International

• Monday, October 8th 2007 - 21:00 UTC

  Gibraltar votes on Thursday under new 2006 constitution

  

  On October 11th Gibraltar goes to the polls to elect a new Government. Under the new 2006 constitution there will be an increase in the number of votes per person to ten from the previous eight, with the two major parties, the Gibraltar Social Democrats (GSD) and the Gibraltar Socialist Labour Party (GSLP) with the newer Progressive Democracy Party (PDP) fielding six and two independent candidates on offer.

• Sunday, October 7th 2007 - 21:00 UTC

  Chilean striker stars for Vitesse

  

  Colo Colo are one of the big names of Chilean football and 22 year old striker Juan Lorca quickly became a star at the club which he joined as a junior player at the age of 12.

• Saturday, October 6th 2007 - 21:00 UTC

  PM Gordon Brown rules out autumn election

  

  Gordon Brown has said he will not call a general election this autumn. The PM said he wanted a chance to show the country his “vision for change” and to develop his policies further.

• Friday, October 5th 2007 - 21:00 UTC

  Soaring wheat prices cause food crises in poor countries

  

  Up to 36 countries worldwide are facing food crises at a time when the price of wheat has hit record levels and stocks are described as worryingly low by the latest crop and food situation report published by the UN Friday.

• Thursday, October 4th 2007 - 21:00 UTC

  “Risk reappraisal” leaves Euro rate unchanged at 4%

  

  The Governing Council of the European Central Bank meeting in Vienna decided to leave interest rates unchanged at 4%. The decision comes despite the strength of the Euro against the US dollar and calls from some European leaders to cut rates and boost European competitiveness.

• Thursday, October 4th 2007 - 21:00 UTC

  Interest rate in UK on hold at 5.75%; eyes set on November

  

  The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee voted Thursday to maintain UK interest rates on hold at 5.75%. The decision comes despite pressure to follow the example of the US Federal Reserve to cut the cost of borrowing and help with the credit crunch.

• Thursday, October 4th 2007 - 21:00 UTC

  iPod sale: try Hong Kong, US but avoid South America

  

  Want to buy an iPod? Try Hong Kong and if in Europe, Switzerland, and if in the Americas, United States or Canada but please avoid Brazil. That is the suggestion of Commonwealth Bank, one of Australia's largest, which checked the cost of a digital music 4GB iPodNano in 55 different countries.

• Wednesday, October 3rd 2007 - 21:00 UTC

  Business newspapers on website for free competition

  

  Pearson, the world's largest education publisher announced this week it was partially opening up free access to its Financial Times newspaper as it adopted a new online business model.

• Wednesday, October 3rd 2007 - 21:00 UTC

  First production contract for Royal Navy's new carriers

  

  Britain awarded this week the first contract for the new equipment that will be fitted to the 65,000 tonne aircraft carriers Ministry of Defence has announced it is to order.

• Tuesday, October 2nd 2007 - 21:00 UTC

  Big Ben chimes for the first time in seven weeks

  

  London was reacquainted on Monday with one of its iconic sounds when Big Ben finally chimed for the first time in seven weeks. After almost two months of maintenance work, London's most famous landmark was once again fully functional - to the delight of millions of tourists and residents alike.