International

• Wednesday, May 13th 2009 - 01:48 UTC

  Record unemployment in UK, totals 2.2 million

  

  United Kingdom’s unemployment has jumped by almost a quarter of a million to take the total to 2.2 million, official figures have revealed. Data showed a quarterly rise of 244,000 - the biggest increase in the number of people looking for a job since 1981.

• Tuesday, May 12th 2009 - 10:39 UTC

  Nobel laureates warn about risks of a “lost decade”

  

  Nobel Economics laureate Edgard Prescott and Joseph Stiglitz warned Monday of a “lost decade” and a worsening of the global financial crisis in the short term during a forum in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The “lost decade” reference is to the stagnation of the economy as happened with Japan during the nineties.

• Tuesday, May 12th 2009 - 10:03 UTC

  Global economy close to “inflection point” says leading central bankers

  

  The global economy has stopped its steep slide and is on the verge of making the long, slow climb back toward stability, said European Central Bank President Jean Claude Trichet who chaired on Monday a meeting of the world's leading central bankers.

• Tuesday, May 12th 2009 - 04:43 UTC

  No peace between pro and anti-whaling countries, anticipates BBC

  

  Moves to make a peace deal between pro and anti-whaling nations have stalled, with no chance of agreement. Countries have been talking for nearly a year in an attempt to hammer out an accord by this year's International Whaling Commission (IWC) meeting. But a draft report seen by BBC News admits the process has “fallen short”.

• Tuesday, May 12th 2009 - 04:40 UTC

  Brown apologizes for “wrongs” on behalf of politicians from all parties

  

  Britain’s House of Commons authorities are to try to bring forward the publication of MPs' expenses receipts from the planned date of mid-July. The Commons Commission, which oversees MPs' affairs, rejected calls for immediate release of the details but said they would be published as quickly as possible.

• Tuesday, May 12th 2009 - 04:34 UTC

  Gibraltar representatives will not be present at this year’s C24

  

  The Leader of the Gibraltar Opposition Joe Bossano will be away for a week in order to participate in the annual regional seminar organised by the United Nations special committee on decolonisation, reports the Gibraltar Chronicle.

• Tuesday, May 12th 2009 - 01:26 UTC

  UK submits extended continental shelf claim around Falklands

  

  The United Kingdom made on Tuesday 11 May 2009, its submission in respect of its extended continental shelf around the Falkland Islands, and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.

• Monday, May 11th 2009 - 12:23 UTC

  Hague pledges full support for Gibraltar and forecasts Tory victory

  

  Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague visited Gibraltar with a clear message for the people of Gibraltar from David Cameron, the Conservative leader: “A Conservative government will always cherish the relationship with Gibraltar and will have nothing to do whatsoever with any shared sovereignty deal over Gibraltar”, reports the Gibraltar Chronicle.

• Monday, May 11th 2009 - 12:15 UTC

  World is better prepared for influenza pandemic, says Dr. Chan

  

  At the end of last week, the World Health Organization said it had no immediate plans to raise the pandemic alert to level 6 from 5, though the agency continues to closely monitor the spread of the virus.

• Monday, May 11th 2009 - 10:31 UTC

  British banks CEOs dampen expectations of a swift recovery

  

  Bad debts at part-nationalised UK Royal Bank of Scotland could soar to almost £12 billion this year, the bank has said. RBS, which is 70.3% owned by the British taxpayer, posted loans losses of £2.9 billion for the first quarter of 2009, but directors said full-year bad debts could be “at least” four times as high.