A round-up of today’s other stories in brief
Spanish unions seek to halt flights
MADRID – Unions have asked for permission to halt all international flights in Spain on September 29th, the day set for the country's first general strike in eight years, to protest government austerity cuts and labour reform.
The unions also want to halt all medium- and long- distance trains and cut back local train services.
Under Spanish law, workers in certain sectors must provide a minimum level of services.
The public works ministry said it would review the proposals and make a decision in the next few days. – (Reuters)
‘Cat-dumper’ faces criminal charges
LONDON – A woman caught on film picking up and cat and dumping it in a rubbish bin has been charged with two criminal offences, the RSPCA said yesterday.
Mary Bale (45) has been charged with causing unnecessary suffering to a cat, a tabby called Lola, and also with not providing the animal with a suitable environment.
She is due to appear before Coventry Magistrates’ Court on October 19th.
Lola was found by her owners crying inside the wheelie bin about 15 hours after she had gone missing.
– (Reuters)
New GM potato has 60% more protein
NEW DELHI – Researchers in India have developed a genetically modified potato that is packed with up to 60 per cent more protein.
In a paper published today in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the scientists expressed hope the transgenic potato would find more acceptance because it uses a gene from the amaranth seed, another edible crop.
Amaranth is a tall, broadleaf plant that produces tiny seeds.
It was a major food of the Aztecs and earlier American cultures. – (Reuters)