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DOI DIRECT MAILING SERVICES

DIARY OF EVENTS

Published by the Department of Information

JULY 2007

Important Note: Dates hereunder do not denote the actual dates on which the respective events occur, but refer to the dates on which they are reported in the local print media, which is normally on the morrow.

• 1 July 2007 Over 15,000 people thronged to see the Lm220 million Mater Dei Hospital until 6 p.m. yesterday, curious to see the building that will provide treatment with a good dose of comfort.

• 1 July 2007 Casinò di Venezia has introduced a park and ride facility for patrons. With the kind intervention of Vittoriosa mayor John Boxall, agreement was reached with the Vittoriosa Stars football committee and the Fortini football ground has been placed at the casino’s disposal daily from 8 p.m. and at the weekends from 1 p.m.

• 1 July 2007 The foundation stone of the new premises for the Society of Christian Doctrine (MUSEUM) in Triq il-Bzulija, Birzebbuga. was laid during a recent ceremony.

• 2 July 2007 The government may be forced to refund the departure taxes paid by passengers since May 2004 if European Commission action in the European Court is successful. MEP Simon Busuttil, who was the first to question the legality of the departure tax in its existing format said there was good reason for Malta to settle this issue before the court delivers its judgment.

• 2 July 2007 Forty representatives of the 12 new EU member states responsible for EU Structural Funds held a two-day meeting in Malta. The meeting focused on the exchange of experiences, ideas and good practice in relation to the effective management of structural funds and the implementation of EU funded projects.

• 2 July 2007 Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture and Fisheries Francis Agius attended the UK’s Faculty of Public Health 2007 annual conference entitled Making Public Health Work in Eastbourne, UK.

• 2 July 2007 The Customs Department yesterday introduced an electronic export control system. The system, which replaces the current manual procedure, covers indirect exports. These are export consignments that leave an EU member state other than the member state exporting them.

• 2 July 2007 Five laboratories are being installed at the Agius de Soldanis Girls Junior Lyceum and Secondary School in Victoria. Works include the installation of a fire security system and a gas system.

• 2 July 2007 The mean temperature in June put the month in the top 10 warmest Junes since 1922, when records started being kept, the Met Office said.

• 2 July 2007 Fuel prices have been adjusted upwards as from today, with the price of petrol going up by 0c7 and diesel by 2c6 per litre, a DOI press release said yesterday evening.

3 July 2007 In a bid to make Gozo more accessible, the government yesterday announced the introduction of a direct bus link between the airport and Cirkewwa. Starting on Monday, at a cost of Lm2.15 (€5), the bus will make eight return trips daily, an initiative described as a blessing by the Gozo Tourism Association.

• 3 July 2007 The Drama Unit in the Curriculum Department of Education has launched a Theatre-in-Education project about the introduction of the euro. The project, targetting Year 6 and Form 1 students, is meant to create awareness of this currency to be introduced on January 1.

• 4 July 2007 Unpublicised amendments to a legal notice, published a few weeks ago in the government gazette, have granted new employment benefits to part-time workers as from the beginning of this month. Thousands of part-timers working a minimum of eight hours a week will now be entitled to pro rata benefits such as paid vacation and sick leave and bonuses.

• 4 July 2007 The number of unemployed persons in the first three months of this year was estimated at 11,216 persons. The data result from the Labour Force Survey conducted by the Employment and Training Corporation and released by the National Statistics Office.

• 5 July 2007 The House of Representatives yesterday started debating a Bill for Malta to adopt various EU directives in the financial services sector, notably the Directive on Capital Adequacy of Investment Firms and Credit Institutions and the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (Mifid).

• 5 July 2007 A Maltese post-graduate student will be starting an internship with French aerospace company Eurocopter this year following a memorandum of understanding signed between French industry and the University of Malta. The agreement, described as a first for the French, covers the granting of internships in French companies to the best post-graduate students and the involvement of the university in research projects.

• 5 July 2007 A total of Lm43,299 have been donated so far for the replacement of trees which were the targets of vandals at Mellieha earlier this year. A list tabled in Parliament yesterday by Environment Minister George Pullicino shows HSBC as having been the biggest donors, with Lm7,000, followed by the Tumas Group with Lm5,000. The Vodafone Foundation, Maltacom and MFIN donated Lm3,000 each.

• 5 July 2007 The government is drawing up a number of regulations governing fuel liberalisation which it expects to publish by September 30. For liberalisation to be successful and advantageous for Maltese citizens, it cannot take place in a regulatory vacuum, the government said yesterday. Once the necessary legal framework was in place, petroleum products would start to be traded in line with the EU Treaty.

• 5 July 2007 HMS Atherstone and HMS Walney will be in Malta between today and Saturday. HMS Atherstone was launched in 1986 and is commanded by Lieutenant Commander G. Dale-Smith. HMS Walney, under the command of Lieutenant Commander Richard Lindsey, was launched in 1991 and commissioned into naval service in August 1992. The vessels will be berthed at Pinto Wharf 3. Due to the short period alongside, they will not be open to the public during their stay.

• 6 July 2007 The flow of illegal migrants in the Mediterranean has dropped by 40 per cent since the start of the patrols by EU border agency Frontex, according to Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini.

• 6 July 2007 The European Commission is expected to adopt its maritime policy in October following more than a year of extensive consultation with stakeholders across the European Union.

• 6 July 2007 Jordanian Foreign Minister Abdelelah Al-Khatib told MEPs the European Union must continue empowering the Palestinian President politically and financially and called on Europe to take on a leadership role in the Middle East peace process. Mr Al-Khatib was speaking at the EPP-ED Euro-Parliamentary Group being held in Malta.

• 6 July 2007 European Transport Commissioner Jacques Barrot yesterday congratulated Malta saying it had made great progress in enforcing safety measures on the ships flying its flag.

• 6 July 2007 Malta tops the list of new EU countries against which the European Commission has started infringement procedures for failing to apply internal market rules correctly.

• 6 July 2007 President Emeritus Guido de Marco has been awarded the prestigious Robert Schuman medal by the European People’s Party (EPP-ED) parliamentary group, which is meeting in Malta for its Study Days conference.

• 6 July 2007 Foreign Minister Michael Frendo yesterday met Abdelelah al-Khatib, Foreign Minister of Jordan, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in Valletta. The situation in the Middle East was among the topics raised at the meeting.

• 6 July 2007 The House of Representatives on Wednesday unanimously gave a second reading to a Bill to amend various financial services laws, adopting the EU Directive on Capital Adequacy of Investment Firms and Credit Institutions and the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (Mifid).

• 7 July 2007 Malta Customs placed third in an international competition organised by the World Customs Organisation to reward efforts to curb the trafficking of counterfeit goods and piracy in 2006. The competition, won by Paraguay, was open to WCO members from 171 countries.

• 7 July 2007 Issues dealing with the maritime sector were discussed between Competitiveness and Communications Minister Censu Galea and Jacques Barrot, Vice President of the European Commission and Commissioner for Transport.

• 7 July 2007 An exhibition on relations between Malta and Austria from the days of the Knights of St John to the present times is open at the Austrian State Archives, in Vienna. Speaking at the opening of the exhibition, Christopher Grima, Malta’s Ambassador in Vienna, said the event highlights the cultural richness of Malta and Austria and the long-standing links between the two countries. He referred to Malta’s heritage and to the role played by the Order in transforming Malta.

• 8 July 2007 Central Bank Governor Michael Bonello has been awarded the Officier de la Legion d’Honneur by the French Republic.

• 8 July 2007 Education and Employment Minister Louis Galea stressed that future labour laws in Europe should be shaped by solidarity and social justice. Addressing a seminar of the EPP-ED Workers’ Group on “Working Conditions: How to Create Labour Law In The Future”, Dr Galea said humanity was living an information technology revolution preceded only by the agricultural revolution and the industrial revolution in terms of importance in human history.

• 8 July 2007 Eleandro Buhagiar finally made port on Thursday afternoon, nearly eight weeks after setting sail from St Martin on May 14 in his attempt to sail to Malta single-handedly on his 37-foot yacht Mahina. Mr Buhagiar, 31 of Mosta, became the first Maltese to sail across the Atlantic solo.

• 8 July 2007 In line with the announced intentions of the new Portuguese presidency to step up efforts to curb illegal immigration, a review of Frontex’s functions and tasks is in the offing, the EU border agency’s executive director Ilkka Laitinen said in an interview last week.

• 8 July 2007 During the run-up to the various referenda organised in a number of acceding countries to the EU prior to May 2004, the enlarged European Union was being marketed as being rich of opportunities for the citizens of the 25 member states at the time, now 27 with the recent addition of Bulgaria and Romania.

• 9 July 2007 A vehicle exhibition was one of the activities held yesterday to mark the 193rd anniversary of the foundation of the Police Corps. Organised by members, former policemen and their friends, the display was held at the police headquarters, in Floriana. It was followed by a charity ride from the headquarters to Dar tal-Providenza, in Siggiewi, where the money collected during the exhibition was handed over to the administration of the residential homes for the handicapped.

• 9 July 2007 Malta has participated in the Qingdao Asia-Pacific Tourism Expo, which took place at the Qingdao International Convention Centre. The event was organised by the Qingdao Municipal Tourism Administration and the Qingdao International Exhibition and Trade Co. Ltd.

• 10 July 2007 Outlets that do not display both currencies will be liable for a Lm750 fine and customers are being urged to phone the euro helpline 154 or send complaints to euro [Email address: euro #AT# gov.mt - replace #AT# with @ ]. As the compulsory dual display requirement comes into effect in the run-up to the introduction of the single currency on January 1, a spokesman for the National Euro Changeover Committee said around 98 per cent of shops already show prices in both lira and euro.

• 10 July 2007 EU finance ministers meeting in Brussels today are expected to give the final green light to Malta’s euro entry. They are also expected to approve the Commission’s recommendation to set the permanent exchange rate of the Maltese lira at Lm0.42930 for €1.

• 10 July 2007 Malta has joined nine other southern European Union member states in an open letter to Tony Blair, the Quartet’s envoy to the Middle East, urging a fresh perspective on the situation there. The foreign ministers of France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Malta, Slovenia, Greece, Cyprus, Bulgaria and Romania decided to write to Mr Blair following their meeting in Protoroz, Slovenia.

• 10 July 2007 An independent think tank set up to focus on problems in public policy, offer solutions and spark off debate on future planning and strategy affecting Malta was launched yesterday following its first meeting. Branded the Today Public Policy Institute, the think tank brings together high-calibre individuals with experience in a variety of professional and academic fields and different political backgrounds.

• 11 July 2007 Malta yesterday overcame the last hurdle in the long process to win approval to join the eurozone, as European Union finance ministers voted unanimously for the island to adopt the single currency come January 1. The Ecofin Council, gathered for its first meeting under the Portuguese presidency, also adopted regulations setting the permanent conversion rate of the Maltese lira against the euro.

• 11 July 2007 Cheesecakes, or pastizzi, children with little red and white flags and dancers dressed in the traditional ghonnella yesterday dominated the esplanade in front of the Berlymont, the European Commission’s headquarters in Brussels, in a one-hour event organised by the Commission to mark Malta’s entry into the euro.

• 11 July 2007 The fight against alcohol abuse took another step forward this month when a new law outlawing the sale and consumption in public of alcohol by under 16-year-olds came into force.

• 11 July 2007 Fifteen companies have been licensed to provide the services of private investigators, Home Affairs Minister Tonio Borg told Evarist Bartolo (MLP) in reply to a parliamentary question.

• 11 July 2007 The police received 153 reports of domestic violence in the first half of this year, including nine in Gozo, Home Affairs Minister Tonio Borg told Parliament yesterday.

• 11 July 2007 Speed cameras netted 38,548 cars in the year up to last June, information given in Parliament yesterday shows. The biggest number cases of overspeeding, 12,542 were detected at St Julians, followed by 8,359 at Qormi and 5,840 at Attard.

• 11 July 2007 The government deficit for the first quarter of 2007 amounted to Lm36.7 million, Lm1 million below the deficit of Lm37.7 million recorded for the first quarter of last year.

• 11 July 2007 The visible trade gap in the first five months of this year narrowed by Lm60 million to stand at Lm170.7 million, the National Statistics Office said.

• 12 July 2007 Credit rating agencies Moody and Standard and Poor’s upgraded their ratings for Malta yesterday after the island was given the final approval to join the eurozone. Moody’s said Malta’s ratings for long-term foreign and local currency government bond and long-term country ceilings for foreign currency bank deposits were upgraded from A3 to A2.

• 12 July 2007 The population at the end of last year was estimated to be 405,577, of whom just over half were women, the National Statistics Office said. Twenty four per cent were aged under 20 and 14 per cent were 65 and over.

• 12 July 2007 Lufthansa Technik will contribute €367 million to the Maltese economy within 30 years - excluding the investment being made by the government in the necessary infrastructure, the hangar and training, according to a Malta Enterprise report to the Investments Ministry.

• 12 July 2007 Gozo Minister Giovanna Debono yesterday inaugurated the recently upgraded male and female general wards at the Gozo General Hospital. The works, which also took in the staff dining room, cost around Lm100,000 (€232,937).

• 12 July 2007 The House of Representatives yesterday debated amendments to the Malta Standards Authority Act and other laws which aim to rationalise activities related to the maintenance of standards under the umbrella of the Malta Standards Authourity.

• 12 July 2007 About 450 residential roads will be resurfaced by the end of 2008 thanks to an investment by the government of Lm9 million (nearly €21 million), Roads Minister Jesmond Mugliett said.

• 12 July 2007 David Spiteri Gingell has been appointed chief executive officer of Enemalta Corporation with effect from Monday. He replaces Anthony Rizzo who resigned last February. Mr Rizzo had been appointed CEO in January 2006.

• 12 July 2007 A report issued in Brussels yesterday on the transposition of EU rules covering the European arrest warrant shows that there are still some minor improvements to be made in Maltese legislation to come fully in line.

• 12 July 2007 The European Commission has awarded the Don Bosco Voluntary Service (DBVS) for “best-practice” in work with marginalised youth in Malta. The young volunteers of the DBVS are a branch of the Salesian organisation within St Patrick’s in Sliema. They were given the award in recognition of the sterling work they did in conjunction with St Patrick’s Care Team during the summer of 2004.

• 13 July 2007 The police force yesterday celebrated Police Day with 27 officers receiving a long service and efficiency medal after spending at least 18 years in the corps. Another 30 were promoted to the rank of sergeant.

• 13 July 2007 The number of Maltese passengers departing by air and sea in the first five months of the year totalled 86,689, an increase of 4.2 per cent over the same period last year, the National Statistics Office said yesterday.

• 13 July 2007 There are currently 39 licensed fireworks factories, Home Affairs Minister Tonio Borg told Parliament.

• 13 July 2007 No racism complaints in schools have been received, Education Minister Louis Galea told Carmelo Abela (MLP) in reply to a parliamentary question.

• 15 July 2007 The government has decided to allocate a large percentage of the new EU funds granted to Malta for the period 2007-2013 to an unprecedented road upgrading programme which should bring Malta’s main road arteries up to EU standard. Substantial funds will also be allocated for the restoration of the bastions and flood relief.

• 15 July 2007 The Department of Family Medicine has launched a Master’s Degree in Family Medicine, which will be available as from October.

• 16 July 2007 Malta’s euro coins, which will become the island’s currency in January, will start being minted on Friday at the Monnaie de Paris, the French mint. The process of minting 200 million pieces will get underway after a traditional ceremony known as “the breaking of the coin” which takes place every time a new coin is produced.

• 16 July 2007 A new cultural agreement between Italy and Malta is due to be signed shortly, according to Culture Minister Francis Zammit Dimech. The minister was speaking prior to a concert by the Banda Musicale della Polizia Di Stato at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, in Valletta, marking the 40th anniversary of the signing of the first cultural agreement between the two countries. 17 July 2007 The government said it has sold its shares in Tug Malta Ltd to Italian company Rimorchiatori Riuniti Genoa Spa, thus privatising the company set up in the 1980s.

• 17 July 2007 Malta’s technical preparations for the adoption of the euro in January have been outstanding, according to a new analytical report published by the European Commission in Brussels.

• 17 July 2007 A tailor-made website for children, complete with games for different age groups, was launched yesterday to help youngsters get used to the euro before Malta changes currency in January. The website - www.skola.gov.mt/euro - also includes tips for teachers.

• 17 July 2007 The 12-month moving average rate of inflation last month stood at 1.1 per cent while in May the inflation rate stood at 1.4 per cent, the National Statistics Office said.

• 17 July 2007 SmartCity has announced plans to go green by adopting globally-benchmarked environmentally-friendly practices that will make its developments highly energy and resource efficient.

• 18 July 2007 A “historic agreement” that should bring about a reform in education, starting from kindergarten level, was signed yesterday between the education authorities and the Malta Union of Teachers. The agreement comes a year after Parliament enacted legislation for this purpose.

• 18 July 2007 According to a report published this week, the Maltese rank seventh in Europe’s Happy Planet Index. Malta has outperformed countries like France, the UK, the Netherlands and Germany for ecological efficiency at delivering well-being. Iceland, Sweden and Norway top the list. The New Economics Foundation, which compiled the list, found that Europe was less ecologically efficient now than it was 40 years ago.

• 18 July 2007 Parliament yesterday debated amendments to the VAT Act aimed at stamping out abuse by merchants who import products without paying VAT. Parliamentary Secretary Tonio Fenech said this Bill was being moved in agreement with the Chamber of Commerce and the GRTU. While parallel trading was allowed, there had to be a level playing field for everybody.

• 18 July 2007 Works are in progress at the new Cottonera secondary school - the third to be built by the Foundation for Tomorrow’s Schools - which is steeped in heritage and set to offer students a rich, historical environment. The secondary school is part of the Cottonera College, which includes a number of primary schools in the area and other secondary schools.

• 19 July 2007 The Prime Minister yesterday unveiled a White Paper containing the government’s proposals for a Freedom of Information Act, building on a series of measures that have already been taken for more transparency and accountability.

• 19 July 2007 The government has set aside a huge chunk of the EU budget allocation for 2007-2013 to generate more and better jobs, create a knowledge-based economy and improve the environment and the infrastructure, the Prime Minister said.

• 19 July 2007 New imaging equipment at Mater Dei Hospital was used on patients over the past week as managerial staff starts moving to the new hospital from today.

• 19 July 2007 An estimated 435,000 cruise passengers are to visit Malta this year, marking a 10-per-cent increase over 2006 - already a record year with 394,567 passengers, Viset Malta plc general manager Chris Paris said.

• 20 July 2007 President Eddie Fenech Adami has asked Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi for his “special understanding” of Malta’s situation vis-à-vis the problem of illegal immigration. In a letter delivered personally to Col Gaddafi by Foreign Minister Michael Frendo in Tripoli on Wednesday, Dr Fenech Adami emphasised the island’s concern at the influx of illegal immigrants into Malta in view of its size and the fact that it is the most densely populated country in the region.

• 20 July 2007 Parliamentary Secretary Tonio Fenech yesterday met French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde and discussed Malta’s adoption of the euro, easier participation by SMEs in the EU procurement process and proposals for VAT on financial services. Following the 30-minute meeting, Ms Lagarde warmly congratulated Malta for having achieved the criteria to join the single currency.

• 20 July 2007 A study just published by the European Commission predicts acute water shortages in southern Europe, including Malta. The study warns that if no concrete water saving measures are taken and current climate change effects continue, Malta could end up with 50 per cent less water resources by 2070.

• 20 July 2007 The first phase of the migration process from St Luke’s Hospital to Mater Dei Hospital kicked off yesterday with the start of the transfer of the management offices.

• 20 July 2007 Sea transport by the scheduled ferries between Malta and Gozo in the second quarter of this year increased compared to the same quarter last year, the National Statistics Office said.

• 21 July 2007 Malta took another giant step towards euro adoption yesterday when a mint in Bordeaux, France, started producing euro coins carrying Maltese national symbols.

• 21 July 2007 A new report released in Brussels on bridging the gender pay gap in the EU shows that Malta is the best performing member state.

• 22 July 2007 In the pre-Budget document Familji fis-Sod (Families on a Sound Footing), which the Prime Minister unveiled at the Auberge de Castille yesterday, Dr Gonzi, who is also finance minister, is promising a Budget focused on families. More information on the press conference can be obtained
  from:http://www.doi.gov.mt/EN/News/newsitems/audiorecording%20-21.07.07pb08.asp

• 22 July 2007 Foreign Minister Michael Frendo’s meeting with Libyan leader Colonel Gaddafi last Wednesday is being seen as having sealed a growing closer relationship between Malta and Libya. It follows a highly successful session of the Joint Economic and Trade Commission between Malta and Libya in Tripoli a few months ago in which a number of initiatives were agreed to, including holding discussions on adjacent maritime areas and illegal immigration.

• 23 July 2007 Jason L. Davis has assumed his duties as Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy, in Floriana.

• 23 July 2007 Joseph Zammit Tabona has been appointed non-executive chairman of Viset Malta plc with effect from July 2.

• 24 July 2007 Just a few days before EU institutions rise for the summer recess, EU Foreign Ministers and Commission President José Manuel Barroso yesterday met in an intergovernmental conference formation in Brussels in the last leg of negotiations leading to a new EU treaty. The IGC, which will discuss the last technical issues before the new treaty is signed, is scheduled to conclude its work by mid-October.

• 24 July 2007 The 12-month moving average rate of inflation in June stood at 1.37 per cent, compared to 1.67 in May, the National Statistics Office said.

• 24 July 2007 Hundreds of IT students are expected to benefit from a series of measures facilitating admission to the Malta College for Arts, Science and Technology’s ICT course. The measures will also assist students following a course and who intend to further their studies, Education Minister Louis Galea and IT Minister Austin Gatt told a news conference yesterday.

• 24 July 2007 Cruise passenger traffic last month amounted to 55,407, an increase of 69.9 per cent or 22,790 passengers over the same month last year, the National Statistics Office said.

• 24 July 2007 The government yesterday unveiled two comprehensive documents intended to stimulate small businesses and the self-employed. Launched by the Prime Minister, Competitiveness Minister Censu Galea and by Parliamentary Secretary Edwin Vassallo, the documents incorporate a series of mission statements and initiatives to help the sector face up to increasing competition.

• 25 July 2007 The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will pay a short private visit to Malta in November.

• 25 July 2007 Enemalta experienced the highest electricity demand ever in its 30 years of operation at 1 p.m. on Monday, with the load reaching 434MW.

• 25 July 2007 Malta is set to start marketing itself as a destination for health tourism. A commercial has been shot for this purpose and will be aired in the US and the UK next month. Plans about the campaign are expected to be unveiled.

• 26 July 2007 A scholarship scheme for undergraduates was launched yesterday by the Education Minister. The Malta Government Scholarship Scheme - Undergraduate Courses (MGSS-UG) provides scholarships to students reading for a first Bachelor or Honours degree, starting in October.

• 26 July 2007 The EU27 external current account recorded a deficit of €32.0 billion in the first quarter of this year, compared with a deficit of e36.2 billion in the first quarter of last year and a deficit of e18.1 billion in the fourth quarter of 2006. This provisional data, subject to revision, was issued by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Communities.

• 27 July 2007 Social Solidarity Minister Dolores Cristina presented close to Lm750,000 to a number of voluntary organisations working in the social sector. This was an increase of more than Lm60,000 on the amount allocated last year.

• 27 July 2007 Over Lm107,325 (€250,000) will be granted to tomato growers and processors to promote freshly-processed products, the Minister of Rural Affairs said.

• 28 July 2007 Malta has appealed for the swift resumption of the EU borders patrols - with the added participation of Libya - as the Frontex operations ended yesterday.

• 28 July 2007 It is the government’s intention to present its 2008 budget by mid-October, Parliamentary Secretary Tonio Fenech said yesterday. Mr Fenech was addressing the social partners at the Malta Council for Economic and Social Development in the first meeting following the publication of the pre-budget document last Saturday.

• 28 July 2007 The shortfall between recurrent revenue and total expenditure in the first half of the year stood at Lm75.7 million, Lm1.6 million higher than the shortfall reported for the first six months of last year, the National Statistics Office said.

• 28 July 2007 Francis Tabone, High Commissioner for Malta to New Zealand, presented his credentials to the Governor General of New Zealand, Anand Satyanand, in Wellington, New Zealand.

• 28 July 2007 The number of registered unemployed persons last month dropped by 724 when compared to the same month last year, the National Statistics Office said. The number of registered unemployed stood at 6,337.

• 28 July 2007 Malta will be represented very visibly in a five-month celebration of Europe’s culture being organised all over Belgium. Every two years, Europalia, an international non-profit making association, organises an international multidisciplinary arts festival to celebrate one invited country’s cultural heritage in Belgium.

• 29 July 2007 The National Commission Persons with Disability, the University of Malta, and MCAST have been co-operating in the APT-Leonardo project - Access to Professional Training for Disabled Persons.

• 29 July 2007 The Malta Freeport Corporation is to sell its shares in Oiltanking Malta Ltd. The recommendation by the corporation to sell the shareholding was approved by the Ministry for Investment following a Cabinet decision.

• 30 July 2007 Malta International Airport’s Meteorological Office has received EU certification for having satisfied the high standards required by EU regulations. MIA said the met office has been awarded an ISO 9001 2000 certification issued by Moody International, becoming the only air navigation service provider on the island and the Malta Flight Information Region.

• 30 July 2007 The Education Minister said that apart from the building of new schools, works were being carried out on modernising over 40 state schools. The minister was speaking during a visit to the Annibale Preca primary school in Lija.

• 30 July 2007 group of 21 Form 4 students from Cottonera have successfully concluded a month-long work experience. The students attend Lorenzo Gafà Boys’ Secondary School. in Fortini, forming part of Cottonera College. The experience was done at Malta Shipyards, the Guttenberg Press and Vista Coop.

• 30 July 2007 Former Presidents Guido de Marco and Ugo Mifsud Bonnici, Home Affairs Minister Tonio Borg and MEP Simon Busuttil have been presented with the Peter the Great medal, a diplomatic award by the National Committee for Public Awards of the Russian Federation.

• 31 July 2007 Tourism for the first six months of 2007 has turned out to be the best in the last six years, Tourism Minister Francis Zammit Dimech said as new figures showed a rise of 6.4 per cent in the number of visitors and 3.7 per cent in tourist expenditure for the period.

• 31 July 2007 Lombard Bank Malta plc has become the major shareholder in Maltapost plc paying the government Lm1.22 million (€2.84 million) for another 25 per cent of the company’s shares, raising its stake to 60 per cent.

DOI – 03.08.2007

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