-a-half years. A ministry spokesperson said primary healthcare was working on introducing screening “during twilight hours” and procuring another machine to help with the backlog. The breast screening clinic was closed for three months during 2020. Readers have complained about delays in the allocation of a breast cancer screening appointment. One person, who preferred to remain anonymous, explained that she turned 50 over a year ago and had been calling to ask when she would be called for an appointment. She was told that there was a backlog due to technical issues. When asked about this, a ministry spokesperson said that the backlog was the result of the delays caused by the pandemic that came to Malta in March 2020. The number of screenings impacted by the backlog was not provided. About 300 women diagnosed with breast cancer each year In a reply...

A joke about his mother's reaction to air raids gets a laugh of recognition for Anton Boldyrev as the young Ukrainian comedian performs stand-up at a Kyiv club.  "My mom calls and asks: 'Where are you?' I'm like, 'Metro Arsenalna'," he says, referring to the deepest station in Kyiv over 105 metres below ground. "She says 'You need to go down deeper'," Boldyrev tells the crowd of around a hundred people. Video: AFP Then "I ask her where she is (and she says): 'I'm in the village and the signal is bad, so I've gone up to the attic.'" Laughter fills the large dimly lit bar, packed with couples and groups of friends enjoying pizzas and beers as they watch the performers. Despite the fighting raging in the country's east and south and relentless aerial attacks, Ukrainians - who in 2019 elected former comedian Volodymyr Zelensky as president - are already flocking back to stand-up nights.   The event's producer Ivan Zhornokley, wearing a t-shirt with the slogan "Words are our weapons", says he was initially worried people would not come back when he relaunched comedy nights in May. "Is this appropriate or not?", Zhornokley remembers wondering.  But "it seems the time was right,...

Double world champion Max Verstappen and his Red Bull team will be tough to beat at this weekend’s season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix, his rivals said on Thursday. Both Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and McLaren’s George Russell said the defending champion’s team had shown they had a distinct performance advantage in last week’s three-day test. “It’s clear, they’ve had a strong start and both Red Bull and Max seem to be very strong,” said Leclerc, who finished second in last year’s title race behind the flying Dutchman. “Yes, it’s only testing, so it’s difficult to quantify by how much, but it seems like they are a bit in front compared to us. So, we’ve got some work to do. Read full story on www.sportsdesk.com.mt

Spring is in the air, and March is the month for the reawakening of nature, when the bare branches on trees and bushes start budding with new life.  Already, the few almond trees scattered in the Maltese countryside announce the splendor of Spring by putting on a snow-white mantle of fragrant radiance.  Opportunely, the walks planned by the Ramblers’ Association of Malta during March target mainly the north of the Maltese islands where open spaces and rustic agricultural stretches are more copious, although marred intermittently with offending structures, very often illegal or of dubious licence.   Sunday, March 5:  Mellieħa: A route that skirts the village of Mellieħa and Selmun, starting down from the renowned Ġnien Ingraw (aka Calypso’s shrine) to the shoreline at Għadira and thence to Ras il-Griebeg, Mġiebaħ Bay and Selmun – a panoramic treat for the eyes. Meeting point: Mellieħa parish church Starting time: 9am Rating: Moderate Duration: 3 to 4 hours   Ramblers at Wied il-Faħam Sunday, March 12: Għargħur: This ramble passes through a number of rocky valleys below Għargħur and Madliena, including Wied il-Faħam, Wied Anġlu and Wied id-Dies, noted for their numerous...

What a joke the Planning Authority is! Not only does it permit offending structures to proliferate on virgin land, but it grossly fails its duty to enforce its own rulings and those of the Environmental and Planning Review Tribunal! It is definitely not an authority, but an entity that has been doctored into a subordinate rubber-stamp to the wishes of the ruthless and unprincipled, and politically-potent speculators. The scandalous Baħrija ‘sheep farm’, permitted by the Planning Commission led by Elizabeth Ellul, springs directly to mind, over which even the PA’s own Agricultural Advisory Committee poured shameful contempt. A PA worthy of its name would, for once, return the site back to its natural state. The same applies to the illegally-built garage complex overlooking the protected Mosta valley.  Give the land back to nature! And what about the large amount of illegal structures and unsightly contraptions spoiling the integrity of the countryside and/or depriving peaceful access by ramblers. The list of pending enforcement actions against illegalities in the countryside is endless, yet the PA remains unaffected in passive quiescence, and the law-breakers continue to enjoy...

Scientists have discovered a hidden passage inside Egypt’s Great Pyramid, the authorities announced on Thursday, part of a seven-year international research project. The passage is nine metres in length and more than two metres in width, the antiquities ministry said in a statement. Egypt’s Tourism and Antiquities Minister Ahmed Issa told reporters at the ancient site in Giza also known as the Khufu, or Cheops, pyramid, that the “gabled corridor” with a triangular ceiling “was found on the northern face of the Great Pyramid of King Khufu”. The discovery was part of the ScanPyramids project, launched in 2015 as a collaboration between major universities in France, Germany, Canada and Japan and a group of Egyptian experts. Archaeologist Zahi Hawass, Egypt’s former antiquities minister, heads the committee supervising the project, which uses advanced technology to visualise hidden parts of the pyramid’s interior without having to excavate it. The technology is a mix of infrared thermography, muon radiography imaging and 3D reconstruction – all of which the researchers say are non-invasive and non-destructive techniques. Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities reveals the...

Luka Doncic scored 42 points and Kyrie Irving added 40 as the Dallas Mavericks thwarted the Philadelphia 76ers’ late comeback bid Thursday in a wild 133-126 NBA victory. Offensive fireworks were expected in a game featuring the top two scorers in the league in Doncic and 76ers center Joel Embiid. But the seamless blend of Doncic and Irving was a revelation after the Mavs had gone 1-4 with the two on court since Irving’s arrival via a trade with Brooklyn last month. The two combined for 18 assists. Doncic made 13 of his 22 attempts from the floor, draining seven of the Mavs’ 25 three-pointers. Read full story on www.sportsdesk.com.mt

A group of youths testified about the drunken stranger who pestered them as he blabbered incoherently about “bombs” and “Daphne Caruana Galizia”, until one of them pushed him away, causing him to topple backwards heavily to the ground. That push, which sent the tipsy man crashing to the ground, brought the youths’ outing to Rabat, for tea and pastizzi, abruptly to an end and landed one of them on the wrong side of the law. Stevie Pisani, a 21-year-old Cospicua resident, is facing charges for grievously injuring the drunk man, placing his life in manifest danger and disturbing public peace. The youth in denying the charges, while his alleged victim is still recovering in hospital. The incident took place on February 11 at around 10.30pm near a parking area known as l-Għalqa ta’ Kola right opposite the Rabat pastizzeria where the party of friends had just bought their drinks and food to eat outside.  The accused’s friends took the witness stand this week, each recounting the events of that evening from the moment that the stranger approached them outside the shop, following them as they tried to shrug off his unwelcome presence. The youths, three men and a woman, had coaxed the...

A hooded man armed with a knife entered a gambling shop in Ta’ Xbiex on Friday and demanded money from an employee, the police said. They said the incident happened at around 9.30am in Triq il-Prinċipessa Margerita. The 22-year-old employee was not injured but the thief managed to escape with cash. The police are on the lookout for the thief.

Robert Spiteri, a renowned drummer, will be undertaking a 24-hour drumming marathon to raise funds for Puttinu Cares. The drumathon, taking place at Baystreet in St Julians, kicks off at 6pm on March 4 and ends at 6pm on March 5. Spiteri will be joined by several special guests throughout the event, including Matthew James, Ben Bailey, Lara and the Jukeboys, and Nadine Axisa on Saturday, and Michela Galea, Karin Duff, RUG, and the Big Band Brothers on Sunday. The drumming marathon aims to raise funds and awareness for Puttinu Cares, a charity that supports children and their families undergoing cancer treatment. Through this event, Spiteri hopes to inspire others to support the cause and make a difference in the lives of those in need. Those who wish to donate can do so via Revolut: 79899695 or BOV Mobile Pay: 79499423. This is the Facebook link to the event.

Belarus has handed a 10-year jail term to veteran activist Ales Bialiatski, a Nobel Prize winner and founder of the ex-Soviet authoritarian country's most prominent rights group. Bialiatski was in the dock with two allies after they were jailed in the aftermath of historic demonstrations against the disputed 2020 re-election of Belarus's strongman President Alexander Lukashenko. They were accused of smuggling cash into Belarus to allegedly fund opposition activities, according to rights group Viasna, meaning Spring in Belarusian, which Bialiatski founded in 1996.  Viasna said on Friday that he had been handed a 10-year sentence, while co-defendants Valentin Stefanovich was given nine years in prison and Vladimir Labkovich was jailed for seven. During a hearing in January last year, all three pleaded not guilty. Amnesty International has called the trial a "blatant act of injustice" and "revenge for their activism". Bialiatski was among the three co-recipients of last year's Nobel Peace Prize, alongside a Russian and Ukrainian human rights group.  Co-winners of the Nobel Peace Prize 2022, (L-R) Yan Rachinsky for Russian rights group Memorial, Natalia Pinchuk for her husband,...

Traffic accidents and casualties increased in 2022’s last quarter when compared to the same period a year earlier, according to the National Statistics Office. The office said there were seven fatalities while reported traffic accidents reached 3,816, up by 3.2% over the same period in 2021. Road traffic casualties increased by 0.5% to 381 over the same period in 2021. A total of 84 people - 52 drivers, five passengers and 27 pedestrians/cyclists/others - were grievously injured. The injuries suffered by three drivers and four pedestrians proved fatal. Five were men. During this quarter, there were two more fatalities than in the same period in 2021. 2022’s last quarter fatalities included two drivers colliding vehicle with vehicle, a vehicle crashing into a property killing the driver and four pedestrians being hit by a vehicle. The largest number of road traffic casualties (54.9%) involved passenger cars, followed by motorcycles (32%) and goods-carrying vehicles (7.3%).  There were 11 cyclists who were involved in traffic accidents with two suffering insignificant injuries, five slight injuries and four grievous injuries. Road traffic casualties resulting from accidents...