The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:
The Times reports that Nationalist MP Jean Pierre Farrugia says he would back the PL to repeal the raise given to ministers and MPs.
The Malta Independent says more protests have broken out in Tunisia.
In-Nazzjon says there is strong interest by people wishing to join Arriva as bus drivers. It also reports an increase in traffic between Malta and Gozo.
l-orizzont says Malta was among other Mediterranean countries which had prevented the EU from taking firm action against Tunisia.
The overseas press
Assabah announces a new interim government in Tunisia with three Cabinet seats being given to opposition leaders. But the three key posts of defence, interior, finance and foreign affairs have been retained by politicians loyal to the former president. Earlier, security forces in Tunis fired tear gas and used water cannons to repel angry demonstrators demanding President Ben Ali’s former cronies be locked out. The Labour Party has rejected the new government saying “this was no more than a facelift for the previous regime”.
Le Monde quotes French intelligence sources claiming the family of ousted Tunisian President Zine El Abidin Ben Ali has left the country with 1.5 tonnes of gold worth more than €45 million. Before he fled last week, Ben Ali reportedly ordered the Tunisian central bank's director to hand over the gold to his wife, Leila Trabelsi. Many of Ben Ali's family members are said to have left Tunisia, fearing for their personal safety. One of Trabelsi's nephews was reportedly stabbed to death last week.
China is reported to have overtaken the World Bank as the biggest lender to developing countries. According to research by the Financial Times, China’s Development Bank and Import-Export Bank have agreed loans of at least $100 billion in the past two years – about10 per cent more than commitments made by the World Bank.
O Globo reports that the Brazilian army was stepping up its efforts to reach communities cut off by floods and landslides that have killed more than 670 people in the state of Rio de Janiero in the past week. A break in the rainy weather has allowed helicopters to get supplies and rescuers to remote mountain villages.
Il Sole 24 Ore says Italian prosecutors have demanded the seizure of about €120 million of profits from four foreign banks for their alleged role in the 2003 collapse of food giant Parmalat. All four banks have been charged with allegedly helping the Italian food conglomerate mislead investors in what was one of Europe's biggest-ever fraud scandals. Prosecutors were also seeking fines of €900,000 from the four banks and have requested jail terms of between 12 and 16 months for five Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank and Citygroup employees. The four banks have repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
Corriere della Sera quotes prosecutors investigating Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi claiming he provided some young women who frequented his villa outside Milan with apartments in the city. In a request to carry out searches, prosecutors said they identified some women who were provided apartments in a Milan housing complex developed by Berlusconi, and also received other funds through intermediaries targeted in the case for abetting prostitution. The lower house of the Italian parliament must decide whether to allow the searches. Berlusconi, 74, said in a video on Sunday he had never paid for sex and that he currently was in a stable relationship.
The husband of US Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot in the head in an attack in Tucson, Arizona, says she is making good progress. Mark Kelly told US network ABC his wife had insisted on giving him a neck massage from her hospital bed. On Sunday, hospital officials upgraded Ms Giffords' condition from "critical" to "serious" after she was successfully taken off a ventilator. Six people died and more than a dozen were injured in the 8 January shooting.
Clarin reports farmers in Argentina have stopped sales of wheat, maize and soy in a seven-day strike against government export limits. They say export quotas were stopping them from taking advantage of high global demands and keeping domestic prices artificially low.
Scientists in the United States have warned that new varieties of grape need to be developed to secure the future of wine-making. Writing in Proceeds of the National Academy of Scientists, they said all types of grapes used today belong to one species, meaning they are vulnerable to the same diseases.