**HSBC Staff Sit-In Sends Ripples Across Malta’s Tight-Knit Banking Community** Valletta – Mid-morning on Tuesday, the air inside HSBC’s flagship Republic Street branch carried more than the usual scent of espresso and printer toner; it hummed with tension as 42 employees staged an impromptu sit-in, refusing to leave the dealing hall until headquarters in London…
Housekeepers Held After Tourist’s Bag And €350 Vanish From St Julian’s Hotel By Hot Malta Staff | 09:45 • 17 June 2025 The trust that travellers place in Malta’s smiling “room-make-up” teams was shattered yesterday when two housekeepers were marched out of a sea-front St Julian’s hotel in hand-cuffs, accused of pocketing a guest’s designer…
**”We wasted our time”: Magistrate scolds couple for ignoring protection order** A Maltese magistrate has delivered a scathing rebuke to a couple who ignored a court-issued protection order, highlighting growing concerns about domestic violence enforcement in Malta and the strain placed on an already overburdened judicial system. The incident, which occurred at the Valletta courthouse…
**Solidarity in Silk: What French Mayors’ Palestinian Flag Gesture Means for Malta’s Own Crossroads** By [Author Name] | Hot Malta When the mairies of Lyon, Montpellier, and a dozen other French cities raised the red-green-black-white of Palestine above their 19th-century balconies last week, they weren’t just defying Parisian circulars—they were writing a footnote that Maltese…
**Nine Months for Seven Grams: Maltese Court’s Harsh Cannabis Sentence Sparks Debate** A 34-year-old Maltese man has been sentenced to nine months in prison after police found just seven grams of cannabis and three grams of cocaine during a routine stop in St Julian’s last December – a ruling that has reignited fierce debate about…
# HSBC Malta staff stage sit-in strike over compensation linked to owner change Valletta’s Republic Street felt more like a union hall than a banking capital yesterday morning when 200 HSBC Malta employees walked off the job and staged a surprise sit-in inside the 1960s marble-clad lobby of the bank’s flagship branch. By 11 a.m….
**Gozo Deserves Leaders Who Act Not Out of Political Convenience** Gozo, Malta’s sister island, has long carried the quiet dignity of being the nation’s rural soul. While Malta races ahead with high-rise towers and sprawling developments, Gozo remains tethered to its terraced fields, baroque churches, and a rhythm of life that moves with the seasons…
Russian jets off Sicily? Valletta cafés buzz after Moscow blasts NATO “air-space lies” Valletta’s lunchtime crowd usually debates last night’s derby or the price of pastizzi, but on Wednesday the terrace talk turned to MiG-31s and missile shields. Russia’s embassy in Malta issued a terse statement accusing NATO of “manufacturing tension” by claiming Russian aircraft…
# Ġnejna Boathouse Owner Ordered to Remove New Structures After Rangers’ Complaint The iconic boathouses dotting Malta’s coastline have long been a symbol of the island’s maritime heritage, but one owner’s recent expansion at Ġnejna Bay has sparked controversy and a formal enforcement action. Environmental rangers have successfully petitioned authorities to order the removal of…
**Inflation rate creeps up, pushed by food prices** The aroma of freshly-baked ftira that once drifted cheaply from Ħamrun’s corner bakeries is becoming a luxury. Malta’s inflation rate ticked up to 3.2 % in May, driven almost single-handedly by what we put on our plates. National Statistics Office figures show food prices rising 7.4 %…
Watch: ‘I do not want towers in Gozo’: Alex Borg ================================================ Gozo’s skyline—and soul—are once again at the centre of a heated national debate after Infrastructure Minister Alex Borg stared down the camera and declared, “I do not want towers in Gozo.” The 18-second clip, filmed outside the Ministry in Valletta and uploaded to TikTok…
**Landlords Demand Power to Pull the Plug on Non-Paying Tenants, Sparking Island-Wide Debate** In a country where the phrase “rent is due” has become as loaded as a pastizz fresh from the oven, Maltese landlords are lobbying for a controversial new right: the power to cut water and electricity to tenants who fall behind on…
