Malta and international press digest

The following are the top stories in the local and international press today.

The Times reports the statement issued yesterday by Archbishop Pawlu Cremona on illegal immigration. In another story it reports about a bouncer who was accused of causing serious injuries.

In-Nazzjon says that a former labour parliamentary secretary wants a position which does not fall under the civil service. It says that a consultant gave evidence in court saying that Louis Buhagiar shared 50 percent of his work in hospital with someone else. In another story, it says that tourism between Malta and Gozo has been strong in the past 15 days.

The Malta Independent leads with the scuttling of the former AFM patrol boat, the P31. It also reports what an Eritrean immigrants who arrived in Lampedusa last week told Italian media.

l-Orizzont has a story about a man who washes with water from the Triton Fountain. It asks whether there are more than €17 million hidden in the Delimara Power Station and refers to the death of a Spanish woman last Sunday.

The Press in Britain…

The Daily Mirror leads on claims that Michael Jackson's death has been ruled a homicide by the Los Angeles County coroner as it emerged that lethal levels of the anaesthetic propofol were found in his body.

Metro says that if confirmed, it is likely that criminal charges will be filed against Jackson's personal doctor who was with the star when he died.

The Sun reports that Jackson planned to have another child with a doctor from Luton.

The Daily Mail carries a story about Polish and Lithuanian GPs commuting to Britain to work in the NHS at £100 an hour.

The Independent says Gordon Brown will set out details of specific spending cuts before the general election.

The Guardian reports that Labour's hopes of a summer fightback in the polls have been dashed as support for Gordon Brown is at the lowest-ever point.

The Daily Telegraph leads on the high cost of CCTV and raises concerns over how the technology is put to use.

The Financial Times says General Motors is looking at shelving a German-backed bailout of Opel - a decision that could affect Vauxhall workers in the UK.

The Daily Express claims British scientists have found a way of stopping cancer tumours from growing.

The Daily Star reports on what it calls "Jordan's new baby shock".

And elsewhere…

The Scotsman reports that Scotland’s Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill came under fire from Labour, the Liberal Democrats and the Tories after a 20-minute statement to the Scottish parliament setting out his reasons for releasing Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali Al Megrahi, who is dying from prostate cancer.

The Herald says that Buckingham Palace has confirmed Prince Andrew will not be travelling to Libya for an official visit.

Kathemerini says exhausted Greek firefighters battled around the clock for the fourth day to try and contain massive blazes north of Athens today.

The Washington Times says a report into prisoner abuse reveals CIA agents threatened to kill the children of a terror suspect in an attempt to make him talk and another al Qaida member was allegedly told that his mother would be sexually assaulted in front of his eyes if he did not speak.

The Irish Independent says cancer will this year cost the world some €213 billion.

The New York Post reports that crooked financier Bernard Madoff has told inmates at his North Carolina prison that he is dying of cancer and does not have long to live.

Le Parisien says lawyers in France have hailed a France’s Supreme Court ruling accepting passionate text messages sent to lovers to be used as evidence in divorce cases.