Morning Headlines

No delay for South Flank

Increased consultation with an Indigenous group over heritage sites at BHP’s massive South Flank project is not slowing development, with the miner reiterating guidance for first ore by the middle of next year. The West

Twiggy set to fast-track LNG import terminal

Andrew Forrest’s Squadron Energy has lost its heavyweight Japanese partners in the proposed Port Kembla LNG import project in NSW but their exit may fast-track the $250 million venture given the mining billionaire’s expected appetite to proceed alone. The Fin

Big business joins fight against bribery

Mining groups, three of the big four banks, KPMG and the Australian Federal Police are among a group of businesses, regulators and civil society organisations joining forces to combat bribery and corruption. The Fin

Claims State’s virus response driven by politics

The McGowan Government has been accused of basing its coronavirus response on “popularity not health advice” after it emerged the Premier’s Department set aside more than $100,000 for reporting on “community sentiment” during the pandemic. The West

Market’s gone rental

The State’s peak real estate body has declared WA is in a rental crisis after the vacancy rate fell below one per cent for only the third time in 40 years. The West

CEOs push Andrews to open faster

The chief executives of seven of Australia’s largest companies have sent an open letter to Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews, telling him the continuing lockdown in his state is unsustainable because of the personal and financial toll it is inflicting on people. The Fin

AUSTRAC slams Crown over failures

The anti-money laundering regulator has accused Crown Resorts of failing to act on ‘‘suspicious’’ transactions that its Melbourne casino knew were linked to shady gaming junket operators. The Fin

While Covid sweeps world, CSL prepares for next pandemic

Australia’s biggest health company CSL is preparing for another pandemic, working on a project with the US government to protect the world’s biggest economy from another health shock. The Aus

‘Onerous’ deals for Cleanaway workers

Cleanaway Waste Management asked senior employees at its ToxFree acquisition to agree to ‘‘onerous’’ secret legal agreements that sought to prevent them from working for any competing waste firm in Australia and required them to agree the documents were ‘‘fair’’ even if certain parts of the deals were ‘‘unenforceable, illegal or void’’. The Fin

Digital to extract us from disaster

Scott Morrison has set a challenge to make Australia one of the world’s leading digital economies by 2030 using the COVID-19 crisis as a “springboard” to revolutionise key industries. The Aus

The Australian Financial Review

Page 1: The chief executives of seven of Australia’s largest companies have sent an open letter to Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews, telling him the continuing lockdown in his state is unsustainable because of the personal and financial toll it is inflicting on people.

The anti-money laundering regulator has accused Crown Resorts of failing to act on ‘‘suspicious’’ transactions that its Melbourne casino knew were linked to shady gaming junket operators.

Westpac has hitched itself to Afterpay’s rapid growth and its surging Millennial customer base by allowing the fintech to offer transaction and savings accounts via the 203-year-old bank’s new 10X technology platform.

Page 2: Deliveroo is battling a test case that threatens to find its delivery riders are employees and potentially entitled to minimum pay and conditions by arguing that workers who can do other gigs during their ‘‘shifts’’ cannot be employees.

Page 3: Mining groups, three of the big four banks, KPMG and the Australian Federal Police are among a group of businesses, regulators and civil society organisations joining forces to combat bribery and corruption.

Page 7: More men than women have lost their jobs during the COVID-19 crisis and their pay has dropped further, analysis of the latest payroll and labour force statistics shows.

Page 9: Both employers and unions praised JobKeeper’s workplace flexibilities to cut hours and stand down workers as crucial to ensuring jobs during the COVID-19 crisis, with the government pointing to the feedback to justify their extension.

NBN Co’s latest annual report shows the senior management team of the government-owned corporation took home nearly $3 million in short-term bonuses in 2019-20, up from $2.1 million a year earlier.

As many as four out of every 10 would-be terrorists the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation is monitoring are right-wing extremists, many of whom have been motivated by coronavirus pandemic conspiracy theories to become more organised.

Page 13: BHP appears unlikely to deliver a major expansion of its loss-making Olympic Dam mine within the next decade after it disappointed the South Australian government by abandoning its $US2.5 billion ($3.6 billion) brownfield expansion.

Outgoing Origin Energy chairman Gordon Cairns has robustly rejected any comparison between the company’s pursuit of its Beetaloo gas project in the Northern Territory and Rio Tinto’s Juukan Gorge debacle as he was peppered with objections from stakeholders about its potential impact in the remote area.

Page 15: Cleanaway Waste Management asked senior employees at its ToxFree acquisition to agree to ‘‘onerous’’ secret legal agreements that sought to prevent them from working for any competing waste firm in Australia and required them to agree the documents were ‘‘fair’’ even if certain parts of the deals were ‘‘unenforceable, illegal or void’’.

Page 16: Andrew Forrest’s Squadron Energy has lost its heavyweight Japanese partners in the proposed Port Kembla LNG import project in NSW but their exit may fast-track the $250 million venture given the mining billionaire’s expected appetite to proceed alone.

The Australian

Page 1: Scott Morrison has set a challenge to make Australia one of the world’s leading digital economies by 2030 using the COVID-19 crisis as a “springboard” to revolutionise key industries.

Page 2: Australians living overseas have been forced to pay $127m in university debts over the past year, as the Morrison government cracks down on HECS-HELP evaders.

Page 4: The nation’s burgeoning collection of online shopping sites, marketplaces, and other benefits of online retailing, such as click-and-collect and home deliveries, have helped Australian businesses weather the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.

Page 7: There’s no denying the numbers: coronavirus is spreading across the world at an accelerated pace.

Page 13: Australia’s biggest health company CSL is preparing for another pandemic, working on a project with the US government to protect the world’s biggest economy from another health shock.

Page 15: The Commonwealth Bank has taken back an aircraft leased to Virgin Australia as administrators prepare to finalise the sale to Bain Capital.

Page 17: Major banks are attracting the wrath of climate activists for skirting promises to reduce exposure to coalminers by arranging financing for the industry.

The West Australian

Page 3: Well-known TV and radio personality John Burgess has been ordered to pay more than $17,000 to a former senior bureaucrat and his partner over an unpaid debt.

Page 7: Scientists believe problems caused by autism and developmental disorders can be reduced or even prevented by better communication between parents and their babies from birth.

Page 8: The McGowan Government has been accused of basing its coronavirus response on “popularity not health advice” after it emerged the Premier’s Department set aside more than $100,000 for reporting on “community sentiment” during the pandemic.

Working parents would be incentivised and rewarded to work full-time — boosting workforce participation and the economy — if Labor’s childcare policy was adopted, analysis from the Grattan Institute shows.

Page 9: The State’s peak real estate body has declared WA is in a rental crisis after the vacancy rate fell below one per cent for only the third time in 40 years.

Page 10: The US Department of Justice is today expected to charge Google with violating Federal antitrust law, according to sources.

Page 14: Australia’s public broadcaster has paid out more than $35 million in redundancies and posted an $18.4 million annual loss.

Business: Increased consultation with an Indigenous group over heritage sites at BHP’s massive South Flank project is not slowing development, with the miner reiterating guidance for first ore by the middle of next year.

Vale produced more iron ore than expected last quarter amid a record haul at its newer mines in northern Brazil, in the latest sign of rising supplies that have stalled a rally in prices.

WA’s $1.4 billion timber industry has welcomed the State Government’s 12-month extension of its building bonus program but has called on the Federal Government to follow its lead.

Fast-fashion titan H&M has ramped up its assault on the nation’s retail sector, launching an online store for Australian shoppers.

WA’s labour market continues to offer the best job prospects in Australia despite last month recording a higher percentage of payroll job losses than the national average.

The Federal corporate watchdog has slapped tougher capital raising rules on a Perth-based company that claimed to be testing a hand sanitiser for effectiveness against COVID-19.

Mineral Resources has abandoned its ambitions of developing carbon fibre haul truck trays and rail wagons but says it will continue to pursue other mining applications for the advanced, light-weight material.

Aspiring kaolin player Suvo Strategic Minerals will today announce an agreement with CBH Group which could have it operate disused grain storage facilities in the Wheatbelt.

De Grey Mining backer DGO Gold has turned its sights to the Goldfields with a $4 million investment in Yandal Resources.