Malta and international press digest

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

The Times leads with the national conference held yesterday on the Mepa reform, saying Mepa will continue to draw up its own policies. It also reports that an unemployed driver has been accused of running over Cliff Micallef last Thursday while under the influence of alcohol.

The Malta Independent also leads with the Mepa reform conference and the charges related to the death of Cliff Micallef. It also gives prominence to the rehabilitation of the War Rooms by Fondazzjoni Wirt Artna.

In-Nazzjon reports comments by Social Policy Minister John Dalli that those who have been registering for work for over five years are to be offered jobs by the government. It also reports the Prime Minister saying that Mepa needs to revise its internal policies for greater clarity.

l-orizzont also leads with the charges brought in court against a man over the death of Cliff Micallef.

The Press in Britain...

The Independent claims campaigners are predicting that the right to end one's life on the NHS will be available within a few years.

The Daily Express reports that increasing the oxygen supply within a cancerous tumour radically increases the effectiveness of radiotherapy.

The Guardian says a government watchdog is set to investigate whether companies are employing graduates on unpaid, long-term internships during the recession to cut costs.

The Daily Telegraph reports the FTSE 100 has had its best month in over six years, meaning millions of people's savings have increased significantly.

The Times says relatives of servicemen killed in Afghanistan have to wait more than two years to learn of the circumstances of their loved ones' deaths with inquests of nearly 100 soldiers still not complete.

The Daily Mail says that Home Secretary Alan Johnson is under pressure to prevent Asperger's sufferer Gary McKinnon from being extradited to the US due to fears he may commit suicide.

According to the Daily Star, after winning his libel case against The People, Peter Andre will now sue his wife Jordan for millions of pounds.

The Daily Mirror leads on model Samantha Burke telling Jude Law, through a solicitor's letter, that he had got her pregnant.

The Sun leads on the sad news of Sir Bobby Robson's death following a battle with cancer, describing the former England manager as 'football's true gent'.

And elsewhere...

El Pais reports Spain was on red alert yesterday as the Basque separatist group ETA marked the 50th anniversary of its foundation, and the police continued looking for a Basque-speaking couple thought to be behind the bomb blast which killed two police officers in Mallorca.

Manila Times announces the death of former Philippines President Corazon Aquino, who swept away a dictator and then sustained democracy by fighting off seven coup attempts in six years. She was 76.

USA Today says space shuttle Endeavour and its seven astronauts have returned to Earth after a 16-day mission to boost the size and power of the international space station. Also on board was Koichi Wakata, the first Japanese astronaut, whose long space journey lasted four and a half months.

La Provence says Royal Caribbean's cruise ship "Voyager of the Seas" has left Villefranche-sur-Mer for Marseille as part of a Mediterranean tour, after local officials had earlier allowed the ship's 3,600 passengers to visit the town. Some 60 crew members and two passengers who were confined on board on suspicion of having swine flu have tested negative for the virus.

Tribune de Genève quotes WHO saying that teaching new mothers how to breastfeed could save 1.3 million children's lives every year, but many women get no help and give up trying.

The International Herald Tribune reports that world airlines they will have to replace hundreds of air speed sensors of the type that may have contributed to the Air France Airbus A330 crash in the Atlantic Ocean in June.

Asia Observer says a study by the Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation and Vietnam's Ministry of Defence reveals that Vietnamese civilians are still routinely killed and maimed by leftover mines and other explosives. Vietnam estimates that more than 42,000 people have been killed in such accidents since 1975. O Globo quotes the defence lawyers of two British law graduates saying their clients were "anxious and concerned" after being denied bail in Brazil over allegations they fraudulently claimed they had been robbed.

Bangkok Post says thousands of supporters of deposed Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra have gathered to collect signatures for a petition seeking a royal pardon for the fugitive former leader. Thaksin was ousted in a 2006 military coup.

The Irish Examiner quotes a study Dublin-based EU agency Eurofound which shows that the most workaholic country within the EU is Romania, where workers work an average of 41.8 hours a week. France has the lowest average working week - 38.4 hours.

Globe & Mail reports South Africa's health minister predicting an increase in HIV/AIDS infection rates when South Africa hosts the World Cup next year. The government hopes the soccer tournament will attract a flood of tourists. South Africa has some 5.7 million people infected with HIV.