Second chance
The Australian Electoral Commission is poised to join several political parties in asking the High Court to order an unprecedented re-run of the WA Senate election. The West
Carbon, mining battle looms in WA
Labor has thrown down the gauntlet to the Coalition, saying it is prepared to fight for both the carbon price and the mining tax at any new election for the Senate in Western Australia forced by the counting dispute, or at any election after that. The Fin
Aurizon keen on both Pilbara rail and port
Rail group Aurizon has confirmed its interest in operating port as well as rail facilities in the Pilbara as it pushes ahead with the development of its Western Australian iron ore business. The Fin
Forge braced for shares hit over contract woes
Just two weeks after investors took Forge Group to task for its executive remuneration practices, the once high-flying contractor warned yesterday that $570 million worth of power station contracts may have soured. The West
Scaffidi blasts revised council mergers plan
The City of Perth has launched a scathing attack on the State Government, accusing it of “bowing” to the wishes of one council and putting the local government reform process in jeopardy. The West
BCA’s radical gender targets
The Business Council of Australia is pushing radical measures to promote women into senior executive jobs, including regular testing of chief executive and board members for unconscious gender bias and female-only hiring short lists. The Fin
Miners unite to sink carbon tax
Australia’s mining giants are demanding the Coalition abandon the renewable energy target, warning the scheme is slugging electricity consumers $1.6 billion a year. The Aus
Coalition begins its audit of ICT cost
The Coalition government has fired the starter’s gun on a highly anticipated audit into public sector technology investments that account for $6 billion in taxpayer expenditure annually. The Aus
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: The Business Council of Australia is pushing radical measures to promote women into senior executive jobs, including regular testing of chief executive and board members for unconscious gender bias and female-only hiring short lists.
Westpac Banking Corp is predicting demand will expand at the fastest pace since the global financial crisis, allowing it to grow profits above this year’s $7.1 billion record result.
Page 3: Gas companies have won onshore exploration permits in Victoria, one of which flags the use of fracking, despite a state government moratorium on unconventional gas activities.
Page 4: Senior Liberals fear internal Nationals politics may be hardening the resolve of the junior Coalition partner to oppose the sale of GrainCorp, creating a major headache for the Abbott government.
The possibility of a fresh election in the battle for six WA Senate positions would work against micro parties that harvest preferences, says prominent political analyst Harry Phillips.
Page 7: The Reserve Bank of Australia would do best to keep the official cash rate on hold on Tuesday and begin clearing the ground for rises in late 2014, a shadow board of prominent economists says.
Page 8: Labor has thrown down the gauntlet to the Coalition, saying it is prepared to fight for both the carbon price and the mining tax at any new election for the Senate in Western Australia forced by the counting dispute, or at any election after that.
The Australian Electoral Commission’s Ed Killesteyn has apologised personally for the disappearance of 1375 Western Australian Senate votes, which he says has damaged the commission’s reputation, and suggests any fresh election would probably need another 33-day campaign.
Page 18: Rail group Aurizon has confirmed its interest in operating port as well as rail facilities in the Pilbara as it pushes ahead with the development of its Western Australian iron ore business.
Vodafone Hutchison Australia chief marketing officer Kim Clarke has detailed her plan to use network reliability, adequate internet speeds and “the biggest corporate turnaround in Australian history” to take on Telstra and SingTel-Optus.
Page 35: Westfield Group and the Westfield Retail Trust have terminated the put option granted to Charter Hall Group and one of its capital partners over the Innaloo Shopping Centre in Perth.
The Australian
Page 1: Holden workers will receive cash bonuses and annual pay rises worth almost $5 million during the next two months as the carmaker seeks extra taxpayer assistance from the federal government to stave off closure.
Clive Palmer has pulled his Sunshine Coast tourism resort and dinosaur park from the corporate ownership structure of his failing Queensland nickel refinery, which has been racking up increasingly heavy losses of tens of millions of dollars a year.
The company building the National Broadband Network has warned that asbestos-related problems could crunch its profitmaking ability, blow out construction costs and lead to potential litigation.
Page 4: Australia’s mining giants are demanding the Coalition abandon the renewable energy target, warning the scheme is slugging electricity consumers $1.6 billion a year.
The chance of an interest rate cut at today’s Reserve Bank board meeting shrank to near zero yesterday as new data showed house prices and retail sales were accelerating and the long-run decline in job advertisements was coming to an end.
Page 17: Westpac chief Gail Kelly has vowed to crank up growth in the lucrative mortgage market, after the bank’s bumper $7.1 billion cash profit boosted the big four banks’ combined annual earnings to a record $27.4bn.
Bega Cheese is headed for a board meeting later this week to consider changes to its bid for Warrnambool Cheese & Butter, with its price in the ascendancy amid continued buying from Fonterra.
Page 18: Leighton chairman Robert Humphris has hit back at calls for his resignation by the Australian Shareholders Association in the wake of the company’s Iraq bribery scandal, stressing in a letter to the ASA yesterday that ‘‘there has been no evidence to date of the committing of any crime, including bribery’’.
Harvey Norman executive chairman Gerry Harvey is taking heart in the improved property market after the company’s ‘‘disappointing’’ September quarter sales results.
Page 27: The Coalition government has fired the starter’s gun on a highly anticipated audit into public sector technology investments that account for $6 billion in taxpayer expenditure annually.
The West Australian
Page 1: The Australian Electoral Commission is poised to join several political parties in asking the High Court to order an unprecedented re-run of the WA Senate election.
Page 4: The City of Perth has launched a scathing attack on the State Government, accusing it of “bowing” to the wishes of one council and putting the local government reform process in jeopardy.
Page 5: The nation’s big four banks have defended themselves against claims of ripping off consumers after figures showed they made a record $75 million a day between them.
Page 12: Treasury’s top official has taken another swipe at the Education Department, declaring he did not understand its controversial $600-per-teacher leave liability levy and did not think it would work.
Transport Minister Troy Buswell says his staff contacted the Department of Transport on behalf of people who had difficulty booking driving tests 51 times last year – including eight times after requests from Labor MPs.
Page 15: The State Government is trying to recruit its second Corruption and Crime Commission chief in as many years as commissioner Roger Macknay announced his resignation.
Business: Just two weeks after investors took Forge Group to task for its executive remuneration practices, the once high-flying contractor warned yesterday that $570 million worth of power station contracts may have soured.
P&N Bank has tapped a former mutual executive to succeed long-serving chief Fred Huis at the end of the year.
Lands Minister Brendon Grylls is facing a Supreme Court battle over the terms of pastoral leases covering about 90 million hectares of WA.
Navitas is preparing to put out feelers for two additional directors as it seeks to augment its board skills to support growth.
Asia Iron’s controlling Chinese owners are set to swing the axe at the troubled would-be Mid West magnetite producer, with managing director Bill Mackenzie and senior executives likely targets.
Apache has joined the rush into the Canning Basin amid industry hopes the region in the Kimberley could contain one of the world’s great untapped hydrocarbon resources.