Charmaine Gauci has defended the decision to keep masks mandatory for pupils for a second year despite plummeting COVID-19 cases.

The Superintendent of Public Health was inundated with questions about face coverings during a back-to-school special of her fortnightly programme Ask Charmaine.

She admitted that she has also had parents questioning her about her decision but insisted it was based on science.

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"Our experience is that the masks have contributed to the reduction in the number of cases and the spread,” she said.

She pointed to a US study that indicated children in schools where masks were not obligatory were two times more likely to contract the virus than those that insisted on mandatory face coverings.

“This gives us clear indications on the importance of using the mask,” she said.

All pupils in Malta’s schools must wear masks, except for the youngest – those in kindergarten and childcare centres.

Across the island COVID-19 cases are dropping, with just eight recorded on Wednesday, but Gauci warned that the return to schools is likely to see an increase in the proportion of cases in the under 12s, who are not yet eligible for the vaccine.

“We need to protect the children” she said, not only from contracting the virus but also from having to quarantine for two weeks, and therefore disrupting their education.

Asked why children were allowed to remove their masks in restaurants or at the beach, but not at school, Gauci said authorities were taking a “risk-based approach”. 

She said children were more likely to mingle in school than at a restaurant table, therefore increasing the risk of spread.