Morning Headlines
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Vote farce
West Australians could be ordered back to the polls for an unprecedented Senate sequel election after almost 1,400 ballot papers mysteriously vanished during a drawn-out recount. The West
Gas pipeline to pass through Forrest’s homeland
Fortescue Metals Group chairman Andrew Forrest has relaxed his hostility towards other companies seeking to enter his ancestral land in the Pilbara, with the billionaire signing a compensation deal with the owners of the Dampier to Bunbury gas pipeline. The Aus
Abbott: Huawei ban will stay
Tony Abbott has categorically ruled out any participation by Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei in the National Broadband Network. The Aus
Subiaco set for $170m makeover
After years of relative stagnation, Subiaco will be transformed by a wave of new developments that will bring more than 3,000 residents into its centre. The West
Car industry in chaos
Industry Minister Ian MacFarlane has issued a blunt warning to his colleagues who want to cut subsidies to car makers that the industry will disappear without ongoing assistance. The Fin
Firms look at job cuts as NBN stops rolling
Construction firms building the national broadband network have told sub-contractors they will have to wait up to five months before receiving more work, as the rollout of fibre optic cabling grinds to a halt. The Fin
Barnett spin on merger letter
Colin Barnett admits he took “license” with the contents of a letter he used to justify the decision to merge State-owned utilities Verve and Synergy. The West
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: Industry Minister Ian MacFarlane has issued a blunt warning to his colleagues who want to cut subsidies to car makers that the industry will disappear without ongoing assistance.
Page 3: Rupert Murdoch declared “the 21st Century is Australia’s for the taking” if it embraces immigration, “have a go” values and causes disruption in trade, technology and free markets.
Western Australian votes could find themselves back at the polls within months after the Australian Electoral Commission lost 1375 votes while recounting the Senate vote in that state.
Page 5: Slowing economic activity and rising unemployment will lead to house price growth tapering off during mid-2014, say property analysts.
Page 6: Former prime minister Kevin Rudd tried to woo News Corporation journalists with trips on his VIP plane before the company turned on him with negative headlines during the campaign, a new book reveals.
Top executives at Rupert Murdoch’s News of the World must have known about phone hacking, which was so widespread that three senior news editors have admitted their involvement, British prosecutors say.
Page 8: Toyota Australia is following the lead of GM Holden by seeking agreement from its workforce to remove “out-dated and uncompetitive” labour practices while cutting allowances, as the Australian car industry struggles to stay afloat.
Page 9: Clive Palmer has been called many things during his colourful career. He can now add MP to the list.
Page 10: Construction firms building the national broadband network have told sub-contractors they will have to wait up to five months before receiving more work, as the rollout of fibre optic cabling grinds to a halt.
Page 13: The world’s biggest dairy exporter, Fonterra, has entered the battle for Australia’s dairy assets, buying up to 10 per cent of Bega Cheese after the market closed on Thursday.
Page 18: Woolworth’s strategy of using big data to deliver targeted grocery and petrol discounts has helped Australia’s largest retailer achieve its strongest food and liquor sales growth for four years.
Page 29: Newcrest Mining has distanced itself from moves by the NSW government to amend the state’s Mining Act in a way that will bury a legal challenge to its giant Cadia Valley gold operations, near Orange.
The Australian
Page 1: Tony Abbott has categorically ruled out any participation by Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei in the National Broadband Network.
Page 2: Japanese investors have taken their concerns about wages, productivity and union power in Australia to the Abbott government amid a push for reduced costs and industrial relations reform.
Page 3: The federal government has booked a massive $740 million windfall after seizing control of 730,000 ‘‘unclaimed’’ superannuation accounts.
Rupert Murdoch says Australia must become ‘‘the world’s disruptive economy’’ if it wants to prosper as a global leader this century.
Page 4: Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce has publicly reaffirmed his opposition to the $3.4 billion bid for Australia’s biggest grain handler by US company Archer Daniels Midland amid a growing political backlash to the deal within Coalition ranks.
Page 6: Look out Canberra. Clive Palmer is heading to federal parliament after a recount affirmed he had won the Queensland seat of Fairfax.
Labor may seek to split Tony Abbott’s carbon tax bills in the Senate in a move that would allow the party to support the abolition of the carbon tax but fight to keep key architecture from the carbon pricing scheme.
Page 17: Fortescue Metals Group chairman Andrew Forrest has relaxed his hostility towards other companies seeking to enter his ancestral land in the Pilbara, with the billionaire signing a compensation deal with the owners of the Dampier to Bunbury gas pipeline.
Page 18: Copper miner Tiger Resources will announce today that it has collected more than $42 million through an equity raising, in another sign that the fundraising freeze that has crippled the junior resources sector is starting to ease.
Page 19: Australia’s fastest-growing radio brand, Smooth FM, will break new ground when it becomes the first radio station to launch a television channel.
Page 24: Gina Rinehart has earned the right to acquire a 25 per cent stake in a very promising Queensland coal project after joint-venture partner International Coal confirmed the Perth mining magnate had spent more than $1.5 million on exploring tenements near Bundaberg.
Page 25: Airasia X chief executive Azran Osman-Rani believes low-cost carriers will claim as much as 35 per cent of the passenger market to and from Australia over the next five years.
The West Australian
Page 1: West Australians could be ordered back to the polls for an unprecedented Senate sequel election after almost 1,400 ballot papers mysteriously vanished during a drawn-out recount.
Page 3: Ground-breaking reforms to WA laws could soon allow victims of asbestos to claim thousands of dollars more in compensation for their deadly illness.
Page 4: The High Court could make election history by ordering WA’s 1.3 million voters back to the polls to resolve the State’s Senate debacle.
Page 5: Colin Barnett admits he took “license” with the contents of a letter he used to justify the decision to merge State-owned utilities Verve and Synergy.
Page 6: Schools are too driven by the emphasis placed on final Year 12 exams, reducing the students’ opportunities to develop creativity and initiative, according to some of WA’s top education leaders.
Perth’s housing sector is gaining speed, with home and unit approvals reaching their highest level since the 1980s.
Page 11: A WA based exporter accused of a series of animal welfare breaches is pushing ahead with controversial plans to reopen markets in Bahrain, Iran and Egypt despite calls for a ban on the firm’s operations.
Page 13: Tony Abbott has tried to draw a line under the expenses scandal surrounding WA Liberal MP Don Randall, declaring the matter has been “fully dealt with”.
Page 14: After years of relative stagnation, Subiaco will be transformed by a wave of new developments that will bring more than 3,000 residents into its centre.
Page 18: An industrial composting company engaged a leading defamation lawyer to intimidate residents complaining about a significant increase in truck activity and odours at its Oakford plant.
Page 28: Thousands of WA households with solar panels could begin disconnecting from the electricity grid once batteries became “affordable and reliable “, Australia’s peak renewable energy lobby has claimed.
Business: Repeatedly written off as inferior to their sulphide cousins, WA’s two laterite nickel mines – Ravensthorpe and Murrin Murrin – have brushed aside their metal’s limp price to achieve record production levels and dispel doubts of a bleak future.
Colin Barnett has floated a merger of struggling Collie miners Griffin and Premier Coal in a big to solve their financial problems.
Empire Oil & Gas has reported first revenue from its Red Gully gas-condensate plant near Gingin, accruing revenue of $3.5 million up until early this week.