Press digest

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

The Times says that over 28% of children were born out of wedlock according to statistics for 2008 issued yesterday by the NSO. It also says that Din l-Art Helwa has dropped out of a Valletta protest by environment NGOs.

The Malta Independent says the proposed creation of an EMF (European Monetary Fund) would require a Maastricht Treaty overhaul. It also says that Assistant Commissioner Michael Cassar has denied buying drinks for Magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera.

MaltaToday Midweek says the Auditor-General has been asked to look into a €210 million Enemalta loan. It also reports that Nationalist MPs have been warned to either toe the line, or they are out.

In-Nazzjon says the first phase of SmartCity will be inaugurated in October.It also reports that the government and the opposition have a common position against the removal of crucifixes from public places.

l-orizzont features comments by GWU General Secretary Tony Zarb and asks what those who contradict their promises and vote against the people’s wishes are. He was reacting to complaints in Parliament after he called MPs traitors.

The overseas press:

The Jerusalem Post reports that US Vice-President Joe Biden has condemned Israel's approval of 1,600 new homes for ultra-Orthodox Jews in East Jerusalem. Mr Biden is in Israel as part of US attempts to kick-start the peace process.

The Washington Post reports that the US State Department has apologised for comments made about Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's call for jihad, or holy war, against Switzerland, saying they did not reflect US policy and were not intended to offend.

Irrawady says a new election law issued by Burma’s ruling military bars pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from running in upcoming elections.

Börzen Zeitung reports that German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the head of euro zone finance ministers, Jean-Claude Juncker, discussed the proposed plan to set up a European Monetary Fund to help countries deeply in debt get back on track.

Meanwhile, Berliner Zeitung quotes a government spokesman in Berlin saying that Germany and France announced plans to set out proposals to curb or ban financial market speculation. Luxembourg and Greece also lent their support for the latter initiative.

South China Morning Post says China has formally signed up for the climate accord agreed at the Copenhagen summit – the the last major emerging economy to endorse the plan. A deal was reached by other countries in December.

The Irish Examiner reports that half of people living in Europe said they would not leave the EU for their holiday this year. The study also showed tourism was on the rise despite the recession. Spain remained the most popular destination for European holidaymakers.

The Irish Times says police have arrested seven Muslims – four men and three women – suspected of conspiracy to murder over a reported plot to kill a Swedish cartoonist. Lars Vilks has a $100,000 bounty on his head from an Al Qaeda-linked group after he drew Prophet Mohammed with the body of a dog.

NRC Handelsblad reports that the Catholic Church in the Netherlands has asked an independent commission to look into reports of alleged sexual abuses by priests. More than 200 Catholics have come forward there in the past week with reports of abuse, often from decades ago, after a report by Radio Netherlands Worldwide that three priests had abused pupils at a boarding school.

The Financial Times reports that the European Commission and ministers in the UK, France and Germany have warned against US protectionism, after European aerospace giant EADS said it was dropping out of a multi-billion dollar contract bid process. American rival Boeing was now the only bidder. The paper says the decision was likely to raise transatlantic trade tensions further.

Times of India reports that the country’s upper house of parliament voted overwhelmingly for a law giving Indian women a guaranteed third of all state and national parliament seats, despite a boycott by socialists who felt it did not go far enough. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh described the 186-1 vote as a “historic step forward toward emancipation of Indian womanhood”.

Michael Douglas is going through a personal crisis because of his son's drugs dealing. Shia LaBeouf , the 23-year-old actor who stars with Douglas in the upcoming movie Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, has told German website Gala.de the 65-year-old screen icon has been left "broken" by his son legal woes. Cameron, 31, is facing a possible 10 years in jail after pleading guilty in January to possession and dealing drugs from a Manhattan hotel last July. He will be sentenced on April 27.

A study published by the British Medical Journal says men were more than twice as likely as women to be sexually active in old age but good health is the key for both to feeling naughty. Researchers found that at the age of 55, men have on average almost 15 years of sexually active life ahead of them and women 10-and-a-half years. Overall, men were more likely than women to be sexually active, report a good quality sex life and be interested in sex.