A daily wrap of Thailand news, with a Phuket perspective, plus relevant reports from national and international media.

breakingnews.iol.ie British suspermodel Kate Moss was forced to delay a New Year's holiday to Phuket after she overindulged in food and champagne over Christmas. Moss, due to welcome in the New Year on Phuket, had to postpone the trip after celebrating Christmas with boyfriend Jamie Hince and her daughter Lila Grace, seven. Moss is Phuket's best-known regular visitor.

mirror.co.uk Poor, fragile Mossy was forced to miss her 2800 pound first-class flight to Thailand on Boxing Day. The four other flights she had pre-paid for friends and family were also binned, costing her 14,000 pounds in total. Moss was forced to pay out for two nights' unused accommodation at the luxurious fivestar resort in Phuket. We're told: ''Kate goes away every New Year and booked this year's trip over four months ago.''

afp A British radio presenter has been sacked after he pulled the plug on Queen Elizabeth II's traditional Christmas Day speech. Tom Binns said ''Two words: Bor-ring,'' as he stopped the broadcast, before quipping ''from one Queen to another...'' as he put on Last Christmas by pop duo Wham, featuring openly gay singer George Michael.

cnn.comThe failed attempt to blow up a US-bound passenger airplane on December 25 has raised questions about the need for the introduction of full-body scanners at all major airports. The Netherlands says it is installing the scanners at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport, where security staff failed to detect explosives being taken aboard Northwest Airlines flight 253.

telegraph.co.uk Ministers have been accused of putting lives at risk by failing to order X-ray style body scanners at British airports despite fears that al-Qaeda is planning a wave of syringe bomb attacks on planes. The Daily Telegraph has learned that four of the full body scanners are in storage at Heathrow Airport, following a previous trial, but airport staff are not authorised to use them.

upi.com A UN refugee agency wants answers from Thailand regarding the apparent forced repatriation of nearly 5000 ethnic Hmong to Laos this week. In a statement from Geneva, Switzerland, the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said it believed that some of the Hmong had official UN refugee status and needed ''international protection.'' The UNHCR has no formal presence in Laos.

bbc.co.uk Burma has agreed to repatriate 9000 Rohingya Muslims from Bangladesh, the Bangladeshi government has said. Foreign Secretary Mohamed Mijarul Quayes made the announcement in Dhaka after meeting his Burmese counterpart. Human rights groups say Rohingya Muslims have fled religious persecution in Burma and do not want to return to their home country.

voanews.com January 4, 2010, marks the sixty-second anniversary of Burma's independence from British rule. The US has expressed its warmest wishes to the people of Burma on this occasion and its hope that they will enjoy a better future.

bbc.co.uk A senior Chinese naval officer has suggested that China establish a permanent base in the Gulf of Aden to support its anti-piracy operations. Rear Admiral Yin Zhou's proposal was posted on the defence ministry website. Mr Yin said supplying and maintaining the fleet off Somalia was challenging without such a base.

bloomberg Airbus SAS, the world's largest maker of commercial aircraft, delivered 10 A380s in 2009, one short of its target and fewer than last year, as the company struggles to customise the double-decker plane for airlines. Airbus shipped 12 of the superjumbos last year and initially planned to deliver 21 in 2009, then lowered the forecast four times. The number of handovers this year was compiled by Bloomberg News by surveying airline customers, and Airbus confirmed the figure.

Associated Press Seven women on a 900 kilometre Antarctic ski trek reached the South Pole Thursday, 38 days after they began their adventure to mark the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Commonwealth. ''I'm incredibly proud of the team and I think ... if we can do this then you can do anything that you like to and that's the message that we really want to send to everyone,'' team leader Felicity Aston said in a message from South Pole Thursday.

smh.com.au The best birthday present Tiger Woods has received on his 34th birthday (December 30) is the news that the cascade of revelations about the cocktail waitresses and hostesses who were part of his personal smorgasbord has stopped. His life is returning to something approaching normalcy as he remains holed up in Palm Beach with his latest mistress. Not a single new name has been added to the list for three weeks.

smh.com.au Best Job in the World winner Ben Southall has fallen victim to an Irukandji jellyfish sting. The Hamilton Island caretaker was stung on the elbow while jetskiing on Sunday. Today he wrote on social networking site Twitter ''Wow crazy 24hrs! Feeling 100% again after an Irukandji sting while jetskiing. Horrible incident. Lesson learnt - always wear a stinger suit''.

bernama.com Malaysia constitutes Indonesia's largest tourism market with one million of 6.4 million tourist arrivals until November this year. Bandung is Malaysians preferred destination for shopping sprees or golf trips. Australia is second with 600,000 tourist arrivals followed by China (400,000), said Indonesia Culture and Tourism Department director-general Sapta Nirwandar.

thestandard.com.hk The South China Morning Post has axed 35 editorial and design department staff and closed its Bangkok office. The move came three days before staff, whose salaries were reduced by 5 to 12 percent in March, were to have the cuts reinstated, prompting unionist legislator Lee Cheuk-yan to describe the payments as ''blood money.'' SCMP management did not reply to a request from The Standard for comment.

xinhua.com Pakistan and Thailand ratified a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation in the transfer of offenders and enforcement of penal sentences, the Foreign Office of Pakistan said. The agreement was signed between the two governments in December 2007 at Bangkok and aims at strengthening co-operation and assistance in the exchange of prisoners convicted for criminal offenses.


Until January 9 Red Cross is reckoning on a lot of people wanting to win a house on Phuket in probably the island's biggest lottery draw ever. Losers? There won't be any. The Red Cross Fair runs until January 9. Expect a big night on stage at Saphan Hin park in Phuket City on December 31.

December 31 Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation holds turtle release to celebrate the New Year and to raise funds for the care of sea turtles. Donations of 2000 baht to release each of 50 turtles will go to the hatchery program. Contact Khun Aim on 086 689 2230 or e: info@maikhaoturtlefoundation.com