PICK OF THE MORNING’S STORIES
AUSTRALIA
Julia Gillard in restaurant penalties backflip – The Australian
Doctors urge authorities to go to the next stage – Melbourne Age
ELSEWHERE
Indian growth unexpectedly strong – BBC
POLITICS AND ECONOMICS
AUSTRALIA
Budget
Rudd rules out changes to super access age – Melbourne Age
PM rules out age change on super – The Australian
Millionaires legally getting up to six bonus payments – Adelaide Advertiser
Global borrowing crisis hits cash-strapped Queensland – Brisbane Courier Mail
Taxation
Land tax trap: Thousands could be wrongly billed after home owners wrongly charged – Melbourne Herald Sun
Foreign Policy
Obama pressures Rudd over Gitmo inmates – Sydney Morning Herald
India summons Australia envoy over attacks, PMs speak – Adelaide Advertiser
Damir Dokic trial begins in Serbia – Sydney Daily Telegraph
Political life
The secret striptease life of Tina Sanger – Sydney Daily Telegraph
PM drops in on brickies – Northern Territory News
Rudd staff run ragged in 80-hour weeks – Melbourne Age
MP makes allowances for life’s hard road to travel – The Australian
Ex-CEO avoids jail for child porn – A former ACTU research officer and ALP policy committee president who pleaded guilty to possessing and accessing more than 4000 images and videos of child pornography has avoided an immediate jail sentence. – Melbourne Age
Peter Beattie, our man in Los Angeles, hits targets – Brisbane Courier Mail
Dorothy Pratt seeks new rules for politicians’ electorate allowances – Brisbane Courier Mail
Industrial Relations
Julia Gillard in restaurant penalties backflip – The Workplace Relations Minister has directed the Australian Industrial Relations Commission to treat restaurants, cafes and catering businesses separately from hotels as part of its overhaul of the nation’s industrial awards. – The Australian
Unions back compulsory disclosure of wage data – The Australian
Wage gap between men and women is at last narrowing – Sydney Daily Telegraph
Gambling
Victorian Government keeps lid on deal to expand casino – Melbourne Age
Local Government
Loss of planning power earns councils’ ire – Sydney Morning Herald
Adelaide City Council chief rebukes development review panel – Adelaide Advertiser
Minister Karen Struthers canes Mt Isa Mayor over housing for homeless – Brisbane Courier Mail
A hint of strange things
New claims over Fitzgibbons’ trip – Associates of controversial businesswoman Helen Liu claim Chinese intelligence services asked them to cultivate a relationship with Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon and his father after they were flown first-class to China in 1993. – Melbourne Age and the Sydney Morning Herald
Madden facing no-confidence motion over the Brimbank Council scandal – Melbourne Age
Opinion
Rudd and Swan right on the money with stimulus packages – Ross Gittins in the Melbourne Age
Crossing the line – Political debate has descended into taunts and tantrums and we only have ourselves to blame writes Shaun Carney in the Melbourne Age
We could have a friend in Indonesia – Daniel Flitton in the Melbourne Age believes our northern neighbour has changed and it’s already paying dividends.
Hard hats on for the next campaign – Annabel Crabb in the Sydney Morning Herald
No longer scared of Gough – Laurie Oakes writes in the Sydney Daily Telegraph that unfortunately for Malcolm Turnbull – and fortunately for Kevin Rudd – most Australian voters remember little about the Whitlam government.
Bad case of moaners going overboard – Miranda Devine looks at flu in the Sydney Morning Herald
Our car industry has seen the future and it looks like Toyota – writes Peter Hartcher in the Sydney Morning Herald
Tailored awards a must – Michael Stutchbury in The Australian on Julia Gillard’s program to reregulate the labour market
Union leaders sing old class-war songs – editorial in The Australian
Early election to end disillusion – Peter van Onselen in The Australian speculates about the impact on Malcolm Turnbull and the Liberal Party of a double dissolution
Obama’s new way – Paul Kelly in The Australian talks with Martin Indyk, former US ambassador to Israel, about Obama’s Middle East regional game plan.
ELSEWHERE
Rudd steps in as tensions rise over attacks on students – Melbourne Age
Poll reveals Labour heading for election humiliation – The Times, London
BUSINESS
US alleges cartel behaviour at CSL – Melbourne Age
King tide – the financial crisis is wreaking havoc on Gold Coast property and businesses, with a second wave predicted – Sydney Morning Herald
Wake-up call: Sol’s successor changes the ring tone – The Australian
Packer confident of his Macau gamble – The Australian
ENVIRONMENT
Vic bows to pressure on water trade – Victoria and the Commonwealth Government were close to agreement last night over a partial lifting of a water trading barrier which, until yesterday afternoon, had threatened to bring down the Federal Government’s reform plans for the river. – Melbourne Age
NSW may join court challenge to Victorian water cap – the Prime Minister’s plan to save the Murray-Darling river system is in tatters because no state is willing to make water available for sale. The NSW Government may join South Australia’s High Court challenge, aimed at forcing Victoria into selling more of its water. – Sydney Morning Herald
Canberra brokers water deal with Victorian Government – The Australian
Flooding Lower Lakes with sea water will be a disaster – Adelaide Advertiser
MEDIA
Future of newspapers is digital: Murdoch – and they’ll have to start charging for internet content – Melbourne Age
Murdoch outlines vision for digital newspaper delivery – The Australian
Rudd Government blacklist hacker monitors police – An Australian activist whose internet site is under federal police investigation for publishing the Rudd Government’s secret blacklist of banned websites has warned police that their investigation could be illegal and leave them open to prosecution. – The Australian
Steady As He Goes – Familiarity Bred Delight in Leno’s 17-Year Run on ‘The Tonight Show’ – Washington Post
LIFE
Swine Flu
Millions for flu studies as count tops 200 – Sydney Morning Herald
Doctors urge authorities to go to the next stage – Melbourne Age
Using chicken eggs in mad scramble for swine flu vaccine – The Australian
Virus a bother, but not a beast – The Australian
Self-quarantine ordered but hundreds to be let loose – The Australian
Disease upsurge put South Australian doctors under pressure – Adelaide Advertiser
Quarantined passengers moved as swine flu spreads – Sydney Daily Telegraph
Victoria takes extreme precautions as pig flu tightens its grip – Melbourne Herald Sun
Racial vilification
Gallen call-up brings game into disrepute – Peter Fitzsimmons in the Sydney Morning Herald asks how rugby league can they even think of having a man wear the state or national jersey if he has been fined for racially vilifying an opponent?
Pets
Cat-food irradiation banned as pet theory proved – Sydney Morning Herald
Sexuality
Bike pants dress code for school dances to ward off sex – Brisbane Courier Mail
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