The Hellenic Radio (ERA): News in English, 09-07-30

The Hellenic Radio (ERA): News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: The Hellenic Radio (ERA) <www.ert.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Action Plan against H1N1 Gets Implemented

With regard to the vaccination campaign, Dimitris Avramopoulos said that apart from the high-risk patients, people working in public transport, municipalities and prefectures will also be given priority.

He then added that immigrants living in Greece, whether they are legal or not, will not be excluded from the vaccination planning.PASOK (Panhellenic Socialist Movement) spokesman Giorgos Papakonstantinou called the meetings useful, however, he stressed that it would be more useful if the government had a plan to propose.

We are expecting to see the government's plan, added he, further claiming that the government had better deal with the crisis and not with PASOK, because it is making enemies that way.

Earlier, Socialist leader George Papandreou had told the House that the country lacks hospital personnel to address the pandemic.

âTo tackle phenomena such as the flu, at leas three key prerequisites are necessary: calmness, wise organization and sufficient materials. Greece is lacking in all three,â commented SYRIZA (Coalition of the Radical Left) Thanassis Leventis.

In the meantime, the H1N1 infections have soared to 730 in Greece.

News item: 25348

[02] 33 New Private Colleges Licensed to Operate

Of the 39 colleges licensed to operate, five have contracts with American universities and eight do no cooperate with any foreign university. This means that the diplomas the above colleges issue will not give working rights to their graduates, since they are not covered by the EU directive.

News item: 25343

[03] Siemens: Italy Gives Evidence on Greeks

Magistrate Nikos Zagorianos, who is investigating the Siemens case, will call for Italian Justice's contribution, since the probe taking place in Italy has surfaced evidence against former Siemens officials in Greece.

News item: 25337

[04] Full-Scale Wrangling in Parliament

Tensions ran high in Parliament between PASOK President George Papandreou and Conservative MP Panos Panagiotopoulos and Employment Minister Fani Palli Petralia. Papandreou blasted the government for its policy on economy and health, and unveiled a five-point proposal. Panagiotopoulos, on the other hand, stressed that PASOK's proposals are sloppy and confusing, while Fani Palli Petralia accused Papandreou of populism.

News item: 25336

[05] Optical Fibres Part of Households' Routine

New technologies topped the meeting held Thursday between the Prime Minister and Transport Minister Evrypides Stylianides. The latter stressed that optical fibres are about to become part of households' routine. Optical fibres can contribute the most to e-health, e-education, and e-trade. About 52 cities will be included in the system.

News item: 25333

[06] House Okays Amendment on Unhealthy Occupations

Last Updated on Thursday, 30 July 2009 18:21

The House passed Thursday the amendment on unhealthy and arduous occupations amidst strong reactions by the opposition parties. The Employment Minister stressed the government is steadfast on moving on with revising the list of unhealthy and arduous occupations, a list which was first compiled in 1951, as she said. Socialist deputy Mariliza Xenogiannakopoulou spoke of a shameful amendment. The Greek Communists also voiced their objections.

News item: 25332

[07] Statesmen's Statements of Assets

The statements of assets submitted by the Greek statesmen were released Thursday. No significant differences were reported compared to those submitted last year.

News item: 25330

[08] Gang-members Get Deadline to Testify

Charged with participating in the 16-member gang, Panagiotis Vlastos and Vassilis Stefanakos were given until 9 August to testify. Third detainee and member of the same gang Ioannis Skaftouros is also expected to request a deadline.

Source: NET 105.8

News item: 25328

[09] Half US Population to Be Vaccinated

Last Updated on Thursday, 30 July 2009 19:31

About 160 million people are estimated to be vaccinated against the H1N1 virus in the USA in autumn, with pregnant women, health workers, people who care for babies and children between the age of six months and four years being top priority.

Nearly 120 million doses of vaccine per person will be available in mid-October.

Of the 80% of the population advised to get vaccinated against the common flu, only 40% of them do so, commented experts, further adding that if the same number of people respond to the vaccination campaign against the H1N1 virus, then there will be no problem with the number vaccines.

In the meantime, a study that appeared in the medical journal Lancet, expectant mothers are four times more vulnerable to the H1N1 flu virus and have a greater risk of death compared to the general population.

Source: Reuters, ANA/MPA

Related news: Pregnant Women More Vulnerable to H1N1 Flu

BBC: Swine flu vaccine for 'half US'

News item: 25321

[10] Organic Food no Healthier than Ordinary One

Organic food is no healthier than ordinary food, a large independent review has concluded. There is little difference in nutritional value and no evidence of any extra health benefits from eating organic produce, UK researchers found.

The Food Standards Agency who commissioned the report said the findings would help people make an "informed choice".

But the Soil Association criticised the study and called for better research.

Researchers from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine looked at all the evidence on nutrition and health benefits from the past 50 years.

Among the 55 of 162 studies that were included in the final analysis, there were a small number of differences in nutrition between organic and conventionally produced food but not large enough to be of any public health relevance, said study leader Dr Alan Dangour.

News item: 25347

The Hellenic Radio (ERA): News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article