Malta and international press digest

The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:

The Times carries an analysis of the utility bills and says the new structure will mean that the majority of households will spend €27 less compared to the original proposal. It also reports that a man was found not guilty of a double attempted murder.

The Malta Independent focuses on new proposals by the European Commission to review immigration rules. It also reports that the MUT is expected to hold its ground in its dispute with the CMTU.

l-orizzont leads with the human story of a child, Mariah Vella of Zabbar, who is suffering a rare medical condition. However there is new hope for a recovery.

In-Nazzjon reports the inauguration of a new €20m Golden Harvest bakery. It also reports how a Swiss private air charter company is investing in Malta.

The Press in Britain…

According to the Financial Times, markets across Europe are braced for a string of interest rate cuts today as bad economic figures continued to flow from all leading economies.

The Daily Mail says Gordon Brown has thrown the housing market a lifeline by offering interest-free loans of up to £400,000 to homeowners facing repossession.

The Times calls the move an emergency rescue for mortgage defaulters.

The Daily Telegraph describes it as help for the middle class.

Under the heading “The Big Brother State – by stealth”, The Independent claims personal information detailing intimate aspects of the lives of every British citizen is to be handed over to government agencies.

The Daily Record, meanwhile reports that a doctor has hacked into the medical records of TV presenters and Old Firm footballers.

The Sun says two battered elves have lifted the lid on life inside a "rip-off" Christmas grotto where raging parents beat up workers.

The Daily Mirror says one of the conjoined twin baby girls has died to give her tiny sister the chance of life.

And elsewhere…

European Voice reports that the EU has banned imports of Chinese food products for infants containing soy after melamine was discovered in Chinese soybean meal.

The Times of India quotes US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, speaking at a press conference in New Delhi, saying Pakistan had a special responsibility in the wake of the attacks in Mumbai, which left at least 171 people dead. She said the United States expects Pakistan's full cooperation in the investigation. Meanwhile, Indian police have found and defused explosives left behind by the assailants at Mumbai's main railway station – one of the targets of their attacks.

Pakistan Today reports President Asif Ali Zardari saying that 20 terror suspects named by India will be tried in Pakistan.

The New York Times says International Criminal Court prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, claims Sudan's government is still supporting genocide in Darfur.

Vancouver Sun says Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has vowed to fight a plan by opposition parties to replace his minority Conservative government.

Bangkok Post reports International and domestic flights out of the Thai capital have begun flying out up to 350,000 stranded tourists.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the United States and China have opened two days of strategic talks in Beijing to discuss future economic relations.

The Michigan Messenger says the United Auto Workers Union says it is willing to make significant concessions to help the struggling US carmakers General Motors, Chrysler and Ford secure $34 billion in state aid to prevent their businesses from collapsing billions of dollars in state aid.

Chicago Tribune says undercover FBI agents have exposed 15 corrupt police officers who helped drug dealers guard and deliver their supplies.

Die Welt reports that a baby boy, whose troubled mother laid him in the manger of a church nativity in the hope that someone would find and care for him, was doing well.