Google, Mozilla and Microsoft have banned the DigiNotar Certificate Authority in their browsers.

 

With the DigiNotar saga continuing, it’s time to summarize some of the current events surrounding it.

According to multiple blog posts, Google, Mozilla and Microsoft have already banned the DigiNotar Certificate Authority in their browsers. This preemptive move comes as a direct response to the mess that DigiNotar created by issuing over 200 rogue certificates for legitimate web sites and services — see a complete list of the affected sites and services.

Earlier this week, Google reported of attempted man-in-the-middle attacks executed against Google users, and most recently, TrendMicro offered insights into a large scale spying operation launched against Iranian web users.

According to TrendMicro:

From analysis of Smart Protection Network data, we see that a significant part of Internet users who loaded the SSL certificate verification URL of Diginotar were from Iran on August 28, 2011. On August 30, 2011 most traffic from Iran disappeared and on September 2, 2011 about all of the Iranian traffic was gone and Diginotar received mostly Dutch Internet users, as expected.

These aggregated statistics from Trend Micro Smart Protection Network clearly indicates that Iranian Internet users were exposed to a large scale man-in-the-middle attack, where SSL encrypted traffic can be decrypted by a third party. For example: a third party probably was able to read all e-mail communication an Iranian Internet user has sent with his Gmail account.

Meanwhile, the Dutch government issued a statement saying that it “cannot guarantee the security of its own websites” and is “taking over the company’s (DigiNotar) operations.”

“the user of government sites no longer has the guarantee … that he is on the site where he wanted to be,” Interior Minister Piet Hein Donner said at a pre-dawn press conference.

Moreover, Illinois-based VASCO, which owns the Dutch-based DigiNotar issued the following statement:

DigiNotar detected an intrusion into its Certificate Authority (CA) infrastructure, which resulted in the fraudulent issuance of public key certificate requests for a number of domains, including Google.com. Once it detected the intrusion, DigiNotar has acted in accordance with all relevant rules and procedures. At that time, an external security audit concluded that all fraudulently issued certificates were revoked. Recently, it was discovered that at least one fraudulent certificate had not been revoked at the time.  After being notified by Dutch government organization Govcert, DigiNotar took immediate action and revoked the fraudulent certificate.

Who’s behind the attacks? According to the Tor Project, clues were found in one of the certificates, including messages in Farsi:

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Giant saltwater crocodile weighing more than a tonne was captured in a remote Philippine village following a spate of attacks on humans

 Giant saltwater crocodile weighing more than a tonne was captured in a remote Philippine village following a spate of attacks on humans and livestock, officials said Tuesday.

The 21-foot (6.4-metre), 1,075-kilogramme (2,370-pound) reptile may have eaten a farmer who went missing in July, along with several water buffaloes in the southern town of Bunawan, crocodile hunter Rollie Sumiller said.

A crocodile also bit off the head of a 12-year-old girl in Bunawan in 2009, according to the environment ministry.

Josefina de Leon, wildlife division chief of the environment ministry's protected areas and wildlife bureau, said it was likely the biggest crocodile ever captured.

"Based on existing records the largest that had been captured previously was 5.48 metres long," she told AFP.

"This is the biggest animal that I've handled in 20 years of trapping,"

Sumiller added, estimating the male to be more than 50 years old.

"The community was relieved," he told AFP, but added: "We're not really sure if this is the man-eater, because there have been other sightings of other crocodiles in the area."

The team, employed by a government-run crocodile breeding farm, began laying bait using chicken, pork and dog meat on August 15, but the reptile simply bit off both meat and line the it was skewered on.

An eight milimetre (0.31-inch) metal cable finally proved beyond the power of its jaws and the beast was subdued at a creek on Saturday with the help of about 30 local men.

The local government decided against putting down the reptile and will instead use him as the main attraction at a planned nature park in the area.

"He's a problem crocodile that needs to be taken from the wildlife so that it can be used for eco-tourism," Sumiller said.

Crocodylus porosus or estuarine crocodile is the world's largest reptile that usually grows to five or six metres long and can live up to 100 years.

While not considered an endangered species globally, it is "critically endangered" in the Philippines, where it is hunted for its hide to feed the fashion industry, de Leon said.

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Grilling for phone hack witnesses

 

Four former News International executives will face a fresh round of questioning from MPs over the phone-hacking scandal. The Commons Culture, Media and Sport committee will quiz the News of the World's former editor Colin Myler and ex-legal manager Tom Crone after the pair publicly challenged evidence given by James Murdoch over his knowledge of the illegal practice. News International's former director of legal affairs Jonathan Chapman and Daniel Cloke, former group HR director, will also appear before the committee as the probe into the scandal is resumed following the summer recess. Mr Myler and Mr Crone have been summoned before MPs for the second time after publicly disputing claims made by Mr Murdoch earlier in the Parliamentary inquiry. The News International chairman told the committee he was not made aware of an email in 2008 indicating that the practice of illegally intercepting voicemails was not confined to a single "rogue" reporter. But the two former Sunday tabloid executives insist that they told him about the message in June of that year. The panel of MPs could now recall Mr Murdoch "depending on their evidence under questioning". Committee chairman John Whittingdale said the latest round of questioning was an attempt to uncover the truth in the "continuing difference in the accounts of James Murdoch and Tom Crone and Colin Myler about whether or not James Murdoch was aware of the so-called 'for Neville' email". The 2005 email contained transcripts of hacked phone messages and was headed "for Neville", in an apparent reference to the News of the World's then-chief reporter Neville Thurlbeck. Its existence came to light in April 2008 when Professional Footballers' Association chief executive Gordon Taylor brought a damages claim against the paper over the interception of his voicemail.

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Eurozone woe fuels fresh market chaos as banks bear the brunt of a global stock rout

 

Britain's banks bore the brunt of a global stock market rout amid escalating concerns over the eurozone debt crisis and further signs of strain in wholesale money markets. More than £10bn was wiped off the value of Britain’s five biggest lenders as key inter-bank borrowing costs climbed to levels not seen since the height of the 2008 crash. Royal Bank of Scotland lost an eighth of its value, tumbling 3.06p to 21.78p, amid fears that it could be facing a bill of as much as £3.7bn from US sub-prime mortgage lawsuits. Plunge: More than £10bn was wiped off the value of Britain’s five big banks Lloyds slumped 2.47p or 7.5pc to 30.65p while Barclays tumbled 11.05p to 154.15p. Following yesterday’s bloodbath, taxpayers are now sitting on a £37.6bn paper loss from their 83pc and 40pc stakes in RBS and Lloyds. Josef Ackermann, the chief executive of Deutsche Bank, warned that the current turmoil was reminiscent of the panic triggered by the collapse of Wall Street giant Lehman Brothers.

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Athens, Rome Hold Europe to Ransom

 

Europe is engaged in a high-stakes game of brinkmanship that poses grave risks to the global economy. At last weekend's Villa d'Este Forum in Italy, European policy makers didn't hide their fury at Greece's back-sliding over promised structural reforms and spending cuts. At the same time, Italian ministers undermined the remaining credibility of Silvio Berlusconi's government with a series of complacent speeches. Given such a dangerous breakdown in trust within Europe, investors are right to fear the worst. Germany and its Northern European allies believe only intense market pressure can force weak economies to cut spending and improve competitiveness. But Greece has learned that whenever the crisis in Europe's periphery threatens to overwhelm the core, Europe will ignore previous broken promises and step up with a fresh bailout. Italy now appears to be making the same calculation. The government insists it will fulfill its commitment to balance the budget by 2013, but ministers show no appreciation of the urgent need for structural reforms to address the chronic weakness of an economy that grew on average 0.3% between 2001 and 2010 and experienced a 25% increase in unit labor costs relative to Germany over the same period. Instead, they talk incessantly of euro-zone bonds as a solution to misfortunes they blame largely on external forces. But Italy's dream of euro-zone bonds is likely to remain a fantasy until trust between member states is restored. This no longer depends simply on implementing austerity budgets. Structural reforms have now taken center stage because they are a test of whether the euro zone is worth saving at all: If countries refuse to improve competitiveness, then any attempted solutions to the immediate sovereign-debt crisis will prove short-lived. So what can be done about Greece and Italy? Athens rejects accusations it is dragging its feet but has promised to use a 10-day hiatus in talks with the European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund over progress toward its bailout targets to speed up reforms. If it fails to deliver again, European policy makers now talk darkly of a total loss of fiscal sovereignty. How this might work in practice isn't clear. As for Italy, some now believe its best hope lies with the ECB, which last month threw Rome a life line by agreeing to buy its bonds. If the ECB were to stop buying bonds, the subsequent rise in yields might bring down Mr. Berlusconi's administration, paving the way for President Giorgio Napolitano to appoint a technical government with the constitutional authority to make tough decisions. Then, at least, the long process of rebuilding the credibility of the euro zone's third-biggest economy could begin in earnest.

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US recession fears savage world financial markets

 

World stock markets took a beating Monday over fears that the U.S. economy was heading back into a recession just as the European debt crisis was heating up and the eurozone's economic indicators were slumping. A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Friday, Sept. 2, 2011 in New York. The jobs report was the weakest in almost a year. It renewed fears that the U.S. might slip back into recession. (AP Photo/Jin Lee) A man looks at an electronic stock board of a securities firm in Tokyo, Monday, Sept. 5, 2011. Asia-Pacific stocks took a beating early Monday after jobs data out of the U.S. last week revived fears of a recession in the world's largest economy. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara) More business news In tough economy, multi-job holders grateful for balancing act Delta at center of FAA debate Turkish hackers hit UPS Recession over, jobs still elusive New owner for Atlanta Dream Delta Air Lines news, links Coca-Cola Co. news Health Care Reform coverage Read Henry Unger's Biz Beat blog Any troubles in the world's largest economy cast a long shadow over the markets, and a report Friday that the U.S. economy failed to add any new jobs in August caused European and Asian stock markets to sink sharply Monday. But the news from Europe was also discouraging. Wall Street, which was closed Monday due to the Labor Day holiday, braced for losses Tuesday after the yields in so-called peripheral eurozone countries — Greece, Italy and Spain — rose sharply against those of Germany, whose bonds are widely considered a safe haven. Although retail sales in the 17-nation eurozone rose unexpectedly in July, a survey of the services sector Monday showed a slowdown across the continent for the fifth consecutive month. The purchasing managers' index for the eurozone showed the services sector was still growing — unlike the manufacturing sector — but only barely. That will add pressure on the European Central Bank to keep interest rates on hold when it meets this week. "There's so much uncertainty, so much fear, that investors don't know what to do," said David Kotok, chairman and chief investment officer at Cumberland Advisors. "I don't remember the last time stocks were so cheap and nobody wanted them." Investors were also shaken by signs that the Italian government's commitment to its austerity program is wavering. Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's government has backtracked on some deficit-cutting measures, prompting EU officials to urge Italy to stick to its promised plan. The difference in interest rates between the Greek and benchmark German 10-year bonds, known as the spread, spiraled to new records on Monday, topping 17.3 percentage points. Yields on the Greek bonds were above 18 percent. Mario Draghi, the incoming chief of the European Central Bank, told a conference in Paris that among the common currency's problems was a lack of coordinated fiscal policies and that the solution was more integration. He dismissed the idea of eurobonds — debt issued jointly by the eurozone countries. Some have argued this would help weaker countries borrow more easily because they wouldn't have to pay such high interest rates. But stable countries like Germany would likely see their rates rise. Instead, Draghi suggested the eurozone should adopt rules that would require more budget discipline. Renewed jitters over the eurozone debt crisis also contributed to the slump in financial stocks amid concerns the banks would need to raise new capital. Deutsche bank closed down 8.9 percent in Frankfurt, while Societe Generale in Paris shed 8.6 percent. The U.S. unemployment crisis has prompted President Barack Obama to schedule a major speech Thursday night to propose steps to stimulate hiring. Until then, however, traders coming back from the U.S. holiday weekend will have little to hold onto. The August jobs figure was far below economists' already tepid expectations for 93,000 new U.S. jobs and renewed concerns that the U.S. recovery is not only slowing but actually unwinding. U.S. hiring figures for June and July were also revised lower, only adding to the gloom. Many traders have already pulled out of any risky investments — such as stocks, particularly financial ones, the euro and emerging market currencies — and pile into safe havens: U.S. Treasuries, the dollar, the Japanese yen and gold. With Wall Street closed, investors focused their selling in Asia and Europe, where the equity losses Monday were some of the heaviest this year. "We've got some rough riding ahead," said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Harris Private Bank in Chicago, adding he was "concerned that we could see a second wave of selling when most traders are back at their desks." Dow futures were down 1.8 percent at 11,010 points while the broader S&P 500 futures were 2.0 lower at 1,145.70. After Asian indexes closed lower, with the Japan's Nikkei 225 shedding 1.9 percent, European shares booked sharp losses. Britain's FTSE 100 closed the day down 3.6 percent to 5,102.58. Germany's DAX slumped a massive 5.3 percent to 5,246.18, and France's CAC-40 tumbled 4.7 percent to 2,999.54. The health of the U.S. economy is crucial for the wider world because consumer spending there accounts for a fifth of global economic activity. The U.S. imports huge amounts from Japan and China and is closely linked at all levels with the European market. The U.S. has seen a slump in consumer and business sentiments. Traders were hoping for signs that the Federal Reserve might take action at its September meeting to support the economy — perhaps a third round of bond purchases, dubbed quantitative easing III or QE3, analysts said. "Right now the possibility has increased," said Linus Yip, a strategist at First Shanghai Securities in Hong Kong. "I think they have to do something. The markets are expecting QE3." Banking stocks were among the hardest hit Monday, partly because the U.S. government on Friday sued 17 financial firms for selling Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac billions of dollars worth of mortgage-backed securities that turned toxic when the housing market collapsed. Among those targeted by the lawsuits were Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., JP Morgan Chase & Co., and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Large European banks including The Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays Bank and Credit Suisse were also sued. In Asia, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 followed the broaden trend to close down 2.4 percent and South Korea's Kospi slid 4.4 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng slid 3 percent. Benchmarks in Singapore, Taiwan, New Zealand and the Philippines also were down. Shanghai's benchmark Composite Index down 2 percent to 2,478.74, its lowest close in 13 months. The Shenzhen Composite Index lost 2.4 percent. In currencies, the euro weakened to $1.4100 from $1.4187 in New York late Friday. The dollar was roughly flat at 76.87 yen. Last month, the dollar fell under 76 yen, which was a new post-World War II high for the Japanese currency. Benchmark oil for October delivery was down $2.12 to $84.33 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude fell $2.48 to settle at $86.45 on Friday. In London, Brent crude for October delivery was down $1.63 at $110.70 on the ICE Futures exchange.

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Libya rendition claims: David Cameron calls for inquiry

 

Allegations that MI6 was involved in the rendition of Libyan terror suspects should be examined by an independent inquiry, David Cameron has said. It comes after papers suggesting close ties between MI6, the CIA and the Gaddafi regime were found in Tripoli. An anti-Gaddafi military leader says he wants the UK and US to apologise for organising his 2004 transfer to Libya. An existing inquiry into allegations of UK security agencies' involvement in torture has said it will investigate. Abdel Hakim Belhaj, then a terror suspect but now in charge of the Libyan capital's military forces, says he was tortured after being arrested in Bangkok. He says he was taken to Libya by a CIA and MI6 operation, allegedly confirmed by documents sent to Gaddafi's regime, and sent to prison. The Foreign Office said the government had a "long-standing policy" not to comment on intelligence matters. Mr Belhaj told the BBC: "What happened to me and my family is illegal. It deserves an apology. And for what happened to me when I was captured and tortured. "For all these illegal things, starting with the information given to Libyan security, the interrogation in Bangkok." According to the Guardian, these documents were discovered in an abandoned office building in Tripoli by staff from Human Rights Watch. Mr Belhaj said that MI6 and the CIA did not witness his torture at the hands of the former Libyan regime, but did interview him afterwards. A spokesman for the prime minister said that the existing Detainee Inquiry into rendition was "well placed" to investigate the allegations reported in recent days. "It's not clear precisely what the allegations amount to," the spokesman added. "We don't have a clear picture from these documents, which is precisely why an inquiry like the [Detainee] inquiry might be well placed to consider the issue." A statement from the Detainee Inquiry, to be chaired by Sir Peter Gibson, said that as part of its role of examining the extent of the government's involvement in, or awareness of, improper treatment of detainees, it would "therefore, of course, be considering these allegations of UK involvement in rendition to Libya as part of our work. "We will be seeking more information from government and its agencies as soon as possible."

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Blair was 'godfather to Murdoch's daughter'

 

Former prime minister Tony Blair is godfather to one of Rupert Murdoch's young children, sources said on Monday, raising fresh questions about British political links to the media mogul's empire. The revelation first emerged in a Vogue magazine interview with Murdoch's wife Wendi Deng, which also contains claims that Blair was present when Murdoch and Deng's two daughters were baptised beside the River Jordan in March last year. A spokesman for Blair's London office and a spokeswoman for Murdoch's US-based News Corporation both refused to comment on the story in Vogue's October UK edition, which is due out on Thursday. But sources close to News Corp confirmed to AFP that Blair was godfather to Grace, aged nine, Murdoch's eldest daughter by third wife Wendi. A source close to Blair also confirmed the Vogue story was true. News of the link between former Labour premier Blair and Australian-born Murdoch comes two months after the tycoon was forced to close down his News of the World tabloid amid a scandal over phone-hacking. The Vogue article, extracts of which were published in the Daily Telegraph on Monday, says Blair attended the ceremony "garbed in white" and describes him as one of Wendi Murdoch's "closest friends". Hollywood stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman were named publicly as godparents to Murdoch's young daughters at the time of the ceremony on the banks of the River Jordan, but Blair did not feature in photographs that were released. Jordan's Queen Rania hosted the baptism of Grace and Chloe, eight, Vogue said. A spokeswoman for Vogue UK confirmed that all the information and extracts published in the Daily Telegraph were accurate. They said it was an exclusive arrangement with the newspaper to release it in that way. The phone-hacking scandal dragged in Prime Minister David Cameron when his former media chief Andy Coulson, an ex-News of the World editor, was arrested in July on suspicion of hacking and bribing police. But it raised wider questions about the British establishment's cosy links with Murdoch, especially as Labour, who are now in opposition, made huge efforts to win over the elderly mogul's stable of newspapers.

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Bogus pensions adviser jailed over £1.9m transfer fraud

 

bogus financial adviser who fraudulently manipulated his “clients’” pension funds to avoid paying tax of over £1.9m has been jailed at Hull Crown Court for three years. Colin Pearson (pictured), who previously worked for the Food Standards Agency and held a McDonalds franchise, claimed to be a financial adviser and persuaded his "clients" to release over ₤3.4m from their pension funds. Pearson completed UK pension transfer forms on behalf of his clients to falsely claim funds were going abroad to avoid paying tax due on the pension withdrawals, said HMRC. His fraudulent actions netted him commission payments of over £377,000. He provided fake documentation to register two overseas pension schemes before submitting the fake documents to ensure the funds were released without suspicion or delay to bank accounts he controlled. On occasions he even made telephone calls to the UK pension companies posing as the policy holder. On one call he disguised his voice with a Cypriot accent giving the impression he was calling from overseas. To add further legitimacy to the scam, he used articles from the internet to create a PowerPoint presentation to sell the scheme to unsuspecting UK clients, HMRC added. He then took a cut of the funds before passing the balance onto the pensioners. In total, Pearson persuaded over thirty UK pension holders to make unauthorised transfers of £3.4m to avoid paying tax of £1.9m. The value of the funds released was estimated as £3,440,143, of which £2,997,018 was returned to "clients". He also released his own pensions, valued at £74,619.08. In total approximately £377,608 was taken as commission. He used the proceeds of his scam to maintain a lavish lifestyle, driving expensive cars and owning luxury homes both in the UK and Cyprus. Bob Gaiger from HM Revenue & Customs said: "Whilst Pearson was living a life most people could only dream of, he left the individuals he conned out of pocket and without the pension funds they expected. "HMRC will not tolerate this type of blatant fraud and will investigate and prosecute those found to be involved in stealing from the public purse. If you have any information about tax fraud please contact our 24 hour hotline on 0800 50 5000". On sentencing Pearson, His Honour Judge Richardson QC, said: "You are branded a criminal, your life is utterly destroyed, and you are totally dishonest in your deceitful actions."

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SFO probes banks over asset-backed security sales

 

The Serious Fraud Office is conducting an examination into banks and their offering of asset backed securities, as part of a ‘scoping exercise’ to see if products have been misrepresented to UK clients. The watchdog said it is consulting with relevant ‘people in the city’ as part of its broad-sweeping investigation into any potentially fraudulent sales of asset backed securities. A spokesperson for the SFO said: ‘We are conducting a scoping exercise into UK banks about all asset backed securities.’ Although the watchdog said this examination has been going on for ‘some time’, it would not clarify whether it was targeting any particular types of asset backed securities. After 2008, asset backed products such as collateralised debt obligations and mortgage backed securities came under fire for arguably sparking the financial crisis. As part of the exercise, the SFO is making inquiries into Goldman Sachs, including the ‘Timberwolf’ deal, a mortgage security underwritten by the bank in 2007, which has been scrutinised by lawyers in the US, according to the Financial Times. Earlier in the year, the SFO said it was looking into exchange-traded funds, as a 'potential threat' to market stability and as a form of asset-backed security which could follow the path of CDOs.

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Skoda tops 200mph at Bonneville

Skoda's Octavia vRS - built in the UK to mark the 10th anniversary of the flagship vRS performance badge - has pushed its way past the 200mph barrier at the Bonneville Speed Week in the US, four days ahead of schedule.

The 500bhp 'salt spec' challenger succeeded in reaching an impressive 202.15mph on the salt flats of Utah.

The car's standard engine was not changed, but came with a larger turbo built by specialists Garrett.

The Octavia vRS also ran on high-octane race fuel instead of unleaded fuel.

The car came with a reinforced roll cage, a parachute brake, fire extinguishers and a window cage.

Robert Hazelwood, director for Skoda UK, said: "Months of rigorous planning, testing and preparation have all been worthwhile. At 13:24 on Monday August 15, we took our Octavia vRS past the 200 mph barrier. The entire team has done an outstanding job. Our special thanks go to Richard on an incredible drive."

 

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David Cameron is expected to outline further measures to deal with recent disorder in England when MPs are recalled for an emergency debate.

A huge police operation and heavy rain in some areas appear to have prevented a fifth night of disorder.

And magistrates in several cities have been working through the night to deal with those arrested on previous nights.

In Birmingham, a vigil has been held for three men who died after being hit by a car while protecting property.

'Truly dreadful'
The BBC's Jeremy Cooke said the candle-lit vigil for Haroon Jahan, 21, Shahzad Ali, 30, and Abdul Musavir, 31, was attended by some 200 people, and was entirely peaceful.

Harpreet Singh, 28, who helped to organise the vigil, told the crowd: "Let this be a message to other communities, not just Muslims and Sikhs, let's stand together, let's hold candlelight vigils.

"People have been hurt, families have been hurt, if we don't stop this, and the people who are rioting do not stop this, there will be more people dying. It has to stop and we are standing here united."

Continue reading the main story
At the scene

Jeremy Cooke
BBC News
They gathered on the exact spot on Birmingham's Dudley Road where three young men died when they were hit by a car in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

The 200 or so - mainly Muslim young men - who gathered for the event say the victims were simply trying to protect their property against marauding looters.

Police closed the road but kept a relatively low profile as the event continued. The riot gear - used so many times in recent days - was left inside the police vans pulled up at a discreet distance.

At the scene, mourners laid flowers, lit candles and said prayers in memory of the dead.

Tariq Jahan - whose 21 year-old son Haroon was among those killed - has emerged as a calm voice of authority here. He urged his community to remain peaceful and was heard in an atmosphere of quiet respect.

There is still anger because of what has happened but the prevailing emotion was one of sadness.

Mr Cameron said the deaths were "truly dreadful" and offered his condolences to the men's families.

A 32-year-old man is being questioned on suspicion of murder after the men were run over and killed.

The prime minister will chair a meeting of the government's emergency committee and discuss the violence with cabinet ministers before making a statement on the rioting during an emergency session of parliament on Thursday morning.

He is expected to give details of financial help for people who have lost homes or businesses.

On Wednesday, Mr Cameron said the "fightback" was under way and said said every action would be taken to restore order, with contingency plans for water cannon to be available at 24 hours' notice.

Stolen property
It is the second time in less than a month that MPs have been recalled for an emergency session - the first was for the phone-hacking scandal at the News of the World newspaper.

In other developments:

The father of the three men killed in Birmingham, Tariq Jahan, has appealed for calm
Almost 80,000 people have signed an online petition calling for anyone convicted of taking part in the riots to lose any benefits they receive
Up to 250 officers are sent from Scotland to help colleagues in the Midlands and North of England deal with rioting and disorder
The Met says 16,000 officers were available in London on Wednesday night, and advises people to avoid travel to the areas affected by the disorder
The government launches a website with advice to the public on how to cope with the unrest
Meanwhile, the Met Police has made more than 800 arrests and charged 279 people in connection with violence in the capital.

More than 300 people have been arrested in the West Midlands and a further 100 people have been arrested so far over the trouble in Manchester and Salford.

Courts are sitting through the night in London, Manchester and Solihull in the West Midlands to deal with people arrested during the four nights of disturbances, with those appearing in court mainly facing disorder and burglary charges.

Mr Cameron said anyone convicted of violent disorder would be sent to prison.

Police cuts
A deputation of Labour MPs from London went to the Home Office on Wednesday to demand a "moratorium" on plans to reduce numbers in the Metropolitan Police.





David Cameron: ''We will do whatever is necessary to restore law and order on to our streets''
Labour shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said: "It is staggering and utterly shameful if it has taken these appalling events for ministers to start waking up to what everyone else has known all along," she said.

"Cutting 16,000 officers - the equivalent of every officer on the streets of London last night - at a time like this is deeply irresponsible."

London's Conservative mayor Boris Johnson has also called for a rethink on police funding but senior government sources say the Treasury will not reopen negotiations on the spending review.

And Home Secretary Theresa May has repeated her belief that police budgets can be reduced without damaging their ability to do their jobs.

But the Home Office said the reductions in the police budget were manageable.

At a press conference, Greater Manchester Police's Assistant Chief Constable Garry Shewan said he had seen "the most sickening scenes" of his career, and said the force had been overwhelmed.

He said the force was "absolutely intent" on bringing the rioters to justice and his officers were already studying CCTV.

The riots first flared on Saturday after a peaceful protest in Tottenham over the fatal shooting of Mark Duggan, 29, by police.

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IPCC said it was launching an investigation into four former and serving senior Metropolitan Police officers over their handling of the phone hacking scandal.

On the day Yates resigned as assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, he was also referred to the Independent Police Complaints Commission over his alleged involved in helping a friend's daughter get a job.It understood that this woman is Wallis's daughter but neither the Met or IPCC would confirm this. Allegations: Sources have revealed this evening that John Yates allegedly secured work for the daughter of Neil WallisThe revelations come hours after the IPCC said it was launching an investigation into four former and serving senior Metropolitan Police officers over their handling of the phone hacking scandal.Five issues have been referred to the IPCC, including questions about the conduct of both Yates and Sir Paul Stephenson, who resigned last night.

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A store of munitions, seized from a vessel heading to Syria from Iran in 2008 could be at the heart of the explosion which reportedly killed twelve people this morning.

A store of munitions, seized from a vessel heading to Syria from Iran in 2008 could be at the heart of the explosion which reportedly killed twelve people this morning.
A picture of large scale devastation is emerging after a massive blast in a munitions dump at the Zygi naval base.
Electricity remains off in much of Cyprus, and state TV are showing pictures of ambulances and army trucks ferrying in injured people to a local hospital, many of them covered in blood. Large scale damage can be seen to a huge section of the barriers of the Larnaca-Limassol highway and a huge crater about one kilometre from the power station was shown on state TV.
The blasts, which happened just after 6am, caused extensive damage to property in the area and sparked wildfires in nearby scrubland in the tinder-dry summer conditions, the television said.
A police spokesman told the state CNA that two containers of gunpowder caught fire. In all, there were 98 containers in the depot.
The Evangelos Florakis naval base near Mari is used for local marine operations and training.
The explosion happened in a section of storgae area with containerized ammunition which were seized from a ship in 2008.
Zygi, on the outskirts of Limassol, is home to the transmitting station of the BBC World Service, which appears to be off air on 1323 AM.

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Murdoch axes News of the World after phone hacking scandal

The News of the World will close after a final edition this weekend, News International chairman James Murdoch said today.

The tabloid newspaper will be published for the last time on Sunday after it was rocked by the phone hacking scandal.

Mr Murdoch said in a statement: "Having consulted senior colleagues, I have decided that we must take further decisive action with respect to the paper. This Sunday will be the last issue of the News of the World."

 

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The hotel maid who claims former IMF boss Dominique Strauss-Kahn raped her has been accused of working as a prostitute.

Allegations have emerged that the 32-year-old cleaner was was taking extra money from male guests at the hotel for sex.

'There is information... of her getting extraordinary tips, if you know what I mean. And it's not for bringing extra f**king towels,' a source close to the defence investigation told the New York Post.

The woman also had 'a lot of her expenses – hair braiding, salon expenses – paid for by men not related to her,' the source added.

As Strauss-Kahn was yesterday sensationally released from house arrest and had his security ankle tag removed, it emerged in a letter to court from Assistant District Attorney Joan Illuzzi-Orbon that the woman:

Lied in a U.S. asylum application that her husband was tortured in jail and died of injuries
Lied about having been gang raped by soldiers in Guinea to help her asylum application
Lied about waiting in the hall outside the suite of the 'attack' until Strauss-Kahn left
Lied by claiming a friend's child as her own for the last two years to get a higher tax refund
The Guinean hotel maid accused Strauss-Kahn of chasing her through his luxury New York suite, trying to pull down her pantihose and forcing her to perform oral sex.

Strauss-Kahn's lawyers, who have insisted that the encounter was consensual, refused to comment on the allegations that the maid was working as a prostitute in the hotel.

The French citizen was enjoying freedom today as he emerged smiling from his Tribeca apartment to hand his wife into a town car.

The couple had no luggage with them as they drove off together this afternoon at around 2pm. They were followed by a second black sedan.

Looking relaxed and ahppy, they showed no ill effects from their celebrations last night, when they dined on a $700 four-course celebration dinner with red and white wines at an exclusive Upper East Side Italian eatery.


Strauss-Kahn partied with his wife Anne Sinclair and another couple at the Scalinatella Ristorante in Manhattan hours after being sensationally handed his freedom without bail as damaging details emerged on the credibility of the hotel maid accusing him of rape.

The one-time candidate for the French presidency enjoyed an antipasti dish of prosciutto and 'orange flesh melon' accompanied by Pinot Grigio, before dining on pappardella with truffles.

Strauss Kahn, 62, then had a main course of Mediterranean sea bass served with Italian red wine.

The charges against Strauss-Kahn, which include attempted rape, have not been reduced, but background investigations of the 'victim' have created 'serious credibility issues' for prosecutors.


Taste of freedom: Former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn exits the kitchen of the Scalinatella restaurant on the Upper East Side after being released from house arrest




Experts said that prosecutors could still pursue case against Strauss-Kahn though as it has not been dismissed.

Wearing a jacket but no tie, Strauss Kahn emerged from his house smiling last night before driving to the expensive restaurant with his wife and an elderly couple.

The meal cost between between $600 and $700, according to Luigi Rosso, the restaurant's owner who said the party did not have a reservation.

Strauss-Kahn thanked the chef after the celebratory feast before returning to the Tribeca apartment where he is living.




The 32-year-old hotel maid accused the International Monetary Fund ex-chief of chasing her through his luxury suite in May and raping her.

Forensic tests have revealed the pair definitely had a sexual encounter, but defence lawyers have claimed it was consensual - and public opinion is stunningly starting to shift in his favour.

The move in court signals prosecutors do not see the accusations as ironclad aymore. Strauss-Kahn had been under house arrest for weeks in a Manhattan loft on $6million in cash and bond.

‘It is a great relief,’ said Strauss-Kahn's attorney, William Taylor, adding that the case underscores ‘how easy it is for people to be charged with serious crimes and for there to be a rush to judgement.’

Strauss-Kahn arrived at the courthouse on Friday morning in a Lexus SUV and strode confidently up the granite steps with his wife, French journalist Anne Sinclair, at his side.

After the hearing, he walked slowly out with his arm on her shoulder, smiling slightly at the throng of reporters and members of the public gathered outside.

His passport remained surrendered, and he will not yet be allowed to leave the country. His other attorney, Benjamin Brafman, said Strauss-Kahn would be free to travel within the U.S.

Investigators have come to believe that the accuser lied about some of her activities in the hours around the alleged attack and about her own background, a law enforcement official said.




Prosecutors think she lied about details on her application for asylum in the U.S., including saying she had been raped in her native Guinea, the official said under the condition of anonymity.

In a letter to the court Ms Illuzzi-Orbon laid out in detail the problems with the alleged victim.

SO IS IT ALL A BIG CONSPIRACY?
Many in France have always insisted that he has been the victim of rough American justice.

Some even believe the sex attack charges are a conspiracy cooked up by his political opponents.

'Those who know Dominique Strauss-Kahn will not be surprised by this evolution of events,' one of his French lawyers, Leon Lef Forster, said in Paris.

'What he was accused of has no relation to his personality. It was something that was not credible.'

In her application for asylum to the U.S. for herself and her daughter in 2004 she said that the home she shared with her husband in Guinea was burned down by soldiers for the country's regime.

He was then supposedly put in jail and tortured where he died of his injuries.

This was a lie she later admitted.

She also claimed she had been gang raped by soldiers in Guinea to help her asylum application and cried when recounting this to prosecutors, but later admitted this was a lie.

In addition, she admitted that she lied to a Grand Jury that she waited in the hallway outside the suite where she was attacked until Strauss-Kahn left.

The reality is that she 'proceeded to clean a nearby room' then returning to the suite where she was attacked before cleaning that too. Only then did she report it to her supervisor.

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passenger plane crashed in heavy fog and burst into flames on a highway in north western Russia, killing 44 people

passenger plane crashed in heavy fog and burst into flames on a highway in north western Russia, killing 44 people, officials have said.


The Tupolev-134 aircraft, carrying 43 passengers and nine crew, crashed on its final approach to an airport in the city of Petrozavodsk.
The Emergencies Ministry said the RusAir plane came down on a highway around a mile short of the runway. It broke apart before bursting into flames.
Eight people including a 10-year-old boy are reported to have survived the crash and are in critical condition in hospital in Petrozavodsk.
There is no immediate explanation for the accident but the Interfax news agency quoted airport director Alexei Kuzmitsky as saying there were "unfavourable weather conditions".

This was compounding by the failure of the runway's high-intensity lighting, Alexei Morozov, deputy head of the Interstate Aviation Committee, told the ITAR-Tass news agency.
The jet was travelling from the Russian capital Moscow 400 miles away.
The Emergencies Ministry confirmed the incident on its website and posted a list of 43 passengers.

The plane was travelling from Moscow
The Karelia branch of the ministry said radio contact with the pilot was lost at 11:40pm local time (7:40pm GMT).
Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov said that the crash appeared to be the result of "pilot error in bad weather" and the crew tried to spot the runway visually and simply landed in the wrong place.
It happened on the eve of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's planned appearance at the Paris Air Show to support dozens of Russian firms seeking sales contracts.
Russian air safety has improved in recent years, particularly operations of Western-built aircraft.
But the safety of Russian-built aircraft remains an issue, according to the International Air Transport Association.

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Far from protecting Europe, a second bail-out of Greece is likely to cost eurozone taxpayers three times the amount of the original by 2014

The debate over the Big Fat Greek Rescue has oscillated wildly between will-they, won’t they and can they can’t they. But now it’s beginning to shift into: should they, shouldn’t they?
The aim of the international mission has always been pretty clear, even if the method hasn’t: Athens must be shored up to protect Greece, the European Union, the euro, the European banking system, and the wider global economy.
Behind the first domino of default, the international authorities have mustered extraordinary support, including the €110bn bail-out agreed last May, plus two vast temporary loan guarantee schemes. Next up is the proposal for a second bail-out, expected to be a further €120bn.
Surely, reckon Europe’s directors, this will be enough to buy a happy ending to even the gloomiest Greek tragedy? But what if the vast support is funding, not the end, but another even more dramatic - and expensive - act of the play?
This is the conclusion of a report by Open Europe, although there’s no entertaining prose here: “This is a debt crisis and someone will have to take losses,” says the London-based think tank. In fact, a second bail-out will wind up costing European taxpayers three times the amount in the end.

 

 

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The entire 2011 census database has been stolen by hackers and will be published online, it has been claimed

Ryan Cleary, an alleged member of the hacking group behind the claim, LulzSec, was arrested in Essex this morning by specialist cyber crime officers from Scotland Yard.
The 19-year-old was taken to a central London police station and remains in custody on suspicion of Computer Misuse Act and Fraud Act offences.
A “significant amount of material” was also seized from an address in Wickford, Essex.
The “pre-planned intelligence-led operation” in collaboration with the FBI followed claims online that the 2011 census database had been stolen and would be published in full.
“We have blissfully obtained records of every single citizen who gave their records to the security-illiterate UK government for the 2011 census,” a posting purportedly by LulzSec said.

 

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Foreign secretary William Hague has dismissed Tony Blair's vision for an elected head of the European Union by insisting that member states have more pressing priorities

Foreign secretary William Hague has dismissed Tony Blair's vision for an elected head of the European Union by insisting that member states have more pressing priorities than further "constitutional tinkering".

Hague made clear his view after Blair argued that a directly elected president of Europe, representing almost 400m people from 27 countries, would give the EU clear leadership and enormous authority.

In an interview with the Times, Blair set out the agenda that he thought a directly elected EU president should pursue, although he conceded there was "no chance" of such a post being created "at the present time".

Asked about the former prime minister's call for further European integration and the creation of an elected president, Hague suggested that Blair may have been thinking of the role for himself.

"I can't think who he had in mind," Hague joked.

Speaking at a Lancaster House press conference following talks with his South African counterpart, Hague added: "Elected presidents are for countries. The EU is not a country and it's not going to become a country, in my view, now or ever in the future. It is a group of countries working together.

"So the appropriate solution is not an elected president for a group of countries, it's for those countries each to promote economic growth in their countries, to bring their deficits under control. They are the immediate priorities for Europe, rather than further constitutional tinkering or change."

Blair, speaking to the Times to mark the publication of the his autobiography, A Journey, in paperback, warned that Europe should be ready to unify to avoid losing out to the economic and military power of China and other booming economies, such as Brazil and India.

"We won't have the weight and influence a country like Britain needs unless we're part of that European power as well," Blair said. "Europe has got a fantastic opportunity, but only if it's prepared to reform and change radically in the way it works."

He said the process of holding an election would give Europeans a greater affinity with the EU and would also change citizens' beliefs that unity was only about sustaining peace in Europe.

Blair said: "For Europe, the crucial thing is to understand that the only way you will get support today is not on the basis of a sort of postwar view that the EU is necessary for peace. For my children's generation, that is just a bizarre argument.

"They don't see that as a real threat, that European nations will go to war with each other. But they can understand that in a world in which China is going to become the dominant power of the 21st century, it is sensible for Europe to combine together, to use its collective weight in order to achieve influence. And the rationale for Europe today, therefore, is about power, not peace."

He set out five areas in which the EU should become closer: tax policy and "the social model"; completion of the single market; and in forging a common energy policy; a common defence policy; and a common immigration and organised crime policy.

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EUROPE needs an elected president with a democratic mandate to drive sweeping reforms and give the EU leadership standing on the world stage, Tony Blair says.

THE former British prime minister warned yesterday that the European Union risked losing out to the economic and military might of China, Brazil and India.

The popular consent enjoyed by a directly elected president of Europe -- chosen by an electorate of more than 386 million from 27 countries -- would give the EU clear leadership and enormous authority on the world stage, Mr Blair said. The post would represent a seismic development in the 50-year history of the EU and pave the way for sweeping economic reforms, including collaboration over tax policies.

"The rationale for Europe today is about power, not peace," Mr Blair told The Times of London in an interview to mark the publication of the paperback edition of his autobiography.



Mr Blair set out five areas where the EU should forge closer links to "make us more powerful as a unit": tax policy and fundamental reform of the social model; completion of the single market; forging a common energy policy; a common defence policy; and a common immigration and organised crime policy.

The former Labour leader also said the success of the Arab Spring was hanging in the balance and the West should prepare a massive and enduring economic support package akin to the European Marshall Plan of 1948 for states that embraced democracy. The Gaddafi regime was crumbling, but the allies faced a big task to rebuild Libya.

He said Labour leader Ed Miliband should embrace entrepreneurs and enterprise, be sceptical of the "Blue Labour" embrace of nostalgia and avoid the temptation to move the party to the Left.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, leader of the Liberal Democrats, "seems a perfectly nice guy", but there was a question about the durability of the ruling coalition with Conservatives, Mr Blair said.

"The problem (for the Lib Dems) is that it's very hard to fight three elections to the Left of Labour and then end up in a Tory government."

Mr Blair conceded a directly elected EU president had "no chance of being accepted at the present time". But the British and Europeans needed to wake up to the growing economic powers of countries such as Indonesia, Brazil and China. "We won't have the weight and influence a country like Britain needs unless we're part of that European power as well," he said. "Europe has a fantastic opportunity, but only if it's prepared to reform and change radically."

Mr Blair's proposal would give a European president the largest electoral mandate in the world. At present, there is the President of the European Council, the Belgian Herman Van Rompuy, who was chosen by member governments of the EU. Mr Blair, ironically, was for a long time seen as a candidate for the position.

Mr Blair said voters had little love for the European Parliament, the one democratically elected EU body. Electing a president would give European citizens more of an affinity with the EU, he said.

"For Europe, the crucial thing is to understand that the only way that you will get support for Europe today is not on the basis of a sort of post-war view that the EU is necessary for peace.

"For my children's generation, that is just a bizarre argument. They don't see that as a real threat, that European nations will go to war with each other.

"But what they can understand completely is that in a world in particular in which China is going to become the dominant power of the 21st century, it is sensible for Europe to combine together, to use its collective weight in order to achieve influence.

"And the rationale for Europe today therefore is about power, not peace."

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Romania and Bulgaria face new delays in their aspirations to join the European Union's borderless travel zone after EU governments asked on Thursday for more evidence of their anti-corruption efforts.

Romania and Bulgaria face new delays in their aspirations to join the European Union's borderless travel zone after EU governments asked on Thursday for more evidence of their anti-corruption efforts.

EU interior ministers said at a meeting in Luxembourg both newcomers had met technical requirements for having their borders with older members brought down.

But they agreed to wait until at least September before deciding whether to admit Romania and Bulgaria into the Schengen zone, named after a village in Luxembourg where a deal to cut border checks in Europe was signed in 1985.

"We hope that in September we can take this (Romania's and Bulgaria's Schengen accession) to another stage," Hungary's interior minister Sandor Pinter, who chaired the discussions, told a news conference.

Reluctance among EU governments to expand the borderless zone comes at a time when hostility towards immigrants in Europe is fanning a debate over the limits of unrestricted travel.

France and Italy have asked in recent months to change the bloc's rules to allow for temporary restoration of internal borders, citing concerns over an influx of illegal immigrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea to flee violence in North Africa and the Middle East.

Some EU governments say corruption in Romania and Bulgaria also poses a security risk and want to see a European Commission report on improving their justice systems, due around mid-year, before deciding on admitting them.

"Some member states, for example Germany, have made it very clear that they would not support Schengen expansion if the report is negative," one EU diplomat said.

Romania and Bulgaria have struggled to convince their EU partners that judicial reforms are bearing fruit since they joined the bloc in 2007. Monitoring reports by the EU executive have regularly contained strong criticism of the countries, which had hoped to join Schengen in March 2011.

"It is too early to take a decision now, and it may take some time before we are in a position to do so," Dutch minister for asylum and immigration, Gerd Leers, said in Luxembourg.

"The Schengen system is based on mutual trust. We are asking new countries to effectively guard our collective borders."

The two countries, both on the Black Sea, lie on important routes for human trafficking and trading in illegal drugs and arms. They say they are doing what they can to combat abuse.

"I would be calmer if the Mediterranean border of Schengen was guarded so well as Bulgaria and Romania guard their Black Sea border," said a Bulgarian member of the European Parliament from the ruling centre-right GERB party, Andrei Kovachev.

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new system of European governance

the overriding message from the European Commission that runs through its recommendations for each of the 27 member states in the new, post-crisis system of radically centralised oversight and correction of national economic policies by the EU known as the 'European Semester'.



"We are now implementing the new system of European governance," commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso said in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, heralding the unveiling of 27 detailed - or 'granular', to use the adjective EU officials use - national prescriptions, telling member states what they are getting right and wrong with their fiscal policies and what they must do to 'fix' their economies.

It goes further than fresh call for austerity: it is a recipe for much deeper liberalisation of the European economy than has yet been seen.

From intervening in collective bargaining to cut wages, to making it easier to fire workers, to a shift away from progressive taxation, through the new system, the EU hopes to utterly transform its member-state economies to be more competitive with the likes of the US, China and emerging economies.

Under the new, six-month system repeated annually, the commission in January sketches out a rough idea of what it expects national economic policies to look like for the coming period, a document that is then endorsed by the European Council, representing the member states.

All 27 states then submit their budgets and broader economic plans to the commission - before they are submitted to national parliaments - to see if they are sufficiently rigorous.

Then in June, in the current and penultimate step in the process, the commission gives its appraisal of these plans, setting out what must be corrected, a series of recommendations that must also win endorsement from the European Council.

Over the following 12-18 months, governments must put in place all the changes ordered by the Council-Commission duo.

If countries are in the eurozone, this oversight is backed up by the imposition of stiff fines for delinquent governments up to a maximum of 0.5 percent of GDP. For an economy the size of Spain, such a fine would amount to €5.25 billion.

In announcing its recommendations, sensitive to accusations of a power grab, the EU executive denied that it was replacing national parliaments: "This is not about dictating policy ... National governments retain responsibility for economic policies implemented in member states."

"But the impact of those policies no longer stops at national borders," it continued, laying out its argument as to why such unprecedented centralisation is necessary: "The commission is the only EU institution with the political autonomy, the technical expertise and the pan-European perspective to be able to oversee this process."

The commission did however acknowledge the anger regular Europeans feel at the austerity and liberalisation that has already been imposed in response to the crisis, but argues there is no alternative and that these changes should have been made years ago.

"There is discontent among citizens in several member states," the EU executive concedes in its main document giving an overview of the changes that it says need to be made.

"However, under the pressure of events, many of the changes needed to remedy structural weaknesses, which have often been delayed for years, are now being considered or implemented."

A mantra - whose wording changes subtly here and there, but whose essence is the same - is repeated through all the documents: "Fiscal room for manoeuvre is very limited."

"We know that achieving the goals we have collectively set ourselves means sometimes hard choices. But these efforts, if made seriously and by all, will allow Europe to leave the crisis behind it and safeguard our future prosperity."

Indeed, with just five centre-left governments remaining in the EU after a series of electoral debacles (two of which, in Spain and Greece, are on their last legs), the right, which also controls the three European institutions, feels increasingly confident that the growing number of strikes and protests are an unrepresentative irrelevance. Most citizens approve of the strategy of austerity, they believe.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Barroso, a conservative himself, crowed how in his native Portugal that parties that rejected austerity had been trounced in the recent general election.

'Insufficient ambition, vague, lacking focus'

Overall, the commission's conclusion is that the economic programmes submitted by the member states "broadly reflect" the priorities it outlined in January, but that some countries, according to Barroso: "show an insufficient level of ambition, and others are lacking in specificity."

"Many member states need to show more ambition when it comes to fiscal consolidation," he said. The commission also described many of the proposed measures as "vague, lacking sufficient focus."

The general semester recommendations for all states call for a review of wage-setting systems to ensure that wages keep in line with productivity in order not to undermine competitiveness. They also look to increasing the statutory retirement age across Europe and then automatically linking regular adjustments to this age to changes in life-expectancy. Early retirement should also be phased out.

Such efforts will not be easy to implement in many places. Efforts to increase the French retirement age last year provoked widespread strikes and blockades that paralysed much of the country as critics argued that such changes would hit blue-collar workers hardest and increase youth unemployment.

Governments should make it easier to hire and fire workers, the commission also recommends, although the language deployed is a more technocratic call to "rebalance employment protection."

"Urgent action" should be taken to ease the regulation of companies while payroll taxes should be reduced.

Brussels has also called for taxation in general to be shifted away from labour, where the higher the income, the higher the rate paid, and onto consumption, where everyone pays the same rate, regardless of income levels.

It is not all dour news however: the recommendations in many cases also call for efforts to reduce school drop-out rates, increase the participation of women in the workforce, boost support for vocational training and life-long learning, and achieve greater energy efficiency.

However, the reality is that almost all countries apart from Britain will have to significantly up their game.

The thread running through almost all the recommendations is that the masochism must continue.

Highlights

COUNTRIES UNDER EU-IMF TUTELAGE

NB. Five governments, Greece, Ireland, Latvia, Portugal, and Romania, received only one recommendation: to follow through on the austerity and structural adjustment imposed in return for national bail-outs.

AUSTRIA

- Accelerate deficit reduction

- Consolidate the health-care sector

- Phase out early retirement

- Increase women's statutory retirement age

- Stricter conditions on invalid pensions

- Reduce labour taxation and social security contributions

- Further liberalise trades and professions

BELGIUM

- Increase effective retirement age

- More ambition in reducing deficit, further spending cuts

- Reform wage bargaining and wage indexation to match productivity gains

- Shift taxation from labour to VAT and green taxes

- Boost retail, energy sector competition

BULGARIA

- Speed up austerity

- Introduce 'debt brake'

- Speed up pension reform

- Keep older workers in employment longer

- Reform wage bargaining and wage indexation to match productivity gains

- Expand the temp agency market

- Abolish electricity and gas price controls

CYPRUS

- Use any extra revenues for faster debt and deficit reduction

- Strengthen supervision of banks and credit co-operatives

- Extend the years of pension contribution

- Increase water prices

- Link the statutory retirement age to life expectancy

- Reform wage bargaining and wage indexation to match productivity gains

CZECH REPUBLIC

- Further austerity in the event of 2011 revenue shortfalls

- Faster increase in the retirement age than planned

- Promote private pension savings

- Increase availability of part-time jobs

- Link university funding to performance reviews

DENMARK

- Speed up deficit reduction if economy improves

- Introduce debt brakes for local, regional and central government

- Phase out early retirement

- Reform disability pensions

- Review land-use legislation

- Liberalise municipal and regional public procurement

- Reform mortgage rules and property taxes

ESTONIA 

- Reduce taxation and social security contributions

FINLAND 

- Link the statutory retirement age to life expectancy

- Further liberalise the services sector, especially retail

- Use any windfall revenues to reduce the deficit faster

- Further measures to achieve cost savings in public sector

- Introduce structural changes to respond to an ageing population

FRANCE 

- Use any windfall revenues to accelerate debt and deficit reduction

- Further measures to reform the pensions system if needed

- Ease employment protections

- Limit minimum wage growth

- Shift taxation from labour to VAT and green taxes

- Further liberalise trades and professions and services and retail sectors

GERMANY 

- Restructure regional banks - the 'Landesbanken'

- Liberalise professional services and craft sector

- Extend debt brake to regional level

HUNGARY 

- Insufficient austerity

- Use any windfall revenues to reduce the deficit faster

- Ease regulation of business

- Expand the powers of the Fiscal Council, a body of economic experts independent of government that advises on budgets

- Lower labour taxation

ITALY 

- Speed up debt and deficit reduction

- Introduce 'debt brake'

- Reform employment protection

- Reform wage bargaining to match productivity gains

- Make it easier to dismiss employees

- Further liberalise services sector

LITHUANIA 

- Lower social assistance and eliminate "disincentives to work"

- Shift taxation toward energy use and increase energy taxation

- Liberalise "very strict labour regulations"

- Reform state enterprises "prone to inefficiencies"

- Speed up deficit reduction

- Introduce 'debt brake'

- Expand temp work sector

LUXEMBOURG

- Further reduce the deficit

- Discourage early retirement

- Link the statutory retirement age to life expectancy

- Reform wages setting system and link wages to productivity

MALTA

- Further austerity to prevent excessive 2011 deficit if necessary

- Introduce 'debt brake'

- Accelerate the increase in retirement age and link it to life expectancy

- Eliminate wage indexation

NETHERLANDS

- Increase the statutory retirement age and link it to life expectancy

- Raise the effective retirement age

- Prepare a blueprint for reform of long-term elderly care

- Introduce road tolls

POLAND

- Introduce 'debt brake'

- Eliminate early retirement for miners and armed forces

- Raise statutory retirement age for women

- Reform the farmers' social security fund to encourage them to leave the sector

- Streamline construction and zoning legislation

SLOVAKIA

- Introduce ‘debt brake' for central government and social security

- Create an independent ‘Fiscal Council' - a body composed of economic experts independent of government to advise on budgets

- Link retirement age to life expectancy

SLOVENIA

- Introduce incentives to retire later

- Reduce ‘asymmetries' between protections of permanent and temp workers

SPAIN

- Deeper budget cuts if revenues prove worse than projected

- Introduce ‘debt brake' for both national and regional governments

- Warns against the parliament introducing changes to law raising retirement age

- Further measures to raise the effective retirement age

- Warns over role of local authorities in governance of savings banks

- Overhaul the "unwieldy" collective bargaining system, going beyond the current labour market reforms

- Move away from sectoral bargaining to firm-by-firm bargaining

- End automatic extension of collective agreements

- End wage indexation

- Deliver greater wage flexibility

- Reduce employer social security contributions and replace lost revenues with increased or broadened VAT and increased energy taxes, especially fuel taxes

SWEDEN

- Reform mortgage rules

- Reform property taxes

- Reform rent controls and subsidies

UK

- Warns against "slippage" in spending cuts

- Further competition in the banking sector

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It would appear the great global housing recovery of 2011 has been put on hold.

Sales and prices in developed countries are losing momentum after signs of recovery last year, Scotia Capital said Thursday. In some cases, the gains have been wiped out as “increasing nervousness over global economic prospects alongside rising food and fuel prices and persistently high unemployment are keeping potential buyers on the sidelines.”

While cheaper housing will eventually benefit those looking to wade into the market, the bank said that it could be some time before the market in countries such as Spain, the United States and the United Kingdom recover.

The process of repairing bloated public and household balance sheets points to a protracted period of subpar economic growth among debt-heavy developed nations that will restrain household borrowing and spending,” the bank said in a report. “A generally more cautious lending environment also will hold back the pace of recovery.

Highlights from the report, starting with the ugly:

Australia: “Australia’s seemingly impermeable housing boom has languished in recent months. While benefiting from strong economic growth and low unemployment, record high home prices alongside a series of interest rate increases by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) are eroding the nation’s already highly strained affordability. Average home prices in Q1 were unchanged from a year earlier, and down 3½ per cent adjusted for inflation. While the RBA has put further rate hikes on hold for now, the eventual resumption of monetary tightening will reinforce the more muted housing outlook.”

U.K.: “Real estate markets also took a step back in early 2011 following a shortlived recovery last year. Average inflation-adjusted home prices were down 4 per cent y/y in Q1. Notwithstanding ultra-low borrowing costs, recent tax breaks for home buyers and an easing in lending conditions, aggressive fiscal austerity measures and persistently high unemployment will continue to depress activity in the near-term.”

Spain: “Spain’s three-year and counting housing slump shows no sign of letting up. Following steep price declines from 2008-2010, average inflation-adjusted home prices were down more than 8 per cent y/y in Q1 (and a cumulative 20 per cent from their peak). Prices are likely to fall further in the coming year given a massive glut of unsold homes, soaring double-digit unemployment, the elimination of mortgage funding for low income families at the beginning of 2011 and a dearth of foreign vacation property buyers. Average home prices were also still declining in Italy as of the end of 2010.”

U.S.: “Real estate markets have softened again after some encouraging signs of bottoming last year. Average inflation-adjusted home prices were down 5 per cent y/y in Q1. High unemployment and tight credit availability are restraining demand, while a large volume of distressed properties is adding to the downward pressure on prices. The modest pickup in sales over the past six months has been primarily of investor-driven foreclosed properties, with little evidence of broader homebuyer activity since the expiry of purchase incentives in early 2010. Despite gradually improving job markets and near-record housing affordability, the expected addition of at least another 1 million foreclosed properties to the market this year suggests more downside price risk in 2011 after already falling almost 35 per cent (in real terms) from the peak.”

The better:

France: “Average real prices were up 7 per cent y/y in Q1, though weakening global growth expectations may limit further price gains in the near-term. In Germany, for which only annual price data are available, real home prices increased in 2010 for first time in over a decade. Demand and pricing have firmed alongside a strong economy, rising exports and the lowest unemployment rate in three decades. Nonetheless, Germany’s declining population will limit the extent of sustainable price appreciation in coming years.”

Canada: “Reported positive real price appreciation in the first quarter of 2011, with average inflation adjusted home prices up 5 per cent y/y in Q1. The national average, however, is skewed by strong sales, including by foreign buyers, of high-priced properties in the Greater Vancouver Area. Excluding Vancouver, average real prices were up less than 1 per cent y/y in Q1, consistent with a more balanced national market. Housing sales in Canada, while below the record-setting pace seen in at the height of the boom in 2005-2007, are being supported by steady job creation and still attractive borrowing costs. Relatively tight supply is adding to price pressures in several cities. Nonetheless, high home prices, the further tightening in mortgage insurance rules effective mid-March, and the upward drift in fixed mortgage rates this year appear to have slowed demand somewhat, most notably among first-time buyers. We anticipate relatively flat sales volumes and average prices through the latter half of the year.”

Others: “Switzerland reported steady real price increases averaging 4 per cent y/y through Q1, while prices in Sweden were unchanged from a year earlier. Irish property prices rebounded sharply -- and unexpectedly -- in the latter half of 2010, albeit following double-digit declines in both 2008 and 2009. With the Irish economy still marred in recession, and facing an oversupply of housing, the recent upturn will likely prove temporary despite the best housing affordability in a decade.”

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Italy's foreign minister said Libya's uprising had approached a turning point with Col. Moammar Gadhafi's rule coming to an end,

Italy's foreign minister said Libya's uprising had approached a turning point with Col. Moammar Gadhafi's rule coming to an end, and that the country sought an immediate ceasefire in Libya after Gadhafi's fall.

"Four months after the uprising in Libya, we are coming to a turning point: Gadhafi's rule is coming to an end," Franco Frattini said in a speech at the third meeting of the so-called contact group on Libya.

"Our priority is an effective ceasefire following Gadhafi's exit,"

Frattini said at the meeting hosted in the U.A.E. capital of Abu Dhabi. Arab and Western leaders gathered at the meeting said they were committed to working out legal mechanisms to help Libya's National Transitional Council receive funds from frozen Libyan assets worldwide. They also said they waited to hear a political plan from Libya's rebel leaders for a "post conflict" future.

The Council is being represented at the Abu Dhabi meeting by the rebels' de facto foreign minister Mahmoud Jibril, among other officials including finance and oil minister Ali Tarhouni. Tarhouni earlier Thursday appealed for urgent financial commitments, and said the meeting would be a failure if none were secured.

A spokesperson for Italy's foreign minister, Maurizio Massari, separately said the meeting would focus on making sure funds flow to the Transitional Council in coming weeks.

Italy has committed between EUR300 million and EUR400 million in loan and fuel products to Libya, Massari said. Libya's rebel officials said they hoped to seal a deal to import fuel from Italy.

"The [Transitional Council] is telling us that if financial help from the international community doesn't come soon, they are facing severe problems, also [with] legitimacy vis-??-vis the people," he said.

Besides approving a way for individual nations to provide loans to the Council-under a mechanism announced at a meeting in Rome in May--the meeting sought to reach an agreement on unfreezing Libyan assets, he added.

Italy was also keen to discuss securing an "inclusive political process" for Libya as an alternative to Gadhafi's regime. "The alternative could only be a very inclusive political process of national reconciliation including all the components of Libyan society," Massari said.

"We expect the [Council] to come out with a more detailed roadmap on how they intend to manage this political transition for Libya after Gadhafi," he added.

Massari said the issue of sending ground troops into Libya wasn't on Thursday's agenda, and has not been on the international agenda more broadly.

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European Central Bank (ECB) has signalled that it will raise interest rates next month, from 1.25%.

Earlier on Thursday, the ECB kept rates unchanged for the second month in a row, after increasing them in April for the first time in almost two years.

The central bank wants to raise rates again in July to curb inflation in some of the eurozone's 17 member states.

But it has to balance that against the need to leave rates low to boost growth in nations such as Greece and Portugal.

In his press conference, ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet pledged to exert "strong vigilance" on inflation, a signal to the markets that rates will be raised at the next meeting.

"I would say... that it means that we are in a mode where there might be in the next meeting an increase of rates," he said. "But we are never pre-committed," he added.


A July move may prove to be the last”


UK interest rates remain at 0.5%
However, Mr Trichet added that since the ECB's May meeting there has been "continued upward pressure on overall inflation mainly owing to commodity and energy prices".

Inflation in the eurozone was 2.7% in May. The ECB increased its forecast on inflation for 2011 to 2.6% from its previous prediction of 2.3%.

The bank also increased its economic growth forecast for 2011 to 1.9% from 1.7%.

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tanker is believed to have exploded at the plant in Pembroke Dock.

Fire crews have been called from across the area to tackle the blaze.
A spokesman for Chevron said: "At 18:20 local time on June 2 2011 an incident occurred at the Pembroke refinery.
"Emergency services were called and responded immediately and remain on the scene.
"The fire has been extinguished.
"We are taking appropriate action to respond to the situation. We are still in the process of accounting for all personnel."
According to the company website, the Pembroke Dock refinery specialises in processing heavy, lower quality crudes.

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Military officers and civilians detained in prostitution probe

Military officers and civilians detained in prostitution probe: "police yesterday detained about 40 suspects, including at least five military officers, in an investigation being conducted by the İstanbul Prosecutor's Office into a gang that allegedly documented the personal information of bureaucrats and military officers and recorded footage of them in compromising positions in order to blackmail them"

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How Paul Stretford has made a fortune from Wayne Rooney and wife Coleen | The Sun |Sport|Football

How Paul Stretford has made a fortune from Wayne Rooney and wife Coleen | The Sun |Sport|Football: "ALEX FERGUSON had a target in his sights as he faced up to the prospect of losing Wayne Rooney this week.
He complained: 'We're dealing with agents who live in the pockets of players.'
And the agent negotiating Rooney's imminent exit from Manchester United stands to pocket at least £2.5million from the move.
Paul Stretford has already made a fortune off the back of his most famous client, since acquiring the player's services eight years ago.
But behind the sharp suits and lucrative deals lies an extraordinary tale of gangsters, threats, deceit, lies, dodgy lawyers and blackmail.
As top investigative journalist John Sweeney sets out in his book 'Rooney's Gold', the fight for access to the England star's bank balance reads more like an underworld crime thriller than a sports biography.
The dramatic full story was finally revealed in a bitter court battle, which ended with Stretford being dismissed as an unreliable witness and subsequently banned and fined by the FA."

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Kent News - Blackmailers jailed after sending in 'Mad Jack'

Kent News - Blackmailers jailed after sending in 'Mad Jack': "blackmailer who sent a heavily-scarred bodybuilder nicknamed ‘Mad Jack' to collect £400,000 from a rival businessman has been jailed for two years and four months.

Lakhbir Bhana, 41, from Gravesend, ordered the henchman to obtain the cash from haulage boss Colin Basi.

Bhana, nicknamed ‘Lucky', co-conspirators Surjit Bhalla, 29, of Staines, and Ajmal Ellahi, 34, of Birmingham, and ‘Mad Jack', real name John Francis Phillips, 49, of Reading, were all found guilty of conspiracy to blackmail at Maidstone Crown Court on Monday, July 26.

They were all sentenced at the same court on Wednesday, October 20.

The court heard how the four men engaged in an elaborate conspiracy to obtain the six-figure sum from Mr Basi.

They were led by Bhana, the director of Dyneema, a Gravesend construction company that carried out works for Medway-based haulage firm KKB."

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Celeb blackmailed over 'sensitive' pics | The Sun |News

Celeb blackmailed over 'sensitive' pics | The Sun |News: "MAN has been found guilty of blackmailing an international superstar with 'highly sensitive' photos stolen from her home.
The celebrity received threatening letters and emails from Stephen Bennett, 24, demanding tens of thousands of pounds in cash for the shots.
It was reported Bennett used Facebook and Google to get in touch with the star.
The musician — who has a house in London — cannot be named because of a strict court order banning publication of her personal details.
The crook threatened to go public with 27 potentially embarrassing photos taken from her laptop"

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The Press Association: Tube death man 'was wearing women's clothes'

The Press Association: Tube death man 'was wearing women's clothes': "middle-aged man allegedly pushed to his death under a Tube train at King's Cross underground station was wearing women's clothes, sources have said.
He died after he was struck by a train at the station at 6.30pm on Monday, British Transport Police (BTP) said.
His companion was arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. She had to be restrained by a fellow passenger until police arrived, BTP said."

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“instantly recognisable” celebrity received a series of threatening letters from the blackmailer demanding cash in exchange for 27 images

“instantly recognisable” celebrity received a series of threatening letters from the blackmailer demanding cash in exchange for 27 images stored on one of two Apple Mac laptops which were taken in a burglary at her London home.
The musician, who cannot be named for legal reasons, would have suffered enormous personal distress and humiliation if the photographs had been made public, a court heard.


She has taken out a court order banning the media from disclosing her name, age, nationality and whether she is in a relationship or has children. The exact nature of what appeared in the photographs has not been disclosed.
Sebastian Bennett, 24, was convicted of blackmail and handling stolen goods at Isleworth Crown Court on Monday following an investigation by Scotland Yard.
The unemployed fitness fanatic called himself Dave64 and Dave Smith during his blackmail campaign against the celebrity.
The ordeal began last November when the pop star lost her house keys, possibly during a trip to the local hairdresser’s salon.

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Project Folkstone focused on a “criminal organization” involved in a cross-border gun smuggling operation that specialized in trafficking illegal guns

Project Folkstone focused on a “criminal organization” involved in a cross-border gun smuggling operation that specialized in trafficking illegal guns in the GTA. Police said that criminal organization was smuggling guns into Canada from the U.S., along with various drugs including cocaine, marijuana and heroin.David Barker, 39, of Windsor, is charged with possession of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking, weapons trafficking and commission of an offence for a criminal organization.
Jason Tompkins, 35, of Windsor, is charged with conspiracy to commit robbery, commission of an offence for a criminal organization, importing firearms and trafficking weapons.Police said Tompkins was a “main player” in the criminal operation who liaised with the gun sources in Kentucky and the buyers here.
“He was facilitating the transport and smuggling of the guns coming into the country,” said Corey.Police nabbed two other Windsor men, but their names haven’t been released. They were all shipped to Newmarket.

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Russians are on trial in the United States in at least three separate cases involving gun crimes

Russians are on trial in the United States in at least three separate cases involving gun crimes, including a waiting-room murder, a Kalashnikov-armed gang of thieves and a repeat-offender bank robber.Oregon prosecutors are struggling to solve a mysterious murder in which a Russian-speaking unlicensed dentist is accused of shooting another Russian-speaking man believed to be his patient.
Viktor Gebauer, 79, has pleaded not guilty in the fatal shooting of Viktor Merezhnikov, 47, whose body was found in a chair in what prosecutors are calling a makeshift waiting room at Gebauer's home in Gresham, Oregon, The Associated Press reported Wednesday.Deputy district attorney Chris Ramras said a motive for the Feb. 18 shooting has not been established. "We may never know," he was quoted as saying.He said both men had immigrated to the United States from the former Soviet Union, but he did not know from which former republics. Gebauer, who speaks no English, became a U.S. citizen in 1998 and had practiced dentistry for years without a license, local media reported.
Ramras said the victim called his brother, Vladimir Merezhnikov, "to say he was being held at gunpoint by Gebauer, who was threatening to kill him," The Associated Press reported. When the brother arrived, Gebauer opened the door holding a gun and threatened to shoot him. Merezhnikov saw his brother slumped in a chair before Gebauer closed the door again, the report said.Gebauer later surrendered to police. He told them he had never seen Viktor Merezhnikov before and alleged the victim tried to rob him by using a knife, the AP said. Citing court documents, The Associated Press said the victim was found shot in the abdomen.The victim's wife, Raisa, told the police her husband had visited Gebauer's home in the past. She said her husband "did not own a knife like the one found in his left hand, and that he was right-handed," the AP said.
In an unrelated case, Pennsylvania police have accused three young men believed to be Russian of a series of armed robberies with Kalashnikov assault rifles, local media reported.Maksim Illarionov is suspected of masterminding a series of robberies over the past weeks, the Centre Daily Times reported on its web site Thursday.
Illarionov, 21, was arrested March 3, with Dmitriy Litvinov, 23, and Alexei Semionov, 28, local media reported. They were caught in possession of stolen goods and stolen weapons after they allegedly burglarized homes in the town State College. All three are awaiting trial in jail, local WJAC television reported on its web site.While being escorted by police, Illarionov said the charges against him were “Russian propaganda,” the Centre Daily Times reported. When searching the homes linked to the suspects, police said they found four guns, including two AK-47 rifles.In a comment posted on the paper's web site, a user under the name of LakeErie claimed that he was the guns' owner and that Litvinov "was swearing friendship to me not long ago." Police said one of the Kalashnikovs was discovered in Litvinov's mother's home."I am Russian myself and there is good and bad people among us, just like anywhere else. So please don't judge all of us on example of 3 retards," the entry reads.
In a third case, a former Soviet fighter pilot might face up to life in prison after robbing a bank in upstate New York for the second time in almost 20 years.Alexander Borisov, 46, pleaded guilty to first-degree robbery at a hearing in Dutchess County Court last week, the Poughkeepsiejournal.com reported.Borisov admitted to entering the First Niagara Bank in Millerton on Nov. 30, threatening a teller with a gun and fleeing with some cash. He was caught by police minutes later after abandoning a stolen car.He robbed the same bank in December 1991 and two banks in Connecticut during the following four weeks, Poughkeepsiejournal.com said.

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Christopher Tres Cadejuste, of the 500 block Oak Hill Lane, allegedly fired the gun at the victim

Christopher Tres Cadejuste, of the 500 block Oak Hill Lane, allegedly fired the gun at the victim, the ex-boyfriend of Cadejuste's girlfriend, after the two men had a physical altercation in 700 block of Edgar Drive around 9:16 p.m., according to police.
The men were arguing about an previous altercation between the victim and Cadejuste's girlfriend, according to police.Cadejuste, 17, has been charged as an adult with attempted murder, assault, reckless endangerment and malicious destruction of property, according to court records.His is being held without bond at the Wicomico County Detention Center and has a District Court hearing scheduled for March 22.

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