Abbott, Shorten to attend Mandela service

PRIME Minister Tony Abbott and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten will present a united Australian front to honour and farewell Nelson Mandela.

The pair will this week fly to Johannesburg to join world leaders past and present, mourning the former South African president who died at his home on Thursday (local time) aged 95.

A huge memorial service is planned for the nation's first black leader on Tuesday, with US President Barack Obama already confirming his attendance.

On Saturday Mr Shorten's office said the Labor leader had accepted an invitation from Mr Abbott to accompany the prime minister to South Africa. Both men will miss most of the final 2013 parliamentary sitting week.

It is unknown how long the men will be out of Australia.

"There is a long bipartisan history of Australian support for South Africa and the campaign to abolish apartheid," Mr Abbott said, announcing his intention to attend the service.

After facing criticism for not lowering flags at the news of Mr Mandela's death, Mr Abbott said Australian flags will be set at half mast on the day of the official memorial.

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Choppers, 16 crews battle fire

Sinead Duncan took photographs of the fires from Buderim and closer to Kawana Way. "We're just trying to get out of Brightwater at the moment .... it's getting bad." Reader picture: Sinead Duncan Source: Supplied

FIRE crews are asking Sunshine Coast residents to avoid an out-of-control grass fire near Mountain Creek.

3.50pm: Sinead Duncan took photographs of the fires from Buderim and closer to Kawana Way.

"We're just trying to get out of Brightwater at the moment because we've been visiting friends," she said.

"The smoke is still thick and billowing, but thankfully the wind is keeping most of the smoke away from the houses."

The grass fire near Mountain Creek. Picture: QPS/Sara Matulich

GALLERY: Reader pictures of Sunshine Coast blaze

Jackie Clark said aerial support was trying to control the situation.

"It's getting bad," she said.

Resident Nadine Brooks took these pictures from her vantage point at nearby Grand Pde, Parrearra. Reader picture: Nadine Brooks

"Police, fire and ambulance have set up on Kawana Way."
 

GALLERY: Reader pictures of Sunshine Coast blaze

Resident Nadine Brooks took these pictures from her vantage point at nearby Grand Pde, Parrearra. Reader picture: Nadine Brooks

3.30pm:  Resident Nadine Brooks said there seemed to be two or three different blazes from her vantage point at nearby Grand Pde, Parrearra.

"It looks like they are moving north," she said.

"We are lucky the smoke is not coming (our) way."

3pm: TRAFFIC is heavy along the Sunshine Coast Motorway thanks to a large grass fire.

Motorists are reporting congestion from the Dixon Rd turnoff to Mountain Creek.

Kawana Way has been closed as 16 fire crews battle the blaze.

GALLERY: Reader pictures of Sunshine Coast blaze

1pm: The fire at Kawana Way, near Brightwater Estate, was first reported at 11.20am.

Helicopters are currently water bombing the fire between Brightwater Estate and the Chancellor Park area, and 16 fire crews are battling the blaze.

No property is under threat, but a large smoke haze has settled over Mountain Creek and neighbouring suburbs.

Residents have been advised to close windows and doors, with reports of ash the size of fingernails falling on the area.

Motorists using Kawana Way have been urged to drive to conditions.

GALLERY: Reader pictures of Sunshine Coast blaze

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Govt to remove special protection visa

The coalition will remove a protection visa for a specific class of refugees created by Labor. Source: AAP

THE federal government will remove a protection visa for a specific class of refugees created by Labor and give the immigration minister the final say on individual cases.

Since the visas began in March 2012, only 57 cases had satisfied the requirements on complementary protection grounds.

They were created to protect people who don't meet the full refugee criteria but would be at risk of serious harm if returned to their homeland.

The main aim was to protect women fleeing honour killings and genital mutilation.

However, Immigration Minister Scott Morrison said the visas were being granted to people who had committed serious crimes in their homelands and others fleeing because of their links to criminal gangs or involvement in blood feuds.

While Australia accepted its obligation not to return people when they could face harm, it had no obligation to follow a particular process or to grant a particular type of visa.

As well, the process created by Labor was complicated and convoluted.

Mr Morrison told parliament he intended to remove the complementary protection criterion from the Migration Act.

"It is the government's intention to re-establish the consideration of complementary protection issues within an administrative process," he said on Wednesday.

"It will allow the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection to exercise his or her intervention powers to grant the most appropriate visa dependent upon the individual circumstances of the case."

Australian Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said Mr Morrison wanted the power to determine cases on his own and it shouldn't be allowed.

"Do we really want to see Mr Morrison in charge of saying which refugees deserve protection and which don't. Mr Morrison is drunk on power," she told reporters.

Debate on the Migration Amendment (Regaining Control Over Australia's Protection Obligations) Bill 2013 was adjourned.

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Sanook dies playing with his favourite toy

LITTLE Sanook loved playing with his favourite toy but somehow the fun-loving elephant calf's head became so tangled up in the suspended tyre that he stopped breathing.

The 11-month-old died at Melbourne Zoo on Tuesday night playing with the tyre he frequently used and that was also previously enjoyed by his sister and brother.

Melbourne Zoo director Kevin Tanner described the death as a tragic and unforeseen accident but said the zoo would continue to use the tyres for its elephants.

He said tyres were commonly used in zoos around the world as a form of enrichment for elephants.

"We have removed the tyre that caused the death but tyres out in the yard will remain," he said.

The elephant calf has been described by staff as a very playful character, loved by many at the zoo.

Zookeepers say Sanook's mother Num-Oi has been spending time alone on Wednesday and suggest that this might be her grieving process.

"Our keepers are keeping a very close eye on them," Mr Tanner said of the herd.

The death of Sanook is also having an impact on the zookeepers.

"Our elephant team are devastated, they are all extremely upset about the situation but they are extremely professional people and they wanted to tend to the elephant herd first," Mr Tanner said.

Sanook's death came as shock as he was playing energetically and suckling from Num-Oi as usual on Tuesday.

CCTV footage showed him playing with the suspended tyre in his barn on Tuesday evening when he managed to manoeuvre it in an unusual way that caused his head to become caught.

An autopsy confirmed that the pressure on his neck prevented him breathing.

"We were worried about infectious disease. That was our first thought because there was no signs of trauma," the zoo's head vet Dr Michael Lynch said.

The timing is bittersweet for zoo staff with Asian elephant Dokkoon 22-months pregnant and due on Thursday.

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SA govt says finances in better shape

THE South Australian government claims the state's finances have stabilised despite forecasts of increased deficits in each of the next two years.

Releasing the mid-year budget review on Tuesday, the government has revealed a $350 million boost to the state's bottom line in 2012/13 thanks to a fall in government spending and increased revenue in some areas.

But that won't stop the deficit rising to a projected $955 million in 2013/14, $44 million more than originally forecast in the state budget earlier this year.

The red ink will continue the following year when the deficit is tipped to be $511 million, $80 million than first thought.

Premier and Treasurer Jay Weatherill says the deterioration in the operating balance is modest and the budget will still return to a $303 million surplus in 2015/16.

He says the mid-year review also shows that net state debt will be lower than originally expected in each year of the forward estimates.

"This is a budget that is on track, it's improved," Mr Weatherill said.

But Opposition Leader Steven Marshall said Mr Weatherill was pretending the budget was improving at the same time that economic growth, employment growth and government revenue had been revised down.

According to the mid-year figures the government expects the state economy to grow by 2.25 per cent in 2013/14, 2.5 per cent in 2014/15 and 2.75 per cent in 2015/16.

Employment growth is expected to be just 0.25 per cent during the current financial year before rising to one per cent in 2014/15 and 1.5 per cent in 2015/16.

The government has also forecast tax revenues to be down in the coming years due to lower payroll tax and gaming machines returns and lower conveyancing duties.

GST returns have been revised up for 2013/14 but are tipped to fall in the following years.

Mr Weatherill said the government was confident of reaching its fiscal targets and the release of the mid-year figures, earlier than usual, put pressure on the state opposition to reveal how it would fund its promises ahead of the state election in March.

Mr Marshall said the early release of the mid-year review was because the premier knew the budget figures would be far worse in January.

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Vic govt safer after Shaw charges dropped

Dishonesty charges against Independent Victorian MP Geoff Shaw have been dropped. Source: AAP

THE Victorian coalition's narrow grip on government is a little safer after criminal charges were dropped against the man who holds the balance of power.

Independent MP Geoff Shaw was facing 24 dishonesty charges over the alleged misuse of his parliamentary car and fuel card, and if convicted would have lost his seat in parliament, triggering a by-election that could have brought down the government.

But in a shock move on Tuesday, prosecutors dropped the case.

"I was very pleased," a relieved Mr Shaw told reporters outside his Frankston office.

"It just means I just go about doing what I do at my home here in Frankston. That's doing the best I can for this great area."

Director of Public Prosecutions John Champion SC said he withdrew the charges after deciding there was not a reasonable prospect of criminal conviction in the matter.

Mr Shaw may still be found to be in contempt of parliament by parliament's privileges committee, which is examining the matter after Ombudsman George Brouwer found the MP used his parliamentary car for commercial purposes.

Acting Opposition Leader James Merlino said that after the scathing ombudsman's report into the matter, it was a very convenient decision for Mr Shaw and Premier Denis Napthine that the only penalty would come from parliament.

"Most Victorians will think that something stinks about this decision," Mr Merlino told reporters.

"It is hard to understand at how, at this late stage in the process, the DPP doesn't think there is a reasonable prospect for a conviction.

"How can it be right that the only sanction Geoff Shaw will receive is a wet-lettuce slap on the wrist from a parliamentary committee dominated by his Liberal mates?"

Corrections Minister Edward O'Donohue said the decision not to proceed with charges was made by an independent body.

"The DPP is independent of government and it's made its decision based on the material at its hand."

Prosecutors last month consented to a defence request that Mr Shaw's charges be dealt with by the court diversion program.

But Magistrate Charlie Rozencwajg rejected the agreement that would have allowed Mr Shaw to avoid a guilty finding and therefore be allowed to keep his seat.

Mr Shaw did not rule out returning to the parliamentary Liberal Party on Tuesday, saying he hadn't closed his doors at all.

But Mr O'Donohue does not expect he will be back.

"I think the premier has said previously very clearly, he does not anticipate any situation where Geoff Shaw would come back into the parliamentary Liberal Party," Mr O'Donohue said.

The privileges committee suspended its investigation while the matter was before the courts but said in a report last week that it had not come to any conclusions about the allegations against Mr Shaw.

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Aus/NZ thalidomiders win compo fight

Australian victims of thalidomide will receive a total of $89 million after a class action settled. Source: AAP

PEOPLE left with birth defects after their mothers took thalidomide have won an $89 million settlement, but the company that made the drug will not pay a cent.

More than 100 Australian and New Zealand victims, including a woman who was about to lose her home, will be compensated in the landmark settlement announced to the Victorian Supreme Court on Monday.

The $89 million will be paid by the drug's distributor Diageo, with thalidomide's manufacturer Grunenthal not included in the settlement.

A class action against Grunenthal will no longer proceed.

The settlement ends a long compensation battle by the thalidomide victims, many of whom were born with missing or shortened limbs.

Monica McGhie was born 50 years ago without arms and legs and says the money will make her life a lot easier and help her stay healthy.

"I never thought this day would come," she said.

"This settlement will not take that hardship away but it means I can look to the future with more confidence, knowing I can afford the support and care I need."

Lawyer Michael Magazanik said that in a sense Grunenthal was getting off lightly because it partnered with a responsible corporate citizen in Diageo.

He described Grunenthal's conduct as appalling.

"Every single Australian thalidomider was injured by a drug made by Grunenthal in Germany," he said.

"Despite that, Grunenthal still will not pay a cent to its Australian and New Zealand victims.

"Fifty years on, Grunenthal will still not fess up to its shameful behaviour in relation to that drug."

Peter Gordon, another lawyer involved in the case, said it was a bittersweet victory for thalidomide victims.

"The result we have achieved today is a vindication of their courage, and it is a vindication of the proposition that right around the world there are people like them who have missed out and whose time has come," he said.

"I spoke to a woman last week who was about to lose her home and won't lose it now. There are stories like that."

Diageo corporate affairs director Ian Wright said the company was very sorry for what had happened and the suffering as a result of thalidomide.

"We hope very much that this will go some way towards helping them individually and as a group, to face the rest of their lives with some security and will bolster the bravery and dignity which they show every day," he told AAP.

"We believe that the settlement reached today is both fair and equitable to all involved in this very sensitive and difficult situation."

The settlement comes after Diageo last year reached a multi-million dollar settlement with prominent Australian thalidomide victim Lynette Rowe.

Thalidomide, a drug to counter morning sickness, was withdrawn from sale in 1961.

The drug was distributed in Australia and New Zealand around 1960 and 1961 by Distillers, which became part of Diageo in 1997.

Grunenthal apologised for thalidomide for the first time in August last year.

The settlement is subject to final court approval in February, with victims likely to receive payments as early as March.

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Politicians debate shark patrols in SA

A ROW has erupted over funding for shark patrols in South Australia in the aftermath of two fatal attacks interstate.

Family First MP Robert Brokenshire says full funding for regular helicopter patrols along metropolitan and south coast beaches must return.

Surf lifesavers say the helicopter patrols offer more versatility than fixed-wing aircraft but the loss of government funds last summer meant the chopper could now only take to the skies on weekends.

"Shark attacks are tragic for families and communities," Mr Brokenshire said on Monday.

"The most responsible way to manage shark proximity to our swimmers and surfers is to fund best-practice patrols."

But Emergency Services Minister Michael O'Brien said the fixed wing patrols funded by the government offered an effective means of detecting the presence of sharks.

"When a shark is seen near the shore or swimmers, the fixed wing aircraft will start a circular flying pattern and sound a siren to warn swimmers to leave the water as quickly as possible," he said.

Under the current arrangements, patrols by fixed-wing aircraft will be conducted along Adelaide's metropolitan coastline from North Haven, extending as far south as Rapid Bay.

They will operate from 11am to 8pm (CDST), seven days a week and will be extended to the south-coast between Victor Harbor and Goolwa on weekends, public holidays and during school holidays.

The patrols run from December to the end of March.

Over the last week, two people have died in separate shark attacks - a bodyboarder near Coffs Harbour on the NSW coast and a surfer off Gracetown in Western Australia.

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PM stands by election schools promise

PM Tony Abbott has denied the government is breaking its pre-election schools funding promise. Source: AAP

PRIME Minister Tony Abbott insists the government will keep the promise it made on school funding before the election - not the promise some people think it made.

But the Opposition's education spokeswoman Kate Ellis says that's just "clever words".

And she hasn't ruled out backing any industrial action by teachers angry at the coalition reneging on school funding deals struck between the former Labor government and a majority of the states and territories.

Before the September election, the coalition said schools would receive the same amount of funding as under the so-called Gonski model.

"We are going to keep the promise that we made, not the promise that some people thought we made or the promise that some people would like us to make. We are going to keep the promise that we actually made," Mr Abbott told Network Ten on Sunday.

The prime minister refused to repeat the promise word for word, but said schools will get "the same quantum of funding over the four years that they would have under Labor".

The coalition will fund schools as planned for 2014 before introducing a new scheme from 2015, which Education Minister Christopher Pyne is trying to nut out with state and territory counterparts.

Labor says the coalition is making excuses.

"The government is clearly determined to break their word - that's what's happening," Labor senator Penny Wong told ABC TV.

"They aren't the government they said they'd be before the election."

Ms Ellis says there's no way the government can justify its move.

"A promise is a promise," she told Network Ten.

"They were very specific in their words before the election ... a promise they have now walked away from."

Ms Ellis said teachers and parents across Australia had a right to be angry about the government's decision and didn't rule out backing industrial action.

"I would certainly support ... us fighting to make sure these huge and important reforms are not tossed aside," she said.

State and territory leaders will get the chance to eyeball the prime minister about school funding at a Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting on December 13.

"It will absolutely be an agenda item," Tasmanian Premier Lara Giddings said on Sunday.

"This Gonski reform is one of the top issues."

South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill, who faces a state election in 2014, said the school funding issue may filter through to be an influencing factor.

"(The government) know that they can't be seen to break a promise so that's why they're pretending that they haven't broken a promise," Mr Weatherill said.

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Jackson spruiks NZ in Hollywood

KIWI filmmaker Peter Jackson and Middle-earth have popped up in a swanky Beverly Hills hotel.

As part of a Tourism New Zealand promotion and on the eve of the release of the next chapter of Jackson's fantasy film, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, four replica sets from the movie were built inside the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

Jackson's three Lord of the Rings films and last year's first Hobbit film have created a tourism bonanza for New Zealand and Saturday's event was designed to attract another wave of American visitors.

The Desolation of Smaug, set for release in Australia on Boxing Day, will be the second of three films based on J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit.

Jackson shot all of the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films in New Zealand and the Oscar winner joked he might even squeeze out a fourth Hobbit film.

"We have a few little corners of New Zealand that we're saving up for The Hobbit: Part Four," Jackson smiled.

"You never know."

Jackson was joined at the event by The Hobbit's stars Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Evangeline Lilly, Luke Evans and Dean O'Gorman.

The sets at the Hilton included Laketown, shot at Lake Pukaki, Hidden Bay (Turoa, Ohakune), Forest River (Pelorus River) and Beorn's House (Paradise, Queenstown).

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