TODAY’s brief, Thursday, July 2

Roy Ngerng hearing continues

The hearing to assess the damages blogger Roy Ngerng has to pay Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong for defamation in a May article last year continues today. Mr Lee’s lawyer Davinder Singh is expected to cross-examine the 34-year-old blogger who had been ruled in November last year to have defamed Mr Lee by alleging misappropriation of money paid by Singaporeans to the Central Provident Fund. Yesterday, Mr Lee took the witness stand, and both sides crossed swords on whether there was malice in Mr Ngerng’s conduct, whether he was sincere in his apologies and whether his subsequent actions aggravated the injury to Mr Lee’s reputation.

PM Lee at IPS conference

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will be involved in a one-hour question and answer session tonight at a conference organised by the Institute of Policy Studies focussing on the key questions that are likely to shape Singapore’s future in the next 50 years. The conference, which will be held at the Shangri-La Hotel, continues tomorrow with a dialogue with Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam. There will also be discussions on geopolitics, the economy, resource and environmental challenges, as well as governance. Among the speakers are Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong, Ambassador-at-Large Tommy Koh, and Monetary Authority of Singapore managing director Ravi Menon.

M’sia’s response to Indonesia protest note

All eyes are on whether Malaysia will respond to an official protest note lodged by the Indonesia Foreign Ministry, after a helicopter ferrying Malaysian Home Affairs Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi briefly landed on a helipad located on the Indonesian side of Sebatik island over the weekend. While Sabah Air Aviation has apologised for the pilot’s mistake, the intrusion could develop into another sore point especially after claims last month that Malaysian warships had crossed into Indonesian waters.

Heatwave in Europe

A heatwave is gripping continental Europe, as summer temperatures soar in France, Spain and Portugal. Paris has activated its national heatwave emergency plan, with Ecology Minister Ségolène Royal calling on those in charge of air-conditioned public spaces, such as libraries, cinemas and shopping malls, to let in the public so that they can get some respite. But the heat in Britain is set to ease off today, after the country yesterday experienced its hottest day in a decade with temperatures exceeding 36 degrees in some places.

Weather forecast

Expect fair and warm weather with temperatures ranging from between 26°C to 34°C