The public is being invited to celebrate New Year's Eve at the first street party for the occasion to be held in Floriana, offering the opportunity for free outdoors revelry that other cities around the world hold.

The idea was to have a national activity on the lines of the celebrations in London's Trafalgar Square and Time Square in New York, filling a void for the Maltese, who often travelled to other countries to enjoy their end-of-year party, the Floriana local council said.

Such celebrations were only held in 2000 for the millennium festivities and in 2008 to mark Malta's adoption of the euro.

The local council is being assisted by the parliamentary secretaries for dialogue and for tourism and has identified St Anne's Street, one of Malta's busiest, for the occasion.

A stage will be mounted to host a show throughout the night while entertainment for children, including bouncy castles, trains and animators, will be organised for what is considered a family event.

St Anne Street will be lined with food stalls. Major sound systems and a screen, showing what will be happening on the stage and the celebrations in other countries, will be set up. The show starts at 6.30 p.m. with a New Year's Eve Parade, featuring a band and 300 dancers from various schools, accompanying the arrival of Father Christmas on a karozzin (horse-drawn cab).

A live concert by the Mark Spiteri Lucas Band, with the participation of a number of singers, kicks off on the stage at 9 p.m. but anyone wishing to dance until the early hours of the first day of the year will have music to accompany them.

The climax of the evening that ushers in the New Year will be when the clock strikes midnight, which will be marked by fireworks displays and a shower of confetti and balloons.