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Sandra Gauci to run for European Parliament election in 2024

Sandra Gauci to run for European Parliament election in 2024
Sep 14 2022 Share

ADPD’s deputy chair Sandra Gauci announced that she will be contesting the European Parliament election in 2024. 

Gauci had contested the general election for the first time with ADPD in March of this year. With the EP election due for mid-2024, six MEPs will be chosen from Malta as representatives. 

Writing an opinion piece for the Times of Malta, Gauci pledged to be the voice of the people and to not resort to the ‘brand of Maltese tribalism which has ‘graced’ the European Parliament as representatives thought ‘it wise to extend their village bickering to a wider audience.’ 

If this proves successful for Gauci, she will sit as part of the Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance in the European Parliament. 

Gauci’s public presence and career began with her ‘ABS News’ as a vlogger, providing commentary on current affairs. 

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Queen Elizabeth’s funeral could cost the UK around £6 billion

Queen Elizabeth’s funeral could cost the UK around £6 billion
Sep 14 2022 Share

The UK faced a massive loss following the death of Queen Elizabeth II on the 8th of September 2022. However, the country could face another loss of billions to hold the late monarch’s funeral. 

The funeral is set for the 19th of September at Westminster Abbey, and thanks to factors like funeral expenses, King Charles III’s coronation and bank holidays, the nation is set to face a massive bill after the whole ordeal is completed. 

While an exact figure for the Queen’s publicly funded state funeral won’t be revealed, the cost of previous state funerals suggest that her ceremony will come with a massive price tag. 

The Queen’s Mother’s funeral in 2022 was thought to have cost around £5.4 million and the funeral for Princess Diana in 1997 was priced at around £3 to £5 million. 

Earlier this week, the Economic Times reported that the Queen’s passing may cost around £6 billion. The outlet pointed to how the Queen’s portrait being on coins and stamps will now have to be changed. 

Even British passports will have to have alterations made as statements made in travel documents alluding to ‘Her Majesty’ will need to be changed to ‘His Majesty.’ 

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NSO reveal that one in five people are at risk of poverty or social exclusion

Sep 14 2022 Share

New figures published by the National Statistics Office have revealed that one in five Maltese people are at risk of poverty or social exclusion.

The AROPE (at risk of poverty or social exclusion) rate stood at an alarming 20.3% last year which is a 0.4% increase from the previous year 2020.

The report also revealed that the increase affected most age groups however the age group affected most was the over-65s, who experienced an almost 30% poverty risk rate. This also now means that there are over 103,000 people in Malta and Gozo including those who are under-18 who are now at risk of poverty or social exclusion.

The rate for people only at risk of poverty stood at 16.9% in 2021 and without all social benefits like pensions it would increase by 19.3% to 36.2% of the country being at risk of poverty.

The ARP rate is highest in the Northern Harbour district, which includes Birkirkara, Gżira, Ħamrun, Msida, Pembroke, Pieta, Qormi, St Julian’s, San Ġwann, Santa Venera, Sliema, Swieqi and Ta’ Xbiex. Here, the ARP rate stands at 19.8%.

Whilst the lowest ARP rate is in the South Eastern District which includes places like Marsaxlokk, Marsaskala and Birgu and stands at a low 11.8%.

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Backlash after PN MP doubts priority of sex reassignment surgery

Backlash after PN MP doubts priority of sex reassignment surgery
Sep 14 2022 Share

Nationalist Party MP Alex Borg was called out by prominent LGBTIQ+ activists after he put into question the prioritisation of making sex reassignment surgery free of charge. 

In a social media post, Borg said that despite being happy that there are advances in the LGBTIQ+ rights front, he asked why there was no money put into covering the costs for curing fibromyalgia. 

‘I cannot understand how the Prime Minister can tell people who are in constant pain 24/7 due to fibromyalgia and the other conditions it brings that there isn’t enough money!’

Borg said that we need to first help people who are undergoing such pain. ‘These people need some sort of monthly voucher so they can buy medicine and get access to pools and physiotherapists of their choice.’

‘Don’t keep choosing the road of populism but let us go down the road of common sense where all of Malta and Gozo’s population can be satisfied equally!’

The post did not sit down well with both LGBTIQ+ activists as well as Parliamentary Secretary Rebecca Buttigieg. 

MGRM addressed the post by addressing a logical fallacy known as ‘whataboutism’, wherein someone responds to a difficult question by raising a different issue that is completely unrelated. 

‘To us, it only shows that some politicians are out of touch with the electorate on which they depend for their re-election. Or else, they opt to be populists. It is particularly disappointing when new generations of politicians reason like this’ said MGRM.

Meanwhile, Parliamentary Secretary Rebecca Buttigieg said that she was happy to see members of the opposition attending the Pride March, including Alex Borg. ‘However, Pride Week hadn’t finished before their true colours were shown.’ 

‘The assistance given to the LGBTIQ community does not come at a cost to other aid given by the government in other sectors. Your comment only shows one thing – that the PN still has members who do not believe in equality and celebrate pride week for political purposes and not because they believe in the cause.’

Borg responded to these posts, saying he is disappointed to see the parliamentary secretary attempting to deviate from the topic and accuse him of not believing in equality. 

‘I want to clarify that I in no way wanted to suggest that a particular condition should be given priority over another, or worse yet, minimise the suffering of trans and non-binary people.’ 

Acknowledging that the post may have been interpreted wrongly, Borg said that he welcomes the announcement by the government to help trans people. However, he said that he firmly believes that action needs to be taken to allocate more funds for those suffering with conditions like fibromyalgia. 

#MaltaDaily