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July 23 (Reuters) – Singapore Exchange (SGXL.SI) may see increased trading volumes of up to 10 percent if it does away with the lunchtime break, chief executive Magnus Bocker said on Friday.
But the exchange is still in talks with brokers and it was too early to say when continuous trading will be implemented, he told the Singapore Foreign Correspondents Association.
(Reporting by Kevin Lim; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)
Several prisoners in Canberra’s Alexander Maconochie Centre are currently involved in a stand-off with officers after climbing on the roof of the prison.
The ABC understands the stand-off began at around lunchtime yesterday.
It is believed the prisoners are protesting about an incident in the last few days where inmates were held in their cells for a full 24-hour period.
The ambulance service says at least 20 people have been treated at hospital after a fire in a shopping centre on the state’s north coast.
Shoppers and staff were ordered from the Ballina Fair complex at lunchtime after a fire in a cafe.
Superintendent Ian Krimmer from the NSW Fire Brigade says they were allowed back in after firefighters checked the air quality and gave the all clear.
“Now when the centre was reopened it appears that a small pocket of smoke which may have been trapped inside an air-conditioning unit has been released and as a result of that a number of people have suffered some ill effects,” Supt Krimmer said.
“They’ve been treated by ambulance and taken to hospital for further treatment,” he said.
The ambulance service says it took 11 people to hospital suffering respiratory problems, and up to 12 others are thought to have sought treatment themselves.
Leeton shops shut their doors and school children joined a town rally yesterday opposing changes to the Carramar Nursing Home.
There have been assurances nursing home beds will not be lost to the town when they are outsourced by the New South Wales Government, but residents fear reduced services.
They turned out in their hundreds yesterday lunchtime and shops closed for an hour to support the 38-bed home staying in public hands.
The rally was told there is a short time frame to convince Health Minister Carmel Tebbutt to keep the nursing home in state management.
Police say a 33 year old man who died in custody at the Perth Watch House was a diabetic.
The man was arrested for breaching a violence restraining order and placed in a cell at the Watch House early yesterday morning.
He was taken to hospital for treatment an hour later and was admitted to hospital for a second time around lunchtime but on both occasions medical staff approved him for release.
The man was taken to hospital for a third time just after 22:00 last night after being found unconscious but was pronounced dead a short time later.
A police internal investigation is under way.
London, September 13 (ANI): Debt-ridden Duchess of York Sarah, 49, may soon bag a presenter’s job on the hit lunchtime chat show ‘Loose Women’.
After her guest appearance on the programme earlier this month, Sarah is now desperate to have a permanent seat at the table anongside motormouths like Carol McGiffin and Denise Welch.
Fergie, as she is popularly known, is even said to have begged ITV1 bosses for the job.
“Sarah loved it so much that afterwards she asked to be a panellist,” the News of the World quoted part-time anchor Andrea McLean, 39, as saying.
“We would all jump at the chance. She would be absolutely ideal. We’d love to have her,” McLean added.
Sued by three firms over nearly 25,000 pounds in unpaid bills, Sarah can make up to 50,000 pounds a year if she gets a regular spot on the show.
An ITV1 insider said: “Fergie has a lot of interesting things to say and would be great for Loose Women.” (ANI)
London, Aug.26 (ANI): The signed England shirt and cricket stump will not be the only mementoes on the walls of Jonathan Trott’s Birmingham home.They will be given equal billing alongside his other most-prized sporting possession, his autographed Tottenham top from manager Harry Redknapp.
Trott, whose brilliantly assured second-innings century on his Test debut helped lay the foundations for the triumph, is not just a cricket lover – he’s a Spurs nut.
And he was gobsmacked that Redknapp, boss of the current Premier League leaders, sent him a shirt as a wedding present when he tied the knot with Abi in April.
Trott said: “The shirt says ‘To Trotty, Up the Spurs, Harry Redknapp’. Then there’s a card from him which says ‘To Trotty. Have a Great Day’.
“I love Spurs, I’m a massive fan and it would be fantastic if they could get into the Champions League to go with us winning The Ashes.
“Even during the Test on Sunday, I caught the TV at lunchtime and checked on the Spurs line-up for the game against West Ham, just to make sure Harry got it right. I wanted to know the final score while I was fielding but I never did and only found out after we had won The Ashes.”
Trott now looks a certainty to make England’s tour to South Africa having proved how cool he is under pressure – despite Aussie skipper Ricky Ponting’s claim he could crumble.
His Spurs allegiance was passed on from his English-born dad Ian and, growing up in Cape Town, he never missed coverage of them.
“I had loads of pictures on my wall and I’ve got tons of old Spurs shirts. I used to walk round with ‘Sheringham’ on my back. The first time I saw Spurs live was at Birmingham in 2003. I was in the Spurs end, we lost 1-0 to David Dunn penalty.
Despite being born and schooled in South Africa, Trott considers himself a proper Englishman.
He added: “I had a British passport from birth and can remember travelling to England in 1996 with the South African Under-15 side.
“Everyone else needed a visa and I just walked straight in. Mind you, I had more trouble getting back into South Africa than anyone else.
“My dad was born in England, my parents live in Surrey and my uncle and granddad live in Kent.
“I didn’t come here as a young guy just to try and take the cash back to South Africa. My home is in Birmingham, I’m an adopted Brummie and I’m very proud.”
Trott’s favourite memory of the triumph is not actually his ton.
He added: “For the rest of my life I’ll remember fielding at deep point to Michael Hussey when he hit it to Andrew Flintoff.
“I had a perfect view. Freddie’s direct hit was phenomenal and to run out Ricky Ponting was the defining moment of the game.” (ANI)
London, Aug 25 (ANI): Television watchdog Ofcom has ruled that a Channel 4 life-drawing programme, which features naked female models, is acceptable for lunchtime viewing.
The Channel 4 programme drew dozens of complains from its viewers over the content of ‘Life Class: Today’s Nude’, which had been broadcast daily at 12.30pm over a week in July.It was adult viewing, not for screening in the middle of the day,” the Telegraph quoted one viewer as saying, after tuning in to the programme in which artists guided students through various drawing techniques.
But Ofcom rejected the 37 complaints, and ruled that the channel did not breach broadcasting guidelines, and it even wrote to every complainant explaining that the nudity was justified.
“Life drawing is a well-known and respected form of art. In Ofcom’s view, although the images of nudity were broadcast for long periods of time, they were not presented in a sexualised manner and were clearly justified by the context, given the editorial purpose of the series,” the letter read.
The programme was broadcast during school term time, and was not aimed at children, the watchdog said, adding that each episode was prefaced by a warning about its content.
Clips from the show are still available on the Channel 4 website, but viewers must click a box to confirm they are over 16 before they can watch the footage.
Channel 4 declined to comment on Ofcom’s decision. (ANI)
London, Jul 9 (ANI): A lunchtime programme by Channel 4 has been met with disapproval, after it showed a nude model in various poses.
Model Kirsten Varley sparked a storm after she appeared completely nude for 30 minutes on the show, as a studio audience and viewers were encouraged to draw her by artist Gary Hume.
On receiving the complaints, Channel 4 insisted that the 12.30pm programme ‘Life Class: Today’s Nude’ was not sensational at all and was purely educational.
But dozens of viewers bombarded their switchboard, saying it was pornography.
One such watcher was writer Punteha Yazdanian, 23, who was in her sick bed watching daytime TV.
“It nearly gave me a relapse,” the Sun quoted her as saying.
“I was disgusted by the sight of Kirsten flaunting her charms in a very suggestive way. This was adult viewing – not for screening in the middle of the day,” she said.
Other viewers argued that total nudity should only be shown after the 9 o’clock watershed in the evening.
The channel is showing five life-drawing classes throughout the week – each with a different model and tutor to tell viewers about art and drawing techniques.
But Alan Kane, the artist who came up with the idea for the programme, defended the show.
“Because it is educational and non-sexualised nudity, Channel 4 didn’t have any concerns with it at all,” he said. (ANI)
Washington, June 22 (ANI): Drinking fat free milk instead of a fruit drink at breakfast helps you feel fuller and eat less at lunchtime, according to a new study.
During the study, Australian researchers found that drinking fat free milk in the morning helped increase satiety, or a feeling of fullness, and led to decreased calorie intake at the next meal, as compared with a fruit drink.
The milk drinkers ate about 50 fewer calories (or nearly 9 percent less food) at lunch.
In the study, 34 overweight but otherwise healthy men and women participated in two testing sessions – one in which they were served about 20 ounces of fat free milk, and one in which they were served the same amount of a fruit drink (both beverages contributed about 250 calories to the breakfast meal).
During the four hours between breakfast and lunch, the men and women gauged their feelings of fullness and were allowed to eat until comfortably full at lunch.
The researchers found that the milk-drinking adults reported feeling fuller, more satisfied and therefore ate fewer calories at lunch.
The researchers suspect that milk’s protein content, the lactose or simply the thickness of the beverage may play a role in the satiety benefits.
Choosing foods that can help enhance satiety is an important success factor in any weight management plan, the researchers suggest.
The study has been published in the July issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. (ANI)
London – A British woman has given birth to a baby boy while travelling on London’s Underground (Tube) network, transport chiefs said Thursday.
Michelle Jenkins, 32, was taken into the staff room at London Bridge station at lunchtime Tuesday after she recognized signs of her baby arriving early while travelling on a Jubilee Line train.
Station staff assisted doctors in the birth which occurred before an ambulance arrived to take mother and baby to hospital.
“Our employees attended to the pregnant woman and made sure she was comfortable while the ambulance arrived. Three doctors also came to help with the birth after being called by London Underground staff via the public address system,” a statement said.
Last December, Julia Kowalska gave birth to a baby girl on the Tube after her waters broke, also on the Jubilee line. She got off the train and went into labour on the platform.
Transport for London said the only other recorded birth on the Underground was in 1924 when Marie Cordery was born at Elephant & Castle station. (dpa)
London, May 25 (ANI): A new study has shown that soy cereal, developed by a professor of food and nutrition, not only helps tackle obesity but cut cancer risk also.
Soo-Yeun Lee, a professor of food science and nutrition from the University of Illinois has come up with a cinnamon-flavoured soy cereal that can reduce the risk of prostate and breast cancer.
Unlike other breakfast cereals that can contain high levels of sugar and fat, the soy cereal has 10 grams of protein and five grams of fibre into each bowl.
It can keep hunger at bay until lunchtime. Soy is already used in some cereals but as an ingredient not a base.
“There are lots of good reasons to eat soy and even more reasons to consume soy protein at breakfast. Research shows soy decreases the risk of breast and prostate cancers and lowers cholesterol,” the Daily Express quoted a Dr Lee as saying.
“Diets high in soy protein are also effective in combating obesity. Soy protein is very high-quality protein and high-protein meals eaten early in the day stick with you so you eat less,” she added.
Soy contains isoflavones – plant hormones – which is said to offer protection against osteoporosis and protect against some cancers.
Dr Lee is now working to improve the flavour of the cereal before it can be marketed.
“We need to do some tweaking but, even at this stage, one of our formulations did better than a product already on shelve,” she said. (ANI)
Wellington – New Zealand police appealed Monday to the couple who flew to Hong Kong after a bank mistakenly gave them a 10- million-New-Zealand-dollar (6.1-million-US-dollar) overdraft to return home before they spend all their ill-gotten gains.
A police statement said the Chinese government was being formally asked to arrest Leo Gao, 29, and his girlfriend, Kara Mary Jo Hurring, 30, who is also known by the surname Yang. They left the country with 3.8 million New Zealand dollars belonging to the Westpac Bank.
Gao, part owner of a struggling auto service station in Rotorua, was mistakenly given access to 10 million New Zealand dollars when the bank was formalizing a temporary overdraft of 100,000 dollars.
He tried to withdraw 6.7 million dollars but the bank blocked access to 2.9 million, leaving him with 3.8 million.
“We are well aware of the events that have been associated with this opportunistic offending,” Detective David Harvey said. “This pair still have families in New Zealand and at some stage they may want to return to see them.
“I would suggest that they take the opportunity to return to this country to resolve this matter before the outstanding sum of up to 3.8 million dollars is spent.”
Harvey said a family member who was travelling with them returned to Auckland from Hong Kong at lunchtime Monday and was speaking to police.
This is thought to be Aroha Hurring, 22, a sister of Kara.
“I urge the pair to reflect on the consequences of what they are doing and make arrangements to come back to New Zealand,” Harvey said.(dpa)
Wellington – New Zealand’s biggest city, Auckland, was brought to a halt at lunchtime Monday by up to 7,000 demonstrators marching to protest the government’s refusal to guarantee seats for indigenous Maoris on a new “super city” council.
The new council, to be elected in November next year, will govern about one-third of New Zealand’s total population of 4.3 million and as Auckland has the largest population of Polynesian people anywhere in the world, Maoris insist they should be guaranteed a say.
Prime Minister John Key, whose centre-right national government came to power in November, has made reform of the administration of Auckland, which is currently in the hands of eight separate councils, a priority.
The demonstrators, some holding Maori sovereignty flags, gathered at points around the city and marched into the central business district, stopping at times to perform a haka war dance.
They were joined by others, including mayors of suburban district councils who oppose the amalgamation which will see their roles abolished, with signs such as “It’s about rights, not race.”
A business leader, Cameron Brewer, said the march and resulting traffic gridlock would cost the 5,000 commercial business in the city centre millions of dollars in lost revenue and productivity. (dpa)
London, May 16 (ANI): Double Olympic sprint king Bolt will visit the Manchester United headquarters at Old Trafford on Saturday ahead of the team’s match against Arsenal.
Bolt, a United fan, dropped in at their Carrington training ground to meet Fergie and his troops ahead of today’s lunchtime clash with the Gunners.nd he found boss Ferguson already looking beyond equalling Liverpool’s record of 18 top-flight titles.ergie declared: “I’m not looking at equalling anyone. I just want ourselves to be the best.
“This team has got a bit to go yet, it can go on to win many more titles and that’s the exciting part for me. The prospect of winning more titles with this team resonates with me far more than equalling somebody. This team is young enough to win more titles. I’m sure they can do it,” The Sun quoted Fergie, as saying.
Since arriving at Old Trafford 23 years ago, Fergie has seen off Liverpool, he has seen off Arsenal and has responded to the threat from Chelsea.
Fergie believes it is the resilience of his side that has got them this far – and is pleased United face the Gunners today. (ANI)
London, May 03 (ANI): In a daring photoshoot for fashion magazine Harper’s Bazaar, Kate Winslet has posed amid the rooftops of New York.
The Oscar-winning actress posed for a series of shots for the magazine, reminiscent of the famous Lunchtime Atop A Skyscraper photograph of grubby Thirties builders eating lunch hundreds of feet above the city streets.
“It was dramatic seeing Kate perched on a girder,” News of the World quoted an onlooker a saying.
“She looked like one of those construction workers in the famous American skyscraper pictures-only a lot sexier in just her underwear and a pin-striped jacket,” the onlooker added. (ANI)