News Headlines - 22 August 2012

▽Obama Threatens Force Against Syria - NYTimes.com

President Obama warned Syria on Monday that it would face American military intervention if there were signs that its arsenal of unconventional weapons was being moved or prepared for use. It was Mr. Obama’s first direct threat of force against Syria, as he has resisted being drawn into the bloody 18-month rebellion.

▽Another disastrous month - and George Osborne is forced to cut deeper - The Independent

Public sector finances suffered from a 20 per cent fall in corporation tax receipts from business while public spending rose by 5 per cent, fuelled by higher benefit payments

▽RBS under investigation by US authorities - Telegraph

The taxpayer-backed UK bank is understood to be being scrutinised by the US Federal Reserve and the Department of Justice, after it provided information to them and to the UK regulators.

▽Myth of free banking: Hidden charges mean current accounts can cost ￡900 a year | Mail Online

Banks are ripping off customers by refusing to pay decent interest rates on current accounts and hitting people with overdraft fees of up to ￡900 a year, critics claimed last night. Consumer champion Which?, which is challenging moves by the banking industry to add to customers’ pain by introducing a new regime of monthly charges, also said free banking was ‘a myth’.

▽Three operations a day: Full scale of council spying revealed

The full scope of local councils' surveillance operations was revealed today, with figures showing they launched three new actions every day for three straight years. Big Brother Watch's research for the years between 2008 and 2011, when the coalition imposed a requirement for magistrates' approval, showed local authorities used the controversial Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa) powers more than 9,600 times.