PORTRAIT OF THE WEEK
Clashes on the 5,000-mile border between Russia and China resulted in the first publicly admitted fatalities; the usual reciprocal denun- ciations and demonstrations followed. Despite harassment from the East Germans, plans to hold West Germany's presidential elections in Berlin proceeded smoothly. President Nixon returned from his European tour and threat- ened retaliation against the Vietcong offensive in Vietnam. The Ford strike entered its ninth day with about 35,000 of the 46.000 workers on strike, losing exports at the rate of fl million a day. A High Court hearing to decide that Ford's agreement with the unions was legally binding entered its third day, with the full hearing fixed for next week. Everyone agreed that it was an important test case.Iran- while, nearly one hundred Labour tin's defied a three-line whip instructing them to vote for Mrs Castle's White Paper on trade union re- form. Tests were successfully carried out on the Apollo 9 spacecraft.
The Anglo-French Concorde successfully flew for twenty-seven minutes from Toulouse Airport. Stansted did not appear on the short list of four possible sites for London's third airport, produced by the Roskill Commission. The Kray twins, Ronald and Reginald, found guilty of murder with four others, were sen- tenced to life imprisonment with a recommen- dation that it should run for thirty years. Their elder brother, Charles Kray, was convicted of being an accessory after the fact, and sentenced to ten years. Wage talks between the govern- ment and trade unions in France gave rise to further speculation about the franc.
A Private Member's Bill to relax the laws on Sunday entertainment won its second read- ing in the House of Commons by a small majority. Sir Cyril Black announced his inten- tion to retire from politics at the next general election. Essex County Council cut its annual E107,000 grant to Essex University by LI in protest against students' morals. Mrs Golda Meir was nominated as Prime Minister of Israel, and General Moshe Dayan agreed to serve as Defence Minister under her. Reports of civilian boinbing in Biafra which appeared in The Times resulted in an unsuccessful attempt to hold an emergency debate on the matter in the House of Commons. Bombing continued in Biafra. The Prince of Wales gave his first radio interview, which included three impersonations and his own account of the 'cherry brandy' episode. Prince Philip criticised town and country planning controls and foreign exchange regulations. General Eisen- hower, fighting an attack of pneumonia in Washington, was said to be getting weaker. A man who had 'been held for ten days in Croydon on a charge of indecently assaulting an eleven year old girl was released after the prosecution admitted that there was not a shred of evidence against him. It was announced that the 'Queen Elizabeth 2,' best joke of 1968, will attempt to sail on 2 May.
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