Malta taken to court by European Union over golden passport scheme

Sep 29 2022

The European Commission has referred Malta to the Court of Justice of the European Union for selling passport to wealthy passports though what is known as the ‘golden passport’ scheme.

Malta is the only country to retain the investor citizenship scheme after Cyprus and Bulgaria put a stop to this.

The commission considers granting EU citizenship in return for pre-determined payments or investments with no link to the member state concerned incompatible with sincere cooperation. This, the commission argued, goes against the principle enshrined in the Treaty on European Union as well as the concept of Union citizenship.

This was disputed by Malta, insisting that its interpretation of EU treaties was in fact correct. Malta had previously suspended the sale of passports for Russian and Belarusian nationals following the invasion of Ukraine by the former country.

The commission observed however that Malta continues to operate the scheme for all other nationalities and has not expressed intention to end it. This despite a letter of formal notice to Malta by the Commission sent on October 20th 2020, urging to end the scheme. A follow-up letter was sent on June 9th 2021.

This was followed by a reasoned opinion to Malta, to which the island replied by stating that while it would maintain dialogue with the commission, the grant of citizenship falls within the national competence of a member state and should remain as such.

This response was deemed unsatisfactory by the Commission and thus referred Malta to the Court of Justice of the EU.

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Priest cleared of hate speech charges following controversial comments

Sep 29 2022

Mosta priest Fr David Muscat, who has been outspoken about various issues and led to social media backlash before, was cleared of hate speech charges on Thursday.

Muscat was arraigned in January and accused of inciting hatred or violence directed at members of the LGBTIQ community, particularly gay people.

The priest had hinted at Abner Aquilina, the accused behind the murder of Polish student Paulina Dembska, being gay or bisexual. This, he said, was worse than being possessed.

He subsequently commented on a photo showing Aquilina donning a shirt with various colours, saying that Aquilina seemed to be coming from ‘gay pride.’

The priest was issued a formal warning by Archbishop Charles Scicluna and was ordered to stop making inflammatory and hurtful comments lest he be stopped from exercising his ministry publicly.

The court presided by Magistrate Ian Farrugia acquitted Muscat on Thursday, saying it found no criminal intent.

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Photo Source: Times of Malta

3.6 tonnes of waste collected in Malta Airport Foundation sea clean-up

Sep 29 2022

The Malta Airport Foundation collected 3.6 tonnes of waste from Senglea and Tigné during two seabed clean-ups organised in collaboration with Atlam and Calypso subaqua clubs.

The Malta Airport Foundation has been collaborating with the two local subaqua clubs since 2020. Having collected 1.6 tonnes of waste from Birżebbuġa and Wied iż-Żurrieq in the first year and 1.8 tonnes from Marsaxlokk and Marsalforn in 2021, the Malta Airport Foundation has been successful in clearing the islands’ seabed of a total of seven tonnes of marine waste since the start of this underwater initiative.

“Given that we operate in the tourism sector, we consider it our duty to do our bit to safeguard the Maltese Islands’ underwater world, which is a very attractive part of Malta’s tourism offering.

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Our collaborations with Atlam and Calypso over the past years have allowed us to identify underwater spots that were in dire need of a clean-up due to the accumulation of improperly disposed of waste,” said the Malta Airport Foundation Chairman Josef Formosa Gauci, whilst thanking the two subaqua clubs for their invaluable input.

Some of the items that were elevated from the seabed during this year’s clean-ups in Senglea and Tigné included glass bottles, several car tyres, a number of ceramic toilets, a marine engine and broken boat parts.

While a number of divers and land helpers volunteered to ensure the success of these initiatives, a crane was brought in to elevate the heavier waste items, such as steel construction material, at the Tigné clean-up.

In 2020, the Malta Airport Foundation had partnered with eNGO Żibel on the installation of two Seabins in the localities of Marsaxlokk and Marsaskala, where they are contributing to the maintenance of cleaner seas.

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22 year old grievously injured after Haż Żebbuġ traffic accident

22 year old seriously injured after Haż Żebbuġ traffic accident

Sep 29 2022

Police were informed yesterday evening at around 2145hrs that their assistance was needed in Triq l-Imdina, Ħaż-Żebbuġ.

After convening on site, preliminary investigations found that an accident had occurred between a Renault Megan Classic driven by a 22-year-old and a Toyota Dyna driven by a 25-year-old, both residents of the same locality.

Two passengers were present in the Renault: a 19-year-old male teen from Żurrieq and an 18-year-old female teen from Ħaż-Żebbuġ.

Civil Protection officers and a medical team also convened on site to assist, with an ambulance transporting the 22-year-old to Mater Dei Hospital. He was later certified as having suffered grievous injuries.

Investigations are still ongoing.

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