The state of the economy, Turkey's EU hopes and proposals to charge lorries for using roads are among issues being debated by MEPs this week in Brussels. Online you will be able to read Members' views on e-voting and on the use of new media in election campaign. You can also catch up with a health check of Europe's fisheries policy. Read our interview with Evangelin Tzampazi about her report on mental health. Some of the issues on the agenda in Committee this week include:
 
Recovery plan:  Wednesday the Economics Committee will discuss proposals to boost the EU economy.
 
EU-Turkey:  MEPs on the Foreign Affairs Committee look at Turkey's progress in EU membership negotiations on Wednesday.
 
Heavy goods vehicles:  The "Eurovignette" law, which would allow countries to charge lorries for road use partly on the basis of the congestion and air and noise pollution they cause will be put to the vote in the Transport Committee on Wednesday.

After Sweden decided to scrap its ban against building new nuclear power plants, several politicians from Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) said Germany should do the same. 

"When European countries are planning to build nuclear plants again, Germany can't be the odd one out," CDU parliamentarian Katherina Reiche, told Bild am Sonntag newspaper.

Sweden announced last week that it was revoking a 1980 referendum decision to phase out nuclear power. Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt and the leaders of the three other parties in the coalition described the deal as "historic."

The Swedish government, which took office in October 2006, had initially agreed not to discuss building more reactors or decommissioning any of the 10 reactors currently operated during its current four-year term. The debate about climate change and need to secure long-term energy production, however, forced the rethink.

German Economy Minister Michael Glos has resigned and will be succeeded by a fellow Bavarian conservative, Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, party sources told SPIEGEL ONLINE. The chaotic handling of his resignation has prompted criticism of Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Germany's Economy Minister Michael Glos has resigned following months of criticism of his handling of the financial crisis and, according to SPIEGEL ONLINE sources, he will be replaced by fellow Bavarian politician Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg.

Glos is reported to have been frustrated at being sidelined in the handling of the financial crisis. Glos, a member of the Christian Social Union (CSU), the Bavarian sister party to Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats, had tendered his resignation on Saturday but his request was initially refused by CSU leader Horst Seehofer.

Merkel too is reported to have rejected his resignation at first, which effectively left the running of a major German ministry in limbo at a time when Germany is facing its worst economic downturn since World War II. That prompted criticism of Merkel's leadership by opposition parties and by the center-left Social Democrats, who share power with Merkel's conservatives.

EUOBSERVER/BRUSSELS - The Nordic countries - Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland - could pool military forces, maritime monitoring and satellite surveillance, a report commissioned by the five foreign ministers says.

Drafted by former Norwegian foreign minister Thorvald Stoltenberg, the study out on Monday (9 February) puts forward 13 proposals to be endorsed at a Nordic foreign ministers meeting in Reykjavik in April.

Nordic countries are keen to strengthen common military and security co-operation

"All Nordic ministers welcomed the report," Urdur Gunnarsdottir, press officer with the Icelandic ministry of foreign affairs told the EUobserver.

Out of the five countries, Denmark, Finland and Sweden are EU members. Denmark is also in NATO, with Sweden eyeing membership. Norway and Iceland meanwhile are in NATO but not in the EU.

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The EU's highest court is on Tuesday (10 February) to deliver judgment on a case that will determine the fate of the bloc's controversial data retention law.

Judges at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg are deciding on whether the law, which allows telecom operators to keep EU citizens' phone and internet data for up to two years, can be allowed to continue.

The data retention law has been the focus of strong critiism by civil liberties groups

The case concerns a technicality rather than the substance of the law, which has been the focal point of strong criticism by civil liberties groups.

Ireland took the case before the court arguing that it had been made on the wrong legal premiss.

Dublin says the law should have been subject to an intergovernmental agreement between member states, requiring unanimity.

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The recent gas crisis showcased Russia's new "public diplomacy" in the use of public relations companies and the style of its EU ambassador. But the Kremlin-Gazprom brand has its competitors and remains tricky to sell.

The Kremlin hired Brussels-based PR firm GPlus back in 2006 to update media relations. Russia's gas monopoly, Gazprom, signed a separate deal for media handling and government advocacy in 2007. The annual contracts, due for renewal in spring and autumn, cover GPlus work in Brussels and Paris as well as subcontracts with consultancies Dimap in Berlin and Reti in Rome.

Russian Prime Minister Putin showing his casual side

GPlus says its pro-Russia lobbying with EU institutions is worth less than €200,000 a year. Competitors estimate the contracts are worth €3 million to €5 million a year in total in fees alone, excluding expenses for hiring venues for press conferences or lunches with contacts.

GPlus specialises in hiring former EU officials and eminent journalists. Gregor Kreuzhuber, who leads the Gazprom account, was previously European Commission industry spokesman. Peter Witt, a senior advisor for both clients, is a retired German deputy ambassador to the EU. Angus Roxburgh covered the war in Chechnya for the BBC.

Liechtenstein's Prime Minister Otmar Hasler resigned Sunday, Feb. 8, after losing power in an election in the Alpine principality. 

Hasler, the head of the Progressive Citizens' Party (FBP), quit after his party came second with 43.5 percent of the vote. The FBP had governed the landlocked micro-state -- famous for its secretive banking sector -- in coalition with the Fatherland Union (VU).

 

The VU gained 9.4 percent to score 47.6 percent of the vote and overtake the FBP.

 

The largest party in the 25-member Landtag parliament in the capital, Vaduz, now has the right to nominate the head of government, and two cabinet ministers. The smaller party nominates the deputy prime minister.

 

There are 18,600 eligible voters in Liechtenstein, which hit the headlines last year after German authorities paid a whistleblower to reveal details of tax avoidance by wealthy citizens from various EU countries.

 

France's potential return to NATO's military structures would harm the country's independence and would be "a defeat for France," and for Europe, Francois Bayrou, leader of the opposition Democratic Movement party has said. Such a choice "must be made by a referendum of the French people," he added.

Prague has reacted with anger to remarks made by French President Nicolas Sarkozy on moving French car companies back from the Czech Republic, saying the comments endanger ratification of the EU treaty in the central European member state.

"If someone wanted to really jeopardise the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty, he could not have chosen a better way and a better time," Czech prime minister Mirek Topolanek told the Hospodarske Noviny daily, reports AFP.

French-Czech relations have soured since the handover of EU presidency responsibilities

Calling the remarks "incredible", Mr Topolanek said: "I don't want to scaremonger, I will vote in favour of Lisbon, but here is a big country taking decisions on what will affect our lives."

In an unusual step, Prague, which currently holds the EU presidency, also released an official statement on the issue.

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - For the first time ever, the president of the European Commission joined the Munich security conference over the weekend, a meeting of European, US and Russian leaders.

Jose Manuel Barroso's presence fell somewhat under the radar, with his lunch speech not published on the conference website, along with the stars of the event: US vice-president Joseph Biden, French president Nicolas Sarkozy, German chancellor Angela Merkel, NATO secretary general Jaap de Hoop Scheffer and Czech EU presidency representative Alexander Vondra.

Jose Manuel Barroso (l) was somewhat overshadowed by other prominent leaders at the Munich security conference.

"I believe this is the first time a president of the European Commission has been invited to speak at the Munich Security Conference. Could this mean the Commission is thinking of strengthening its divisions of bureaucrats with those of the military kind? Or in fact does it mean that the security dimension is widening beyond its hard military core?" Mr Barroso said in his speech, sent to the media in a press release.

He stressed the need for multilateralism, as the "only way" to tackle current security threats ranging from financial turmoil to terrorism and from energy security to climate change.

A van loaded with a bomb has exploded near a conference centre and railway line in the east of Spain's capital, Madrid, reportedly causing no injuries.

The bomb exploded outside the Campo de las Naciones at around 0900 (0800 GMT), about 90 minutes after a warning was received by the Spanish Red Cross.

Police were able to cordon off the entire area and clear the trade fair centre before the blast occurred.

The Spanish authorities have blamed the Basque separatist movement, Eta.

German enthusiasm for the new US administration could soon fade. The Americans made it very clear at the Munich Security Conference that they expect solidarity from their European allies -- and that means blood, sweat and tears.

This year, it's going to be hard to escape the slew of German anniversaries. The list includes the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest 2,000 years ago, the invasion of Poland and the outbreak of World War II 70 years ago, the founding of East and West Germany 60 years ago and the fall of the Berlin Wall 20 years ago. In 2009, hardly any other country in the world will spend so much time intensively examining its own past as Germany.

German troops in Afghanistan: Berlin is learning that Obama expects more from America's allies. At the Munich Security Conference, which ran from Friday to Sunday, politicians from all over the world dared to take a look into the future. As difficult as forcasts might be in this time of terrorist threats, global financial meltdown and innumerable intractable regional conflicts, one prediction can be safely made: The phase of German military intervention that began 10 years ago during the Kosovo war is in no way coming to an end, despite the fact the majority of Germans wish it would. On the contrary: The era of foreign deployments for Germans and their military forces has just begun.

Nordic foreign ministers gathered in Oslo on Monday to discuss an independent report on Nordic cooperation in the field of foreign and security policy. The report, created by a group of independent experts and compiled by Norwegian Foreign Minister Thorvald Stoltenberg, outlines the creation of a pan-Nordic stabilisation force.

Wild weather across southern Europe this week is expected to produce a record amount of renewable electricity. As Spaniards were today warned to batten down windows in order to fend off fierce Atlantic gales, the country's electricity distributors were anticipating a windfall - a huge boost in power generation from the country's wind farms.

Spain has built so many wind farms in recent years that the arrival of high winds and the subsequent surge of electricity into the national grid now has an immediate impact on the price at which it is sold...

Spain added another 11% to its wind-power capacity last year. That increase contributed to a year in which wind power accounted for 43% of new generation capacity - more new electricity capacity in Europe than any other source.

The new passengers reflect a revolution in Spanish travel. Domestic airlines have lost a fifth of their passengers in the space of a year. And long-distance trains have gained almost a third.

This shift is the consequence of an ambitious programme for high-speed rail. The streamlined AVE trains, with their sleek corridors, work tables and spectacular views, are stealing the show. Those used to the tedious taxi rides, security checks and crowded shuttle flights traditionally endured by Spanish businessmen will not be surprised. The opening of the Barcelona-Madrid line a year ago marked the beginning of the end of airlines' dominance...

Spain's high-speed network is still in its infancy. Another 9,000km of lines are planned over the next decade. The aim is to create Europe's most extensive high-speed network, with 90% of Spaniards living within 50km of a station.

Shifting people on to high-speed trains has needed both careful planning and political consensus. When José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero's Socialist government proudly opens new stations, it is often reaping rewards sown by previous administrations. But Mr Zapatero's commitment cannot be faulted. New lines are being built in every corner of the country. Under a recent agreement the network will even be extended into Portugal.

That these trains need "both careful planning and political consensus" almost guarantees that such lines will never be built in the U.S.A... No wonder during last year's campaign McCain said he would refuse to meet with Zapatero.

"Tweet, meet, and give" is the vision of the global Twitter festival simply named Twestival, which will be hosted by 175 cities around the world on February 12. Organisers intend to bring together the members of the Twitter communities for an exciting evening and to raise money and awareness for charity - water. "The key principle of the project is solidarity," explained Christian De Neef, coordinator of the Brussels Twestival. Twitter is an online service for friends, family, co-workers to communicate and stay in touch just through typing an answer on the basic question `What are you doing?'

It is increasingly becoming a powerful communication tool, which can connect, mobilise and inform people around the world instantly. It is exactly these phenomena that the Twestival organizers are utilising, to support a good cause. The Twestival is an event at which all people interested in giving to the charity, and who participate in social media can integrate offline, meet with their virtual friends, enjoy some entertainment or socialise with other supporters of the charity project. "As a main idea of the whole project I would stress that all money raised from the cities all over the world will go directly to the charity ... so we all can help the poorest countries.

Moreover the Twestival is a great chance to meet your friends but also to socialize with other people, who you know just from the on-line world. It is a time to meet face to face," said Bente Kalsnes, an organiser of the Brussels Twestival. The overall benefit collected in single twestival cities is to support projects trying to ensure an access to a safe drinking water in countries suffering a serious water supply and distribution shortages. Channeled through Charity: water, a non-profit organisation bringing clean, safe drinking water to people in developing nations by funding sustainable clean water solutions in areas of greatest need, the amount gathered is to be invested in construction of wells.

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The Czech EU presidency is expected to call EU leaders for an informal meeting at the end of this month to help forge a unified response to the global economic slowdown.

A European Commission spokesperson said the meeting would be a "preparatory exchange of views" and characterised the event as part of an "intensive series of preparations" before the leaders meet for their formal spring summit in March.

The Justus Lipsius building in Brussels will host euro area finance ministers on Monday and all EU 27 on Tuesday

The decision follows a telephone conversation on Monday morning (9 February) between European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and the Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek.

Both were criticised last week by French President Nicolas Sarkozy for failing to tackle the financial crisis head-on.

The informal summit is the latest in a plethora of high-level discussions between member states and EU officials to deal with the ongoing financial crisis and economic slowdown that show little sign of abating.

Wall Street helped produce the global financial and economic crisis. Now, as the Obama administration prepares to unveil a revised bailout plan for the banking system, policy makers hope Wall Street can be part of the solution.

Administration officials said the plan, to be announced Tuesday, was likely to depend in part on the willingness of private investors other than banks -- like hedge funds, private equity funds and perhaps even insurance companies -- to buy the contaminating assets that wiped out the capital of many banks.

The officials say they are counting on the profit motive to create a market for those assets. The government would guarantee a floor value, officials say, as a way to overcome investors' reluctance to buy them.

Details of the new plan, which were still being worked out during the weekend, are sketchy. And they are likely to remain so even after Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner announces the plan on Tuesday. But the aim is to reduce the need for immediate U.S. government financing and relieve fears that taxpayers will pay excessive prices if the government takes over risky securities. The banks created those securities when credit and home prices were booming a few years ago.

European governments have announced stimulus packages worth billions over the past months to lift economies out of the economic crisis, but only a tiny fraction of the money will be invested in 'green growth' - climate, energy and environmental measures, a new study reveals.

The largest 13 EU economies have announced economic packages worth €90 billion, or 0.78 percent of their gross national product, from 1 September 2008 to 28 January 2009.

US president Barack Obama is set to invest heavily in green technology over the next ten years

But of this only €1.2 billion - 1.3 percent - will be devoted to green investments, according to a new analysis published by Danish weekly, Monday Morning. The study is based on figures from the Brussels based think-tank Bruegel.

"Much more could be done on in the areas of energy- and climate," said Jakob von Weizsäker from Bruegel.

The financial aid packages reflect a traditional and outdated way of thinking by European governments, he pointed out.

Aiming to head off growing public anger at the large remuneration and bonuses that banking executives continue to be given despite many of them receiving billions of euros in state aid, some European governments appear to be looking to cap their pay - a move welcomed by the European Commission.

On Thursday (5 February), French President Nicholas Sarkozy said that he aimed to change how bankers are paid, with details beginning to emerge over the weekend.

There is growing public anger at the remuneration executives at bailed-out banks continue to be awarded

A voluntary code of conduct covering pay for all executives at financial institutions has been drawn up by the French Banking Federation alongside the French treasury, the country's Banking Commission and the Financial Market Authority (AMF), the national market regulator.

The code, beginning in 2010 covering the 2009 period, would see bonuses dependent on past performance and profitability, rather than on predicted revenues. Additionally, stocks and options awarded to executives could not be used towards speculative activity.

Nicolas Sarkozy and other European leaders have suggested that Britain is badly placed to weather the recession. While Chancellor, Mr Brown was resented for using meetings of European Union finance ministers to lecture them on the virtues of "prudence".

High rates of British economic growth, he was fond of telling them, were a model for eurozone countries.

Now the boot is on the other foot. Or is it?

Mr Sarkozy, who as French finance minister in 2004 would have been treated to Mr Brown's homilies, is the one now giving the lecture.

France grew by 0.7 per cent in 2008, with growth stagnating but continuing into the third quarter of last year. French growth was at 2.2 per cent in 2007.

Britain too grew by 0.7 per cent in 2008.

But behind the same headline figure there was further to fall for Britain, from three cent GDP growth in 2007.

^{The Senate measure offers the credit to anyone buying a primary residence. But buyers must earn enough to have $7,500 in income taxes -- $81,900 per year for a family of four -- to get the full benefit.}

By Ben Meyerson and Sarah Gantz, The Los Angeles Times

The Senate's proposed $15,000 tax credit for home buyers would boost the ailing housing market but do little to help low-income people who need it most, experts say.

The measure, which is part of the $827-billion economic stimulus plan that the Senate is due to vote on Tuesday, would offer the credit to anyone who buys a primary residence. But to take full advantage of the credit, buyers would have to earn enough to use it and spend at least $150,000 on a home...

Since the money comes as a deductible tax credit spread over two years, home buyers must earn enough to have $7,500 in income taxes -- $81,900 per year for a family of four to get the full benefit, according to the housing coalition.

But if the home costs less than $150,000, the deduction is only worth 10% of the house's value, meaning that those buying the cheapest homes wouldn't receive the full benefit.

The financial crisis will be "more extreme and more serious than that of the 1930s", cabinet minister Ed Balls has predicted.

Mr Balls, a former economic adviser to Gordon Brown, said the global recession would be the most serious for "over 100 years", the Yorkshire Post reported.

The financial crisis will be "more extreme and more serious than that of the 1930s", cabinet minister Ed Balls has predicted.

Mr Balls, a former economic adviser to Gordon Brown, said the global recession would be the most serious for "over 100 years", the Yorkshire Post reported.

He told a Labour conference that these were "seismic events that are going to change the political landscape".

The Conservatives said the remarks were "staggering and very worrying".

While some in Washington have obsessed about "process stories" regarding the recovery package, for most of America the economy is not a spectator sport.  That's why the President went to discuss with working people exactly how the package will affect them and their communities in a town hall today in Elkhart, Indiana.

...

Questions from the crowd of about 1,700 people ranged from the foreclosure crisis and green energy to the mechanism by which recovery funds will reach communities like Elkhart. Some highlights, then the full transcript below.

...

Q We are truly tired of the economics that we have been getting that has got us into the position that we're in. That theory has been a trickle down. We need to trickle up. So I would hope in your philosophy about trying to kick-start the economy that the money gets directly to the people who are -- have homes that are foreclosed, the people that have lost jobs....So I would hope...that the money gets directly into the hands of the people who are hurting.

A: When it comes to tax cuts, you are exactly right that instead of providing tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans, what I've been pushing in this plan is to make sure that the tax cuts go to working families. That is not only good for those families, it's actually good for the economy, because when you give a tax break to working families who are struggling, they will spend it on buying a new coat for the kids, or making sure that they get that car repaired that they use to get to work.

...

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT AT TOWN HALL
Concord Community High School
Elkhart, Indiana
February 9, 2009

...

I intend to keep my promise. But you know, the work is going to be hard. I don't want to lie to people -- that's why we're having a town hall meeting -- because the situation we face could not be more serious. We have inherited an economic crisis as deep and as dire as any since the Great Depression.

Economists from across the spectrum have warned that if we don't act immediately, millions of more jobs will be lost. The national unemployment rates will approach double digits not just here in Elkhart, all across the country. More people will lose their homes and their health care. And our nation will sink into a crisis that at some point we may be unable to reverse.

So we can't afford to wait. We can't wait and see and hope for the best. We can't posture and bicker and resort to the same failed ideas that got us into this mess in the first place. (Applause.) That was what this election was all about -- the American people rejected those ideas because they hadn't worked. (Applause.) You didn't send us to Washington because you were hoping for more of the same; you sent us there to change things -- (applause) -- the expectation that we would act quickly and boldly to carry out change. And that's exactly what I intend to do as President of the United States of America. (Applause.)

The Tamil Tigers appear to be finished as Sri Lankan government troops close in on rebel fighters trapped in a small area on the northeastern coast. But it is Sri Lanka's civilian population that has suffered most during the decades-long civil war.

A group of soldiers at the Palali air base on the northern tip of Sri Lanka is waiting for an Antonov aircraft to arrive from Colombo. All transportation links to the capital were cut off for years. Now the first journalists are being allowed to visit the region, which has been liberated by government forces.

After more than a quarter century of civil war, the separatist movement that has controlled the region for so long, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), has been expelled, at least from its strongholds.

Politicians in Israel are making their final appeals to voters before a general election on Tuesday.

The favourite to become prime minister is Binyamin Netanyahu, leader of the right-wing opposition party, Likud.

But his opinion-poll lead has been clawed back in recent weeks by Tzipi Livni, who heads the centrist Kadima, the largest party in the government.

The BBC's Tim Franks, in Jerusalem, says opinion polls suggest the far-right will make the biggest gains.

The final polls on Friday showed the Israel Beiteinu Party led by Avigdor Lieberman eclipsing Labour as third party in the Israeli Knesset.

ZAGAZIG, Egypt: Dressed in karate uniforms and track suits, the young Egyptian women break off in pairs and begin sparring, with one kicking and punching while the other tries to block the attacks.

The nearly two dozen women and girls in a small gymnasium in this city of one million, north of Cairo, are learning to fight off assailants - a rarity for women in the Arab world.

Such self-defense classes have popped up in the past year across Egypt, as this conservative Muslim country for the first time turns major attention to the issue of sexual harassment. Women, and even some men, have begun campaigns against sexual harassment around Cairo, using Facebook to raise awareness among the country's Internet-savvy youth.

It is one way in which the Internet is turning public attention to issues that were kept hidden among Arabs in the past. Open discussion of the harassment issue first emerged two years ago, after blogs in Egypt gave broad publicity to amateur videos showing men assaulting women in downtown Cairo during a major Muslim holiday.

ISLAMABAD: When Richard Holbrooke, the U.S. special representative to Pakistan and Afghanistan, holds talks with Pakistani leaders on ways to stop a runaway Islamist insurgency that is destabilizing Pakistan, he will find a pro-American but weak civilian government, and a powerful army unaccustomed and averse to fighting a domestic enemy.

In a nuclear-armed nation regarded as an ally of the United States and considered pivotal by the administration of President Barack Obama to ending the war in neighboring Afghanistan, Holbrooke will face a surge of anti-American sentiment on clear display by private citizens, public officials and increasingly potent television talk shows.

Some remedies offered by his hosts in Pakistan, where he was scheduled to begin a regional tour on Monday, are likely to be unappealing. On almost every front, the country's leaders are calling for less U.S. involvement, or at least the appearance of it.

The main reason for the swell in resentment here is the very strategy that the U.S. government considers its prime success against Al Qaeda: missile strikes delivered by remotely piloted aircraft against militants in Pakistani tribal areas.

Britain and her Nato allies in Afghanistan are stuck in a stalemate with the Taleban, David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, admitted today.

His pessimistic view of military progress in Afghanistan coincided with a new poll of Afghans which reveals that confidence in the future is significantly lower than it was three years ago.

The poll of 1,500 people in Afghanistan's 34 provinces, commissioned by the BBC and two other international broadcasters, found that only 40 per cent of Afghans still believed their country was heading in the right direction, compared with 77 per cent in 2005. Mr Miliband said the figures were realistic.

In other findings, 59 per cent supported the continuing presence of British forces in the country, and 63 per cent supported the role of the Americans.

ABC just reported that at court hearing this morning, the Obama administration stated that it will adopt the Bush administration's arguments on an extraordinary rendition case:

A source inside [the courtroom] tells ABC News that a representative of the Justice Department stood up to say that its position hasn't changed, that new administration stands behind arguments that previous administration made, with no ambiguity at all. The DOJ lawyer said the entire subject matter remains a state secret.

Information about this case is below the fold from diary I wrote yesterday.

Katherine Richardson, a marine biologist at the University of Copenhagen, who is organising next month's event, said: "This is not a regular scientific conference. This is a deliberate attempt to influence policy."

Paris airports will shut to flights from 2000 (1900GMT) for 12 hours because extremely high winds are expected, transport officials say.

The French capital is facing winds of up to 120km/h (75mph), forecasters say.

The country is on storm alert with the French Atlantic coast expected to be worst hit.

But forecasters predict the storm will not be as bad as the one that lashed France on 14 January, leaving 11 dead and causing widespread damage.

The number of deaths from bushfires that have already claimed 170 lives in the Australian state of Victoria is likely to rise, officials have warned.

Police believe some of the fires were started deliberately - actions which Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said amounted to "mass murder".

Survivors have recounted how they fled walls of flames. Some people died in their cars trying to escape the fires.

Some rural towns have been completely destroyed.

Police have sealed off a number of sites, including the devastated small town of Maryville, as possible crime scenes.

Heavy rain sweeping across England has left many councils preparing for floods - but forecasters warn more snow is on the way elsewhere.

Up to two inches of rain is expected across southern England, with 15 flood warnings in place across the south west.

Council emergency planning teams are on "full alert", according to the Local Government Association.

Blizzard conditions are expected in Wales and the Midlands later.

After a week which saw the UK's heaviest snowfall for 18 years, closing schools and crippling public transport, the rain has heightened the risk of flooding.

PARIS (AFP) -- The bow of the legendary ocean liner "France," later renamed "Norway," fetched 273,000 euros (350,000 dollars) at auction on Sunday, more than twice its estimated value.
[...]
The bow was valued at between 80,000 and 100,000 euros.

A VINTAGE 1973 Citroen DS convertible has fetched a record amount at a Paris auction, Bonhams auctioneers said. The Chapron model of the iconic DS brand (affectionally known as the "Goddess") had an estimated value of €140,000 to €190,000 ($A274,483-$A372,512.5) but sold for much higher during the auction on Saturday, said spokeswoman Sylvie Robaglia.

The ivory-coloured DS was one of seven Citroen cars put up for auction which fetched a total of around €960,000 ($A1.88 million).

Two auctions last week-end in Paris where items fetched final sales prices much higher that the original estimates. Who says France is in a recession? Not everyone suffers from financial hardship, apparently. Another shining success for our president's "reform" policies...

Europeans think a hundred miles is a long way. Americans think a hundred years is a long time.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger knew his US Airways jetliner was in trouble the moment it hit birds, and with both engines damaged, made a quick decision to attempt a dangerous landing in New York City's Hudson River.

"I needed the wings exactly level at touchdown. I needed to make the rate of descent survivable. I needed to touch down at a nose-up attitude. And I needed to touch down just above our minimum flying speed. And all those needed to occur simultaneously," Sullenberger told reporters on Monday.

The US press talked at length of "miracle", as if only divine intervention could explain the safe ditching of Flight 1549 on the Hudson river.

This was no miracle: you had a very experimented captain, an Air Force veteran whom you can assume has seen his fair share of sticky situations, and also an experienced glider plane pilot. I can tell you from personal experience: flying glider planes makes you extremely sanguine about landing a plane without engine power.

Capt. Sullenberger did it plenty of times, of course not with a A320, but controls were fully operational and he did a classical L-shaped approach (downwind leg, base step and then final approach) using airbrakes when needed.

And let's not forget the cabin crew: you'd think their jobs is to serve you drinks and bad food, but 95% of their training is to repeat security procedures in case of emergencies, over and over again, until they can do this in their sleep.

So, it was no miracle: a very experienced and well trained crew (and unionized, as Jerome pointed out) who coldly assessed the emergency, took the right decision and executed superbly. In these situations, this can make all the difference between a happy ending and a major disaster. Of course, things could have gone wrong, but in their predicament, passengers of Flight 1549 had the odds definitely stacked in their favor.

Europeans think a hundred miles is a long way. Americans think a hundred years is a long time.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has urged Britain's Cambridge University not to expel a German student who threw a shoe at him during a speech at the university last week. 

"Education is the best help for a young student," Wen said in a statement issued via Fu Ying, the Chinese ambassador to Britain, on Monday, Feb. 9.

"It is hoped the university will give the student an opportunity to continue his studies," Fu quoted Wen as saying in a statement posted on the ministry's website.

"As a Chinese saying goes, it is more precious than gold for a young person to turn around to redress mistakes," Wen said. "It is hoped that this student will see his mistake and seek to understand a real and developing China," he said.

Enrico Mentana, the editorial director of Berlusconi's banner network Channel Five, has resigned in a flap over the death of Eluana Englaro. Channel Five did not cancel or interrupt the transmission of "Big Brother" despite the dramatic events.

<rant>

Watching this press conference from Obama, I have to say: God fucking damn it, Obama.  You see the problem with the economy, you've got religion on it, and the best you come up with is a motherfucking $800bn hunk of spit in the fucking bucket.  You stupid son of a bitch.

Whole God-damned press conference.  Stand-issue Keynesianism.  Right, right, right.  So what the fuck?

And these motherfuckers, Ben Nelson and Susan Collins, these sorry sacks of fucking shit...

[Drew's Crystal Ball of GAAAAAHHHHH™ Technology]

</rant>

Be nice to America. Or we'll bring democracy to your country.