The following are the leading stories in the Maltese and international press.

The Times reports outbreaks of Rubella and Scarlet Fever but says there is no cause for alarm. It also reports the fatal fall of a 71-year-old radio amateur in Rabat.

In-Nazzjon says Martin Shulz, head of the socialist group in the European Parliament, currently in Malta, has embarrassed the MLP. The newspaper also reports that 2,000 trees have been planted at the former dump in Maghtab.

l-orizzont carries a full page picture under the heading ‘Buskett is dying’. An inside article speaks of soil erosion and vandalism.

Malta Today midweek says Environment Minister George Pullicino is playing for time before a decision is taken on Spring hunting.

The Malta Independent says MLP leader Alfred Sant in an interview spoke on ‘shameful spin’ and the road to recovery.

Business Today says Malta is not immune to the impact of a recession in the US.

The Financial Times quotes Mervyn King, governor of the Bank of England, preparing the ground for another cut in UK interest rates, saying the British economy faces its greatest challenges in a decade.

The Guardian says Britain is pushing for an emergency meeting to calm financial markets as governments around the world try to reassure nervous investors.

The Scotsman says the Bank of England is under growing pressure to order an immediate cut in interest rates.

The Daily Telegraph leads with the US cut in interest rates to try to halt a slide into recession.

The Daily Mail reports how a small town in South Wales has been rocked by the copycat suicides of seven young people and asks whether this was an internet suicide cult.

A picture of Australian-born actor Heath Ledger is carried on the front page of the Metro. The 28-year-old's lifeless body was found in his Manhattan apartment after a possible drugs overdose.

The Daily Star claims singer Amy Winehouse has been taken to a mental hospital.

The Sun reports that police are examining the paper's film of Amy Winehouse allegedly smoking crack.

Serial killer Rose West is living a life of luxury in a jail cell, says the Daily Mirror.

The Independent announces that Alison Kennedy's novel “Day” has won the prestigious Costa Book of the Year award.

And elsewhere…

Tokyo’s Nikkei Industrial Daily reports Japan's Nikkei index was up more than three percent in early Wednesday trading, and the Korea Composite Stock Price Index has posted gains of just under three percent.

The New York Times says the UN Security Council has been discussing the growing humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip. The meeting came after Israel eased a blockade on the territory that it imposed five days ago in response to a spike in militant rocket fire.

Berliner Zeitung reports that the five permanent members of the Security Council – the United States, Britain, Russia, France, and China – together with Germany have agreed on the wording of a draft resolution that would impose fresh sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme. The Security Council has already imposed two sets of sanctions on Iran.

Corriere della Sera says the centre-left government of Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi is set to face confidence votes in both Houses of Parliament after the former justice minister pulled out of thecoalition. Should the 20-month-old government lose either vote, it would be forced to resign. But it's not clear whether President Giorgio Napolitano would call an early election.

Le Monde reports that French President Nicolas Sarkozy has pledged his support in Pakistan's battle against militants in its border region with Afghanistan. Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, in Paris on his second stage of a European tour, tried to dismiss fears that his country could slip into al-Qaeda's hands, and insisted it was impossible for militants to gain access to Pakistan's nuclear arsenal.

The Washington Post leads with President Bush affirming his personal opposition to abortion. He was speaking before thousands of anti-abortion activists attending a March For Life rally on the 35th anniversary of the introduction of abortion legalisation in the US. There are an estimated 1.2 million abortions in America annually.