Sri Lanka confirms people-smuggling deal

PM Tony Abbott is expected to unveil a new deal with Sri Lanka on stopping asylum seeker boats. Source: AAP

THE Sri Lankan government has confirmed an arrangement is being negotiated with Australia to tackle people-smuggling.

Sri Lankan Minister for Media, Keheliya Rambukwella, told journalists in Colombo on Saturday the deal was a memorandum of understanding between the two navies.

"There is an arrangement, an MOU to be signed between the two naval forces," the minister said.

"All the details have been discussed and once it is signed it will be made a public document."

Prime Minister Tony Abbott, in Colombo for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, will meet with Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa later on Saturday with people-smuggling set to be on the agenda.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop is understood to have discussed the new strategy with her Sri Lankan counterpart when she was attending a meeting of Commonwealth foreign ministers in Colombo this week.

The coalition took to the federal election a policy of intercepting all identified asylum seeker vessels travelling from Sri Lanka outside the Australian sea border and arranging for the immediate return of all passengers.

The key to the policy is ensuring what have been described as "safe transfer arrangements" involving the Sri Lankan government.

Mr Abbott told reporters in Colombo on Friday that Australia had "good and close co-operation" with the Sri Lankan government and navy.

"I'll be thanking the Sri Lankans for the co-operation which they have extended to us on this important issue and I will have more to say about this in the next day or so," Mr Abbott said.

12.59 | 0 komentar | Read More

Large hailstones pummel southeast Qld

HAILSTONES the size of tennis balls have pelted parts of southeast Queensland as severe thunderstorms sweep through the area.

A Bureau of Meteorology severe weather warning is in place for Redland, North Stradbroke Island, parts of the Gold Coast, Logan, Gympie and the Sunshine Coast.

The storms, which battered other parts of the region earlier on Saturday, are moving in a east-northeast direction.

The bureau says "very dangerous" thunderstorms are expected to hit Double Island Point, Rainbow Beach, the Wide Bay, Mount Cotton, Macleay Island and Victoria Point by 3pm on Saturday.

Destructive winds and large hailstones are likely.

Tennis ball-sized hail has been reported at Buderim on the Sunshine Coast and there have been reports of large hail battering Mooloolah Valley, Maroochydore and Greenbank.

Ian Masterman, who runs The Attic Cafe on the Sunshine Coast, says hailstones the size of golf balls hit the area early Saturday afternoon.

"I've never seen anything like this before," the 51-year-old, who has lived on the Sunshine Coast since 2000, told AAP.

"They were bouncing off the ground and we were worried they were going to smash the windows.

"You could hear windows on the cars smashing outside."

Mr Masterman says the hailstones fell for about 15 minutes and he's preparing for another battering.

"We've brought the garden pots inside," he said. "I don't think it has ever hailed the whole time we've been here."

A Department of Community Safety spokeswoman told AAP about 100 storm-related calls had been made to the State Emergency Service by 3pm on Saturday.

Most of the calls related to damage to homes from hail or heavy rain.

Emergency Management Queensland is advising residents to move cars under cover and secure loose outdoor items.

12.59 | 0 komentar | Read More

Morrison to defy Senate motion

IMMIGRATION Minister Scott Morrison says he will continue to release limited information to the press about asylum seeker boat arrivals ahead of the parliament in defiance of a Senate order.

Mr Morrison also confirmed for the first time on Friday an asylum seeker boat reached Darwin this week, one of three to arrive in Australian waters in the past seven days.

The Senate this week passed a motion compelling the minister to table all communications about "on-water operations" since the election, as well as email and correspondence between the minister, his office and the Department of Immigration and Customs.

At his weekly Operation Sovereign Borders media briefing in Sydney on Friday Mr Morrison told reporters he "noted" the Senate resolution.

When asked if it was likely he would continue to give the briefings to the press ahead of the parliament, Mr Morrison said he would honour the protocol.

The Senate order impacted on information that was available to him "and our response to that will be made in due course".

Mr Morrison added that the previous government refused to comply with 75 such orders to produce documents.

The motion also requires the minister to table documents about future incidents within 24 hours of the events.

Attacks on the border protection policy increased following confirmation this week a 31-year-old asylum seeker was separated from her newborn child in Brisbane.

Mr Morrison said a review into the matter was underway, while Prime Minister Tony Abbott said he deeply regretted the incident.

The vessel that arrived in Darwin was one of three boats carrying a total of 163 asylum seekers that entered Australian waters this week.

Operation Sovereign Borders commanding officer Lieutenant General Angus Campbell defended the policy's call for weekly briefings and limited discussion regarding boat interceptions.

It was designed to protect the integrity of the operations, which he is overseeing.

"I do not believe in secrecy for secrecy's sake," he told reporters in Sydney.

Lt Gen Campbell said he wouldn't disclose anything that would give people smugglers an advantage or could be used by them to manipulate their potential customers.

He said information about arrivals led to release of final payments to the smugglers, but delays would complicate their operations in an increasingly tight market.

In future Lt Gen Campbell will make his report, take a few questions and then withdraw to leave Mr Morrison to take questions.

Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said on Friday the briefings were farcical and she dismissed Lt Gen Campbell's reasoning.

"The idea of operation secret boats is simply to make the boats look like they've disappeared - it's got nothing to do with stopping them," she said.

Opposition immigration spokesman Richard Marles said the change to the briefings was an admission Mr Morrison had been wrong.

"The fact we've had to wait until today to have it confirmed from our own government that a boat did arrive in Darwin shows enormous contempt for the people of Darwin," he said.

13.00 | 0 komentar | Read More

Macmahon looks to challenging 2014

MACMAHON Holdings says 2014 is shaping up as a challenging year for the mining contractor as it battles for work in the resources industry.

Still, the company's tender pipeline sits at around $2.5 billion and it's hopeful of securing work with major mining companies such as BHP Billiton, Vale, Newmont, Barrick, Rio Tinto, Peabody and Adani.

"We are in discussions with all of these companies about opportunities that are on the horizon," chief executive Ross Carroll told the company's annual general meeting.

Macmahon is also tendering overseas with hopes of securing work on projects by Lafarge, Anglo Gold and Newmont.

"These opportunities will help us to maintain our order book and position the business for future growth," Mr Carroll said.

But, he conceded, there was a long way to go as the company transforms itself into a leaner, stronger and more focused organisation.

Macmahon recently recorded a net loss of $73.1 million from its construction business which it sold to Leighton.

During the year Macmahon inked a five-year $1.8 billion contract with Fortescue Metals Group at Christmas Creek and it is in discussions with ERA about the next phase of a ventilation shaft at the Ranger mine in the Northern Territory.

Shares in the company dropped one cent, or seven per cent, to 13 cents.

13.00 | 0 komentar | Read More

PM pledges a further $20m for Philippines

Australia has committed another $20 million to the relief and recovery effort in the Philippines. Source: AAP

AUSTRALIA has pledged a further $20 million in aid to the typhoon-ravaged Philippines.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott's latest commitment adds to $10 million announced earlier in the week.

Mr Abbott says Australia also will deploy additional Australian Defence Force logistic support.

"As a good friend and neighbour, Australia stands beside the Philippines as it deals with this humanitarian disaster," the prime minister said in a statement on Thursday.

"The additional funds will be used to address serious nutrition, child health and protection needs, purchase emergency foods and provide logistic support and non-food items."

Two Royal Australian Air Force aircraft, a C-17A Globemaster and a C-130J Hercules, already have deployed.

Defence has now assigned an additional RAAF C-130J Hercules and stands ready to deploy a second C-17A Globemaster if required.

HMAS Tobruk has also been diverted so it can be available to support the relief effort if requested by the Philippines.

"Providing safe drinking water and power is now critical. The ADF is preparing to provide water purification systems and power generators to Tacloban over the coming days," Mr Abbott said.

13.00 | 0 komentar | Read More

James Hardie shares hit record high

JAMES Hardie shares have hit a record high, adding $691 million to the company's value, after it more than doubled its first half profit.

The building products maker made a net profit of $US194 million ($A208.52 million) in the six months to September 30, up from $US84 million in the same period in 2012.

Much of that was attributable to a 25 per cent sales revenue increase in the US and Europe during the second quarter of 2013/14.

James Hardie's Asia Pacific business also increased sales, but a weaker Australian dollar, compared to its US counterpart, muted earnings growth.

Its shares gained as much as 15.6 per cent on Thursday, hitting an all time high of $12.07.

They closed at $12.00, valuing the company at $5.3 billion.

IG markets strategist Stan Shamu said James Hardie beat market expectations on all measures, including an increased interim dividend of eight US cents per share.

Chief executive Louis Gries said construction of new homes in Australia had improved, but was still weaker than the company would like.

"Detached homes, where we make most of our money, is up but not up near as much as medium density," he told analysts.

The renovation market was not as strong, but Mr Gries said he was not worried.

"That's kind of unexplainable to me. I'm not concerned about the Australian market," he said.

"It looks to me like it's going to be a good market."

An 11 per cent decline in the Australian dollar between late March and the end of September also reduced the value of the company's asbestos liabilities by $US90.4 million ($A97.17 million).

Chief financial officer Russell Chenu said the asbestos fund had paid $A72.8 million worth of claims during the half year, and the number of claims were above expectations.

"We have seen some concerning trends in mesothelioma claims," he told analysts.

"We don't fully understand exactly the causes of the increases in claims as of yet."

The company's net operating profit in the six months to September, which excludes items such as asbestos and legal liabilities, was $US108 million ($A116.09 million), up from $US83 million in the previous corresponding period.

James Hardie expects to make a full year operating profit, excluding asbestos liabilities, legal costs and tax adjustments, of between $US180 and $US195 million, up from $US141 million in the previous year.

13.00 | 0 komentar | Read More

Measles fear for Bali-bound Aussies

AUSSIE schoolies have been told to check they're vaccinated after 27 Australians caught measles while holidaying in Bali recently.

Health authorities have told travellers, especially young school leavers, to the Indonesian island to ensure they are vaccinated against the highly infectious disease before they leave.

There have been 27 cases of measles connected to travel to Indonesia, particularly Bali, across Australia in recent weeks, NSW Health says.

There have been 29 measles cases in NSW this year, 20 of which were acquired overseas or interstate or were closely linked to these cases.

More than a quarter of these have been linked to those in Bali.

Five Victorians, who were not vaccinated, contracted measles in Indonesia in a five-week period.

Victoria's acting chief health officer Michael Ackland said the health department had tracked three additional cases back to the five travellers since their return.

Queensland health authorities detected three cases of measles in the state's southeast in October in males who had recently returned from Bali.

Queensland Health spokesman Craig Brown said two were confirmed to have been infected in Bali.

NSW Health's Dr Vicky Sheppeard has urged people travelling to Bali for schoolies to ensure they're up to date with their vaccinations.

13.00 | 0 komentar | Read More

Palmer channels JFK on day one in Canberra

Clive Palmer declared himself a full-time politician as he arrived for his first day of parliament. Source: AAP

BUSINESSMAN Clive Palmer has promised to be a full-time MP, sniped at media magnate Rupert Murdoch and channelled former US President John F Kennedy to urge better pay for journalists.

Mr Palmer says he'll put his business interests aside to represent voters after his surprise win in the Queensland seat of Fairfax, making him the lone Palmer United Party (PUP) member in parliament's lower house.

But Mr Palmer refused to commit to attend every sitting of parliament, declaring MPs lose touch with their voters when they are forced to live half the year in Canberra.

"I'm not going to commit to sit in a box and do nothing," Mr Palmer said, adding he would not be a part-time politician.

"I'm full-time. Fully retired from business, one hundred per cent politician. That's all I'm doing. Nothing else."

Shortly after he was sworn in as an MP, Mr Palmer gave a speech at the National Press Club, where he outlined his political powerbase and plans to run candidates at state elections in Victoria and Tasmania.

He said his own polling showed the PUP could win two seats in a likely re-run of the Senate vote in Western Australia, giving him a voting alliance of up to five votes with the support of Victorian Motoring Enthusiast Party Senator Ricky Muir.

That would give Mr Palmer the ability to block or support government legislation in the Senate.

Wayne Dropulich, the West Australian Senator-elect for the Australian Sports Party, was also at Mr Palmer's speech, and later told AAP the event was the first time he had spoken to Mr Palmer. Both men denied any talks about Mr Dropulich joining the PUP Senate voting alliance.

Mr Palmer said he had not spoken recently to Prime Minister Tony Abbott.

But he would abstain from voting on the abolition of the carbon tax to keep his party's plans secret until the legislation comes before the Senate.

Mr Abbott said he would give Mr Palmer "the courtesy and consideration" that all members of parliament deserve.

It was a busy day for the self-declared billionaire, who pleaded for a stronger media in Australia, using comments eerily similar to those used by President Kennedy in a 1961 speech about how Karl Marx was repeatedly denied a pay rise, prompting him to write his communist manifesto with Frederick Engels.

"If only Marx had remained a foreign correspondent, the world might be a different place and the 20th century wouldn't have had so much suffering," Mr Palmer said as he pleaded with Mr Murdoch to boost the salaries of his Australian journalists.

Mr Palmer has made no secret of his disdain for Mr Murdoch's The Australian newspaper and its reporting on him, rejecting a story suggesting he was a "tyrannical bully".

He responded by criticising Mr Murdoch, a US citizen, as a bully who should not be allowed to dictate the policies of his Australian newspapers.

"I resent the fact that anyone with a foreign nationality can come over here and can sack an editor of a major paper, lay the law down as a bully to a whole lot of Australian journalists," he said.

13.00 | 0 komentar | Read More

Australian among Philippines storm dead

An Australian man, believed to be a former priest, has been killed by a typhoon in the Philippines. Source: AAP

AN Australian man is among the hundreds killed by a super typhoon in the Philippines.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has confirmed the death of a 50-year-old NSW man in Typhoon Haiyan.

"Consular officials are providing assistance to his family," a DFAT spokesperson said.

It's believed the man was former Australian priest Kevin Lee but DFAT has declined to confirm his identity.

Mr Lee, a whistleblower about child sex abuse in the Catholic church, has been living in the Philippines with his wife.

Officials fear the death toll in the Philippines could reach 10,000 people after Haiyan tore into the eastern islands of Leyte and Samar on Friday.

Sustained winds of around 315km/h made it the strongest typhoon in the world this year and one of the most intense ever to hit land.

The Abbott government has pledged nearly $400,000 worth of emergency aid to devastated communities and says it stands ready to do more.

DFAT says it is monitoring the situation closely.

"We are working with our partners, including in the Philippine government, to obtain more information on the extent of damage caused," the spokesperson said.

Two Australian disaster experts are already on the ground assisting the Philippine government and United Nations to assess needs.

DFAT says Australians concerned for the welfare of family and friends in the region should first attempt to contact them directly.

If unsuccessful, they should call DFAT's 24-hour Consular Emergency Centre on 1300 555 135 or +612 6261 3305.

13.00 | 0 komentar | Read More

Jetski rider dies after Gold Coast crash

A MAN has died after a jetski crash on a Gold Coast river.

Police say the 22-year-old was riding the jetski on the Coomera River at Paradise Point at about 5.45pm (AEST) on Saturday and initial reports suggest he collided with a small boat.

"The occupants of the boat immediately recovered the man from the river and provided medical assistance before emergency crews arrived," police said in a statement.

He was taken to Gold Coast University Hospital where he was later pronounced dead.

13.00 | 0 komentar | Read More