• The European Commission gave the green light to five national plans (naps) for the European Union greenhouse gas emission trading scheme and offered conditional approval to three more. The development marks an important step forward for the scheme, which is due for launch in January. Meanwhile, the Commission is to send Greece and Italy first warnings of possible court action for failing to submit their Naps for scrutiny. All other EU-15 countries, plus five of the ten new member states, have sent at least draft plans.
• A medical watchdog group has suggested that foreign doctors should not work in Singapore following an ethics dispute between a UK medical researcher and scientist Lee Wei Ling, daughter of city-state senior politician Lee Kuan Kew. The recommendation by the UK-based Medical Protection Society could be a big blow to Singapore's ambition to become a leading global biomedical centre.
• Dell and Hewlett-Packard (HP) -- the two largest manufacturers of personal computers (PCs) -- have embarked on a new rivalry. They are fighting to bag PCs for recycling. HP will accept old electronics equipment, from PCs to TVs dropped off at Office Depot outlets free of charge. While Dell will pick up old PCs and accessories from the homes of customers. The catch: you have to buy a new Dell.
• Introduction of tough new rules for the control of waste from mining and quarrying have been supported by members of the European Parliament. The directive was supported by the European Parliament in Strasbourg. If approved, mining companies will bear more responsibility for ensuring the safety of existing and abandoned workings.
• Delhi Chief minister, Sheila Dikshit, has rejected the Delhi Jal Board's (JB) proposal to effect an increase in water supply charges till it improves its performance. As per interim reports of the National Institute of Cholera and the National Institute of Communicable Diseases, water supplied by Delhi JB is higly contaminated.
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