1.   It has also launched a bid to overturn a ban on the use of vast factory whaling ships.

2.   When the bid was launched last week, Mr Franklin faced some criticism from City commentators on both those counts.

3.   Equally, an offeror company may not wish to launch a bid if its own results are poor.

4.   THREE Darlington men, appalled at an attack on a blind woman, have launched a bid to raise funds to buy a guide dog.

5.   THREE Darlington men appalled at an attack on a blind woman have launched a bid to raise funds to buy a guide dog.

6.   But a group of sailing enthusiasts has launched a bid to restore the ketch and refloat her as a living piece of history, like the USS Constitution.

7.   But nobody for a moment suspects they have launched their bid to be the team of the, hmm, what do we call the coming decade?

8.   But that analysis never contained a timetable for launching a bid.

9.   Dresdner launched its bid for Kleinwort Benson, the biggest-ever bid for a British investment bank, in June.

10.   Endesa plans to launch a bid for series A and B shares in the Chispas next Monday, newspapers report.