A total of 157 migrants arrived in Malta since the beginning of this year, with the majority having arrived over the past two weeks.

A spokesperson from the Justice and Home Affairs Ministry said that last year alone, 1,780 irregular migrants arrived. Of these and others who were here previously, 780 were repatriated in 2006. Some 116 irregular migrants have also been repatriated since the beginning of this year.

To date, a total of 828 irregular migrants are still living in detention centres. Between January and April this year, six migrants were granted refugee status, while 2,177 others were granted humanitarian protection.

Asked about the estimated expense required for the upkeep of detention centres, the ministry spokesperson said this was difficult to quantify due to a number of factors.

Since the beginning of the year however, apart from salaries paid to police and AFM personnel, costs related to irregular migration have already amounted to Lm90,000.