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4 NEWS 13.10.2022 NSO figures show that, in the first half of 2022, the total expenditure on contributory and noncontributory social benefits rose by €32.6m over the same period in 2021 and by €60.1m over the half of 2020. The increased expenditure on social benefits in the first half of 2022 pushed the total social protection expenditure in the same period to €987.6 million, putting its overall share of GDP at an estimated 14.7 per cent. social benefits 20 sensors have been installed across the equipment at Marsa's Public Abat- toir to monitor their carbon and ener- gy emissions. ese sensors use the latest data technologies to connect to an energy management platform that will inform the Public Abattoir management of their carbon and energy consumption and output. From there, sustainability consultants and data analysts at sustainability con- sultancy ClearVUE.Business will guide the Public Abattoir on how to reduce their emissions and cut energy use. ClearVUE.Business is an energy and sustainability consultancy that has helped 30,000 clients in the United Kingdom with their energy consump- tion. e Public Abattoir is a key Mal- tese client for ClearVUE.Business, which has guided companies to low- er their carbon emissions and energy consumption by up to 30 per cent in one year. "We are very pleased that the Public Abattoir are the first to join us on our net zero journey in Malta. e adverse effects of climate change are being felt across the world, and it is up to govern- ments and businesses in all countries to take responsibility and move from talk to action," Dan Smith, Director of Energy Services, said. "e installation of our high-tech energy management system will allow the Public Abattoir to move closer to EU climate target goals and monitor its carbon emissions," he added. e installation of the ClearVUE. Zero energy and carbon management system is another step taken by Pub- lic Abattoir to improve its operational efficiencies and proactively follow its carbon reduction strategies, following the restoration of the water reservoir earlier this year. e collaboration with ClearVUE. Business "is demonstration of the ef- fort being made by the Ministry to make the Public Abattoir a showcase of efficiency and quality," Anton Refalo, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Animal Rights, said. "At the same time, the project is con- tinuing to contribute to the Govern- ment fulfilling its electoral promise to increase the efficiency of the operation of the Public Abattoir for the benefit of the local farmers," he added. Climate change software to monitor public abattoir's energy and carbon emissions THE European Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) survey 2021 reported that 3.0 per cent of per- sons in private households lived in over- crowded dwellings. EU-SILC is an annual panel survey that collects information on the income and living conditions of private households in Malta and Gozo. In 2021, slightly more than 4,000 households were interviewed. In 2021, 59.5 per cent of all inhabited dwellings in Malta and Gozo were ei- ther apartments or maisonettes, while 35.8 per cent were semi-detached or ter- raced houses. Results show that the larg- est proportion of main dwellings (33.8 per cent) contained five rooms (refer to methodological note 6a). is was fol- lowed by 23.3 per cent of main dwellings which were composed of six rooms, and a further 19.8 per cent had seven or more rooms. Home ownership was the most com- mon type of tenure status in 2021, with 78.3 per cent of all households owning their main dwelling. Of these, 57.0 per cent were outright owners, meaning that they either never had a mortgage on their main dwelling or have repaid their debt in full. A higher share of homeowners was registered among households with dependent children, which stood at 84.7 per cent, as opposed to households with- out dependent children, whose share was 75.3 per cent. A different trend was observed among rented main dwellings, whereby 20.2 per cent of households without dependent children were ten- ants. On the other hand, 10.2 per cent of households renting their main dwelling had dependent children. According to EU-SILC, during 2021, 3.0 per cent of all those living in private households lived in overcrowded house- holds. e overcrowding rate is defined by the number of rooms available in the household in relation to the household's size and other demographics. Housing costs were perceived to con- stitute a slight burden for 58.5 per cent of all persons living in households. A further 22.9 per cent considered these costs to be a heavy burden, while for the remaining 18.6 per cent, they were of no burden at all. Furthermore, 73.4 per cent of persons who were severely materially and social- ly deprived, considered housing costs to be a heavy burden. In contrast, only 36.0 per cent of people who were at-risk-of- poverty considered housing costs to be a heavy burden. As reported by 34.1 per cent of re- spondents, the most common housing issues were considered to be pollution, grime or other environmental problems. Noise from neighbours or from the street, was the second most mentioned problem as experienced by a further 31.5 per cent of the surveyed households. 3 per cent of persons in private households live in overcrowded dwellings, survey finds

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