An Australian version of the FBI?

THIS MORNING’S FRONT PAGES

POLITICS AND ECONOMICS

Australia

Law and Order

FBI model considered – Spy agency ASIO could be expanded into an FBI-style organisation that targets a range of threats, such as organised crime and border security, under plans to redefine its mission for the first time since the end of the Cold War – Melbourne Age

Chinese relations

China envoy flies home – Australia’s ambassador to China has rushed back to Canberra for high-level meetings about reviving the ailing relationship, as Beijing stepped up its anti-Canberra rhetoric – Melbourne Age

Beijing lashes Australia on trade – Sydney Morning Herald

Beijing envoy back home for urgent talks – The Australian

Industrial relations

Gillard offers olive branch after farmers protest changes – Julia Gillard is preparing to intervene in another industry facing spiralling costs from Labor’s overhaul of awards, after the horticulture sector warned the revamp would send thousands of fruit and vegetable businesses across the country to the wall – The Australian

Hospitals

$1.8b program puts patients at risk – Hospital patients’ lives could be put at risk from overdoses or wrong medication, experts warn, if the ambitious timetable for the Government’s e-Health plans mean computer-generated prescriptions are introduced without adequate training and support for staff – Sydney Morning Herald

Taxation

State income tax in reform mix: Henry – Treasury Secretary Ken Henry has called for a complete overhaul of federal finances, with the possibility that states will be allowed to levy their own income taxes – The Australian

IMF calls for capital gains tax on property – The Australian

The coalition

Nationals talk of terminating Coalition with Liberals – The Australian

Political life

NSW Libs clamp down on online comment – It will be possible to twitter your way out of the Liberal Party after rule changes that ban members from discussing internal party affairs on blogs or social networking sites – The Australian

Leadership

Nathan Rees admits what we already know – he’s failing – Sydney Daily Telegraph

MPs walkout new blow to Turnbull – Malcolm Turnbull faces new claims that his leadership authority has collapsed after West Australian MPs walked out of question time en masse in an apparent fit of pique over a $50billion gas export deal – The Australian

Governator would like to visit Down Under – Adelaide Advertiser

Aboriginal affairs

Sacked head stands firm – The former head of a $672 million housing program has stood by a damning report that the scheme would deliver less than half the promised number of houses – Northern Territory News

Macklin ‘seeking to save her political skin’ – The former head of a $700 million Aboriginal housing project claims Indigenous Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin made unrealistic promises to build 750 houses in remote communities because of poor advice and a lack of basic budget analysis by senior commonwealth bureaucrats – The Australian

Anti-drinks man ordered to leave town – Being partner to the local mayor’s cousin wasn’t enough to protect Daniel Bracegirdle when he challenged Aurukun Shire Council over calls to reopen its notorious beer canteen: after spending a decade in the remote north Queensland township, he was told to pack up and get out – The Australian

Foreign students

Julia Gillard takes aim at rogue colleges – A Federal government crackdown on vocational colleges and universities could leave thousands of international students looking for somewhere else to study or needing refunds as rogue operators are shut down – The Australian

Opinions

The Mad Uncle’s Liberabble – Dennis Shanahan in The Australian says frustration over being in opposition, resentment at the dominance of Kevin Rudd and his ability to win good publicity, divisions over personnel and policy and general demoralisation boiled over yesterday and made the Coalition look a shambles.

Stimulus must stop when we get out of the woods or else – Alan Wood warns that if the government fails to wind back spending as the economy recovers, the Reserve Bank will raise interest rates – The Australian

Slice of pie for building is shrinking by the day – Natasha Robinson comments in The Australian on delays in providing promised new housing for Aborigines.

We ignore Afghanistan at our strategic peril – Greg Sheridan declares in The Australian that those who seek to discredit the Afghan elections are not doing its people any favours

Australia on the Gorgon’s back – a deal of rare beauty – Annabel Crabb in the Sydney Morning Herald on the terrifying powers of Labor’s Gorgon.

Pragmatism will rule ties with China – China won’t let diplomatic squabbles with Australia or anyone else stand in the way of building its massive economy – writes Susan O’Malley in the Melbourne Age

Elsewhere

Political life

Escort D’Addario pledges to tell all about Berlusconi – Sydney Morning Herald

Iraq

US pullout in doubt after day of slaughter on streets of Baghdad – London Times

BUSINESS

BoQ faces Storm test – Lawyers will launch legal action alleging unconscionable conduct against one of the key lenders in the Storm Financial debacle today, a meeting of more than 500 investors in the failed wealth advisor was told last night. While the lender, Bank of Queensland, has consistently denied any wrongdoing, Slater and Gordon lawyer Damian Scattini accused the bank’s North Ward branch of being a ‘rat’s nest’ – Townsville Bulletin

Three daily Jetstar Avalon services to Sydney cut – Geelong Advertiser

Qantas profit dives 90pc as it slashes cost by $1.5bn – The Australian

ENVIRONMENT

Garrett last bar to Gorgon project – The Australian

SA’s $6bn green energy goal – Eyre Peninsula renewable energy projects will be the key to the State Government’s attempt to capture an estimated $6 billion in green energy funds – Adelaide Advertiser

MEDIA

New adviser for Malcolm Turnbull – Mark Westfield, a former journalist and financial public relations consultant, has been appointed senior media adviser to federal Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull – The Australian

Google ordered by Manhattan Supreme Court to reveal blogger’s identity – An Australian Vogue cover girl has won the right to force Google to reveal the name of an anonymous blogger who called her a “skank” – Adelaide Advertiser

LIFE

Comics

Arch Rivals: As Archie Sidles Up to a Bride, Why Does The Betty-vs.-Veronica Debate Ring Eternal? – So this is how the end begins. When it comes to affairs of the heart, we are gathered here today to bear witness that Archie Andrews — that long-iconic teenager of Riverdale High, that sputtering chassis of eternal chastity — is a complete and utter jughead. After nearly 70 years in one of popular culture’s most celebrated threesomes, Archie is about to ask Veronica — that shallow, conniving, materialistic tease — to marry him – Washington Post

Coffee

Scientists Develop Intelligent Coffee Mug – Materials to keep drinks cold or hot for longer have been around for quite a while. Now a pair of German scientists has come up with a high-tech mug they claim keeps coffee at the perfect temperature – Der Spiegel

The drink

Pregnancy and alcohol don’t mix, say new guidelines – Brisbane Courier Mail

Education

Generation Lost: SA Schools plead for help to keep truants in class – Adelaide Advertiser

Self help

Second student ended life after Turning Point Course – Sydney Daily Telegraph

Housing

SA prices rise because of new land shortages – Adelaide Advertiser

Swine flu

Swine flu vaccine fast-tracked – Pregnant women, health workers and the chronically ill could be vaccinated against swine flu within weeks under a new Federal Government move – Brisbane Courier Mail