Lord Owen denies this is a cunning attempt to block the bill - arguing that because the parliamentary year will not end until well after Easter, there is plenty of time to have the debate he wants and then for the bill to reach the statute book.

BBC: Living with the NHS bill

To have Microsoft block their planned route back will make their continued relevancy at the high-end of the smartphone market even more challenging.

FORBES: What Will Be The Impact Of Microsoft's Mythical Windows Phone When It Is Announced?

Estonians and Latvians fear the dispute may block better road, rail and power links to the south-east that will end their isolation from the rest of Europe.

ECONOMIST: Lithuania and Poland seem to have hit an icy impasse

It could block the new treaty, providing for much-needed institutional reforms, which is due at the end of this year.

ECONOMIST: The Union expects Europe’s voters to fit its political space | The