What the Sunday papers say…

The first issue of the year of MaltaToday asks whether Prime Minister Joseph Muscat can clean up his act and improve the country's transparency, meritocracy, and accountability records. Featuring an analysis from Saviour Balzan, Matthew Vella, and James Debono, the newspaper also features a wish list for 2016 from several contributors on a multitude of issues including politics, environment, social media, health, and equality, amongst others.

The newspaper also reports how the Nationalist Party denounced a 4c decrease in the price of diesel, with the Opposition arguing that the price of fuel in Malta does not reflect the global fall in the price of oil. MaltaToday also reports how in a bid to stem losses from running its homes for the elderly, the Maltese archdiocese has asked residents of their homes to volunteer their tax statement and returns to set 2017 fees.

Sunday newspaper Illum reports that the Land Department erroneously paid compensation to third parties for land they expropriated from Edgar Farrugia and his family in 1999. The newspaper also reports that there was a 40% increase in the sale of luxury property in Gozo, while on the backpage it reports that ALS Malta founder Bjorn Formosa was voted the personality of the year in 2015.

The Sunday Times of Malta says former police commissioner Raymond Zammit and his brother acquired three plots of land in Mosta for a paltry sum after benefitting from a “ministerial policy” which affected the valuation process. The newspaper also says that contrary to normal practice when the government sells public land, there was no estimate by an architect to determine what the plots were worth.

The Malta Independent on Sunday reports that according to information published by the European Union on the Schengen Information System, over 100,000 passports, ID cards, residence permits, or travel document were reported by the Maltese authorities as having been lost, misappropriated or stolen in 2014.

It-Torca says over €4 million will be invested in new equipment and services at Mater Dei Hospital.

PN news organ il-mument says the General Workers’ Union (GWU) will earn €1 million thanks to an agreement with the government, while in another story, it says that despite the price of petrol and diesel falling, the prices of fuel remain higher than in half of European countries.

Kullhadd says ‘indirect pressure’ was exerted on forensic expert Anthony Abela Medici for him to change the results of an investigation he was carrying out on the murder of Karin Grech.