Around 90 per cent of government vouchers given out to stimulate economic activity had been used by Friday, with three days to go before they expire.

The figure was given by the Economy Ministry in a statement.  

The second round of vouchers were distributed in June this year as part of the government's COVID-19 economic regeneration scheme.

Vouchers were due to expire on September 15 but that deadline had been extended to give people some more time to make use of them. Until then, 74 per cent of vouchers had been used, with 26 per cent, or around €12 million worth of vouchers, still unused.

The voucher scheme is costing the government €50 million.

Vouchers were distributed to all Maltese residents, irrespective of nationality, to encourage spending on hospitality and retail goods and services, as part of the government’s attempt to kickstart the post-pandemic economy.

Each resident received €100 worth of vouchers. This was the second tranche of vouchers issued by the government. Just over 447,500 people received this second set of vouchers.

€60 in vouchers can be spent at restaurants while the remaining €40 spent on services and goods.