Driving towards a greener and better Malta

Sep 29 2021

In a collective push, the Used Vehicles Importers Association (UVIA) and Malta Car Importers Association (MCIA) are pushing for a greener and better Malta with their Budget 2022 proposals. Giving voice to over 130 employers and 350 employees within the local industry, the associations have come up with the needed sustainable measures for our islands.

The Use Vehicle Market is significantly greater than the New Vehicle Market across Europe. Germany’s Used Vehicle Market is expected to reach €105 Billion in Gross Transactional Value by 2023. In Malta’s case, the same market was also significantly greater until 2020.

Their proposal starts with a stronger budget for EV grants, shaped by a contractual commitment with the government in order to shift their import stock to a growing proportion of electric vehicles. This would help the government achieve its aim of reaching carbon neutrality by 2050, a target stipulated in the Paris Agreement.

Pushing Malta to become one of the leaders in the electrification and decarbonisation of its fleet, this would result in having around 11,000 EVs, imported locally. The Government would also reach its target of having 65,000 EVs vehicles by 2030, surpassed by up to 31,000 EVs.

The second proposal involves a collective effort approach in order to be taken up for the distribution of funds. ‘The ultimate aim is to ensure that all stakeholders within the used vehicle industry, are satisfied with the distribution structure being affected.’ This would give way to the third proposal, which is the abolition of government grants given to ICE vehicles.

The associations are of the understanding that any form of grant given to newly registered ICE vehicles is to be entirely abolished. This would lead into procuring additional funds for the purchase of EVs ‘in lieu of ICE vehicles’ and to deter the public from pursuing any future purchase of newly registered ICE vehicles. This last measure would work in conjunction with attaining the goal of reducing carbon footprint that such vehicles introduce.

The final two proposals would involve the installation of charging stations on association members’ premises and the streamlining of the term ‘new vehicle’ in terms of Malta’s laws.

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Photo Source: Tree Hugger, GoodElectronics

€60,000 donation to DAR Bjorn by Accommodation Ministry

Sep 28 2021

Minister for Social Accommodation Roderick Galdes and his ministry have donated a generous €60,000 to Bjorn Formosa as he strives to open his new DAR Bjorn. Formosa, who has worked tirelessly over the years to provide a home for neurological patients such as himself in Malta a safe haven, managed to rack up €1,600,723 in his latest live telethon.

The Housing Authority pitched in a €60,000 donation to help build a specialised neuro-gym to help patients living in the new and improved DAR Bjorn. Minister Galdes said that the residents of DAR Bjorn deserved the best services to live a quality life. He also explained how the home is a foundation upon which rests our quality of life.

Neuro-rehabilitation will be given to the patients in DAR Bjorn through this new gym, with physiotherapy helping these patients keep up with daily activities and maintain mobility. This will also promote an active lifestyle irrespective of disability. The facility will also help to ease the patient’s pain and help them live a more comfortable life.

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Photo Source: Roderick Galdes FB

Joseph Mbong opens up on his football career on Ben Camille’s GAME ON

Sep 28 2021

For his newest episode of GAME ON, host Ben Camille meets up with Hamrun Spartans Football Club’s Joseph Mbong. Throughout the episode, we get to meet different sides of the locally renowned player as Camille asks him about his upbringing in football and his decisions to leave Hibs and join Hamrun.

In a heartwarming story, Mbong reveals that his decision to leave his old team did not come easy. However, he was provided with an opportunity to help his mother who had been working tirelessly to support their family after the passing of his father. Through hard work and determination, Mbong worked his way up through the ranks and became one of Malta’s greatest athletes.

The player also opens up about how his passion for football was cultivated. He reveals that his father did not force him to play football but wanted him to develop a passion for the match on his own and to grow up to become an excellent player. Mbong recounts how his father wanted him to first kick off his career by playing in fields and playgrounds.

Mbong premiered with Hibs at the age of 16 at the National Stadium. As the episode goes on, we see Mbong’s fun side as he recounts his latest breath-taking score, who out of Hamrun’s team is the joker of the squad and even challenges Camille to a couple of football related challenges! Tune in to Ben Camille’s GAME ON to get to know the local star further!

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Photo Source: Joseph Mbong FB, Ben Camille FB

Malta should introduce voting from abroad due to pandemic restrictions

Sep 28 2021

The new political party Volt Malta has said that the country should allow citizens who live abroad to be able to vote through an embassy, consulate or mail. Given the COVID-19 pandemic travel restrictions and the next general election around the corner, the Maltese branch of the pan-European Volt movement issued a statement urging the government not to forget Maltese living abroad. This is especially the case for those who do not meet Malta’s vaccination requirements for entry without a mandatory quarantine.

This also concerns Maltese citizens who have received their jab in a country whose vaccine certificate is not yet recognised or those who were previously sick and received only one dose instead of two. For the country they are living in, these individuals are fully vaccinated, but this is not the practice adopted in Malta. Volt Malta also expressed its belief that nobody should be left behind and that the right to vote in an election is one which shouldn’t be taken lightly.

The uncertainty and changing context around the pandemic, Volt Malta expressed, might discourage people from exercising their right to vote. Kass Mallia, the party’s Vice President, said that as a Maltese citizen, ‘you have a right to vote, and as such, it should be the obligation of the government to make that possible even while you are abroad.’

Alexia DeBono, party Co-President, said that we also have to keep in mind vulnerable people, both in Malta and abroad who would risk compromising their health by going to an embassy or flying to Malta. ‘That is why we need to introduce both voting from abroad, and postal voting.’

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