Politics

• Thursday, February 2nd 2012 - 21:51 UTC

  Political controversy in Gibraltar over the outbreak of Norovirus in local hospital

  

  Political controversy has erupted in Gibraltar following the outbreak of a Norovirus infection in a local hospital. The highly contagious virus which causes vomiting, diarrhoea and dehydration is not unknown to the cruise industry which has been forced to cancel trips and isolate vessels.

• Thursday, February 2nd 2012 - 21:46 UTC

  Rajoy and Cameron scheduled to meet 21 February in London, says Madrid media

  

  Mariano Rajoy, Spain’s Prime Minister, is expected to meet with his British counterpart David Cameron later this month. According to Spanish press reports the meeting is likely to take place in London on February 21.

• Thursday, February 2nd 2012 - 21:41 UTC

  UK tells Spain: sovereignty negotiations only if Gibraltar so wishes

  

  Britain would only enter into sovereignty negotiations with Spain if Gibraltar was happy for it to do so, Europe Minister David Lidington told the House of Commons this week

• Thursday, February 2nd 2012 - 21:27 UTC

  Controversy over criteria for the award of the Nobel Peace Prize

  

  Swedish authorities are looking into whether the Nobel Peace Prize has been going to the “wrong” type of people, like human rights campaigners and environmentalists, in violation of prize founder Alfred Nobel's will.

• Thursday, February 2nd 2012 - 19:48 UTC

  Falklands/Malvinas: One can only hope for a new realistic perspective

  

  This is the seventh of a series of extended political articles written exclusively for the Penguin News web site by Deputy Editor John Fowler. John is a former Superintendent of Education and a former Manager of the Falkland Islands Tourist Board.

• Thursday, February 2nd 2012 - 05:47 UTC

  Brazil will evaluate the impact and legality of Argentina’s latest trade barriers

  

  The Brazilian government expressed concerns over the new Argentine trade barriers going in effect on Wednesday and informed that it would “evaluate its impact and legality” before making any decisions, Foreign Trade secretary Tatiana Prazeres announced.

• Thursday, February 2nd 2012 - 05:40 UTC

  UK convinced Argentina plotting to blockade the Falklands: LAN airlink next target

  

  British diplomats have accused Argentina of plotting an economic blockade of the Falkland Islands amid fears Buenos Aires is attempting to block all flights from Chile to the Islands, reports the guardian.co.uk in a piece by Rory Carroll, Jonathan Franklin and Uki Goñi.

• Thursday, February 2nd 2012 - 05:21 UTC

  US plans to wind down combat operations in Afghanistan by mid 2013

  

  The US will seek to wind down combat operations in Afghanistan during 2013, more than a year before a deadline for withdrawal, the defence secretary says. Speaking while travelling to a Nato summit, Leon Panetta said the US hoped to switch to a role training and supporting Afghan forces.

• Thursday, February 2nd 2012 - 05:15 UTC

  IMF warn Argentina on ‘lack of progress’ in addressing inflation data

  

  The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned Argentina about its “lack of progress” in addressing inflation data and called on the country to implement “specific measures” within the next six months to improve it.

• Thursday, February 2nd 2012 - 05:13 UTC

  Cocker spaniel puppy will keep Catherine company while William is in Falklands

  

  Prince William's wife Kate will not be on her own during her husband's tour of duty in the Falkland Islands: the couple have a new puppy, St James's Palace said Wednesday.