The New Year officially started yesterday, and many hope that 2022 will not be another 2021; that it will be different and better.

Many will have made their New Year’s resolutions and pledged to be better persons this year … perhaps healthier, or kinder, or more considerate or honest.

We do not wish to sound pessimistic and we wish that all of our readers have a better year than the one that has just ended but, in terms of news, it looks like it will be pretty much the same as last year.

2022 promises to be a continuation of several issues that dominated the last 12 months, some of them having dragged on for several years now.

Surely, the main topic of 2021 was the Covid-19 pandemic, which has not only not ended but rather reared its head again towards the last few weeks of the year. Over the past month we have experienced record numbers. When things had returned to some semblance of normality, yet another variant emerged to upend our lives.

While the Omicron variant does not seem to be as aggressive as its predecessor, the numbers are now much higher and, for the first time we have registered four-digit daily figures.

The World Health Organisation said last week that the pandemic is expected to end this year, but experience has taught us not to be so optimistic, and another wave would come as no surprise at this point. So there is definitely a lot more Covid-19 news in store for us in the coming months.

Beyond the public health sphere, the political scene also promises more of the same.

Several of the scandals that have rocked Malta over the past few years have not gone away, largely because they remain un-investigated, and the people behind them unprosecuted.

Over the next few weeks we will see the continuation of Konrad Mizzi’s grilling before the Public Accounts Committee and more will be uncovered on the controversial Electrogas deal.

The Standards Committee is set to debate George Hyzler’s report on Justyne Caruana and the contract that her ministry gave to Daniel Bogdanovic. The debate will surely be fiery at times and, besides, we will also be seeing parallel developments in the court, where Caruana has filed a suit claiming that the law governing Hyzler’s office is unconstitutional.

While the Standards Committee has concluded its case on Rosianne Cutajar and her alleged brokerage fee, the Tax Commissioner’s office is yet to conclude its investigation into the matter, so there is that issue too to look forward too.

Then there is the infamous Vitals/Steward deal, which also remains unresolved. Besides the ongoing court case filed by former Opposition Leader Adrian Delia, we also await to see how the discussions between government and Steward will end up, whether the hospitals’ operator will get its way or end up leaving the country. If the latter happens, we must see whether we will end up paying the €100m exit fee that Konrad Mizzi so graciously included in the concession contract or whether government will stick to its word and fight the matter in court.

Naturally, the court cases related to Yorgen Fenech, Keith Schembri and others related to the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia will continue to be heard. New information will emerge and, perhaps, more people will be arraigned. We will also undoubtedly hear more about the failed HSBC heist and the alleged involvement by top politicians.

Maybe the case against John Dalli will finally start, unless there are any more delays.

There will probably be more protests by civil society groups over the apparent lack of action by the police.

We will surely hear more about Malta’s grey-listing by the FATF and its effects on the financial services industry.

It is safe to say that there will be new scandals too and that more politicians will have to resign, probably after a pointless and dragged-out denial phase, which is always the case on this tiny rock.

Another issue that will likely still make headlines is the PN’s struggle to attract more voters.

The only difference this year is that we will have a general election.

But that only means one thing: that more bombshell scandals will emerge, perhaps the worst ones have been held until the end, until the eve of the election.

It will definitely not be a quiet year for us journalists, but quiet is boring, and we would rather have another exciting year.

Happy New Year to all our readers!