Six In The Morning

EU leaders agree on banking supervisor
The deal, reached at a summit of EU leaders in Brussels, represents a shaky compromise between France and Germany.

Last Modified: 19 Oct 2012 06:37
European Union leaders have announced they had agreed to create a single supervisor for banks in countries that use the euro, and said it would "probably"' become operational sometime next year. The deal, reached at a summit of EU leaders in Brussels on Friday, represents a shaky compromise between the Germans and French, who had been tussling over how to shore up the eurozone's banking system. France has been pushing to get all 6,000 banks in the 17 countries under the supervision of one European body by the end of this year. Leaders agreed in June that, once a supervisor is in place, struggling financial institutions would be able to tap Europe's emergency bailout fund, the European Stability Mechanism, directly. At the moment, money to help put banks has to go through a country's government - placing more strain on state finances. In Ireland's case, the government's attempts to rescue failing banks forced it into a bailout. Some fear Spain could face that fate, too.

Exclusive: The scientists who turned fresh air into petrol
Is scientific breakthrough a milestone on the road to clean energy?

STEVE CONNOR FRIDAY 19 OCTOBER 2012
A small British company has produced the first "petrol from air" using a revolutionary technology that promises to solve the energy crisis as well as helping to curb global warming by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Air Fuel Synthesis in Stockton-on-Tees has produced five litres of petrol since August when it switched on a small refinery that manufactures gasoline from carbon dioxide and water vapour. The company hopes that within two years it will build a larger, commercial-scale plant capable of producing a ton of petrol a day. It also plans to produce green aviation fuel to make airline travel more carbon-neutral.

Greek poverty so bad families 'can no longer afford to bury their dead'
Second general strike in less than a month takes place amid latest round of draconian measures

Helena Smith in Athens The Guardian, Friday 19 October 2012
Vanna Mendaleni is a middle aged Greek woman who until now has not had vehement feelings about the crisis that has engulfed her country. But that changed when the softly spoken undertaker, closing her family-run funeral parlour, joined thousands of protesters on Thursday in a mass outpouring of fury over austerity policies that have plunged ever growing numbers of Greeks into poverty and fear. "After three years of non-stop taxes and wage cuts it's got to the point where nothing has been left standing," she said drawing on a cigarette. "It's so bad families can no longer afford to even bury their dead. Bodies lie unclaimed at public hospitals so that the local municipality can bury them."

Press freedom is under pressure in Tunisia
Journalists in Tunisia have gone on strike for the first time since the country won its independence. They accuse the government of restricting freedom of speech. Is press freedom in danger after the revolution?

PRESS FREEDOM
Several hundred journalists rallied outside their union's headquarters in Tunis earlier this week, chanting "Freedom for Tunisia's press." Union members from abroad as well as Tunisian opposition politicians also turned out to support the activists. The nationwide strike dominates the talk on radio and television, and the banner of the national journalist union, SNJT, can be clearly seen on numerous websites.

The Battle for China's Most Powerful Office
China will replace its leadership at the next Communist Party convention in early November. Despite well-laid plans, a bitter power struggle has emerged between two politicians. One, Xi Jinping, seems destined to become the country's next leader. The other, Bo Xilai, is in prison and his wife facing possible execution. Here, the story of a troubled Communist Party transition.

By Erich Follath and Wieland Wagner
The United States has the White House, Russia the Kremlin, France the Elysée Palace and Germany the Federal Chancellery, but what the People's Republic of China has is a secret. High, red walls shield the country's leaders in this mysterious place, armed security personnel are posted in front of heavily guarded buildings with poetic names like the "Hall of Purple Light," and hidden cameras monitor every step taken in the direction of China's inner sanctum.

Honduras to reevaluate gun control laws: How will it impact violence in the region?
In Honduras, citizens are allowed up to five personal firearms. Its lax laws contribute to high murder rates and make it a source for the region's arms traffickers.

By Edward Fox, InSight Crime / October 18, 2012
The Honduran government is reportedly set to conduct a review of its gun laws in an apparent effort to combat rising violence levels, though equal emphasis will need to be made on addressing endemic corruption and weak institutions to solidify any gains. Matias Funes, a representative from the independent Commission on Public Security Reform (CRSP), said on Oct. 16 that Honduras’ gun laws are in need of urgent revision if efforts are to be made to combat the country’s endemically high level of violence, reported La Tribuna.