Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1340314
3 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 17 FEBRUARY 2021 NEWS KURT SANSONE THE Nationalist Party has laid the blame for illegal employ- ment conditions of food couriers at the foot of Finance Minister Clyde Caruana. PN spokesperson Jason Azz- opardi said the revelation that more than 1,200 foreign workers were employed illegally was the result of Caruana's failure at his previous role with JobsPlus. Caruana used to head the gov- ernment jobs agency that was responsible for the processing of work permits for foreign work- ers. Azzopardi accused JobsPlus of "closing an eye" to the employ- ment of thousands of foreign workers in "inhuman condi- tions". He said the situation also put downward pressure on con- ditions of Maltese workers. MaltaToday had revealed that a study on food couriers found several instances of unlawful work practices used by recruit- ment agencies. Media reports today said Cab- inet was told that more than 1,200 non-EU foreigners were employed illegally, mostly in the food courier business which boomed during the pandemic. "It is a fact that JobsPlus closed its eyes to this abuse and allowed it to grow. Government was an accomplice in the persistent breach of the law, which fostered precarious employment," Azzo- pardi said. He accused the government of reneging on its duty to enforce the law and ignoring calls for the creation of codes of conduct for the platform economy. Azzopardi appealed to the gov- ernment to inform the social partners of where it intends to go in this sector. The PN statement was also signed by candidate Ivan Castil- lo. PN accuses Clyde Caruana of 'closing an eye' to illegal employment of foreign food couriers Jason Azzopardi (far left) says government agency JobsPlus under Clyde Caruana - now finance minister - was responsible for 'closing an eye' to precarious jobs for foreign workers CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 He said the vaccination pro- gramme was "progressing rap- idly" and was now three weeks ahead of its original plan. This week, parents of vulner- able children will start receiv- ing invitations to get vaccinat- ed since the vaccine is not yet available to those under 16. Family members of those who are travelling aboard to receive medical treatment will also start receiving the vaccine from this week, Fearne added. Fearne also said that Malta recorded its first case of the South Africa variant of COV- ID-19. Only one case of the variant, known as 501.V2 or B.1.351 has been found. The number of cases of the UK variant has increased to 49. Vaccination passport Asked by MaltaToday about the agreement between Israel and Cyprus which would allow Cypriots and Israelis who have taken the vaccine to travel free- ly without the need to quaran- tine, Fearne said Malta was exploring all avenues to allow safe travel. He said talks were underway with the Israeli gov- ernment. "Discussions are currently underway, always taking into consideration the best interest and health of the Maltese pop- ulation," Fearne said. He added that the vaccination programme had already started to see good results among the groups that have been vacci- nated. The health minister said the second dose made a "tremen- dous difference," in the num- ber of people having to be hos- pitalised. Fearne said, in terms of the ITU, there is always a four to six-week wait from when the second doses have been admin- istered to see a difference in numbers. Malta in talks with Israel over possible safe travel agreement The €2.5 million agreement with the government will allow Hospice Malta to continue investing in specialised equipment