204 public swimming pools

There are a total of 204 licensed public swimming pools, Health Minister Louis Deguara said in parliament yesterday.

He said the Health Department had no control on who used these pools, which were mostly an integral part of hotels and similar public places, and such responsibility rested on the managers of the establishments concerned.

He said the use of chlorine in pools was recommended by the World Health Organisation. The chlorine level was monitored by those responsible for the pools and Health Department officials who lifted water samples from the pools on a regular basis.