Arkansas judge overturns gay marriage ban

A US court says the state of Arkansas has "no rational reason" for banning gay marriage. Source: AAP

A JUDGE has struck down a ban on same-sex marriage in Arkansas, saying the US state has "no rational reason" for preventing gay couples from marrying.

Pulaski County Circuit Judge Chris Piazza ruled that the 2004 voter-approved amendment to the state constitution violates the rights of same-sex couples.

"This is an unconstitutional attempt to narrow the definition of equality," Piazza wrote. "The exclusion of a minority for no rational reason is a dangerous precedent."

The ruling came nearly a week after state Attorney-General Dustin McDaniel announced he personally supports gay marriage rights but that he will continue to defend the constitutional ban in court. McDaniel's office said he would appeal the ruling.

A lawyer for the group of same-sex couples challenging the prohibition said he hadn't talked with his clients and didn't know if they would seek marriage licences when county offices open on Monday morning.

"If I was them, I would be there waiting for the door to open," lawyer Jack Wagoner said.

The amendment banning gay marriage was passed with the overwhelming support of Arkansas voters. Piazza's ruling also overturns a 1997 state law banning gay marriage.

In his ruling, Piazza cited the US Supreme Court's 1967 decision that invalidated laws on interracial marriage.

The US Supreme Court last year ruled that a law forbidding the federal government from recognising same-sex marriages was unconstitutional. Since then, lower-court judges have repeatedly cited the decision when striking down some of the same-sex marriage bans that were enacted after Massachusetts started recognising gay marriages in 2004.

Federal judges have ruled against marriage bans in Michigan, Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia and Texas, and ordered Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee to recognise same-sex marriages from other states.

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Easy access to welfare is over: Andrews

UP to 20,000 Australians who receive the disability support pension (DSP) will be assessed for the capacity to work, and if deemed able, will be expected to get a job.

In tough talk ahead of the budget, Social Services Minister Kevin Andrews also repeated warnings that the days of young Australians sitting at home on the couch collecting welfare cheques were over.

He said the government believed young people should be either be working or training for work.

"The message out of this is simply this. The days of easy welfare for young people are over. We want a fair system but we don't think it is fair that young people can just sit on the couch at home and pick up a welfare cheque. Those days are over," he told reporters in Melbourne.

Mr Andrews confirmed the budget, to be delivered on Tuesday night, will introduce rules that mean some people collecting the DSP disability support pension will be reviewed for capacity to work.

That will apply to some 10-20,000 people who had gone onto the DSP in the last 5-6 years but not yet assessed under new impairment tables.

"If they are capable of working, whether it is full-time or part-time, then our expectation is that they should be working," he said.

Mr Andrews said measures announced on Tuesday would be just the first instalment of reform.

He said former Mission Australia chief executive Patrick McClure had completed his discussion paper on welfare reforms but would review it in light of budget changes.

The review will be released for public consultation after the budget.

"I will be taking to cabinet further proposals for welfare review. This will go to the structural arrangements," Mr Andrews said.

Mr Andrews said the welfare system now comprised some 50 payments, allowances and supplements assembled ad hoc over the years.

"It is time to have a clear look at making structural change so far as welfare is concerned," he said.

Proposed changes are in line with the report of the National Commission of Audit which said the DSP was costing $15.8 billion a year.

Opposition health spokeswoman Catherine King was critical of the changes to the DSP.

"Why would you be punishing them? Why would you be punishing their income security payments and trying to restrict their access to income support whilst at the same time cutting a whole lot of benefits that support them into work," she told reporters in Melbourne.

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2013/14 budget deficit could be smaller

THE federal deficit for this financial year could be slightly smaller than the $47 billion predicted by Treasurer Joe Hockey.

Just days from Mr Hockey handing down his first budget, the latest monthly statement for this financial year shows the deficit running at just more than $1 billion less than had been predicted.

The March financial statement showed the deficit at $34.78 billion compared with the forecast $35.81 billion.

The difference relates to lower-than-expected cash payments being partially offset by lower-than-expected cash receipts.

The deficit was forecast at $47 billion for the full year.

The report also showed $175 million of previously overpaid minerals resource rent tax (MRRT) was paid in March.

It means the mining tax has raised just $137 million after nine months.

It was forecast to raise $500 million for the year.

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann said this was further evidence that Labor's failed mining tax must go.

A further $10.6 million was refunded in April and comes on top of the $52.1 million refunded between July 2013 and February 2014.

Meanwhile, the Australian Taxation Office has spent more than $50 million to administer the tax.

"The mining tax was always a bad tax," Senator Cormann said in a statement.

It was complex, badly designed, costly to administer and comply with and didn't raise any money, he said.

Legislation to abolish the tax is stuck in the Senate, where it has been rejected by Labor and the Greens.

Senator Cormann said Opposition Leader Bill Shorten should cut his losses and support the legislation.

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Gladstone Port wall 'not best practice'

AN independent inquiry into a leaking wall designed to keep toxic material out of Gladstone Harbour has found the wall wasn't consistent with industry best practice.

The federal government review's job was to find out whether it was a failure of design or construction that saw the protective bund wall at the Queensland port leak in 2011 and 2012.

The wall was designed to hold 25 million tonnes of dredged soil, and environment groups claim the leak caused dangerous chemicals to leach into the harbour, affecting marine life in the area.

Environment Minister Greg Hunt released the findings on Friday, saying his department had begun addressing the report's recommendations.

"I'm confident these findings will help improve environmental practices and regulation going forward," he said in a statement.

However, Australian Marine Conservation Society spokeswoman Felicity Wishart said the review didn't go far enough to address other problems at Gladstone.

"Let us not forget that for two years, industry, the state-owned ports corporation and government have said nothing ..."

The review found aspects of the wall were not consistent with industry best practice and the lining was inadequate.

Water monitoring sites were also set out in the wrong areas and couldn't determine changes in turbidity that may cause the wall to leak.

The Department of Environment's ability to respond to a leak was limited by the lack of specific conditions set out when the project was approved.

Mr Hunt said the number of staff monitoring dredging projects had since been boosted and risk models for future projects had been developed.

A review of compliance and enforcement standards will be released in June.

A report released last year on sick fish in Gladstone Harbour found that flooding, combined with large numbers of fish being washed over the Awoonga dam, stressed the Gladstone Harbour ecosystem and adjacent waterways.

The wall has since been fixed.

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I'm leaving NAB stronger, Clyne says

AFTER more than five years as the head of National Australia Bank, Cameron Clyne is confident he's leaving the lender in a better place than he found it.

Mr Clyne, 46, presided over his final earnings result as NAB chief executive on Friday, announcing a record $3.15 billion first half cash profit.

While analysts were disappointed with some of the details - including a mere one per cent increase in earnings from its core Australian division - the result was a substantial improvement on NAB's position when he took the helm in 2009.

"The only thing I strove to achieve was to leave the bank in a stronger place than where it was when I started," he said.

"It's unequivocal on any metric this bank is stronger than it was five and a half years ago."

Mr Clyne ascending to the role during the fallout of the GFC, inheriting a string of issues, especially with the bank's troubled UK operations.

In his first six months at the helm, the bank suffered a bad debts charge of $1.8 billion, which fell to $528 million in the latest result.

Morningstar analyst David Ellis said Mr Clyne had driven a significant turnaround in the bank's performance and culture.

"The bank is significantly less risky than it was five years ago, that is a key achievement" he said.

"In the 20 years before Cameron Clyne was appointed CEO, NAB went through a long period of sub-par performance with embarrassing missteps, but since he started there has been no nasty surprises and that's a positive."

Mr Clyne caught market watchers by surprise in April, announcing he would retire at the end of July to spend more time with his family.

"I'd like to be married longer than I am CEO," he said at the time.

"It's not a done deal yet, but this is helping."

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New laws to restrict child sex offenders

NEW laws to allow control orders to be slapped on child sex offenders have been introduced in the South Australian parliament.

The provisions would allow magistrates to place restrictions on convicted offenders who have served their sentence but still pose a risk to children.

Such restrictions could prevent an offender from associating or communicating with children under a certain age or from being in the vicinity of a specific place, such as a school.

The provisions can be put in place as a short-term measure or for up to five years.

"This is about protecting the community by placing tougher restrictions on child sex offenders after they have served their sentence," Attorney-General John Rau said.

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Linfox wants out of industry groups

LOGISTICS giant Linfox is considering splitting with the rest of the transport industry due to concerns about safety standards.

Linfox chief executive Michael Byrne says the company is looking at exiting major industry organisations, such as the Australian Truckers Association, due to the divide over safety standards.

The company wants the industry to do more to improve safety standards, and founder Lindsay Fox has called for black box recorders to be installed in trucks as a way of ensuring fatigued drivers stay off the road.

Mr Byrne said while Linfox's own safety policies went beyond industry standards, its stance had put it at odds with other operators.

"They think some of our requirements around the black box, etcetera are arbitrary and costly and we don't agree," he said.

"Some of those associations have a different view, so it's probably time to leave some of those associations."

Mr Byrne acknowledged other operators did not have the same resources as Linfox, but said they could still afford to do more.

"We do think a lot of people in the industry can do more.

"Safety is not something that should be based on cost."

Safety standards in the industry have been in the spotlight since a truck owned by Cootes Transport overturned and exploded on a Sydney road last year, killing two people.

The incident resulted in the resignation of chief executive Peter Garaty and a threat from the NSW government to ban the company from the state's roads.

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Police asked to investigate boat turn-back

Liberal frontbencher Malcolm Turnbull says his government's border policies are harsh but necessary. Source: AAP

FEDERAL police will be asked to investigate whether Australian border protection personnel committed a people-smuggling offence while turning back an asylum-seeker boat.

But in a case of the government judging itself, it will be up to Attorney-General George Brandis to decide whether anyone will be prosecuted.

Indonesian navy officers claim Australian authorities added three people to an asylum seeker boat before sending it back to Indonesia in the past week.

Labor is demanding an explanation from Immigration Minister Scott Morrison while the Greens are calling on Australian Federal Police commissioner Tony Negus to investigate whether an illegal activity has been committed.

International law expert William Maley believes that might be the case.

There was a distinction between pushing back a boat and placing people, within Australian territory, on a boat to send them back, he said.

"Because arguably the latter falls within the definition of people smuggling," Professor Maley told the ABC.

Criminal action could be taken against those involved in the on-water operation and others "right up to the top level of the government" who were responsible for organising the turn-back.

Any action would require the consent of Senator Brandis, a requirement that raises concerns about a conflict of interest with his role as a cabinet minister in the Abbott government.

Mr Morrison so far has declined to comment on the incident, citing operational security reasons.

The opposition and Greens are more forthcoming.

"It's not good enough to go out there and chest-beat on the good days and be silent on the bad days," Labor immigration spokesman Richard Marles said.

Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young says transferring people who were in Australia's jurisdiction to a boat bound for Indonesia was legally questionable.

Because the maximum penalty for people smuggling was 10 years imprisonment, the boat turn-backs were putting border protection officers at risk, she said.

Meanwhile, cabinet minister Malcolm Turnbull has said the government's border protection policies are harsh, but necessary to stop people smugglers.

Mr Turnbull, a lawyer before he entered politics, said while Operation Sovereign Borders complied with international law, no-one was entirely comfortable with the policy.

"We have harsh measures (and) some would say they are cruel measures, but the fact is if you want to stop the people smuggling business you have be very, very tough," he told the BBC.

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Metcash settles tax dispute

The company behind IGA supermarkets has settled a multi-million dollar dispute with the tax office. Source: AAP

THE company behind IGA supermarkets has settled a multi-million dollar dispute with the tax office.

Metcash said it will receive a partial refund of the $24.4 million in income tax it paid in mid-2011 as a result of the settlement.

But a tax expense of $10.8 million will also be included in its accounts for the 2013/14 financial year.

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) had audited the company's income tax returns for 2005 to 2008, resulting in a dispute over its inability to receive tax credits for its foreign subsidiaries.

Metcash said it was now up to date in it and the ATO's review of its income tax affairs.

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Stocks to watch at close on Monday

STOCKS to watch on the Australian stock exchange at the close on Monday:

AZJ - AURIZON - down 25 cents, or 4.8 per cent, at $4.92

AQA - AQUILA RESOURCES - up 89 cents, or 36.3 per cent, at $3.34

Shares in Aquila Resources have soared after rail operator Aurizon and Chinese steelmaker Baosteel Resources launched a $1.42 billion bid for the iron ore miner.

BEN - BENDIGO AND ADELAIDE BANK - in a trading halt, last traded at $11.39

Bendigo and Adelaide Bank has beefed up its presence in the agribusiness market with the $1.78 billion acquisition of the Victorian government's Rural Finance Corporation.

IVC - INVOCARE - up five cents, or 0.5 per cent, at $10.50

Bledisloe New Zealand, the local funeral services arm of Australia's largest undertakers InvoCare, has sought antitrust clearance to buy the 70-year-old Cremation Society of Canterbury.

MTS - METCASH - up two cents, or 0.7 per cent, at $2.76

The company behind IGA supermarkets has settled a multi-million dollar dispute with the tax office.

TLS - TELSTRA - up one cent, or 0.2 per cent, at $5.21

The sale of Telstra's Hong Kong mobile business is expected to go ahead within weeks after the local regulator approved the move.

WBC - WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION - down 42 cents, or 1.2 per cent, at $34.45

Westpac made a record first half cash profit of $3.77 billion, up eight per cent from the prior corresponding period and above analysts' expectations.

WES - WESFARMERS - up 20 cents, or 0.5 per cent, at $43.25

Australia's competition watchdog is taking supermarket giant Coles to court over what is alleges is the "unconscionable" treatment of its suppliers.

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Vic govt to unveil infrastructure spend

MELBOURNE'S East West Link tunnel will get more funding and light will be shed on plans for a Melbourne airport rail link in Tuesday's state budget.

Victoria is expected to remain in the black with the state on track to reach its net surplus target in a budget that will focus on major infrastructure projects six months out from an election.

State funds will flow for the second stage of the $18 billion East West Link road project, including $1.5 billion from the Commonwealth, while details of a plan to link Melbourne's CBD by rail to the Tullamarine airport will be unveiled for the first time.

Treasurer Michael O'Brien says that in contrast to the federal budget, which is expected to include significant spending cuts and possible tax increases to cut the deficit, Victorians can expect strong surpluses over the next few years.

Net debt will also fall over the forward estimates and there will be a focus on major infrastructure projects which create jobs, he says.

"The Victorian budget is in a very different position to the federal budget," Mr O'Brien told reporters on Friday.

"We're in surplus here in Victoria and we're going to have strong surpluses across the forward estimates."

Mr O'Brien says the government will be delivering the major infrastructure projects Victorians want to see to improve their quality of life, thanks to good economic management.

"We're funding major job creating infrastructure through strong surpluses, through good economic management and through asset recycling," he said.

The budget is expected to contain more money to progress the Melbourne Metro Rail project, a $10 billion underground cross-city tunnel designed take on thousands of extra passengers and connect the Dandenong and Sunshine rail corridors.

A swag of pre-budget announcements have been made, so far including: more than $1 billion to remove eight level crossings across Melbourne; $190 million to cut elective surgery waiting lists; a $220 million project to upgrade country rail and build a standardised rail link between Mildura and Geelong.

Mr O'Brien says the public service is safe from further cuts this budget, but it is yet to be seen what further pain may be in store for Victorians.

The government has already blamed a cut in the state's GST revenue from 90 cents in the dollar to 88 cents in 2014-15 for a $32 hike in car registrations and an increase in vehicle stamp duty.

The government says the extra charges would fund major transport infrastructure in the budget.

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Greens say they're the party to fix NSW

THERE'S a smell wafting from the Labor and Liberal party rooms in NSW parliament, the Greens say.

Just days after police minister Mike Gallacher stepped aside following claims in front of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) over illegal donations to the Liberal Party, Greens NSW MP John Kaye announced on Sunday his new upper house team for the March 2015 election.

Joining him on the ticket will be existing MP Mehreen Faruqi, as well as coal seam gas campaigner and political advisor Justin Field.

Mr Kaye said the team would be highlighting their credentials as an alternative to the major parties.

"NSW politics has been plunged into crisis, not just by the Labor party but also by the Liberal party's endemic addiction to collecting funds from tainted sources," he told AAP.

"This is the time for reform. This is the election campaign where politics needs to change."

Mr Field, who is third on the ticket, said he will be taking out the message of clean water, energy and politics out into the community.

"A stench of corruption now hangs over NSW parliament, but only the Greens are able to say they can clean up politics."

The announcement comes after the Labor party revealed on Sunday that a "record number" of their party's supporters had voted for former MP Verity Firth to be the next state candidate in the Sydney seat of Balmain.

She narrowly lost the marginal inner-city seat to Greens candidate Jamie Parker at the 2011 election.

Mr Parker said the Greens were confident that there needs to be change.

"It doesn't matter who the candidate is, we have seen before that he structure of Labor means they are silenced ... I stand for a different approach to politics," he told AAP.

He said one of the bills the Greens would be be introducing to parliament in the following months is a push to implement 2010 ICAC recommendations on lobbying in NSW.

This included a recommendation to set up an independent body to oversee the role of lobbyists.

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