| Home |
| Library |
| Contact us |
| About |
| Site index |
|
Ministers try to stop labels for GM food MINISTERS want to kill off plans by Brussels to bring in a comprehensive regime for labelling genetically modified food. They fear “negative fall-out” from Washington if they back the consumer friendly policy, leaked cabinet papers reveal. (Times, 31 May 2003) Big powers exploit ethnic feuds for Congo's wealth WHEN Zaire’s kleptocractic former ruler President Mobutu Sese Seko visited neighbouring Rwanda a few years before his fall, he is rumoured to have looked in astonishment at the well- tarmaced French and Belgian- built roads and confided to his old friend President Juvenal Habyarimana: “Too many roads, very bad idea.” (Times, 31 May 2003) UN agrees on DR Congo force The United Nations Security Council has unanimously given the go ahead for a French-led international force to restore order in north-east Democratic Republic of Congo. (BBC, 30 May 2003) ID card 'tricks' anger net users Net activists are pressing the UK Government to explain what has happened to thousands of public responses that expressed doubts about the merits of ID cards. (BBC, 30 May 2003) 'Torture' snaps: man held A BRITISH soldier has been arrested over sickening “torture” photos of an Iraqi prisoner. They show a PoW dangling from a fork-lift truck. (Sun, 30 May 2003) War on terror is 'making world more dangerous' The US-led "war on terror", far from making the world a safer place, has made it more dangerous by curtailing human rights, undermining the rule of international law and shielding governments from scrutiny, Amnesty International warned yesterday in a fierce attack on American and British foreign policies. (Guardian, 29 May 2003) Just a stitch-up of us ‘useful idiots’ Camden Council is very fond of “consultation”. Any person living or working in the borough will probably have come across Camden in consultative mode, but to get the full flavour of Camden “consultation” you need to be a tenant or leaseholder of the council. (Camden New Journal, 29 May 2003) EU fishing 'drives bushmeat trade'' Africa's bushmeat trade, which is forcing several rare species towards extinction, is fuelled by European Union policy, a leading British scientist says. The accusation comes from Professor John Lawton, who heads the UK's Natural Environment Research Council. He says European and other foreign fleets are emptying the seas off West Africa. The consequence is hungry people turning from the sea to the forests to find protein. (BBC, 29 May 2003) EU unions call for boardroom pay controls British, Dutch and German unions yesterday joined forces to demand mandatory, binding votes at company annual meetings on executive pay and public disclosure by institutional investors of their voting records. (Guardian, 29 May 2003) Any other business Britain comes top of the class when countries are ranked according to their enthusiasm for contracting out public services, ahead even of the US, according to Accenture the management consultants. The "least mature" market for outsourcing in Europe is Portugal, followed closely by France and Norway. (Guardian, 28 May 2003) High achiever Dismal and demoralising is how Mark Blake describes his experience of going to school in London during the 1980s. Which is why, as chief executive of educational charity the Windsor Fellowship, he feels well placed to lead the call for more voluntary organisations to help the government raise achievement levels of minority ethnic pupils within the schools system. (Guardian, 28 May 2003) Government vows to stop EU deciding workers' rights The Government has vowed to stop the European Union deciding workers' rights in Britain following the latest proposals from the Convention discussing Europe's future. (Ananova, 27 May 2003) White hot heat wave kills 430 people A heat wave with temperatures rising to 47C in a southern Indian state has killed at least 430 people. (Ananova, 27 May 2003) Aceh rebels vow to fight despite massive offensive Separatist rebels in Aceh have vowed to intensify attacks on the Indonesian military. (Ananova, 26 May 2003) Sherpa climbs Everest in record time A Sherpa has scaled Mount Everest in 10 hours and 56 minutes, setting a new record for the fastest climb of the world's highest mountain. Lakpa Gyelu, 35, broke a record set by fellow Sherpa guide Pemba Dorjee, just last week, who reached the pinnacle in 12 hours, 45 minutes. (Ananova, 26 May 2003) Aceh rebels vow to fight despite massive offensive Separatist rebels in Aceh have vowed to intensify attacks on the Indonesian military. (Ananova, 26 May 2003) Algeria probes building standards ... At least 2,162 people are known to have been killed and almost 9,000 injured during the tremor, while 2,000 people are reported to be missing. (BBC, 26 May 2003) You can build what you want, providing . . . Once upon a time, developers just built houses. These days, their responsibilities extend way beyond bricks and mortar and into the provision of bus passes, free bicycles and regular inspections of badger droppings. It's called "planning gain" and it's the strangely medieval system whereby - in return for being granted permission to build - developers have to agree to a list of demands drawn up by local councillors. (Telegraph, 24 May 2003) Blunkett to intro UK ID cards, via £25 passport tax UK Home secretary and award-winning serial threat to freedom David Blunkett is set to foist identity cards on the UK public under the cloak of dealing with ilegal immigration. (The Register, 23 May 2003) Bush: Africa hostage to GM fears US President George Bush has accused Europe of blocking efforts to fight famine in Africa because of "unfounded" fears over genetically modified foods. (BBC, 22 May 2003) Algeria quake toll climbs At least 770 people are now known to have been killed and 4,700 injured in Algeria's worst earthquake in two decades. (BBC, 22 May 2003) Two million homes with broadband says Oftel The number of homes and businesses in the UK with a broadband internet connection has passed the two million mark, telecoms regulator Oftel has confirmed. (Ananova, 22 May 2003) Terrorists plotted death of Bevin MI5 feared that Zionist "terrorists" were plotting to assassinate the then British foreign secretary, Ernest Bevin, and set up IRA-style cells in London during the war for an Israeli state, papers released today by the national archives reveal. (Guardian, 22 May 2003) Council mast blunders spark payout hopes FAMILIES in Norwich today pledged to fight for compensation after a landmark ruling over mobile phone masts. In the first case of its kind in Britain, seven householders in Swindon were offered a total of £117,000 from their local council after a 20ft mast was built in their neighbourhood because of an administrative bungle. (Norwich Evening News, 21 May 2003) Rebels humiliate Glaxo Shareholder activists scored an extraordinary victory against spiralling executive pay yesterday, voting down a plan by GlaxoSmithKline, Britain's biggest drug manufacturer, to give chief executive Jean-Pierre Garnier £22m if he were to lose his job. (Guardian, 20 May 2003) WorldCom $500m fine to refund investors WorldCom is poised to agree to a $500m fine as part of a settlement deal with watchdogs for its huge accounting fraud. The telecoms company, which has renamed itself MCI, overtook Enron as the biggest corporate bankruptcy in history when the fraud emerged. (Telegraph, 20 May 2003) DWhy Are So Many African Governments Corrupt? Ask The Corporations Recently Halliburton Company was forced to admit it paid a $2.4 million dollar bribe to a Nigerian government official in exchange for tax breaks. (Black Electorate, 20 May 2003) The boy prisoners of Guantanamo Iguana House, a cream-brick bungalow, stands apart from the cells that hold former Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters. The Cuban villa has a lounge, bedroom, kitchen and bathroom and the usual detritus associated with adolescent inhabitants. The occupants are three youths who human rights groups say should not be here. (The Age, 20 May 2003) Lexicon of lies At the end of January the Sun boasted that its campaign to end what it called "asylum madness" had "touched a nerve in the nation". It pointed to the fact that more than half a million people had signed its petition urging the government "to stop bogus refugees flooding the country". (Guardian, 19 May 2003) MPs set to revolt over jury reforms Tony Blair was facing his third backbench rebellion in a fortnight today, as up to 40 Labour MPs were predicted to vote against plans to limit trial by jury. (Guardian, 19 May 2003) US to support anti-smoking treaty The United States astounded health officials and lobbyists from around the world when it dropped its opposition to the global anti-smoking treaty yesterday, in effect allowing tough measures against cigarettes to be adopted throughout the world. (Guardian, 19 May 2003) Asymmetric morality In Africa, ploughmen have for decades been turning up the kind of mass graves that lately caused such outrage in Iraq. The Democratic Republic of Congo, in particular, is that kind of place. (Guardian, 19 May 2003) Labour's free trade policy harms millions, says Byers The government's policy of liberalising trade and removing protectionist measures such as subsidies and tariffs is dangerous for millions in the developing world, the former trade and industry secretary Stephen Byers says, showing a remarkable change of heart, in the Guardian today. (Guardian, 19 May 2003) A new brand of journalism is taking root in South Korea Lee Bong-Ryul has a day job as an engineer at a semiconductor company. In his spare time, he's helping to shape tomorrow's journalism. (Mercury News via siliconvalley.com, 18 May 2003) More than 80 die in flash floods Floods and landslides have hit south-central Sri Lanka, killing at least 84 and forcing 150,000 to flee their homes. (Ananova, 18 May 2003) Western intervention 'is damaging Africa' Intervention by western governments and charities in Africa is compounding political weakness, stifling enterprise and making developing states less accountable to their citizens, according to new research by Blairite thinktank the Foreign Policy Centre (FPC). (Guardian, 18 May 2003) Succcess and the Guyana connection RED ROOPCHAND, a farmer all his life, remembers the little girl perched on top of the handlebars of her father's bike very well. ...Her name is Valerie Amos and, as Baroness Amos, she last week became the first black woman to make it to the Cabinet.(Guardian, 18 May 2003) Maritime disaster - 'Recovery' opposed Divers inspecting the wreck of the second-deadliest maritime disaster in history found the disintegrating vessel all but buried in sand, and urged on Saturday that authorities not try to recover the human remains. (Arab Times, 18 May 2003) Co-op 'outperforming high street chains' The Co-op food stores have outperformed their high street rivals with a 6.9% turnover increase, the firm claimed today. (Ananova, 18 May 2003) Computer glitch leads to 'state pensions blunder' The Inland Revenue reportedly failed to inform up to 10 million workers that they would have to make top up payments to receive the minimum state pension. (Ananova, 15 May 2003) Large fish 'may follow dinosaurs into extinction' Populations of large fish in the world's oceans have fallen by 90% in the past 50 years, says a new report. (Ananova, 14 May 2003) War not poverty 'main reason behind asylum claims' ... The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) says the Government must focus attention on these issues if it is to achieve its target of halving the number of asylum applications by September. (Ananova, 13 May 2003) Community radio What is community radio? Also known as access radio, community radio is the name given to small, not-for-profit stations that broadcast to localised urban and rural audiences. (Guardian, 13 May 2003) 'War helped spread HIV in Africa' War in Africa may have been largely responsible for the march of Aids in Africa, scientists have revealed. ... The virus appeared to have jumped to epidemic status in Guinea-Bissau - the putative epicentre of the disease - between 1955 and 1970... Guinea-Bissau's war of independence occurred during this period, between 1963 and 1974. (Ananova, 12 May 2003) Survey finds Britons can't crack boiling eggs Three-quarters of people do not know how to boil an egg, according to a poll. ...The poll also found that 82% of those asked want food adverts aimed at children to be banned or regulated more tightly and 79% thought food manufacturers were irresponsible. (Ananova, 10 May 2003) Reward but No Risk epublicans are pushing hard to reduce the tax on dividend income, arguing that the government unfairly taxes it twice. Dividends come from corporate profits, which are taxed, and the individual stockholder who receives the dividend check also pays Uncle Sam. Therefore, President Bush argues, reducing — or better yet repealing — the tax on stockholders would treat dividend revenue like other income, reducing free market imperfections. But if the Bush administration truly wants a free market economy, it shouldn't stop there. It should also put an end to limited liability for shareholders. (New York Times, 10 May 2003) Iraq Inc: A joint venture built on broken promises America and Britain declared themselves yesterday to be the "occupying powers" in Iraq and produced a blueprint for the administration of the country that confined the United Nations to a co-ordinating role. (Independent, 10 May 2003) DDuring Indigenous Decade tribal economic advances fueled by sovereignty During the United Nations’ "International Decade of the World’s Indigenous Peoples" the indigenous people of the United States have leveraged their sovereignty into an unprecedented, and totally independent, explosion of economic development and self-determination. (Indian Country, 9 May 2003) 129 airline passengers hurled to their deaths More than 120 people were sucked out of a transport plane to their deaths when its massive rear cargo door burst open at 33,000 feet. The aircraft was carrying up to 200 policemen and their families across the Democratic Republic of Congo on Thursday night. (Ananova, 9 May 2003) Law change spares naturists' blushes ... The Home Office says the law would now apply only to those who "intentionally expose their genitals knowing or intending that someone will see them and be caused alarm or distress". (Ananova, 9 May 2003) Chemical industry slams EU mega-law Draconian environmental rules unveiled by the European Commission yesterday could cripple Europe's chemical industry and cost up to 2.3m jobs without offering significant health benefits, industry groups warned. (Telegraph, 8 May 2003) European Union Questions and Answers on the New Chemicals Policy REACH - Registration, Evaluation, and Authorisation of CHemicals. Most blacks in Britain were born here Most black and Asian people living in England and Wales today were born in Britain, according to results from the 2001 Census. The figures, published yesterday, show that blacks and Asians, including mixed-race people, number just under four million out of the total 58.7 million population. (Telegraph, 8 May 2003) Relaunch for fruit drink under a cloud Sunny Delight is to be relaunched as a "healthy alternative" to other children's drinks in an attempt to reverse its declining popularity. (Telegraph, 8 May 2003) Publishing revolution in electronic ink An ultra-thin flexible electronic ink screen is announced today that could smooth the way to newspapers and books that can be displayed by the user at the flick of a switch on wearable computer screens. (Telegraph, 8 May 2003) Third of NHS whistle-blowers victimised - poll A third of NHS workers who have "blown the whistle" on bad practice in the service have faced reprisals, says to a new report. (Ananova, 7 May 2003) Emissions of greenhouse gases from the European Union increased in 2001 for the second year running The European Environment Agency (EEA) estimates they were 1% greater than in 2000. (BBC, 6 May 2003) Sars sparks Chinese riots Thousands of people in Zhejiang province, south of Shanghai, went on the rampage at the weekend in protest at the Chinese government's inability to control the spread of Sars. (Guardian, 6 May 2003) HSBC's jet deal turns sour in Ghana One of Britain's biggest banks, HSBC, is making $1m out of a controversial loan to buy an African president a personal jet, according to documents obtained by the Guardian. (Guardian, 6 May 2003) Childcare grows into £2.15bn business The changing pattern of parenting and childcare in Britain is revealed today in figures showing a fivefold growth in nurseries for the under-fives in the past 10 years. (Guardian, 6 May 2003) Co-op passes up £4m to maintain ethics The Co-operative Bank turned away more than £4m of business last year from companies which failed to meet its ethical standards. (Guardian, 6 May 2003) The southern slave trade There is one group of illegal immigrants that Australia seems to welcome with open arms - those smuggled in by people-traffickers. (Guardian, 6 May 2003) Road to nowhere The 'road map' for peace between Israel and the Palestinians stands little chance of success unless the international community is willing to enforce compliance. (Guardian, 6 May 2003) Walter Sisulu It is impossible for anyone who has not shared the experience to fathom the psychological suffering of those born into the no-man's land of "coloured" status in apartheid South Africa. (Guardian, 6 May 2003) Tory chief's role in housing scandal revealed The new chief executive of the Conservative party, Barry Legg, allegedly played a key part in a scandal that saw homeless families placed in asbestos-riddled London tower blocks. (Guardian, 6 May 2003) How US paid for secret files on foreign citizens Governments across Latin America have launched investigations after revelations that a US company is obtaining extensive personal data about millions of citizens in the region and selling it to the Bush administration. (Guardian, 5 May 2003) Hewitt: I did not break law over votes Trade and Industry Secretary Patricia Hewitt denies any wrongdoing amid allegations of vote-rigging in last week's local elections. (Ananova, 5 May 2003) Bah, Wilderness! Reopening a Frontier to Development More than a century after historians declared an end to the American Frontier, the Interior Department made a somewhat similar announcement last month, with no fanfare. On a Friday night, just after Congress had left for spring break, the government said it would no longer consider huge swaths of public land to be wilderness. (New York Times, 4 May 2003) Accountability vacuum Network Rail is safe in the knowledge that, at a time of growing corporate governance scandals, there will be no direct press criticism when it holds its own annual meeting in July. This is not necessarily anything to celebrate, because Network Rail plans to exclude the media from the meeting. For an organisation that is so much in the public eye and is the recipient of £21bn of taxpayers' money, that is a brave, if not brazen, decision to take. It raises the question of who Network Rail is actually accountable to. It claims to be a private company on the grounds that the government doesn't own it any more. Technically, it is a company limited by guarantee with no share capital and no shareholders. Its "members" who will be assembling for the AGM have the power to express their confidence (or lack of it) in the management - and ultimately to remove them when they come up for re-election. But not a lot else. (Guardian, 3 May 2003) Big boost from postal voting Postal voting has emerged as the victor of the local elections, for the second year in succession, defying the blanket media view that the British are so disaffected from local politics that they cannot be bothered to vote. (Guardian, 3 May 2003) Investigation launched into £6m training scheme fraud An investigation has been launched into a fraud which it is thought might have led to almost £6m of public money being siphoned from a scheme aimed at providing training for adults, police said yesterday. Detectives from Cleveland police have begun Operation Anaconda - which could last as long as three years - to look into abuse of the individual learning accounts (ILAs) across the country. (Guardian, 3 May 2003) Letter to U.K. Secretary of State Jack Straw on Electoral Violence in Nigeria We are writing to you to express our concern at the failure of the United Kingdom government to denounce publicly incidents of violence and intimidation which occurred in several areas of Nigeria during the National Assembly elections of 12 April, the presidential and governorship elections of 19 April, and the preceding weeks and months. (Human Rights Watch, 2 May 2003) School ban pupil is 'very silly girl' - judge A teenager banned from school for 30 days after organising a demonstration against the war in Iraq has been described in court as a "very silly girl." Mr Justice Coillins said she had been justifiably disciplined because she had been involved in several clashes with the school authorities. (Ananova, 2 May 2003) Court blocks campaign finance reform A key element of the campaign finance reform act, which aimed to limit the influence of money on US politics, has been ruled unconstitutional by the courts. (BBC, 2 May 2003) Shock wins for extremists The mainstream parties were reeling tonight as the British National party (BNP) made significant gains - winning seven councils seats in Burnley, more than any other party. (Guardian, 2 May 2003) War propels Exxon profits to record $7bn ExxonMobil, the world's biggest privately owned oil group and a target of street protesters, celebrated May Day by reporting the largest quarterly corporate profits in history at $7.04bn (£4.4bn). (Guardian, 2 May 2003) BBC scrutiny plan is far from harmless The proposal for the national audit office to audit the BBC sounds such a simple and harmless proposition, but it is neither. (Guardian, 2 May 2003) Boycott Zimbabwe's tour English cricket behaved shoddily over the World Cup fixture in Harare last February and is doing the same with Zimbabwe's tour of this country, which opens in Birmingham tomorrow. Then, Nasser Hussain's team, ducking the issue of Robert Mugabe's tyranny, called off the match on grounds of security. (Telegraph, 2 May 2003) Equitable chief gains £100,000 pay rise Equitable Life has awarded its chief executive, Charles Thomson, a £100,000 pay rise plus an £82,500 bonus for this financial year. (Telegraph, 2 May 2003) Credit card spending at new high Consumers spent a record £10.6 billion on credit cards during March as the lending boom showed little sign of slowing down. (Ananova, 1 May 2003) 5 tough questions about asylum ...Stoked by a diet of outraged headlines, there is a widespread perception that the country is being overrun with immigrants - some genuine refugees but many simply seeking a better life. So is Britain really a soft touch? (Guardian, 1 May 2003) Top-up plan to help poor in capital Unemployed mothers in London may receive extra subsidies for childcare in an attempt to lift them out of the poverty trap. (Guardian, 1 May 2003) Chechen siege hostages still dying of gas effects FORTY people who survived the Chechen theatre siege last year have since died from the effects of the noxious gases pumped into the building, according to a lawyer representing the victims. (Times, 1 May 2003) Spam, spam, spam, spam . . . jail VIRGINIA, the home state of internet providers such as America Online, has passed a law threatening to jail for up to five years people who send unsolicited commercial e-mails, or spam. (Times, 1 May 2003) Mob fury as US soldiers shoot two protesters dead AMERICAN soldiers opened fire on protesters in Fallujah yesterday for the second time in less than three days, killing two and wounding a dozen more. (Times, 1 May 2003) Computers to Africa scheme criticised Thousands of computers head for Africa each year The practice of supplying second-hand computers to Africa can prove to be an expensive mistake, according to a UK report. (BBC, 1 May 2003) Two-thirds of children not getting enough sleep Researchers say up to two-thirds of children in the UK are not getting enough sleep and have missed out on as much as 4,500 hours by their seventh birthday. (Ananova, 1 May 2003) |
| Cuttings |
|
|
|
|
|
|
updated:
26 Jul
2006