Новости за 14.12.2017

The US government has ended sweeping neutrality rules that guaranteed equal access to the internet. The vote by three to two at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is likely to bring big changes in how Americans use the internet, a radical departure from more than a decade of federal oversight. The move not only rolls back restrictions that stop broadband providers like Comcast, Verizon and AT&T from blocking or collecting tolls from services they do not like but bars states from imposing their own rules. Читать дальше...

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat had a meeting this evening with UK Prime Minister Theresa May in Brussels, where they both are for an EU summit. The two leaders discussed the latest development regarding Brexit. Dr Muscat said Malta would always seek the best relations with the UK. He said the agreement between the EU and Britain had to be one which did not put member states at a disadvantage vis-a-vis a country that was leaving the bloc, but it had to be a sensible deal.

The police have smashed a human trafficking ring and found some 20 victims of such trafficking, the Ministry of Home Affairs announced this evening in a joint statement with the parliamentary secretariat responsible for citizenship. The victims had been brought to Malta to work. The authorities are seeking shelter for them and will grant them emergency protection status covering both residence and employment. No further details were immediately available.

The government and AFM senior officers are considering ways how conditions can be improved so that the army does not lose experienced personnel once they attain 25 years of service or turn 55, Home Affairs Minister Michael Farrugia said today. At present all soldiers can retire on pension after 25 years of service, a situation which is seeing the army lose trained people. Speaking at a ceremony during which he presented long and efficient service medals to 49 serving and former members of the AFM... Читать дальше...

Malta ranked 33rd in a study of youth representation in parliaments in 120 countries. The study, conducted by the Inter-Parliamentary Union, found that 2.9 per cent of the parliamentarians in the country are younger than 30. The proportion of parliamentarians under the age of 30 exceeds 10 per cent in only four countries – Norway, Finland Ecuador and Sweden. An overwhelming 39 countries, including the United States, Thailand and Azerbaijan, have no representation of parliamentarians under 30. Malta... Читать дальше...

Maltese-owned EC English Language Centres’ flagship school in Malta was recently named English School of the Year at the ESL Language Travel Awards in Barcelona. Established in 1996, ESL is one of the industry’s study abroad agencies, originating in Switzerland but now boasting 58 offices all over Europe as well as in Panama and Colombia. This year’s edition of the awards saw some of the top players in the language travel industry come together to recognise and celebrate excellence and commitment to a quality student experience. Читать дальше...

Scotland's government said today it will raise taxes on higher earners and increase public sector pay as it tried to draw a contrast between its economic plans and those of Britain's national government. The budget plan, set out by the pro-independence Scottish government, means 70 per cent of tax-payers in Scotland will not pay more than they previously did and 55 per cent would pay less than they would elsewhere in the UK, the government said. "The 2018-19 budget will demonstrate beyond doubt where the Scottish government's priorities are... Читать дальше...

A group of hauliers is calling on the authorities to take immediate action against a number of individuals, who they claim are acting as cargo clearance and forwarding agents without a proper licence. The request was made in a judicial protest filed on Tuesday by the hauliers section within the Malta Chambers of Small and Medium Enterprises (GRTU) against the Commissioner for Inland Revenue as legal representative responsible for the Customs Department. In the protest, the hauliers pointed out that by law... Читать дальше...

A deep wound in the upper thigh, puncturing a vital artery was the probable cause of death of a Libyan man allegedly stabbed by two compatriots inside their Birkirkara home on the night of November 25, a court heard on Thursday. The compilation of evidence before Magistrate Doreen Clarke against Siraj S.B. Shalgum, 36, and Husain Saleh Belgasem Shalgum, 31, two brothers facing murder charges over the death of 40-year old Fouzi Fari Etwaish following an argument inside their home in Bwieraq Street, started onThursday. Читать дальше...

A group of 74 police and former police officers were on Thursday honoured with a medal for a long and efficient service at a ceremony at the police headquarters. Home Affairs Minister Michael Farrugia thanked the officers for their work which, he said, sometimes even saw them risking their lives. He said talks were currently underway for a sectorial agreement for officers to be accepted. He hoped better conditions would encourage officers who spent 25 years in the service to stay on and continue sharing their experience in the force.

Education Minister Evarist Bartolo insisted in Parliament that he has shouldered political responsibility for the wrongdoings allegedly committed by his chief canvasser Edward Caruana. Following last week’s arraignment of his former canvasser with accusations of corruption, bribery and fraud while acting as an official of a government agency under Mr Bartolo’s wing, former Nationalist Party leader Simon Busuttil took the Education Minister to task on whether he should now assume political responsibility for his person of trust. Читать дальше...

Thunder 100, Pacers 95 Paul George was held to 12 points in his return to Indiana, but Steven Adams scored 23 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 100-95 victory over the Pacers on Wednesday night. George was booed loudly when introduced and every time he touched the ball throughout the game. The four-time All-Star was traded to Oklahoma City in exchange for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis after he told the Pacers he didn't plan to re-sign with the team following the 2017-18 season. Читать дальше...

The Maltese are being invited to show destitute Syrian families they car by sponsoring a Christmas food parcel. Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) said in a statemen that more than six years of brutal and relentless fighting has brought death and destruction to Syria and created one of the worst humanitarian crises in recent time. Half the country's pre-war population of more than 11 million people were killed or forced to flee their homes. The war left thousands of families inside Syria destitute,... Читать дальше...

Shutterstock Swear words have many functions. They can be used for emphasis, for comedic effect, as a shared linguistic tool that strengthens social bonds and maintains relationships, or simply to cause offence and shock. They are words that can be emotionally electrifying. We can express utter horror, disdain, or just frustration through the utterance of a simple four-letter word (or several). But swearing isn’t always associated with negative emotions or unpleasant events. A study by Emma Byrne... Читать дальше...

Volunteers from the USS Carney dedicated a considerable portion of their free time in Malta to lend a hand with two community projects in an effort to promote goodwill between the United States and Malta. The crew members were in Malta between December 8 and 12. One team engaged in maintenance work at Inspire Foundation in Marsascala while another worked to clear rubbish left on the beach and in the water at Rinella Bay. USS Carney crew members and Armed Forces of Malta personnel competed in... Читать дальше...

A medical supplies company has filed a judicial protest against the government's Central Procurement and Supplies Unit (CPSU) saying that a new request for quotations for hearing aids ignored a previous court sentence. OK Ltd said a fresh call for quotations for 15 Bone Conduction Hearing Aids  followed an earlier tendering process which was the subject of a lawsuit instituted by OK Ltd, as failed bidder. In its judgment in the first case, the Superior Court of Appeal had ordered the Public Contracts... Читать дальше...

Around 185 parents a year on average have travelled with their children to receive medical treatment overseas which is not available in Malta. Parents are now allowed to travel with their sick children and the PQ said that 751 had availed themselves of this option since 2014. According to Health Minister Chris Fearne, who was replying to a Parliamentary Question posed by MP Alex Muscat, there were 2,039 people who sought medical treatment overseas between 2014 and December 11, 2017, and since some patients travelled more than once... Читать дальше...

A worker narrowly escaped injury at a Cambridgeshire recycling plant after a marine flare exploded in his hands. Security cameras captured the moment, showing the worker studying the flare before it exploded in his hands and ricocheted around the waste treatment room at the Waterbeach Materials Recycling Facility. The company's account director, Chris Smiles, said in a press release, "the marine flare came through with aluminum recycling but exploded in the hands of one of our employees when it reached our manual sorting area. Читать дальше...

The European Central Bank kept its ultra-easy policy stance unchanged on Thursday, promising to hold rates low for an extended period and even maintaining a pledge to provide more stimulus if needed. Six weeks after agreeing to halve asset buys from January, the bank reiterated its commitment to continue bond purchases at least until the end of September, and to keep reinvesting cash from maturing debt until much later to support a rebound in growth and inflation. Having faced five years of anaemic inflation... Читать дальше...

Ramla Bay in Gozo was recently named one of the World’s 7 Most Beautiful Red Sand beaches by Travel and Leisure Magazine, US. This is the latest exposure for the Maltese Islands in the American market, following pieces in Conde Nast Traveler Magazine, the New York Times, AOL, Bridal Guide, JustLuxe, New York Post, Bon Traveler, as well as nominations for the TRAVVY awards and the Travelers’ Choice Awards Destination, all in 2017. The other beaches which made the list are Kaihalulu Beach in Hawaii... Читать дальше...

Two women were injured, one of them seriously, when they were hit by a car while crossing St Anna Street, Marsascala, this morning. The police said the accident happened at 8.30 when the women were hit by an Open Astra driven by a 37-year-old woman from Marsascala. A 59-year-old woman was slightly injured but a 73-year-0old suffered serious injuries.

St Paul Choral Society, under the direction of Hugo Agius Muscat, will tomorrow be holding a concert of especially-selected Christmas carols and organ music in Rabat. The leading polyphonic choir performs both locally and abroad. In the past months, the choir has, in fact, sung in the cathedrals of Burgos, Salamanca and Vienna. Apart from being an accomplished musician and the director of this choir, Agius Muscat has been the resident organist at St Paul’s Pro-Cathedral, Valletta, for the past 35 years. Читать дальше...

An Islamic extremist suicide bomber disguised as a police officer has killed at least 17 people at a police academy in Somalia's capital, officials said. Twenty other officers were wounded by the blast in Mogadishu, some of them seriously. "The bomber, with explosives strapped around his torso, infiltrated the General Kahiye Police Academy and targeted officers gathering for special morning exercises," Captain Mohamed Hussein said. The officers were rehearsing for Somalia's Police Day celebrations scheduled for December 20. Читать дальше...

Malta registered the third highest rate per capita of first-time asylum applicants during the third quarter of 2017, Eurostat figures show. It was preceded only by Greece, with 1,361 first-time applications per million inhabitants, and Cyprus, with 1,577 applicants per million inhabitants. Malta received 425 asylum applicants between July and September, the figures show. The first-time asylum applicants came from Libya, Somalia and Syria. Somalis made up almost a quarter of applicants in the country, totalling 100 applications. Читать дальше...

MP Toni Bezzina is trying to get information on the number of applications to build rubble walls and for agritourism – but he is going to have to be patient as the Planning Authority IT system cannot give him any answers. Replying to two PQs this week, Infrastructure Minister Ian Borg said that 16 PQs have been made in all, which will require this information to be extracted manually. He said this would involve ploughing through some 35,000 applications – 10,000 of them submitted this year alone ... Читать дальше...