Mark Pownall

GIVEN the amount of attention surrounding the Ansett collapse, I was a bit surprised to see how little fuss followed the Skywest deal announced last week.

IT is just 14 days until the former equity holders of WA brokerage Porter Western are freed from the golden handcuffs they accepted at the sale of their business to Macquarie Bank.

SIDELINED industrial technology player Vostech is set to return to the field tomorrow after a $1.7 million equity raising, which has helped pave the way to a deal with creditors.

AUSTRALIA needs more immigration, but new arrivals will never drive our economy like exports.That was the word from highly regarded economist Don Stammer, after he addressed the Australia-Israel Chamber of Commerce this week.

I AM usually hesitant to go and hear economists speak.Perhaps it is because we are bombarded by news about the economy.

THE dot.coms may be returning to their mining roots with their tails between their legs, but at least one area of IT is attracting attention as it records some success against traditional players – online recruitment.

DURING the image grooming that resulted in “Dr Geoff Gallop the political leader”, much was made of his close connection with UK Prime Minister Tony Blair.

THE debate around private health insurance costs has stirred up an interesting hornet’s nest.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL Daryl Williams has drafted legislation to gag whistleblowers and journalists. The Federal Government plans to introduce laws it says is aimed to deter espionage by increasing jail time for spies.

THE Howard Porter business is set to make a comeback after its purchase by CBH subsidiary Bulkwest, which plans a big research and development push.

Business must develop strategies to avoid becoming part of the fossil recordIT was my great pleasure this week to meet Scott Hocknull, just a few days after he was named Young Australian of the Year.

OUR courts are steeped in history, but many of the traditional practices are under threat as governments move to modernise justice.Last year, the title of Queen’s Counsel was abandoned in WA in favour of Senior Counsel.

THE legal profession is expecting big changes from legislative plans flagged for WA.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL Jim McGinty has put the controversy of the past year’s legislative initiatives behind him and is setting a different course for 2002, with a number of plans that will affect business.

A SOFTENING of contempt laws could be part of a package of media-related legal reforms being examined by WA Attorney-General Jim McGinty.

DOZENS of tribunals, boards and referees are expected to disappear under State Government plans to create WA’s own administrative appeals tribunal.

SEVERAL of the many reforms planned this year by the WA Attorney-General have implications for business.

THE industrial relations pendulum has officially started its return swing.

THE new-look committee at prestigious sports venue Royal Kings Park Tennis Club has moved to institute further financial changes to turn around the organisation’s fortunes.

THE Hay Street Mall has always bugged me.For a long time I knew there was something that didn’t quite work, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.

AUTOMOTIVE accessories retailer Marlows has gone back to basics, largely shelving a technology strategy that has cost the firm more than $3 million.

INCOMING WA Newspapers Holdings chief executive officer Ian Law believes he has more to offer than just the cost cutting credentials with which he was labelled following his unexpected appointment last week.

AT the weekend the WA operations of multi-national aluminium giant Alcoa resorted to paying for a full-page advertisement in local daily The West Australian to highlight its claims have been ignored in a debate raging

THE local wine industry caught my attention about five or six years ago.One thing that sparked my interest was the big growth in tax-effective investments.

IT has been a busy year for the people at the controversial Palandri wine group, with some significant activity in both the public domain and behind the scenes at one of the wine world’s most unusual corporate models.

MEDIA group WA Newspapers Holdings has made several pre-Christmas redundancies as the market waits for the announcement of a new chief executive.

A POLITICAL exposé with a strong business leaning has allowed Geraldton Guardian reporter Chris Johnson to scoop the pool at the WA media awards this year.

I KNOW it’s early days at the Federal Government’s royal commission into the building industry, but it doesn’t seem as though this important inquiry has got off to a good start.

THE collapse of major Mid West building company sparked our interest this week when our investigations revealed a link to Premier Geoff Gallop.

AUSTRALIANS have been warned to prepare for casualties as the first of Australia’s elite Special Air Service troops arrived in Afghanistan this week.

WA’S major media company, WA Newspapers Holdings, is set to announce the appointment of a new managing director before the end of the year, ending more than 12 months of speculation.

PATIENCE is the catchcry of those in the technology game as they seek to soothe their disgruntled investors.Two good examples came to my attention this week.