Press digest

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

The Sunday Times says a Vatican official said he had ‘sad and open' meetings with the alleged child abuse victims and two new cases were revealed. It also reports that the family of former Prime Minister George Borg Olivier has defended its decision to auction some of his belongings. In another story, it says that EU fund students are to receive government assistance.

The Malta Independent on Sunday says the police are investigating retailers for artificially inflated costs of photovoltaic units It also says the government may appoint an interim Chief Justice.

MaltaToday asks what is happened at the Office of the President.

Il-Mument reports that the government will fund the European study experience of hundreds of Maltese who were affected when EU funds were suspended.

It-Torca says fisherman are ready to give up on tuna fishing because of excessive regulation. It also says Dolores Cristina was warned in 2008 about poor management of funds for EU study programmes.

Illum says four MPs benefited from the recent amnesty on penalties for tax arrears. It also reports that 30 designs have been submitted in the competition for the new PL emblem.

KullHadd says that MP David Agius violated privacy rules during libel proceedings which he lost. It also says the government paid €475,000 in consultancy fees to Georg Sapiano over a number of years.

The overseas press:

Toronto Star reports the US has said the world's largest economies should focus on maintaining growth to avoid a double-dip recession. Speaking at the G20 summit, US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said Europe and Japan should boost domestic demand instead of cutting spending. European leaders have said reducing government deficits is key to setting long-term growth on track.

Toronto Sun says leaders of the world's eight most powerful nations have sharply criticised North Korea and Iran for threatening the security of the international community. They called on the Iranian leadership to respect human rights and the rule of law and condemned North Korea for sinking a South Korean warship last March.

Meanwhile, according to Asia Times, tens of thousands of North Koreans rallied in their capital to condemn the United States and South Korea on the 60th anniversary of the start of the Korean War, while Seoul told Pyongyang to admit responsibility for a deadly warship sinking.

Avvenire says the Vatican has stepped up its criticism of the raids last Thurday by Belgian police investigating alleged child sex abuse, calling the detention of priests "serious and unbelievable". Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone said there are no precedents, "not even under the old communist regimes". He claimed the priests were held for nine hours without eating or drinking.

Le Journal du Dimanche reports that the French government has announced a further €3.5 billion of tax rises for 2011 in the latest in a series of announcements that puts Paris's austerity drive on par with Berlin's much-criticised plan to trim its budget. The latest announcement brings to €13.2billion the amount France aims to raise from taxes.

Adevarul says Romania plans to raise VAT to 24 per cent in an effort to curb the country's deficit. Prime Minister Emil Boc has said the five per cent rise was an attempt to guarantee a $20 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan. The move comes after Romania's top court ruled out plans to cut pensions, prompting the IMF to delay key talks. Critics say the VAT rise will hit consumer spending.

Bishkek Gazeta reports that investigators in southern Kyrgyzstan have begun exhuming the bodies of those killed during ethnic rampages that claimed hundreds of lives and displaced hundreds of thousands of people. Acting deputy interior minister Bakyt Alynbayev said that a large number of victims had not been officially identified because many were buried quickly in keeping with Muslim tradition.

The Times of India says an overcrowded bus collided head-on with a truck in eastern India today, killing 23 people and injuring 15 others. Police said some of those killed were riding on the roof of the bus at the time of the crash.

USA Today reports the first tropical storm of the Atlantic 2010 hurricane season has formed in the western Caribbean, but it is not on track to pass over the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. A tropical storm warning is in effect for the east coast of Belize and the east coast of the Yucatan Peninsula. The peninsula separates the Caribbean Sea from the Gulf of Mexico.

Taiwan Globe says tens of thousands of demonstrators in Taiwan have been venting their anger at a trade deal with China, to be signed next Tuesday. The agreement will cut tariffs on exports and loosen curbs on investment. Supporters say it will boost Taiwan's economy but critics fear it could pave the way for a Chinese takeover of the island.

Metro says the UK is expected to put a temporary limit on the number of migrant workers from outside the EU. Home Secretary Theresa May would limit the number of workers to 24,100 - down around five per cent - between now and April 2011.

New Musical Express reports that Internet rumours that Victoria and David Beckham are set to split have been dismissed as "nonsense". Speculation that the couple are about to announce their separation began to circulate on the Twitter website on Friday. But Victoria's spokeswoman quashed the rumours and said they are "simply not true".

Sporting Life says the Romanian tennis player Victor Hanescu has been fined $15,000 for spitting at spectators at the Wimbledon tournament. Match officials said he had displayed unspostman-like behaviour. He appeared to have lost his temper after hackling from the crowd.

Times Herald Echo reports that a man, described as "evil incarnate" for sexually abusing his seven-month-old daughter and then leaving her in the woods to die, has been jailed for 50 years. American Cory Clarke, 27, was ordered to serve a maximum 25 years for attempted murder and a maximum 25 years to life for predatory sexual assault against a child.

Under new regulations approved by the European Parliament, British consumers are to be banned from buying eggs by the dozen. According to The Mail on Sunday, for the first time, eggs and ­other products such as oranges and bread rolls would be sold by weight instead of by the number contained in a packet. Until now, Britain has been exempt from EU regulations that forbid the selling of goods by number.