Malta is to spend €2 million to purchase an additional 80,000 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, the prime minister said on Tuesday.

Speaking in parliament, he also announced that Malta received another consignment of 14,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine on Monday.

“We will intensify the vaccine rollout to achieve faster economic recovery,” Robert Abela said in a statement to the House on last Thursday’s online meeting of EU leaders.

In his statement, Abela reiterated Malta’s support for a common EU vaccination document. 

Opposition leader Bernard Grech asked the prime minister what additional measures the government is planning to take to limit the spread of COVID-19, while declaring the Opposition is against a lockdown.

He also asked what measures will be taken to restore the efficiency of contact tracing, which, he said, had deteriorated.

The PN leader also asked what is stopping using pharmacies from being used for a more efficient vaccinations programme and whether variants of COVID-19 have been found in Malta.

Replying, Abela said he welcomed the fact that the Opposition was now saying it was against a lockdown, after having pressured the government for one.

"The people will not forget," he said. 

Similarly, he said, Malta will not impose a curfew. What was needed was a balance in measures, he said, pointing out to the riots which broke out in the Netherlands because of the lockdown decisions taken by the Dutch government.  

At the rate the Opposition took its decisions, Malta would still be discussing the first aid package and wage supplement, Abela said. The Opposition's attitude was "to decide not to decide". In contrast, the government was taking tough decisions, fast, including three aid packages. 

He said the government would announce new measures for February on Wednesday but reiterated there would be no lockdown or curfew. The government would continue to instil positivity and optimism.

The new measures would be aimed at ensuring the situation remained under control, the vaccination rollout speeded up and an economic recovery could start in March. One could not risk losing everything because of the carnival weekend.

'The Maltese are living in a paradise'

Abela said the Maltese were living "in a paradise" compared to the tough restrictions in nearby Sicily, but also Italy as a whole, Spain, France, the Netherlands, Greece and all over Europe, Abela said.  

Health Minister Chris Fearne said Malta was purchasing more vaccines from Moderna - to reach a total of 270,000 jabs. This was motivated not least because the vaccine by Astra Zeneca had not been approved yet and supplies could be delayed. 

Malta was making sure that even without the Astra Zeneca vaccine, there would be enough Pfizer and Moderna supplies for all Maltese to be vaccinated. Excess supplies would be given to other countries, such as those in North Africa.

On new virus variants, Fearne said three cases of the UK variant had been found along with another case of a less worrying variant.

He said that after Moderna said that a third jab might be needed for the new South African variant, he had written to the EU health commissioner calling for joint procurement of such a booster jab, if needed.

All 85-year-olds now vaccinated

Fearne said all 85-year-olds in the community had now been vaccinated and medical staff were now calling on those aged over 85 who could not leave their own private homes. All those over 85 who have not yet been invited for vaccination, and who are mobile, should call healthline number 145.

From Thursday, invitations will be issued to all those over 80 so that they can start to receive the jabs from the beginning of February.  

Also tomorrow, vaccination will start for cancer patients and pharmacists in the community. From Thursday next week the programme will be extended to non-medical frontliners including the AFM, police, environmental health officers, the CPD and others. 

He said Malta will also double its sequencing in ordered to detect any virus variants.  

Malta received the first Pfizer consignments on Boxing Day and consignments have since been received every week, although the latest is the biggest.  On Pfizer's advice, half the supplies are being kept in the freezers for the second dose in three weeks' time while the first dose is administered immediately. 

Earlier this month, Fearne had said that Malta had ordered 750,000 doses from Pfizer and Moderna combined. A million doses have been ordered from Astra Zeneca but the vaccine has still to be approved by the European Medicines Agency and most initial production is going to the UK.