D’Amato Records Pokes Fun At ‘The Establishment’ Talk

May 7 2024

Taking to social media, D’Amato Records, the famed oldest records shop in the world located in Valletta, has poked fun at all the ‘establishment’ talk currently consuming local politics.

‘We are the establishment (the music one)’, wrote the page on social media.

Established back in 1885, the records shop wrote: ‘a lot of talk about establishments… maybe we deserve to be the music one?’

What do you think?

Is D’Amato Records the establishment of music?

Jokes aside, concerns over the pin-pointing of who the establishment is arose when Prime Minister Robert Abela implied certain journalists as well as PN members are part of the ‘establishment. The latter have in turn pointed to the current Prime Minister as well as former PM Joseph Muscat as deserving of that title.

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Rent Report Reflects Stable, Cooperative Housing Sector

May 7 2024

The Housing Authority’s latest rent report, covering rental contracts registered in Malta for the second half of 2023, has been released. Minister for Social and Affordable Accommodation Roderick Galdes, during the report’s launch, emphasized its portrayal of stability in the rental market, crediting government policies supporting landlords and tenants.

Key findings include:

25,721 renewals in 2023, mostly automatic.

Approximately 92% of renewals retained the same rental rate.

Active rental contracts increased by 23% to 60,339 by December 2023.

90% of contracts were long-term, with 16% extended over three years.

32% of new long-term contracts in late 2023 fell within the €700-€999 rent range.

Minister Galdes highlighted the significant aspect that 92% of landlords opted to renew leases at existing rates, underscoring government efforts in fostering a stable housing sector. He emphasized the recently amended rent law as a crucial housing reform milestone, positively received by stakeholders for its role in ensuring fair treatment for all parties involved.

Galdes reaffirmed the government’s commitment to maintaining policies promoting fair practices and safeguarding the rights of both landlords and tenants, with the ultimate goal of fostering a robust, dynamic, fair, and transparent housing market.

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76,562 People Went On Cruise In First 3 Months Of 2024

May 7 2024

In the first quarter of 2024, the total number of cruise passengers reached 76,562, marking a 6.4 percent increase from the same period last year.

Although there were 19 cruise liner calls during this quarter, which is two fewer than the previous year, transit passengers constituted the vast majority, totaling 73,372 (95.8 percent).

On average, each berthed vessel in Malta accommodated 4,030 passengers, an increase of 602 compared to the previous year.

Passengers from EU Member States constituted 62.7 percent of the total traffic, with Italy being the largest market at 28.4 percent, followed by Spain at 11.3 percent.

Non-EU countries contributed 28,584 passengers, with the United Kingdom accounting for 21.9 percent and the United States for 14.5 percent.

Regarding gender distribution, female passengers comprised 52.4 percent of the total. The majority of passengers fell within the 40-59 age bracket (32.4 percent), followed by those aged 60 to 79 years (25.9 percent).

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Source: NSO

First Eurovision Semifinal Tonight!

May 7 2024

The first semifinal of the 2024 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo, Sweden is tonight!

With Malta set to open the second semifinal, tonight’s competition will see the first 15 countries go toe-to-toe for a place in the finale.

Here are the contestants competing tonight: Cyprus, Serbia, Lithuania, Ireland, United Kingdom, Ukraine, Poland, Croatia, Iceland, Germany, Slovenia, Finland, Moldova, Sweden, Azerbaijan, Australia, Portugal and Luxembourg.

Who are you rooting for?

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