Tourism is not just a summer job says Minister Clayton Bartolo

Oct 30 2022

During a sit-down interview with Fabian Demicoli, Minister Clayton Bartolo urged more youth to move towards the tourism sector and industry and take it up as a professional career option.

‘Tourism is not just there as a summer job’ said the Minister, saying that the sector needs more workers who push it further towards becoming a thriving industry.

The tourism industry can be a very fulfilling career as well as open various doors and create connections with various people from all around the world, he said.

Bartolo shared the testimony of various workers in the industry who started out by working in restaurants or trained in Malta and went on to open their own business or seek professional careers abroad respectively.

‘This is probably the only industry wherein wherever you go, you have a guaranteed job’ said Bartolo. ‘The standards are practically the same everywhere and you can therefore find a job anywhere in the world.’

Bartolo finished by encouraging youth to enter the Institute for Tourism Studies (ITS) so that they can find a fulfilling career whilst also stimulating the tourism economy of the islands.

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Minister highlights the importance of Air Malta for tourism

Oct 30 2022

Speaking during an episode of the Interview with Fabian Demicoli by Malta Daily, Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo addressed the past, present and future of national airline AirMalta.

The Minister was asked about whether the future of the airline worries him and how he could see it impact the tourism sector of the island.

‘The problems AirMalta is facing did not start today or yesterday, but had been present for years on end’ replied Bartolo. ‘We are now working on them to solve any problems that can be solved once and for all.’

‘AirMalta has a strategic importance for our islands’ the Minister continued. ‘Whereas other countries have highways and connective roads which connect them to other countries, the only way to connect Malta with another country is via air travel.’

Bartolo also highlighted the role AirMalta played during the COVID-19 pandemic, as it provided safe transportation for people, equipment and vaccines whenever and from wherever it was needed.

‘No one is debating the importance of Air Malta’ said Bartolo. Pointing to the importance of the airline in the tourism industry, Bartolo said that we have tourists who look for legacy couriers, as they do not opt for low cost airlines.

Air Malta has a valuable role here, said the Minister, especially for people coming from Germany and the UK. The Minister acknowledged that the future of Air Malta is unsure, but the government, he said, is working very closely to keep a national airline active for Malta and thus keep the tourism industry blooming.

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Shaun Farrugia’s songs make it to the Empire State Building

Oct 30 2022

Local singer and songwriter Shaun Farrugia has reached new heights – literally.

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Taking to Instagram, Farrugia revealed how international DJ, and by now personal close friend, Martin Garrix played his music from the top of the Empire State Building in New York.

The DJ blasted ‘Starlight (Keep Me Afloat)’, which is one of the two artists’ collaborative works off the 102-story skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan.

Farrugia processed the experience by recounting how it all first started from writing this song on a guitar in the back of a restaurant with the DJ. It was then sung to thousands of people during summer, played during massive clubbing events and festivals, and finally having it played on the Empire State Building.

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And it doesn’t seem to be the last we’ve heard of Farrugia as he’s continued to tease even more material to come out soon. Congratulations Shaun!

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Global cost of living crisis pushing more women into sex work

Oct 30 2022

Various international reports are noticing a new spike in people turning towards sex work in order to address the cost of living crisis.

Many people, with the majority being women, are turning towards sex work, with the number of calls to the English Collective of Prostitutes increasing by a third in summer 2022 (according to Sky News).

Sky News also reported that women entering the field is leaving them vulnerable and unable to say no to violent and exploitative clients.

Meanwhile, a Vice news report reveals that stigma around sex work is also putting women using sites such as OnlyFans at risk of being outed or targeted at workplaces as people return following the pandemic.

The English Collective of Prostitutes also recorded a 30% jump in the number of callers seeking support for starting sex work in June. Manchester Action on Street Health also recorded more than 100 new service users between December 2021 and April 2022.

Taking a look at the Maltese context, there are no official reports as to whether this phenomenon is taking place. However, with the rising cost of living crisis also hitting the island, it might be time to re-consider our views and open dialogues in regards to this line of work.

In the 2022 manifesto, the Labour Party pledged a voluntary exit programme for prostitutes and the decriminalisation for prostitution.

‘After an extensive consultation process on prostitution, we want to take decisions in favour of those who are the most vulnerable. We believe in individual liberty, but the PL believes the solution is not to incarcerate vulnerable people’ the party had said.

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