Greece's New Democracy seeks bailout coalition - Reuters
ATHENS |
ATHENS (Reuters) - The head of Greece's New Democracy party began talks to form a government on Monday after winning an election that sets him the daunting task of imposing punishing austerity measures in a near-bankrupt economy while containing rising social tensions.
Party leader Antonis Samaras was due to meet Evangelos Venizelos, the head of the Socialist PASOK party at 1500 GMT after he received a mandate to form a government from Greek President Karolos Papoulias.
The once-mighty PASOK, now reduced to third place after the dramatic rise of the leftist anti-bailout party SYRIZA, said it would support Samaras but had not yet decided whether to join the government or just offer parliamentary backing.
Samaras said Greece would fully meet its commitments but added: "We will simultaneously have to make some necessary amendments to the bailout agreement, in order to relieve the people of crippling unemployment and huge hardships."
In deep recession, crushed under its huge public debt and forced to slash public spending and hike taxes repeatedly, Greece is struggling to restore its near-bankrupt economy, and a new government could face new protests after taking office.
"The crisis has been postponed, not necessarily averted," said Theodore Couloumbis, political analyst and vice-president of Athens-based think-tank ELIAMEP.
"For this government to last it has to show results. You can't continue with 50 percent youth unemployment and a fifth straight year of recession," he said.
SYRIZA, which had promised to tear up the bailout deal signed in March with the European Union and International Monetary Fund, scored strongly in the election, and party leader Alexis Tsipras promised to continue its opposition to the painful austerity measures demanded of Greece.
"I don't think anything good will come out of these elections," said Dinos Arabatzis, a 56 year-old taxi driver who voted for New Democracy.
"Whoever is in power now will get burned. Samaras will get burned, and Tsipras will come out much stronger if we go to elections again - that's what worries me," he said.
With nearly 100 percent of ballots counted in the election, a re-run of a poll on May 6 that left no party able to form a government, New Democracy had won 29.7 percent of the vote, ahead of SYRIZA on 27 percent, and PASOK on 12.3 percent.
A 50-seat bonus automatically given to the party that comes first would give a theoretical New Democracy-PASOK alliance 162 seats in the 300-seat parliament, enough for a majority broadly committed to the 130-billion-euro ($164 billion) bailout.
"The result showed people want the euro, but society remains divided. SYRIZA will be a militant opposition, possibly complicating the new government's efforts," a senior New Democracy official said on condition of anonymity.
"The new government must deliver a positive development soon - an easing of the bailout terms or a positive sign in the economy - or people will lose trust in a week."
MARKET RELIEF EVAPORATES
In the markets, trust had an even shorter shelf life. Though the FTSEurofirst 300 index rose 1.1 percent at the open, the index had shed all those gains before two hours were up, as the underlying problems in the euro zone brought investors back to earth. The euro's rise also evaporated.
More worryingly, Italian and Spanish borrowing costs rose strongly with yields on Spain's 10-year bonds at dangerously high levels of over 7 percent with equivalent Italian debt over 6 percent.
PASOK officials told Reuters that a meeting on Monday would decide how they would support Samaras - whether by participating fully in government, or by voting with the coalition in parliament. The smaller, anti-bailout Democratic Left party was also due to decide on Monday whether it would back the conservatives.
The new government may get some help from euro zone peers, relieved that SYRIZA had not won and set Greece on course for a euro exit with incalculable consequences for the rest of the 17-member bloc.
However, they have offered no prospect of any major overhaul of the bailout agreement, which requires Greece to find 11.7 billion euros in spending cuts in June to qualify for the next loan installment.
Greece has enough funds only last for a few weeks without more aid but European partners have become deeply suspicious of the commitment of Greek politicians to implementing unpopular austerity measures.
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said the substance of the bailout agreement was "not negotiable", but he said creditors might be willing to offer some flexibility on timing for some of the targets, given the time lost in campaigning.
"We're ready to talk about the timeframe as we can't ignore the lost weeks, and we don't want people to suffer because of that," he told German radio on Monday.
However, even if it were granted some leeway, a coalition that won only 40 percent of the vote would struggle to push through reforms in the face of deep public resentment of repeated rounds of tax hikes and pay and pension cuts.
Despite his loss Tsipras, 37, appeared buoyed by the election and rejected calls to join an all-party unity government, saying his party was now the main opposition force and promising to fight the bailout package.
His attitude has raised fears of a return to the anti-austerity protests that have left parts of Athens scarred by angry graffiti and patrolled by squads of police in riot gear.
"Obviously I voted for SYRIZA so it could win, but the left is becoming stronger by the day and I'm happy about that," said Panagiotis Panagiotou, 55, a butcher in central Athens whose business has been hit by the crisis.
"SYRIZA will be a very powerful opposition party and when we have elections again - which we will - it will be even stronger, if not first."
Underlining the signs of potential instability, the ultra-nationalist Golden Dawn party took 18 seats, repeating its success of May 6 and confirming its status as a force in Greek politics, carried by an angry mood of public protest.
(Additional reporting by Dina Kyriakidou and Karolina Tagaris, Writing by James Mackenzie; Editing by Will Waterman and Anna Willard)
Nomura excluded from $6 billion Japan Tobacco share sale - Reuters
TOKYO |
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan has excluded Nomura Holdings (8604.T) from working on the government's sale of roughly $6 billion worth of Japan Tobacco (2914.T) shares, in a blow to Japan's largest broker as it grapples with an insider trading scandal.
The Ministry of Finance said in a statement on Monday it had chosen JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N), Daiwa Securities (8601.T), Goldman Sachs (GS.N) and Mizuho Securities as underwriters for the share sale by the world's third-largest cigarette company.
But it was the absence of Nomura, which dominates Japan's underwriting market with an unrivaled network of retail clients across the country, that caught the market's attention.
"This is the sort of deal that one would have expected Nomura to be a shoe-in for," said Makarim Salman, head of Japan financials research at Jefferies in Tokyo.
"Investors will start to worry whether there will be other such announcements on the horizon, particularly with Japan Airlines' IPO coming up."
The decision came after Nomura earlier this month acknowledged for the first time that its employees had leaked confidential information on three separate public share offerings in 2010, confirming the findings of regulators, which have been probing the matter for months.
The finance ministry is planning to cut the government's stake in Japan Tobacco to one-third from half to raise money to help fund reconstruction efforts in areas devastated by last year's earthquake and tsunami.
The deal will easily rank as one of the largest equity offerings in Japan this year and was actively sought by banks eager to gain a track record with the government, even though the fees are expected to be relatively small.
SELECTION CRITERIA
Japan Airlines Co JAPACI.UL, which has emerged from bankruptcy, is looking to relist its shares on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in mid-September, in an IPO worth about 600 to 700 billion yen, according to a source with knowledge of the matter. Nomura has been selected as a global coordinator for that IPO.
Nomura had been one of nine investment banks shortlisted earlier this month in the first round of bidding for the Japan Tobacco share sale.
SMBC Nikko Securities, which ranks as the No. 2 underwriter in Japan so far this year, was also excluded from the offering in Monday's announcement by the finance ministry.
The finance ministry has employed a new numeric scorecard for selecting underwriters for the Japan Tobacco offering. Among other factors, the scorecard put a lot of weight in the second round of bidding on the broker's strategy for selling Japan Tobacco shares, its proposed fee, and compliance.
These factors could explain why JPMorgan and Mizuho were selected for the first time as underwriters for a Japanese government share sale, while experienced brokerages such as Nikko and Nomura were left off the deal.
The ministry may also have weighed the risk that Nomura would be punished by the financial regulator, since that would disqualify it as an underwriter of state-owned shares.
"The selection is just part of the preparation for the sale and actual timing or size of the sale has not been decided," the ministry statement said.
Nomura declined to comment on Monday about its exclusion from the deal.
(Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)
Aboriginal people file hundreds of human rights complaints - CBC
The Canadian Human Rights Commission has received more than 300 complaints from aboriginal people and First Nations groups since 2008, when legislation was changed to allow the commission to look at issues such as reserve housing and federal funding for reserve services.
"Aboriginal peoples, First Nations in particular, are looking at the Canadian Human Rights Commission as being a potential, as a catalyst for change of the living conditions on reserve," says David Langtry, the acting chief commissioner.
The Canadian Human Rights Act was amended in 2008 to include issues under the Indian Act, which had previously been excluded. The revised legislation applied immediately to the federal government, the commission says, while First Nations governments were given three years to prepare for the transition.
One of the complaints comes from the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation, in southern Ontario, where two young boys with learning disabilities need special education, equipment and supervision at school.
The federal government provides a certain amount of money every year for education, but Chief Bryan LaForme says there's a ceiling, with no flexibility for unique cases.
"If we lived on the other side of the tracks, that would be open and our young people — the special ed students — there would be no issues as to cost. That would be provided by the province for those young people," LaForme says.
The chief filed a complaint about the issue with the commission and recently learned it's going to a tribunal.
"There was no other avenue to take our complaint to until the legislation was passed about human rights becoming effective for First Nations."
New obligations under act
Laforme says First Nations also need resources, such as legal expertise, to help them resolve allegations of discrimination now that local bands have obligations and accountability under the Human Rights Act.
Langtry said there are many issues facing First Nations, particularly on reserves, pointing to concerns about everything from access to clean water, health, education, policing and child welfare.
He has been told there "could be a great reluctance to make a complaint because that person has to continue to live in that community"
But complaints have been filed — 162 against First Nations governments and 150 against the federal government.
One case involving the federal government was brought by the Assembly of First Nations and a child welfare group, who allege that funding for child welfare services on reserves is discriminatory because it's less than funding provided by provinces and territories for non-aboriginal children off-reserve.
In April, the Federal Court rejected the federal government's attempts to prevent First Nations groups from arguing for better funding for child welfare on reserves.
The federal government had tried to block the case, saying federal and provincial funding levels for services couldn't be compared.
The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal initially sided with the government’s view and dismissed the case. But the Federal Court disagreed and ordered the tribunal to hold a new hearing with a new panel. The attorney general has appealed the Federal Court's ruling.
With files from CBC's Alison Crawford and The Canadian PressU.S. kids getting more ADHD drugs, fewer antibiotics - Reuters UK
NEW YORK |
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The number of drugs dispensed to U.S. minors has dropped slightly over the past decade, bucking the rise in prescriptions to adults, according to a government report out Monday.
Antibiotics use fell by 14 percent, suggesting efforts to curb rampant overuse of the drugs "may be working," researchers from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) write in the journal Pediatrics.
Experts say antibiotics are commonly used to treat infections caused by viruses, although they only work against bacteria. That has fueled the growth of drug-resistant superbugs.
The new report also found an uptick in the use of some drugs in children, with stimulants for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, leading the pack.
From 2002 to 2010, the use of ADHD drugs grew by 46 percent -- or some 800,000 prescriptions a year. The top drug dispensed to adolescents was the stimulant methylphenidate, also known as Ritalin, with more than four million prescriptions filled in 2010.
"What the article is suggesting is that the number of children that we are treating for attention deficit disorder has gone up," said Dr. Scott Benson, a child and adolescent psychiatrist and a spokesperson for the American Psychiatric Association.
"For the most part I think the overall increase reflects a reduction in the stigma," he told Reuters Health. "It used to be, ‘You're a bad parent if you can't get your child to behave, and you're a doubly bad parent if you put them on medicine.'"
Dr. Lawrence Diller, a behavioral pediatrician who has written extensively about ADHD, was more critical of the rise in stimulant prescriptions, noting that the U.S. is far ahead of other countries in its use of the drugs.
"You have to look at how our society handles school children's problems. It's clear that we rely much, much more on a pharmacological answer than other societies do," Diller said. "The medicine is overprescribed primarily, but under-prescribed for certain inner-city groups of children."
A report in the New York Times last Sunday said stimulant use is becoming a commonly used study drug even among high schoolers, with healthy students easily fooling their doctors into prescribing the coveted drugs.
"There is no objective test, so obtaining the medications is relatively easy," said Diller.
The new findings are based on data from healthcare research firm IMS Health and do not include drugs given at hospitals.
Overall, there were 263 million filled prescriptions to minors in 2010, down seven percent since 2002. After taking population changes into account, that corresponds to a nine-percent drop; by contrast, adult prescriptions rose by 11 percent.
Prescription drugs classes that showed marked dips among children included allergy medicines, cough and cold drugs, painkillers, and antidepressants.
Apart from ADHD drugs, asthma medicine and birth control pills also showed increases.
The FDA said it could not explain the reasons behind the changes.
ACID REFLUX IN INFANTS
The agency also looked at an acid reflux drug called lansoprazole (sold as Prevacid) due to concerns about efficacy and safety in infants.
The medication is not indicated for children younger than one, and studies show it has no effect in that age group. Yet doctors wrote 358,000 prescriptions for the drug to babies under one in 2010.
Dr. Eric Hassall, a pediatric gastroenterologist at the California Pacific Medical Center, said the number reflects rampant overuse of acid drugs in infants.
"These drugs work very well when they are prescribed for the right indication," he told Reuters Health. "But in infants they are very seldom indicated."
He added that stomach acid is the first defense against many infections and blocking it even for part of the day will raise children's risk of pneumonia and stomach infections.
"My concern is that we are unnecessarily exposing infants to infectious and nutritional complications," Hassall said. "Doctors are too quick to prescribe and parents are very quick to demand, and this is of course driven by consumer advertising."
"I would advise parents that if their child is growing and developing normally despite spitting up, they should resist the urge to give the child a medical diagnosis and administer prescription medications," he added. "If their child is excessively irritable or otherwise unwell, they should seek medical consultation."
SOURCE: bit.ly/HjQ8dI Pediatrics, online June 18, 2012.
BJP-RSS want Kalam for president; he may decide today - Hindustan Times
Kalam's decision can change the whole political equation, as if in case he agrees to contest for the poll, NDA may decide to support him.
NDA ally JD (U) on Monday remained non-committal on their decision to back BJP candidate. "NDA is trying to create consensus. we have time till June 30. We have time, we'll take it and decide", said party leader and Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar.
On Friday before UPA announced its presidential candidate, Kalam had said that he will take reight decision at right time.
"It is a good idea, will take right decision at right time," APJ Abdul Kalam told reporters on his name being suggested for President.
TV news channels report, Kalam is being pressurised by several political parties to contest polls.
After being snubbed by the UPA, TMC chief Mamata Banerjee is still keen on Kalam's name for presidential poll.
After UPA announced its decision to back Pranab, Mamata Banerjee said the game is not over yet. She even launched a facebook page seeking support to back Kalam.
"I have said. I won't say anything more. In my life, I do what I say and if someone thinks the game is over, it's not that", she told reporters.
Mamata is expected to formally announce party's candidate for presidential polls. Mamata has issued specific diktat to ensure no cross-voting. A formal announcement will be made on Monday evening.
BJP led NDA on the other hand is still divided on whom to support. On Sunday, BJP sought to bring around their NDA allies to support former Lok Sabha speaker PA Sangma as a common non-Congress candidate against the UPA’s Pranab Mukherjee in the presidential elections, but failed to overcome the differences.
While the Shiv Sena skipped the meeting, Janata Dal (United) leader Shivanand Tiwari said a contest against Mukherjee was best avoided. But party chief and NDA convenor Sharad Yadav said Advani should get time to work on a consensus over Sangma.
Whole scenario now depends on Kalam's decision as Sangma emerged as BJP's choice only after APJ Abdul Kalam remained non-committal.
KEY DEVELOPMENTS:
* Senior BJP leader Advani calls up former President APJ Abdul Kalam
* BJP sends Sudheendra Kulkarni to Kalam's residence to persuade him to contest poll
* JD(U) remains non-committal
* SAD declares support for nominee selected by the BJP
Syrian forces renew shelling in Homs - CBC
Syrian forces renewed shelling of the central city of Homs today, one day after the head of the UN observers' mission demanded that warring parties allow the evacuation of women, children, elderly and sick people, activists said.
Regime forces have been waging a fierce offensive through towns and villages nationwide, trying to root out rebels by shelling urban areas with tanks and attacking from helicopters. Rebels also have attacked Syrian forces, mostly trying to burn tanks.
"There is renewed shelling and shooting in the city of Homs," said the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an activist group that cited witnesses on the ground.
Gunfire and explosions also were reported in Homs, the Observatory said.
Opposition groups say more than 14,000 people have been killed since the Syrian uprising began in March 2011 with mostly peaceful protests against President Bashar al-Assad's autocratic regime. But a ferocious government crackdown led many to take up arms, and the conflict is now an armed insurgency.
UN unable to get civilians out of conflict zones
The Observatory says more than 3,400 soldiers and militiamen loyal to the government have also been killed since the revolt began.
On Sunday, the head of the UN observers' mission in Syria, Maj. Gen. Robert Mood, said the monitors had been trying for the past week to bring out families and wounded trapped in Homs by heavily shelling of rebel-held areas. The offensive is part of the broader push by Assad's forces to regain rebel-held villages and towns throughout the country.
"The parties must reconsider their position and allow women, children, the elderly and the injured to leave conflict zones without any preconditions and ensure their safety," Mood said in a statement. UN "attempts to extract civilians from the line of fire over the past week have been unsuccessful."
"This requires willingness on both sides to respect and protect the human life of the Syrian people," he added.
On Saturday, the UN said its 300 observers based in Syria were suspending all missions because of concerns for their safety after fighting intensified over the previous 10 days. But the monitors said they were remaining in Syria in Damascus.
The conflict in Syria has brought broad international condemnation, but the regime has appeared largely impervious to the pressure.
U.S. Senator John McCain on Sunday characterized the lack of American aid to Syrian rebels as "shameful" and said helping their cause would deal "the greatest blow to Iran in the Middle East in 25 years." His remarks sought to maintain political pressure on President Barack Obama as violence in the region escalated.
"The fact that the United States of America is not helping these people — and we can — is shameful," McCain, who ran against Obama in 2008, said Sunday on NBC's Meet the Press.
So far, the U.S. has refused to arm Syrian rebels in part to avoid a proxy fight with Iran and Russia, which both back Assad's regime.
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