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New Kappara flyover to open to traffic tomorrow

September 16, 2017, 4:29 am
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The second newly-built Kappara flyover will be open to traffic from tomorrow, two weeks ahead of schedule, Transport Minister Ian Borg announced this morning.  The first flyover was opened last July, already easing traffic in what is known as one of Malta's most problematic traffic junctions.  In a Facebook post, Dr Borg took an indirect dig at the Nationalist Party's leadership contest claims and said: "Some want to open a new road, others want to open the right road. Tomorrow at 9am we will open the Kappara flyover, 15 days ahead of schedule. This is a government which is working and keeps delivering successes. Thanks to Transport Malta chairman James Piscopo and all workers". Initially dreaded by thousands of motorists, who feared long delays and diversions, the ambitious project was seen by many as a rare show of efficient roadworks and traffic management.  The project is not yet complete, as the Regional Road still has to link traffic to San Ġwann and Gżira. Starting in April 2016, the project is being completed thanks to the EU Cohesion funds allocated for the years 2014 - 2020. The project will cost a total of €35 million, €33 million of which derive from EU funds.
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Hundreds get their hands dirty to clean up Malta

September 16, 2017, 1:36 am
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Hundreds of volunteers are literally getting their hands dirty today to take part in a nationwide cleaning campaign.  A total of 115 locations all over Malta are being cleaned by hundreds who have committed to join the Let’s Do It Malta National Clean organised by JCI Malta in collaboration with Malta Clean Up and sponsored by Betsson. Bags and gloves were distributed to the volunteers before they were assigned the different areas to clean up.  After gathering dozens of garbage bags, volunteer Maria Busuttil told Times of Malta: "Shame on all those who grumble non stop about the dirt around but then failed to turn up to help in the national clean up. I was embarrassed as a Maltese to see mostly foreigners taking part. We are good to grumble but not to take action." She said it was, however, encouraging to see youngsters taking part in the initiative. "Plastic is one of the worst things to dump by the roadside and it was amazing to pick up so many disposed drinking straws from around bins - sheer carelessness," she said, referring to a site cleaned up in Qawra.  Ms Busuttil said all outlets should provide ashtrays outdoors to try to reduce the thousands of cigarette butts...
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Watch: Worker falls one storey at Birkirkara construction site

September 15, 2017, 3:34 am
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A 36-year-old man was rushed to hospital this morning after he fell from a one-storey height at a construction site in Birkirkara.  The Birżebbuġa resident, a 36-year-old Togo national, was working the site at Triq il-Gummar when he fell one storey while working.  He was taken to Mater Dei hospital by ambulance, where doctors certified his injuries as being serious in nature.  Police said they are investigating further. 
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Pensioners admit pickpocketing

September 14, 2017, 8:54 am
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Two elderly pickpockets were remanded in custody today after pleading guilty to stealing a wallet inside the Mosta church yesterday morning. The two Romanian pensioners, Ion Balan, 59, and Constantin Teodorescu, 67, both residing at a St Julian's aparthotel, were arraigned jointly and, assisted by an interpreter, pleaded guilty to the theft. The prosecution informed the court that the two men, possibly accompanied by a third individual who is still at large, had committed the theft inside the church yesterday at around 9.45am. After hearing the two culprits admit to their wrongdoing Magistrate Francesco Depasquale, upheld a request for an adjournment for the defence to prepare its case.   The court adjourned the case to September 25. Inspector Godwin Scerri prosecuted. Lawyer Mark Vassallo was defence counsel.
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Busuttil addresses PN convention

September 15, 2017, 10:30 am
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The national convention of the PN, which formally kicks off the voting process for a new leaders saw Simon Busuttil making his final address as party leader.  A total of 15,527 Nationalist Party members will be voting for a new leader tomorrow  – 86% of those eligible – with 2,595 already having opted for early voting. The rest will be voting at the Granaries in Floriana and MFCC in Ta’ Qali tomorrow from 8am to 9pm, and at the sub-headquarters in Sannat from 8am to 8pm. The Nationalist Party said 18,000 members had been eligible to vote in the contest between Adrian Delia and Chris Said. The PN has around 22,000 members but around 4,000 are not fully paid-up. This is the first time that the party membership of any major political party in Malta has a direct say in the election of the leader. Dr Delia and Dr Said were shortlisted from a field of four candidates in the first phase of the election, where the party councillors were eligible to vote. Alex Perici Calascione and Frank Portelli were eliminated after obtaining the lowest number of votes in the secret ballot. The winner is expected to be known early on Sunday morning.
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Grocer caught with suspicious cheques pleads not guilty

September 15, 2017, 5:01 am
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A grocer accused of cashing suspicious cheques and charging illegally high rates of interest on loans was today granted bail after pleading not guilty to the charges.  The father of two, whose identity is not to be disclosed so as not to hinder ongoing police investigations, landed himself in trouble when it transpired that he was allegedly cashing cheques for unusually large sums handed over by third parties. Escorted to court under arrest, the man was charged with having acted in breach of money laundering regulations. He was also accused of having charged interest for loans at a rate exceeding the legal limit.  The prosecution explained in court how the shopkeeper used to cash cheques, charging a commission, before depositing the amounts in his shop till. Since the cheques were numerous and covered large sums, the suspicion of underhand money laundering activity was justified, the court was told. In his submissions on bail, the defence lawyer stressed that his client had fully collaborated with the police and had strong ties in Malta. Being the father of two young children and running a business located in Malta laid to rest any risk of the man absconding from the island.
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Mayors to boycott Marsa protest over far-right presence

September 15, 2017, 6:04 am
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The mayors of Marsa, Ħamrun, Paola, Pietà, Msida, Gżira and Floriana will boycott a "solidarity walk" being organised in Marsa on Sunday after they objected to the presence of far-right activists. The walk organised by a group of Marsa residents and being held on Sunday at 9.30am was provoked after reports of "lawlessness". Police carried out a high-profile swoop on migrants in Marsa and the government first announced that residents at the town's open centre would be moved to Ħal Far before stopping the relocation two days later. The anti-immigration ‘Patriots’ party will be at the walk, which it said was being organised by residents and not by any political party. Meetings are still underway between the Labour mayors and councillors, the association and the government over ways to improve security in the localities – which they said had already led to an improvement in the situation. Read: Impassioned call for national burden sharing of migrants
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Two pedestrians grievously injured after being run over in St Julian's, Sliema

September 15, 2017, 10:24 pm
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Updated 11.05am An Italian woman is in critical condition after she was hit by a car in St Julian's early this morning.  Police said the 23-year-old was run over by a car driven by a 20-year-old from Dingli in Triq Ġorġ Borġ Olivier around 3.40am. The woman was rushed to hospital in an ambulance. The busy road was temporarily closed to traffic.  Later, at 9.30am, another pedestrian was run over on The Strand in Sliema.  A 35-year-old Irish man, who resides in Sliema, was hit by a car, driven by a 67-year-old who also lives in Sliema. Police said his injuries are grievous.    Police are investigating both incidents.  
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Vote for Delia if you want to "bury" the PN - Marlene Farrugia

September 16, 2017, 3:41 am
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Democratic Party MP Marlene Farrugia warned Nationalist members that a victory for Adrian Delia in today's leadership contest would signal the death knell for the PN. In a Facebook post, Dr Farrugia wrote: "If the members choose Delia, they will be destroying the Opposition and burying the PN. I said what I had to say." Dr Delia is up against Chris Said at the climax of a tense contest to replace Simon Busuttil following the heavy electoral defeat in the June 3 election.  The outgoing PD leader and MP, elected under the Forza Nazzjonali banner with the PN in the last election, said members had a choice to make.  If they wanted to unite and renew the party to render it a winner then they should clearly choose Dr Said.  In a veiled attack on Dr Delia, she said members had a choice to go for a leader who would transform the PN into a weak copy of the Labour Party, thus enabling Joseph Muscat to "roll over everybody and keep winning elections". Dr Delia is seen as a party outsider who has vowed to clear the "establishment" if elected. He is believed to have an edge over Dr Said in today's contest.  The leadership contender and some prominent PN officials and MPs have openly been...
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Delia, Said await their fate as PN members choose the next leader

September 15, 2017, 10:01 pm
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Updated 12.20pm with reports of 'tension' Simon Busuttil’s successor at the helm of the Nationalist Party will be decided today when 12,932 paid-up members, will be asked to choose between Adrian Delia and Chris Said. According to official figures released yesterday, a further 2,595 members already cast their vote last week, bringing the total number of voters to 15,527. Around 6,000 had cast their vote by 2pm.  Polling is taking place between 8am and 9pm at the Malta Fairs and Conventions Centre in Ta’ Qali and the Granaries in Floriana. In Gozo, voting at the PN’s sub-headquarters in Sannat will close an hour earlier, at 8pm. Reports of complaints of long queues have emerged, with one video posted on Facebook showing Dr Delia urging party helpers to help resolve the chaos. Witnesses reported there was a heated exchange between Nationalist MP Jason Azzopardi and Dr Delia's brother at one point on the Granaries. Dr Azzopardi is openly backing Dr Said.  The result is not expected to be out before 1.30am, and could be out even later, depending on the speed of the counting process, which will take place at a specially set-up hall at the Granaries. Today’s election is a first for...
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Suspended sentence for 2005 haul of 15 million contraband cigarettes

September 15, 2017, 9:19 am
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A man ended up with just a suspended sentence after a 12-year-long court process over charges of illegally importing 15 million contraband cigarettes. Arthur Ciancio, 65, and his son Aaron Ciancio, 45, both from Mellieħa, were accused over their involvement in the criminal racket, which resulted in the massive haul back in 2005. The contraband merchandise was worth some €593,000 and was liable to €1.5 million in excise duty and a further €377,000 in VAT. An anonymous tip-off had alerted the police to the imminent arrival of the merchandise, which was eventually seized by customs officials on Easter Saturday in March 2005. The relative bills of lading of the two container described them as carrying promotional toys and giftware respectively for two Maltese companies which, upon subsequent investigations, turned out to be non-existent. The first container yielded 421 master cases, each containing 10,000 Regal brand cigarettes. The second container turned out to be carrying 726 cases of contraband merchandise. A false e-mail trail from a sender, purporting to be a local representative of the China Shipping company, was traced to an IP address in the name of the accused Arthur Ciancio.
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Bird activists report two more cases of abuse

September 15, 2017, 10:03 am
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A poacher was caught red-handed by the police at 5am today, after a team from activists CABS reported that there was equipment set up to trap Oystercatchers and Redshanks - both protected species - near Żurrieq. The ALE team arrived within minutes and managed to catch the trapper red-handed. The bird caller and two large clap nets were confiscated. According to CABS, the poacher is a repeat offender and will be taken to court soon. Another group filmed a protected Honey Buzzard being shot down near Ħal-Far at 7:30am but in spite of the police arriving promptly, neither the poacher nor the dead bird could be retrieved. A video uploaded on the CABS Facebook page shows the bird flying low and then suddenly crumbling up as it is hit, and crashing to ground.
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Juncker’s tax scheme is unrealistic, warns Scicluna

September 15, 2017, 4:01 pm
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Malta opposes the idea floated by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker that European tax reforms should not require unanimous approval. Finance Minister Edward Scicluna said Malta would not give up the right enshrined in the EU treaty to establish its own taxation. “We do not agree with Mr Juncker’s opinion, and realistically, nobody is willing to set aside national sovereignty at a whim,” he said, reacting to a proposal made by the EU chief in his State of the Union speech to the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Wednesday. Mr Juncker said governments’ veto powers on EU tax reforms should be limited, calling for a simpler decision-making process that involved qualified majority voting rather than unanimity. READ: 10 key ideas from Juncker's State of the European Union speech Among the suggested reforms, Mr Juncker called for a harmonised company tax across the 28-country bloc, something that Malta, the UK and other small states have consistently opposed. “We believe more needs to be done and can be done to complete what we already started, such as the banking and capital markets union, before referring to unrealistic wishes that require treaty changes,” Prof.
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French photographer shoots ‘fragile’ Malta

September 16, 2017, 10:06 am
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Photos: Cyril Sancereau

The fragility of the local landscape has been caught in a series of photos by a French photographer based in Malta. They are being exhibited until the end of the month in Valletta. Supported by the French Embassy in Malta and themed Landscape Sampling, the exhibition by Cyril Sancereau forms part of a wider effort to strengthen Maltese-French ties. Ambassador Béatrice le Fraper du Hellen told Times of Malta that it all started some months ago with a partnership between the photography school of Arles, Arts Council Malta, the Fondazzjoni Kreattività and the University of Malta. In a bid to keep up the momentum, the Embassy sponsors events with Maltese and French artists, one of which is Mr Sancereau’s exhibition. “Ambassadors come and go, as do artists. We wanted to create a relationship that is vibrant throughout but goes beyond the V18 period to create a lasting relationship,” Ms le Fraper du Hellen added. A student of architecture and a graduate of the École des Beaux Arts de Rennes, Mr Sancereau specialises in architecture and landscape photography. He works regularly for a wide variety of architecture firms and magazines and has created work for several exhibitions. He is...
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Photos of the week - Times of Malta

September 16, 2017, 3:22 am
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Watch: New PN leader wants change of mentality, 'not earthquakes'

September 17, 2017, 12:52 am
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New Nationalist Party leader Adrian Delia said today that in the same way Malta's independence paved a new road which united the country, he was confident that the PN leadership election was also a new road for unity and progress.  Dr Delia was replying to questions on Net TV in the first interview since becoming party leader, and hours before the PN's independence celebrations start. The former Birkirkara FC president narrowly beat PN MP Chris Said during yesterday's election at the end of an acrimonious campaign.   Dr Delia recalled that there had been uncertainty, even fear, when Malta gained independence, but that milestone in the country's history had yielded unity and progress, and he was confident that the Nationalist Party too was embarking on a new road which would have its problems but which would ultimately lead to unity and success. "Let us let bygones be bygones, let us look ahead and move forward because success for the PN will ultimately be a success for Malta," he said.  Dr Delia said he disagreed with (Joseph Muscat's) promise of bringing about an earthquake when he was elected because earthquakes were destructive and caused casualties, but he wanted to bring...
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‘Instead of working to live, we are living to work’

September 16, 2017, 10:01 am
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Two mock parliamentary sessions were held in an event organised by the National Youth Council. Photos: Chris Sant Fournier

Employees should have the right to disconnect from work responsibilities when they punch out, the National Youth Parliament heard earlier this week. “There are instances when employees have to deal with work-related issues during out-of-work hours, whether through emails, phone calls or, at times, even having to go back to the workplace,” Michaela Pace said. “Instead of working to live, we are living to work. These people are not just employees, but they have their own families,” she said in a heartfelt address. Ms Pace said her ‘party’, which had been tasked with coming up with a resolution on youths and work, was proposing that work-related issues that needed to be resolved immediately could be handled by people enjoying the same seniority. Commenting on the education system, she noted that despite advancements, there was room for improvement. READ: Should workers have the right to ignore emails after office hours? The system focused too much on literacy abilities instead of skills such as public speaking and the transition from the school benches to the workplace was not a smooth one, Ms Pace noted. Two mock parliamentary sessions were held in an event organised by the...
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Watch: Joseph Muscat to invite Delia for meeting

September 17, 2017, 1:42 am
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  Prime Minister Joseph Muscat this morning congratulated new PN leader Adrian Delia and said he would invite him for a meeting to see how they could work together.   Half-way through a speech in Zebbuġ, Dr Muscat said he would be inviting the new PN leader as soon as he returns from the US, where he will be addressing the UN General Assembly. What he hoped for, he said, was a change of attitude: Would the PN continue to be negative, or would there be a change of tone, even if it disagreed?  A small initial test, he said, would be whether Dr Delia would reverse a PN decision not to participate in a committee that would decide Malta's waste management options.  READ -  Labour condemns PN for opting out of waste-to-energy committee He said Malta needed an Opposition that was coherent and started to take positions, and not sit on the fence. Simon Busuttil’s last speech on Friday showed exactly why the PN had lost the election. It was a display of arrogance where it seemed that everyone was bribed or corrupt, the Prime Minister charged.  It had been said that the PN chose Dr Delia because it could not choose any better. But Malta had a choice and was continuing to choose the best,...
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Six challenges Adrian Delia will face as PN leader

September 16, 2017, 4:57 pm
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Adrian Delia made it clear throughout the Nationalist Party leadership race that he felt he was battling headwinds in his quest to become party leader. Now that the Birkirkara lawyer and political outsider has made it to the top of the PN and become part of the “establishment” he said was working against him, he can expect the difficulty quotient to rise, as the Labour Party gets in on the game. Here are six tests the PN’s new leader will face over the coming months. 1. Stopping the PN’s internal bleeding One of Dr Delia’s first tasks as PN leader will be to rally the troops and unite an Opposition which has frayed at the seams over the course of the party leadership race. The Birkirkara lawyer used his maiden speech as party leader to call for unity and pledged to lead the PN in battling "hatred" and "division", but it will take more than those words to win over sceptics.   Dr Delia has faced vociferous opposition from party officials and MPs such as Jason Azzopardi, who has made no bones about his distaste for the party's new leader. The Democratic Party’s Marlene Farrugia, who forged a pre-electoral alliance with the PN, has warned that Dr Delia will “bury” the PN if he...
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Konrad Mizzi's threat to shut down Air Malta is 'unacceptable' - PN

September 16, 2017, 8:50 am
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Updated 7pm - Added UHM statement Air Malta employees should be very concerned about Tourism Minister Konrad Mizzi's "unprecedented threat" to close the national airline, the Nationalist Party said this afternoon.  In a statement, PN MP and tourism spokesman Robert Arrigo said that Air Malta had to be seen in the broader context of its contribution to the national economy and tourism sector, rather than as a mere commercial entity.  The PN statement came after Dr Mizzi told MaltaToday that Air Malta could be shut down unless uncooperative unions got on board with plans to turn the struggling airline around. WATCH: No Air Malta partner until the airline is restructured, says Mizzi "If the employees and the unions do not understand that they need to work with the company and the government while we implement changes to make the airline profitable, the government might have no other option but to close the company down completely and re-open with new staff," Dr Mizzi said.  Airline cabin crew and pilots are both understood to be demanding significant pay increases. In its statement, the PN noted that the government had previously said that talks with unions representing Air Malta...
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