Vic: Prisoner jailed for 16 years for watchhouse assault

AAP General News (Australia)
12-05-2000
Vic: Prisoner jailed for 16 years for watchhouse assault

The Melbourne Magistrates Court has jailed a prisoner for 16 years for stomping on
the head of another inmate in a crowded cell.

County Court judge GRAHAM ANDERSON ordered 27-year-old ALI ALI to serve a minimum
non-parole term of 13 years.

The court heard Mr ALI's victim suffered serious brain injuries as a result of the
attack which has left him partially paralysed.

The attack occurred in at 3.1 by 3.4 metre cell in which 10 other prisoners were being held.

Mr ANDERSON said although conditions in the cell were entirely inappropriate Mr ALI's
conduct could not be excused.

The judge said Mr ALI attacked 46-year-old MICHAEL TULLY, on April 29 last year despite
being warned by a prison officer to stop giving TULLY a hard time.

Mr TULLY is now confined to a wheelchair and has to be fed through a tube.

A jury found Mr ALI guilty of intentionally causing serious injury.

AAP RTV sew/jlw/klw/jn

KEYWORD: ALI (MELBOURNE)

2000 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Qld: Bush parents face hit from new child care laws, opposition

AAP General News (Australia)
04-22-2000
Qld: Bush parents face hit from new child care laws, opposition

By Ainsley Pavey

BRISBANE, April 22 AAP - New laws to crack down on backyard child carers in Queensland
could hurt parents in the bush and allow sex offenders to set up centres, the state Opposition
alleged today.

Queensland Opposition families spokesman Denver Beanland criticised the proposed laws,
which would limit commercial backyard carers to six primary school children, plus their
own, with no more than four under the age of six.

He said paedophiles could set up centres because of slack registration procedures,
and bush parents would have nowhere to take their children.

"If this bill is passed it will be a big let down to mums and dads across Queensland,"

Mr Beanland said today.

"You can't tell me that a paedophile is going to worry about the new laws. It's really
a half-baked idea that's been cobbled together without much thought."

Families Minister Anna Bligh defended the laws, saying they would introduce unprecedented
checks of child carers, deliver hefty fines for breaches and bring the state into line
with national laws.

The new laws were introduced into state Parliament a fortnight ago and will be debated
in coming weeks.

Ms Bligh said existing child carers would be given three months to comply with the
laws once they were enacted.

Under the laws, the Office of Childcare would conduct background checks and eliminate
applicants with assault and sex offence convictions.

"It's extremely hypocritical of Denver Beanland to be opposed to these laws when an
18-month-old child drowned in a pool in a backyard child care centre in 1995 when he was
in government," Ms Bligh said today.

"He wants to have two bob each way. ... The laws set a minimum standard and it's like
any new legislation: whenever you draw a line in the sand, there's always going to be
people who fall outside of that."

Ms Bligh said carers must be over 18 and take out public liability insurance. They
will face a maximum $7,500 fine if they breach the laws.

AAP ap/ps/br

KEYWORD: CHILDCARE NIGHTLEAD

2000 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Qld: Ferret bites policeman s genitals

AAP General News (Australia)
02-07-2000
Qld: Ferret bites policeman s genitals

A policeman is nursing a painful injury after being bitten on the penis by a ferret
during a bizarre arrest yesterday.

Police say the ferret was being driven to a wildlife refuge by a young constable when
it escaped from a cardboard box on the back seat and climbed onto the officer's lap before
sinking its teeth into his groin.

The incident almost caused a traffic accident on innercity Milton Road as the officer
tried to restrain the animal and pulled on the handbrake, sending the car into a spin.

He was forced to use his baton to knock the animal …

Fed: Possible industrial action over BHP contracts

AAP General News (Australia)
12-06-1999
Fed: Possible industrial action over BHP contracts

BHP iron workers in Western Australia's Pilbara region may consider industrial action
today to protest against the company's offer of individual contracts.

BHP is offering the contracts to about 1,000 staff at Newman and Port Hedland in WA's north west.

Workers may consider industrial action over the issue at mass meetings today and tomorrow.

ACTU secretary-elect GREG COMBET says BHP's annual report this year hails the role
of enterprise agreements in implementing major workplace changes.

He says last month the company did a sudden about-face in policy, delivering individual
contracts to workers' homes and offering financial incentives to sign.

Mr COMBET says those who sign by Friday will receive back pay to August. It's understood
about a quarter of the 1,000 have signed.

BHP Iron Ore spokesman JOHN CROWLEY says the company can no longer offer significant
pay increases without better producivity and more flexible work practices.

AAP RTV sjg/rp/msk 5

KEYWORD: BHP ACTU (MELBOURNE)

1999 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

FED: Government discussing possible changes to tax = 2

AAP General News (Australia)
04-19-1999
FED: Government discussing possible changes to tax = 2

Labor senator and inquiry committee member Stephen Conroy said he would raise accusations
of bias today against some members of the committee secretariat.

Senator Conroy said Labor had wanted some key modelling on the GST but the secretariat told
economists there was no need to do it.

"We just think that conduct like that by the secretariat, with no reference whatsoever back
to the chair of the committee, is outrageous and partisan," he said.

He said Treasury had admitted on Friday it had done some early modelling on the GST but had
then stopped.

"Why would they stop unless the material that was supplied out of that modelling was very
bad for the government."

But he denied the opposition was holding secret talks with key independent senator Brian
Harradine to have the GST changes passed.

National Party senator Bill O'Chee said the report would not show anything new.

"There is already an enormous amount of fat in there; now if we have to put more fat in,
well that's another matter," he said.

"But nobody can say this package is unfair."

Australian Democrats senator Lyn Allison said the party would not budge on having food
excluded from the GST.

"I would criticise the ALP for not wanting to take part in the debate. I think they are
looking forward to a GST being introduced and winning an election on the basis of it."

AAP rmm/kr

KEYWORD: TAX SENATE 2 CANBERRA

1999 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

VIC: Chicken dish likely cause of food poisoning = 2

AAP General News (Australia)
01-11-1999
VIC: Chicken dish likely cause of food poisoning = 2

Senior medical officer of the Dianella Community Health, Dr Mira Kapur, said 16 of the
victims were taken to the Dianella group's local medical practice.

…

NSW:NSW motorcyclists to pay less for CTP

AAP General News (Australia)
12-18-2011
NSW:NSW motorcyclists to pay less for CTP

Motorbike riders in New South Wales will pay less for Green Slips with the cost of
compulsory third party insurance set to fall by 19 per cent from January.

Finance minister GREG PEARCE has made the announcement today following an audit of
prices by the government.

Mr PEARCE says motorcyclists had been paying premiums that are out of step with the
risks associated with riding a motorbike.

The changes are effective from January 1.

AAP RTV jjs/sw/

KEYWORD: MOTORBIKES (SYDNEY)

� 2011 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.