Malta and international press digest

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

The Times reports that six people were held after heroin was discovered by the Drug Squad in a raid in a Mosta residence. It also quotes Social Policy Minister John Dalli saying ‘the time of ‘buying people' is over. At the last elections more people showed an interest in national policies rather than personal circumstances. He was speaking at the PN general council where he was giving his analysis of the electoral council.

The Malta Independent quotes Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi saying yesterday that Malta had benefited from the PN's success in government and that would continue as Vision 2015 is realised. It also carries an interview with Philip Micallef, the new chairman of the Malta Communications Authority, who says he will address the digital divide aggressively.

In-Nazzjon leads with Dr Gonzi's speech at the PN general council where he called for a pact with the people for sustainable economic, social and environmental development.

l-orizzont says a young girl suffered a bad experience at her first holy communion, having been denied the presence of her father who is under preventive arrest even though a court had said he could attend under escort.

The Press in Britain...

The Daily Express says the family tax burden has risen by 51 percent under Labour, through "up-front and sneaky stealth taxes" over the last 11 years.

The Daily Mail says millions of families are spending £1,000 more on food. The paper also carries a picture of murdered 16-year-old Jimmy Mizen's parents saying they do not feel anger for his killer's parents, just sorrow. The south-east London teenager, murdered the day after his 16th birthday, was killed attack after he refused to take part in a fight when buying his first lottery ticket.

According to The Guardian, MPs are to reject plans for tighter controls on abortion but are prepared to allow new laws pushing back the boundary of human embryo research. The paper also carries a picture of triumphant Manchester United players after they retained the Premiership title in a dramatic finale to the season with a 2-0 win at Wigan and Chelsea were held 1-1 at home by Bolton Wanderers.

The Times also prints a picture of jubilant Manchester United players but leads with Cherie Blair's autobiography in which the former Prime Minister's wife writes she was shocked by how quickly her husband revealed she had lost her baby, using her grief to protect the government's strategy on Iraq.

The Daily Mirror says police plan to question the wife of Austrian Josef Fritzl, who locked up his daughter in a cell for 24 years, repeatedly raping her and fathered seven children, to determine exactly what she knew about his secret life.

And elsewhere...

Le Courrier des Balkans says partial results from Serbia's snap parliamentary elections indicate that the pro-European Union coalition led by President Boris Tadic's Democratic Party has won, but failed to gain an absolute majority.

Asian Tribune reports aid is reaching Burma's cyclone victims in greater amounts with many roads being cleared, but there is no sign foreign experts will be allowed in. Burma's government is under increasing international pressure for not allowing supplies and aid workers into the country quickly enough. Aid agencies have warned the death toll could reach 1.5 million unless clean water and sanitation was quickly provided.

The Zimbabwe government's Mail quotes the head of the electoral commission saying the presidential run-off pitting President Robert Mugabe against opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai will not be held in the next few weeks as required by law. George Chiweshe said government officials need more time and government officials have said the electoral commission has up to a year to hold the second round. Mr Tsvangirai is insisting the vote must legally be held within 21 days of the May 2 announcement of results from the first vote.

The International herald Tribune says deadly storms have rumbled across the south, where tornadoes and severe weather killed at least 23 people in Oklahoma, Missouri and Georgia. Eyewitnesses in Oklahoma said homes were completely levelled to the foundation. Speaking in Waco, Texas the day after his daughter Jenna's wedding on the family ranch, President Bush said the federal government will be moving hard to help.

Il Tempo features the Pope stumbling on a step at the central altar of St Peter's Basilica during yesterday's Pentecost Sunday Mass. Aides quickly helped Benedict stand up after the pontiff grabbed on to the side of the papal throne for support as he landed on his knees. The pontiff immediately went on with the 90-minute ceremony and later greeted pilgrims from his studio window overlooking St Peter's Square.

Sydney Morning Herald reports a Melbourne study has contradicted the belief that people become more forgetful as they age. It found that while some mental skills deteriorate, people in their 80s and even 90s do not forget things at a greater rate than those just starting down the path to old age. The results will be used to help clinicians more accurately diagnose brain impairment in the elderly.

The Age says 37-year-old Australian swimmer who was mauled by a 16-foot shark and survived said he saved himself by poking it in the eye. Seconds before the attack he saw a shadow in the water and thought it was a dolphin. The shark, believed to be a great white, seized Jason Cull by the left leg as he was swimming at Middleton Beach in south-western Australia on Saturday. The shark was one of three that swimmers reported seeing at the beach on Saturday. Officials closed the beach after the attack.