Safety protocols are being drawn up for the reopening of schools in September, Prime Minister Robert Abela said, warning that unless students are able to physically attend classes there will be an educational crisis.

Education was being given great attention in the government’s Covid-19 plans, he said at the end of a Cabinet meeting which, for the first time, was held at the Chamber of Commerce premises in Valletta.

Schools are set to reopen on 28 September, but parents are expressing deeper concern now that the number of confirmed Coronavirus cases has shot up to higher levels than when the last scholastic year had been terminated three months earlier than scheduled, last March.

“It is very important that our children are able to attend school in person. It is for this reason that the health authorities are drawing up the protocols to create a safe environment. It is very important that we keep education at the forefront because we’ll end up without a pandemic but a catastrophe within our education system,” Abela said.

Asked about swabbing centre staff that had not been paid for months, a day after The Malta Independent reported that staff at swabbing centres were facing poor work conditions and backdated payments, Abela said that he had visited one of the centres hours after he learnt the news to hear about the situation first-hand.

Abela said arrangements were being made to pay the arrears due but little could be done to mitigate the heat that staff had to endure when swabbing people in their cars.

Abela insisted the situation was under control in spite of more countries removing Malta from their green list for travelling purposes.