The number of people registered as unemployed has fallen to record lows not even seen before the COVID-19 pandemic, Prime Minister Robert Abela has said. Abela revealed that statistics showed that there were fewer than 1,600 people looking for work last week – a number that he said was the lowest in Malta’s history. Previous lows in registered unemployment date back to 2019, with a low point of 1,616 registered in June of that year. The prime minister attributed the positive news to the more than €500 million spent on a COVID wage supplement that helped part-finance wages of workers at businesses forced to shut or slow down due to the pandemic.