Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/922844
maltatoday SUNDAY 7 JANUARY 2018 News 3 T E A T R U M A N O E L M A L T A 2018 13 th to 27 th January 2018 www.vallettabaroquefestival.com.mt www.teatrumanoel.com.mt 13 th Jan - The Four Seasons - Vivaldi - Teatru Manoel, Valletta 14 th Jan - German Celebrity Composers - Bibliotheca, Valletta 14 th Jan - Baroque Treasure Hunt - Teatru Manoel, Valletta 14 th Jan - Bach and Italy - Teatru Manoel, Valletta 15 th Jan - Fasti del Barocco Romano - St. John's Co-Cathedral, Valletta 16 th Jan - Bach's Musical Oering Revisited - Teatru Manoel, Valletta 16 th Jan - I Maestri di Santa Maria di Loreto - Ta' Ġiezu Church, Valletta 17 th Jan - Suites for viola da gamba & harpsichord - St. Augustine's Church, Valletta 17 th Jan - Inspired by Baroque - Teatru Manoel, Valletta 18 th Jan - The Goldberg Variations on Accordion - Ta' Sarria Church, Floriana 18 th Jan - In the King's Chamber - Teatru Manoel, Valletta 19 th Jan - Boccherini Sonatas for cello & harpsichord - Ta' Sarria Church, Floriana 19 th Jan - Fasti del Barocco Napoletano - Mdina Cathedral, Mdina 20 th Jan - La Mascarade - Aula Capitulare, Mdina Cathedral 20 th Jan - La Mascarade - Aula Capitulare, Mdina Cathedral 21 st Jan - Music from the Archives of the Cathedral Museum - Mdina Cathedral, Mdina 21 st Jan - Baroque Jazz for the Family - Teatru Manoel, Studio Theatre, Valletta 21 st Jan - Sotto l'Aquila Imperiale - Verdala Castle, Buskett 22 nd Jan - The Dark Side of The Goldberg Variations - Bibliotheca, Valletta 22 nd Jan - Rameau Operatic Highlights - Teatru Manoel, Valletta 23 rd Jan - Telemann Fantasias - Church of Our Lady of Victories, Valletta 23 rd Jan - Benigno Zerafa - Messa a Due Cori - Mdina Cathedral, Mdina 24 th Jan - Tomas Luis de Victoria - St. Francis' Church, Valletta 25 th Jan - Conversazioni Musicali - Malta Maritime Museum, Vittoriosa 25 th Jan - Monteverdi Vespers - St. Catherine's Church, Zejtun 26 th Jan - Scarlatti Sonatas on Guitar - Church of Our Lady of Victories, Valletta 26 th Jan - La Sete di Cristo - Collegiate Church of St. Lawrence, Vittoriosa 27 th Jan - Baroque Meets Jazz - Malta Maritime Museum, Vittoriosa 27 th Jan - La Liberazione di Ruggiero - Teatru Manoel, Valletta 1308. Teatru - Baroque Festival 2018 - 18x5.indd 1 04/01/2018 19:35 announcement that the development of the hospital sites would not require standard Planning Authority approval and could go through a fast-track ap- proval process. After objections, the deci- sion was reversed and it then transpired that VGH would need to go through all standard Planning Authority applications and processes. This pushed back the date when the contractors could begin works on the new building." Planning approval was finally given on 7 March 2017, and works began on the 17 March 2017. According to the concession contract deposited in the House of Representa- tives, "for three years from the comple- tion date the concessionaire shall not suffer or allow to suffer the transfer, transmission, allotment, assignment or other dispersion... of its shares or shares of its subsidiaries without the express prior written consent of the GOM (gov- ernment of Malta)." The completion date is defined as the date a final completion certificate is is- sued, confirming that the concession milestones were carried out: all of which are laid down in Schedule 6 of the con- tract as the milestones for the completion of the work. The completion milestones were name- ly a handover plan, a design plan, the Barts campus at the Gozo hospital, 50 ad- ditional beds at Karin Grech Hospital, 80 rehabilitation beds at St Luke's Hospital, the completion of the new Gozo General Hospital and its renovation, and the com- pletion of St Luke's medical tourism beds. The contract presented in the House blacked out the penalties that Vitals was supposed to pay in any event of milestone failure. Oxley disassociates itself The Opposition has in the past queried the ownership of Vitals, which has no previous experience in healthcare and was set up to take up the 30-year conces- sion to run the Karin Grech, St Luke's, and Gozo hospitals. The company is actually owned by multiple companies in the British Virgin Islands – namely Bluestone Special Situ- ations 4 and Asia Harimau – which lead up to Mark Pawley as ultimate beneficial owner, who is the chairman of Leverage Capital Group and joint CEO of Oxley Capital of Singapore. But yesterday a director of Oxley Capi- tal told MaltaToday that neither Oxley nor any subsidiary had any involvement or interest in Vitals Global Healthcare, in Malta or elsewhere. "Mr Pawley is the only person associ- ated with Oxley who is involved with VGH's activities in Malta. No Oxley group entity has any equity interest or expects any monetary benefit from any of VGH's activities in Malta or elsewhere. Moreover, neither Oxley Capital nor any of its subsidiaries have any interest to es- tablish a foothold in Malta." mvella@mediatoday.com.mt THE government yesterday dismissed a call by the Opposition for Parliament's Healthcare Committee to discuss the sale of three Maltese hospitals by Vitals Global Healthcare to an American provider. In a meeting of the House Business Committee, Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne insisted that the House would instead debate the sale of St Luke's, Karin Grech and Gozo General Hospital to Steward Health Care System. The debate will be held on Wednesday, 17 January. Fearne said that, by holding a debate in the full house, government was not only meeting the Opposition's request, but was, in fact, elevating it to having it discussed within the country's highest institution, instead of at committee level. While both sides are in agreement regarding a plenary discussion on the 17 January, deputy PN leader David Agius maintained that the committee should discuss the matter before a parliamentary debate is held. "One does not exclude the other, as there is a difference between that which takes place in committee and that which takes place during the plenary," he said, clarifying that the Opposition has no objection to a debate in plenary. However, Fearne insisted that a plenary discussion should take place so that everyone has a chance to speak. "We are not excluding anyone," he said. "We are elevating the discussion to the most important organ of the Parliament and of the country, and I think this is a sign that we are confident that [the transfer] is a positive development." To this, Agius said that nobody is excluded in the committee as every member is given a chance to speak, and that the argument put forward by the government is not valid. The response to this, however, was that the plenary nonetheless takes precedent to the committee. "It doesn't make sense to say that we are not allowing discussion to take place when there are all members of the room, and physically it is accessible to the public. Both are accessible but the plenary takes precedent," PN MP Edward Zammit Lewis said. Fearne did not rule out that the committee might in the future be called upon to discuss the VGH sale and said it was up to the chairperson of the committee to set its agenda. The PN is questioning why VGH sold the three hospitals, less than two years into a 30-year contract and is insisting that the government publish the contract it had signed with VGH, without withholding any information. House debate set for 17 January Vitals 'slowed' by standard PA processes