Shields, who works in the communications office at the city's Department of Public Health, was inspired to help pronounce couples "SPOUSES FOR LIFE" because her daughter married a woman in Massachusetts last year and she wanted to help others share the same joy. "Those are powerful words and it's a very solemn responsibility," said Shields, who is volunteering on her own time.

On Monday, California is due to become the second state to allow gays to marry, and county officials state-wide are preparing for an expected flood of weddings over the next several weeks. To help absorb the crowds, they are adding staff, extending hours and training and deputizing hundreds of volunteer marriage commissioners.

Causes of death included heart attacks, blood infections and pneumonia, while asthma and kidney failure were among reported side-effects. The statistics, revealed by Health Minister Dawn Primarolo, raise fears over the safety of the vaccine, which is taken by eight million people in Britain every year. Government policy is to offer the jabs to everyone over 65 and those with existing conditions that could be worsened by flu.

Health Minister Dawn Primarolo insisted the flu vaccine was safe and added: 'The balance of benefits to risks remains overwhelmingly positive.'

DESPITE THE IRISH REFERENDUM, FRANCE, GERMANY AND SENIOR BRUSSELS OFFICIALS HAVE INSISTED THERE SHOULD BE NO DELAY IN IMPLEMENTING THE EUROPEAN UNION BLUEPRINT. But No 10 sources say the prime minister would rather see the entire constitutional treaty collapse than allow individual member states to be left trailing in a two-speed Europe.

The collapse of the Lisbon treaty would take the heat off Brown as he faces down renewed calls for Britain to have its own referendum. If Europe presses ahead without Ireland, it would set a precedent for a two-speed club, with Britain likely to be stuck in the second tier. A Downing Street source said: "The legal position on this is very clear: the treaty cannot come into force until all 27 countries have ratified it." One senior government official said anyone who thought the Irish vote could be ignored was "living in cloud-cuckoo-land". The leaders of the EU's 27 members states will meet this week in Brussels, but yesterday the Irish government ruled out forcing through a second referendum.

William Hague, the shadow foreign secretary, said EUROPEAN LEADERS HAD TO HEED THE NO VOTE OR RISK LOOKING "REMOTE, OUT OF TOUCH AND MORE UNDEMOCRATIC THAN EVER".

Catholic congregations throughout the world will receive special instruction on how to appreciate the old services, formerly known as the Tridentine Rite. Yesterday's announcement by the senior Vatican cardinal in charge of Latin liturgy, Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos, speaking on behalf of Pope Benedict XVI, will horrify Catholic liberals, including many bishops of England and Wales.

The Pope upset the liberals last year when he issued a decree removing their power to block the celebration of the old Mass. Yesterday's move demonstrates that the Vatican intends to go much further in promoting the ancient liturgy. IN THE TRADITIONAL RITE, THE PRIEST FACES IN THE SAME DIRECTION AS THE PEOPLE AND READS THE MAIN PRAYER OF THE MASS IN LATIN, IN A VOICE SO LOW AS TO BE VIRTUALLY SILENT. By contrast, in the new rite the priest faces the people and speaks audibly in the local language.

Such sweeping liturgical changes are certain to cause intense controversy. At a press conference, a journalist from the liberal Tablet magazine, which is close to the English bishops, told the Cardinal that the new liturgical changes amounted to "going backwards".

A breakaway group of conservative Anglican archbishops meets this week, threatening to split the worldwide communion over the issue of homosexuality, and the 10-yearly Lambeth Conference starts next month. The future of the 80 million-strong Anglican Communion hangs by one of Dr Williams's whiskers.

Anglicans in Africa and Asia are infuriated enough with the liberal North American churches, where openly homosexual clergy and church blessings for same-sex couples are now commonplace. But the news that two male priests used a traditional wedding liturgy, involving the exchange of rings and vows, in a Church of England church could push them to the edge.

The eyes of the Anglican world will now be on Dr Williams. The archbishop will be expected to act by showing strong leadership. THIS WILL TEST HIS AUTHORITY AND POTENTIALLY SHAPE THE FUTURE OF ANGLICANISM. While the pro-gay lobby will argue that this wedding is part of being an inclusive Church, the traditionalists claim that homosexual behaviour is a sin and conceding on this would be to undermine the authority of the Bible. It is set to ignite a battle for the soul of the Church.

Officials guess it will be four days before the Cedar River drops enough for workers to even begin pumping out water that has submerged more than 400 blocks, threatened the city's drinking supply and forced the evacuation of a downtown hospital. "We're estimating at least a couple of weeks before the flood levels get down right around flood stage and below," said Dustin Hinrichs of the Linn County emergency operations center.

The Cedar River crested Friday night at nearly 32 feet, 12 feet higher than the old record set in 1929. County Supervisor Linda Langston estimated the number forced from their homes at 20,000 and said that figure could rise as officials got a better grasp of how many neighborhoods were flooded. Cedar Rapids has a population of about 120,000. "THIS IS OUR VERSION OF KATRINA," Johnson County Emergency Management spokesman Mike Sullivan said. "This is the worst flooding we've ever seen - much worse than 1993," when much of the Midwest was hit by record flooding

THE DRENCHING HAS ALSO SEVERELY DAMAGED CROPS IN AMERICA'S NO. 1 CORN STATE and other parts of the Midwest at a time when corn prices are soaring. Dave Miller, a grain farmer and director of research for the Iowa Farm Bureau, estimated that up to 1.3 million acres of corn and 2 million acres of soy beans - about 20 percent of the state's overall grain crop - had been lost to flooding.

Two male priests exchanged vows and rings in a ceremony that was conducted using one of the church's most traditional wedding rites - a decision seen as blasphemous by conservatives.

The ceremony broke Church of England guidelines and was carried out last month in defiance of the Bishop of London, in whose diocese it took place. News of the "wedding" emerged days before a crucial summit of the Anglican Church's conservative bishops and archbishops, who are threatening to split the worldwide Church over the issue of homosexual clergy. Although some liberal clergy have carried out "blessing ceremonies" for homosexual couples in the past, this is the first time a vicar has performed a "wedding ceremony", using a traditional marriage liturgy, with readings, hymns and a ­Eucharist.

THE MOST REV HENRY OROMBI, THE ARCHBISHOP OF UGANDA, SAID THAT THE CEREMONY WAS "BLASPHEMOUS." He called on Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, to take decisive action if the Anglican Church were not to "disintegrate". Archbishop Orombi added: "WHAT REALLY SHOCKS ME IS THAT THIS IS HAPPENING IN THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND THAT FIRST BROUGHT THE GOSPEL TO US. The leadership tried to deny that this would happen, but now the truth is out. Our respect for the Church of England will erode unless we see a return to traditional teaching."

The couple, the Rev Peter Cowell, who is a cleric at one of the Queen's churches, and the Rev Dr David Lord, had registered their civil partnership before the ceremony. Mr Dudley opened the service by saying: "Dearly beloved, we are gathered together here in the sight of God to join these men in a holy covenant of love and fidelity. Such a covenant shows us the mystery of the union between God and God's people and between Christ and the Church." In the vows, Mr Cowell and Dr Lord pledged to "hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part".

Mr Dudley blessed the union with the words: "As David and Jonathan's souls were knit together, so these men may surely perform and keep the vow and covenant betwixt them made."

Public health workers in Maricopa County, which includes the cities of the Phoenix valley, are breeding thousands of so-called mosquito fish to gobble up larvae that thrive in the green pools of abandoned homes across the county. The tiny, silvery fish are being offered to residents and municipal authorities across the parched desert county, which has tens of thousands of swimming pools, AND ONE OF THE HIGHEST FORECLOSURE RATES IN THE UNITED STATES.

"The abandoned pools become a stagnant little swamp that breeds mosquitoes in the middle of a neighborhood," said John Townsend, Maricopa County Vector Control manager. "It is an important public health issue to keep the mosquito population down - and the fish are very effective at that," he added. West Nile virus, which came to the United States from Africa in the late 1990s, is now endemic in the county. Severe cases can produce high fever, stupor, tremors and paralysis, and can prove fatal.

In the first three months of the year, 17,214 HOMES IN MARICOPA COUNTY WERE OFFERED FOR FORECLOSURE SALES, a more than three-fold rise on the previous year, according to RealtyStore.com. In addition, an unknown number of local homes were simply abandoned as the owners skipped out on their spiraling debts, many leaving untreated backyard pools to stagnate, local authorities say.

In a homily to pilgrims in southern Italy, the Pope said the Church's role in politics - where it often speaks out against abortion, gay marriage and embryo research - was not intended to take the place of western secular ways of government.

"The Christian community cannot and does not want ever to substitute the legitimate and right competencies of institutions," the Pope told pilgrims at the start of a two-day visit to one of Italy's most economically depressed areas. A day after strolling through the Vatican Gardens with U.S. President George W. Bush, with whom he sees eye-to-eye on many moral issues, the Pope said the Church had the role of "supporting (governments) in their work and always proposes cooperating with them for the good of all".

The two men spoke for half an hour in the 12th century Tower of St John, a private area in the Vatican gardens which is used by the pope for private reflection. A source close to the Vatican said that Mr Bush was the most "Catholic-minded" president since John F Kennedy, who famously played down his Catholicism.

MR BUSH HAS FILLED THE WHITE HOUSE WITH CATHOLIC SPEECH-WRITERS AND CONSULTANTS and is also thought to have asked a Catholic priest to bless the West Wing. Before he became president, Karl Rove, his former political adviser, invited Catholic intellectuals to Texas to lecture the candidate on the church's teachings. Mr Bush appointed the Catholic judges Samuel Alito and John Roberts to the Supreme Court.

However, it is thought unlikely that Mr Bush would convert until after he has left office. Jeb Bush, the president's brother, has already converted to Catholicism. Catholics have noted that during the contested election in 2000, Jeb Bush travelled to Mexico and prayed to the icon of Our Lady of Guadelupe. His victory was announced by the Supreme Court on December 12, the feast day of the Lady of Guadelupe.

The council has 29 members including Saudi Arabia, Cuba and Sri Lanka. It was the Sri Lankan envoy who raised concerns over the British monarchy. The resulting report said Britain should have a referendum on the monarchy and the need for a written constitution with a bill of rights. The monarchy costs each adult in Britain around 62p a year but even groups representing taxpayers said there was no case for getting rid of it.

Matthew Elliott, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: "With so many human rights abuses around the world the UN should be busy reporting on issues of starvation, execution and the denial of the vote to huge numbers of people around the world. Saudi Arabia and Cuba should pay a little more attention to their own human rights record."

The UN report was also critical of the UK's treatment of immigrants from Sudan. Syrian representatives accused the UK of discriminating against Muslims and Iran complained about the UK's record on tackling sexual discrimination. A royal source said: "People here certainly haven't detected any appetite for a referendum. The Queen is a focus for national unity, identity and pride."

The blaze already had destroyed at least 20 homes. Authorities on Thursday had closed all roads to Paradise and ordered 9,000 people to leave. In recent days, hot temperatures, steady winds and tinder-dry vegetation have fueled a series of destructive blazes in the northern heartland of California.

Across the country, authorities in North Carolina issued an air quality advisory for Raleigh, Chapel Hill and Durham through Friday after smoke from a wildfire burning in a wildlife refuge drifted westward. The lightning-sparked blaze has burned more than 60 square miles in and around the Pocosin Lakes Wildlife Refuge, and was only 40 percent contained.

Authorities say without a massive rainstorm, firefighters can do little to extinguish the blaze and put an end to the smoky weather.

A hospital in the city of Cedar Rapids was flooded and its patients evacuated after the Cedar river burst its banks and swamped more than 400 streets. Iowa Governor Chet Culver has declared 83 of the state's 99 counties to be disaster areas and said that nine rivers are at, or above, record levels.

THE FLOODS HAVE ALSO DESTROYED MOST OF THE MIDWEST'S CORN AND SOYBEAN CROPS. The damage has helped push prices for the foods to record levels this week. Wheat, oats and rice production has also been affected.

One of the worst flooded areas in Iowa has been Cedar Rapids, the state's second largest city with a population of 124,000, where at least 438 city centre streets were inundated by rising water from the Cedar river and a railway bridge collapsed. Flooding has also swamped parts of Minnesota, Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri, Kansas and Indiana. So far, officials in Indiana have reported three flood-related deaths and at least two deaths in Iowa.

France and Germany have described the No vote in the referendum as a serious blow but have urged the EU to press ahead with the project. EUROPEAN COMMISSION HEAD JOSE MANUEL BARROSO SAID THE TREATY WAS NOT DEAD. But Czech President Vaclav Klaus said the treaty was finished, since any further ratification was impossible.

His is a lone voice among EU leaders, but his views will probably resonate with many European voters who did not get a say in a referendum, says the BBC's Oana Lungescu in Brussels. The third failed referendum on an EU treaty in three years can only be seen as a serious blow to the EU's credibility at home and abroad, our correspondent adds.

The European Commission says nations should continue to ratify the treaty, designed to streamline decision-making. BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY DAVID MILIBAND SAID THE UK WOULD PRESS ON WITH ITS RATIFICATION.

Germany's Handelsblatt newspaper says bankers have detected a curious pattern where customers are withdrawing cash directly from branches, screening the notes to determine the origin of issue. They ask for paper from the southern states to be exchanged for German notes.

Each country prints its own notes according to its economic weight, under strict guidelines from the European Central Bank in Frankfurt. The German notes have an "X"' at the start of the serial numbers, showing that they come from the Bundesdruckerei in Berlin. PEOPLE CLEARLY SUSPECT THAT SOUTHERN NOTES MAY LOSE VALUE IN A CRISIS, OR IF THE EUROZONE BREAKS APART. This is what happened in the US in the Jackson era of the 1840s when dollar notes from different regions traded at different values.

A group of leading German professors warned at the outset of EMU that the euro would tend to be weaker than old Deutsche Mark, and that it would fuel inflation over time. German citizens were never given a vote on the abolition of the D-Mark, which had become a symbol of Germany's rebirth after the war. Many have kept a stash of D-Marks hidden in mattresses to this day. A recent IPOS poll showed THAT 59PC OF GERMANY NOW HAD SERIOUS DOUBTS ABOUT THE EURO.