Prime Minister Robert Abela has said that the Public Health Emergency Declaration that had been enacted due to the Covid-19 pandemic will be lifted in the coming hours.

Prime Minister Robert Abela was being interviewed on ONE TV by three journalists from different media houses. The journalists were The Malta Independent's Deputy Editor in Chief Neil Camilleri, Christine Amaira from Net TV and Kurt Sansone from MaltaToday

Speaking about the withdrawal of the Public Health Emergency, during the interview the Prime Minister said that it will be withdrawn 'in the coming hours'.  Abela said that this will mean the few legal notices still in place that are preventing the country from going back to "complete normality" will "naturally also be removed."

"To give a small example, regarding the measure that only 75 people can congregate - as we have seen over the past days this creates major logistical problems. Although it made sense at the time, today one sees that with how well the situation is controlled and these prohibitions will naturally all be removed. This means that the only restriction that will remain in place will regard the airport and ports, and from 1 July they will be partially revoked and by 15 July (when the airport and ports will fully reopen), we will be able to say that all Legal Notices enacted in this regard will be removed."

"Then, we can speak about complete normality."

Asked whether the withdrawal from the emergency situation will mean that masks will stop being used, and what will happen regarding table space in restaurants, social distancing etc. he said that these were guidelines, and it will be good for people to continue following them. "While there won't be a legal obligation, as there wasn't as they were always guidelines, it is good that people keep observing them. My recommendation is that we keep following them. In terms of restaurant tables, one will need to see how it evolves."

"One needs to see everything in the context that the public health emergenct declaration is being withdrawn."

During the interview, Abela was asked about the regeneration plan unveiled by the government last Monday. He was asked why there was no energy cost reduction for families, and what measures are being put in place to attract tourists.

Abela stressed that the recovery plan is targeted at stimulating the economy, and the financial packages that were introduced throughout the pandemic were done so to allow businesses to hit the ground running when the pandemic passes, "and it has." He said that this recovery plan has a specific aim - helping businesses, however he did say that there are other incentives for families, such as the €100 in vouchers for everyone over the age of 16, and the reduction in fuel price by 7c per litre.

With regards to the latter, Abela explained that some fuel stations were going to make a loss with this reduction given the price they had bought the fuel from abroad at, but said that the government will be making good on this and help them out.

He also highlighted the reduction in property tax, that will help people who are trying to buy homes. "While the incentives are to incentivise the economy, consumers also benefit."

Abela also spoke about the wage supplement, and the support to keep jobs. "If business fails, then everyone will suffer and people will end up without work.  We incentivise business to keep jobs, for strong jobs. We passed through a situation the country never passed through before, and the way it was handled made the country proud."

Regarding tourism, he said that the Malta Tourism Association has a budget of its own which it is using to attract tourists.

The Prime Minister was also asked about the media and about Covid-numbers.

He said that the fear over the Covid-19 numbers in the country is not justified, stressing that Malta only had 37 active cases at the time the interview took place. "The country controlled the virus brilliantly." He said that alarming people will be a disservice.

As for the media, he stressed that a democratic country requires constant scrutiny on the government.

The Prime Minister spoke about creating incentives for people to head into Valletta in the coming days, including transport measures.

Turning to the wage supplement, and whether it could remain in place past September, he said he hopes it won't be needed, and hopes businesses will be in a position to say there wouldn't be a need for it as they would be doing well.

He said however that they will not withdraw support in crucial times. "I am convinced by September we will continue moving forward, and my ambition is to have economic growth and more jobs, good jobs with quality income."

He was asked about the Moneyval report and the risk of the country being greylisted, about the lack of prosecutions by the police on financial crimes after the FIAU would flag them. He was also asked about the Daphne Caruana Galizia investigation, and in particular Chris Cardona and Keith Schembri. "What will you do with Cardona? Are you satisfied with the police investigations on people like Keith Schembri."

He said that when looking at the number of money laundering prosecutions, where Moneyval is putting emphasis, "I am not satisfied as I believe there should have been more prosecutions in this regard."

He said that when the new Police Commissioner takes office he needs to put a strong emphasis on this sector. Not only for more investigations, but to charge more people, he said. He said he will not put pressure on the police force but will insist that the Commissioner does his job, and that charges are issued without looking at faces. "I have full confidence in the new proposed Commissioner." He spoke of his integrity and honesty.

On Chris Cardona, he said that Cardona is a person who has the party's interests at heart and "I am convinced that with the decisions he needs to take in the coming days he will keep the party's interests at the forefront, and will do what is needed to keep the PL's name in good standing as it is today. As such one would need to see how the situation evolves in the coming days."

As for other investigations, he said the Compilation of Evidence in the Daphne Caruana Galizia case is moving at a good pace. He said he is satisfied with how investigations are going and wants every corner of the investigation to continue.

Asked about unemployment, he said that while country's abroad saw hundreds of thousands unemployed, Malta kept the situation under control. He said that in total, there was a 1,600 increase in unemployment in terms of Maltese and Gozitans. He said he wants to see all of them manage to find good jobs.