Malta and international press digest

The following are the top stories in the Maltese and international press today:

The Times leads with a comment by the Prime Minister that coalitions are not an issue in this general election. He said he had not heard anything other than criticism of the government from Alternattiva Demokratika. The newspaper also reports the EU-Arab League ministerial meeting, which ended in Malta yesterday.

l-orizzont says there are 314,250 eligible voters for the general election. The distribution of voting documents has now started. It also reports the MLP proposals for first time buyers.

In-Nazzjon says the Prime Minister is to take charge of Mepa reform in a new government. It also reports a visit to Lufthansa Tecknik by the Prime Minister.

The Malta Independent says the PM has laid out sweeping initiatives for the environment while the MLP has placed focus on assistance to first time house buyers. It also points out how the MLP has said it will implement European Court decisions on Spring hunting.

Malta Today midweek says the Ornis committee has passed the buck to Environment Minister George Pullicino by not taking a decision on whether to allow Spring hunting.

Business Today says the Eden group is in talks to offer mobile phone services.

The Press in Britain...

The Daily Mirror claims Sir Paul McCartney and his estranged wife Heather are close to a deal over their divorce, even if the former Beatle insists that, as part of the agreement, Miss Mills would forever be "gagged" from talking about the breakdown of the marriage.

The Daily Mail also predicts that the pair are edging steadily towards a record settlement deal which could see Miss Mills walk away with £55million made up of a lump sum of £20million and annual payments of £2.5million for the next 14 years until their four-year-old daughter Beatrice turns 18.

The Daily Star reports that Ms Mills plans to flee Britain with her slice of Sir Paul's estimated £800 million fortune and live as a millionaire recluse in France or the United States. And she plans to take Beatrice with her, making it hard for him to see her.

The Guardian quotes a leaked UN study which says the true scale of climate change emissions from shipping is almost three times higher than previously thought.

The Daily Express claims nearly 1,000 migrants enter the UK each day.

The Times says every 14-year-old in England will have their personal details and exam results put on an electronic database for life.

The Financial Times claims the Chancellor was forced into a second Budget retreat when it was confirmed plans for a clampdown on wealthy UK foreigners would be diluted.

Metro reports that a commuter was held by armed police, and DNA tested using, an MP3 player.

And elswhere...

USA Today reports that in all three "Potomac Primary" states of Virginia, Maryland and District of Columbia, Barack Obama has defeated Hilary Clinton while John McCain beat Mike Huckabee. For the first time, in the all-important battle for delegates to next summer's political conventions, Obama is leading Clinton in CNN's and Associated Press' delegate count. He has now won eight contests in a row.,

Canberra Times leads with Australia's formal apology to its indigenous people for past treatment. According to premier Kevin Rudd, such treatment "inflicted profound grief, suffering and loss". It came in a historic parliamentary vote that supporters said would open a new chapter for race relations in the country.

Moscow Times announces the end of a dispute between the Ukraine and Russia over Kiev's unpaid natural gas bill. The deal came just minutes before a deadline that Moscow had imposed for Kiev to pay the €1 billion debt or face cuts in gas shipments.

Copenhagen Post reports three people have been arrested and accused of planning to assassinate a cartoonist who drew a caricature of the Prophet Muhammad. The three suspects include a Dane of Moroccan origin and two Tunisian nationals. The publication of the cartoons in Jyllands Posten in 2006 sparked a series of violent protests in a number of Muslim countries.

Berliner Morgenpost quotes Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, at the end of his three-day state visit to Germany, saying he was convinced that Tehran was continuing its efforts to produce nuclear weapons. He emphasised that all options are on the table when it comes to dealing with Iran's nuclear programme.

El Mundo says Venezuela has suspended oil exports to Exxon Mobil, accusing it of "harassing" economic behaviour. The move comes after ExxonMobil secured international court orders to freeze over €8 billion in assets of Venezuela's state oil firm Petroleos de Venezuela.

The Daily Nation quotes former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan telling the Kenyan parliament that the government and the opposition had agreed to launch an investigation into the country's disputed presidential election. Annan said the negotiations would continue at a secret location away from Nairobi. More than 1,000 people have been killed and 600,000 others displaced since the re-election of President Mwai Kibaki on December 27, which the opposition say was rigged.

Wall Street Journal says General Motors is offering redundancies to 74,000 of its US hourly-rate workers in an attempt to improve profit margins after reporting the biggest annual loss for a US carmaker at €266 billion. The loss was blamed on charges related to unused tax credits, and beats GM's previous 1992 record deficit.