Gillard rounds on AWU accusers – The Aus; Barnett's Browse warning – The West; Forrest eyes return to growth – The Aus; Rio veteran talks up China story – The Aus; Perdaman seeks Griffin wind-up – The Fin
Gillard rounds on AWU accusers
Julia Gillard has delivered a forceful denial of wrongdoing in the AWU slush fund affair, attacking her accusers as peddlers of ‘‘sleaze and smear’’ but failing to end the opposition’s pursuit over her conduct as a lawyer in the 1990s. The Aus
Barnett's Browse warning
Premier Colin Barnett has opened a new front in his campaign for a land-based gas hub at James Price Point, warning that rival floating LNG technology proposed by Shell poses greater environmental risks similar to the Gulf of Mexico petroleum spill. The West
Forrest eyes return to growth
Fortescue chairman Andrew Forrest has committed to completing new iron ore mine projects that will put the company back on track to reach its development targets in Western Australia’s Pilbara region despite a raft of projects being put on ice three months ago as prices plunged. The Aus
Rio veteran talks up China story
The head of Rio Tinto’s China operations has attacked the ‘‘impending doom camp’’ of China analysts as he launched a strong defence of the Asian giant’s economic growth prospects and its future demand for Australia’s commodities. The Aus
Perdaman seeks to wind up Griffin
Perth-based Perdaman Chemicals has escalated its $3.4 billion claim against Indian energy giant Lanco Infratech's Griffin Coal by asking the West Australian Supreme Court to wind up the company. The Fin
THE WEST AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: Julia Gillard has again subjected herself to a lengthy round of questions about a decades-old union scandal while accusing a key witness of being a liar, a whoremonger and a sexist.
Page 3: Perth Airport had a record monthly increase in passenger numbers last month when 1.23 million travellers used the facility.
Page 5: Great white sharks are more likely to attack in winter or spring off WA's southern half rather than in summer and autumn, a landmark research paper has found.
Authorities will opt to close beaches in populated are rise as instead of pre-emptively killing sharks that stray too close, the head of the Department of Fisheries has revealed.
Researchers in the Kimberley are testing a new anti-cane toad bat that aims to protect native wildlife against the poisonous pests.
Page 10: WA's building industry says a 14.2 per cent jump in vacant residential land sales in September shows disastrous problems with the new Building Act have been overcome.
Perth barrister Lloyd Rayney will push for charges over the alleged bugging of his late wife's Corryn's telephone to be dropped in the wake of his recent acquittal of her wilful murder, the District Court was told yesterday.
Nurses are demanding a 20 per cent pay over three years to make them the highest paid in Australia.
Page 13: Corporate WA is lagging the country in gender diversity, with new figures suggesting the percentage of women on the State's publicly listed boards is worse than the national average a decade ago.
Business: Premier Colin Barnett has opened a new front in his campaign for a land-based gas hub at James Price Point, warning that rival floating LNG technology proposed by Shell poses greater environmental risks similar to the Gulf of Mexico petroleum spill.
Craig Mostyn Group chief executive David Lock has hosed down suggestions that Australia could become the food bowl of Asia.
The administrators of failed base metals miner Kagara have cleared one of the most significant issues over a sale of the company's Queensland assets, moving to unwind a gold rights agreement with Mungana Gold Mines.
The board of Neptune Marine Services has told shareholders that a takeover by a Singapore suitor is their best option as the one-time high flyer struggles to compete for oil and gas industry contracts.
A lawyer fighting to recover more than $6 million lost by WA investors in a complex share financing arrangement has accused manager Next Financial of trying to hide behind a woefully inadequate document storage system.
Shares in African-focused coal miner Continental Coal jumped more than 20 per cent yesterday after the company announced first thermal coal production from its Penumbra operation.
Port Bouvard's decision to slash the value of its flagship property project came under fire yesterday, with former chief executive Ross Neumann accusing directors of playing into the hands of “the vultures” waiting the pick over the distressed company.
THE AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW:
Page 1: Prime Minister Julia Gillard denied yesterday receiving corrupt funds from her then partner in the 1990s, but declined to answer directly whether she should have agreed to the Australian Workers Union's name being given to an association subsequently used for fraud.
The Gillard government has chosen Peter Harris as the next chairman of the Productivity Commission, opting for a bureaucrat with extensive experience in infrastructure and productivity policy and the private sector.
Page 3: Quotas for women should be introduced on boards and in executive positions within four years if voluntary targets do not succeed, the government's workplace gender equality agency says.
Page 4: The man at the helm of Rio Tinto's China operations, Ian Bauert, has warned that Australia risks underachieving during the Asian century due to high costs and falling productivity.
Page 6: Prime Minister Julia Gillard will introduce legislation this week for a new school funding system stemming from David Gonski's review of schools and a national disability insurance scheme.
Page 8: A new right for workers to sue their employers for workplace bullying, as recommended by a parliamentary committee on Monday, is “regulator overreach”, business groups have warned.
A Climate Commission report into renewable energy ignores critical issues affecting the viability of the industry and paints an unrealistic picture of its role in Australia's energy mix, an industry expert says.
Page 9: Perth-based Perdaman Chemicals has escalated its $3.4 billion claim against Indian energy giant Lanco Infratech's Griffin Coal by asking the West Australian Supreme Court to wind up the company.
Page 13: Mark Carnegie has called on perpetual fund manager Matt Williams and veteran investor Robert Millner to resolve their differences over the cross-shareholding between Washington H Soul Pattinson and Brickworks.
Page 17: Australian Securities Exchange chief executive Elmer Funke Kupper has announced a surprise restructure and the departure of a number of high-level executives to ensure the competitiveness of the exchange.
THE AUSTRALIAN:
Page 1: Julia Gillard has delivered a forceful denial of wrongdoing in the AWU slush fund affair, attacking her accusers as peddlers of ‘‘sleaze and smear’’ but failing to end the opposition’s pursuit over her conduct as a lawyer in the 1990s.
Four senior Baillieu government figures will be named in the first official complaint to Victoria’s anti-corruption commission, amid allegations of false, misleading or inaccurate evidence over the Simon Overland affair.
Page 2: Julia Gillard has countered claims she accepted $5000 from her former boyfriend Bruce Wilson in 1995, declaring she cannot remember the deposit, but adding that she cannot get access to bank records to prove the point.
Page 3: Centrelink officers are advising single mothers who say they will not be able to cope when they lose welfare money under a budget savings initiative that begins in January to contact charities for help.
Page 6: Labor last night appointed the head of Communications Minister Stephen Conroy’s department as the new Productivity Commission chairman, prompting warnings from the Coalition about overtly political appointments.
Julia Gillard has declared school funding reform and the National Disability Insurance Scheme the ‘‘defining issues of 2013’’ but critics say legislation to be introduced this week does not provide any further detail or funding certainty.
One of Australia’s most respected business leaders, Michael Chaney, says China’s new leadership must confront a number of ‘‘deep-seated issues’’ if it is to continue its economic momentum of recent years.
Page 7: Former NSW Labor minister Ian Macdonald was ‘‘in on the deal’’ to award exploration licences on land owned by ALP powerbroker Eddie Obeid and to mining companies connected to his family, the Independent Commission Against Corruption heard yesterday.
The Greens and environmental groups last night criticised Australia’s pledge to reduce its emissions to 99.5 per cent of 1990 levels over eight years to 2020, saying the target did not go far enough and could stymie the prospect of an international deal.
Page 8: Andrew Forrest has taken aim at Labor’s industrial relations and foreign policies, saying one has reduced our productivity and the other has left our relationship with China trailing rival nations.
Business: Fortescue chairman Andrew Forrest has committed to completing new iron ore mine projects that will put the company back on track to reach its development targets in Western Australia’s Pilbara region despite a raft of projects being put on ice three months ago as prices plunged.
The head of Rio Tinto’s China operations has attacked the ‘‘impending doom camp’’ of China analysts as he launched a strong defence of the Asian giant’s economic growth prospects and its future demand for Australia’s commodities.
The local head of US energy giant Chevron has warned that $100 billion worth of resources projects are ‘‘hanging in the balance’’ due to soaring costs and declining confidence in the federal government’s policy settings.
Rio Tinto’s local uranium subsidiary, Energy Resources of Australia, has narrowed its full-year production guidance and given some certainty by confirming an expected full-year loss would be limited to between $135 million and $155m.
The nation’s $1.4 trillion superannuation industry is the envy of the world, with the current debate around transparency an inevitable consequence of the industry reaching a critical mass, according to an expert.
Women will remain decades away from any significant representation in the upper ranks of corporate Australia unless companies implement structural change to appoint and develop strong pipelines of female talent.
The wine sector is ready for turnaround after years of oversupply as global wine stocks are depleted and demand continues to surge for premium and luxury wines, Treasury Wine Estates told analysts yesterday.
The Future Fund has inked a binding $2 billion agreement to acquire the assets of the Australian Infrastructure Fund, enabling AIF to return the proceeds and all its cash reserves to security holders.
THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD:
Page 1: Julia Gillard has been accused by the Coalition of breaking the law by lying to authorities about an Australian Workers' Union fund she helped establish in the 1990s, allegations she refuted by dismissing the key witness as a man regarded as an imbecile and fraud.
Page 2: The NSW government will release a discussion paper on Tuesday on the introduction of controversial electricity "smart meters" in homes.
Page 3: A backlash from Labor MPs will see new rules denying asylum seekers the right to work relaxed.
Business: Qantas investors challenging the direction of the iconic company under the leadership of Alan Joyce will meet with the pilots' union for a second time this week.
World: Egyptian president Mohammed Mursi is facing mounting pressure to retreat from a decree claiming his power was beyond the review of any court.
Sport: Sonny Bill Williams has offered to give rugby union star Quade Cooper half his pay to play rugby league is the ARU does not reverse a decision increasing his renumeration.
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH:
Page 1: The prime minister has been unable to categorically deny she received a $5000 payment from a former boyfriend embroiled in the Australian Workers' Union slush fund scandal.
Page 2: The moment Daniel Morcombe was snatched from a Sunshine Coast bus stop before being murdered was relived in a Brisbane court on the first day of his alleged murderer's committal hearing.
Page 3: Using the skills they have gained in Australia, 72 per cent of South Sudanese asylum seekers want to return to their native country.
Business: The mortgage market in Australia will experience slow growth next year as lenders experience rising costs.
World: Britain has been thrown into chaos, with a month's rainfall in 24 hours causing flooding and contributing to two deaths.
Sport: Sydney's suburban football grounds are under threat, with a state government report revealing funding was unsustainable.
THE AGE:
Page 1: Victoria's Ombudsman tells the Baillieu government that its new anti-corruption regime will undermine his office. Hundreds dress in murdered Sarah Cafferkey's favourite colour pink to say goodbye to her at Bacchus Marsh funeral. Backlash will soften new rules that deny asylum seekers work rights for up to five years. Catholic Church guilty of crimes against humanity over child sexual abuse, says victim survivors group.
Page 2: Deputy Opposition Leader Julie Bishop says Prime Minister Julia Gillard was involved in a breach of the law on the AWU affair. Gillard takes the fight up to her detractors.
Page 3: Greens pressure state government to ban smoking in outdoor dining areas. Biodiversity census of the Grampians National Park uncovers some weird looking critters. Almost half of Australian mobile users are paying 40 per cent more than their advertised monthly contract, according to Macquarie University study.
World: China's new seapower encapsulated with a fighter jet landing for the first time on its first seaworthy aircraft carrier.
Business: The high-profile investors challenging the strategic direction of Qantas to meet the influential pilots union this week to outline their plans.
Sport: South African late-order batsmen defy Australian attack to force a thrilling draw.
THE HERALD SUN:
Page 1: Police plan to scan number plates in hotel car parks then let booze buses know the drink drivers are on the way. Ethel turns 110.
Page 2: Court hears that fatal injuries to 10-month-old baby may have been inflicted days before babysitter arrived.
Page 3: Council red tape ties up Christmas street parties. Funds in rural non-bank lender frozen as the company goes in to sale talks with Bendigo and Adelaide Bank.
World: Taliban warlord responsible for death of three NZ soldiers killed in air raid.
Business: Weak growth ahead for mortgage market as lenders bear rising costs and households shun debt.
Sport: Exhausted pacemen with just three days to recover for Third Test may spell the end to Australia's run at world No.1 ranking.
THE ADELAIDE ADVERTISER:
Page 1: The RSL has warned that soldiers will flood the public health system in Adelaide's northern suburbs unless the army can cut waiting lists to see specialists.
Page 3: Australian researchers are leading a world first trial using a drug to increase the height of dwarfs.
World: Five decades after they first took to the stage, the original bad boys of rock The Rolling Stones rolled back the years in London.
Business: The mortgage market will grow at an anaemic rate next year as lenders shoulder rising costs and households shun debt.
Sport: The only good news for Australia is South Africa's Jacques Kallis won't be in Perth for the third cricket Test.
