Government updates on the stepping up of enforcement to help control the growing spread of COVID-19 will be given ‘shortly’, the Office of the Prime Minister has said. 

But it remains unclear whether, or when, Prime Minister Robert Abela will be making an announcement, despite the number of new COVID-19 cases reaching all-time highs in recent days. 

Abela is due in Brussels on Thursday for an EU summit.

On Monday, the prime minister told a meeting with hoteliers that enforcement of COVID-19 containment measures must increase, though he did not provide any details. He did, however, give assurances that the government was not going to “choke any particular sector”. 

Asked a series of questions on when the government will be making announcements on the matter and what these will involve, an OPM spokesman said: “Announcements reflecting the prime minister's statements made earlier this week, will be made shortly.”

Questions on what “shortly” meant remained unanswered. 

Malta is currently dealing with the highest number of active cases of the virus, after a record 111 cases were registered on Wednesday. A high number of new cases is also expected to be reported on Thursday. 

Various health associations have called on the government to re-introduced measures to help slow down the spread, with the doctors’ association saying mask-wearing should be made mandatory everywhere. This was especially important in workplaces, where a number of cases have been detected in recent weeks. 

The associations have also urged the authorities to enforce the existing measures more, saying the high number puts increasing pressure on the islands’ hospitals.