Malta and international press digest

The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas newspapers today:

The Times says the government will hold talks ahead of the pre-budget document in June on changes to the vehicle registration tax. It also reports how diesel is now more expensive than unleaded petrol.

The Malta Independent says the spring hunting season is passing by as the European Court tomorrow discusses whether or not to ban hunting this spring.

l-orizzont, like the other newspapers, reports how Evarist Bartolo has officially declared he will be a candidate for the MLP leadership. It also says the building of a new cemetery at Xaghra could harm nearby agricultural land.

In-Nazzjon says 300 ICT investors and retailers will be holding a meeting in Malta. It also reports that two will face drug trafficking charges today.

The Press in Britain...

The Times says the decade-long conspiracy theory that Diana, Princess of Wales, and Dodi Fayed were murdered by MI6 on the orders of the Duke of Edinburgh has been finally and comprehensively dismissed.

Metro reports that the coroner hit out at lying witnesses and conspiracy theorists and told the jury that there was no plot to assassinate the princess.

The Daily Mail says that after 89 days, £7million and 250 witnesses, the coroner at Diana's inquest decided what everybody always knew... that she wasn't murdered. Its main story, however, is that a parliamentary inquiry had "demolished" Labour's mass immigration policy.

The same story is also the lead in the Daily Express which says powerful peers have "torn to shreds" the government's claim that immigration is good for the economy and called for the number entering the country to be capped.

The Daily Telegraph alleges that Labour peer and donor Lord Sainsbury has transferred shares worth over £300m in order to 'save him more than £27m in tax'.

The Daily Mirror claims that every school child could get free meals in a drive to eradicate obesity among the young.

The Sun reports that police are conducting an investigation into claims that Everton footballer Phil Neville was spat on and punched by Liverpool fans during Sunday's Merseyside derby.

The Daily Star says that England football manager Fabio Capello could face four years in jail after being accused of lying to an Italian court.

The Guardian also features a picture of Fabio Capello on its front page but leads with claims that the EU is being urged to take action to stop a biofuel trading scam that exploits US agricultural subsidies and undermines the fight against global warming.

Under the heading "The Great Depression", The Independent claims that almost 30 million Americans are relying on food stamps, a sure sign, says the paper, that the world's richest country faces an economic crisis.

And elsewhere...

Le Monde quotes European Foreign Ministers meeting in Paris calling on Zimbabwe's Electoral Commission to announce "swiftly" the results of Saturday's parliamentary and presidential polls. The ministers from seven European countries, including Britain, France and Spain, said they looked forward to working with democratically-elected authorities in Zimbabwe.

Meanwhile, in Zimbabwe itself fears are growing that President Mugabe is planning massive election fraud in the face of overwhelming defeat by his opponents. News agencies report that opposition parties have gained more seats than the government in the few results available. A local independent election monitoring group estimated Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai to have won the first round of the presidential election, but not by enough votes to avoid a second-round run-off against President Mugabe.

Magyar Demokrata reports that the Free Democats, the junior party in Hungary's coalition government, have said they will walk out of their arrangement with the larger Socialist Party by the end of the month because of a dispute over economic reforms. Earlier on Monday, Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany sacked the Free Democrat Health Minister over a defeated referendum on health care reform, saying the Minister had lost the public's confidence. The socialists are expected to continue to rule as a minority government after April 30.

Jerusalem Post reports that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said that his country will continue building in Jewish suburbs of East Jerusalem. At a meeting with US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, he emphasised that these areas would remain under Israeli sovereignty in any peace agreement.

Al-Ahrar says fighters loyal to radical Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al Sadr have abandoned the streets of Baghdad and Basra, after six days of fierce fighting with security forces. The Iraqi government vowed to demilitarise Basra as relative calm returned to the southern city.

The Bahama Journal reports that a jury in has ruled the 2006 death of Anna Nicole Smith's son resulted from an accidental drug overdose and recommended no criminal charges. The seven-member jury deliberated for less than two hours before delivering the unanimous verdict in the inquest into 20-year-old Daniel Smith's death.

Supermarket chain Lidl has apologised to staff after being accused of systematically spying on them. The German magazine Stern reported Lidl had hired detectives who installed hidden cameras to monitor workers' performance and see how many breaks they took. The firm took out of series of media ads saying: "We regret it profoundly and apologise explicitly if co-workers feel discredited and personally hurt."

The British Medical journal The Lancet says the results of a US study have shown that temporary starvation may strengthen cancer patients against the ravages of chemotherapy. The report said that this would allow higher doses to be used with safety.