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1.  The High Court has awarded a total of 8.08 million dollars in damages to 11 PAP leaders in their suits against Mr Tang Liang Hong. In setting this record sum of damages, Justice Chao Hick Tin said the courts must show its indignation at the injury inflicted on the plaintiffs.
2.  And turning to the home team. A revamp by the Home Affairs Ministry to its key operations under a major master planning exercise is being planned. In its addendum to the President's address, the MHA says the aim is to maintain a safe, secure and socially healthy environment for the people. Details of plans for the Defence and Foreign Affairs Ministries were also outlined today.
3.  Thailand has lodged a protest with Malaysia over a pair of newspaper cartoons which had portrayed the country in a negative light. But Thailand's foreign minister Prachuab Chaiyasarn said he doesn't expect the special meeting among ASEAN foreign ministers in Kuala Lumpur this weekend to be affected by the incident.
4.  The Government Parliamentary Committee for Education has recommended that secondary education be more broad-based and less specialised. And to achieve this, the GPC's Chairman says the three humanities subjects, Geography, Literature and History should be integrated into one social studies subject. These recommendations will be made to the Education Ministry.
5.  Here's another reason not to drink and drive Police have a new device that can analyse and give accurate printouts of alcohol levels. Police will start using it from Monday.
6.  In the courts today TCS actor Li Nanxing was banned from driving for 30 months and fined $4,000 after pleading guilty to drink driving. Li was found driving under the influence of alcohol along Telok Blangah Road on April 28. TCS says it takes a firm stand on its artistes violating any law. A spokesman said the station has investigated the circumstances leading to the incident. And taking into consideration that this was Li's lst offence and that he deeply regretted it, TCS has decided to issue him a stern written warning.
7.  Internet users say hackers usually break into computer systems out of curiosity. Their comments follow the arrest of 12 individuals suspected of computer hacking. And they say possible jail and fines are high prices to pay for such risky pranks done for trivial reasons.
8.  And here's the latest on the 7th Indonesian General Election. Vote counting is underway in most parts of the country, although in some areas, totting up was finished within hours of voting. Voting was peaceful, despite the violence that marred much of the four-week campaign period. And observers say there's more to this election than the expected overwhelming victory by the ruling party, Golkar.
9.  A former Executive Director of Amcol Holdings has pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiring to cheat the company into investing in a 40 million US dollar project in Mauritius. The project involved developing a casino, race track and residential properties. 42-year-old Ng Chee Kheong has been sentenced by the subordinate courts to 18 months' jail.
10. Taiwanese phone cord maker Huan Hsin Holdings is going for a US dollar listing on the SES mainboard. It plans to raise some 20 million US dollars - by floating 25 percent of the company.
11. Foreign tranches of Singapore banks saw selling by foreign investors following spillover effects from Malaysia's Public Bank which announced changes in the manner in which announced changes in the manner in which overseas investors could hold its foreign shares.
12. Hong Kong stocks closed lower today on profit taking following several days of rapid gains. The blue chip Hang Seng Index closed down almost 1 percent or 140 points.
13. The US dollar ended higher against the yen as fears of an early Japanese rate hike subsided. While the Singapore dollar ended mostly lower against major currencies.
14. Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific Airways says it's considering seeking compensation from Roll-Royce after grounding its 11 Airbus A330-300 jets because of mechanical problems. The airline suspended a further 12 flights today, but said the number will gradually decrease as chartered jets were sought. Cathay Pacific's problems began after the discovery of a flaw in a Rolls-Royce Trent 700 engine on one of its aircraft. The airline operates several aircraft powered by the Rolls-Royce engines. Analysts say the airline's profits will be hit because of the services that have been cancelled since last Sunday. Cathay has chartered planes from Singapore Airlines, Air Mauritius and Canadian Airlines.
15. Japan's industrial output, a key measure of manufacturing strength, has unexpectedly fallen 0.4 percent in April. The government says lower output was a result of companies slashing production after taxes were increased at the beginning of this month. Economists say the weak output numbers make it unlikely the Bank of Japan will raise interest rates anytime soon. Japanese bonds rose on the news, while the US dollar strengthened against the yen. Today's numbers is the third straight decline and comes as domestic demand is falling after new consumption taxes were introduced last month.
16. Amid much speculation that DBS Land will up its stake in Parkway Holdings. Parkway's Managing Director Lim Cheok Peng says he's not aware of any such plan. He did say though DBS Land's Tuesday purchase of a 19 percent stake in Parkway Holdings is a vote of confidence for the company. Adding - DBS Land's connections will open up more business opportunities for Parkway both locally and in the region. Parkway shares bucked market trend today, going up ten cents to close at 6.70 on speculation that a DBS Land takeover of Parkway could be in the works.
17. The HDB has released more 99 year lease land parcels for commercial and residential development. Four parcels - totalling some 30 thousand square meters - have been offered for commercial use. While another five parcels amounting to some 50 thousand square meters worth of land for residential development.
18. And Parkway Group Healthcare has invested 10 million dollars in an IT system to link up all three of its Singapore hospitals. The project is aimed at improving Parkway's business operations and administration - and thus reducing costs and processing time. The Singapore system will be extended to the region in 3 years.
19. The Samsung Corp of South Korea has won a 219-million dollar contract to build a part of the North-east MRT line. The company will construct a 2-and-a-half kilometre section which includes two tunnels and two stations. Work will start next month and is expected to finish by 2002.