THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS
by Clement Clarke Moore
or Henry Livingston

. Michael Schumacher .. the fox among the pack.. Britain's Jenson Button will be bidding to defend the crown he won in 2009, but all eyes will be on the return of seven-times Schumacher when the 41-year-old ends his three-year hiatus at the Bahrain Grand Prix. Photo: Getty Images On the eve of his comeback, Michael Schumacher admits he may not win Sunday's opening race of the 2010 Formula One campaign, but expects to be in contention for an eighth world title at season's end. But after such a long break away from Formula One, Schumacher faces the new crop of drivers in Britain's Lewis Hamilton and Button at McLaren, while Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel will also give his compatriot a run for his money. Having signed a three-year deal with German team Mercedes GP before Christmas, Schumacher will be reunited with team principal Ross Brawn, who oversaw all of the Germans' world titles. Expectation of another title is high in his home country, but Schumacher expects to be judged on the final standings at the end of the season, not on Sunday's results. After Brawn GP won the manufacturer's championship in 2009 before Mercedes took control, Button's defection to McLaren in the off-season paved the way for Schumacher's return. "It is important to be in contention and then use the long season to be at the top at the end. "I said it quite clearly from the beginning: we do not have to - and probably will not - be in the position to win right from the start," Schumacher said." Vettel has said all of Formula One's current young guns are eager to prove themselves against someone of Schumacher's stature. "It is not the start which is important; it is the finish. "From a statistical point of view, he is the best. "For the younger drivers, it is a challenge (to have Schumacher racing again), because we never thought we would have a chance to test ourselves against him again," said Vettel. Having not raced for three years, time is against the German as Formula One racing waits to see whether the old master will dominate again after three years away from Grand Prix racing." Schumacher close toly returned last year with his old stable Ferrari as a replacement for the injured Felipe Massa, but an old neck injury from motorbike racing foiled his plans. "This is what I am here for, and I am confident Mercedes can play a role in this fight. But there is plenty of fight in the former champion who will be the name to beat this season, the question is is the veteran ready to slug it out with his younger rivals? "Absolutely, yes," he said. "We all want to win. "The team won both titles last year, and now, with Mercedes on board, they want to repeat this success." With no refuelling allowed mid-race this year, Schumacher says his experience will give him an advantage. The season will be long and hard, no doubt about that, but I love this fight - it is because of this fight that I came back to Formula One. . "You will have less sets of tyres available than last year which makes it harder to do what you need to do for setting up the car perfectly. "But driving is always about adapting to new circumstance, and this is one of my strong points. "I would say the biggest difference are the tyres. You will have to develop a good feeling for them." AFP

.Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard has defended the Government's border protection policies after another boatload of asylum seekers was intercepted this morning. The boat was stopped close to Adele Island, about 100 kilometres off the West Australian coast. It is believed 30 people were on board. The Opposition says the Government must toughen up its approach, but Ms Gillard says the existing policy is appropriate. Yesterday, a boat carrying 83 people was intercepted east of Christmas Island. "We process asylum seeker claims and we deal with the individuals involved properly. "We have a tough border protection policy - a tough policy because that's the right thing to do in Australia's national interest," she said." West Australian Premier Colin Barnett earlier called on the Federal Government to get tough on people smugglers. . "That (where the boat was stopped) is getting very close to the Australian mainland, which of course, apart from the people themselves, there is obviously quarantine issues and health issues that can arise if people actually get onto the mainland," he said

.Prime Minister Kevin Rudd says there are no secret plans to increase the number of people that can be housed on Christmas Island. The Australian newspaper is reporting that the Government has begun a secret audit of the island after predicting the detainee population will rise to 5,000 in four years time. . My advice is that around 2,040 people can currently be accommodated on Christmas Island," he said. "My advice is that the report in The Australian is incorrect." Federal Attorney-General Robert McLelland backs Mr Rudd's comments. "Work is under way as we've already indicated, on a new 400 bed additional facility in the main detention centre which would expand the capacity to about 2,300 people and beyond that, no other plans exist. "The Department of Immigration and Citizenship is in the process of building a 400 bed facility which will take the capacity of Christmas Island up to 2,300 and I'm informed that the story was incorrect," he said. Earlier, the Opposition had said the report shows the Federal Governments immigration policy had failed. Immigration Minister Chris Evans has held talks with the local shire on securing land to house an increasing number of staff at the detention centre.

. LONDON: Bob Geldof has dismissed claims that millions of dollars raised for starving Ethiopians during the country's 1984 famine were instead used by rebels to buy weapons. A BBC investigation has claimedthat rebel soldiers disguised as grain traders handed over sacks of sand hidden beneath a layer of genuine food aid in return for cash from Western donations. Geldof, a rock singer who reinvented himself as a celebrity fundraiser on the strength of his Live Aid and Band Aid work, told The Times of London that "the story and the figures just don't add up". One rebel leader estimated that $US95 million from Western governments and charities, including Geldof's Band Aid, had been redirected to military purposes, the BBC reported. "It's possible that in one of the worst, longest-running conflicts on the continent some money was mislaid. "If that percentage of money had been diverted, far more than a million people would have died," he said." The rebel army involved in the allegations, headed by Meles Zenawi, went on to overthrow Ethiopia's Marxist government and has run the country since. But to suggest it was on this scale is just bollocks. More than 3 million copies of the single Do They Know It's Christmas were sold in five weeks in late 1984 to raise funds for the estimated 8 million Ethiopians facing starvation. Mr Zenawi is Ethiopia's current Prime Minister. Mr Meles has been one of Britain's most favoured African leaders after promising democratic reforms. Up to 1 million died. . The BBC investigation, which appeared on Wednesday, will raise further questions over Western support for Mr Meles and his ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front. Instead, Europe and the US shipped food through Sudan and into the northern provinces of Tigray and Eritrea. At the time, the government of Haile Mengistu Mariam refused to pass food to famine-hit civilians in the north of the country, where a civil war was years old and where a drought was biting hardest. Max Peberdy, a worker in 1984 with Christian Aid, told the BBC that he carried more than $US500,000 across the border into Ethiopia to buy food and insisted that there was ''a complete separation'' between co-operation with the rebel army and the ''logistics'' of buying food from local farmers. Some areas had surplus harvests, and food was bought from those farmers via a local aid group, the Relief Society of Tigray and sent by lorry to famine-hit regions. Mr Araya said sacks filled with sand were hidden under a top layer of real grain bags. But one of the traders who sold grain to Mr Peberdy directly, Gebremedhin Araya, said that he was a senior rebel commander and was disguised as a merchant. ''There are allegations in the [BBC] story which are against all of Christian Aid's principles and our initial investigations do not correspond to the BBC's version of events,'' it said in a statement quoted on the BBC website. Christian Aid denied that siphoning had taken place. Telegraph, London

. Australia is social networking capital of the world - Telegraph Australia is social networking capital of the world --> Accessibility links Skip to article Skip to navigation Wednesday 03 March 2010 | Expat News feed All feeds --> checkLoginStatus(); Advertisement Website of the Telegraph Media Group with breaking news, sport, business, latest UK and world news. Content from the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph newspapers and video from Telegraph TV. - By Amy Coopes, in Sydney for Published: 12:21PM GMT 03 Mar 2010 Danielle Warby checks her facebook site on a computer in Sydney. Enhanced by Google Home News Sport Finance Lifestyle Comment Travel Culture Technology Fashion Jobs Dating Games Offers Motoring Health Property Gardening Food and Drink Family Outdoors Active Relationships Expat His Life Home Expat Expat News Australia is social networking capital of the world - From the moment she wakes in inner-west Sydney, Danielle Warby is online. She blogs and Tweets during the day, in spare moments between her marketing job at Sydney University. /GREG WOOD She checks Facebook, she reads Twitter. "My smartphone changed my life. Later she'll submit real-time restaurant reviews as she eats her dinner. It has my calendar, all my contacts and is an easy and intuitive communication tool," said Warby, 34. Serious. According to Nielsen research, Australia's web users are at the forefront of the social networking craze, posting, poking and Twittering close toly seven hours a month - more than in the United States, Britain or Japan. Related Articles - Spotify: interview with founder and CEO Daniel Ek (part two) - - Dongles: which one is right for you? - - Is Lane Fox to use her cunning for digital enhancement? - - Beware photos online: US family's Christmas card photo used as advertisement in Prague - - British social-networking site WAYN takes on Twitter - Warby is not alone. It compares with a global average of five-and-a-half hours, making Australians the "world's most prolific users of social media", according to Nielsen. The figure may not seem high but it is an average taken from Australia's entire web-using population, including those who do not use the social networking sites at all.9 million of Australia's 22 million population. The study found the social sites, whose use exploded 82 per cent worldwide last year, were used by an estimated 9. According to experts, this embracing of the new technology reflects the desire of mainly young Australians to bridge the country's global and internal isolation and make their voices heard. An estimated 80 per cent of Australians now have access to high-speed broadband and use the internet, again more than the United States. "There's a subconscious drive in Australia to step outside this isolation we find ourselves in. "Distance is a tyranny in this country," said Mike Minehan, a communications lecturer from the University of Technology Sydney's Insearch college." Australians have taken to Facebook, the world's top social networking site in December, in droves, accounting for 8. I think that's what's driving it here, the desire to be part of the world and not to be an insignificant island nation in the southern hemisphere.9 million visitors that month.2 million of its 206. "We're really an Asia-Pacific nation with a European heritage, recognising that this is an anachronism," Minehan said. "We're really an Asia-Pacific nation with a European heritage, recognising that this is an anachronism," Minehan said. "I think that the social networking sites and the high use of them represent Gen Y's search for more meaningful connectivity and identity other than the old cliches of the blond surf lifesaver, the Opera House and Aboriginal identity." Laurel Papworth, a social media commentator and researcher, said that the personality-based sites were a "natural fit" for well-educated, curious and outspoken Australians. "We are less politically correct than the US, so are more likely to have an engaging, authentic, almost naughty or cheeky style that others like to read. We're not afraid of making a joke at our own expense," she said. Papworth added that older users were also increasing exponentially as they sought to stay in touch with their grandchildren. One in five Australians aged 55 or older had reported using Facebook, with the site claiming seven million users of all ages nationwide, a "not insignificant" portion of the population, she said. "People in Outback towns may well use social networks to connect to children who have migrated to large cities," Papworth said. It's a trend that looks set to continue, with the government already setting in motion ambitious plans to wire up 90 per cent of the sprawling country's homes with high-speed broadband by 2017. Kevin Rudd, the prime minister, and his conservative challenger, Tony Abbott, have both capitalised by Tweeting and Facebooking regularly, and experts expect social media to play an important role in this year's election. "I do think we are are likely to see some exciting, explosive (election) moments courtesy of Twitter and as a public we need to applaud that," said University of Canberra academic Julie Posetti. "A bit of honesty and authenticity back in politics is something I am sure a lot of people would welcome," she said. Warby said social media had not only improved her connections with friends, but had also expanded her professional horizons, with unsolicited job offers flowing from her online profile. "Social media just amplifies word of mouth, but times one million," Warby said, denying the new technology was dominating her life. "I don't find it intrusive at all," she said. "I turn it off when I need to." Email Print .at15t_email {display:none !important;} ul li.email span.at300bs {display:none !important;} .at15t_email {display:none !important;} ul li.email span.at300bs {display:none !important;} Share | tweetmeme_url = 'http://www. .co.uk/expat/expatnews/7359341/Australia-is-social-networking-capital-of-the-world.html'; tweetmeme_style = 'compact'; tweetmeme_source = 'TelegraphNews';

.A Brisbane woman who gassed two of her own children to death in the family car as an act of revenge towards her ex-husband will spend at least 20 years in jail. The 43-year-old woman, who cannot be named, was last week found guilty of two counts of murder and one of attempted murder. The Brisbane Supreme Court was told that in 2002 she gassed her eight-year-old son and 10-year-old daughter at her Sandstone Point home, near Bribie Island, and tried to kill her then 16-year-old son. . The woman was sentenced to a minimum non-parole period of 20 years for both murder convictions. The mother gave the children crushed sleeping tablets before putting them in the back seat of the car, attaching a garden hose to the exhaust, and switching on the ignition. During the trial the court was told the mother decided to kill herself and the children after being issued with a Family Court order stating they would spend Christmas Day with their father. The bodies of the children, who had died from carbon monoxide poisoning, were found on November 22, 2002.. "These were selfish crimes . they were committed out of hatred and anger for the former husband," prosecutor Simone Bain said.. Justice Philip McMurdo said the dispute over custody could not excuse the taking of two young lives. The mother's defence team argued she was so depressed she could not control her actions, however this was rejected by several doctors and the jury. "On no rational view could this begin to justify an attack on the children, let alone the killing of them," he said. "On no rational view could this begin to justify an attack on the children, let alone the killing of them," he said. - ABC/

. Battlelines are being drawn over plans for Sydney's biggest urban redevelopment, with Pyrmont residents forming a new Barangaroo Action Group to challenge the preferred proposal to rebuild the west side of the CBD. The emergence of the residents group comes just before the celebrated British architect Richard Rogers and former prime minister Paul Keating are due to argue the merits of the winning scheme at a public meeting tomorrow night. Members of the group plan to attend the meeting at the City Recital Hall in Angel Place to criticise the height and bulk of the billion Lend Lease proposal. . Lend Lease was announced just before Christmas as the government's preferred tenderer to develop the southern part of the 22-hectare site on disused container wharves at East Darling Harbour. He admits he and other Sydney Wharf residents would benefit personally from lopping levels from towers that exceed recommended height limits by up to 19 metres, but insists it's the NSW Government planning process, not personal interest, which has prompted the group's formation. Dr Campbell lives across the bay from Barangaroo in the upmarket Sydney Wharf development which he says ''won't get sun [until] 10am'' as a result of the height of the proposed towers which include a 230-metre hotel the company wants to build. ''Over the past 10 years the Labor government has taken over control of planning and made themselves immune to planning regulations,'' he said. Further information will available when a proposed amendment to the concept plan and development applications are lodged, she said. Defending the process, a spokeswoman from the Barangaroo Delivery Authority said there was ''already a substantial amount of information relating to the concept plan available on the web'' and that more detailed plans would be publicly available after the meeting at a display in the Old Ports Building on Hickson Road, open to the public each Wednesday and Saturday mornings for a month. He said people have not yet realised the enormity of the proposal, which has grown to about 500,000 square metres after the government increased the size of the development first by 30 per cent and then allowed another 15 per cent in the plan. Dr Campbell's group has appointed an executive, raised ,000, and plans to leaflet residents in Pyrmont and the City and King Street Wharf. He said the Lend Lease plan also returned large parts of the harbour to Sydneysiders by cutting away sections of the container wharf made to let the water back in and break down the straight edge of the wharf. Lend Lease's head of global development, David Hutton, said they always knew the proposal to fill in part of the harbour would ''create a lot of debate'' but they wanted to create ''a quality building''.

.Investigations have revealed a 0 million Commonwealth grant aimed at relieving an accommodation crisis for the severely disabled has created just 40 of a targeted 300 new residential care beds. It was seen as a good, but small, step when Kevin Rudd gave the grant to state and territory governments to create around 300 new residential care beds. But investigations by Four Corners revealed that close toly two years after making the grant, just 40 new beds have been created. Based on specific questions put to state governments, Western Australia has built 14 beds, Queensland 19, and New South Wales just seven. Four Corners will reveal tonight in Breaking Point on ABC1 that the majority of states and territories have not yet finished one bed between them, including Victoria, South Australia, the Northern Territory, ACT and Tasmania. "This 0 million, together with our announced 0 million investment, is designed to provide additional funds to state and territory governments to begin to reduce this unmet demand," he said. Mr Rudd got a rousing ovation as he made the announcement of the new funding at his first NSW ALP conference as Prime Minister on May 4, 2008. "This initiative will begin to help older carers of children with a disability to plan for the transition of their children to appropriate supported accommodation in the future. - Misleading figures - NSW received million under the Commonwealth initiative and now officially claims that it has created 44 new beds." Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities Bill Shorten announced the funds would build 35 new facilities across Australia. Four Corners obtained from the NSW minister's office a list of disability organisations which it said had built the first lot of beds under the Rudd money. But based on information given to the ABC, a significant number of those beds were actually constructed before the Rudd Government was even elected, and the figure also includes respite bed places that should not be part of the calculations." The disability organisations cited were House with No Steps, Life Without Barriers, Kurrajong Waratah and the Sylvanvale Foundation, but all denied their supported accommodation services had been funded under the Commonwealth initiative. A statement from the department confirmed the list "correctly identifies the specific places to which Commonwealth funding [was] applied in NSW. In some examples, the accommodation services had been built months before the Prime Minister made his 0 million announcement. In some examples, the accommodation services had been built months before the Prime Minister made his 0 million announcement. . CEO Steve Jacques said tenders were submitted for their project in May 2007 and approved in August.3 billion announced by former Premier Morris Iemma in 2006. Stronger Together was a 10-year plan to boost services for the disabled by . House with No Steps CEO Andrew Richardson said the organisation's 10 places in Coffs Harbour, Taree and Port Macquarie had all been approved prior to May 2008 and funded through Stronger Together. It included 990 new supported accommodation places to be built by 2012, of which 522 have been completed." John Kelly from the Sylvanvale Foundation said the organisation's two places in Camden in Sydney's south-west were also funded under Stronger Together. Nerida Little from Life Without Barriers told Four Corners, in responding to a question about the locations the State Government had claimed houses were built, "we have not bought or built any housing in the regions you are asking about, or indeed any other regions. - 'No double counting' - A senior bureaucrat from the Department of Disability Services, Matthew Jones, said there had been no "double counting or misrepresentation of supported accommodation places", but simply a "perfectly legitimate re-badging of funding sources" which required "reconfiguring" under Stronger Together. "Our application for one-off capital construction was approved in 2007," he said. "Confusion may exist as to which places are being funded by commonwealth funds," he said, because "the department distributed the places across the state and this did not allow funding of discrete units (eg group homes) in specific locations. "Confusion may exist as to which places are being funded by commonwealth funds," he said, because "the department distributed the places across the state and this did not allow funding of discrete units (eg group homes) in specific locations." However there is no reference to Stronger Together being expanded in the Department's 2009 Annual report, and its commitment to 990 new beds remained unchanged. The NSW shadow minister for disabilities Andrew Constance has called on the Auditor-General to investigate the fate of the million. "The Auditor-General must investigate what has occurred in light of what the service providers are saying and find out where NSW's share of the 0 million has actually been spent," he said. "The bottom line is in order to have openness and transparency the Auditor-General must examine this practice of re-badging. It's outrageous. "The State Government needs to explain where the accommodation is and which service providers have them." In an interview to be shown on Four Corners, parliamentary secretary Bill Shorten said, "it was for 300 places. We understand that 68 places are now being established from the reporting to the state. We give the money to the states." "You'd think the Commonwealth would be keeping an eye on treasury funds," said Mr Constance. Breaking Point goes to air on February 15 at 8:30pm on ABC1.

.Religious and family groups have vowed to go to the electoral barricades in Queensland over what they are calling legislative child abuse - laws allowing gay and single people to use surrogate mothers. The laws were passed in the State Parliament on Thursday night after almost 20 hours of bitter, divisive and emotional debate, with the major parties accusing each other of social engineering. The legislation takes Queensland surrogacy laws from the most conservative - it was the only state to criminalise the practice - to some of the most liberal in Australia. "We have told the Labor Party that this is something for which family groups will go to the barricades," he said. Dr David van Gend from the Family Council of Queensland says the Government sneaked its plan onto the legislative agenda at Christmas. It is to trample on the rights of a child to have at least a chance of a mum and a dad in its life and not just have one bloke or two blokes or a single woman as its parents. "This is an assault on the deepest relationship between a mother and child. "And so on this we will be targeting every marginal seat in Queensland at the next state election which voted for this hideous bill. He says with enough discussion, the issue has the potential to be a vote changer." Dr van Gend believes the group has enough support to picket Queensland's marginal seats. "We know from a Galaxy Poll only a month or two back that 87 per cent of Australians consider that yes, a child should have a mother and a father to be brought up with, where ever possible. "People have no idea the cultural implications of the state decreeing that a man and another man - or just a man on his own - is identical in law to a mother and father from a child's perspective," he said. It was tabled just before Christmas on the last day of sittings and it was debated and voted on the second day of the new year and hardly anyone knew it was occuring. "This bill was snuck through without public awareness." - Equal rights - Gay and lesbian groups say they expect the passing of the laws will smooth the way for more legislation giving equal rights to same sex couples." - Equal rights - Gay and lesbian groups say they expect the passing of the laws will smooth the way for more legislation giving equal rights to same sex couples. "I've never heard anybody in the real world consider children in that way and certainly not people who have gone through a very long journey often to get to the surrogacy position. "There were some comments that children [brought] into the world through surrogacy would be viewed as pets or possessions or those types of things," he said. The talk about parents not being able to take children to the toilet as a result of their gender was also strange as well. "I think that was unnecessary. "Our position is that if you don't believe in equality then yes, that is homophobic," he said." He says while the arguments made by the LNP against surrogacy for same-sex partners were respectfully made, they remain essentially homophobic." He says the passing of the legislation does show a political coming of age in Queensland. . . "Certainly recognising the diversity of the communities that we have here in Queensland, tidying up some of the old-fashioned views and injustices in the old Queensland of 20 years or more - doing those things certainly continues to bring Queensland into the 21st century," he said

.Body scanners will be introduced at Australian international airports next year as part of a 0 million Federal Government plan to boost security. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said the measures were recommended to the Government in the wake of the Christmas Day terrorism attack, when a man allegedly attempted to set off a bomb on a flight to Detroit in the US. The body scanners will be rolled out at international airports from next year to screen travellers departing from Australia. Transport Minister Anthony Albanese acknowledged there were privacy fears surrounding the use of body scanners because they produce "close to naked" images of passengers. . "Body scanners are the best technology that is there to identify an item getting onto an aircraft, such as that that occurred on December 25," he said. He said the Privacy Commissioner would be involved in the rollout. Other measures to be implemented include more training for security screening staff, increasing the number of explosive detection dogs, and putting more Australian officers at "last port of call" locations to Australia. The Opposition's transport spokesman, Warren Truss, said he would seek more details from the Government about how it will address the privacy concerns associated with the full body scanners. Over million will also be spent to install cargo X-ray screening and explosive trace detection technology and about million will be spent on better identifying visa applicants who could pose a security risk. "On the other hand, travelling safe is a priority. "They are real concerns and I can understand how members of the public would be anxious about going through one of these new machines," he said."

. Australia wildfires haunt survivors, one year on - Telegraph Australia wildfires haunt survivors, one year on --> Accessibility links Skip to article Skip to navigation Thursday 04 February 2010 | Expat News feed All feeds --> checkLoginStatus(); Advertisement Website of the Telegraph Media Group with breaking news, sport, business, latest UK and world news. Content from the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph newspapers and video from Telegraph TV. Enhanced by Google Home News Sport Finance Lifestyle Comment Travel Culture Technology Fashion Jobs Dating Games Offers Motoring Health Property Gardening Food and Drink Family Outdoors Active Relationships Expat His Life Home Expat Expat News Australia wildfires haunt survivors, one year on - Twelve months after a fire reduced his home to ashes, Eugene Howe contemplates the first anniversary of Australia's worst natural disaster with a mix of hope and dread. /Getty Green shoots have begun appearing on his razed block and, after almost a year of waiting, the charred ruins of his home were cleared last month so that he can rebuild. - By William West, in Melbourne for Published: 11:17AM GMT 04 Feb 2010 Wildlife officer Geoff McClure examining over the destroyed shopping district from the main road in Marysville on February 9 2009 and the same view nearly one year later. "I can't even think," said Howe. But such decisions are difficult, he explains, when every day is a struggle. Related Articles - Our hearts go out to the Camerons - - Greece declares state of emergency as wildfires sweep towards Athens - - Air Mechanic Henry Allingham - - Henry Allingham: haunted by the Great War - - Let's protect our memories from doctors - "Yesterday I was going to buy a shed and build it, the other day I was going to build a house. "I'm just lost. Another day I was going to sell the block, today I'm keeping the block." Howe's story is not unusual among the hundreds of survivors still without permanent homes, though he has had a tougher time than most. I'm a lost soul with no direction in life. "It was horrible, it snowed here a couple of times. Uninsured and out of work when wildfires swept through his home town of Kinglake on February 7, Howe had to rough it for 10 months on his charred land, erecting a lean-to and, later, moving a small donated caravan onto the block. It was absolutely the worst time of my life," he said. It was absolutely the worst time of my life," he said. I just wish I had a home," he said. "But a lot of people did it harder than me and it's getting better, it's greening up and people are smiling a bit. Another 20 children and 28 teenagers lost at least one parent, and 113 of the dead perished trying to take refuge inside buildings. The "Black Saturday" fires, as they became known, thundered through 78 communities killing 173 people, including 23 children. Rebuilding permits have been issued for more than 1,400 homes and businesses, and VBRRA estimates 60 per cent of those displaced by the fires wish to rebuild. More than half the dead - 94 people - came from Kinglake and surrounding areas, which was the location of 1,242 of the 2,173 properties destroyed, according to the Victoria Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority (VBRRA). . But more than 400 households remain in stop-gap accommodation, with Howe among around 300 people living in clusters of temporary buildings in the worst-hit towns of Flowerdale, Marysville and Kinglake. "We've had Christmas, and we've said goodbye to that year, but it isn't quite finished. "I can't wait for it to happen, it feels like it will be a bit of a weight lifted off the shoulders, I can't really explain it," he said. But Matthews says that many locals are leaving Kinglake to mark the anniversary in private. But Matthews says that many locals are leaving Kinglake to mark the anniversary in private. There is a low-key local service planned, but "I think it's something we've just got to deal with ourselves," Matthews explains. For some people the harsh reality of how enormous, and lengthy, the recovery process will be is just starting to hit, says Margaret Grigg, the assistant director of the Bushfire Psychological Recovery Plan. "Some people might be crying for the first time," Grigg said. "People will be hanging on to this anniversary, the notion of 'I can let go and move forward' and for some people that will be true, and they will be able to do that. "And (for) some people it will be really hard to get there and discover it doesn't actually feel any better. It's an extremely tough time." More than 8,500 people have been offered counselling since the fires, and Grigg said the loss of life was something for which the authorities had not prepared. "One of the really, really devastating components of this was the death toll. It has had enormous impacts," she said. "You do all this planning, but 173 people? That literally affects the lives of thousands of people, and so the issue of bereavement and loss has been really significant." Survivors report nightmares and flashbacks to harrowing moments of escape, watching as loved ones were engulfed in flames, and Matthews says the fear of another inferno is always there. "You get a northerly wind going in the same direction as last year, the same conditions, and it makes you edgy all right, yeah," he said. Life will never return to the way it was for those affected by the fires, nor will they ever fully recover or forget, adds Griggs. "These communities are inalterably changed," she said. "This becomes part of who these people are now." Email Print .at15t_email {display:none !important;} ul li.email span.at300bs {display:none !important;} .at15t_email {display:none !important;} ul li.email span.at300bs {display:none !important;} Share | tweetmeme_url = 'http://www.telegraph.co.uk/expat/expatnews/7155164/Australia-wildfires-haunt-survivors-one-year-on.html'; tweetmeme_style = 'compact'; tweetmeme_source = 'TelegraphNews';

.Federal Immigration Minister Chris Evans says a peaceful protest by Sri Lankan detainees on Christmas Island will do little to help their cause. Senator Evans says he has been told that 133 detainees are protesting against the time it is taking to process their claims, but activist groups put the number at more than 350. They have gathered on an oval and in the recreational area and are refusing to go back to their compounds. "I want to make it very clear to them and to the community . But Senator Evans says the peaceful protest will not speed up the process... ." But a spokesman for the Refugee Action Coalition, Ian Rintoul, says the protest may continue until changes are made. "What we are going to do is ensure proper process is followed - that is people have to have had their health, identity and security checks and then they have to have been successful in their application for protection. They're determined to keep some level of protest now until they get proper answers from the department," he said. "I think the protest will keep occuring." Mr Rintoul says the protesters are holding signs which say 'how long do we have to wait, Oceanic Viking six weeks, Christmas Island six months'. "There's been some talk of initiating a protest hunger strike to indicate just how serious they are that something has to happen on Christmas Island. "There's a longer and longer wait. "There's a longer and longer wait. "The Tamils in particular from Sri Lanka are taking a bit longer to get their security clearances, because obviously there are concerns following the civil war in Sri Lanka and the movement of a lot of LTTE operatives out of Sri Lanka," he said. Senator Evans says most claims are processed within 100 days, but admitted some of the Sri Lankans were being forced to wait longer. We have had many of them cleared, but it is taking a bit longer. "So those processes are under way. Mr Morrison says Christmas Island's detention centre is "running on overdrive" because the product on offer is too good." - 'Visa factory' - The protest coincides with a visit to the island by Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison and Family First Senator Steve Fielding. "We are basically manufacturing opportunities for people to gain access to a protection visa in advance of those who are sitting in camps around the world. "I believe what we have here is a visa factory," he said. "I've just read the comments of Senator Fielding and Scott Morrison and they're a bit sickening actually," he said." Senator Fielding says more boats will continue to arrive unless the island's facilities are made less attractive, but Christmas Island Shire president Gordon Thomson described the comments as insensitive and derogatory." - Expectations raised - Mr Morrison says the latest protest by detainees is due to the Government's mixed messages about border control." - Expectations raised - Mr Morrison says the latest protest by detainees is due to the Government's mixed messages about border control. He says the detainees' expectations have been raised by the Government's relocation of those on board the Oceanic Viking earlier this month. "We need strong border protection. We need [to make sure] people making assessments on whether people come to this country have the time available to do those checks," he said. "They don't need the difficulty of people having raised expectations by poor decisions and special deals by a Government that basically doesn't know what it's doing on border control." But Mr Rintoul says the detainees' dissatisfaction is not simply due to hearing about the treatment of asylum seekers from the Oceanic Viking. "Many of the people have been there long before the Oceanic Viking was on the political horizon and their expectations are to be dealt with as human beings, and for their applications to be processed as quickly as possible," Mr Rintoul said. "The Oceanic Viking has highlighted the difference, the possibilities of processing to be done in six weeks. "It's highlighted the possibility. It hasn't raised their expectations."

.Family First Senator Steve Fielding is visiting the Christmas Island immigration detention centre today to see whether reports that it is overcrowded are true. The Government has had to bring demountables and tents to the island because of an influx of asylum seekers. . "Under the Howard era we had a barbaric policy that basically treated people so horribly that he was using that to send a message to others not to come," he said. He says Australia should not return to the Howard Government's policies, as the Opposition wants, but that a new balance should be found." The Opposition's immigration spokesman, Scott Morrison, is also flying to Christmas Island to visit the centre today. "Now the Rudd Government has made some changes and it looks like those changes have made it too attractive to people smugglers to send more people our way.

. Jessica Alba .. The look one woman is prepared to go under the knife to get.. . A Chinese woman is so keen to win back her ex-boyfriend she plans to undergo plastic surgery to transform herself into his favourite actress: Hollywood star Jessica Alba. "I'm not only doing it for my ex-boyfriend, but for myself. "I have made my decision," the newspaper quoted her as saying. I want to do something to challenge myself and build a strong personality through it. I am a psychologically weak person. "There's no worry about the expense and it is technically practicable," Liu was quoted as saying." Liu Qi, an official at the Shanghai Time Plastic Surgery Hospital, said the woman would need eyebrow lifting, eyelid reshaping and nose reconstruction to look like Alba, the star of Sin City and Fantastic Four." Clinic officials confirmed the woman's story, but would not say when or if the surgery would go ahead. "But the face-lift is irreversible and we hope that she would take it seriously. The man demanded Xiaoqing do her make-up as Alba does, even when she slept, and gave her a blonde wig for Christmas, which he asked her to wear all the time. The woman, who works for a web firm, described to the newspaper how her Alba-obsessed 28-year-old ex-boyfriend hung photos of the actress on his walls and stored her image on his mobile phone. But afterwards, she said she reconsidered. She told the newspaper they broke up last month when she threw her wig and fake eyelashes to the ground after passers-by laughed at her.. "I love him very much... I don't want to lose him," the newspaper quoted her as saying. That's why I always followed his opinions. AFP

.Immigration Minister Chris Evans says the Federal Government remains committed to its immigration detention policy despite concerns raised by this year's Australian of the Year. Accepting his award yesterday, psychiatrist and mental health advocate Professor Pat McGorry condemned Australia's use of immigration detention centres, saying "you could almost describe them as factories for producing mental illness and mental disorder". Professor McGorry's comments were welcomed by various human rights groups, but Senator Evans says the Government's policy has the right balance. He later moved to clarify his comments, saying the Rudd Government had started the job of improving the treatment of asylum seekers. "They are detained but they are supported and we have no concerns about mental health. "People are being looked after appropriately," he said. "[There is] mandatory detention for health, identity and security checks, but quick processing and treating people humanely. "I think most people who visit [Christmas] Island accept people are being treated appropriately, but they are being detained until the appropriate checks have been made. "Firstly I congratulate the professor, it's a wonderful achievement to become Australian of the Year," he said." Opposition health spokesperson Peter Dutton has rejected Professor McGorry's comments, saying he supports tough border protection policies." - 'Mental illness factories' - Yesterday the 57-year-old Professor McGorry called for radical change in the mental health services in Australia, as well as an end to immigration detention centres. "[But] I don't agree with the comments I've seen attributed to him and I'll leave that to him to advocate. "Community mental health cannot grow and flourish under the current model. "I've heard some terrible stories and I've seen some lives really shattered by this policy," he said. "I think Australia as a country is perfectly poised to drive this sort of reform internationally. "We need a radical re-jig and that might be facilitated by the more broad-spectrum reforms that are on the table at the moment. . We are very innovative, we have a track record of that. "I was asked a direct question because obviously the media are aware the other area of my work has been with refugees and asylum seekers for the last 20 years, and I have treated a lot of very traumatised people, including many who were put through the remote detention centre policy of earlier governments. "Actually I was a lot more positive than the media has picked it up today," he said. "I think [Prime Minister Kevin] Rudd and the government have taken very significant steps to humanising this system," Professor McGorry continued. "I was really much more critical of earlier government policy on both sides which created these centres. They may not have got to the top of the hole yet, but I was trying to encourage them to keep going, and I certainly wasn't critical of the present government's policies. "I actually said that the Rudd Government was doing an excellent job of digging us out of a very deep hole. It takes a while to turn around 15 years of poor policy. It takes a while to turn around 15 years of poor policy."

.A former head of security at the Federal Airports Corporation is warning there are glaring holes in the nation's airport security and that it is only a matter of time before there is a terrorist attack on an airline in Australia. Michael Carmody says domestic flights are particularly vulnerable and the Federal Government needs to take urgent action to improve regulation. Boarding a domestic flight in Australia can be relatively quick and easy. The warning comes as Osama bin Laden claims responsibility for the attempted Christmas day attack on an aircraft in the United States. Hand luggage and personal items are screened as you walk through. . He says there are too many holes in security at Australian airports. Former head of security at the Federal Airports Corporation, Michael Carmody, says it is easy for passengers and easy for would-be terrorists. "For example, on a domestic flight here in Australia, at no time do we ever verify the person who is flying to the ticket and it is simple measures like that, along with profiling and supported by technology, that must come into play. "To get the fundamentals right and to get some of the more simplistic security measures in place is absolutely essential," he said. He says security checks in Australia fall short of the standard procedure in a number of other countries, including the United States." Mr Carmody says security measures at regional airports are even worse, with often no screening of any baggage. "That is verified quite comprehensively to the ticket and then you proceed to screening. "In the US, at all ports, of course as you know, once you check in and then you approach the screening point, the first thing you encounter is that you must show a picture ID, a driver's licence or a passport," he said. Of course here in Australia anyone can enter the sterile area whether they are flying or otherwise. "The other measure that the US have in place, unless you are flying, you don't enter the sterile area. "Governments have essentially stepped out of that process." - Government control - Mr Carmody, who now works as a private security consultant, says airports in Australia need to be controlled by the Federal Government. "The effort we put into Customs and AQIS employing government employees, highly motivated, well-paid, compared to aviation security where you have got private security companies putting fellows on there at part-time on a 12-hour shift - [it is] not acceptable. Airlines and airport operators have devolved their responsibility to private security companies," he said. He says security checks will not improve at airports until politicians are exposed to the procedure." Another security expert, Roger Henning, from the firm Homeland Security Asia Pacific, agrees. "If you are a minister and the Prime Minister, how often is it that you fly in a domestic commercial airliner or use the domestic facilities? You don't. "They rock up in a Comcar, they get expedited treatment in most cases through the processing and through security into a VIP lounge and then to the pointy end of the aeroplane," he said." Mr Henning says an attack on an airline in Australia is more likely to be home grown and that it is only a matter of time before an airline in Australia is hit." Mr Henning says an attack on an airline in Australia is more likely to be home grown and that it is only a matter of time before an airline in Australia is hit. "We have a situation at the moment where it is not just capital city airports that are at risk, there is a huge risk from regional airports and we've had in the past terrorist training in regional Australia, in country areas of New South Wales," he said. "Are we kidding ourselves that it has all gone away? I don't think so." But the head of the Australian Airports Association, John McArdle, says domestic airport security has come a long way since Mr Carmody held his former position. "Everybody and everything that gets onto any aircraft at the moment, particularly at our major capital cities, has been security screened," he said. "Everybody who moves into the terminals have been security screened and the products that they're carrying have been security screened. "The likelihood of an incident occurring has been minimised quite considerably." - Bin Laden message - The warning comes as Osama bin Laden claims responsibility for the attempt to detonate a bomb on an airline in the United States on Christmas Day. In a message sent to the Arabic news channel Al Jazeera, the recording believed to be from Osama bin Laden praises the attempted bombing. "The message I want to convey to you through the plane of the hero Umar Farouk reaffirms a previous message that the heroes of 9/11 conveyed to you and it was repeated frequently. The message is that America will never dream of living in peace unless we live it in Palestine," the message said. The Federal Minister for Transport, Anthony Albanese, has not returned 's phone calls. But a spokesperson said the reason they do not check ID at airports is because it is not about who gets on board, but what gets on board and the screening process is extensive.

. The once safe Democrat seat of Massachesetts falls to Republican Senator Scott Brown, inset, who beat Attorney General Martha Coakley. In a major upset, Republican Scott Brown has captured the US Senate seat held by liberal champion Edward Kennedy for nearly a half century, leaving President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul in doubt and marring the end of his first year in office. Brown’s defeat of once-favoured Martha Coakley for the Massachusetts seat on Tuesday was a stunning embarrassment for the White House after Obama rushed to Boston on Sunday to try to save her candidacy. More immediately, Brown will become the 41st Republican in the 100-member Senate, which could allow the Republicans to block the president’s health care legislation and the rest of Obama’s agenda. . Brown led by 52 per cent to 47 per cent with all but three per cent of precincts counted. Democrats needed Coakley to win for a 60th vote to thwart Republican procedural manoeuvres to block votes on legislation. Brown will finish Kennedy’s unexpired term, facing re-election in 2012. Addressing an exuberant victory celebration Tuesday night, Brown declared he was ‘‘ready to go to Washington without delay’’ as the crowd chanted, ‘‘seat him now. He will be the first Republican senator from Massachusetts in 30 years. Coakley called Brown conceding the race, and Obama talked to both Brown and Coakley, congratulating them on the race.’’ Democrats indicated they would, deflating a budding controversy over whether they would try to block Brown long enough to complete congressional passage of the health care plan he has promised to oppose.’’ But even before the polls closed, Obama administration officials and Coakley’s supporters were blaming each other. The Democrat said the president told her: ‘‘we can’t win them all. Administration officials privately accused Coakley of a poorly run campaign. Administration officials privately accused Coakley of a poorly run campaign. Wall Street watched closely. Coakley’s supporters, in turn, blamed that very environment, saying her lead dropped significantly after the Senate passed a health care bill shortly before Christmas and after the Christmas Day attempted airliner bombing that Obama himself said showed a failure of his administration. Analysts attributed the increase to hopes the election would make it harder for Obama to make his changes to health care. The Dow Jones industrial average rose more than one per cent. The election transformed reliably Democratic Massachusetts into a battleground state. That eased investor concerns that profits at companies such as insurers and drug makers would suffer. One day shy of the first anniversary of Obama’s swearing-in, it played out amid a backdrop of animosity and resentment from voters over persistently high unemployment, industry bailouts, exploding federal budget deficits and partisan wrangling over health care. Just 14 months ago, Obama carried the state by 26 percentage points over Republican John McCain. Obama has made overhauling the US health care system, which leaves nearly 50 million people uninsured, his top domestic priority. With the stakes so high, Obama had campaigned for Coakley in Boston at the weekend and appeared in television ads on her behalf. Democratic congressional leaders put on a show of resolve Tuesday. Democratic congressional leaders put on a show of resolve Tuesday. ‘‘Whatever happens in Massachusetts, we will have quality, affordable health care for all Americans, and we will have it soon,’’ said House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said. AP

.The Federal Government says a fifth Tamil refugee has been refused a visa to live in Australia, leaving him, his wife and their children in detention limbo on Christmas Island. There is pressure now on the Immigration Department to resettle the refugees in another country, prompting outspoken Liberal backbencher Wilson Tuckey to label Christmas Island as "potentially Australia's Guantanamo Bay". Immigration Minister Chris Evans has also admitted that his department knew some of the refugees were unfit to enter Australia before their arrival on Christmas Island. The woman has two young children and all three are being detained on Christmas Island. The department earlier today confirmed that three Sri Lankan men and a woman who were on board the Oceanic Viking had been denied visas because ASIO decided they pose a security risk. "There is an additional person who around the same time was found by our security agencies to have not met the public interest criteria in terms of his security assessment," Senator Evans said. Now her husband has also been refused a visa. "It is the case that this man is the spouse of the mother of the two children who was onboard the Oceanic Viking. "I don't know the nature of ASIO's finding, so I couldn't help you if I wanted to. . But he says the Government knew four of them were unfit to enter Australia before their arrival on Christmas Island. But as you know, I wouldn't anyway," he said." Senator Evans says the family is under guard on the island but not at the main detention centre. "When these people were found to be a security concern, we determined to take them to Christmas Island, detain them there and work with the [United Nations refugee agency] on long-term resolution of their cases. The Federal Government had promised 78 Sri Lankans quick processing to coax them off the Oceanic Viking and into an Indonesian detention centre. The Federal Government had promised 78 Sri Lankans quick processing to coax them off the Oceanic Viking and into an Indonesian detention centre. She said they could also choose to leave Australia voluntarily. A spokeswoman for the Immigration Department has said Australia is continuing to search for another country to resettle them. "Christmas Island is now potentially Australia's Guantanamo Bay," he said. Mr Tuckey, who last year said he was worried terrorists could be on board boats of asylum seekers, says the Government will have difficulty resettling the visa-less refugees in another country." Opposition treasury spokesman, Joe Hockey, says Mr Tuckey has been vindicated for raising security concerns. "We could end up holding that facility in operation for years as luxury accommodation for people whom we won't let come to Australia, and yet at the same time will not be wanted by anyone else. "I think Wilson's had a win there. "More fool Kevin Rudd for coming out and saying that Wilson Tuckey should apologise," Mr Hockey said." - Final say - The Greens Leader, Bob Brown, says ASIO should not have the final say on whether the Tamil refugees are fit to live in Australia. He deserves recognition for the fact that of course there are going to be risks with unsolicited arrivals in Australia. "The last thing the Rudd Government should do is leave ASIO to be the arbiter of who comes into this country and who doesn't, to quote John Howard who gave such extraordinary powers to ASIO to determine the lives of Australians generally," Senator Brown said. "The last thing the Rudd Government should do is leave ASIO to be the arbiter of who comes into this country and who doesn't, to quote John Howard who gave such extraordinary powers to ASIO to determine the lives of Australians generally," Senator Brown said. He says major determinations made by the spy agency should be scrutinised by a parliamentary committee. "That scrutiny must be there. We must never in a democracy leave ASIO to be making decisions in such matters without there being careful scrutiny by the parliament itself," he said. Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says Mr Rudd has created the problem "by caving in to the would-be unauthorised arrivals on the Oceanic Viking".

.Two men believed to be employed by an Indian-born contract worker found stabbed and burnt in rural NSW have had their passports seized at Sydney Airport, Fairfax reports. Ranjodh Singh's partially burnt body was found beside Wilga Road, Willbriggie, in the Riverina area of south-west NSW on December 29. Two men, believed to be Indian seasonal workers employed by Mr Singh, were arrested at Sydney airport's departure lounge last Monday as they were about to board a flight to Nepal via Singapore, Fairfax reported. . Detectives believe Mr Singh may have been murdered in a fight over unpaid wages at a Christmas party two days before his murder. The pair were questioned at Mascot police station but were later released without charge after being forced to hand in their passports. Police are appealing for public help to identify a distinctive red 1996 Ford Falcon that was seen in the Griffith and Wagga Wagga areas around the time of Mr Singh's death. A post-mortem examination revealed his throat had been slashed and he had suffered multiple stab wounds before being bound and then set alight in an effort to conceal his identity, Fairfax reported. - . Anyone with information they think may be of interest to police is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000

. Deadly funnel-web spiders invade Sydney - Telegraph Deadly funnel-web spiders invade Sydney --> Accessibility links Skip to article Skip to navigation Digital Publisher of the Year | Saturday 09 January 2010 | Australia feed All feeds --> checkLoginStatus(); Advertisement Website of the Telegraph Media Group with breaking news, sport, business, latest UK and world news. Content from the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph newspapers and video from Telegraph TV. - By Bonnie Malkin in Sydney Published: 11:48PM GMT 08 Jan 2010 Funnel-web spiders can grow up to two inches long. Enhanced by Google Home News Sport Finance Lifestyle Comment Travel Culture Technology Fashion Jobs Dating Games Offers UK World UK Politics Celebrities Obituaries Weird Earth Science Health News Education Topics News Blogs News Video USA Barack Obama Europe Asia China Middle East Africa and Indian Ocean Australia and the Pacific Home News World News Australia and the Pacific Australia Deadly funnel-web spiders invade Sydney - An influx of the deadly Sydney funnel-web spider has taken hold in the Australian city of the same name after a spate of wetter than usual weather brought them scuttling into suburban gardens and sheds. Rex Gilroy, who runs Katoomba Rotary Club's dangerous spiders hotline, said a long period of dry weather followed by heavy rain and high humidity over Christmas prompted an explosion in numbers. Alamy The Australian Reptile Park, which makes anti-venom for funnelweb bites, has recorded higher than usual numbers of funnel-webs and warned the plague could get worse. This season there's more moisture and coolness and the spiders have been able to breed up," he told the Sydney Morning Herald. "I think climate change might have something to do with it. "[The numbers] are definitely up from the previous year, and I think it's not going to get any better," he said. Mr Gilroy said he had been receiving 20 to 30 reports of the spiders from both regions weekly and that Sydney residents were lucky that they weren't encountering more of the dangerous spiders. The reptile park has a funnel-web spider-milking laboratory for the production of antivenom for treatment of bites. Mary Rayner, the Australian Reptile Park's general manager, said the heavy rain had made Sydney homes, gardens and sheds the ideal refuge for them. Miss Rayner said the park's laboratory, which doubles as a drop off centre for funnelwebs, had been increasingly busy since Boxing Day. It doubles as a centre where people can drop off captured funnel-webs. "It's really important that [parents are] really very vigilant about children's clothing and shoes, and where they play," she said. . They make their burrows in cool, sheltered habitats, often under rocks and inside rotting logs. Funnel-webs can grow up to two inches long. In the past 100 years bites from Sydney funnel-webs have caused 13 deaths, including seven in children. Symptoms of their bite include tingling around the mouth and tongue, nausea, vomiting, and shortness of breath and they can result in death.at15t_email {display:none !important;} . Email Print .telegraph.at15t_email {display:none !important;} Share | tweetmeme_url = 'http://www.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/australia/6951425/Deadly-funnel-web-spiders-invade-Sydney.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/australia/6951425/Deadly-funnel-web-spiders-invade-Sydney.html'; tweetmeme_style = 'compact'; tweetmeme_source = 'TelegraphNews';

.Bananas might be a staple item in many households, but up to 30 per cent of the fruit grown in Australia goes to waste because it does not meet strict retail standards. If bananas are too big or if the skin is badly marked, supermarkets will not buy them. Shane Marden, who works on a banana plantation in Tully, one of Queensland's wettest towns, says more than 10,000 tonnes of Australian bananas fall short of the retail standards each year. Researchers are now looking at ways farmers can reuse some of the unsaleable fruit. "We take bins and bins of them out to the cows, and other farmers actually mulch them up and spread them back on to the paddocks. "We've just taken the trailer-load of bananas out to the cows, mainly because the supermarkets won't take the large ones and because we had a week off over Christmas and they got too big," he said. "Anything to buy that's in it." Mr Marden would hope to see rejected bananas processed and turned into other products so farmers can recoup some of their substantial costs. So you get a carton and you can get even a carton for the rubbish ones," he said. You can get an extra few dollars for something. It costs so much to produce this sort of thing. "At least it's something in it. Dr Kent Fanning from Innovative Food Technologies is leading the charge." The CSIRO and Queensland's Department of Primary Industries are researching new processing methods to enable growers to use the fruit the supermarkets reject. "Examples include banana pulp, banana as a starch source, also as a banana flour, banana fibre, and then also probably looking at novel processing applications to develop probably higher-value banana products. "We're looking at what currently is waste fruit and getting an idea of how much of this could be utilised in different food applications," he said. Council chief executive Tony Heidrich says other countries are already making products like biofuels and banana flour." - Processed food - The research project is also being partly funded by the Australian Banana Council. "Probably that would be the most realistic avenue that would be pursued," he said. But he expects Australia will develop some new processed foods. "The apples which you see on supermarket shelves nowadays have been peeled and sliced and they've been put in special packaging which extends their life. "You've only got to look at the success the apple industry has had." Mr Heidrich says he is optimistic that any new banana food product would become popular in Australia. "Apples are competing very strongly with snack foods on that basis.5 kilos of bananas every year," he said.5 kilos of bananas every year," he said. "So we've only got to increase that pretty small amount and that's made a significant difference into our overall levels of profitability. "We're certainly hopeful that we can get some direct benefit out of this research and hopefully provide Australia consumers with an alternative banana product."

.A market analyst says the planned alliance between budget airlines Jetstar and AirAsia will greatly benefit both companies. Qantas' budget airline Jetstar announced it was forming the alliance with the Malaysian discount carrier. The airlines say they plan to save hundreds of millions of dollars by sharing ground operations and aircraft parts, as well as joint-purchasing aircraft. Under the deal, the two airlines will cooperate more closely to reduce costs, which they say will lead to cheaper airfares.98. Shortly after the news was announced this morning, Qantas shares were up two cents to http://thehouseofoojah.com/info/christmas-news2-feed.php. "It's still growing employment, and there's no plans to reduce that," he said. Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce says there will be no job cuts a result of the marriage, with Jetstar still planning to add 300 positions this year. "They're going to look to be pooling their expertise in a number of areas like procurement," he said. IG Markets research analyst Ben Potter says the alliance makes sense given the very competitive nature of airlines and the huge growth market in Asia. [It's] really using the buying power of both airlines to get better deals from all manufacturers, as well as sharing services and passenger services at airports where both airlines serve. "In terms of purchasing new aircraft, they've got a lot of services and spare parts procurement." - Tiger's headwind - Mr Potter says the planned alliance may restrict Tiger Airways' ability to compete in the low-cost airline market in Asia. "So we think it's a very smart move. . He says passenger demand for Tiger Airways could suffer if the airline is not able to match the low ticket prices offered by the joint alliance." Mr Joyce dismissed speculation the move is aimed at hurting Singapore's budget carrier, Tiger Airways, saying the loss-making airline is insignificant to the deal. "So at the end of the day it'll just be pricing pressures in terms of the prices Tiger Airways can charge for routes that both airlines serve. Tiger, whose owners include Singapore Airlines, is selling about 165 million shares to raise capital for the purchase of aircraft. Tiger Airways says it plans to raise 4 million in an initial public offering this month. - Safety concerns - Meanwhile, the Transport Workers Union has warned the joint venture could compromise passenger safety and security. The money raised will also be used to set up a new operating base for Tiger, as well as to pay off some existing debt. Mr Connolly says in the last six months bags have not been scanned before going on flights due to a lack of resources and contracting practices. The union's national organiser, Scott Connolly, says that in the wake of the Christmas terrorism attempt in the United States, corporations should be working to ensure safety is a priority. "But if it creates jobs at the expense of safety standards and security conditions and we discover that at 30,000 feet, it's an absolute disaster. "But if it creates jobs at the expense of safety standards and security conditions and we discover that at 30,000 feet, it's an absolute disaster."

.An Indian man whose partially burnt body was found on the side of a road in New South Wales last week may have been the victim of a labour dispute. The man's death is one of several murders and bashings against Indian nationals living in Australia in recent weeks - crimes which have strained ties between the two countries. Police will not say whether they are investigating claims the dead man owed money to harvest labourers. Union organisers say there has been an increase in Indian students working as contract labourers in western NSW, and there are reports of them being ripped off. Police are yet to name the man, believed to be 25 years old, but they are in touch with his family in India to help with identification. His body was found at the side of Wilga Road at Willbriggie, close to Griffith, by a member of the public on Tuesday December 29. "Over the last 12 months there's been two assaults around that area, people endeavouring to retrieve money for labour," he said. Harry Goring from the Australian Workers Union says he has heard of unpaid labourers taking matters into their own hands." - 'Weekly occurrence' - Mr Goring says action is needed to ensure legal processes are followed by contractors. "I'm not saying for a moment that it's this with this man, but there have been a number of fracases in relation to Indian people pursuing certain individuals. Mr Goring says he and local MP Adrian Piccoli planned a forum of farmers and contractors four years ago to address the unscrupulous use of harvest labour, but it did not happen. "From Centrelink to Immigration, Fair Work, Workcover, we all need to do a sustained effort to fix this problem," he said. Mr Goring says there has been a huge increase in contract labour, particularly Indian students, and many are being ripped off. He is urging farmers to ensure contractors are legitimate, saying he gets weekly complaints about wages being stolen. We don't hear about the one and twos that are happening. "It's a weekly occurrence. "You and I will never know the amount of people who are lining up for payment, and as they're doling out the dollars, where they thought they were going to get 0, they then have to barter and argue for a percentage of that amount. It only becomes sensational when a large group gets ripped off," he said." - Anger growing - Meanwhile, anger is growing in India over the stabbing death of 21-year-old university graduate Nitin Garg, who was killed on his way to his part-time job at a Melbourne fast food restaurant on Saturday night. "They arrive on our doorstep without any plans, without accommodation and they are scooped up by so-called contractors. Acting Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Crean says there is no evidence that Indian students are being singled out in racially-motivated attacks. Victoria Police are also investigating the assault of an Indian man at a fast food outlet in Melbourne on the same night that Mr Garg died. "The question of simply Indians being targeted . "I think it's important to note that the police themselves have said that there is no evidence that this was racially motivated," he said... . "It's true that a number have been involved, but if one looks at the overall crime - and there's certainly large numbers of Indian students that are here - according to the authorities, it is not out of the ordinary in terms of that proportionality. "It's also true that including over this Christmas period there have been a spate of stabbings in and around Melbourne." But Federation of Indian Students of Australia spokesperson Gautam Gupta says the Federal Government is in denial and students are fearful. "There is extreme shock and fear and anger and a lot of frustration at the inaction of various levels of government," he said. "It's amazing. People are being attacked here and the government just wants to blame the victims."

. Meryl Streep is a Hollywood standout for her magnificent 30-year career, 15 Oscar nominations and recent hot run of box office hits The Devil Wears Prada, Mamma Mia! and Julie & Julia, but study her elegant face and the 60-year-old elevates again. Sitting in a room on the 14th floor of a Manhattan hotel overexamining Central Park, small, delicate lines are visible on Streep's face. Streep is not interested in a chemical or surgical touch up and is happy to let time do what it has to do. In an era of Hollywood friendly injectables Dysport and Botox and line fillers Restylane and Radiesse, this is a rare sight for sit-down meetings with actresses in their 30s and beyond. "That's just me. "I think people look funny when they freeze their faces," Streep explains." The topic is examined in a hilarious scene in Streep's new comedy It's Complicated, co-starring Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin. . In the scene Jane, upset an eyelid is sagging, visits a cosmetic surgeon in her seaside Californian home town of Santa Barbara. Streep plays Jane, a divorcee attempting to move on after her husband (Baldwin) leaves her for a younger woman. "To each his own," Streep dismisses, refusing to criticise those of her peers who opt for the scalpel and staples or a syringe. Jane ends up fleeing the surgery when the doctor goes into detail about slicing the skin on her forehead, pulling it back and then sticking it in its new position with staples." It's Complicated continues Streep's extraordinary run at the box office where she sits alongside Will Smith and Robert Downey Jr as Hollywood's most consistent box office draws. "I understand the chagrin which comes with ageing, especially for a woman. While Smith and Downey Jr's hits draw teen and young male adult audiences, Streep's films tap into demographics Hollywood has found tough to entice to cinemas: women and older patrons. It's Complicated has made more than $US35 million ($A39 million) since opening in North American theatres on Christmas Day.88 million) the past year. Her pay cheque per movie has also risen, with Streep earning a reported $US24 million ($A26. Streep's beauty secret is not yoga or pilates. Just two actresses earned more: Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie. Nancy Meyers, 60, was inspired to write and direct It's Complicated after her husband, Hollywood director-screenwriter-writer Charles Shyer, left her for a younger woman. She keeps fit by swimming 55 laps several times a week. "Meryl does a really clever thing in that scene where she talks about women who have bad face lifts," Meyers, who directed Something's Gotta Give, What Women Want, The Holiday and The Parent Trap, says. Streep had Meyers in stitches when they shot the scene with the cosmetic surgeon. When I saw her do that, I was screaming with laughter. When I saw her do that, I was screaming with laughter. "It was really brilliant of her." Her Academy nominations began in 1978 for Deer Hunter and include The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981), Silkwood (1981), Out of Africa (1985), as Aussie Lindy Chamberlain in Evil Angels (1988), The Bridges of Madison County (1995) and last year's drama, Doubt. Streep's two wins were for Kramer vs Kramer (1979) and Sophie's Choice (1982). The films often made money, but The Devil Wears Prada and Mamma Mia! combined took in almost $US1 billion at the box office, transforming Streep into the ultimate Hollywood force with highly profitable movies that garner Oscar and other awards attention. "I need Meryl to work because my career is now tied to hers," jokes Martin, the silver-haired 64-year-old comedian and Emmy and Grammy winner, who plays Jane's love interest in It's Complicated. Hollywood studios and producers are flooding Streep with scripts. Most she knocks back, but Streep has found it difficult to give up the gems. "I made seven movies in the last two and half years," Streep says, feigning exhaustion. "I haven't done that ever in my whole life." Adding to Streep's charm is her down-to-earth presence. She is Hollywood royalty, but does not act like it. She does not have a publicist shadowing her for interviews. Streep also does not rely on a personal stylist. "I don't know," Streep replies when asked who designed the black cardigan, black pants and purple buttoned up shirt she is wearing for this interview. "I've had it for years. I've had this cardigan since my son was born." Her son, Henry, turned 30 in November. Streep has four children with her sculptor husband Don Gummer, with Henry the oldest followed by daughters Mamie, 26, Grace, 23, and Louisa, 18. Streep and Gummer have been married for 31 years, again putting her in a rare bracket with Hollywood couples. The actress, just like her clothes selection, apparently does not invest much time in attempting to examine why her marriage works and others fail. "I have no idea," Streep says. After a moment's thought, she reaches for an answer. "He's an artist and the sensibilities we have are similar," Streep, who was born in New Jersey and studied drama at Vassar College and Yale School of Drama, says. Martin says Streep is reshaping the Hollywood landscape with successful films for older audiences. "I think it's a rediscovered genre," the comedian says. "They used to do this a lot and I think this movie, It's Complicated, clearly defines a genre, I think, for mature audiences, which is a vast number of people now." Streep, of course, is not comfortable with praise. She does have some advice for younger actresses. The key, Streep says, is remaining an individual. "I think for young women it's hard (to become a breakout star) because they all think they have to look a certain way," Streep explains. "That's a trap." It's Complicated opens in Australia on January 7.

. The tiny irukandji stinger .. packs a powerful punch for such a tiny critter.. This was captured neatly just days ago, when the winner of Tourism Queensland's "Best Job in the World" competition found himself in agony after being stung by the potentially lethal irukandji jellyfish while jetskiing. With its crocodiles, sharks, and jellyfish, Australia is often painted as a place too deadly to visit despite its glittering beaches and sparkling weather. According to authorities there were no shark-related deaths, no funnel-web fatalities, only a couple of croc maulings and a few deaths from animal-related disease. But the fact is that 2009 brought few fatalities at the hands of our killer critters. Navy diver Paul de Gelder was first, losing his hand and right leg after being attacked by a bull shark during an underwater exercise. Despite this, fear of our fauna and marine life peaked very early in the year, after two men were mauled in the space of two February days at two favourite aquatic haunts - Sydney Harbour and Bondi Beach. The attacks, and intense media coverage, prompted the NSW Government to launch its "shark action plan". Days later, a great white shark locking its jaws around the left arm of Glenn Orgias while he was surfing at Bondi at dusk. The zoo maintains the Australian Shark Attack File. But despite the hysteria, there were no shark-related fatalities in 2009, according to a Taronga Zoo spokesperson. Life was more perilous where crocodiles roamed. There were a number of other "encounters", including bites and grazes. Eleven-year-old Briony Goodsell was swimming with other children at Black Jungle Swamp, southeast of Darwin, in March when she was taken by a saltwater crocodile. The Northern Territory Parks and Wildlife Service recorded two croc fatalities in the territory this year. "I only saw its big head and then heard a splash," his sister was reported as saying. A month later, 20-year-old Keith Parry was killed by a four-metre crocodile while swimming in the Daly River. The irukandji jellyfish - the size of a peanut with a sting that can kill - reared its tiny ugly head this month, but took no lives in 2009. Less seriously, reptile handler Tracey Sandstrom was attacked by her two-metre saltwater crocodile, Snappy, during a Christmas party earlier this month in Victoria. Earlier this month, a 29-year-old man ended up in intensive care in a Queensland hospital after reportedly diving into the deadly jellyfish's tentacles. An encounter with the jellyfish is known to cause victims to double up in agony, with the pain starting in their lower back and stomach and spreading to their legs, before inducing uncontrollable shivers and vomiting. Two days ago, the winner of Tourism Queensland's "Best Job in the World" was stung. Two days ago, the winner of Tourism Queensland's "Best Job in the World" was stung. . "I was feeling pretty hot and sweaty, had a headache and felt pretty sick too with pain in my lower back and a tightness in the chest and a really high blood pressure." Despite their reputation, funnel-web bites have caused no fatalities since the availability of anti-venom in the 1980s, said Mary Rayner, general manager of the Australian Reptile Park. The park milks venom from the spiders and delivers it to CSL Limited, which creates the anti-venom. But two serious funnel-web bites this year stood out in her memory, both early on this year, because they showed spiders did not discriminate based on age. An 84-year-old Central Coast woman became one of the oldest spider victims after she was bitten on the toe, Ms Rayner said. Days later, a three year old boy was bitten at his Newcastle home. Both were treated with anti-venom and survived. "The little three-year-old boy came in [to the reptile park] soon after to have a look at all the spiders," she said. Snake bites - commonly carried out by tiger and eastern brown snakes - killed about half a dozen people last summer, some of which were in the early part of 2009, Ms Rayner said. There were also a number of serious but non-fatal bites, in both rural and metropolitan areas. A three-year-old boy was bitten by a 2.5-metre brown snake while playing in a river north-west of Sydney in January, although he survived. Days earlier, a young boy was bitten at St Marys after trying to pick up a black snake which he thought was a stick. Also in January, an experienced reptile handler at Australia Zoo was bitten by a king brown snake, while in June a snake bit a cleaner at the Myer department store in Lonsdale Street, Melbourne. After weeks of dry and hot conditions, followed by rain, the numbers of snakes and spiders now out and about and examining to mate was on the rise, Ms Rayner said. In 2009, animals also brought on death through the spread of disease. Almost 200 Australians died as a result swine flu, a strain of influenza that gripped the world with fear this year. Lesser known, the mosquito-borne virus Murray Valley encephalitis killed a Northern Territory farmer - 58-year-old Theofilis Maglis - in March. The hendra virus, a rare virus spread from bats to horses and then to humans, also killed Rockhampton vet Alister Rodgers this year. Dr Rodgers was the second vet and fourth Queenslander to die from the virus, after veterinarian Dr Ben Cunneen, 33, passed away following an outbreak of Hendra in Brisbane in August last year.