London: Tony Blair believed that Prince Charles tried to “screw” then ruling Labour Party, according to Alastair Campbell, the ex-communications director of the former British Prime Minister. Blair felt that the heir to the throne overstepped the constitutional boundaries previously observed by royal family members by trying to influence British government’s policies, Campbell has claimed.
The Labour leader is said to have become exasperated by the Prince’s interventions over the ban on foxhunting, the foot and mouth crisis, GM foods, and abolition of hereditary peers, ‘The Daily Telegraph’ reported.
In fact, Blair’s concerns grew so great that he even raised them with the Queen, Campbell suggests in the latest volume of his diaries. In an entry on October 31 — about a meeting between Blair and the Prince of Wales after a day’s foxhunting — Campbell writes: “While publicly we stayed supportive, TB said Charles had to understand there were limits to the extent to which they could play politics with him. (PTI)
Young Brits, H’wood legends to meet Will, Kate
LOS ANGELES: Larry Crowne actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Game of Thrones actor Harry Lloyd will be among the up-and-coming British talent meeting Prince William and his new wife Kate Middleton at a black-tie gala in Los Angeles next week. But the royal couple also will get a chance to chat with Hollywood A-list stars at the event, seen as the highlight of their three-day visit to southern California, organizers said on Friday. (PTI)
Girls top Karachi exam
Islamabad: Girls have bagged the top three positions at a graduation examination conducted by the University of Karachi.
The three girls topped in BA Part-II and both parts (Regular) Annual Examination, Daily Times reported Saturday.
Hadiya Saleem stood first, Anum Rafique was second while the third position went to Asia Ashraf.
As many as 8,848 candidates appeared in the examination and the pass percentage was 33.50. (IANS)
300,000 Pakistanis to get tax notices
Islamabad: As many as 300,000 people in Pakistan will be directed to file their income tax returns, a top official said.
Federal Board of Revenue chairman Salman Siddique told the Dawn that the process of issuing notices to these people would be completed by the end of August.
The revenue board has identified a large number of people who have homes in posh localities, hold foreign currency accounts and frequently travel abroad, but don’t pay income tax.
“We will try to force these people to file tax returns during the current financial year,” Siddique was quoted as saying.
Siddique said 26,740 wealthy people filed income tax returns during the last financial year. An amount of Rs.356 million was received from them.
Pakistan has already reached its tax collection target of Rs.1,588 billion for the fiscal year 2010-11. (IANS)
Egypt to open avenue of sphinxes
Cairo: A 2,400-year-old avenue in Egypt that is lined with sphinx statues will now be opened to the public after restoration work for five years, the government said.
The Avenue of the Sphinxes will be opened in October, the antiquities ministry announced.
The 2.7-km long avenue connects the grand temples of Luxor and Karnak and was built during the reign of Pharaoh Nectanebo I, who ruled Egypt from 80-362 B.C.
The avenue replaced an earlier one built during the reign of Queen Hatshepsut (1502-1482 B.C.) and was used for religious ceremonies and processions.
It marked an annual journey of the sacred boat of the god Amun on his visit to his wife Mut at Luxor temple.
The avenue contains an inscription to Queen Cleopatra from her visit during a Nile trip with Mark Anthony. (IANS)
Rare Sumatran tiger killed by trap in Indonesia
Jakarta: An endangered Sumatran tiger has died of its wounds after several days attempting to break free of a steel wire trap in Indonesia, an official said on Saturday.
The 18-month-old male tiger was found yesterday morning and died in the afternoon near an acacia plantation in Pelalawan district of Riau province, according to Riau Conservation Agency technical head Syahimin.
“The tiger died because it could not eat or drink and it kept on bleeding. The trap wires have entered its bones,” Syahimin, who goes by one name, said.
“The people in the area said the trap was intended for pigs. But any animals caught in that trap could also die,” he added.
There are fewer than 400 Sumatran tigers left in the wild. Environmental activists say the animals are increasing coming into contact with people as a result of their natural habitat being lost due to deforestation. (AFP)
Mayor in Italy gets 10 kg trash
Rome: An Italian politician sent 10 kg of garbage by mail to the mayor of Naples, protesting a new decree that allows the city to export its trash to other areas of Italy.
Eraldo Ciangherotti, social services councillor of northwestern Albenga city, sent the trash to Luigi De Magistris Friday.
“If De Magistris doesn’t know how to dispose of the rubbish and wants to learn how to make people play by the rules, he should call his fellow mayors, including ours,” said Ciangherotti.
“In 2010, the citizens of Albenga paid no less than 4.8 million euros for the collection and disposal of their garbage. If every town council can manage its waste, so can Naples,” he said.
The Italian parliament approved a decree Thursday allowing Naples to send its trash for disposal to other regions, a move that has been vehemently opposed by most provinces. (IANS)
Man held for stealing silver ‘eyes’ from shrine
Islamabad: A man has been arrested for stealing silver ‘eyes’ from a Pakistani shrine that is believed to restore sight to the blind.
Police said that people who are “cured of blindness” leave in gratitude eyes made of silver at the shrine of Shaki Shah Darwaish in village Thoag.
Dawn reported that a man had Wednesday tried to sell the silver eyes and two ceiling fans at a local market.
Alerted by shopkeepers, the police personnel gave chase and caught him.
The man has confessed to stealing over 80 pairs of silver eyes and the fans from the shrine two weeks ago.
When the police informed the shrine’s administrators, they were told that while they were aware of the theft of the two fans, they didn’t realise that silver eyes had also been stolen since there were too many at the shrine. (IANS)