The 326-page report, published by the environment protection agency, is the latest piece in an increasingly alarming jigsaw. A picture is emerging of ubiquitous chemical contamination driving down sperm counts and feminising male children all over the developed world. And anti-pollution measures and regulations are falling far short of getting to grips with it. Sperm counts are falling so fast that young men are less fertile than their fathers and produce only a third as much, proportionately, as hamsters. And gender-bending chemicals are increasingly being blamed for the mystery of the "lost boys": babies who should normally be male who have been born as girls instead.

The WWF (formerly the World Wildlife Fund), which commissioned the older research, warned that the chemicals were so widespread that "THERE IS VERY LITTLE, IF ANYTHING, INDIVIDUALS CAN DO TO PREVENT CONTAMINATION OF THEMSELVES AND THEIR FAMILIES." Prominent among them are dioxins, PVC, flame retardants, phthalates (extensively used to soften plastics) and the now largely banned PCBs, one and a half million tons of which were used in countless products from paints to electrical equipment.

Yet GENDER-BENDERS ARE LARGELY EXEMPT FROM NEW EU REGULATIONS controlling hazardous chemicals. Britain, then under Tony Blair's premiership, was largely responsible for this – restricting their inclusion in the first draft of the legislation, and then causing even what was included to be watered down. Confidential documents show that it did so after pressure from George W Bush's administration, which protested that US exports "could be impacted".

On Friday, the FDA authorized the emergency use of BioCryst's (BCRX) investigational antiviral drug peramivir for hospitalized adult and pediatric patients with confirmed or suspected 2009 H1N1 influenza infections and who aren't responding to other forms of the drug. Apart from peramivir, no FDA-approved intravenously administered antivirals can treat influenza. BioCryst has donated and transferred to the US Department of Health & Human Services an initial supply for 1,200 courses of peramivir and is producing 130,000 additional courses, with plans to produce even more. NVAX SHARES TRADED ABOUT 7 PERCENT HIGHER in late-afternoon trading. BCRX shares jumped MORE THAN 10 PERCENT by late afternoon trading.

If vaccine and drugmakers are thriving as the H1N1 flu pandemic takes root, INSURERS ARE TAKING A BEATING. Health insurer Amerigroup Corp (AGP) cut its third-quarter earnings outlook and withdrew its full-year outlook due to medical costs associated with a severe H1N1 season. The virus is particularly virulent among children, pregnant women and other high-risk groups - a category representing about 87 percent of the Amerigroup's 1.7 million members.

"In September, we experienced a spike in flu-related activity among our Medicaid members," said James G Carlson, Amerigroup chairman and CEO. "It is difficult to determine if, and when, the situation will abate, continue at current trends, or worsen." SHARES DROPPED OVER 3 PERCENT in late-afternoon trading.

More than 11 million doses of the H1N1 vaccine have been shipped out so far, and the 16 million total doses available are not remotely close to the 195 million doses the CDC planned to have by year-end (or the 40 million to 45 million doses it had expected by mid-October). Swine flu is widespread in 46 states, with 1,000 confirmed deaths and more than 20,000 hospitalized.

"America's healthcare system is indeed hemorrhaging billions of dollars, and the opportunities to slow the fiscal bleeding are substantial," the report reads. "The bad news is that an estimated $700 billion is wasted annually. That's one-third of the nation's healthcare bill," Kelley said in a statement. "The good news is that by attacking waste we can reduce healthcare costs without adversely affecting the quality of care or access to care."

Some other findings in the report from Thomson Reuters, the parent company of Reuters:

* Unnecessary care such as the overuse of antibiotics and lab tests to protect against malpractice exposure makes up 37 percent of healthcare waste or $200 to $300 billion a year.

* Fraud makes up 22 percent of healthcare waste, or up to $200 billion a year in fraudulent Medicare claims, kickbacks for referrals for unnecessary services and other scams.

* Administrative inefficiency and redundant paperwork account for 18 percent of healthcare waste.

* Medical mistakes account for $50 billion to $100 billion in unnecessary spending each year, or 11 percent of the total.

* Preventable conditions such as uncontrolled diabetes cost $30 billion to $50 billion a year.

"The average US hospital spends one-quarter of its budget on billing and administration, nearly twice the average in Canada," reads the report, citing dozens of other research papers.

All this could help explain why Americans spend more per capita and the highest percentage of GDP on healthcare than any other OECD country, yet has an unhealthier population with more diabetes, obesity and heart disease and higher rates of neonatal deaths than other developed nations. Democratic Senator Charles Schumer said on Sunday that Senate Democratic leaders are close to securing enough votes to pass legislation to start reform of the country's $2.5 trillion healthcare system.

The agency's executive director Josette Sheeran blamed climate change, escalating fuel costs and falling incomes. She said the number of "urgently hungry" had now reached its highest ever — 1.02 billion. "One out of six people in humanity will wake up not sure that they can even fill a cup of food," Sheeran told reporters. "We have to make no mistake that hunger is on the march."

She said while prices had tumbled on global commodities markets due to the financial crisis, the prices of most food staples in the developing world have soared. "The food crisis is not over. We have an anomaly happening where on global, big markets, the prices are down, but for 80 percent of commodities in the developing world, prices are higher today than they were a year ago, and the prices a year ago were double what they were the year before that," she said.

She said there had been a fourfold increase in the number of natural disasters in the past 20 years. "All we know is that THE WORLD IS FACING INCREASINGLY FREQUENT AND FEROCIOUS NATURAL DISASTERS and the most vulnerable people and nations are getting hit hard and we better prepare now," she said.

"The gap is still wide and Israel does not give a single sign of meeting its obligations under the road map, halting settlement activities and resuming negotiations where they left off," he told Voice of Palestine radio. "I do not see any possibility for restarting peace talks in the near future."

The US-backed peace "road map" of 2003, which charts a course to Palestinian statehood, commits Israel to halting settlement activity in the occupied West Bank. "If President (Barack) Obama's administration cannot make Israel abide by its commitments, it has to announce that Israel is the party that is obstructing the launching of peace negotiations," Erekat said, referring the road map agreements.

Resisting US pressure to comply, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ruled out a complete cessation of construction within settlements, saying the needs of growing settler families must be accommodated. Israel also accuses Palestinians of failing to meet their road map commitments to curb violence and incitement against Israel - notably by Hamas Islamists who control the Gaza Strip.

Few analysts believe there is a high risk of Palestinian frustration turning into a new uprising of the kind seen in the years of Intifada from 2000. However, clashes between youths and Israeli police around Jerusalem's al-Aqsa mosque, most recently on Sunday, HAVE RAISED CONCERNS ABOUT GREATER INSTABILITY.

Could it happen here in Chicago? It already has nearby. Homer Glen in Will County relies on Lake Michigan water, but the supply comes from a German-owned firm. Locals say there's a lot more than water going down the drain. It's a vital resource you can't live without. But in Homer Glen, THE QUESTION IS CAN YOU AFFORD WATER. RESIDENTS SAY RATES ARE BREAKING THE BANK.

Mayor Jim Daley says residents pay about three times more than those in neighboring communities. He said Illinois-American Water Company offers the same explanation. "They simply say that they have infrastructure improvements they need to make, that they can show their costs," he said. "What we're saying: It's absolutely absurd."

But Could Chicago be next? A trade publication says the city's Department of Water Management is "considering a lease of its water and wastewater system." According to the mayor's 2010 budget, the city expects to bring in $453 million from water sales next year. That's a drop in the bucket compared to what a private firm would get.

THE DECISION, REACHED IN SECRET BY A SMALL CADRE OF VATICAN OFFICIALS, was sure to add to the problems of the 77-million-strong Anglican Communion as it seeks to deal with deep doctrinal divisions that threaten a permanent schism among its faithful.

The change means conservative Anglicans from around the world will be able to join the Catholic Church while retaining aspects of their Anglican liturgy and identity, including married priests. Until now, disaffected Anglicans had joined the church primarily on a case by case basis. "THE UNITY OF THE CHURCH DOES NOT REQUIRE A UNIFORMITY THAT IGNORES CULTURAL DIVERSITY, AS THE HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY SHOWS," said Cardinal William Levada, head of the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in announcing the decision.

The spiritual leader of the global Anglican church, Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, was not consulted about the change and was informed only hours before the announcement. The decision could undermine decades of talks between the Vatican and Anglican leaders over how they could possibly reunite. Although Levada insisted such discussions remain a priority, THE VATICAN MOVE COULD BE TAKEN AS A SIGNAL THAT THE ULTIMATE GOAL OF ECUMENICAL TALKS IS TO CONVERT ANGLICANS TO CATHOLICISM.

Yet, it says most developing countries spend less than 2% of their national budgets on mental healthcare. The warning comes as the first Global Mental Health Summit starts in Athens, Greece.

WHO figures reveal that currently, over 450 million people are directly affected by mental disorders or disabilities, MOST OF WHOM LIVE IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES. The five-day summit in Athens will provide the opportunity to address what the organisers are calling a crisis in global mental healthcare.

"WHO figures clearly show that the burden because of depression is likely to increase - so much so that in 2030 this will be the single biggest cause for burden out of all health conditions," Dr Shekhar Saxena of the Department of Mental Health at the WHO, told the BBC World Service.

On Thursday, 7.9 million people in Britain headed home or found alternative berths from which to switch on the BBC's late-night weekly politics show, almost three times the program's normal viewership and around half of the total TV audience for the 10:35pm slot. They were drawn like moths by a fiery controversy over the BBC's decision to invite Nick Griffin, the leader of THE EXTREMIST BRITISH NATIONAL PARTY, to join the debate.

The taxi driver was determined to share his opinions on the matter, no matter that his passenger was dreamily communing with her iPod. "I'm not a BNP supporter," bellowed the cabbie, craning round to make sure he had my full attention. "BUT AT LEAST THE BNP TALKS ABOUT WHAT'S WRONG WITH THIS COUNTRY: THE SPECIAL DISPENSATIONS TO MINORITIES. Nobody speaks for people like me."

The sense of grievance articulated by this cabbie is widely held, and is especially potent among white, working-class Britons, who believe they are IN COMPETITION WITH IMMIGRANTS AND MINORITIES FOR LIMITED JOBS AND RESOURCES, AND THAT THE POLITICAL CLASSES GIVE PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT TO THOSE GROUPS.

But for some white Britons, especially those in poorer areas, at least part of the BNP message resonates: that, as Griffin puts it, they are "shut out in their own country." DISENFRANCHISED AND ALIENATED, SUCH VIEWERS WILL HAVE DRAWN A DIFFERENT LESSON FROM QUESTION TIME. They saw Griffin attempting to hold his own as politicians from Britain's mainstream parties, showing a rare unanimity of purpose, attacked and belittled him. YET POLITICIANS IN BRITAIN ARE AT BEST DAMAGED GOODS, their authority sapped by constant partisan skirmishing and their reputations tarnished by recent revelations of Westminster's venal expenses culture. In that context, their joint assault on Griffin, heartfelt as it was, COULD READ LIKE THE ESTABLISHMENT CONSPIRING TO PROTECT ITS VESTED INTERESTS AGAINST AN OUTSIDER.

With British parliamentary elections due by June 2010, party tacticians may be tempted to borrow from the BNP's populist playbook, talking tough on immigration and integration. Such rhetoric often proves a vote winner. But exploiting voters' discontent can simply stoke it. UNTIL MAINSTREAM PARTIES FIGURE OUT HOW TO EARN BACK PUBLIC TRUST AND RESPECT, THE LUNATIC FRINGES WILL GAIN GROUND. That might be good news for BBC ratings, but it's bad news for British democracy.

The site houses both the al-Aqsa mosque and the Jewish holy site, the Western Wall. A spokesman said police did not enter the al-Aqsa mosque itself. The clashes came amid rising tensions in the past weeks over the area.

On Saturday, Jerusalem police announced they would strengthen policing around the Temple Mount after Muslim leaders urged Palestinians to defend Jerusalem against "Jewish conquest." There have been rumours among Palestinians that Jewish extremists were planning on harming the holy site - though no such attempt has been made.

Israel has rebuffed Obama's request for a complete freeze on settlement construction, while Arab states, whose own peace offer has gathered dust since 2002, have brushed off his calls for goodwill gestures toward the Jewish state. Sceptics point to a rightwing Israeli cabinet more focused on threats from Iran, Hezbollah and Hamas than on making peace with Palestinians mired in rivalry between Islamist militants ruling the Gaza Strip and their Fatah foes in the West Bank.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gave her boss a status report on Thursday which appeared to confirm widespread doubts inside and outside the region that progress is possible. "THIS REPRESENTS A CLEAR FAILURE BY A PRESIDENT WHO TRIED TO BRING ABOUT CHANGE AND, A YEAR ON, ADMITS HE HAS FAILED," Yossi Beilin, an Israeli architect of the 1993 Oslo Accords with the Palestinians, told Israel's army radio on Friday. Washington still hopes to relaunch peace talks that stalled in December if it can forge a deal on their terms of reference

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has, with evident distaste, bowed to US pressure to talk of negotiating the creation of a Palestinian state, BUT ONLY IF IT IS DEMILITARIZED AND IF PALESTINIANS RECOGNIZE ISRAEL AS A JEWISH STATE. Palestinians see this demand as prejudicing the claims to return or compensation of refugees displaced in the 1948 war over Israel's creation, and as undermining the status of Israeli Arabs who make up a fifth of its population.

The prime ministers of regional giants China and India also looked to foster unity on the sidelines of the summit in Thailand after months of trading barbs over long-standing territorial issues. Japan's new Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said a proposed East Asian community involving all 16 countries should aspire to take a leading role as the region makes an early rebound from the global economic crisis.

"It would be meaningful for us to have the aspiration that East Asia is going to lead the world and with the various countries with different regimes cooperating with each other towards that perspective," Hatoyama, who took office last month, told the Bangkok Post newspaper. He described Japan's alliance with the United States as the cornerstone of its foreign policy, but said the region should "try to reduce as much as possible the gaps, the disparities that exist amongst the Asian countries".

China would "doubtless" grow further, particularly economically, "but I do not necessarily regard that as a threat," Hatoyama said. Officials said separately that East Asian nations would carry out a feasibility study for a huge free trade zone covering ASEAN, China, Japan and South Korea and a larger group involving India, Australia and New Zealand.

The declaration that Obama signed late Friday means Health and Human Services chief Kathleen Sebelius to bypass federal rules when opening alternative care sites, such as offsite hospital centers at schools or community centers, if needed. Hospitals could modify patient rules — for example, requiring them to give less information during a hectic time — to quicken access to treatment, with government approval.

The declaration, which the White House announced Saturday, allows HHS in some cases to let hospitals relocate emergency rooms offsite to reduce flu-related burdens and to protect noninfected patients. Administration officials said the declaration was a pre-emptive move designed to make decisions easier when they need to be made. Officials said this was not in response to any single development on an outbreak that has lasted months and has killed more than 1,000 people in the United States.

The quake struck at a depth of 92 miles (148km), USGS reported. Indonesia issued but later withdrew a tsunami alert. Indonesia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, one of the world's most active areas for earthquakes and volcanoes. IT HAS RECENTLY BEEN STRUCK BY STRING OF DEADLY EARTHQUAKES. In September, dozens were killed by a tremor off Java, while a quake which hit Sumatra left more than 1,000 people dead.

According the the USGS, Saturday's earthquake struck 138 miles (222km) from Saumlaki, in Indonesia's Tanimbar islands. Indonesian authorities reportedly put the quake's magnitude at 7.3.

"Those earnings are not the achievement of risk-takers," Mr Soros said. "These are gifts, hidden gifts, from the government, so I don't think that those monies should be used to pay bonuses. THERE'S A RESENTMENT WHICH I THINK IS JUSTIFIED." Mr Soros, who joins a transatlantic chorus calling for limits on risk, leverage and compensation at big banks, said proprietary traders belong at hedge funds, not at banks, and that the compensation at Wall Street companies should be limited to prevent excessive risk.

"With the too-big-to-fail concept comes a need to regulate the payments that employees receive," said Mr Soros, who will elaborate on his views in lectures in Budapest next week. Some bankers have argued that limits on pay would make it difficult for them to retain their most talented risk-takers. Mr Soros agreed and said this would be a good thing.

"That would push the risk-takers who are good at taking risks out of Goldman Sachs into hedge funds, where they actually belong, BECAUSE HEDGE FUNDS TAKE RISKS WITH THEIR OWN CAPITAL, NOT WITH DEPOSITS AND NOT WITH GOVERNMENT GUARANTEES," he said.