A Senate vote to pass the temporary funding bill is likely on Tuesday, Reid said, when existing funds to operate the government expire. The House of Representatives would then have to sign off on the measure and send it to President Barack Obama for his expected approval.

Under the bill, most federal government programs would be funded at last year's levels through March 4. The new Congress will be seated on January 5, with Republicans taking over control of the House. If this latest spending bill is enacted, Republicans will have a much greater say in spending priorities as they write legislation to fund the government from March 4 until October 1.

House Republicans already have said they want to trim $100 billion in spending for this fiscal year, which ends next September 30, by freezing programs at 2008 levels. That goal could run into White House opposition, leading to threats of government shutdowns if Democrats and Republicans cannot reach a compromise.

At the end of an eight-hour emergency meeting called by Russia, US Ambassador Susan Rice said the vast majority of the 15-member council was insisting on "a clear-cut condemnation" of North Korea but there was no unanimity.

Although diplomats from some countries still need to consult their capitals, Rice said, "I think it's safe to predict that the gaps that remain are unlikely to be bridged." She said she based that assessment on what she heard in the closed-door meetings.

Russia's UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin agreed "we were not successful in bridging all the bridges," but expressed hope the meeting will have an impact and that continued diplomatic contacts "will result in a successful outcome." The council meeting took place as South Korea's military prepared to conduct one-day, live-fire drills by Tuesday on the same front-line island the North shelled last month as the South conducted a similar exercise.

China and Russia, the countries with the closest ties to North Korea, have called on South Korea to cancel the exercise. But the United States, a staunch ally of South Korea, has defended the country's right to train for self-defense - a point reiterated by Rice who said the two North Korean attacks made such training "prudent given than North Korean belligerence has cost 50 South Korean lives in the last nine months alone."

For years, proponents of so-called "net neutrality" have been calling for strong regulation of broadband "on-ramps" to the Internet, like those provided by your local cable or phone companies. Rules are needed, the argument goes, to ensure that the Internet remains open and free, and to discourage broadband providers from thwarting consumer demand. That sounds good if you say it fast.

Nothing is broken and needs fixing, however. The Internet has been open and freedom-enhancing since it was spun off from a government research project in the early 1990s. Its nature as a diffuse and dynamic global network of networks defies top-down authority. Ample laws to protect consumers already exist. Furthermore, the Obama Justice Department and the European Commission both decided this year that net-neutrality regulation was unnecessary and might deter investment in next-generation Internet technology and infrastructure.

On this winter solstice, we will witness jaw-dropping interventionist chutzpah as the FCC bypasses branches of our government in the dogged pursuit of needless and harmful regulation. The darkest day of the year may end up marking the beginning of a long winter's night for Internet freedom.

Ministers believe broadband providers should consider automatically blocking sex sites, with individuals being required to opt in to receive them, rather than opt out and use the available computer parental controls. Ed Vaizey, the communications minister, is to meet internet providers, including BT, Virgin Media and TalkTalk, "in the near future" to discuss changing the way pornography enters private homes, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills confirmed.

The move is designed to protect children from being exposed to pornography on the net. "This is a very serious matter. I think it is very important that it's the ISPs that some up with solutions to protect children," Vaizey told the Sunday Times. "I'm hoping they will get their acts together so that we don't have to legislate, but we are keeping an eye on the situation and we will have a new communications bill in the next couple of years."

The action follows the success of moves by most British internet providers to prevent people inadvertently viewing child pornography websites. Now ministers want to see adult pornography controlled with similar technology, with sites blocked unless people specifically request access to them.

Shares in the stock exchange suffered large falls within hours of opening on Sunday as panicked investors went on a selling spree. The index ended the day down by 552 points or 6.72%. It has been on a rollercoaster ride in recent weeks, hitting a record high on 5 December, having climbed 80% since the start of the year. But on 8 December it nosedived, prompting protests in Dhaka and towns elsewhere.

Analysts say Sunday's index fall was triggered by a central bank interest-rate hike. The regulators have also taken measures in recent weeks to restrict money supply into the share market after concerns that stocks were overvalued. The move forced big institutional investors to withdraw from the market, triggering panic among individual investors.

The rising value of the stocks in recent years has attracted hundreds of thousands of small-scale or retail investors in Bangladesh, says the BBC's Anbarasan Ethirajan in Dhaka. It became a popular investment for ordinary people, often providing higher returns than bank deposits and savings. Regulators have now agreed to relax some of the conditions, hoping that will increase the money supply and stabilise the market, he says.

Since 2006, serious decimation of the North American bee population has taken place. Termed "colony collapse disorder," millions of worker bees have mysteriously disappeared from their colonies, largely confounding the scientific community. Blame has volleyed from viruses to fungi to cell phone radiation... but a suspect has emerged as enemy number one: Bayer's pesticide clothianidin.

Clothianidin is widely used on America's corn crops in addition to other ubiquitous crops like canola, soy, and sugar beets. Leaked EPA documents have detailed the regulatory agency's allowance of clothianidin to maneuver its way through regulatory channels in the face of scientists' warning and flawed studies. According to these documents provided to beekeeper Tom Theobald, the EPA was aware of the pesticide's dangers way back in 2003; but the EPA granted Bayer a "conditional" approval that allowed them to start using the pesticide.

This conditional approval was contingent on a field study of the pesticide to be carried out in the future. When that study was finally undertaken, many scientists agreed that it was flawed and quite stacked in Bayer's favor. The agency did suggest Bayer include the following warning label:

"This compound is toxic to honey bees. The persistence of residues and the expression of clothianidin in nectar and pollen suggests the possibility of chronic toxic risk to honey bee larvae and the eventual stability of the hive."

A warning label? Somehow I don't think the bees get a chance to read that label before slurping poisonous nectar from the corn fields...

Bayer raked in over $250 million from it last year alone. The EPA is helping them maintain that profit margin despite the risks. Considering bees are absolutely crucial to our agriculture, allowing Bayer to continue selling clothianidin in the face of these warnings is simply irresponsible.

France, Italy and Germany have all banned its use. It's time we do the same. "This is the critical winter for the beekeeping industry. I don't think we can survive," Theobald said in a recent interview. He also noted the honey crop this year is the smallest he's ever seen... "If the beekeeping industry collapses, it jeopardizes a third of American agriculture." And that would sting more than just the beekeepers.

He was accused of uttering 'threatening, abusive or insulting' words 'to cause harassment, alarm or distress' contrary to Section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986. But the charges were dropped after the case was highlighted by The Mail on Sunday and now police in Cumbria have agreed to pay him 7,000 pounds in compensation as well as his legal costs, potentially an extra 10,000 pounds.

Cumbria's Chief Constable Craig Mackey also said a senior officer will meet Mr Mcalpine in person and apologise to him to 'seek to restore his trust and confidence in the Constabulary'.

The payout came as new national guidance was issued to police following growing criticism of their heavy-handed treatment of Christians expressing their religious views.

Mr Mcalpine, who works in the energy industry, had been handing out leaflets and talking to passers-by about his Christian beliefs in the centre of Workington, Cumbria. In conversation with one woman, he listed a number of sins cited by the Bible, including adultery, drunkenness and homosexuality.

He was then approached by PCSO Sam Adams, who said he was gay and a liaison officer with the local homosexual community - and who warned him he could be arrested for making homophobic remarks. Mr Mcalpine denied he was homophobic but said that as a Christian he did believe homosexuality was a sin. Three uniformed officers then arrested him.

The Christian Institute, which backed his case, said: 'We're obviously pleased that Cumbria Police has seen common sense. But Mr Mcalpine should not have been arrested in the first place. Sadly, it's not an isolated case. The Government needs to amend the Public Order Act as a matter of urgency.' Earlier this month, street preacher Anthony Rollins, who was handcuffed and arrested for condemning homosexuality, was awarded 4,250 pounds in damages following a court case against West Midlands Police. Even homosexual rights campaigner Peter Tatchell has called for reform of the law.

Air Vice-Marshal Greg Bagwell, commander of the RAF's No 1 Group, which controls all Britain's fast jet combat aircraft, said that Britain was likely to end up with only six fighter and bomber squadrons, half its current number. He warned: "That might not be quite enough."

Air Vice-Marshal Bagwell's remarks, in a briefing last week to Defense News, a trade journal, are among the most outspoken by any senior RAF commander. He warned that even the reductions that have been publicly announced - from 12 fast-jet squadrons to eight - would leave the RAF only "just about" able to do its current tasks, with no leeway for the unexpected. As recently as the 1990s the RAF had 30 front-line fast-jet squadrons.

An RAF comprising six fast-jet squadrons would be smaller than at any point since its foundation in 1918. It would take British combat air power back to the pre-RAF days of the Royal Flying Corps.

Relations between China and India have long been soured by bitter rivalry and mutual suspicion. Over the past few days, though, the two Asian powerhouses have cuddled up like a pair of giant pandas. This is a display of diplomatic affection that matters - not least as it could have a significant impact on the shape of the global economy.

The main point of Wen's visit was to promote bilateral trade between these two Eastern giants. He last visited India in 2005 - at which time he set a goal of raising combined Sino-Indian imports and exports from $18 billion (12 billion pounds) to $30 billion by 2010. In fact, bilateral commerce totalled around $60 billion this year - twice Wen's target, despite the massive sub-prime related shock to all global trade during 2009. Over the past decade, in fact, trade between China and India has increased 30-fold.

In case anyone is in doubt, it is worth stating the relative importance of the Chinese and Indian economies. Between them, these countries are home to two-fifths of the world's population. They are also the two fastest-growing major economies on earth. China is already the second largest economy after the US, having overtaken Japan last year. Less widely recognised is that, on an inflation-adjusted basis, India is the world's number four.

India is acutely aware, though, that this is no partnership of equals. The headline numbers disguise the fact that India's deficit with China is huge - around $25 billion and by far its largest trade shortfall. The reason, Delhi complains, is that Beijing doesn't play fair in terms of market access.

It will rise still further next year after MEPs controversially voted themselves a backdated pay rise and expenses hike last week. Almost all of the UK's MEPs are better-paid than their Westminster counterparts, with basic salaries of around £79,600. In addition they are able to claim hundreds of thousands of pounds in expenses without providing receipts.

The total bill includes 2.5 million pounds in office costs expenses, 2.1 million pounds in travel expenses and 2 million pounds in subsistence allowance, which can be spent on hotels, taxis and meals while staying in Brussels or Strasbourg, the cities where the parliament is jointly based.

The cost of the politicians - an average of 370,000 pounds for each MEP every year - was revealed as part of a groundbreaking "value for money" investigation which looked at how hard each MEP worked relative to the amount they claimed in expenses.

MEPs from across the European Union have consistently voted against transparency measures that would force politicians to reveal how they spend public money. Because the parliament does not publish even basic information about expenses claims, our calculations were based on details disclosed voluntarily by MEPs - sometimes because they were obliged to by their parties.

Belgium has sunk into political chaos. Following the parliamentary elections six months ago, all attempts to build a new government have failed. The country is divided into two camps that oppose each other, apparently irreconcilably: the socialists, who won the most votes in Wallonia, the French-speaking southern region of the country, and the nationalist conservatives in Flanders, the wealthier Dutch-speaking northern region.

The New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) obtained the most parliamentary seats in June's elections. Its leader Bart De Wever wants to split Belgium into two. In an interview with Spiegel that was published in Germany on Monday, De Wever described how Begium is the "sick man" of Europe and has "no future in the long run."

The interview caused a massive outcry throughout Belgium. The French-speaking daily Le Soir called it "a bomb" intended to stir up the markets for Belgian government bonds. The Flemish newspapers were more sympathetic regarding the content of the interview, but criticized its timing.

The five-notch downgrade was made as "Ireland's sovereign creditworthiness has suffered from the repeated crystallization of bank-related contingent liabilities on the government's balance sheet," said Dietmar Hornung, vice president, senior credit officer at Moody's.

The ratings agency put the country on review for downgrade in early October, saying the process would likely result in a multi-notch downgrade but that the rating would remain in investment-grade territory. On Friday, it kept its negative outlook on the country.

Ireland has been the latest country to succumb to pressures extending from the European sovereign debt crisis. The government conceded in November that it would require an international bailout package from the European Union and International Monetary Fund to help it avoid defaulting on its debt.

Moody's now rates Ireland three notches above the speculative-grade range. If the country's credit were be downgraded to "junk status," funding costs would rise further as some investors, mandated to hold only highly-rated bonds, would be forced to sell. A further downgrade could come if the country's efforts to stabilize its debt fail, or if problems arise with the long-term support efforts from the EU.

The move came a day after Moody's also placed Greece's Ba1 rating on review for downgrade. Warnings for possible downgrades for Spain and Belgium were made earlier in the week. "As we head into next year, this crisis looks set to rumble on and on, with concerns growing over euro-area governments' funding needs next year," said analysts at Daiwa Capital Markets in a note.

The downgrade news hit the euro, which had just managed to climb to a two-day high of $1.3326 before sliding back below $1.33 after Moody's announcement. The euro also fell to a fresh all-time low against the Swiss franc to 1.2720 francs.

Airports in Germany, France, Italy and the Netherlands are also suffering cancellations and delays. The snow is forecast to continue in many parts of the UK, with up to 25cm expected in some areas of England, and a number of severe weather warnings are in place.

In Wales two health boards are appealing for medical staff to help out over the weekend. Members of the public with 4x4 vehicles have been asked to drive health workers in after many were stuck at home. Several roads across the country remain closed and bus services were disrupted in the south.

The Met Office warned that heavy snow showers were expected across much of Scotland, Northern Ireland, and parts of north-east England, with up to 20cm of fresh snow possible in places by the end of Sunday. Elsewhere there were warnings of widespread icy roads following Saturday's snowfall.

Last night temperatures in England, Wales and Northern Ireland averaged between minus 5C and minus 10C, whilst in Scotland they typically fell to between minus 15C and minus 20C. Hundreds of drivers were stranded overnight on the M6 motorway in Greater Manchester. Similar conditions in Germany and Italy also saw drivers stuck on icy roads, as temperatures plummeted.

But these leaks - using bold and clear language - lay out what appears to be China's growing frustration with North Korea. Although China has declined to comment on the content of the reports, it will no doubt be embarrassed by many of the revelations.

The reports are a series of documents sent between the United States and its foreign embassies. In them, China appears to be coming round to the idea that both North and South Korea might one day reunite - under the South's control. In one report China's Vice-Foreign Minister He Yafei apparently played down a visit to Pyongyang by Premier Wen Jiabao.

"We may not like them," he is reported to have told James Steinberg, deputy US secretary of state, but "they are a neighbour". There appears to be a split among China's senior leaders about how to treat North Korea.

The House of Representatives had already approved the repeal bill. President Barack Obama says he is looking forward to signing it into law. Opponents argue that the change will damage troop morale at a time of war. More than 13,000 service members have been dismissed under the "don't ask, don't tell", policy enacted under President Bill Clinton in 1993 as a compromise.

Saturday's vote was along broad party lines, with a few moderate Republicans joining the Democratic majority in favour of lifting the ban. Aubrey Sarvis, head of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, an advocacy group, said: "Until the president signs the bill, until there is certification, and until the 60-day Congressional period is over, no-one should be investigated or discharged under this discriminatory law."