WA taxpayers left with bill as Rayney wins record payout for defamation
The West Australian government has indicated it could appeal against a defamation payout awarded to barrister Lloyd Rayney after police branded him the ‘‘prime’’ and ‘‘only’’ suspect in the murder of his wife. The West
WA keeps the faith in iron ore
West Australian Treasurer Ben Wyatt is confident the state’s iron ore price forecasts are accurate despite being about $US10 a tonne higher that those being applied in Commonwealth modelling. The Fin
TPG joins Telstra, Optus on NBN’s list of shame
National broadband network retail service provider TPG has joined Telstra and Optus in admitting it misled customers about the potential speed of its internet connections and will pay compensation to nearly 8000 customers, who were sold plans for speeds they couldn’t achieve. The Fin
China coal exit fires up LNG
Government coal restrictions are firing runaway gas demand in China, transforming the outlook for liquefied natural gas in Asia and threatening efforts to rein in prices on the east coast of Australia. The Fin
Teachers to rally against school cuts
WA teachers are set to take industrial action the day before students return to school next month in response to the State Government’s $64 million cuts to education. The West
Medicare faces $330m hit for abuse care
The proposed child-sex-abuse redress scheme includes uncapped psychological counselling that could cost Medicare about $65 million a year. The Aus
The Australian Financial Review
Page 1: Labor leader Bill Shorten is facing intense internal criticism for becoming embroiled in a factional war in Victoria which threatens to undo a decade-long peace agreement, proposes a new carve-up of power over federal and state preselections but which also plays into the Turnbull government’s portrayal of Mr Shorten as an ally of militant unions.
Government coal restrictions are firing runaway gas demand in China, transforming the outlook for liquefied natural gas in Asia and threatening efforts to rein in prices on the east coast of Australia.
Page 2: National broadband network retail service provider TPG has joined Telstra and Optus in admitting it misled customers about the potential speed of its internet connections and will pay compensation to nearly 8000 customers, who were sold plans for speeds they couldn’t achieve.
Page 3: Fund managers are watching the efficacy of US tax cuts to see whether companies use the windfall to invest in new projects or revert to buying back their own stock to inflate earnings.
The West Australian government has indicated it could appeal against a defamation payout awarded to barrister Lloyd Rayney after police branded him the ‘‘prime’’ and ‘‘only’’ suspect in the murder of his wife.
Page 9: West Australian Treasurer Ben Wyatt is confident the state’s iron ore price forecasts are accurate despite being about $US10 a tonne higher that those being applied in Commonwealth modelling.
Page 15: One of the co-founders of a mining technology company acquired by explosives group Orica says the combination of the two world-leading Australian companies will benefit resources customers across the globe.
The Australian
Page 1: Treasury has warned that Australia would suffer a 1 per cent hit to economic growth if it did not respond to the US move to dramatically lower corporate tax rates poised to pass congress.
Page 2: The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission has dropped a long-running probe into alleged price-fixing between construction union officials and employers in the Australian Capital Territory’s painting sector.
Page 5: The proposed child-sex-abuse redress scheme includes uncapped psychological counselling that could cost Medicare about $65 million a year.
Page 6: Australia is about to blow past the federal government’s renewable energy target ahead of schedule thanks to a surge of investment in wind and solar farms timed to take advantage of high prices for electricity and generation certificates.
Page 13: Royal commissioner Kenneth Hayne has cast a “massive dragnet” over the financial services industry, asking banks, insurance companies and superannuation funds to report all misconduct cases and behaviour falling short of community expectations since 2008.
Page 15: The number of homes set to receive compensation for dodgy NBN speeds is set to tick well over 60,000 in the new year, as the competition regulator gets ready to turn the screws on telcos.
Page 16: IMF Bentham, one of the pioneers of third-party funding for Australia’s booming class action industry, says it welcomes the federal inquiry into litigation funding and that it has the potential to establish a new regulatory regime for the sector.
The West Australian
Page 3: An investigation of the City of Melville is threatening to turn into a political slanging match with Local Government Minister David Templeman yesterday denying his office encouraged residents to complain about their council.
Page 7: Any commercialisation of Landgate assets would amount to a broken election promise to keep public services in government hands, according to the public sector union.
Page 11: WA teachers are set to take industrial action the day before students return to school next month in response to the State Government’s $64 million cuts to education.
Page 12: Christmas shoppers amassing debt on buy now, pay later schemes should be careful because it could affect their ability to get credit.
Page 18: Real estate agents, lawyers and accountants could be caught up in a new crackdown on foreign money laundering after a warning that property sales across Australia were being targeted by criminals.
Business: Blackham Resources shareholders face a nervous wait over Christmas while the struggling gold miner scrambles to secure funding before a $14.8 million debt repayment is due at the end of the year.
Pilbara Minerals yesterday struck an innovative mine gate sales agreement with Atlas Iron and announced a two-year tantalum offtake deal with Global Advanced Metals.
CITIC has been given until January 15 to pay business partner Clive Palmer nearly $200 million in unpaid royalties from the Sino Iron project in the Pilbara.
