NSW man charged with grooming girl,15

A NSW man who allegedly tried to groom a 15-year-old girl through a social networking site has been charged and granted conditional bail.

Police say that in March 2013, they began investigating allegations the man sent inappropriate images to the girl via a social networking site and had asked her to reply with similar photographs of herself.

On Friday, police seized a laptop, a mobile phone and clothes after raiding a home at Albion Park, south of Wollongong.

The 31-year-old was arrested near Kiama and later charged with grooming a child under 16 for unlawful sexual activity.

Bail with strict conditions was granted and he is due before Albion Park Local Court in April.

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Indon airport closed due to air pollution

WORSENING haze from forest and brush fires on Indonesia's Sumatra island has forced the closure of an international airport, officials say.

Smog pollution reached hazardous levels in the island's Riau province in the past few days, said Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman for the National Disaster Management Agency.

Nugroho also said it has been linked to respiratory and skin problems in about 60,000 people.

The Sultan Syarif Kasim airport in Riau capital Pekanbaru has been closed until Saturday, he said. Sixteen local and regional airlines serve the airport.

Authorities in Riau have ordered schools to close and urged residents to stay indoors, with pollution index screens in Pekanbaru displaying "Dangerous" in red.

"Since the past week pollution has been very bad and even colleges are closed," said Syamsidar, a Pekanbaru resident.

"People are still seen on the streets but they are all wearing masks," she said.

Nugroho said parts of West Sumatra were also severely affected by the haze, some of which came from Malaysia, he added.

Attempts to extinguish the forest fires on Sumatra using aircraft water bombings and cloud seeding have not been successful.

Amid growing criticism of the response to the haze, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono urged local authorities to intensify their fire-fighting efforts.

"Tonight I instructed related ministries to conduct emergency operations using all means at their disposal," Yudhoyono said on his official Twitter account late Thursday.

He said he would take over the emergency response if local authorities were not able to bring the fires under control in the next day or two.

In Malaysia, air quality dropped to unhealthy levels in three areas on Thursday, Malay Mail reported, with the Department of Environment blaming the pollution on smoke from fires.

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Leighton chair 'in tears' as CEO departs

LEIGHTON chairman Robert Humphris was clearly uncomfortable in announcing respected chief executive Hamish Tyrwhitt had been forced out of his job.

"I find it gut-wrenching. I've been in tears today," Mr Humphris told reporters on Thursday as the company appointed Marcelino Fernandez Verdes as the new head of Leighton.

Mr Fernandez Verdes takes Mr Tyrwhitt's place as Leighton's majority shareholder, German-based construction firm Hochtief, moved to increase its stake from 59 per cent to 74 per cent.

Spaniard Mr Fernandez Verdes is chief executive of Hochtief, a position he will maintain while heading up Leighton.

Hochtief insisted on board and management changes at the Australian construction company as part of its $1.2 billion deal, and Mr Tyrwhitt, along with chief financial officer Peter Gregg, were accordingly terminated immediately.

"It's very distressing for me personally that we have had to accept the resignation or departure of Hamish Tyrwhitt and Peter Gregg," Mr Humphris said as he sat alongside Mr Fernandez Verdes.

"Obviously it was a resignation they had to make."

Mr Humphris and Mr Fernandez Verdes paid tribute to the outgoing Mr Tyrwhitt, who was not available for comment.

"I welcome the challenge to lead Leighton through its next phase of global growth, building on the solid foundation established by Hamish and his colleagues during the last three years," Mr Fernandez Verdes said.

He will relocate from Germany to Australia for his new role.

Mr Tyrwhitt, 50, became chief executive of Leighton in 2011, taking over from David Stewart who had followed the long-serving Wal King into the role.

Mr Tyrwhitt has ended a 27-year career at Leighton, in which he held positions in Australia and spent a long stint in Asia, where he developed an interest in feng shui.

Morningstar analyst Ross MacMillan said Mr Tyrwhitt and Mr Gregg were both extremely well regarded, noting the effort they had been putting into turning around the company, including the collection of around $5 billion in unpaid bills.

"It's quite surprising that they would be terminated at this point," Mr MacMillan said.

Thursday's fall in Leighton's share price, down 1.3 per cent to $21.96, was attributable to the loss of the executives, as the Hochtief deal was beneficial to shareholders.

Hochtief is paying $22.50 a share to acquire three out of every eight outstanding Leighton shares - an increase on $22.15 offered on Monday after negotiations with Leighton's board.

Mr Tyrwhitt and Mr Gregg are not leaving empty-handed however.

Mr Tyrwhitt will be paid a year's base salary, about $2.4 million, subject to shareholder approval, as well as $11.4 million in incentive pay and unvested incentive share payments.

Mr Gregg will also receive a year's pay plus incentive payments worth around $9 million.

Both men will assist with the changeover to new management until March 28.

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Porsche doubling its factory

PORSCHE is investing 300 million euros ($A4678 million) in doubling the size of its main factory in Zuffenhausen, a suburb of the southern German city of Stuttgart.

The expansion includes a new engine works, a high-tech training centre and offices. Construction will be completed by 2016, said the company.

The news follows an announcement by Porsche chief Matthias Muller in 2013 that the sports car maker will spend a half a billion euros on remodelling Zuffenhausen and boosting the nearby Weissach Porsche Engineering development centre.

Porsche recently opened a new factory in the eastern city of Leipzig, where production of the Macan SUV, the smaller sibling of the Cayenne, is now underway.

About 8200 people work at Zuffenhausen, 3000 more than four years ago. Some 200 Porsche models a day are produced at the site.

Porsche currently employs a total of 18,882 people and plans to increase the workforce to around 20,000.

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Former Vic judge heads mine fire inquiry

The Country Fire Authority has declared a total fire ban in parts of Victoria. Source: AAP

THE former Supreme Court judge who headed the Black Saturday bushfires royal commission will lead an independent inquiry into Victoria's coalmine fire.

Former justice Bernard Teague will head a board of inquiry that will look into the emergency response and the support provided to affected communities.

The state government announced on Tuesday that the inquiry would be convened by the end of March and submit its response to the government by the end of August.

Premier Denis Napthine told reporters that now the Morwell fire was under control, it was time for an independent inquiry to look into all aspects of the fire, including how it started and how it spread into the mine.

The deliberately lit Hazelwood mine fire has burned since February 9, and vulnerable residents are still advised to leave Morwell South due to the smoke.

The fire was brought under control at the weekend, but Victorian Fire Services Commissioner Craig Lapsley says it will not be out until significant rainfall.

Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews welcomed the inquiry but said it must be public.

"The people of Morwell and the Latrobe Valley, they are entitled to a public process," he told reporters.

"They must have their say and this inquiry must be held in the open for all Victorians to see just how badly Denis Napthine has botched this entire issue."

Mr Andrews says Labor will reserve judgment on the terms of reference until they are made public, saying they must cover all elements of the fire including the response by government and its agencies.

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Giles backs MLA over alleged bullying

THE Northern Territory's chief minister says he doesn't believe one of his ministers verbally abused backbencher Alison Anderson.

Ms Anderson alleges that during a Country Liberals government meeting on February 17, Central Australia and Tourism Minister Matt Conlan said to her: "Why don't you do us all a favour, Alison, and f*** off, you c***."

Chief Minister Adam Giles refused to answer several questions put to him about the alleged incident on Tuesday, saying he would not comment on what went on in party room meetings.

But when asked whether he stood by his claim at the weekend that he didn't think Mr Conlan made the offensive slur towards Ms Anderson, he said: "I do".

He would not answer when asked whether he thought she was lying.

"Many parliamentary meetings are very robust (but) I won't tolerate any bullying, swearing or racial comments in those meetings," Mr Giles said.

He said he stood by his earlier position that he wasn't aware the comments had been made, despite Ms Anderson telling ABC radio on Tuesday she immediately told him what was said, and he replied: "We have a full agenda. Let's get on with business."

Opposition Leader Delia Lawrie said such abusive language towards a woman was bullying.

"All of us have witnessed Matt Conlan go way beyond the realm of acceptable behaviour and he does it fairly consistently ... he does shout, he does bully, he does seek to intimidate," she told reporters in Darwin.

Ms Anderson has the support of other Country Liberal members. Health Minister Robyn Lambley first raised the alleged incident on Friday night's 7.30 NT program, saying she no longer felt willing or able to defend Mr Conlan or be part of a cover-up.

Ms Anderson said she had not spoken out earlier because she had been recovering from surgery to her arm, and denied she was trying to destabilise the government.

It follows speculation she and fellow Aboriginal members Larissa Lee and Francis Xavier were planning to leave the Country Liberals and form their own party because they felt their remote bush electorates were being ignored by the government.

"Absolutely not," she said.

When asked if there was a culture of disrespect towards women in the CLP, Ms Anderson said that was a matter for the party room to clear up.

Ms Lawrie said the government was deeply divided and there were rumours that Mr Giles' leadership is in danger.

Mr Conlan has been contacted for comment.

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Council demands action after record summer

The Climate Council says the scorching summer shows a need for action on climate change. Source: AAP

THE Climate Council says Australia experienced "another angry summer" this year, with more than 150 temperature records broken.

The environmental group's report Angry Summer will be released by Professor Tim Flannery on Monday, who said Australia witnessed substantial heat records, heatwaves and extreme weather events over the season.

According to the report, Sydney had its driest summer in 27 years, and Melbourne experienced its hottest ever 24 hour period with an average temperature of 35.5 degrees celsius.

Perth had its second hottest summer and its hottest ever night, and Adelaide suffered through a record 11 days of 42 degrees or more.

Meanwhile, towns from Tamworth to Mount Gambia to Roma all broke records for the daily maximum temperature.

Professor Flannery said the scorching summer was part of an overall trend of more extreme weather events in Australia, and called for action on cutting carbon emissions.

"The latest summer was an another example of climate change tearing through the record books," he said in a statement.

"If we want to stop them getting worse this is the critical decade for action."

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Tasmanian Liberals claim PUP ad illegal

Greens leader Nick McKim says he might become opposition leader after Tasmania's election. Source: AAP

TASMANIA'S Liberals are calling for Palmer United Party (PUP) officials to be prosecuted over an election advertisement.

The Liberals have complained about a newspaper ad that brands state leader Will Hodgman, Labor premier Lara Giddings and Greens leader Nick McKim the "three amigos".

The complaint says Tasmania's electoral act outlaws the publishing of candidates photos in election material without their permission.

"Given the egregious nature of this breach of the Act, I would be grateful if you would take immediate steps to commence a prosecution," Liberal state director Sam McQuestin writes in the complaint to the Tasmanian Electoral Commission (TEC).

The PUP ad features a "Wanted" poster with pictures of the three leaders and includes the claim: "Labor and Liberals have let the Greens run wild since the 1980s".

It is authorised by Tasmanian senator-elect Jacqui Lambie.

The state's electoral commissioner, Julian Type, said he would assess the complaint.

"As described to me, potentially that advertisement has breached that section of the Act," Mr Type told AAP.

The maximum penalty for a breach is 12 months' jail or a fine of $39,000.

"It's way too early to speculate as to who may be liable," Mr Type said.

PUP founder Clive Palmer was blaming News Corp Australia whose paper, The Mercury, published the ad.

Mr Palmer said his party had an arrangement where News Corp lawyers checked that election ads complied with the law.

"It's just a set-up from Rupert Murdoch and his boys in Tassie that don't like us," Mr Palmer said.

News Corp said advertisers agreed that responsibility rested with them when they agreed to the company's terms and conditions.

"The ad was booked by the Palmer United Party through our interstate office," a Newscorp statement said.

"It was 100 per cent supplied and created by them."

Mr Palmer said he was unconcerned Ms Lambie, who will enter the senate in July, could face a heavy penalty, and was standing by the ad's content.

"They're all working together - that's all that ad says and I stand by that," he said.

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Malaysia launches terror probe over plane

Vietnamese planes have spotted two large oil slicks in the sea near where a Malaysian jet vanished. Source: AAP

MALAYSIA has launched a terror probe into the disappearance of a passenger jet carrying 239 people and the United States has sent the FBI to investigate, as anguished relatives beg for news of their loved ones.

Six Australians and two New Zealanders are among the missing passengers.

Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 vanished from radar early on Saturday somewhere at sea between Malaysia's east coast and southern Vietnam. Search teams were still hunting for the plane, and the airline said it was "fearing the worst".

Concern over a possible security breach grew as Malaysia's government said it was investigating four people who were on the Boeing 777 plane.

At least two passengers boarded using stolen European passports, officials and reports have said.

"At the same time our own intelligence have been activated, and of course, the counter-terrorism units ... from all the relevant countries have been informed," Malaysia's acting transport minister Hishammuddin Hussein told reporters.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is sending agents and technical experts to assist the probe, US media reported.

US officials told The Los Angeles Times that they were trying to determine whether there was any terror link to the flight's disappearance, but stressed there was no evidence to support that yet.

"Just because they (the passports) were stolen doesn't mean the travellers were terrorists," a Department of Homeland Security official told the paper.

"They could have been nothing more than thieves. Or they could have simply bought the passports on the black market."

Asked to confirm the reports, an FBI spokesman said: "We are ready to assist if needed."

The flight went missing about an hour after taking off from Kuala Lumpur, bound for Beijing. A total of 153 Chinese nationals were on board, and relatives camped out at the main international airport in China's capital bemoaned the lack of news on Sunday.

"The airline company didn't contact me, it was a friend," a middle-aged woman surnamed Nan told reporters, holding back tears, after finding out her brother-in-law was on the flight.

"I can't understand the airline company. They should have contacted the families first thing," she said.

Vietnamese boats reached the scene of two large oil slicks detected overnight but found no sign of the plane, army deputy chief of staff Vo Van Tuan said early on Sunday, adding search aircraft were deployed at first light to scour the area.

The search area had been expanded to 10,000 square kilometres, Vietnam's Civil Aviation Department said.

However, Azharuddin Abdul Rahman of Malaysia's Department of Civil Aviation said he "could not confirm" the existence of the oil slicks.

"We have not been able to locate or see anything," he told a news conference on Sunday.

Asked about the stolen passports, he said "we are investigating this at the moment" but declined to give further details.

An Austrian reportedly named Christian Kozel had his passport stolen in Thailand in 2012, while Italian Luigi Maraldi lost his to theft last year, also in Thailand.

Despite their names being on the passenger manifest, neither man was on the plane to Beijing, European officials said.

In Washington, a US administration official said authorities were aware of the passports issue.

"We have not determined a nexus to terrorism yet, although it's still very early and that's by no means definitive. We're still tracking the situation," the official said.

Earlier, when asked whether terrorism could have been a factor, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said: "We are looking at all possibilities but it is too soon to speculate."

Flight MH370 had relayed no distress signal, indications of rough weather, or other signs of trouble. Both Malaysia's national carrier and the Boeing 777-200 model used on the route are known for their solid safety records.

The flight was carrying 227 passengers and 12 crew. A US company based in Texas said 20 of its employees were among the missing passengers - a dozen from Malaysia and eight from China.

Thirty-eight Malaysians and seven Indonesians were aboard, as well as a range of other nationalities including Australian, Indian, American, Dutch, and French.

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Third NSW man charged over $1m drug haul

A man has been charged after police found $1.3 million worth of cannabis plants in northern NSW. Source: AAP

A THIRD man has been charged after more than $1 million worth of cannabis was seized in raids on the NSW mid-north coast last week.

Police say they found 692 cannabis plants with an estimated street value of $1.3 million during searches at properties in Comara, Carrai and Port Macquarie on Tuesday.

A rifle, 500 rounds of ammunition and equipment used in the cultivation of illegal drugs were also found, police say.

A 57-year-old man was arrested after he went to Port Macquarie Police Station on Saturday afternoon.

He was charged with commercial cultivation of cannabis plants and was refused bail to appear at Port Macquarie Local Court on Sunday.

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