Sydney primed for 2013 big finish

Spectators have begun descending on Sydney's popular spots for the New Year's Eve fireworks show. Source: AAP

PICNIC rugs are in position, beers are in hand and streets have been shut off as Sydney draws closer to its big night.

More than 1.5 million people are expected to gather across the city to view the New Year's Eve fireworks shows, themed Shine, at 9pm, 10.30pm and midnight.

From dawn, eager spectators began filing into the harbour foreshore carrying everything from rugs and chairs to fishing rods and kettles as they vied to snatch the best view.

Access to the Opera House and Blues Point Reserve was shut off from 12.30pm on Tuesday as crowds reached capacity.

As temperatures neared 27 degrees at the Botanic Gardens, some revellers who couldn't get access to shade stripped down to bikinis, or bras and undies. Others just threw water over themselves.

Ross Jollie, from the UK, said he was looking forward to seeing the show firsthand, having spent a lifetime viewing it on television.

"They are the first fireworks you see on TV, so definitely it is the place to be," he told AAP.

At 10.30pm, a one-minute cracker show based on an absurdist self-portrait by the night's artistic ambassador Reg Mombassa will be launched.

"The cranium universe display will basically be the stars, the planets and the sun inside someone's head but on the sky," he told reporters on Tuesday.

While remaining tight-lipped about the particulars, Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the bridge effect, to be unveiled just after midnight, will be "bigger than ever".

For the first time in a decade, more than 1000 fireworks will also be launched off the Opera House's sails.

But it hasn't been good news for all.

About 10,000 people have missed out on a New Year's Eve party at the newly opened Wet'n'Wild theme park in Sydney, after promoters cancelled the event just hours before it was due to kick off.

Event organiser One Cube Entertainment said it had to cancel the festival because of "a major technical production issue" and will hold a replacement concert on Australia Day.

NSW Fair Trading Minister Stuart Ayres said a case manager has been appointed to deal with complaints and to ensure full refunds are granted where requested.

15.03 | 0 komentar | Read More

WA government funds four shark projects

Four projects will share funding as part of the WA government's shark hazard mitigation strategy. Source: AAP

SURFBOARD fins with electronic shark deterrents and an acoustic system to detect sharks at beaches are among four research projects to share in almost $1 million as part of the West Australian government's shark hazard mitigation strategy.

WA company Shark Shield will receive $300,000 over two years to develop surfboard fins with an in-built shark deterrent device that can be retro-fitted to all modern surfboards.

Curtin University's Centre for Marine Science and Technology will receive $130,124 over three years to develop systems that mask the noises of beachgoers that attract sharks.

The University of Western Australia (UWA) will receive $252,417 to develop an acoustic system to detect sharks as they approach beaches.

A further $284,620 will be granted for a separate project at UWA to define the visual, electrical and vibrational cues that trigger shark attacks to help design shark deterrents.

Premier Colin Barnett said there was not one simple way to minimise shark attacks.

"Finding out more about sharks and developing new methods to detect and deter sharks is obviously central," he said.

The premier said the projects would complement research undertaken under the first round of the program, including research into existing shark deterrents and unique deterrents such as strobe lights, bubble curtains and using underwater sounds.

That first round of grants also funded Curtin University's research into sonar detection and imaging of sharks and a project at UWA looking at the development of algorithms to improve visual shark detection.

15.03 | 0 komentar | Read More

Small business to take tax-break hit

The government is dumping an asset write-off for small businesses that was linked to the mining tax. Source: AAP

THE federal government is setting a "tax trap" for small business by drastically reducing a tax break before legislation for it has passed, the opposition claims.

Small Business Minister Bruce Billson's office has confirmed that the $6500 instant asset write-off introduced by the former Labor government will end from January 1.

Instead, businesses will be able to get instant tax break for assets worth up to only $1000.

The tax break was linked to the mining tax.

Its formal dumping is contained in the mining tax repeal bill, currently stuck in the Senate, but legislation for tax measures can be applied retrospectively.

Acting opposition leader Penny Wong said it was a "tax trap for 2.7 million Australian small businesses and sole traders".

Shadow treasurer Chris Bowen said it was highly unusual for a government to make tax such changes and not publicise them.

"Have we seen any information campaign for small business saying listen, if you want to make an investment you'd better make it now because your tax write-off ends on 1 January? No," he told reporters in Sydney on Tuesday.

"I don't think they're very proud of this change."

Dropping the level of the instant asset write-off was part of the coalition's election commitments.

Information on the Australian Taxation Office's website, dated December 18, says the change is "expected to come into effect" on January 1.

Business representatives - the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Australian Industry Group - have told the government that they'd like to see the asset write-off funded in the next federal budget.

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Private sector credit growing modestly

Credit growth was moderate in November as consumers and business are wary about taking on more debt. Source: AAP

CREDIT growth was moderate in November as consumers and business are still wary about taking on more debt.

The amount of private sector credit issued by banks and other lenders was up 0.3 per cent in November, after rising by the same about in October, seasonally adjusted data from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) shows.

Over the 12 months to November, total credit rose 3.8 per cent.

Commonwealth Bank senior economist Michael Workman said record low interest rates are not having the desired affect on spending.

"It's not just about interest rate levels. In our view, moderate credit growth indicates that consumers and businesses remain cautious about increasing leverage because of uncertainty over job security and profitability," he said.

"To be fair, the consumer and business (confidence) surveys are gradually improving. Better news on jobs and the growth outlook are required."

Housing credit went up 0.5 per cent in November, and rose 5.1 per cent over the year to November.

Mr Workman said firm growth in home lending is being offset by relatively high repayment rates.

"Mortgage payers have been reluctant to reduce their repayments in line with lower mortgage rates over the past two years," he said.

"Some recent RBA research has indicated that households appear to have used about two thirds of the savings from lower interest rates to repay debt.

"In some respects it negates the effectiveness of monetary policy. While housing lending has responded to lower interest rates, some of the more interest rate sensitive areas of the economy, like non-mining business investment, remain subdued."

Business credit decreased 0.1 per cent in November, after a 0.1 per cent rise in October, and over the year to November it was up 1.9 per cent.

Other personal credit was unchanged in November, after decreasing 0.1 per cent the month before and rose 0.8 per cent in the 12 months to November.

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Older Qld drivers face more checks

ELDERLY Queensland drivers will have to have annual medical checks if they want to stay on the road under laws that come into effect on Wednesday, among legislation changes for next year that will also include tattooists.

At present, motorists aged 75 or older must carry a medical certificate when driving.

The doctor's certificate can be valid up to five years but legislative amendments that come into effect on January 1 mean certificates will be valid up to 12 months.

The amendment is designed to improve road safety and only applies to medical certificates issued from January 1, 2014.

Meanwhile, Queensland's Office of Fair Trading is advising tattooists and owners of tattoo parlours to apply for a licence from January 6 when a new licensing scheme is introduced.

From July 1, 2014, it will be an offence to operate a tattoo business or work as a tattooist without a permit under Queensland's Tattoo Parlours Act.

Members of criminal organisations such as bikie gangs, non-residents of Australia and under-18s cannot apply.

The laws were among a package of recent reforms targeting the state's bikie gangs.

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Fortescue receives reprimand after deaths

A man has died in an accident at Fortescue Metals' Christmas Creek mine in Western Australia. Source: AAP

FORTESCUE Metals Group has been ordered to improve its safety procedures by the mines regulator following the death of a man at its Christmas Creek mine.

The 23-year-old contractor was carrying out maintenance on a surface miner, a large piece of mining machinery, in the Pilbara mine's heavy vehicle workshop when the accident occurred overnight on Monday.

It is the second death at the iron ore mine in less than five months.

The WA Department of Mines and Petroleum (DMP) has issued special directions ensuring that Fortescue tightens safety procedures at all of its operations, including lock out/tag out procedures, ahead of a safety audit in the new year.

Surface mining operations at Christmas Creek have been suspended as DMP inspectors carry out a site investigation.

"The inspectorate has so far determined that a number of recent incidents at Fortescue Metals Group mine sites appear to have involved an ineffectual isolation and lock out/tag out process," State mining engineer Simon Ridge said.

"This may or may not be a contributory factor in this most recent incident."

He said the legal directions would remain in place until Fortescue could ensure lock out/tag out procedures were effective.

Staff at Christmas Creek have been offered chaplains and other counselling services following the man's death.

His name is yet to be released by police.

Unions are concerned the company's efficiency program is being prioritised over safety.

CFMEU Construction Division WA secretary Mick Buchan said his union had received complaints about safety concerns at Christmas Creek in recent months, including anonymous emails from workers who were worried about identifying themselves.

"We want the full gamut of potential contributing factors to be examined in detail, including potentially unsafe working hours on site, the capacity of unions to access the site to assess safety, the replacement of experienced workers with cheaper alternatives - the lot," Mr Buchan said.

He said the death was a huge alarm that something was wrong on the site.

"We need to get to the bottom of it quickly and accurately before anyone else is killed or hurt."

Fortescue said another worker had suffered leg injuries in the incident.

The man's death comes four-and-a-half months after electrician Kurt Williams, 24, was crushed to death while carrying out maintenance work on a large motor in the crushing plant at Christmas Creek.

Mr Williams' death broke a two-year fatality-free run at Western Australia's mines.

At the time, Electrical Trades Union WA secretary Les McLaughlan said the union had raised concerns about safety practices and specific concerns about the kind of work Mr Williams was undertaking.

In October, truck driver had his leg amputated after being crushed at the Christmas Creek mine.

Earlier this month, a contract construction worker Stephen Hampton was killed at Newcrest's Telfer gold mining operations when a large piece of pipework rolled onto him.

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More

All set for party of the year

Australia's skies are set to explode with colour this New Year's Eve, the biggest party of the year. Source: AAP

AUSTRALIANS are preparing to celebrate the biggest party of the year, with the skies above the nation's capital cities expected to explode with colour on New Year's Eve.

At the country's drawcard event in Sydney, seven tonnes of fireworks will light up the sky on Tuesday in the form of 11,000 aerial shells and 25,000 shooting comets launched from seven barges spread across six kilometres of Sydney Harbour.

For the first time in a decade, 1000 fireworks will also be shot from the top of the Opera House, as well as from the Harbour Bridge and jet skis stationed in the harbour.

Organisers expect die-hard revellers to start arriving at the iconic new year's locale between 5am and 6am, Sydney New Year's Eve producer Aneurin Coffey said.

"They are the really die-hard fans that get there early and then another group come about 8am," he told AAP.

Keen boaties won't be taking any chances, with more than 2000 vessels expected to vie for an ideal spot from about 10am, he said.

Sydneysiders will share the new year with more than 2,500 police officers expected to be deployed in the city on the night.

Victorians will ring in the new year with a fireworks show promised to be seen from anywhere that has a view of the city skyline.

More than 500,000 revellers are expected to pack the city centre, with 7.5 tonnes of fireworks to be launched from 22 locations, including city rooftops, by a team of 44 pyrotechnists.

Brisbanites will see the state's largest fireworks show yet to welcome the new year.

The skies above the river city will be lit up with five tonnes of fireworks, or 30,000 pyrotechnic effects, fired from three barges and three city rooftops at 8.30pm and midnight.

In Tasmania, tens of thousands will converge on the waterfront and Salamanca, where the state's biggest food festival, Taste, combines with the finish to the Sydney to Hobart yacht race.

Fireworks will explode over the docks at 9.30pm and midnight as foodies gorge themselves.

More than 70,000 revellers are expected at South Bank Parklands, Kangaroo Point, the Botanic Gardens and Eagle St Pier.

SA will beat the new year's drum with some live music in Adelaide's Elder Park, where local bands will provide the entertainment on top of fireworks.

Western Australia will largely leave its patch of sky alone on the night, with Perth saving up its pyrotechnics display for Australia Day.

But for those not keen to cross the country for Sydney's spectacular display, there are still a few places to ring in 2014 with a bang, including Rockingham and the Shelley foreshore.

A key draw promises to be the headline act for the Salt on the Beach NYE party at North Fremantle, New York hip-hop trio De La Soul.

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NSW workers comp changes for 2014

INJURED workers and children attending childcare will be among the winners and losers at the start of 2014, as new laws kick in across NSW.

Among the raft of new legislation to come into effect on January 1 are controversial changes to workers compensation introduced by the O'Farrell government to rein in a $4 billion budget blowout.

Up to 20,000 injured workers across the state who need ongoing medical treatment will lose out in 2014 due to the changes, the Law Society of NSW says.

"For example a worker with an amputation injury who has, up until now, been having their artificial limbs replaced by the insurer will now lose this entitlement," President John Dobson said.

Meanwhile kids will no longer be able to enrol into a childcare facility unless their parent or guardian provides an immunisation record.

Parents or guardians reluctant to vaccinate on religious or other grounds or due to medical conditions will also have to produce documentation.

"No longer will it be at the discretion of child care operators to accept or deny children who aren't immunised," Health Minister Jillian Skinner said in a statement.

"By law these operators will be unable to do so and should they do so they can be fined."

People looking to swap the city for the country air will be some of the winners in the new year with a number of grants rolling out.

From Wednesday a move to regional NSW for full-time employment will see eligible people pocket $10,000.

An existing $7000 grant to city homeowners purchasing properties in regional areas will be extended to include long-term renters in metropolitan Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong who make the country change from January 1.

"This is about attracting much-needed skills to our regions and developing sustainable and more vibrant regional communities," Deputy Premier Andrew Stoner said.

Meanwhile the tax free threshold for land tax will increase from $406,000 to $412,000.

For those into combat sports, such as boxing, cage fighting and Ultimate Fighting, stronger health and safety requirements will come into effect, including that combatants comply with protective clothing or equipment.

The NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal will also commence in 2014.

The tribunal is billed as a one-stop shop for 22 state tribunals, which the government says "will improve their quality, consistency and transparency".

"NCAT enables these services to exist as a network, rather than in isolation, which will improve their quality, consistency and transparency," acting Justice Minister Michael Gallacher said in a statement.

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Times Square preps for New Year's Eve bash

NEW York City's Times Square is getting ready for New Year's Eve.

The square will host millions on Tuesday night counting down the last few moments of 2013.

Starting on Saturday, six Citibikes from the city's bike share program were being installed in Times Square and connected to 12-volt deep cycle batteries.

New Yorkers and tourists will generate power by pedalling. That will help illuminate the famed ball that will descend New Year's Eve.

Each bike will generate an average of 75 watts an hour. It takes 50,000 watts to power the ball, which is lit by 30,000 LEDs.

Additionally, a giant paper shredder and a dumpster were installed in Times Square on Saturday to allow visitors to destroy bad memories of 2013.

The annual event is dubbed Good Riddance Day.

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Quakes sink part of Mexico highway near US

A section of a Mexican highway near the US border has collapsed after a series of small earthquakes. Source: AAP

A 275-METRE section of a Mexican highway near the US border has collapsed, sinking about 30m after a series of small earthquakes.

Mexico's federal highway authority says the collapse occurred about 93km south of the border city of Tijuana.

The road leads to the port city of Ensenada, on the Baja California peninsula.

The agency said on Saturday the road was closed in the early morning hours, after the collapse was detected.

The agency said the collapse was caused by seven small earthquakes ranging in magnitude from 1.3 to 4.3.

It said the roadway runs over a known geological fault in the area, and that it had been raining heavily.

No injuries were reported.

Traffic was being diverted onto a smaller, non-toll highway.

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Icebreaker on track to reach stuck ship

An Aussie icebreaker is about 100 nautical miles from a ship trapped in sea ice near Antarctica. Source: AAP

FEDERAL authorities say a rescue mission by an Australian icebreaker remains on track as it closes in on a ship wedged in sea ice near Antarctica.

A group of scientists, explorers and tourists has been stuck on the Russian research ship MV Akademik Shokalskiy about 1500 nautical miles south of Hobart for the past five days.

Although the expedition's leader says spirits among those on the ship remain high, a retired Brisbane teacher aboard as a tourist says frustration is building.

Two icebreakers have given up on efforts to push through the thick and dangerous ice floes near Antarctica to try to free the trapped research vessel.

A third icebreaker, Australia's Aurora Australis, is on its way to the stranded ship and is due to arrive about 11pm (AEDT) on Sunday.

It is the last ship in the area that will be able to help.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) says Aurora Australis is about 85 nautical miles from the trapped ship.

"The Aurora Australis remains on track to arrive in the vicinity around 11pm AEDT," an AMSA spokeswoman said in a statement.

If the icebreaker can't battle through the ice, AMSA says a second option may be to consider ferrying trapped passengers with a helicopter.

The locked-in ship, with 74 people on board, including several New Zealanders, sent a distress call on Christmas Day after becoming trapped in heavy sea ice.

The ship had been undertaking the Spirit of Mawson voyage, which is retracing Sir Douglas Mawson's Antarctic expedition.

Professor Chris Turney of the University of NSW is leading the expedition, consisting of scientists, explorers and enthusiasts undertaking climate research.

He insisted during several interviews with international media outlets that everyone was in good spirits despite the ordeal.

But retired Brisbane teacher Kayleen Lawson, aboard the stricken vessel as a tourist, said frustration was building.

"It was meant to be the trip of a lifetime, and it still is ... but it's turning out a little differently to what I expected," Ms Lawson told News Corp during a satellite phone interview.

The Aurora icebreaker is rated at being able to push through ice slightly deeper than one metre thick.

China's Snow Dragon icebreaker, which came within six and a half nautical miles of the stuck ship before turning back out of safety fears, is standing by in case its helicopter will be needed.

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Cyclone closer to WA's north coast

A CATEGORY two cyclone off Western Australia's Kimberley coast is expected to intensify as it heads towards the Pilbara.

Tropical Cyclone Christine was 280 kilometres off Broome at 2pm (WST) on Sunday and was moving towards the Pilbara coast about 10 kilometres an hour, the Bureau of Meteorology said.

The bureau said the cyclone was "expected to intensify further as it moves towards the Pilbara coast".

It is forecasting the cyclone to bring heavy rainfall and gales of up to 100km/h south of Cape Leveque on Sunday.

Gales are expected to extend further west along the Pilbara coast to Whim Creek late on Sunday or Monday morning as the cyclone approaches.

On Monday, the cyclone is forecast to bring "very destructive" gales and heavy rainfall to Mardie and possibly as far west as Exmouth, with winds possibly reaching 165km/h.

Coastal communities between Pardoo and Mardie have been warned of the potential for a dangerous storm tide late on Monday or early on Tuesday.

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US driver survives plunge off cliff

A driver who survived a 90-metre plunge told rescuers he intentionally drove off the ocean cliff. Source: AAP

A DRIVER who plunged 90 metres off a Southern California ocean cliff was rescued after firefighters waded into the surf to free him from the car.

KNBC-TV says the 19-year-old man, who was in hospital in a critical condition, told paramedics that he intentionally drove off the cliff.

Authorities were called to the scene at about 2am local time on Friday.

They found the car being slammed by waves.

Firefighters, lifeguards and local police helped in the rescue. The driver was finally pulled free and flown to hospital.

The crash site is on the Palos Verdes Peninsula, about 32 kilometres south of downtown Los Angeles.

* Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 and Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800 (for young people aged 5 to 25)

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China one-child policy change approved

CHINA'S top legislature has sanctioned the ruling Communist Party's decision to allow couples to have a second child if one parent is an only child.

It's the first major easing in three decades of the restrictive national birth planning policy.

Implemented around 1980, China's birth policy has limited most couples to only one child, but has allowed a second child if neither parent has siblings or if the first born to a rural couple is a girl.

The official Xinhua News Agency said the standing committee of the National People's Congress approved a resolution on Saturday to formalise the party decision.

It says the national lawmaking body has delegated the power to provincial people's congresses and their standing committees to implement the new policy.

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SA bushfire under control

A serious bushfire south of Adelaide has been contained the Country Fire Service says. Source: AAP

FIREFIGHTERS have protected a South Australian country town from an out-of-control bushfire, with two fire crew volunteers injured while quelling the blaze.

An emergency alert was issued at 3pm (AEDT) on Saturday about a serious bushfire burning towards the town of Mallala, north of Adelaide.

About 200 Country Fire Service (CFS) personnel battled the blaze at Lower Light with 35 appliances and the help of water bombers.

A CFS spokeswoman said firefighters contained the blaze after it had travelled seven kilometres in three hours.

"The fire was fast-moving and came close to a farming community and within three to four kilometres of the Mallala township," she said.

"But fortunately CFS firefighters managed to protect the township."

A male CFS firefighter was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening chest injuries.

A female CFS firefighter was treated at the fire for smoke inhalation.

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Port Hedland evacuates due to cyclone

A cyclone warning has been issued for coastal areas along Western Australia's northern coast. Source: AAP

SHIPS are being moved from a major port in Western Australia ahead of a developing tropical cyclone expected to hit on Saturday night.

The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) says a tropical low north of WA is expected to develop into a tropical cyclone by Saturday night as it moves southwest.

The low is 340 kilometres north-northwest of Broome, moving at nine kilometres an hour.

The Port Hedland Port Authority began the evacuation of 29 vessels in the inner and outer anchorage areas on Saturday morning.

Another 12 ships in the inner harbour also began evacuating on Saturday.

The port authority said in a statement it anticipated the last vessel would leave the shipping channel by 3am on Sunday.

Gale-force winds and widespread rainfall are expected to hit the Port Hedland area on Sunday.

Winds with gusts of up to 100km/h are forecast to develop through Saturday night on the west Kimberley coast between Cape Leveque and Broome.

BOM advises gales and heavy rainfall may extend to Exmouth and adjacent inland areas on Sunday night and Monday.

If the tropical low system develops as BOM expects, a severe tropical cyclone will likely hit the Pilbara on Monday or Tuesday.

A cyclone warning is in place for coastal areas from Cape Leveque to Whim Creek.

The State Emergency Service is urging residents in or near coastal communities between Dampier Peninsula and Onslow in the Kimberley and Pilbara to prepare emergency kits.

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Union blasts Vic govt over ambo ads

The ambulance union and the Victorian opposition have slammed state government ads as a waste. Source: AAP

THE Victorian opposition and the ambulance union have criticised state government advertisements labelling a pay offer to paramedics as "generous", saying they are a waste of money.

The full-page advertisement ran in a number of newspapers on Friday with a message from Health Minister David Davis as a pay dispute continues.

This is the second time that the advertisements have run this month.

Ambulance Employees Australia state secretary Steve McGhie says the ads are a waste of taxpayer dollars.

"We believe it is a misuse of money," Mr McGhie told AAP.

"The minister would be better off focusing on trying to resolve this dispute, given negotiations are ongoing and scheduled in January."

Premier Denis Napthine said the advertisements are intended to put out community information about the offer.

"It's important we inform paramedics directly, their families and the broader community of the pay offer, the fair and reasonable pay offer we've put on the table," Dr Napthine told reporters on Friday.

Paramedics are being offered a 6 per cent pay rise and a $1,500 bonus if they sign the deal by January.

Deputy Opposition Leader James Merlino says one ad would pay a full-time paramedic's wage for a year,

"These full-page ads are costing Victorians hundreds of thousands of dollars," Mr Merlino told reporters on Friday.

Mr Merlino said the government needed to negotiate in good faith with paramedics rather than put ads in the paper.

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Xenophon too greedy over Xmas: Palmer

Senator Nick Xenophon has called for Clive Palmer (pic) to release details of his Senate deal. Source: AAP

CLIVE Palmer says Nick Xenophon is being greedy if he expects to get everything on his Christmas list.

Senator Xenophon called for Mr Palmer to publicly release the details of his deal with the Australian Motoring Enthusiast Party (AMEP) on Friday.

The federal MP says he kept his promise to do so on Christmas Day, but he only released hard copies of the deal at his electorate office.

"It was released on Christmas Day, but he didn't get a chance to come and see it, he was down in South Australia all day, the poor old bastard," Mr Palmer told AAP by telephone from a boat on a tuna-fishing trip.

Senator Xenophon said there was huge public interest in the deal, which could decide if legislation was passed or blocked.

"My understanding of the Christmas present is that normally you have it delivered to you, you don't have to pick it up," he said.

"Releasing it on Christmas Day and then telling journalists to come and pick it up from his office is just silly, he should stop being cute. Clive, stop being cute."

But Mr Palmer said Senator Xenophon was being greedy and he should be happy with the Christmas gifts he's already received.

"It wasn't just for Nick, it was for the people of Australia, I know he wants everything for Christmas, but that's a bit greedy," he said.

"I mean what did he get for Christmas already, I heard he got a hair-dryer and Brylcreem, his favourite things, but he wanted even more."

Mr Palmer said the full details of the deal would likely be available on his website by Monday.

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More

Taxi smashes into Sydney bank

A taxi driver who ploughed his cab through the front of a bank in Sydney's CBD has been fined. Source: AAP

A TAXI driver who ploughed his cab through the front of a bank in Sydney's CBD has been fined.

The driver, 67, drove his cab into a palm tree on Elizabeth Street, before crashing into the bank about 10pm (AEDT) on Thursday.

Neither the driver nor his two passengers was injured.

He was issued with a traffic infringement notice for negligent driving.

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Thieves target Prada in Melbourne

Thieves have raided the Prada store in Melbourne, stealing goods worth tens of thousands of dollars. Source: AAP

THIEVES have smashed their way into a high-end Melbourne fashion store, stealing goods worth tens of thousands of dollars in a raid lasting only minutes.

Four men in a dark sedan drove up to Prada in Collins Street at about 4.30am (AEDT), forced open the security grille and smashed the front door with a sledgehammer, police said.

The men left the store up to three times to load up their car, dropping some goods on the footpath.

Dozens of bags and purses with an estimated value of many tens of thousands of dollars were taken, police said.

"It's been fairly well planned," Detective Leading Senior Constable Heath Biram told reporters.

"They were carrying literally everything that they can carry."

Within five minutes of the heist, a man got out of his car to pick up three bags the thieves had dropped on the footpath.

Police want that man to contact them, saying the bags may contain evidence. He could also face theft charges.

A delivery truck driver who saw the theft and called police tried to block the sedan as it got away, but it drove around him and veered on to to the tram tracks.

Officer Biram said the car drove away with its headlights off.

He said there was a fair amount of traffic in the area at the time and police are disappointed that more drivers have not come forward with information.

The thieves were wearing long-sleeved tops, pants and gloves and three wore fancy dress masks.

Police are considering whether the burglary is linked to similar thefts at Giorgio Armani and Chanel on the same strip last year.

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Motorcyclist dies in Alice Springs crash

A 24-year-old man died after losing control of his motorcycle on a dirt road in Alice Springs. Source: AAP

A 24-YEAR-OLD man died after a single motorcycle crash in Alice Springs.

Police say the man lost control on a dirt road and hit a tree near the Todd River on Wednesday night.

The death takes the national holiday road toll to nine.

The national road toll period runs from 12.01am on December 23 until 11.59pm on January 3, 2014, local times, in line with the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Board.

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Woman leaves toddler in car, goes shopping

A woman is expected to face charges after leaving a child locked in the car while she went shopping. Source: AAP

A WOMAN is expected to face charges after leaving a 17-month-boy locked in the car while she went shopping for the Boxing Day sales.

Police have been told a woman drove to attend the sales at a Doncaster shopping centre in Melbourne's north east about 9.30am (AEDT).

She parked in an undercover car park and went alone to the shops, leaving the boy locked in the car.

A passer by spotted the boy about half an hour later and told security, who removed the child after an unsuccessful bid to find the car owner.

The Doncaster woman, 27, was found about 11am (AEDT) and spoken to by police.

She is expected to be charged with leaving a child unattended and being a learner driver without being accompanied by a licensed driver.

The child was checked over by paramedics and found to be fine.

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Toddler saved after falling into pool

A QUICK-THINKING family member used CPR to save a toddler who fell into a pool on the NSW Central Coast.

The two-year-old girl was pulled unconscious from the backyard pool on Thursday afternoon, but she was breathing by the time paramedics arrived and she regained consciousness.

CareFlight director Ian Badham praised the quick action of the family member.

The girl was airlifted with her mother to The Children's Hospital at Westmead.

"Because she had been underwater for a while, she was taken to the hospital to be checked out and kept under observation," Mr Badham said.

She remains in a stable condition.

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Nine road deaths dampen festive season

NINE people have died on Australian roads this festive season, including two friends killed in a single-vehicle incident in NSW on Boxing Day.

A man, 31, was thrown from the vehicle and died at the scene of the crash on the NSW Central Coast. A second man, 22, was trapped in the wreckage and died before he could be released.

The crash, which occurred just before 5am (AEDT), left three other men aged 29, 22 and 27 in hospital.

Police said they hoped to speak to the injured men, all from Sydney suburb Auburn.

In Canberra, a motorcyclist died after losing control of his bike late on the evening of Christmas Day.

The 22-year-old hit a traffic island in the inner-north suburb of Lyneham about 11pm on Wednesday.

He died in Canberra Hospital.

In Perth, a 17-year-old boy died after falling off the back of a utility on Christmas evening.

Police say the boy suffered severe head injuries when he fell from the tray of the Nissan ute.

A 24-year-old man in the Northern Territory was killed after losing control of his motorcycle on a dirt road near the Todd River in Alice Springs on Christmas Day.

Two Victorian women killed in a head-on collision two days before Christmas were the first fatalities for the 2013 Christmas period.

A 69-year-old Queensland man died on Christmas Eve when his car hit a tree near Bundaberg.

On Monday night police found a man dead in a sedan spilt in two following a high-speed crash into a tree north of Moree in NSW.

The deaths take the national toll to nine, compared with 16 recorded by Boxing Day in 2012.

The national road toll period runs from midnight on December 23, 2013, until midnight on January 3, 2014, local times, in line with the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Board.

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Man badly burned preparing Christmas lunch

A NSW man was airlifted to a burns unit after being injured in an explosion while preparing lunch. Source: AAP

A NSW man is being airlifted to a specialist burns unit after being injured in an explosion while he prepared Christmas lunch.

The 62-year-old man in Shell Cove was found by police and rescue services with burns to his face, arms and legs.

Police were told the man was preparing the family's Christmas lunch when the explosion occurred.

They are investigating reports the gas bottle to the barbecue was connected incorrectly.

The man was airlifted to Concord Hospital for treatment.

Police hope to speak with the injured man once he is well enough to get a clearer idea of how the explosion happened.

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More

WA police concerned for missing woman

Police are concerned for a woman who disappeared from Albany, a day after arriving from Queensland. Source: AAP

POLICE are concerned for a 79-year-old woman who disappeared from Albany on Christmas Eve, a day after arriving from Queensland.

Joan Hanson went missing from Caledonia Crescent at Goode Beach at 5.30pm (WST) on Tuesday.

Police say they are concerned for the welfare of Ms Hanson, believed to be suffering dementia and unfamiliar with the area.

She is of small, slim build and has grey hair.

She was wearing glasses, light-coloured trousers, a yellow-brown shirt, a yellow zip-up sleeveless vest and white shoes when she went missing.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Police Operations Centre on 131 444.

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Locals help out after Grinch steals gifts

GENEROUS people have been playing Santa and dropping off gifts for two Victorian families whose gifts were stolen from under their Christmas trees.

Police at Wodonga near the Victoria-NSW border are calling the thefts "an unthinkable act of heartlessness".

But they say they have been overwhelmed by the number of donated presents that have been arriving at the police station throughout Christmas Day.

The Salvation Army also gave presents to the children at one of the homes.

"The occupants of the houses were asleep and realised all their gifts were missing when they went to open them this morning," a police spokeswoman said.

The two homes are on different streets, Wilca Way and Hartwig Road, on the southern end of the town.

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AmEx to pay $US75.7m in settlement

American Express will pay at least $US75.7m over what authorities say was misleading marketing. Source: AAP

AMERICAN Express has agreed to pay at least $US75.7 million ($A84.92 million) to end an investigation into what regulators say was misleading marketing of some discontinued card products.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) said on Tuesday American Express led consumers to believe that an account protection product would work for up to two years when the benefits usually lasted no more than three months, and it didn't properly explain the enrolment process for a product intended to protect against identity theft.

It said 85 per cent of consumers who signed up didn't complete the enrolment process, but they were billed anyway.

The agency also said that the company misrepresented the terms of a "lost wallet" product that was offered to Spanish-speaking customers in Puerto Rico, and it did not provide written materials in Spanish.

The New York-based company said it agreed to pay $US16.2 million in fines and repay at least $US59.5 million to customers.

American Express said it has set aside enough to cover most of the costs of the settlement with the FDIC, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the Office of Comptroller of the Currency. It has already made most of the payments to customers.

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Italian serial killer captured in France

A serial killer who was granted leave from prison in Italy has been recaptured in France. Source: AAP

ITALY'S justice minister says a serial killer who failed to return to prison after a two-day good-behaviour pass has been recaptured in France.

Annamaria Cancellieri announced the news on Friday just hours after she had briefed parliament on the embarrassing escape of Bartolomeo Gagliano, who has a lengthy rap sheet and was serving a nine-year sentence for theft when he went missing earlier this week.

A justice ministry official said Gagliano was captured in Menton, France, just across the border from Italy on the Mediterranean coast.

He had been due back at Genoa's Marassi prison on December 17 after going to visit his elderly mother in nearby Savona.

Savona is about 125 kilometres from Menton along the coast.

At some point between Savona and Genoa, Gagliano allegedly carried out a carjacking and then drove off in the car, launching an international manhunt as questions swirled about how prison officials could have let out a serial killer with known psychiatric problems.

On Friday, Cancellieri disputed prison officials' claims that they didn't know of Gagliano's criminal or psychiatric background, saying they had his full record.

The record, which started in 1981, includes convictions for multiple homicides, kidnapping, sexual violence and other crimes that he served time for in psychiatric hospitals.

Marassi's prison director, Salvatore Mazzeo, has said that as far as the prison was concerned, Gagliano was merely a thief serving time for a 2006 robbery conviction and was due to be released in 2015.

Cancellieri noted prison records said he had been well-behaved and his recent psychiatric evaluations found him to be lucid, calm and collaborative.

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Homicide cops investigate Rosebud body

A WOMAN'S body has been discovered in a home on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula.

The body was found at a property on William Crescent, Rosebud West, about 1.30pm (AEDT) on Saturday.

Homicide Squad detectives were en route to the scene on Saturday evening and the circumstances surrounding the death were being investigated.

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Gay couples wed in Utah after ruling

A US judge has struck down Utah's same-sex marriage ban in a decision that marks a drastic shift towards gay marriage in a conservative state where the Mormon church has long been against it.

Friday's decision set off an immediate frenzy as the clerk in the state's most populous county began issuing marriage licences to dozens of gay couples while state officials took steps to appeal the ruling and halt the process.

Cheers erupted as the mayor of Salt Lake City led one of the state's first gay wedding ceremonies in an office building about three miles from the headquarters of the Mormon church.

Deputy Salt Lake County Clerk Dahnelle Burton-Lee said the district attorney authorised her office to begin issuing licences to same-sex couples but she couldn't immediately say how many had been issued.

Just hours earlier, US District Judge Robert Shelby issued a 53-page ruling saying the constitutional amendment Utah voters approved in 2004 violates gay and lesbian couples' rights to due process and equal protection under the 14th Amendment. Shelby said the state failed to show that allowing same-sex marriages would affect opposite-sex marriages in any way.

"In the absence of such evidence, the State's unsupported fears and speculations are insufficient to justify the State's refusal to dignify the family relationships of its gay and lesbian citizens," Shelby wrote.

The decision drew a swift and angry reaction from Utah leaders, including Republican Governor Gary Herbert.

"I am very disappointed an activist federal judge is attempting to override the will of the people of Utah. I am working with my legal counsel and the acting attorney general to determine the best course to defend traditional marriage within the borders of Utah," Herbert said.

Late on Friday, the state filed both a notice of appeal of the ruling and a request for an emergency stay that would stop marriage licences from being issued to same-sex couples. It's unknown when the judge will make a decision on whether to grant the stay.

If the ruling stands, Utah would become the 18th state to allow gay marriages, said Jon Davidson, director of Lambda Legal, which pursues litigation on LGBT issues nationwide. That's up from six before the US Supreme Court last year struck down part of the Defense of Marriage Act that defined marriage as between a man and a woman. The District of Columbia also allows same-sex marriage.

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Khodorkovsky starts life as a free man

Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky has arrived in Germany after being freed from a Russian prison. Source: AAP

RUSSIA'S most famous prisoner, Kremlin critic and former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, has begun life as a free man in Germany after his surprise pardon by President Vladimir Putin.

After spending more than 10 years behind bars, Russia's former richest man was quietly escorted from his prison in northwestern Russia on Friday and boarded a plane to Berlin in an operation worked out behind the scenes with the German government.

The lightning speed of his release led some observers to suggest that Khodorkovsky might have flown into forced exile but Putin's spokesman dismissed such suggestions.

"He is free to return to Russia. Absolutely," Dmitry Peskov said on Saturday. He declined however to say whether any conditions were attached to his release or whether he would be free to participate in politics.

Putin had stunned Russia on Thursday by saying his fierce critic had asked for clemency on humanitarian grounds as his mother was ill.

"Guided by humanitarian principles," the Russian strongman signed a pardon decree on Friday.

In his first remarks since his release, Khodorkovsky said in a statement on Friday he did ask Putin for a pardon but his request did not amount to an admission of guilt and thanked Hans-Dietrich Genscher, Germany's foreign minister from 1974-1992, for helping negotiate his release.

"I am very much looking forward to the minute when I will be able to embrace my loved ones," the father of four said, without specifying his future plans.

Khodorkovsky's 79-year-old mother Marina, who has cancer, was expected to fly out to Berlin, where she had undergone treatment before, to see her son.

The Russian opposition magazine The New Times, for which Khodorkovsky wrote a column about his prison life, said the former tycoon called the editorial office to express gratitude for support.

"The most important today is Freedom, Freedom, Freedom," the magazine quoted him as saying.

"A lot lies ahead, the release of those hostages who still remained in prison, first and foremost Platon Lebedev," he said, referring to his jailed business partner.

Genscher said he was unaware if Khodorkovsky planned to remain in Germany: "I think that he wants to take a deep breath and wait to take his family in his arms tomorrow."

Interviewed on CNN television, Khodorkovsky's son Pavel, said he was in a state of "happy shock" following his father's release, adding that they had spoken on the phone.

"He's doing very well, sounds certainly very good and very happy."

Pavel said he "didn't think" his father would seek political asylum in Germany.

Khodorkovsky's release coincided with an amnesty for prisoners convicted of non-violent crimes that is expected to free the two jailed members of Pussy Riot band, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, just as the Kremlin readies to host the Winter Olympics in February.

Thirty foreign and Russian Greenpeace activists including an Australian man, arrested on hooliganism charges after their protest against Arctic oil drilling, are also expected to escape prosecution.

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Vic cyclist dies after alleged hit-run

A CYCLIST has died after an alleged hit-and-run collision a kilometre from his Melbourne home.

Brighton East man Julian Paul, 53, was cycling home on November 26 when he was hit from behind by a car, leaving him with severe spine and brain injuries.

He died in The Alfred hospital on Wednesday night, police said on Friday.

A 31-year-old Moorabbin woman was charged a few days after the incident with failing to stop after an accident and failing to render assistance.

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Hockey calls for disaster inquiry

The federal coalition wants the Productivity Commission to investigate spending on disasters. Source: AAP

THE federal coalition wants the Productivity Commission to look at how much the nation spends on disasters and how to help communities recover in a sustainable way.

Treasurer Joe Hockey says most existing disaster funding models are weighted towards response and recovery, with a focus on immediate humanitarian and economic relief and restoration of infrastructure to its previous standard - instead of longer-term resilience.

He has asked the commission to examine the full scope of national expenditure on disasters and the effectiveness of current mitigation support arrangements, which help prevent similar events from affecting communities the same way in the future.

"Further, the commission will be asked the best ways to reduce the impact of natural disasters on communities and how they recover in a sustainable way," Mr Hockey said in a statement on Friday.

Opposition leader Bill Shorten said cutting support for bushfire victims is wrong.

"But that's exactly what the Abbott government has done in the Blue Mountains," he told AAP.

"My concern is this review will become another excuse for the government to make savage cuts."

The Insurance Council of Australia said it was a positive step towards improving community resilience and it looks forward to helping the inquiry.

"Though disaster response and recovery are an essential component of government relief efforts, the insurance industry believes mitigation infrastructure has long-term benefits for exposed communities and the taxpayer," the council said in a statement.

Deloitte Access Economics estimates the total economic cost of natural disasters in 2012 was more than $6 billion.

In the last five years, natural disasters around the country have claimed more than 200 lives and devastated hundreds of thousands of Australians.

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Flatback turtle trackers want Qld station

Researchers want a permanent station in Queensland to monitor populations of Flatback turtles. Source: AAP

FLATBACK turtle trackers want to set up Australia's first permanent research station to assess how they are affected by large coastal developments.

The pale olive green-grey turtles are one of only seven sea turtle species in the world, and only nest in northern Australia.

While they are listed as vulnerable in Queensland, Western Australia and nationally, there is not enough data for an international listing.

Environmental organisation Wild Mob and The Queensland Trust for Nature are three years into a study of populations off the Queensland coast.

The research will help determine if developments, such as a large-scale dredging project for the gas export industry at Curtis Island off Gladstone, is affecting turtle numbers.

The turtles that nest on Avoid Island, which sits offshore between Gladstone and Mackay, are considered a control population because the refuge is far enough away from port developments to the north and south not to be affected.

Researchers will then be able to compare the health of populations closer to major development sites, with what's happening on Avoid Island.

About 30 per cent of the flatback turtles that lay their eggs on Australia's east coast do so on Avoid Island, which was bought by the trust in 2006.

The trust hopes to start a university program on the island during nesting seasons and raise enough funds to establish a permanent research station.

At present, there are no dedicated research stations to provide ongoing studies into Australia's only endemic sea turtle.

World renowned turtle tracker Dr Nancy Fitzsimmons led a half a dozen volunteers monitoring the December nesting season on Avoid Island.

Like previous years, more than 70 turtles laid eggs and, by February, it is hoped up to 7000 turtles will hatch.

Dr Fitzsimmons says it's too early to tell if port developments are having an impact.

"If we don't do these sorts of studies, we have no idea what's happening with the population," Dr Fitzsimmons says.

"There's a lot of international interest in the flatback turtles in Australia, and people come to Australia specifically to see these turtles because they aren't found anywhere else."

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Australians to spend $3bn over weekend

Australians are expected to spend $3 billion on Christmas shopping this weekend. Source: AAP

AUSTRALIANS are expected to spend more than $3 billion across the country as they rush to get their last-minute Christmas gifts in.

The latest projections from the Australian National Retailers Association (ANRA), released on Friday, predict people will spend an average of around $130 each this weekend.

In good news for retailers, almost 90 per cent of the $3 billion expected to be spent over the weekend will be dropped at bricks and mortar stores.

Just over $300 million is predicted to be spent online.

The big spend is a 5.4 per cent increase from the same time last year, ANRA CEO Margy Osmond said.

People in NSW, Victoria and Queensland will be responsible for 75 per cent of the spending surge, with those in the ACT, Northern Territory and Tasmania seemingly having had their Christmas shopping wrapped up.

"Santa's retail helpers will be working around the clock this weekend in an effort to ensure all the Santa lists around the country are filled," Ms Osmond said.

Australians will be taking advantage of extended trading hours to finish off their shopping, she said.

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Sea ice trip reopens Mawson's Huts route

TWO Australian explorers have made it over dangerous sea ice to Mawson's Huts in Antarctica, which have been inaccessible for several years.

Conservator Ian Godfrey and heritage carpenter Jon Tucker navigated 70km of sea ice on an amphibious vehicle to reach the huts.

Their visit was part of a privately funded expedition of nearly 30 scientists and others to commemorate the centenary of Douglas Mawson's exploration of the Cape Denison area.

The Mawson's Huts Foundation says this is the first time it has attempted such an ambitious and potentially hazardous crossing of the ice.

It was a joint operation between the foundation and the Australian Antarctic Division.

The huts on Cape Denison have been inaccessible for many years because an iceberg about the size of the ACT blocked the entrance to the bay.

Dr Godfrey said the trip across the sea ice was the journey of a lifetime.

"Mawson's Huts seem to be in good condition but we may only have a day here so we're doing all the essentials such as changing data loggers and assessing the condition of the building structure," he said.

He was hopeful the success of this mission meant the Mawson's Huts Foundation could resume annual visits.

Expedition manager Rob Easther said several of the scientists had planned to also make the full journey to the huts to conduct many of the experiments carried out there by Mawson's 1911-14 Australasian Antarctic expedition.

However, weather conditions mean it's likely the modern expedition team will have to leave the area sooner than hoped.

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Boy critical after 'horror' Sydney crash

A young boy is in a critical condition after a crash involving a cement truck in Sydney's southwest. Source: AAP

A SIX-YEAR-OLD boy is in a critical condition after being thrown from a van in a "horror crash" involving a cement truck in Sydney's southwest.

Police said the Toyota Tarago was stopped in a breakdown lane on the Hume Highway just before noon (AEDT) on Thursday when the cement truck crashed into its rear.

The boy, who was sitting in a rear booster seat, was thrown some 10 metres from the van by the force of the crash and suffered head, chest and pelvic injuries and leg fractures, CareFlight said.

The green van was left a mangled and crushed wreck.

Describing it as a horror crash, CareFlight said one of its trauma doctors performed emergency roadside surgery on the boy.

The six-year-old was then placed in an induced coma before being flown by helicopter to Westmead Children's Hospital in a critical condition.

His 13-year-old sister, who was sitting in the front passenger seat of the van, sustained minor injuries including cuts and abrasions and was also taken to Westmead.

Their mother, standing outside the van at the time of the crash, suffered suspected pelvic injuries and was taken to Westmead Hospital for treatment, police said.

The driver of the cement truck and his passenger were trapped in their vehicle before being freed by emergency services and taken to hospital.

The truck driver, believed to be in his 30s, is undergoing mandatory blood and urine tests.

Southbound lanes of the motorway have been re-opened.

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Korean man's body believed to be in grave

Police will dig up a shallow grave in Brisbane as they search for a missing South Korean man. Source: AAP

MIN Tae Kim went to exchange his hard-earned Australian savings for South Korean money for his return home but he may never get there.

Police have found a shallow grave on a vacant property in southwest Brisbane they believe could contain the 28-year-old South Korean man's body.

Detective Inspector Kemp says two men and a woman are being held over his disappearance.

Blood was found around the grave site, in Algester, and forensics officers are preparing to exhume the contents.

They hope to know by Friday if it is Mr Kim's remains.

"We're not sure what is in that grave at this time," Det Insp Kemp told reporters.

"It could be a dog, we do have fears that is human though and it could be the missing person."

Det Insp Kemp said Mr Kim had been working hard at a local abattoir to build up his savings before his planned return to South Korea next month.

But he needed to change $15,000 cash into South Korean won and put an ad on the Gumtree website to get a cheaper exchange rate.

Mr Kim left his Cannon Hill share house with his cash to do a deal with an unknown person about 2pm Monday.

It was the last time he was seen alive.

"We feel that he may have met with foul play, we don't know," Det Insp Kemp said.

Mr Kim's disappearance comes after 22-year-old South Korean woman Eunji Ban was allegedly bashed to death while walking to work in Brisbane's CBD last month.

The Council of International Students Australia president Thomson Ch'ng said the incidents would rock people's confidence in Brisbane being a safe place to study.

"Two incidents within three weeks is not good for Brisbane and Australia," he told AAP.

"The fact is, international students are important bridges between Australia and the international community and whatever happens here (in Australia), the world is watching."

Det Insp Kemp said it would be a very unfortunate if Mr Kim became the second South Korean murdered in Brisbane in less than a month.

"If it is and if he has been brutally murdered, it's a shocking thing for us and a concern for us, most certainly," he said.

Police expect to find out the results of forensic testing on the gravesite on Friday.

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US 'regrets' Indian diplomat's treatment

THE US has voiced regret to India over the treatment of a diplomat whose account of being stripped and cavity-searched triggered outrage as the prosecutor in charge of the case defended the arrest.

With New Delhi vowing to "restore the dignity" of diplomat Devyani Khobragade, Indian media reported that the 39-year-old was being moved from her post as deputy consul general in New York to the UN mission in a bid to thwart her prosecution.

In a strongly worded statement, Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara said the diplomat had "clearly tried to evade US law designed to protect from exploitation the domestic employees of diplomats and consular officers".

Khobragade is free on bail after her December 12 arrest in New York for allegedly paying a domestic worker a fraction of the minimum wage and for lying about the employee's salary in a visa application.

Bharara, who was born in India, stressed that the employee allegedly worked "far more" than the 40 hours a week in her contract and visa application.

The worker is said to have been paid just $US3.31 an hour - well below New York's required $US7.25 - despite signing a contract to pay her three times that amount for childcare and other services.

"Is it for US prosecutors to look the other way, ignore the law and the civil rights of victims (again, here an Indian national), or is it the responsibility of the diplomats and consular officers and their government to make sure the law is observed?" Bharara asked.

While India retaliated against American diplomats in the usually US-friendly country, Secretary of State John Kerry tried to end the row in a telephone call to India's national security adviser, Shivshankar Menon.

Kerry "expressed his regret, as well as his concern that we not allow this unfortunate public issue to hurt our close and vital relationship with India", in a call to Menon, the State Department said.

State Department deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf said it was "particularly important to Secretary Kerry that foreign diplomats serving in the United States are accorded respect and dignity just as we expect our own diplomats should receive overseas".

The fury in India grew after an email from Khobragade in which the diplomat said she had been repeatedly stripped and cavity-searched by the US authorities after her detention.

"I must admit that I broke down many times as the indignities of repeated handcuffing, stripping and cavity searches, swabbing, in a hold-up with common criminals and drug addicts were all being imposed upon me despite my incessant assertions of immunity," she said in the email.

But Bharara, the US attorney, insisted that Khobragade was arrested in the "most discreet" way possible, was never handcuffed or restrained and was searched by a female deputy marshal in a "private setting".

"One wonders why there is so much outrage about the alleged treatment of the Indian national accused of perpetrating these acts, but precious little outrage about the alleged treatment of the Indian victim and her spouse?" he asked.

But the diplomat's allegations of harsh treatment at the hands of the US has caused huge offence in a country that sees itself as an emerging world power.

In an address to parliament, Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid said it was his "duty to bring the lady back.

"We have to restore her dignity and I will do it at any cost," he said. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh termed the diplomat's arrest "deplorable".

Bulldozers dragged away concrete barricades that had been set up outside the US Embassy.

And US consular officials have been told to return identity cards that speed up travel into and through India, with their import clearances for duty free alcohol and other goods suspended.

State Department No.3 Wendy Sherman spoke to Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh and voiced hope that Indian authorities "will continue to fulfil their host government obligations regarding the safety and security of our personnel and mission premises", Harf said.

Harf said the State Department had not received any notice that India wanted to change Khobragade's credentials to the UN mission.

Such a move "would have to be approved by all appropriate authorities" at the UN and State Department, she said.

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No mechanical issues in Walker crash

INVESTIGATORS have found no evidence that the Porsche carrying Fast & Furious actor Paul Walker had mechanical problems before it crashed.

A US law enforcement official with knowledge of the investigation tells The Associated Press the car lost control due to "speed, and speed alone."

The official requested anonymity because the official was not authorised to speak publicly.

The investigation also ruled out debris in the roadway as causing the car in which Walker was a passenger to smash into a light pole and tree.

The November 30 crash killed Walker and the driver, his friend and financial adviser Roger Rodas.

Investigators won't set a firm speed at which they think the car was travelling until Porsche engineers come to California next month to extract information from on-board data collectors.

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US 'regrets' Indian diplomat treatment

THE United States has voiced regret to India over the treatment of a diplomat whose account of being stripped and cavity-searched triggered outrage.

With New Delhi vowing to "restore the dignity" of diplomat Devyani Khobragade, Indian media reported that the 39-year-old was being moved from her post as deputy consul general in New York to the UN mission in a bid to thwart her prosecution.

As India retaliated against American diplomats in the usually US-friendly country, Secretary of State John Kerry tried to end the row in a telephone call to India's national security adviser Shivshankar Menon.

"As a father of two daughters about the same age as Devyani Khobragade, the secretary empathises with the sensitivities we are hearing from India about the events that unfolded after Ms Khobragade's arrest," a State Department statement said.

Speaking to Menon, Kerry "expressed his regret, as well as his concern that we not allow this unfortunate public issue to hurt our close and vital relationship with India," it said.

State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said it was "particularly important to Secretary Kerry that foreign diplomats serving in the United States are accorded respect and dignity just as we expect our own diplomats should receive overseas."

The White House also tried to quell the rift, with spokesman Jay Carney saying that "this isolated episode is not indicative of the close and mutually respectful ties that we share."

Khobragade was arrested on December 12 in New York for allegedly paying a domestic worker a fraction of the minimum wage and for lying about the employee's salary in a visa application.

She is free on bail.

The fury in India grew on Wednesday after an email from Khobragade in which the diplomat said she had been repeatedly stripped and cavity-searched by the US authorities after her detention.

"I must admit that I broke down many times as the indignities of repeated handcuffing, stripping and cavity searches, swabbing, in a hold-up with common criminals and drug addicts were all being imposed upon me despite my incessant assertions of immunity," she said in the email.

"I got the strength to regain composure and remain dignified, thinking that I must represent all of my colleagues and my country with confidence and pride."

The revelation that a diplomat could be subjected to such treatment at the hands of the United States has caused huge offence in a country that sees itself as an emerging world power.

In an address to parliament, Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid said it was his "duty to bring the lady back."

"We have to restore her dignity and I will do it at any cost," he added.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh termed the diplomat's arrest "deplorable" as newspapers hailed his government for a series of reprisal measures.

"India takes on Uncle Sam," read the front-page headline of The Hindustan Times, while the Mail Today splashed with "Bulldozer Diplomacy" on top of a picture of a digger dragging away concrete barricades outside the US embassy on Tuesday.

US consular officials have also been told to return identity cards that speed up travel into and through India. Import clearances for duty free alcohol and other goods have been suspended.

Khobragade is alleged to have paid her worker just $US3.31 ($A3.75) an hour - well below New York's required $US7.25 - despite signing a contract to pay her three times that amount.

06.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

LNP pins hopes on nurse to keep Qld seat

THE Liberal National Party (LNP) in Queensland is pinning its hopes on a former Family First candidate to retain the seat vacated by disgraced state MP Scott Driscoll.

Kerri-Anne Dooley has been pre-selected by the LNP to run in next year's Redcliffe by-election.

The nurse educator ran against Mr Driscoll at the last Queensland election as a candidate for the Family First party.

An LNP spokesman said the lifelong Redcliffe resident would be a great advocate for the electorate that had been let down by Mr Driscoll.

"Like everyone in Redcliffe, Kerri-Anne Dooley feels let down and disappointed by the events of the past year by the previous member," he said.

"The LNP believes Kerri-Ann provides the best chance for a fresh start for Redcliffe.

"She's lived her whole life there, raised her family there and is passionate about the local community."

Ms Dooley will be up against former federal MP Yvette D'Ath, who is Labor's candidate.

Ms D'Ath lost the federal seat of Petrie, which takes in parts of Redcliffe, to the Liberal National Party's Luke Howarth in a tight contest at the September election.

A date is yet to be set for the by-election to replace Mr Driscoll, who resigned from state parliament last month before he could be expelled.

The former LNP member turned independent was subsequently fined $90,000 for contempt of parliament for being dishonest about his business dealings and income.

His wife Emma Driscoll is facing 10 counts of fraud.

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Victorian Labor reshuffles front bench

THE Victorian opposition has reshuffled its front bench ahead of the 2014 state election.

Labor leader Daniel Andrews announced the new line-up on Thursday, saying it was strong and balanced with a good mix of people.

"We're going to continue to scrutinise the government and provide a strong offering so that when Victorians vote in November they will have a real choice," Mr Andrew told reporters.

Labor has created the new ambulance and family violence portfolios.

The family violence portfolio will be the responsibility of Danielle Green, who is the party's spokeswoman on health promotion and women.

"Family violence is a crime, it's a scourge. It's something we need to do much more about," Mr Andrews said.

If elected, he would put family violence portfolio in the department of premier and cabinet so it had a government focus.

Gavin Jennings will add the ambulance portfolio to his health and mental health portfolios.

Albert Park MP Martin Foley has been promoted to spokesman for water, arts and youth affairs and Williamstown's Wade Noonan will take up the police portfolio.

Altona MP Jill Hennessy will take over the public transport portfolio from Fiona Richardson, who will be responsible for innovation and small business when she returns in 2014 after treatment for cancer.

Martin Pakula will take over the corrections portfolio from Jill Hennessy to better link corrections in prison beds to sentencing laws, Mr Andrews said.

Several Labor MPs have announced they won't contest the election.

These include high-profile former government ministers Justin Madden and John Lenders, who will remain as the opposition's leader in the Legislative Council until the poll.

06.38 | 0 komentar | Read More

Group of friends claim $70m lottery ticket

THE hunt for Australia's biggest single lottery winner is over after a group of female friends produced the winning ticket purchased on the Gold Coast.

The women won $70 million in Tuesday's Oz Lotto draw and have vowed to split it equally.

The syndicate leader said she checked the unregistered ticket on Wednesday morning and was shocked to discover that they had won.

"When I realised we'd won, I just sat there shaking like a leaf," she said.

The women regularly meet up for lunch and decided to use their loose change to buy a ticket.

"I told everyone on the last occasion to throw in some loose change and I'll buy a lotto ticket in a big draw before Christmas," she said.

"I saw Oz Lotto had jackpotted to $70 million so purchased a QuickPick entry."

She's not sure what she'll do with her share.

"My husband told me he wanted to buy a racehorse but I said 'It's not your prize'," she laughed.

The winning 12-game ticket was bought from a Runaway Bay news agency.

Lotto players still have an opportunity to win big this week with a $40 million Powerball jackpot on Thursday.

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More

Unions still in the dark over Qantas cuts

UNIONS say they are still in the dark as to where the latest rounds of Qantas job cuts will come from.

Qantas boss Alan Joyce and other senior executives met with several unions at is Sydney headquarters on Wednesday.

Following the talks, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) Secretary Dave Oliver said he couldn't get any clarification as to who would be affected by the airline's plan to axe at least 1000 jobs.

But he said the ACTU was pleased Qantas had given a commitment to consult on the cuts.

"We'll be holding Qantas to that commitment and ensuring that every reasonable option is explored to reduce any job losses across the whole Qantas group," he said in a statement after the meet.

Transport Workers Union National Secretary Tony Sheldon said the lack of information as to where the cuts would come from would hurt employees over the holiday break.

"Without information on the cuts, all 30,000 Qantas Group staff would spend Christmas in fear that their jobs might be the ones to go," Mr Sheldon said in a statement.

"That's not the way to treat any workforce, particularly as they and their families enter the Christmas period."

But Mr Joyce said while it was "understandable" unions sought commitments on jobs, the business was looking at all options.

"With an all-options structural review of the business underway, it would be disingenuous for us to rule anything in or out," he said in a statement.

"We can say that that Qantas will always have the bulk of its operations here in Australia, and that any actions we take are ultimately about protecting as many Australian jobs as we can by making Qantas stronger."

The airline used the meet to highlight the "extreme challenges" it faces, Mr Joyce said.

It comes after Qantas announced earlier this month that it would be undergoing a three-year $2 billion cost reduction program including a reduction of at least 1000 jobs and a company-wide structural review.

Mr Joyce said he made it clear in the meet that the changes as a result of the cost reduction program were "non-negotiables".

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More

Perth hospital refurbishments on ice

THE much-needed refurbishment of Royal Perth Hospital and redevelopment of Graylands Hospital have been put on hold as the West Australian government pours cash into two major new medical facilities.

Treasurer Troy Buswell revealed in the state's mid-year economic and fiscal outlook on Wednesday that the projects had been "reprioritised" to free up $238.2 million for a computing system at the Fiona Stanley Hospital and "transitioning activities" for the Perth Children's Hospital.

Cuts to the annual medical equipment replacement program were also announced.

Mr Buswell also revealed a six-month delay in commissioning the Fiona Stanley Hospital - attributed to the complexity of the computing system, with a "paperless" facility planned - would cost $52.7 million in facilities management fees to Serco.

He said that security and maintenance, including gardening, simply had to be done.

Mr Buswell took a swipe at the Health Department, which needed an additional $98 million after it failed to meet "one cent" of its leave liability target.

And a further $124 million has been budgeted for commissioning and service transition costs for the Fiona Stanley hospital, which was previously to be paid by the Health Department from existing cashflow.

"It's now apparent that that's not the case," Mr Buswell said.

"A lot of those costs are to do with labour, because you're effectively having to start up a second hospital while continuing to provide services around the health system."

The Health Services Union is concerned the focus on Fiona Stanley Hospital - set to be the state's top medical facility - will mean the ageing Royal Perth Hospital will be ignored, or jobs and beds slashed.

And there's not enough capacity at Graylands psychiatric hospital, meaning some mental health patients are sent to mainstream hospitals and kept under guard.

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More

Synthetic drug use down among teens: US

FEWER teens are trying fake marijuana according to the US government's annual survey on drug use.

Synthetic marijuana, known by such names as K2 and Spice, is thought to have appeared in the US in 2009. Soon after came a spike in emergency room visits, even deaths, as the drug caught on among young people.

About 8 per cent of high school seniors said they've used synthetic marijuana this year, according to the report released Wednesday by the National Institutes of Health. That's a sharp drop from the 11 per cent of seniors who'd experimented with fake pot in 2012.

Use of synthetic drugs among younger teens dropped as well, said University of Michigan's Professor Lloyd Johnston, who heads the annual Monitoring the Future survey of more than 40,000 students in years 8, 10 and 12.

"The message has gotten out that these are dangerous drugs," Prof Johnston said. "Their ever-changing ingredients can be unusually powerful. Users really don't know what they are getting."

Synthetic marijuana is made of dried plant material sprayed with various chemicals and packaged to look like pot. The Drug Enforcement Administration banned a number of chemicals used to make synthetic marijuana in 2011, but new chemical varieties continue to appear.

The survey results were being released just weeks before recreational marijuana sales become legal in Colorado and Washington state for people over 21. Opponents of legalised marijuana long have said they worried about its impact on children.

The annual survey also found that teenage perceptions of the dangers of marijuana use continued to decline. In 1993, more than 60 per cent of high school seniors considered marijuana dangerous, while this year less than 40 per cent thought that.

Dr Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, said researchers worry that as perceptions of marijuana as a dangerous drug continue to decline, use will keep increasing among teenagers.

Mason Tvert, communications director for the Marijuana Policy Project which advocates for regulating marijuana, said steady rates of marijuana use among teenagers "underscores the benefits of regulation versus prohibition"

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More

Girls dominate top HSC marks in NSW

GIRLS have again dominated the top spots in HSC subjects across NSW.

As thousands of students prepare to get their HSC results on Wednesday, more than 100 NSW high achievers celebrated taking out first place in their subjects at a ceremony at the Australian Technology Park at Eveleigh in Sydney on Tuesday.

Again, girls dominated the top spots with 83 of the 121 recipients young women.

"To claim the first-in-course spot is a great honour for these students, and they, their teachers and their families should be very proud," Education Minister Adrian Piccoli said in a statement.

Of the students claiming the top posts, three received a first-in-course award for more than one course, while there was equal first place in nine courses.

Twelve of the 121 recipients lived in towns and cities in regional NSW, including Inverell, Grafton, Hermidale, Coonamble, Griffith, Wagga Wagga, and two students were from Cooma.

Last year young women also dominated the results, making up two-thirds of the award recipients.

Association of Independent Schools of NSW's executive director, Dr Geoff Newcombe said his sector had also performed well with 35 per cent of recipients coming from independent schools.

Pupils from Sydney Grammar School took out six First in Course awards while students from Pymble Ladies College achieved three awards, he said.

A further six independent schools had two First in Course recipients while 22 other independent schools each had one student who topped the state in a subject.

It comes as more than 70,000 students will have access to their HSC results from 6am on Wednesday.

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Hockey paints bleak budget picture

Treasurer Joe Hockey will blame Labor over the expected dismal mid-year economic outlook. Source: AAP

THE federal budget could remain in deficit for the next decade and drive national debt to two-thirds of a trillion dollars, the government warns.

Treasurer Joe Hockey painted a bleak picture when he handed down the mid-year budget review on Tuesday, telling Australians they would need to adjust their expectations.

Mr Hockey was making the case for broad-based savings, which will come in next year's budget, against a backdrop of weaker economic growth and higher unemployment for a number of years.

"Returning the budget to sustainable surpluses will not be achieved by piecemeal savings here and there," Mr Hockey told the National Press Club in Canberra.

"All options are on the table."

The 2013/14 federal budget has blown out by $17 billion since before the election and is forecast to be the third largest deficit on record at $47 billion.

There is no immediate sign the budget will return to surplus, after the previous forecast for a $4.2 billion surplus in 2016/17 was wiped out.

Instead, there will be a $17.7 billion deficit in that financial year.

Budget deficits are also projected for every year to 2023/24 unless action is taken, the government said.

The last surplus, of $19.7 billion, was in 2007/08.

If the government's forecasts stand, by 2023/24 the federal budget will have been in deficit for 16 years.

"Australians will now have to adjust their expectations of what government can sustainably provide, otherwise our nation's prosperity and our people's quality of life will be at risk," Mr Hockey said.

Shadow treasurer Chris Bowen said Mr Hockey should have outlined a path back to surplus.

"Joe Hockey is softening up the Australian people," Mr Bowen said.

"He is preparing the ground for deep and brutal cuts come budget time."

The budget deterioration reflects two key factors: a softer economic outlook and steps taken by the coalition to address unresolved issues inherited from the former Labor government, such as the $8.8 billion recapitalisation of the Reserve Bank of Australia.

Slower growth has resulted in a $37 billion reduction in tax receipts over the forward estimates and the economy remains in transition from a mining investment boom to broader sources of growth.

The economy is likely to expand by a sub-trend 2.5 per cent in 2013/14 and into 2014/15. Trend growth is usually about 3.25 per cent.

Unemployment is forecast to be six per cent by mid-2014, but rising to 6.25 per cent in 2016/17. The jobless rate is now 5.8 per cent.

Government debt is also expected to rise, from $320 billion this year to $460 billion by 2016/17, and a staggering $667 billion by 2023/24.

Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Peter Anderson said the figures were alarming.

"The only true solution to this alarming cycle of debt and deficit is for the government to provide the private sector with more economic freedom and a fairer deal to create the wealth required to get us out of this budget hole," he said.

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More

Qld pilot died doing what he loved: wife

Authorities are searching for a newly-wed couple after their plane crashed off Queensland's coast. Source: AAP

PILOT Alexander Rae died doing what he loved, his wife says.

Jimmy, as he was known, was flying a 21-year-old French woman on a scenic joy ride in a Tiger Moth when the biplane crashed into the water off South Stradbroke Island, killing them both

Campers and resort guests saw the red and white plane spear into the water in an almost vertical position about 400 metres off the island, near the Gold Coast, on Monday afternoon.

In his last radio communication, Jimmy said: "Conducting aerobatics over 3500 feet", The Courier-Mail reported.

Debris from the crash began to wash up on the beach as a frantic search for survivors in choppy waters wore on into the evening until it was suspended in the darkness.

At dawn on Tuesday underwater visibility had improved and a few hours later police divers using sonar found the plane's fuselage lying on the seabed.

The pilot and his passenger's bodies were inside.

Jimmy's wife Alice thanked search crews and well wishers.

"On behalf of all of Jimmy's family and friends, we would like thank everyone for their support and well wishes," she said in a statement.

"We all know Jimmy died doing what he loved."

The family of the French tourist is yet to make a statement.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau is investigating the crash and has appealed to anyone who saw it, or picked up debris that washed ashore, to come forward.

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More

SAS 'not involved' In Diana's death

THERE is "no credible evidence" of any SAS involvement in the deaths of Diana, Princess of Wales, and Dodi Fayed, British police say.

In August, Scotland Yard began looking at claims that the couple were murdered by a member of British special forces, but on Tuesday it ruled out opening a criminal investigation.

The allegation is thought to have been made by the former parents-in-law of an ex-soldier, based on information that he talked about in the past. That information was then was passed to the Metropolitan Police via the Royal Military Police.

Mohamed al Fayed, Dodi's father, was "disappointed" by the outcome and will continue his fight "to establish the truth that they were murdered", his solicitor, Simon McKay, said.

He said: "Mr al Fayed will continue his struggle to reveal the truth about the tragedy in Paris which claimed the lives of his eldest son and Princess Diana."

The Met said officers had conducted a "scoping exercise" to assess the "relevance and credibility" of the information provided, and to decide whether it was sufficient to warrant a reopening of the criminal investigation.

In a statement, it said: "This assessment included taking statements from a number of individuals and reviewing records. As part of the scoping officers were given unprecedented access to Special Forces Directorate records.

"Every reasonable line of inquiry was objectively pursued in order to fully evaluate any potential evidence.

"The final conclusion is that, whilst there is a possibility the alleged comments in relation to the SAS's involvement in the deaths may have been made, there is no credible evidence to support a theory that such claims had any basis in fact.

"Therefore the MPS are satisfied there is no evidential basis upon which to open any criminal investigation or to refer the matter back to HM Coroner."

But McKay branded the "so-called scoping exercise" "the latest whitewash in a 16-year cover-up".

He added: "The Met should never have been given charge of the case as they had every incentive to return the result we now see. To have done anything else would have called into serious question their own Paget Report of 2007.

"The case of Soldier N should have been rigorously investigated by the Royal Military Police.

"It was wrong to put in charge of the scoping exercise an officer, Philip Easton, who had been an important figure in the Paget investigation, which said the deaths were accidental, a judgment overruled by the jury at the inquests that said that Dodi and Diana had been unlawfully killed."

Diana, Dodi and chauffeur Henri Paul died after their Mercedes crashed in a Paris tunnel after leaving the Ritz Hotel on the morning of August 31, 1997.

The hearing into the deaths of Diana and Dodi lasted more than 90 days, with evidence from around 250 witnesses.

The inquests concluded on April 7, 2008, with a jury returning a verdict that the "People's Princess" and her boyfriend were unlawfully killed.

Former Met Police commissioner Lord Stevens's Paget investigation was launched in 2004 at the request of Michael Burgess, the Royal Coroner, who was then overseeing the future Diana inquest.

The former top policeman published his report in December 2006, rejecting the murder claims voiced by some, including Mohamed al Fayed.

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More

Pressure grows for NSW pub lockouts

EMERGENCY service workers and doctors are demanding NSW government action to stop the carnage caused by alcohol-fuelled violence.

NSW confirmed it was the capital of drunken violence at the weekend, with 540 arrests during a trans-Tasman operation meant to curb the problem.

The NSW opposition is renewing its calls for a trial of reduced trading hours and lockouts in the state's licensed venues after the success of those measures in Newcastle.

The Last Drinks coalition, a group representing concerned emergency department staff, police and paramedics, has joined the chorus.

Its spokesperson, Australian Salaried Medical Officers' Federation president Dr Tony Sara, says the pressure is firmly on the government.

Dr Sara says a trial in select trouble spots would show positive results in a short time.

He said measures in Newcastle cut alcohol violence by 37 per cent and emergency department admissions by 26 per cent, so were worth a try in Sydney.

He challenged NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell to explain what harm a trial could do, believing the government was under the thumb of the powerful liquor lobby.

"How could it hurt?" Dr Sara told AAP.

"It might reduce profits a bit, but either they lose some money or we continue to have people hurt and maimed.

"I think the community comes before profits."

But Mr O'Farrell rejected calls for tougher laws, arguing authorities had done their part.

"Police and government agencies are doing their bit and the hotel industry, by and large, is responsibly getting on with their task," he told reporters on Monday.

"What we now need is for the community to come to the party."

NSW Opposition Leader John Robertson says police tell him privately they support tougher measures such as pub lockouts.

Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione agreed that cultural shift was crucial.

"Police will never arrest our way out of this problem," he said.

"If we don't start today we will lose a generation of young people to this love affair with alcohol."

Mr Scipione said a 23-year-old man who was punched and stomped on in front of dozens of revellers at Bondi Beach at the weekend was no longer in a critical condition.

The Australian Hotels Association NSW would not comment.

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Aurizon to cut rail fleet, cancel project

FREIGHT and coal haulage operator Aurizon will take a hit of almost $200 million as it cuts the size of its rail fleet and cancels a major Queensland project.

The company, previously known as QR National, is reducing its locomotive fleet by 28 per cent and cutting the number of wagons by 12 per cent in a bid to bring down fuel and maintenance costs.

Aurizon's downsizing will appear as an asset impairment expense of $130 million to $150 million in its accounts for the first half of the 2013/14 financial year.

The company will also incur a $47 million impairment on recent changes to several projects, including Glencore Xstrata's decision to stop the Wandoan project because of weakening thermal coal prices.

Aurizon had proposed a 210 kilometre Surat Basin rail corridor from the Wandoan mine in a joint venture with the Swiss multinational.

"There's not any job losses that are related to that," chief executive Lance Hockridge told reporters on Monday.

In July, Aurizon launched a second voluntary redundancy program in a bid to save $230 million by 2015.

Some 248 voluntary redundancies have since been accepted.

"I think the bulk of it is done," Mr Hockridge said.

More than 2,000 employees have left the company since it was privatised by the former Queensland Labor government in 2010.

Mr Hockridge said he was "cautious but confident" about the thermal coal sector, as well as the future of projects in Queensland's Galilee Basin, where Aurizon has agreed to develop a rail project for the GVK-Hancock joint venture involving billionaire Gina Rinehart.

Aurizon shares dropped two cents to $4.68.

15.02 | 0 komentar | Read More