The government said it would halve the number of Indonesian workers in Malaysia and put the country to the bottom of the recruitment list in future.

ECONOMIST: Immigration and its problems

Last week Mr Sarkozy said there were too many foreigners in France - and pledged to halve the number of immigrants arriving if he is re-elected later this year.

BBC: Sarkozy threatens to withdraw from Schengen accord

This happens during the production of sex cells, and its effect is to halve the number of chromosomes in a cell (the number returns to normal when two sex cells combine during fertilisation).

ECONOMIST: Genetic engineering

Two UK development agencies, Tearfund and WaterAid, said the agreement to halve the number of people without access to sanitation was "the first milestone in a long fight to halt the millions of deaths caused by preventable disease".

BBC: Faint praise for faltering summit

To reduce pollution, between July 20th and September 20th the city is aiming to halve the number of private vehicles on the roads by allowing those with odd-number licence plates to drive one day, and those with even-number plates the next.

ECONOMIST: Business travel

He said the US remained committed to Lajes despite looming cuts that would halve the total number of personnel there.

BBC: Leon Panetta makes final international trip to Europe

During the general election last year, he promised to halve the size of the government, reducing the number of ministries and agencies from 22 to ten or so.

ECONOMIST: Japan: Fat government, slim hopes | The

"The number of fuel-poor households helped by government-backed schemes is likely to more than halve over the next three years, despite fuel poverty levels having almost tripled in five years, " said Derek Lickorish, chairman of the FPAG.

BBC: Fuel poverty to rise to 8.5m, report warns