Dog-friendly beaches, running spaces & more recommended by Commissioner for Animal Welfare

May 12 2022

Commissioner for Animal Welfare Alison Bezzina has presented a number of new recommendations to the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries, Food and Animal Rights Anton Refalo and parliamentary secretary Alicia Bugeja Said.

The fourth set of recommendations includes three new proposals, joining the 15 recommendations Bezzina had already presented with hopes to improve the Animal Welfare Directorate’s operations.

The first recommendation suggests an increase in dog-friendly run free spaces to address the lack of adequate dog parks in Malta, where dogs are allowed to roam leash-free. This proposal also includes dog-friendly beaches, with all spaces being closed off into smaller areas for fewer dogs which can remain under the surveillance of their owners.

Another proposal suggests the conducting of a National Census of Captive Animals in Malta in Gozo to understand how many domestic and exotic animals are currently in Malta, with worries of a significant number of unregistered and illegal animals.

The third and final proposals includes improvement of the electronic microchipping system, which also allows shared ownership and automatic flagging in the case of indiscretions from owners. This would help with regards to flagging of individuals convicted of animal cruelty.

What do you make of these proposals?

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Full-time workers in Malta increase by 4.2% while part-timers up by 9.9%

May 12 2022

Information revealed by the National Statistics Office shows that, last December, the rate of full-time workers increase by 4.2% while those with part-time jobs increased by 9.9% when compared to 2020.

The NSO statistics show that the largest increase in jobs can be seen in the accommodation and hospitality sector, with an increase of 1,404 workers. The second-largest increase in full-time workers was in the construction sector, with an increase of 1,276 workers entering this sector.

The total amount of full-time workers in the private sectors amounts to 191,728 while 51,486 are registered to be working in the public sector.

In their data, the NSO also remarked that the largest increase in part-time jobs could be seen in the science and technical work sector with 997 new workers, with the accommodation and hospitality sector coming in second with 811 new workers.

The total amount of individuals working on a part-time basis was registered to be 36,279 people, an increase of 13.9% when compared to the same period in 2020.

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COVID response team disbanded after 2.5 years following lifting of restrictions

May 12 2022

The Public Health Response Team responsible for Malta’s contact tracing, monitoring and management during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, has officially been disbanded after two-and-a-half years.

This disbanding follows the recent lifting of most of Malta’s restrictions as the country takes a step further towards normality. An audit of the team’s performance is currently under way. Operations of the contact-tracing team were halted when quarantine letters stopped being issued on May 2.

Any additional staff have returned to their original place of work, with a total of 250 people working in case management during the course of the pandemic.

Head of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Unit Tanya Melillo has stated that they “are still working with homes and institutions that have positive cases, as well as those in hospital.”

Despite the relaxation of measures and disbanding of the response team, Melillo explained that ‘the job is not over’, with Malta requiring further surveillance on COVID-19 and other respiratory disease.

What do you make of this?

#MaltaDaily

Major flyover projects to start within the next few months

May 12 2022

During a recent interview on the public broadcaster, Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Capital Projects Aaron Farrugia had stated that a number of large and “controversial” road projects will take place during this legislature.

A few of the projects seem to be coming in the next few months, with the minister revealing that four of five of these controversial projects will be unveiled ‘soon’.

On that note, Times of Malta reported that Farrugia was referring to flyover projects in Msida, Mrieħel and Qormi, with a road-widening project to be held in Pembroke close to the Wembley Service Station.

Sources had reported that the Msida flyover will be the first project to take place, with the project previously proposed to eliminate the Msida circus junction and replace it with flyovers which will allow traffic to flow uninterruptedly.

#MaltaDaily