The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:
The Times reports that Labour MPs walked out of parliament during a dramatic sitting last night. It also reports that exit polls show the conservatives leading in the British elections but 21 short of a majority.
The Malta Independent says that Joseph Muscat claimed yesterday that Nationalist MP Charlo' Bonnici could not vote in the power station extension debate because of a conflict of interest. The newspaper also reports that the new drug known as meow meow has still not been included in the list of dangerous drugs despite a police recommendation
In-Nazzjon quotes the prime minister saying the ‘Opposition does not want to follow the rules of the democratic game'. It also reports that Mepa yesterday issued an outline permit for the new Mcast campus.
l-orizzont says there was chaos in parliament over the power station. It quotes Joseph Muscat saying that what had happened was ‘shameful'.
The overseas press:
In the UK, with poll predictions of a hung parliament, The Guardian reports Gordon Brown was beginning a bold bid to stay in Downing Street as Prime Minister of a Labour-led coalition government. He said his duty was to play his part in Britain having a strong, stable and principled government, able to lead Britain into sustained economic recovery.
The Daily Telegraph says Mr Brown's comments came as a TV exit poll forecast the Conservatives would form the largest party in the next parliament, but fall short of having an overall majority. The Liberal Democrats were now on the cards. Tory leader David Cameron said the Labour Government had lost its "mandate" to govern the country.
The Wall Street Journal Europe reports that amid fresh protests on the streets of Athens, the Greek parliament has passed the controversial austerity package to get the country out of its financial mess. The Bill, a precondition for help from the EU and the IMF, passed with 172 in favour and 121 against. Prime Minister George Papandreou expelled the three Socialist deputies from his parliamentary team for abstaining in the vote.
Börzen Zeitung says Eurozone leaders are to gather in Brussels for a key economic summit, amid fears that the single European currency may collapse. Greece will dominate the agenda, but France and Germany's leaders say there is much more at stake. Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Nicolas Sarkozy have called for tighter economic supervision and more conservative spending in the eurozone.
The Irish Times reports that airports in the west of Ireland would be closed today due to the arrival of a huge new cloud of ash from an Icelandic volcano which shut down Europe's skies last month. The shutdown is the third to hit Ireland this week, after two earlier closures led to the cancellation of hundreds of flights and travel misery for thousands of passengers.
Frettabladid says the former chief executive of the collapsed Icelandic bank Kaupthing has been arrested. Hreidar Mar Sigurdsson is suspected of embezzlement, trading irregularities, and other breaches of banking laws. It is the first high-profile arrest since the country's financial collapse in 2008.
Abuja Enquirer reports Nigeria's acting President Goodluck Jonathan has been sworn in as head of state following the death of President Umaru Yar'Adua after a long illness. Thousands attended the funeral of Mr Yar'Adua in his home town of Katsina. Nigeria has declared seven days mourning.
Los Angeles Times says Italian fashion house Versace has been awarded $20m €14m) in damages by a court in the US city of Los Angeles for wilful counterfeiting. Following a complaint from Versace, police charged 110 people in southern California and Arizona in 2003 for selling fake Versace goods. More than 70 retail shops were seized during the case.
China Today reports that at least 23 people have been killed after a tornado ripped through the southwest. More than 160 were injured as smashed homes collapsed across the region.
Times of India leads with the death sentence handed down by an Indian court to the only surviving gunman from the 2008 Mumbai attacks. Judge M.L. Tahaliyani gave Mohammed Ajmal Kasab multiple death sentences for murder, waging war against India, conspiracy and terrorism. He also handed down penalties for over two dozen other offenses ranging to life in prison.
Arab Al Youm says a Jordanian man has been sentenced to death for killing his wife and chopping her body up into small pieces because she allegedly refused to have sex with him, after giving birth to a baby boy during their 18-month-old marriage. He claimed his wife, who was in her twenties, disrespected him and disobeyed him.
Lufkin Daily News reports an American woman has been accused of stabbing her husband with scissors because she was unhappy with his performance in bed. Michelle Thomas, 26, was arrested after police were called to the couple's house in the east Texas town of Hudson. Ms Thomas became angry with him after a sex session left her unsatisfied.