The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press:
The Times quotes the Prime Minister saying that the Budget will show that sacrifices have paid off. It also reports concerns that the UK spending cuts could affect tourism.
The Malta Independent says no major surprises are expected in the Budget. It also quotes Fr Joe Abela, a former member of the Church film classification board, saying that marriage without love simply does not exist.
In-Nazzjon quotes the prime minister saying the government needs to continue strengthening the country’s financial situation while helping the social sector.
l-orizzont says asbestos at Gozo General Hospital has not been removed, creating evident danger. It quotes Opposition leader Joseph Muscat saying the people expect a fair and responsible Budget.
The overseas press:
The Irish Independent reports the EU would spend over €40 million setting up three new quangos next year, despite massive spending cuts across Europe. The total budget for the EU's network of agencies and committees would increase by eight per cent in 2011 to around €2.4 billion – an increase of €180 million. Hundreds of staff were being recruited for the three new bodies being set up to oversee banking and financial institutions, raising fears among financial markets of damaging new regulations. There are currently 47 EU quangos, compared with just two in 1990. Their cost has risen threefold since 2005.
The Jerualem Post says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned the Palestinians not to take unilateral steps towards achieving an independent state. His comments came as the Palestinian leadership said they could negotiate with Ireal and were considering appealing to the UN Security Council for international recognition of an independent state. Mr Netanyahu said any move to side-step direct negotiations would not help the stalemate.
The Jewish Chronicle reports Israel has criticised the statement by the synod of bishops from the Middle East, which said it should not use scipture to justify its occupation of Palestinian land, saying it had never been government policy to do so. In their final statement, the bishops also urged Israel to accept UN resolutions calling for an end to the occupation of Arab lands. They repeated a Vatican call for a special status for Jerusalem that respects its character as a city sacred to the three great monotheistic religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
Le Matin reveals that the number of people who have died in a cholera epidemic in Haiti has risen to more than 250. Health experts aid three thousand had been infected but fewer new cases were reported yesterday, indicating that the outbreak was perhaps stabilising.
Il Mattino says the Italian government has decided to delay the opening of a new rubbish dump in Naples after weeks of protests by residents over pollution. The head of the civil protection said he would put the new dump on hold if the protests stopped but the mayors of several nearby towns have rejected the compromise. They said they want the rubblish taken far away from the area.
US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has said he believed China was now "committed" to allowing the yuan to go up in value. Mr Geithner made the comment in a Bloomberg TV interview before he held talks with China's Vice-Premier, Wang Qishan in the Chinese port of Qingdao, following the G20 meeting in South Korea. The US has long said China keeps the value of the yuan artificially low to make its exports more competitive, something Beijing denies. On Saturday, G20 finance ministers said they would refrain from such tactics.
Az Zaman reports that the Supreme Court in Iraq has ordered the new Parliament to reconvene saying its earlier decision to suspend itself indefinetly was unconstitutional. Since the election in March, the Iraqi Parliament has met only once when it suspended its session until politicians agreed on the formation of a new government.
According to California Globe, some 10,000 pages of files on 48 Roman Catholic priests accused of sexually molesting children have been released on the orders of a San Diego judge. Attorneys claimed the files could show how much the diocese knew about abusive priests, when they knew it and if church officials engaged in a cover-up.
The Los Angeles Times reports one of America's richest men has agreed to pay out €6.7 million in backdated child support – even though he is not the biological father of the child. Billionaire Kirk Kerkorian, 93, has also agreed to pay a further €74,000 a month to former wife Lisa Bonder for the next seven years until her daughter turns 19. Ms Bonder, 45, gave birth to her daughter following an affair with film producer Stephen Bing.
El Pais says a 62-year-old Ecuadorean man has managed to ignore the noise of a busy Madrid shopping centre and snore loudly enough to win what was billed as Spain's first siesta championship. Organisers proclaimed unemployed security worker Pedro Soria Lopez the champion for sleeping 17 minutes, presenting him with a cheque for €1,000. They said he not only slept soundly but his snoring earned him extra points and enough to defeat the runner-up, who slept for 18 minutes. The nine-day contest was organised to promote the siesta custom, which some believe is in danger of vanishing because of the pressures of modern living.