AAP National News Wire Round-Up for Midday, Feb 10

AAP General News (Australia)
02-10-2004
AAP National News Wire Round-Up for Midday, Feb 10
Midday Round-Up: HIGHLIGHTS OF THE AAP RTV FILE AT 1130

Newspoll Labor (CANBERRA)

Opposition Leader MARK LATHAM is playing down his strengthening popularity as the election
year begins in Parliament House today.

A Newspoll published in The Australian newspaper suggests Mr LATHAM is in an election-winning
position, attracting the strongest support for a Labor leader in years.

It says Labor's primary vote is level with the Coalition's for the first time since
September 2002 -- at 41 per cent.

But Mr LATHAM's reaffirming his claim to underdog status, saying he takes all polls
with a grain of salt.

Agriculture Minister WARREN TRUSS says the boost in opinion poll support for Labor
is due to public curiosity in Mr LATHAM.

Mr TRUSS says something new on the block always attracts curiosity interest but the
public will want to know what the Labor leader will actually deliver.



Trade US Truss (CANBERRA)

Agriculture Minister WARREN TRUSS says all farmers would have missed out on benefits
if Australia had turned down a free trade deal with the United States over sugar.

Mr TRUSS says sugar's exclusion from the deal, provoking an outcry from the $1 billion
export industry, needs to be balanced against gains made by other agricultural commodities.

He says that by signing the deal, farmers in beef, dairy and horticulture have all gained.

Ahead of the trade agreement, Nationals MPs including leader JOHN ANDERSON had promised
it would include sugar.



Trade US Katter (CANBERRA)

Queensland Independent MP BOB KATTER says sugar's exclusion from the deal has opened
up a federal election battleground in his state.

Sugar farmers are furious at the trade agreement, which largely protects the price
of Australian medicines but leaves cane and beef farmers out in the cold.

Mr KATTER says voters had put their trust and faith in the Queensland Nationals and
woke up on Monday morning to find they'd been shafted.

The former Nationals MP says sugar is 20 cents a pound in America and five cents a
pound on the world market.

North Queensland Liberal MP WARREN ENTSCH says Australia's sugar farmers have to look
beyond sugar to opportunities from cane production.

Meanwhile Health Minister TONY ABBOTT says he can guarantee the price of drugs under
the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme won't rise as a result of the trade deal with the US.



Hookes (MELBOURNE)

Victorian police aren't ruling out the possibility of a second bouncer being arrested
over the death of former Australian Test cricketer DAVID HOOKES.

Police have already charged 21-year-old ZDRAVKO MICEVIC, of St Albans, with manslaughter
after HOOKES was killed in an incident outside a St Kilda hotel last month.

A police spokesman says there have been no further arrests, but they cannot rule out
the possibility as investigations are continuing.



Helicopter (BRISBANE)

Two men have survived a helicopter crash on the northern tip of Bribie Island, north of Brisbane.

The helicopter crashed at around 9am (AEST) in a mangroves area on the island, just
over three kilometres south-east of Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast.

A Queensland ambulance service spokesman says one of the men has chest injuries, while
the other has head and leg injuries.



Shot (MELBOURNE)

Senior police say a man shot dead by officers in regional Victoria overnight may not
have been carrying a gun.

But police assistant commissioner LEIGH GASSNER says the officers did fear for their
lives during the incident in the Ballarat suburb of Wendouree.

Mr GASSNER says police called to a home in Elizabeth Street about 2.30am (AEDT) following
a domestic dispute were allegedly threatened by a man with a tomahawk and knife.

He says the man in his 50s returned to the house for another weapon, and two attempts
to subdue him with capsicum spray were unsuccessful.

A homicide investigation is underway.

Meanwhile, a briefcase containing details of Victorian Premier STEVE BRACKS, cabinet
members and Victoria Police Chief Commissioner CHRISTINE NIXON has been recovered after
a burglary at Police Minister ANDRE HAERMEYER's home.



Trains (SYDNEY)

The New South Wales opposition has accused the CARR government of overreacting to the
Waterfall tragedy, as Sydney rail commuters face a week of delays.

Eight-eight CityRail services, including 23 peak hour services, have been cancelled
until Friday due to a driver shortage.

The problem is partly due to stricter medical tests for drivers introduced after the
Waterfall train derailment, which killed seven people.

Drivers must also be available to learn a new emergency braking system, and some are
refusing to work overtime to make up for the shortage.

Opposition Leader JOHN BROGDEN has told 2UE radio the rail system is held together
by a ratty old band aid if a handful of renegade drivers can cause such chaos.



Bus (SYDNEY)

A Sydney bus inspector has been suspended after allegedly turning up for work drunk.

It's the third incident in as many weeks involving State Transit bus employees allegedly
inebriated while on the job.

Each case is being investigated by State Transit.



US Ross (LOS ANGELES)

Motown star DIANA ROSS has been ordered to spend two days in jail for drink driving.

ROSS's lawyer says his client didn't contest a charge of driving under the influence
of alcohol in a court in Tucson, Arizona.

He says the 59-year-old singer is likely to serve her time at a jail near her home
in Los Angeles County.



Iraq Capture (WASHINGTON)

US defence officials say their forces in Iraq have taken into custody another of the
Pentagon's most-wanted officials from toppled President SADDAM HUSSEIN's government.

MUHSIN KHADR AL-KHAFAJI, who's been identified as the former Baath Party chairman and
commander of the Baath militia in Qadasiyah, is Number 48 on the US most-wanted list in
Iraq.



Briefly in other news...

One man's been killed and another man's been seriously injured while trying to change
a tyre at a zinc mine at Doomadgee in far north western Queensland.



The US Agriculture Department says it's ended its investigation of the first US case
of mad cow disease after determining that none of the infected animal's herdmates had
the brain-wasting disease.



Haitian police have taken back a city fom armed gangs opposed to President JEAN-BERTRAND
ARISTIDE, delivering the government its first victory in a five-day-old armed revolt.

Prince CHARLES has arrived in Riyadh for a visit to Saudi Arabia after surprise visits
to Iraq and Iran.



IN FINANCE NEWS......



The all ordinaries index was UP 2.0 points at 3302.0 at 1109 AEDT while the benchmark
S&P/ASX 200 index was UP 1.0 points at 3288.1.

The Australian dollar was HIGHER at 77.68, from 77.62 yesterday.

Against the euro, the local dollar is buying 61.20 euro cents, UP from 60.94 yesterday.

In Sydney, gold was 87.5 US cents HIGHER at $US406.50 an ounce.



AND IN SPORT.........

Cricket Warne (Melbourne)

Light rain is falling at the start of the day's play as SHANE WARNE makes his cricket comeback.

WARNE is waiting for his turn to bat as Victoria resumes its second innings at three
for 290 on day two of the Second XI game against Queensland at Junction Oval.

A much larger than normal crowd, including six television cameras, have gathered at
the game to watch WARNE's return.

He has had 12 months out of the game after testing positive to a banned diuretic.

WARNE says he's nervous about his comeback and says one of his first aims is to be
named on February 20 for the Test tour of Sri Lanka.

SHOOTING DIAMOND (BRISBANE)

Dual gold medallist MICHAEL DIAMOND will be allowed a special, belated attempt to make
Australia's Olympic shooting team after his recent gun licence problems.

The Australian Shooting Association has decided DIAMOND can go in a shoot-off against
the person who emerges with the second highest score from the two Olympic trials.

AAP RTV as/jmt

KEYWORD: MIDDAY ROUND-UP

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