Plans to set up a prefabricated hospital for coronavirus patients have been scrapped as the government has been advised that Malta does not need the clinic, Prime Minister Robert Abela said on Sunday.

The international call to construct the hospital hosting six intensive care units equipped with 60 beds, 60 patient monitors and 45 ventilators was published on March 23.

The procedure had come to a sudden halt when opposition MP Jason Azzopardi claimed there was trading in influence, but at the beginning of April an investigation found no evidence of wrongdoing.

On Sunday, Abela said that even the increased beds and wards meant for COVID-19 patients had remained vacant. 

“Today we are at the best place since March 7 (when Malta confirmed its first COVID-19 case). We have seen an increase in the number of cases over the past few days, however, we have also tripled the number of tests… We had a marginal increase in the detection of cases,” he said.

Abela added that the 90 active cases in Malta were experiencing light or no symptoms at all and were recovering at home.