The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:
The Sunday Times reports that the government is ready for talks with the opposition to give the right to vote to Maltese working or studying abroad. It also reports about the disappointment of Maltese athletes after the New York marathon was called off.
The Malta Independent says that the crucial Budget vote is expected to be taken on December 5. It also carries reactions by Franco Debono and Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando to Simon Busuttil’s comments on reconciliation.
MaltaToday says a group of lawyers has called for a European Court ruling on the legality of statements made to the police by suspects while they were not given legal assistance. It also says that the casino buyers privately engaged Rita Schembri for business advice even though she is a senior government employee.
It-Torca focuses on life in society for former prisoners. It also says that former Kazakh diplomat, now fugitive, Aliyev has three properties in Malta.
Il-Mument says Lawrence Gonzi was credible in the Xarabank debate on Friday while Joseph Muscat was negative.
KullHadd also refers to Friday’s debate and says that a Brazilian company which the prime minister said had come to Malta is a ‘phantom’. It also says there is government silence on the cost of extending St Philip’s Hospital.
Illum reports that a positive report on the proposed Sargas power station was completed in July but has been kept under wraps. It also says that Melchior Spiteri is seeking an inquiry into his treatment in prison.
The overseas press
The German Chancellor has said Europe’s sovereign debt crisis will last at least five more years. Berliner Zeitung quotes Angela Merkel telling a regional meeting of her Christian Democratic Party that the continent was on the right path to overcome the crisis but "whoever thinks this can be fixed in one or two years is wrong". She said the time had come for "a bit of strictness". Otherwise Europe would not be able to attract international investment.
The Sunday Telegraph reports British Prime Minister David Cameron is to use the European budget summit later this month to call for far-reaching changes to the EU’s €350 billion structural funds. He is already facing a showdown with European leaders regarding the EU’s 2014-2020 budget, insisting on a freeze to reflect the grim economic conditions. The Prime Minister will also use the meetings to demand that wealthy nations do not receive structural funds, ending the “recycling” of money between richer countries such as Britain, Germany and France.
Haaretz says there has been a mixed reaction from Israeli leaders to statements made by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in an interview with Israeli Channel 2 TV. Abbas had said that as long as he remained in power, he would not allow a third intifada to break out, adding that as a Palestinian refugee from Safed he wanted to return to the city, but only as a tourist because Safed was now part of Israel. President Shimon Peres and Defense Minister Ehud Barak welcomed Abbas’ conciliatory statements but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned them as duplicitous. The Islamic militant group Hamas condemned Abbas’ comments.
The Israeli news site Ynet says Israel’s military has lodged a complaint with the United Nations after three Syrian tanks allegedly entered the demilitarised zone in the Golan Heights which separates the two countries. The foray would be the first such violation in 40 years and raises concerns that violence from Syria’s civil war could overflow the long-quiet frontier. There was no immediate comment from Syria.
According to al-bawaba, a battle between Syrian rebels and government forces raged all day around a strategic-important military air base in the north. The rebel attack on the Taftanaz base is aimed at restricting the government’s use of air power.
Fox News reports President Barack Obama and his Republican challenger Mitt Romney have been engaged in hectic campaigning across states seen as vital for victory in Tuesday’s presidential election – Ohio, Wisconsin, Colorado and Iowa. The Obama camp has been celebrating a better-than-expected monthly jobs report, but supporters of Mr Romney have pointed to a slight increase in America's unemployment rate. Opinion polls put the two candidates neck-and-neck but with Obama holding a slight advantage in the battleground states.
The New York Times says the authorities are racing to get heating fuel to the victims of the storm that struck the north-east coast five days ago ahead of a coming cold snap that threatens to add to the misery of affected communities. Temperatures are predicted to get down to around three degrees Celsius in parts of the north-east, and there is more of the same to come later in the week. Forecasters are warning the weather could bring biting wind, rain and possibly even snow to the region.
O Globo reports that at least 10 people, including a suspected drug trafficker, have been shot dead in the Sao Paulo metropolitan area in the past 24 hours in a worsening wave of violence which has targeted military police. The latest victims were among some 20 people shot in Sao Paulo, Brazil's most populous city, and surrounding towns. On Thursday, President Dilma Rousseff offered Sao Paulo state's governor Geraldo Alckmin help to restore security. The violence has been linked to an alleged undeclared war between the military police and a prison drug-trafficking gang.
Reuters says the most senior Roman Catholic prelate in France has denounced the government’s plan to legalise same-sex marriage. Speaking in the pilgrimage town of Lourdes, the archbishop of Paris, Cardinal Andre Vingt-Trois,said the proposal could profoundly affect the balance of French society and urged Catholics to show their opposition by writing and speaking to their elected officials or taking part in protest marches.