The following are the top stories in the Maltese and overseas press today:
The Sunday Times says that, according to a report probing Malta's sexual habits, the number of people infected with gonorrhea through casual, unprotected sex has more than doubled in a year. The paper also reports that the controversial departure tax levied on every passenger staring his trip from Malta will be completely abolished as of November.
The Independent on Sunday speaks of government plans to build an underground car park in Palace Square. It also says that Paul Borg Olivier is being seen as the PN's next secretary general.
malta today reveals that on the eve of the general elections, there was a three-fold increase in housing allocations. Archbishop Mgr Paul Cremona has also reacted to the paper's editorial last Sunday on divorce, reiterating his position of distinguishing between the Church and State.
il-Mument quotes prime minister Lawrence Gonzi saying that the PN wants to continue to be alongside the people. It also says that the report on Labour's third electoral defeat embarrasses leader contender Joseph Muscat.
illum lead story refers to the MLP leadership contest saying that the race is between Joseph Muscat, who is the favourite with floaters, and George Abela, who has gained ground and remains the favourite with the public at large.
it-torca also refers to the Labour leadership race saying that the week will be a decisive one. It also claims that Nationalist MEPs, Simon Busuttil and Davis Casa have retracted on their promises to gay people.
Kulhadd says that some 80 people suffering from incontinence are deprived of the services of Mater Dai Hospital's urogynaecology unit.
The Press in Britain...
The Sunday Times says Gordon Brown has been advised to get rid of some of his fellow Scots from the inner circle surrounding him.
The Observer reports that, according to an internal Government document, Labour's 10-year strategy for reducing youth crime has failed.
The Sunday Telegraph reports David Cameron's right-hand man and the architect of the Tory revival is leaving Britain for a new life in America.
Daily Star Sunday focuses on the revelation that Prince William is being sent to the Caribbean as part of his attachment to the Royal Navy, during which he will be tackling drug smugglers.
According to The Mail On Sunday, the Queen has voiced concern that Prince William should not announce an engagement to Kate Middleton until she has a long-term job.
The Sunday Express focuses on the recent spate of knife crimes and reveals that knife thugs who walk free from youth court are given back their weapons when they leave.
The Sunday Mirror carries an emotional appeal by the sister of troubled former England footballer Paul Gascoigne: "Please don't buy my brother another drink."
The Independent on Sunday quotes a report saying ministers could avoid building nuclear reactors by encouraging families to fit solar panels to their homes.
The Sunday Mail says crime lord Tam McGraw's widow and her lover are exposed running a 24-hour, door-to-door drugs service.
The Sunday Herald reports Scotland is facing an infertility time bomb after a rise in cases of the sexually-transmitted infection chlamydia among young men.
Scotland on Sunday a multibillion-pound plan for a high-speed rail link between Scotland and London is back on track after talks between the two governments.
The News Of The World reports that TV presenter Fern Britton has admitted to having stomach surgery to help her lose weight.
And elsewhere...
The Washington Post leads with the US Democratic Party decision to allow all the Florida and Michigan delegates to attend the party's national convention in August, but they will only be given half a vote each. The decision is a blow to presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton who gains only 24 delegate votes - far short of the total she needs to catch rival Barack Obama. Officially, Clinton had won Florida and Michigan in January, but both results were initially discounted over a scheduling dispute between the states and the national party.
Meanwhile, The Examiner reports Barack Obama has resigned a 20-year-old membership in the Trinity United Church of Christ after inflammatory remarks by former pastor the Rev Jeremiah Wright. Comments by Mr Wright have posed a problem for Mr Obama and more recently, racially-charged remarks from another pastor have kept the controversy alive.
The People's Daily says Chinese authorities have evacuated nearly 200,000 people from a flood-risk zone in a plan that puts more than a million others on alert to leave quickly if an earthquake-spawned lake breaches a dam. Officials say there are more than 30 landslide blocked rivers or "quake-lakes" in the province that could burst and flood downstream towns and tent camps. The May 12 quake has killed over 68,000 people. More than 18,000 are still missing.
Globe and Mail quotes official figures showing the death toll from attacks on foreigners that spread across South Africa over the past three weeks has risen to 62 after some of the 670 people that were injured in the attacks, died in hospital. Although relative calm has returned, tens of thousands of foreigners are still displaced and too scared to return to the communities that chased them out.
Afghan Daily reports two NATO soldiers have been killed in a Taliban suicide car bomb attack in eastern Afghanistan, while authorities said more than 100 rebels were slain in military operations in the southwest. Four more International Security Assistance Force soldiers and five civilians were wounded in the blast in Jalalabad, a thriving city 50 kilometres from the Pakistan border.
Houston Chronicle reports space shuttle Discovery blasted off a seaside launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida Saturday to deliver Japan's huge new research laboratory to the International Space Station. The lab, nicknamed Kibo and which cost Japan about $2 billion to manufacture, is being installed aboard the space station in three flights.