Новости за 05.09.2016

Wales talisman Gareth Bale set up the first goal and scored twice, including a late penalty, as the Euro 2016 semi-finalists won 4-0 in their opening Group D World Cup qualifier tonight. The Welsh, who controlled the match in Cardiff, made the breakthrough seven minutes before halftime when Bale swung over a left-footed cross from the right and Sam Vokes headed home. Joe Allen made it 2-0 in the 44th after a poor clearance from a corner fell to the midfielder on the edge of the box and he fired past... Читать дальше...

The Swedish government has dismissed the board of the Karolinska Institute after an investigation showed it was negligent when hiring surgeon Paolo Macchiarini and letting him operate on patients. The medical scandal that includes numerous accusations of scientific fraud and the death of patients is a severe blow to the reputation of the institution that awards the Nobel Prize for Medicine. The hiring of Italian surgeon Macchiarini had already led to the resignation of the secretary of the Nobel... Читать дальше...

There are few long-term studies of people who've had face transplants, and even the addition of another study of seven cases does not answer all questions about safety and efficacy of the procedure, say the authors of a new report. "Ultimately, if one answers, 'yes' to the question, 'Should we continue performing face transplants?'" then the "ethical requirements" for going forward include meticulous patient selection, long-term monitoring, and strict oversight by the institutional review board, the authors wrote online August 24 in The Lancet.

North Korea fired three ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast today, the South Korean and US militaries said, as the leaders of the Group of 20 major economies held a summit in China, the North's main diplomatic ally. The missiles were fired from a region south of the capital Pyongyang just after noon (0300 GMT) and flew about 1,000 km (600 miles), hitting Japan's air defence identification zone, South Korea's Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said. "We are still analysing details... Читать дальше...

Oscar winner Renee Zellweger puts on her British accent again to play bumbling Londoner Bridget Jones in the third instalment of the film franchise, with the much-loved character, now in her 40s, single again but unexpectedly pregnant. The Texas-born actress reprises the role of the weight and love-obsessed character for Bridget Jones's Baby, with Colin Firth back as the reserved Mark Darcy and new addition Grey's Anatomy actor Patrick Dempsey as her love interests. Zellweger first took on the role... Читать дальше...

The Futsal Malta Association will have no option but to call off this season’s tournament if no adequate facilities are found, the association’s president Mark Borg has told this newspaper. Following the termination of a contract with Assoċjazzjoni Sports Hibernians, who run the Corradino Sports Pavilion, the association has been struggling to find a solution, despite year-long discussions. Sports Parliamentary Secretary Chris Aguis said on Saturday he welcomed the fact that more teams had joined the tour­nament... Читать дальше...

A Norwegian church's decision to allow its members to track their religious status online has backfired spectacularly, with tens of thousands people quitting the church in what is being called a 'one-click exodus'.  More than 25,000 people have de-registered themselves as members of the Lutheran Church of Norway since the church launched a website on August 12 offering its faithful the opportunity to sign up or check on their religious status.  But it is the website's third option - that of leaving... Читать дальше...

The cost of repairing a Birkirkara road dubbed by one resident as “one of Malta’s worst streets” would be double the local council’s annual €1 million budget. Birkirkara resident Matthew Borg expressed his exasperation with the local council and Transport Malta after suffering damage to his car while passing through one of Bontadini Street’s many “four-inch potholes”. Mr Borg said that nobody had shouldered responsibility for the damage caused to his car due to the poor road surface. The Birkirkara... Читать дальше...

Russia's only major independent pollster, the Levada Centre, has been designated as a "foreign agent", the Russian Justice Ministry said today, two weeks ahead of nationwide parliamentary elections. "The recognition of the organisation as a non-commercial body performing the functions of a foreign agent was established in an unscheduled document check," the Justice Ministry said in a statement. It did not give a reason for its decision. Levada was not immediately available for comment. Russia's main... Читать дальше...

A 30-year-old mother from Birkirkara was hospitalised this evening after she was involved in a traffic accident on Mannarino road, Birkirkara.  The woman was driving a Hyundai Accent when she was involved in a collision with a Toyota Yaris being driven by a 22-year-old man also from Birkirkara. The accident happened at around 6pm.  Two children riding in the woman's car were lucky to escape unharmed. An ambulance rushed the woman to Mater Dei hospital for treatment. Details about her condition were not available at the time of writing.

Regatta clubs are to receive government funds to help them each build small wooden boats [dgħajjes tal-pass] to be used to better promote rowing as a sport.  The boats, which will be engraved with SportMalta logo and will be used during both the March 31 and September 8 regatta races, are part of a broader effort to encourage children to take up the sport, the Sports parliamentary secretariat said.  Although the secretariat said that funds would be distributed to regatta clubs to help them build new boats... Читать дальше...

On Friday the Times of Malta reminded us of a few deeply worrying facts connected to Sai Mizzi and her position and remuneration. But what hit me most was the reminder that way back when the Panama Papers scandal came to light the prime minister had announced that an audit of Konrad Mizzi’s financial affairs was being carried out by an internationally renowned firm.Joseph Muscat seemed to imply that when the audit would be held it would exonerate Konrad Mizzi of any wrongdoing and all would be well in this land. Читать дальше...

Updated 8.05pm - Full report A European Parliament committee today backed visa-free travel to the European Union for Georgia and moved towards granting another ex-Soviet republic, Ukraine, the same right, after migration worries delayed the process before the summer. The committee voted 44 in favour versus five against for the Georgian liberalisation, although the decision must still be approved in the so-called 'trilogue' negotiations between the parliament, EU states and the executive European Commission. Читать дальше...

Fireworks being let off during events at the Golden Sands hotel could endanger the eggs laid by a loggerhead turtle at Golden Bay and which could hatch soon, according to Nature Trust president Vincent Attard. The eggs were laid some five metres up the beach last month, with the NGO cordoning off the area and setting up a roster for volunteers to man the site and ensure the eggs were safe. Now, the NGO is calling on those organising events at the hotel to try and avoid letting off fireworks as the noise could be harmful to the eggs. Читать дальше...

An inquiry into claims that a nursing council election was rigged must be fully transparent and not drag on for an indefinite period of time, the two people who made the claims have said.  In a statement issued to the media, Maria Cassar and Corinne Ward challenged Health Minister Chris Fearne to set clear timeframes for the inquiry, and called on him to hold off recognising election results until inquiry findings were made public.  The two women, who unsuccessfully contested nursing council elections... Читать дальше...

Two Maltese performers have secured leading roles in one of London's hottest West End musicals. Sarah Naudi and Damian Buhagiar will both play leading roles in Olivier and Tony Award-winning musical In The Heights. The musical, which has just extended its London run at the King's Cross Theatre for a third and final time, is now expected to run until January 2017. Both performers live in the UK and completed their professional performance training there. But their theatre training began at the Stagecoach Theatre Arts School in Malta. Читать дальше...

More than 100 Gzira residents gathered on Manoel Island this afternoon protesting the blocking of access to the coastline by private consortium MIDI.The angry crowd stood in front of the gates that seal access to the large part of the island, including Fort Manoel and several inlets once popular with residents before access was sealed some 16 years ago.Residents who spoke to the Times of Malta shared memories of swimming and fishing in the area in the past.“I grew up here and remember swimming here as a child,” one elderly man said. Читать дальше...

Update 5.30pm - Adds PL reaction Fish farms should be moved further offshore and their operating conditions made more stringent, the Nationalist Party said today.  In a statement issued by PN environment shadow minister Marthese Portelli and spokesman Ryan Callus, the party said that despite fish farms' €150 million yearly contribution to Malta's exports, they could not operate with impunity and in breach of their permit conditions.  The Labour Party reacted by saying fish farm pollution "did not... Читать дальше...

The Marsa direction of the Marsa/Ħamrun bypass will be closed to traffic due to maintenance works from tonight until Wednesday between 8pm and 5am, Transport Malta has said.  Transport Malta will also be carrying out maintenance work in other parts of Triq Aldo Moro and Triq Diċembru 13 from tonight until Thursday September 8 between 9pm and 5am.  The road will remain accessible to traffic, though it will narrow to one lane in places, TM said.

"I'm a shooting star leaping through the sky like a tiger defying the laws of gravity," former Queen frontman Freddie Mercury sang in the classic Don't Stop Me Now.  Thirty-five years after his death the rock legend now has an asteroid named after him coinciding with would have been his 70th birthday. Queen guitarist Brian May announced that asteroid 17473 a 3.5km-wide ball of black rubble on the other side of Mars, will be known as 'Freddiemercury'. May, who has a PhD in astrophysics and an asteroid named after him already... Читать дальше...

Former minister Leo Brincat told the EP Budgetary Committee that he "had no choice" in backing Labour colleague Konrad Mizzi in a vote of no confidence held last May in the wake of the Panama Papers.Speaking during his hearing as Malta's nominee to the European Court of Auditors, Mr Brincat said his hands were tied by Malta's parliamentary system, which demands party loyalty from MPs.He told the committee that, had he been in Dr Mizzi's awkward position, he would have "either resigned or offered... Читать дальше...

Malta has ranked above the EU average on a goods and services consumer scoreboard, improving its 2013 ranking across the board.  While Malta ranked as one of the top three EU28 countries in 8 goods and 13 service markets, it is among the bottom three states when it comes to 'tram, bus, metro and underground services'.  The scoreboard surveys people who have recently bought goods or services to track the performance of over 40 consumer markets on key indicators such as their trust that the seller will respect consumer protection rules... Читать дальше...

Updated 5.49pm Former minister Leo Brincat passed an approval process to join the European Court of Auditors by the skin of his teeth today, with 11 votes in favour, 9 against and 1 abstention. With the recommendation of the European Parliament's Budgetary Committee in the bag, Mr Brincat's nomination must now be approved by the whole European Parliament's 751 members before he can join the ECA.  He was the second person nominated by the government to succeed Louis Galea, after former Labour deputy... Читать дальше...

Would-be judges and magistrates will have to satisfy 10 specific criteria to be appointed to the judiciary from now on, the government has announced. The constitutional requirement that judicial members must have served as lawyers for at least 12 years has been retained.  Along with this, candidates must now also: Have a valid warrant to practise law Be capable of communicating clearly and succinctly in both Maltese and English Carry themselves with integrity and honesty in both their private... Читать дальше...

The MSE Share Index edged lower for the first time in the last five trading sessions as it slipped by a minimal 0.04% today to 4,461.060 points, largely reflecting the decline in the share price of RS2 which outweighed the gains in the two other large companies MIA and BOV. RS2 Software plc dropped to a new 2016 low of €1.75 (-1.7%) across 29,575 shares. The other negative performing equity was Malta Properties Company plc which retreated back to the €0.52 level (-3.7%) on a single deal of 14,000 shares. Читать дальше...