Bonġu News on 14 June 2022

Zelenskyy vows to take back Crimea

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowed Ukraine would liberate all occupied territory, and even Crimea which Russia annexed in 2014. 

He said Ukrainian forces had driven the Russians out of more than 1,000 settlements since the war began.

In his nightly video address, Zelenskyy said the battle over the Donbas “will surely go down in military history as one of the most brutal battles in and for Europe”.

€20m for energy efficient commercial buildings

Businesses that want to make their buildings more energy efficient can now benefit from a 20 million Euro fund, the government has announced.

The funds are part of the European Commission’s 257 million Euro Recovery and Resilience Plan for Malta.

Economy Minister Silvio Schembri said the scheme is aimed at renovating existing buildings only.

Each project can be awarded a grant of up to 1 million Euro, and eligible projects must be completed by the end of 2025.

Tourism minister promises Comino deckchairs limitation

Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo announced on Monday that no deckchairs will be allowed on Blue Lagoon’s sandy beach.

Bartolo also promised that the number of sunbeds and umbrellas on the quay will be reduced and that they won’t be set up in the morning.

Earlier on Monday, the Times of Malta already observed that a small patch on the sandy beach had been left clear.

However, at that time, lines of apparently unused deckchairs were also seen already set up.

Clayton Bartolo claimed that MTA officials were set to address the issue on the same day Moviment Graffiti showed up to take action.

The minister said the government could assure that people can lay out their towels, but would also cater for “the substantial number of visitors who ask to rent sunbeds”.