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New Strategy Being Developed In The War On Infectious Diseases
Many of the drugs we use to fight infections lose their effectiveness as the targeted pathogens acquire resistance to them. So researchers have begun adopting a new strategy. Instead of using drugs to kill the offending pathogens, they're trying to design drugs that can block their entry into human cells before they can cause disease. Sooner or later, says Abhay Satoskar, a professor of pathology at Ohio State University, drug resistance becomes a problem in the battle against disease-causing organisms or pathogens. “Any time you have an agent that targets a pathogen, the pathogens are smart and eventually come up with a strategy to make that drug or agent. A new study may help end the perpetual debate over how best to maintain or slim down to a healthful weight. Researchers found that, while there are many elements to a good diet, carefully limiting calorie intake is the most important part of controlling one's weight. Sixty percent of U.S. adults are overweight and more than thirty percent are obese. But Americans aren’t the only ones struggling with their waistlines. The World
or agent ineffective,” said Satoskar. Most bacteria, viruses and parasites must enter human immune system cells to reproduce and cause illness. Satoskar is leading an effort at Ohio State to develop a compound that blocks a pathogen’s entry into the cells. The experimental drug targets a natural cell enzyme, called P13K, that allows pathogens to pass through the cell wall. The compound changes the chemical activity of P13K, blocking entry into cells. The team demonstrated the effectiveness of the cell-blocking strategy with the parasite that causes leishmaniasis, a tropical illness caused by a parasite transmitted in the
bite of a sand fly. Also known as leishmania, an estimated 1.5 million new cases are diagnosed each year. The disease causes disfiguring open sores on the skin. Not only is the illness indigenous in many parts of the world, but experts say it is now turning up in U.S. troops returning home from Afghanistan. There is a drug to treat leishmania, says Satoskar, that’s up to 90 percent effective in curing the disease. But Satoskar says the medication has a lot of side effects, including anemia, weight loss and neurological problems, and many people don’t complete the 21-day course of injections. Using laboratory mice, Satoskar says
Study Finds Calories, Not Protein, Are Key to Weight Control
researchers compared the effectiveness of the existing drug to the targeted, therapy his team is developing. Satoskar says the new agent worked just as well in treating leishmania, and the cell-blocking strategy could potentially work against other diseasecausing organisms or pathogens. “Now the issue is how to do you fine-tune it? And that could be fine tune(d) based on different pathogens, because different pathogens could use different pathways to get in,” Satoskar said. Satoskar also is interested in learning whether the experimental compound could be used as a skin spray to prevent infection with leishmania when someone is bitten by a sand fly. An article on preventing leishmania by blocking parasites from mice immune cells is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Health Organization reports that obesity has reached epidemic proportions globally, with more than one billion adults overweight. Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian studies the relationship between diet and chronic diseases at the Harvard School of Public Health. "We need a shift, a paradigm shift, in our focus on and attention to diet," Mozaffarian said. Dr. Bray's study on protein, calories and weight gain was published in the Journal of the AMA.
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Google fires back at Twitter: you took yourself out of search
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The war of words between Google and Twitter has escalated, with Google responding to Twitter’s accusation that plans to further integrate Google+ into its regular search results is “bad for people”. “We are a bit surprised by Twitter’s comments, because they chose not to renew their agreement with us last summer,” read a post on Google’s Google+ page on Wednesday in the US, which Google confirmed to Mashable was its official statement on the matter. “Since then we have observed their rel=nofollow instructions.” Rel=nofollow is code that prevents search engines from following links. Google’s agreement with Twitter gave the search engine access to public tweets. The agreement expired in July and was
not renewed. Now Google is implying it was Twitter that chose not to renew the deal. Twitter had criticised Google’s new social search feature, which it calls Search plus Your World, on Tuesday. “As we’ve seen time and time again, news breaks first on Twitter,” its statement said. “We’re concerned that as a result of Google’s changes, finding this information will be much harder for everyone.”
But if Twitter had made it difficult for Google to include Tweets in its results, which is what Google seems to be implying, it would be just as much to blame as the search engine for making its breaking news hard to find. Reporter Danny Sullivan cornered Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt at CES on Wednesday and asked him about Google’s relationship with Twitter.
Market Report: Arm Shares Dip As Intel Enters Smartphone Battle
The battle between Arm Holdings and Intel looks like it is heating up. Normally used to taking market share from its rivals, Arm was left deep in the red last night by the news that Intel is about to give the chipmaker a taste of its own medicine and take it on in the burgeoning smartphone market. Punters in the group woke yesterday to find out that Intel had announced it was teaming up with both Motorola and Lenovo to produce the first smartphones using its chips, as well as tablets. The revelation, made at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, means Arm will face competition in an area where it is currently dominant. As a result, it was left 15.5p weaker at 588.5p, with Liberum Capital calling the developments a "significant" negative. Analysts from the broker added that although they expected Intel to take no more than 10 per cent of market share, "we do not think even such a loss is factored into Arm's share price". One factor that has helped Arm in the past has been the regular recurrence of chatter that it could be snapped up by its major customer, Apple. Yesterday, however, wild and vague speculation emerged claiming the world's largest company could be
Sullivan told Schmidt he thought one feature of Search plus Your World, which recommends relevant people to follow on Google+ but not other networks, is “the equivalent of saying ‘hey, you can only find information about finance on Google finance. You cannot find information about finance anywhere else’”. “Let me remind you that to do the ‘everywhere else’ with Google finance — we had permission,” responded Schmidt. When Sullivan said he thought Google had enough permission to include links from networks like Twitter in its search results, Schmidt said: “That’s your opinion. If you could arrange a letter from Facebook and Twitter to us, that would be helpful.” interested in a possible move for ITV. The X Factor broadcaster is a frequent subject of takeover chatter, and the latest revival also saw it being linked yet again with a potential approach from private equity or Simon Cowell. Yet although rumours of possible interest from Apple was widely played down by traders, one City voice argued that while an acquisition of ITV would represent a huge departure in strategy for Apple, it may not be as far-fetched as it might seem.He also noted, rather dryly, that at least it would stop any problems with the name of the television platform Apple is believed to be working on.
Barcelona Exploits Earn Messi Third Ballon D’or
never won a World Cup or Olympic title and does not have a professional women’s league. “I do what I can, but it has to come from everyone, especially from the media, because without media there is no sponsorship, and from the federation,” she said. “There are lots of people who could do something to improve the structure of women’s football in our country, we have been pushing for a long time but it doesn’t just depend on us.”
Cook Mounts Lone Stand For England
ZURICH: Lionel Messi’s exploits with Barcelona won him the World Player of the Year (FIFA Ballon d’Or) award for an unprecedented third year in a row on Monday at the age of 24. The Argentine swept home with 47.88 percent of the votes in the survey among national team coaches, captains and selected media, receiving the trophy from former Brazil striker Ronaldo, himself a three-times winner of the award though not successively. Although FIFA listed only the players’ nationality when they published the full results, it was clearly Messi’s stunning performances for Barcelona which earned him the plaudits. Messi, followed by Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo and Barcelona team mate Xavi in the poll, was last season’s top scorer in the Champions League with 12 goals in Barca’s triumphant campaign and netted 31 times as they won La Liga. By contrast, he was roundly criticised after Argentina, hosting the Copa America, went out in the quarter-finals to Uruguay in July. Meanwhile, Uruguay’s exploits in winning the
Copa America failed to earn them a nomination in the coach and players’ shortlists, or even a mention in the team of the year. Uruguay coach Oscar Washington Tabarez was fifth in the coach of the year poll, won by Barcelona’s Pep Guardiola. Manchester United’s Alex Ferguson was second and Real Madrid’s Jose Mourinho third. Former France captain Michel Platini said afterwards Messi would still have to shine for Argentina before he could be considered among the greats. “Look at Diego Maradona, everyone remembers what he did in 1986, nobody remembers so much what he did with Napoli, with Barcelona,” Platini, president of UEFA, told reporters. “It’s still the World Cup which still sticks in people’s minds. “Messi will always be great with or without the World Cup … but the World Cup does something special.” Before the ceremony, Messi, who has played in two World Cups and seen Argentine lose in the quarter-finals to Germany on both occasions, admitted Argentina were
not at their best. “The reality is that we are very far from being the best national team in the world,” he told a news conference. “There are many in front of us but we have the ambition and the desire. There is still a lot of time to go before (the next World Cup in) 2014 and we have to improve a lot but we will get there.” OUTSTANDING SERVICE Brazil and Santos forward Neymar won the award for the goal of the year, a stunning effort in a Brazilian championship match against Flamengo, while Ferguson took the FIFA presidential award for outstanding service to the sport. The ceremony, co-presented by former Netherlands striker Ruud Gullit, also featured Japan’s Homare Sawa being voted women’s player of the year, ending a run of five successive wins for Brazil’s Martha. Norio Sasaki of Japan won the women’s soccer Coach of the Year award after his side won the World Cup. Beforehand, Martha had made her familiar appeal for more support for Brazilian women’s football. Despite her personal awards, Brazil have
Alastair Cook played a near lone and highlyskilled hand to defy the Pakistan Cricket Board XI's pace and spin on day one of England's final warm-up match at the GCA ground. Opener Cook was last out for 133 in 269 for nine declared on an awkward surface, before the PCB responded with 23 for none in eight overs to stumps. England had faltered first to 14 for two against Mohammad Talha (four for 43) with the new ball and then 121 for five against the leg-spin of Yasir Shah (five for 75) but Cook, employing decisive and sure footwork, stood firm. Talha took two wickets in four balls to put England in trouble in the seventh over after they were asked to bat first in this three-day match. The swing bowler, included in Pakistan's Test squad here, had Andrew Strauss caught-behind with a very good delivery - and then number three Jonathan Trott offered no shot to go lbw to one that nipped back. The afternoon began badly for England when Kevin Pietersen fell in the first over, picking the wrong ball to force away off the back foot and bowled by Yasir. Ian Bell was lbw to his second ball, attempting to sweep Yasir, and Eoin Morgan disappointingly picked out deep backward-square with a more expansive version of the same shot soon afterwards.
England Make Sweeping Changes For Six Nations Squad
England have named nine uncapped players in their 32-man Six Nations squad.The fresh faces included by head coach Stuart Lancaster are Saracens backs Owen Farrell (pictured) and Brad Barritt, Scarlets number eight Ben Morgan - who turned down Wales recently in favour of representing England Northampton trio Calum Clark, Phil Dowson and Lee Dickson, Harlequins duo Joe Marler and Jordan Turner-Hall and Wasps hooker Rob Webber. Among the stars left out are Tindall, Mark Cueto, Nick Easter, Shontayne Hape and Riki Flutey. Delon Armitage and Matt Banahan have both been demoted to the Saxons squad. "Lots of players have been putting their hands up and there were some tough calls to make," said Lancaster. "However, in line with the selection philosophy about starting a new era for English rugby, we have taken the chance to make changes and give players opportunities to be part of the journey towards [the World Cup in] 2015. "We are looking both at the present and just as importantly the future. We wanted to get the right balance in potential and experience and giving us the flexibility to play in different ways. "We need to use the upcoming games to build the collective experience and we are confident we have got the right mix to take England forward into this Six Nations and beyond." Mouritz Botha, Charlie Sharples, Chris Robshaw and Joe Simpson also have only one cap apiece. Four Saxons players will in addition provide tem porary injury cover: Bath's Dave Atwood, Saracens full-back Alex
Goode, Leicester's Geoff Parling and Gloucester's Henry Trinder. Among those, only Atwood has previously played for the elite side. In the squad but suffering injury problems are flyhalf Toby Flood, centre Manu Tuilagi and locks Courtney Lawes and Louis Deacon. Scrum-half Richard Wigglesworth and prop Andrew Sheridan are out injured long-term. 2003 World Cup winners Jonny Wilkinson, Lewis Moody and hooker Steve Thompson all announced their retirements after the last World Cup in New Zealand, at which England were heavily criticised off the pitch while reaching only the quarterfinals on it. The controversy continued with leaked feedback from players regarding the coaching regime of Martin Johnson made to the RFU. "We have lost some great players who have worn the England shirt with pride and distinction - Lewis, Steve and Jonny - and we should thank them for all they did," Lancaster added. Simon Shaw and James Haskell are unavailable after moves overseas Full squad:Mouritz Botha, Calum Clark, Alex Corbisiero, Dan Cole, Tom Croft, Louis Deacon, Phil Dowson, Dylan Hartley, Courtney Lawes, Joe Marler, Lee Mears, Ben Morgan, Tom Palmer, Chris Robshaw, Matt Stevens, Rob Webber, David Wilson, Tom Wood Chris Ashton, Brad Barritt, Mike Brown, Lee Dickson, Owen Farrell, Toby Flood, Ben Foden, Charlie Hodgson, Joe Simpson, Charlie Sharples, David Strettle, Manusamoa Tuilagi, Jordan Turner-Hall, Ben Youngs. Some experienced stars including former captain Mike Tindall omitted from the squad.
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This year's awards are set to be the biggest yet with competition from across the North. Big Chip will partner with media group Trinity Mirror who will publicise the awards in their flagship northern titles Manchester Evening News, Liverpool Post and The Journal in Newcastle. A Trinity Mirror spokesperson said: “We are delighted to be the media partner for the Big Chip Awards. The digital and creative sector is of huge importance to the regional economy and these awards are a great chance for firms to spread the message about their products, services and achievements.” This year an important rule change will give a better chance for bigger projects that take more than a year to show results. Projects - such as campaigns or products that were launched more than a year ago but have shown substantial,
Big Chip Now Open For Entries
measurable progress in the last year will now be eligible. The 2012 call also sees the introduction of a new category Best Use of Gaming, open to viral and other games types as well as console games. The high-powered judging panel will be chaired again by Michael Nutley, and includes Ajaz Ahmed, founder of Freeserve and Thinking Digital founder Herb Kim. Winners of three awards in 2011, Ampersand Commerce are quite clear about the benefits of being shortlisted and then winning at Big Chip. MD Darryl Adie said the Big Chip awards "really raised awareness of our agency". Following the wins, Ampersand have had an exciting year "winning several big name clients and recognition as
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experts in the Magento community." Full details of the awards categories are online now, plus a comprehensive "how-to" guide on how to complete the online application form, with tips on making a winning entry. Manchester Digital kicks off the new year with a call for entries for Big Chip 2012. Entries will close on 5th March.
The Launchpad A series of 5 masterclasses covering all aspects of business and performance for creative businesses. The aim of this programme is to provide insight and develop the skills of business leaders and managers to develop their core business components including; the overall vision and
strategy, processes, people, financial matters and customers. The five 3 hour sessions will cover Vision, Numbers, Processes, People and Customers. Also included in the programme is expert guest speakers, a 1 hour 1-2-1 meeting with a business coach and telephone and email support. Each session will also include handouts, coffee, tea and cakes / pastries. And at the last session we will provide lunch and networking.
High Speed Rail Link Green Signal Expected
LONDON —A report commissioned by the British government has rejected alternatives to a planned high-speed train project -- the clearest sign yet that the 32 billionpound (US$49 billion) scheme will go ahead. The Network Rail review says that alternatives will cause long delays to travellers during the building stages and fail to deal with overcrowding
The Bombardier Zefiro 380 high speed train is shown in an artist's rendering.THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Bombardier
on trains. The high-speed rail project aims to shorten journey times between London and Birmingham, and later stages include connections to more northern cities. Many lawmakers and environmentalists oppose the project, saying the planned route will ruin England's picturesque countryside, and that it is too expensive and will not benefit most Britons.Scotland has demanded Britain's first high-speed rail link north of London should come to Scotland, after UK government sources suggested they were ready to press ahead with phase one.The Scottish Government estimates it could cost a further £15bn to bring the line from Manchester to Scotland, with Holyrood contributing about £9bn.
Impact Of Immigration Is Far Wider Than Many Realise The benefits of overseas workers to the London economy are far wider than many policymakers realise, whilst the potential damage caused by the government's reforms to the migration system could be far greater than first envisaged. This is according to London Chamber of Commerce and Industry's (LCCI) latest report, Migration reform: caps don't fit. With political pressure continually increasing on the government to reduce the number of migrants coming into the UK, this report aims to change the terms of debate on immigration by highlighting the wide-ranging benefits global talent has on businesses, and SMEs in particular. It also shows that the latest migration reforms, which included the introduction of a cap on nonEU migration as well a number of changes to the Points-Based System, are already harming businesses, and will cause further damage when the economy picks up again and firms look to hire. Key findings of the report include:
Non-EU migrants are essential to all London's businesses, not just large, corporate firms Almost two thirds of all London businesses (63 per cent) and 59 per cent of the capital's smallest firms (1-19 employees) have either employed non-EU migrant workers in the past five years or have considered doing so.
The recruitment of non-EU migrants increases export opportunities Nearly a quarter of businesses (24 per cent) and 29 per cent of the smallest firms (1-19 employees) that have looked outside of the EU for staff did so because they felt a non-EU migrant would help them grow into mar
kets beyond the EU.
Capping non-EU migration exacerbates the UK's skills shortage
Almost a third of employers (30 per cent) that have looked outside of the EU for staff did so because of a short supply of domestic or EU candidates with required skills, and the same number did so because of the language skills offered by non-EU migrants. Skilled workers brought in from outside of the EU are able to transfer their skills to the resident workforce through on the job training.
Government reforms will damage economic growth
Almost a quarter of firms in London (23 per cent) said that the changes introduced in April 2011 have made it more difficult for them to fill vacancies in their workforce, whilst the same number (23 per cent) said if a non-EU migrant was the best person for a job but a company was not able to employ them, they would not recruit at all.
Political considerations are being put before economic evidence
Over three quarters of firms in London (76 per cent) believe the government's migration policy is driven by political considerations and not economic ones. Commenting on the report's findings, Colin Stanbridge, Chief Executive of London Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) said: "We fully understand the political and social pressures placed on the government to reduce net migration, but our report shows that by preventing UK businesses from accessing the best global talent these pressures will be made worse not better. The best way to provide long-term, sustainable employment op
portunities for British workers is by ensuring that our firms are able to grow, but our research shows that the government's reforms are already stifling the growth of some companies. "Businesses need certainty to be able to plan ahead and steady access to the global talent pool. It is not just large corporations that rely on non-EU workers but small businesses as well, and many do so because of the export opportunities this can create in markets outside of the EU. The government must be aware that its reforms to the UK's mi-
gration system threaten to undermine two of its biggest promises to the business community: that the UK must be 'open for business' and that we must return to being an 'exporting nation'". Echoing the comments, George Kessler CBE, Deputy Chairman of Kesslers International Ltd said: "I travel regularly to China and Hong Kong and am horrified by the effect the government's legislation is having on the perception of the UK, which is no longer seen as an open country to do business. Several of my partner companies are now looking to other European countries for their European office locations. "On a more parochial
level the government's reforms will mean that we will no longer be able to bring in expert craftsmen and women to teach our apprentices skills in house. Historically this training, in addition to day release courses, has enabled us to train skilled machine setters who enable us to be competitive against European competition".
Unilever UK workers to stage more strikes: unions
Thousands of British workers at consumer goods maker Unilever Plc/NV are to stage a series of strikes in an
escalation of a dispute over plans to axe their final salary pension scheme, unions said Saturday. Last month, union members staged a oneday stoppage, the first strike in Britain in the group's 81-year history, and a rare walkout over pensions at a UK blue-chip company. Leaders of three unions, Unite, GMB and Usdaw, on Saturday decided to call strikes for up to 12 days after nine months of failed talks. "Unilever need to get the message that profitable companies will not be allowed to walk away from their savings commitments to their loyal workforce," Allan Black, national officer of
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Unilever UK workers strikes
Continued----national officer of the GMB, said. The Anglo-Dutch group, which employs around 7,000 workers at 12 plants in Britain, is looking to move all 5,000 members promised final salary pensions to a career average scheme by July 2012. The Unite union said this will see the retirement income of thousands of staff slashed by between 20 and 40 percent. The company abandoned final salary pensions for new joiners in 2008 and 2,000 workers are already on the less generous scheme. The Unilever UK pension scheme currently has a deficit of about 680 million pounds ($1.05 billion). The three unions have about 2,350 members working at Unilever and say the company has not held talks over the dispute since October.
Ireland Will Tap Market At End-2013
DUBLIN (Reuters) Ireland will be ready to re-enter bond markets as planned at the end of next year but will borrow commercially again only if it wants to, a senior government minister said on Tuesday, amid talk Dublin may eventually need a second bailout from the EU and the IMF. Despite success in cutting its budget deficit, Ireland's aim of exiting its existing 85 billion euro (70 billion pound) rescue programme in 2013 is looking increasingly difficult as the euro zone debt crisis hits its growth outlook and keeps its sovereign debt yields sky-high. Analysts have said if Irish borrowing costs are still around 8 percent in 2013 then Dublin would have to tap European partners for additional official funding.
Swiss Central Bank Chief Hildebrand Resigns
The chairman of the Swiss National Bank, Philipp M. Hildebrand, resigned. Photo - Reuters
FRANKFURT — The head of the Swiss central bank unexpectedly resigned Monday, saying that doubts about currency trades he and his wife made last year threatened to undermine his ability to focus on steering the bank through a global financial crisis. The departure of the bank chief, Philipp M. Hildebrand, 48, cut short the public career of a major international advocate of stricter banking regulation. He quit as the Swiss National Bank fought to keep the country’s currency from becoming so strong that Swiss companies could not sell products abroad.
But analysts predicted the central bank would maintain a limit it set on the franc’s appreciation against the euro, by vowing to buy unlimited amounts of foreign currency. “It may be that some speculators will try to test the market, but we’re convinced that the S.N.B. will continue to defend the exchange rate,” said You-Na Park, an analyst at Commerzbank in Frankfurt. Appearing before reporters in Bern, the Swiss capital, Mr. Hildebrand said he would also resign immediately from several international posts, including vice chairman of the Financial Stability
Board. The panel of central bankers and regulators has played a discreet but influential role in establishing rules for big international banks that are likely to be adopted by most large countries. The resignation was a surprise. Just last week, Mr. Hildebrand offered a detailed defense of his conduct, releasing personal financial statements related to currency trades made last year. He appeared to have the support of the council that oversees the Swiss National Bank.
“Switzerland is losing an outstanding central banker with excellent international connections, which have brought great benefit to our country,” the Bank Council of the Swiss National Bank said Monday. Mr. Hildebrand said he could not prove that he did not know about a transaction of 400,000 Swiss francs, or $500,000, by his wife, Kashya, last August, just before the bank stepped up its intervention in currency markets. The bank released an e-mail from Mrs. Hildebrand to the couple’s adviser at Bank Sarasin in which she wrote, “We would like to increase our dollar exposure to 50 percent.” Mr. Hildebrand
acknowledged that use of the word “we” would cause some people to doubt his version of events. Mr. Hildebrand said he sent an e-mail to the adviser the next day ordering that no further trades be made without his approval, and he informed the S.N.B.’s general counsel of the trade. “I never lied,” Mr. Hildebrand said. But, he said, “I can’t once and for all prove that it was the way I said it was.” He said he was resigning because he feared the accusations might have been a burden “during a time when total focus is needed on the duties” of the office. “Credibility is a central banker’s most valuable asset,” he said. Thomas J. Jordan, vice chairman of the S.N.B. governing board, will be the acting leader of the bank. Mr. Jordan is an economist who has worked at the bank since 1997. He is known for being slightly more hardline on inflation than Mr. Hildebrand. But analysts said they did not expect a major shift in course. “We do not expect any change in the conduct of the Swiss monetary policy,” Julien Manceaux, an analyst at ING Bank, wrote to clients, adding, the exchange rate floor “is here to stay, with or without Philipp Hildebrand.”
For much of the last three years, the S.N.B. has battled to keep investors from bidding up the value of the franc, which is seen as a haven from global turmoil. Its rise against the euro and other currencies threatened to make Swiss exports too costly. Mr. Hildebrand said he would also leave the board of the Bank for International Settlements, an institution based in Basel, Switzerland, that acts as a clearinghouse for national central banks. He will also resign as one of two Swiss representatives on the board of governors of the International Monetary Fund. “This is a step which saddens me greatly,” Mr. Hildebrand said. “I depart on good terms, and I would like to think I have been a damn good central banker.” Mark Carney, the governor of the Bank of Canada and chairman of the Financial Stability Board, said in a statement that Mr. Hildebrand “has been instrumental in helping to manage the response to the global financial crisis and in developing major reforms to strengthen the resiliency and stability of the international financial system.” While Mr. Hildebrand earned renown outside Switzerland, he had critics at home. The right-wing Swiss People’s Party accused him of squandering the national wealth on intervention to buy euros and other currencies, whose value continued to fall against the Swiss franc, resulting in losses for the central bank. The party acknowledged playing a role in Mr. Hildebrand’s ouster, serving as the conduit for information taken from Bank Sarasin. A former information technology worker there faces criminal charges of violating bank secrecy laws in the case. Mr. Hildebrand probably will not be missed by many in the banking industry, either. He is a former banker — he and his wife met while both worked at Moore Capital Management, a hedge fund in New York.
After the S.N.B. rescued the Swiss bank UBS in 2008, Mr. Hildebrand became a visible advocate of measures to limit the level of risk that banks take. He suggested Monday that his stands might have contributed to the vehemence of the attacks on him. He said a friend sent him an e-mail quoting Woodrow Wilson: “If you want to make enemies, change some things.” Mrs. Hildebrand apologized to the Swiss people and to her husband, Reuters reported. “I failed my husband by not considering the perception of a ‘conflict of interest’ created by my purchase of dollars,” she said. “My husband is a man of the utmost integrity, and I deeply regret that my actions might have led anyone to question this.”
RBS To Press On With Promised Bonuses
Royal Bank of Scotland is determined to press ahead with plans to pay out promised bonuses to investment bank boss John Hourican and other top staff, despite growing rhetoric from the government about excessive pay. The Financial Times reported on Monday that RBS investment banking boss Mr Hourican is in line for a £4m payout under the terms of a deferred grant of shares from 2009, further escalating tensions with the government. The grant comes as RBS’s investment bank – like many others – is struggling to make money, with thousands of jobs set to be axed. RBS, which is 83 per cent owned by taxpayers, has long been the focal point of government ire over banker pay. The pay row is the latest evidence of a widening rift between RBS’s and the government.
Cameron Urges 'more Commercial' British Films 29
AFP - Prime Minister David Cameron urged British filmmakers on Wednesday to concentrate on making more mainstream movies, ahead of a visit to the famous Pinewood studios, home of the James Bond films. A government review is expected to recommend next week that public funds be directed at films that can be commercially and not just culturally successful, and call on the British Film Institute (BFI) to develop an export strategy. The film industry currently contributes an estimated
ÂŁ4.2 billion (5 billion euros, $6.5 billion) to the British economy, boosted by recent successes such as the as the "Harry Potter" films and the Oscar-winning "The King's Speech". But ahead of a visit to Pinewood, where the Margaret Thatcher biopic "The Iron Lady" and the latest "Sherlock Holmes" were shot, Cameron said Britain should "aim even higher, building on the incredible success of recent years". "Our role, and that of the BFI, should be to support the sector in becoming
Pictured Above -PineWood Studios
Prime Minister David Cameron urged British filmmakers to concentrate on making more mainstream movies, on visit to Pinewood studios
even more dynamic and entrepreneurial, helping UK producers to make commercially successful pictures that rival the quality and impact of the best international productions," he said. However, veteran British film director Ken Loach said it was not that easy to pick commercially successful projects. "If everybody knew what would be successful before it was made, there would be no problem," the director of "Looking for Eric", "The Wind That Shakes The Barley" and "Kes" told to television.
"What you have to do is fund a lot of different, varied projects and then some will be successful, some will be original, some will be creative and you will get a very vibrant industry."He added that another problem was the dominance of multiplex cinema chains in Britain, which tended to favour the same high-budget US films at the expense of independent productions."Unless you can really see a wide variety of films, you don't have a vibrant film industry and we get a very narrow menu," he said.
London: Furious over controversial BBC presenter Jeremy Clarkson mocking Indian culture during a Christmas special programme while driving in India, senior Labour MP Keith Vaz on Saturday demanded an apology. The controversy seems to have even sucked in the 10 Downing Street. Indian origin Vaz said the BBC should be ashamed for broadcasting gags about India that have evoked several complaints and allegations of racism. The controversial comments about India's trains, toilets, clothing, food and history were made by Clarkson during
the Christmas special of Top Gear programme. Vaz, chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee, said: "Mr Clarkson needs to stick to talking about cars, not cultures. And he should apologise for his lack of taste. He and the BBC have done India a great disservice with this programme". He added: "Some of the contents of the programme are clearly offensive and not the least bit funny. They were completely pointless. Mr Clarkson is not a comedian. He talks about his cars and that is why he gets on the show. Why do him and the BBC bother putting this out?" The BBC has confirmed receiving 23 complaints.
BBC's Top Gear Host Clarkson Mocks India; Mp Demands Apology
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France, Germany Call for Boost in European Jobs, Economy
French and German leaders say growing the economy and creating jobs should be Europe's top priorities for 2012. French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel also defended a controversial proposal to tax financial transactions during a meeting Monday in Berlin. French and German leaders maintained a solid front on proposals that included more fiscal discipline but also efforts to inject life into the sluggish European economy, create jobs and make Europe more competitive. In broadcast remarks from a press conference in Berlin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said France and Germany are determined to solidify the finances of the 17-member eurozone while also relaunching growth. Their aim is not just to stabilize the euro, she said, but to create a strong, modern and competitive Europe. Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy also called for injecting more capital into a European bailout fund, for Greece to honor its reform promises and for European leaders to act more swiftly in finding solutions to the debt and banking crisis. Overseeing Europe's two largest economies, Merkel and Sarkozy have been the driving force in pushing through a new fiscal compact endorsed by most European Union countries in December. Britain is the only country that clearly bowed out of the deal. The French and German leaders said they hoped the details of the pact will be in place this month and that it will be signed by March 1. Analyst Laurent Maruani, of the HEC business school in Paris, said the two heads of state are determined to
present a unified front. "Now that they have been pulling and pushing Europe in all directions, they cannot step back. Stepping back would be a disaster for them," said Maruani. Merkel and Sarkozy also endorsed a controversial idea to tax financial transactions that Sarkozy has vowed to push through alone if he does not get support from other EU members.
The French president said those financial players responsible for getting the eurozone into its current crisis also should pay for getting it out. If France does not push through the tax, he said, the idea may never be realized. Europe's sovereign debt and banking crisis dominated the EU agenda for much of 2011, and it is unlikely to disappear any time soon. France and Germany both face
threats of a possible downgrade of their debt rating, following similar downgrades of more ailing economies like Spain and Italy. On Monday, investors bought German shortterm debt at negative interest rates for the first time. The euro also has dipped to its lowest value in months compared to the U.S. dollar - another sign of ongoing jitters in the financial markets.
The European Union is heightening its pressure on Hungary for reforms, saying that it has failed to effectively control its budget deficit and that its new constitution may be unlawful. EU economy minister Olli Rehn said Wednesday that the Budapest government has failed to permanently keep its deficit spending below the EUmandated level of 3 percent of the country's economic output. "It is on an unsustainable path and will reach about 3 percent next year and thus again breach the reference value of the treaty. This is why we have
concluded that Hungary has not taken effective action in response to the council recommendations," said Rehn. Rehn said the EU could withhold development funds for Hungary if it does not curtail its spending. Meanwhile, the EU also said it is nearing completion of a review to determine whether Hungary's new constitution violates EU standards by curtailing the independence of the country's judges, the central bank and its data protection agency. Some critics say the constitutional changes pushed through by Prime
Minister Viktor Orban's parliamentary majority in December could return the one-time Soviet-bloc country to an authoritarian state. Hungary is seeking a bailout of up to $25 billion from the EU and International Monetary Union, but talks were suspended over the assistance after the central bank provisions were approved.Meanwhile, even Germany, Europe's economic powerhouse, said it is not immune from the effects of the continent's slowing economy and the effects of the twoyear governmental debt crisis.
EU Presses Hungary to Make Further Spending Cuts
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Rome's Chinese Community Mourns Deaths
The Chinese community is in mourning in Italy. Shops are closed and a funeral is to be held Thursday, after a Chinese father and his ninemonth-old daughter were gunned down in a robbery that went horribly wrong.The Chinese community in Italy wants justice and more security. The brutal killing, last week, of Zhou Zeng and his baby, Joy, was too much even for people who are used to keeping to themselves and not complaining. But this level of violence was unacceptable for many in the neighborhood, and the Chinese felt they could not remain silent this time.Thousands of Chinese took to the streets in Rome for a vigil on Wednesday evening, to call for greater security. Protesters marched through the city, holding large photos of Zeng and his daughter. They also held candles and white and yellow flowers and shouted out "No to violence." There was grief as well as indignation. Among protesters was Yan Xiaoping. He says this was a tragedy; this violence is to be considered against all immigrants.Xiaoping says no one can remain silent in the face of such behavior because a city like Rome cannot afford it. That is why people of other nationalities and hundreds of Italians also joined the march, which started in the heart of Rome's Chinatown and ended where the killing took place, in a suburb of the city.Italians are only too aware the crime level has been on the rise in the capital.
Labour In Independence Poll Debate The political row over Scotland's future in the United Kingdom is to shift back to Edinburgh with calls for Alex Salmond to hold immediate all-party talks on the independence referendum.Labour will use debating time at the Scottish Parliament to press the First Minister to agree a timetable for a single-question ballot overseen by the Electoral Commission - not a specially-organised Scottish body.It follows days of wrangling between Scottish and UK ministers on whether Holyrood or Westminster should set the terms of the vote, which Mr Salmond pledged to hold in autumn 2014. On Wednesday, Prime Minister David Cameron and Labour leader Ed Miliband joined together in pledging to fight for
Scotland to remain part of the UK. Mr Cameron said he was "sad" that the question of independence had been raised but was ready to work with the Scottish Government to ensure that a "legal, fair and decisive" referendum can take place. He said: "I passionately believe in the future of our United Kingdom. I passionately believe we are stronger together rather than breaking apart. Frankly, I am sad we are even having this debate, because I support the United Kingdom so strongly, but we have to respect the fact that Scotland voted for a separatist party at the Scottish parliamentary elections." He had offered the SNP administration in Edinburgh the opportunity to run what he termed a binding referendum. But Mr Salmond - who will speak for the Scottish Government at Holyrood - said the Conservative-led UK Government should "butt out". The SNP was re-elected in May last year with an unprecedented majority on a pledge to hold a ballot on whether to end the political union of 1707. The SNP administration will publish its consultation document on the referendum in the week beginning January 23. A spokesman for the First Minister said: "We don't believe the UK Government should be imposing conditions on Scotland's referendum." He also said the options put to voters could include greater powers for Holyrood short of full independence - something polls have shown support for.
Warning Over Benefits Work Impact
Government departments do not fully understand the overall impact of an array of different means-tested benefits on incentives to work, a cross-party committee of MPs has warned. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said a single body needed to take responsibility for ensuring the ÂŁ87 billion of income-related allowances did not discourage people from working. There are currently 30 different means-tested benefits handled by nine Whitehall departments and 152 local authorities. The new Universal Credit is designed to make the welfare system simpler and more effective, but the PAC urged that it must take account of other means-tested awards such as council tax benefit and higher education bursaries. "It is not clear what effect some means-tested benefits have on claimants' incentives to work," the committee said. "Improving incentives to work is a key objective of Universal Credit. At present there is no clear picture of how the entire benefit system affects claimants' incentives to work."
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British Prime Minister Apologizes For Tourette's Comments
Britain's prime minister has issued an apology after comparing heckling from a senior lawmaker to "having someone with Tourette's sitting opposite you." David Cameron made the comment about Ed Balls, the opposition's shadow chancellor, in an interview in a British newspaper The Sunday Telegraph. Balls' gestures and comments have become a fixture of the prime minister's weekly grilling in the House of Commons. Downing Street officials said Cameron's remarks were made "off the cuff." A spokesman said the prime minister apologizes if anyone was offended by his comments. Tourette's syndrome is a neurological disorder characterized by recurrent involuntary movements, and sometimes vocal tics, including grunts, barks or words, especially obscenities.
Euro Losing Strength Against the Dollar
The euro has lost 5.1 percent versus the dollar over the past month. And a spate of poor eurozone economic data Friday further eroded its value, signaling a grim economic outlook for the European economy in 2012. At 13 years old, the euro is barely a teenager. But, so far, it has had an eventful life. At its inception, Germany, the currency zone’s biggest economy, was still digesting the huge costs of incorporating East Germany, and there were wider concerns about whether such an ambitious project of a common currency would even work.
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Britain has set out conditions under which Scotland can decide whether to sever centuries-old constitutional ties with Britain. The British government said Tuesday it will remove legal hurdles so Scots can hold a referendum on gaining independence from Britain for the first time since the early 18th century. First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond wants to delay the vote for several years so the independence movement in Scotland can gain momentum. But British Prime Minister David Cameron is urging Scotland to hold the referendum as soon as possible. Cameron opposes any breakup of the United Kingdom. The parliaments of England and Scotland voted more than 300 years ago to unite in a single kingdom called Great Britain.