Mater Dei Hospital’s childcare centre is not open after all, despite Health Minister Chris Fearne saying that it was, The Malta Independent is informed.

Parents were left in the lurch on Monday morning when they took their children to the childcare centre as per usual, only to find it closed.

Fearne told the media on Tuesday however that the centre had been reopened but refused to elaborate as to why it was closed in the first place.

However it turns out that the childcare centre is in fact still closed and is expected to remain closed for a number of weeks over what is believed to be a licensing issue.

Contacted by The Malta Independent, the President of the Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses (MUMN) Paul Pace confirmed that the nursery hadn’t opened as Fearne had said on Tuesday.

Email correspondence between a nurse and Mater Dei’s CEO Celia Falzon confirmed the closure.

Following Fearne’s comments, a nurse asked Falzon whether it was the case that the childcare centre had been reopened.

“I am not in a position to confirm at this stage when the nursery will open. This will certainly be a number of weeks,” Falzon replied.

She continued by saying that once the centre is reopened, all those who make use of the nursery’s services will be notified.

It is understood that apart from issues related to costs, the childcare centre was closed because it did not have the necessary licensing.

Sources close to the issue have also said that assessments are being carried out in order for the facility and its operations to be licensed.