In other cases, it found evidence of doctors making more “rapid” and “premature” life-and-death decisions in cases involving the disabled than other people. People with special needs are also less likely to be diagnosed quickly with conditions such as cancer and “all aspects” of medical care were “significantly” worse for them than for the wider population, it concluded.

As a result they can expect to die an average of 16 years earlier than those without a disability, it found. The gap rises to as much as 20 years among women.

Last week, officials retrieved nearly 6,000 pig carcasses from the Huangpu River network. They insisted that water from the river was safe. Residents have condemned the local government's failure to account for the carcasses, which some believe have been dumped by farmers upstream. Workers have been pulling dead pigs from rivers that supply Shanghai with drinking water for the past 11 days, sparking alarm on internet chat sites.

Correspondents say that the carcasses are embarrassing for the city's authorities, who want Shanghai to be seen as an international financial centre. The scandal has also highlighted China's difficulties with food safety as pork is one of the country's most popular meats. The scandal comes amid growing concerns about China's environment, including recent record smog levels in Beijing, and water and air pollution affecting villages.

You see, the banking system of Cyprus absolutely dwarfs the GDP of that small island nation. Cyprus is known all over the world as a major offshore tax haven, and wealthy Russians and wealthy Europeans have been pouring massive amounts of money into the banking system over the last several decades.

Yes, those bank deposits are supposed to be insured, but the truth is that there is no way that the government of Cyprus could ever come up with enough money to cover the massive losses that we are potentially looking at. This is a case where the banking system of a nation has gotten so large that the national government is absolutely powerless to stop a collapse from happening. If those banks fail, depositors may end up getting 50 percent of their money or they may end up getting nothing. We just don’t know how bad the damage is yet.

And considering the fact that many of the largest corporations and many of the wealthiest individuals in Europe have huge mountains of cash stashed in Cyprus, the fallout from a banking collapse could potentially be absolutely catastrophic. So Cyprus needs to come up with some money from somewhere in order to keep that from happening.

The simple fact is that they know they cannot let any country leave, no matter how small, for "once one country goes, the whole deck of cards will come tumbling down." There is now "clear irreconcilable differences" between the North and the South of Europe and now that they have done this in one country, "they are quite capable of doing it in Italy, Spain and anywhere."

The message that sends to people is "get your money out while you can." As far as his British constituents, he strongly recommends George Osborne (UK Chancellor) urge ex-pats to remove all their money and do monthly transfers from home. "Do Not Invest In The Euro-Zone," he concludes, "you have to be mad to do so - as it is now run by people who do not respect democracy, the rule of law, or the basic principles upon which Western civilization is based."

"They are propping up a Eurozone that, in the end, will collapse in disastrous failure and they are prepared to do anything to do so."

"We regret the decision," Schaeuble told ZDF television. "Cyprus requested an aid programme. For an aid programme we need a calculable way for Cyprus to be able to return to the financial markets. For that, Cyprus' debts are too high."

Schaeuble added that it was a "serious situation" now in Cyprus and said the country had no one to blame for its situation other than itself. He said he doesn't think its "business model " works anymore and warned Cyprus must act quickly.

Cyprus is clearly in a bind, and it doesn't look like the EU has much figured out on what to do next.

Cyprus's parliament on Tuesday rejected a levy on bank deposits demanded in return for aid, raising the specter of a default for the island nation that could mean enduring wave after wave of spending cuts and tax rises, just like Greece. "See what Cyprus did? We are proud of them," said Fey Papadopoulou, 22, a university student. "They should be an example for our politicians, who have succumbed to every demand."

"The Cypriots set an example to follow," left-leaning Eleftherotypia said in its leading editorial. "How can the Cypriots say 'no' and we can't even reject a single property tax?", ran a headline on Greek television channel Antenna. Whether Athens - which in the past has ignored riots and mass protests to approve austerity packages and avert bankruptcy - will be swayed by the latest outcry depends on whether Cyprus ends up bankrupt or finds a solution elsewhere, analysts said.

"The only way you're going to have a Jewish part is if you have a two-state solution. That's the Jewish part," he said.

Abdullah also said Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi are using a façade of democracy to impose Islamic law.

He quoted Erdogan comparing democracy to a bus ride, saying "once I get to my stop, I'm getting off." Morsi, he said, had "no depth." Netanyahu echoed Abdullah's sentiments at the Knesset Monday evening. "We are committed to the peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan," Netanyahu told Israeli lawmakers." They are the foundations of stability in the Middle East and must be preserved. That is our policy and I believe it will be the case in the coming years," he said.

Mr Obama said there was "not a lot of light" between the US and Israel in assessing Iran's nuclear programme. The leaders also reaffirmed their commitment to a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

Mr Obama arrived in Tel Aviv earlier on Wednesday, to be met at Ben Gurion airport by Mr Netanyahu and Israeli President Shimon Peres.

He was taken immediately to see a missile battery that forms part of Israel's Iron Dome defence system against rocket attacks, before visiting Mr Peres at his official residence.

In a petition filed with the FDA, the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) and the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) seek to change the definition of “milk” so that chemical sweeteners like aspartame and sucralose can be used as optional ingredients not listed on the product label.

If the petition — originally filed in 2009 and now under consideration by the FDA — is successful, these hidden additives could also be included in 17 other dairy products — including whipping cream, low-fat and non-fat yogurt, eggnog, sweetened condensed milk, sour cream, and half-and-half — without requiring any special labeling.

But so long as someone at the ECB was willing to flood the world with free EUROs (with significant backup provided by the US Federal Reserve) the market closed its eyes, held its breath and took the leap of faith that all was well. However, post the Cyprus decision, the curtain has been pulled back and wizard revealed with all his faults and warts. The age of innocence is dead and with it died institutional and retail trust, confidence in the system writ large and the rule of law.

It would be hard to over-emphasize how significant the Cyprus situation is.

The EU demonstrated under no uncertain circumstances that they will destroy the rule of law to maintain their own power. It was recognition of tyranny that many of us have always assumed was the case, but yesterday became reality.

More than half a century after its introduction, RPI is the best-known benchmark of inflation and is used to uprate State pensions and National Savings & Investments index-linked certificates.

Two months ago, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) surprised critics who claimed it was about to replace RPI with the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) which consistently produces lower figures. For example, RPI has produced higher measurements of inflation than CPI in 15 of the 16 years since the latter index was introduced. While CPI currently shows annual inflation at 2.7 percent, RPI is more than a fifth higher at 3.3 percent.

Now it appears that RPI is to be downgraded after all. Ros Altmann, a director of the London School of Economics, is among experts who question the apparent about-turn. She said: “The UKSA has quietly downgraded the RPI – our traditional measure of inflation, on which many incomes and prices depend. A statement, hardly noticed by anyone, said it had decided the RPI would no longer be an official statistic. There was no widely disseminated press release or publicity.”

The MPs' expenses scandal and the handling of the Libor-rate rigging by banks were amongst the controversies which were blamed for damaging public trust. The 2011 riots provided the country with an insight into the “unpredictable consequences of institutional breakdown”, the researchers for The Economist Intelligence Unit said.

They measured the health of democracy in 167 countries across the globe. While Britain scored well for having open and free elections, it was found that an alarmingly low number of people - just over six in 10 - actually participated in politics. The deepest cuts to public spending since 1945 being pushed through by the coalition risk escalating resentment.