Snippets from the Financial Estimates

The government is allocating €1 million for Malta’s participation in the Shanghai expo, the Financial Estimates presented in Parliament yesterday show.

The estimates, which feature the financial allocations to all the ministries,also show an allocation of €1.5 million on influenza combating measures, €1.64 million for the breast screening programme and €150,000 for a Strategy on Obesity.

By far the biggest spending by the Health Authorities will be €64 million on medicines and surgical material.

€11.4 million will be spent on the running of Karin Grech Rehabilitation Centre, plus another €2 million for upgrading of the former hospital.

€1.5 million will be spent on new facilities for the National Blood Transfusion Centre.

€2.3 million will go for house building by the Housing Authority and €1 million for the new Oncology Centre at Mater Dei Hospital.

€1.8 million have been allocated for the building of the new ICT faculty at the University of Malta and €500,000 for the University Research, Innovation and Development Trust Fund. Recurrent expenditure for the University climbs to €41 million from €33 million this year.

The allocation for the new Mcast campus has dropped to €500,000 from €3.6 million this year.

The Foundation for Tomorrow’s Schools gets €5.9 million in capital expenditure on new school building and maintenance, from €4.8 million this year.

Funds for construction and upgrading of sports facilities dip to €1.3 million from €1.4 million this year but the recurrent funds of the Sports Council rise to €1.45 million from €1 million this year.

Heritage Malta gets new funds of €1.5 million for urgent restoration at Fort St Angelo, while other funds for the restoration of historic sites fall under the Resources Ministry.

Assistance to Church Schools in terms of the Church-State agreement will reach €38.5 million next year. €21.4 million will go for students’ stipends.

Funds for storm water systems practically double, to €600,000, as will spending for the upgrading of tourist zones, which will rise to €3 million.

€6 million will be spent on pensions and the early retirement scheme of dockyard workers, and €1.5 million to service former Malta Shipyards and Malta Shipbuilding loans.