Year-high support for Labour Party as trust gap widens between leaders

Dec 5 2021

A MaltaToday survey has revealed that support for the Labour Party has reached a record-high for 2021, growing to 45.9%.

The Nationalist Party clocked in a 31.9% while the ADPD scored 0.1%; the amount of people who choose not to vote remained consistent at 11.3% while uncertainty has dropped to 10.3% from last month’s 13.5%. Labour leader and Prime Minister Robert Abela has seen a rise in his trust rating at 51.1% while Bernard Grech has experienced a drop to 26.5%.

The trust gap is the widest it has been since Grech first occupied the role of PN leader. Abela seems to have an upper hand with the young voters, who still shift partially towards the PN albeit being the bracket with the most uncertain voters or people who choose not to vote.

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COVID-19 restrictions may have immediate effect on MIA as world braces for Omicron variant

Dec 5 2021

The rise of any disproportionate measures in light of the recent emergence of the Omicron COVID-19 variant will have an immediate and long-term effect on the Malta International Airport’s (MIA) traffic performance, an MIA spokesperson told The Malta Independent on Sunday.

The spokesperson stated that such measures would not only affect the festive season but have far-reaching consequences on spring and summer 2022. While not yet arriving in Malta, the Omicron variant has spread in small numbers to various countries around the world. Concern over the Omicron variant paired with the potent presence of the Delta variant in Europe has governments have been forced to consider the possibility of new measures and restrictions for pandemic-exhausted citizens.

In Malta, the only restriction that has been introduced is a temporary travel ban on travellers from South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho, Botswana, Eswatini and Zimbabwe. In the UK, amongst other measures, all international arrivals will have to receive a COVID-19 test before their departure as of Tuesday December 7, also being required to provide evidence of negative lateral flow or PCR test at a maximum of 48 hours before.

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Vaccine certificate update to include information on booster dose, health ministry says

Dec 5 2021

The Health Ministry has revealed that Maltese COVID-19 vaccine certificates will be updated to show whether or not their holder has received the third booster dose.

Certificates currently provide information about the first vaccination doses and if the holder is fully vaccinated and will remain valid for travel and all other national necessities until every Maltese resident has been invited to their booster dose. Malta started giving out booster doses a few months back, with over-50s currently receiving their appointments for the third dose.

Updated vaccine certificates can be accessed by visiting certifikatvaccin.gov.mt and will contain information about booster dose after 14 days of receiving the jab.

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Man involved in Miżieb manhunt denied bail after being charged with attempted murder

Dec 5 2021

The person involved in the six-hour Mellieha manhunt been charged with attempted murder on Saturday afternoon.

24-year-old Aidan Bartolo pleaded not guilty and his bail request was turned down by the courts due to the court lacking confidence in the individual’s possibility of following their conditions. He was also charged with attempt to cause injury, causing injury to police officials, driving dangerously, not obeying the police’s orders and being a recidivist.

On Thursday, it was being reported that the police followed Bartolo’s car towards Mellieha, with Bartolo leaving the car after an intense chance and rushing towards the Mizieb woodland on foot. He was eventually found hiding in the bushes after the 6-hour manhunt. Franco Debono and Francesca Zarb are appearing for the accused and argued that he was charge with ‘disproportionate accusation’, stating that Bartolo did not want to kill the police but escape from them.

He had previously been sent to prison in 2017 after being in possession of 31 sachets of cocaine and again in 2020 after being found guilty of theft.

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