Good morning! Morning Minutes is a round-up of stories that will break on Thursday, Oct 8, and which we think you'd be interested in.

It appears on weekdays, available by 7am.

AVA, Temasek Poly teaming up to find solution for plankton blooms

To combat plankton blooms that have decimated fish stocks here, Temasek Polytechnic, working with the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA), has been conducting workshops to help fish farmers develop contingency plans against such events. This project is among the aquaculture initiatives being highlighted at the polytechnic's School of Applied Science Show on Thursday (Oct 8). Some 35 projects, ranging from fish vaccines to food contamination detection kits, will be on show to those in the industry and members of the public. - CAROLYN KHEW

England's central bank to publish assessment of economy

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney and his fellow policymakers will publish their assessment of the cooling environment in Britain on Thursday (Oct 8), alongside their latest policy decision, amid reports that the economy is losing fizz and it might be a while before it gets going enough to spark inflation. A slowing economy underlines the case for holding the key rate at a record low of 0.5 per cent.

US Republican Party to decide on House Speaker nominee

Republicans in the United States House of Representatives will hold an internal vote on Thursday (Oct 8) to decide on a nominee from the party to become speaker, succeeding Mr John Boehner, who resigned last month. The presumptive front runner for the nomination is Representative Kevin McCarthy, 50, who was elected House majority leader just last year, and who if elected as speaker must help prevent a government shutdown in December. The winning nominee will face the entire House - both Republicans and Democrats - in an open-session vote on Oct 29 to choose the new speaker.