Press digest

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

The Sunday Times says Mepa has quietly suspended its emergency pollution report service. It also reports that the Pope is expected to visit Malta in April.

The Malta Independent on Sunday says the smell of gas noticed in several localities recently may have been caused by a huge consignment of contraband fuel. It also says the government is considering civil action to recover funds in the VAT fraud cases.

Malta Today says PL leader Joseph Muscat is to take a firm stand against general secretary Jason Micallef and has identified a person to take his place.

Il-Mument gives prominence to the announcement that the Pope is expected to visit Malta. It also quotes the Prime Minister saying foreign investors are looking positively at Malta.

It-Torca says there is disagreement between the Prime Minister and Social Policy Minister John Dalli on the privatisation of the medicines service, which the former had promised. It also says that the government has no knowledge of a nuclear plant that may be built in Sicily.

Illum reports that the future of fish mongers is being threatened. It asks who will benefit from the amnesty on income tax penalties.

Kullhadd says the company of a former chairman of the ADT is in the running for a €2 million contract to supply a computerised system in a government department.

The press in Britain...

The Sunday Times claims a secret deal approved by Jack Straw means the Libyan killer of British policewoman, Yvonne Fletcher, will never be brought to justice.

According to The Independent on Sunday, Gordon Brown will declare this week that Britain is emerging from recession and that the economy is heading for recovery.

The Observer says the middle classes could have to bear the brunt of cutting the national debt amid growing debate over fuel payments and benefits.

The Mail on Sunday reports that sacks of letters have been left in the gutter after Royal Mail chiefs drafted in managers to clear a mail backlog after strikes.

The Sunday Telegraph says ministers were under intense pressure to scale back a "Big Brother" child protection database.

The Sunday Express alleges the wife of a Portuguese disgraced police chief wrote a "poisonous" letter to Kate McCann to back his handling of the Madeleine McCann probe.

In a world exclusive, the News of the World reports Michael Jackson left a series of mysterious wishes on a bathroom mirror on the day he died.

According to the Sunday Mirror, Katie Price, aka Jordan, is in despair over her split from husband Peter Andre, fearing it has damaged her image and could cost her millions of pounds.

Daily Star Sunday says singing sensation Olly Murs blew £250,000 in just one hour on Deal Or No Deal.

The Sunday Mail reports that secret legal papers expose the savage toll of violence inflicted by knives on the streets of Scotland.

And elsewhere...

The Irish Post says a new opinion poll shows more than six out of 10 Irish people would now vote in favour of the Lisbon Treaty in next month's referendum

Asharq Al-Awsat reports that the health of freed Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Al Megrahi has deteriorated. In Tripoli, Megrahi's brother told Reuters Abdelbaset, who is suffering from terminal prostate cancer, was unable to speak to anyone.

The Washington Times leads with the march by thousands of Americans along Pennsylvania Avenue to the US Capitol in Washington DC, in protest against the president's health care plan.

The Jerusalem Post reports that Israeli President Shimon Peres was rushed to a hospital for tests after fainting during a conference in Tel Aviv. Doctors said the 86-year-old statesman experienced a drop in blood pressure but the first cardiology exams did not indicate any heart attack or stroke.

The Sunday Mail quotes Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe saying his meeting with the high-level European Union delegation on implementing a power-sharing deal went well.

Afghan Times says that latest preliminary results show President Hamid Karzai maintaining his lead over his main rival Abdullah Abdullah with 54.3 per cent of the vote.

Asia Observer says a court in western China's Xinjiang region has sentenced three people to up to 15 years in prison in the first trials over a series of mysterious syringe attacks that led to mass protests against the local government.

Globe & Mail reports that 11 Zulu bare-breasted virgins have been hurt in a stampede in Durban. Some 20,000 people pushed and shoved as the young women were parading in the annual reed dance, celebrating purity by performing for the Zulu king. Three of the girls are in a critical but stable condition.