Judge to keep mentally ill man in jail

A mentally ill man has been jailed for another 12 months because the Northern Territory's top judge says there is no where else for him to go.

Christopher Leo, 28, has already spent 16 months in Alice Springs prison for the aggravated assault of a woman in August last year.

He was found unfit to stand trial but was found guilty in a special jury hearing last December.

Chief Justice Brian Martin says he had no choice but to keep Leo behind bars for another 12 months, as there was no support or housing facilities in the Territory to make him safe outside of prison.

But Leo's lawyer told the court jail had been very detrimental for him.

He says Leo tried to harm himself with a broom stick in January this year, and more jail time would hamper his ability to go back into society.

Justice Martin says it is "utterly unacceptable" there is no support or housing facilities for mentally ill people who commit minor offences, other than jail.

He says it is not good enough that the Territory has not been able to provide any accommodation or resources for the mentally ill, and this should not be so in a civilised society.

He says work to build resources and facilities for mentally ill people who commit minor offences needs to be in the pipeline by next year.

The judge says by the time the review is held in July, he expects resources and support will be available so Leo can be released into the community.

But he says even if building work on facilities started straight away, they will not be finished in time.

He ordered a transcript of today's Supreme Court proceedings to be sent to the Health Department, Department of Corrections and Director of Public Prosecutions.

The Territory Government says a housing plan which will address the lack of mental health facilitates will be released next year.

Housing Minister Rob Knight admits more needs to be done.

"A lot of people who are homeless have mental illness and need specific supported accommodation with specialised providers," he said.

"I guess we acknowledge there is an issue and there is a need there and while there are some services being provided, there is more services that need to be provided in the future."

A Territory lawyer says Leo is part of a growing list of people not receiving proper support.

Central Australian Aboriginal Legal Aid lawyer Mark O'Reilly says Leo has had a tough time over the past 16 months in maximum security at Alice Springs jail.

He told the Supreme Court today Leo is in a hopeless situation and the jail only has one officer to support all of its mentally ill inmates, including three men serving life imprisonment.

He says arrangements should have been made to put Leo into a suitable interstate facility in the time he had been jailed.

Gun laws fail safety test: Greens

THE latest domestic violence murder-suicide in Sydney should cause the Premier, Nathan Rees, to change gun laws immediately so that women [people] at risk from their estranged partners are better protected, the Greens MP Lee Rhiannon said.

Mr Rees met the National Coalition for Gun Control yesterday after agreeing to review gun laws that had made it easier for [people] men who had been the subject of apprehended violence orders to regain their licences.

"We've had a very useful discussion that canvassed a wide range of matters. We'll give a considered response to the Coalition. But I have agreed to keep up contact with them and meet with them on a regular basis," Mr Rees said.

Under NSW law, anyone who became the subject of an AVO had to wait 10 years after it expired to reapply for a gun licence, but an amendment moved by the Shooters MP Roy Smith, and approved this month, waived the 10-year waiting period.

Ms Rhiannon said although John Kudrytch, 39, who shot his former wife, Melissa Cook, 29, at a BP service station in Casula on Tuesday, did not appear to be a registered gun owner, Mr Rees needed to overturn the amendment.

[If John Kudrytch did not appear to be a registered gun owner, then why is he being used here as an example to some law that won't change his circumstances, either before or after the fact that he killed his former wife with a gun? Why not clamp down on illegal guns? Or gun use in general? Also if Kudrytch didn't use a gun would he have killed his wife with something anyway?]

Ms Rhiannon: "The Premier's review of gun laws should ask why laws put the onus on the AVO subject to surrender his/[her] gun to police rather than require police to proactively seize the firearm. Tragedies like this are becoming more prevalent with the increasing number of firearms in circulation."

[The premier should review why the man had a gun and put the onus on the illegal gun owners to surrender his/her illegal gun.]

Ms Rhiannon: She said the weakening of gun control laws by the Shooters Party, with the support of major parties, could result in more accidents, deaths and suicides from guns.

[Either Ms Rhiannon and the Kudrytch murder suicide is being exploited by the Sydney Morning Herald or Ms Rhiannon?]

[Yesterdays headline from the SMH would strongly suggest media manipulation by SMH: Police probe how killer husband got gun - Breaking News - National ...17 Dec 2008 ... Police investigating the murder of a woman gunned down by her estranged husband will investigate how he got hold of a gun. - 14 hours ago -]

Quote: The weakening of the Sydney Morning Herald's article in relation to the gender blame game is preventing their ability to a balanced article in relation to solving the problem at the root. For some reason they seem to think only men commit crime using guns? Why is that? Then they go on to use the wrong example to attack gun laws? Why is that?

Related:

3yo grazed by bullet in drive-by shooting
A three-year-old boy has been grazed by a bullet during a drive-by shooting at Blacktown in Sydney's west.

Estranged husband shoots wife dead
A woman who was shot dead by her estranged husband in Sydney's south-west yesterday had taken out an apprehended violence order against him, police said.

Police shoot teenager dead in stand-off
'Just a scared little boy'...Tyler Cassidy, who was shot dead.

Domestic murders hit 10-year high
The New South Wales Government is being urged to hold an immediate review into domestic violence homicides, with the number of women and children killed in NSW at its highest level in almost a decade.

Anti-violence plan for children
A Federal Government agency is developing a plan for anti-violence education programs for children.

Amnesty: 334 Taser Deaths Since 2001 And back in the United States, Amnesty International is calling for new limits on the use of taser stun guns by law enforcement officials. In a new report, Amnesty says 334 people have been killed by taser weapons since 2001. 90 percent of the victims were unarmed and did not appear to present a serious threat. Some of the people to be shocked by taser weapons include schoolchildren, pregnant women and an elderly person with dementia.

Australians support tough stance on alcohol

A new report released today show Australians support a tough stance on alcohol.

The report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare shows that when it comes to drugs, Australians are most concerned about alcohol.

Half of all recent drinkers say they have curbed their alcohol consumption, mostly for health reasons.

The report shows a decline in the number of smokers, and even those who continue to smoke, are cutting back.

Marijuana and meth-amphetamine use is also down, but the use of cocaine and tranquillisers for non-medical reasons has increased.

Most Australians say they support policies which aim to reduce alcohol.

Related:

Alcohol ads must go: Della Bosca
THE NSW Health Minister, John Della Bosca, will seek tougher restrictions on alcohol advertising at a meeting of health ministers today as NSW hospital figures revealed a huge rise in the number of drunk young people being treated in emergency departments.

Alcohol-related hospital visits rise
Alcohol-related hospital visits rocket, with young women the worst.

Brumby confronts booze culture on streets
Victorian Premier John Brumby has toured some of Melbourne's most notorious nightlife strips as his government plots its next move against rising alcoholism and street violence.

Message on a bottle for binge drinkers
BOTTLES of alcoholic drinks could soon carry graphic pictures warning of the dangers of excessive alcohol consumption as part of the Federal Government's latest series of measures to cut down on under-age and binge drinking.

Alliance tackles drunken violence
THE TOLL of alcohol-related violence has reached the point where one in five Australians now say they have been directly affected or know someone who has been affected by this type of violence, a new survey shows.

Binge drinking teens: 'two deaths a week'
South Australia's Drug and Alcohol Service says there are about two deaths a week in Australia involving young people who have been binge-drinking.

Calls for binge warnings on alcohol packaging
The Public Health Association (PHA) says warnings about the dangers of binge drinking should be pasted on all forms of packaged alcoholic drinks.

Economic crisis spawns depression booklet

The national depression initiative, Beyond Blue has released a booklet to help Australians cope with the global economic crisis.

Beyond Blue chairman, Jeff Kennett says many families will find themselves in financial hardship over the next 18 months.

He says the booklet details strategies on how to cope with stress associated with financial loss and retrenchment.

"It's a booklet that helps to focus our attention through education on the things that we need to do if in fact we're in either of those two categories," he said.

"I think more importantly it's designed to educate us all about how to deal with change that might affect our lives and that of our families."

Related:

Economists sound recession warning
It is very predictable and the worst case could be something up to the level of the Great Depression which was 20 per cent unemployment and lasting up to a decade.

Financial crisis will hurt jobs, Swan warns
Job losses across Australia will be inevitable as the effects of the global financial crisis hit Australian businesses, Treasurer Wayne Swan says.

More families needing emergency support
The welfare group Anglicare says it is noticing a growing need among working families for emergency relief and housing support.

Freefall Friday: $84b - worst day in 21 years
Australian shares had their worst day since the crash of 1987, losing more than 8%, as mounting recession fears sent equity markets tumbling around the world.

States 'dreaming' over extra funding
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd says he will not bow to pressure from states to provide billions of dollars in extra funding.

Economists predict unemployment rate rise
The unemployment rate has jumped from 4.1 per cent to 4.3 per cent.

Market plunges 5pc, dollar crashes
The Australian share market plunged 5 per cent today, as the dollar hit a new five-year low. Fear of a global recession has seized markets, with big falls across the major indices overnight.

Associate Professor Steven Keen.
Steven Keen has come increasingly to prominence over the past couple of years specialising in the economics of Australia's spiralling household debt burden.

$50b Aussie wipe-out
Australian stocks wiped more than $50 billion off the value of the market today after the US House of Representatives rejected a $US700 billion ($860 billion) plan to rescue the financial system.

Upwardly immobile: mortgage stress bites
Reserve Bank statistics do not begin to tell the real story of housing stress in Sydney's western suburbs, according to financial counsellor Mike Young.

Households give up three years of gains
AUSTRALIAN households have been hit so hard this year that their financial gains of the past three years have been wiped out, a Reserve Bank report has found.

Wong announces $1.4b climate change fund

"This is a very substantial investment in small businesses and also community organisations to enable them to move to a low-pollution future." (File Photo) (From Little Things Big Things Grow.)

Climate Change Minister Penny Wong says small businesses and community groups will get $1.4 billion over five years to help them adjust to the introduction of an emissions trading scheme.

The money will be available to businesses and groups purchasing energy efficient equipment through a Climate Change Action Fund.

She says there will also be grants for developing long-term energy-efficiency plans.

"This is about the Government delivering on its commitment to ensure that the monies raised from the scheme are invested back into Australian businesses and Australian households to enable everyone to make the transition to a low-pollution future," she said.

"This is a very substantial investment in small businesses and also community organisations to enable them to move to a low-pollution future."

Updated: 12:34pm (AEDT)

Rudd locks in 5pc emissions cut

The Federal Government has also promised around $6 billion a year in compensation and a 2.5 per cent rise in pension rates to help households cope with expected price rises when the carbon pollution reduction scheme begins in 2010.

It is estimated there will be a one-off rise in inflation of 1.1 per cent with the introduction of the scheme, and growth will slow by just 0.1 per cent a year to 2050.

The details of how the scheme will work and its expected cost to homes and businesses has been outlined in the Government's white paper released today.

The paper says by 2020 Australia will cut its emissions by 5 per cent of 2000 levels even if no progress has been made to finalise the next international agreement to reduce global emissions.

The 5 per cent cut is likely to anger the Greens and environmental groups who have been calling for a much stronger mid-term cut in emissions.

But it is closer to the level some business and industry groups were lobbying for.

The Government has left the door open to cut Australia's emissions by up to 15 per cent if other major economies also agree to significantly reduce emissions and advanced economies take similar action on cuts.

It has also reaffirmed its commitment to cut emissions levels by 60 per cent of 2000 levels by 2050.

The Government says it agrees with its climate change adviser Ross Garnaut's recommendation that a 25 per cent cut in emissions is in the national interest but that international agreement on a larger cut at international talks next year is unlikely.

"Australia's commitment of a 5 -15 per cent reduction by 2020 is a serious and credible commitment to the global action required and is realistically attainable in the current circumstances," the paper says.

Household compensation

The Government says around $6 billion a year will be provided through various measures to compensate families for price rises and estimates around 90 per cent of low income households will receive assistance of 120 per cent of their increase in cost of living expenses.

Aged pensioners, seniors, carers and those with a disability would receive a 2.5 per cent increase in the rate of the pension once the scheme begins.

Low and middle income families would be eligible for a range of measures through increases in the low income tax offset, a 2.5 per cent increase of Family Tax Benefit Part A or Family Tax Benefit Part B.

The white paper estimates that with a carbon price of $25 per tonne, electricity is expected to increase by around $4 per week, with a rise in gas prices of around $2.

Despite a large drop in petrol prices in recent months the Government will keep its cut in the fuel excise announced in the green paper on a cent-for-cent basis as the scheme causes a petrol prices rise.

Around $2.5 billion, as part of the Climate Change Action Fund, will also be allocated to help small businesses and community groups adapt to the scheme and lower emissions.

Trade exposed industries

The Government has increased the amount of free permits allocated in its green paper to those industries described as trade exposed because they face international competition and cannot pass the cost of a trading scheme onto consumers.

One threshold for eligibility has also been lowered, meaning more companies will be covered by the assistance.

The amount of free permits available to those industries - such as aluminium, cement, lime and silicone production - has been increased to 25 per cent, compared to 20 per cent flagged in the green paper.

That amount would rise to 35 per cent once agriculture is included in the scheme, which is not expected until at least 2015.

Industries now also have the choice of being assessed for assistance via two different tests based on either revenue or the value it adds to the product in the manufacturing process.

If an industry produces over 2,000 tonnes of emissions per million dollars of revenue or 6,000 tonnes of emissions in the value it adds to a product it is eligible for 90 per cent of free permits.

If it produces over 1,000 tonnes of emissions per million dollars of revenue or 3,000 tonnes of emissions in the value it adds to a produce it is eligible for 60 per cent of free permits.

The Electricity Sector Adjustment Scheme will also provide $3.9 billion assistance to coal fired power generators over the next five years.

Updated: 1:38pm (AEDT)

5pc target a global embarrassment

Greens Senator Christine Milne says the emissions reduction targets are extremely weak and disappointing.

"This is a complete failure of a system," she said.

"Five per cent is a global embarrassment, 15 per cent is way below even the minimum the rest of the world wants to see.

"The Europeans have said 20 per cent targets by 2020. How can the Rudd Government face the rest of the world when Australia has done nothing?"

The WWF environment group is also unhappy with the announcement, with Australian director Ray Nias describing the 5 per cent target is deeply disappointing.

"It commits Australia to long-term dangerous climate change [and] it will make Australia's ability to negotiate global agreements very, very difficult," he said.

"Its much lower than even we had imagined the worst case being."

Three protesters had to be [thrown] out of the National Press Club in Canberra this lunchtime as Rudd was speaking about the decision.

Related:

Govt 'hindering' Poland climate change talks
The Greens say the Federal Government is hindering international climate change talks in Poland and should not have taken part.

Australia squibs on climate promise
The Rudd Government has reneged on a commitment to present its 2020 target to cut greenhouse gases to UN climate talks that start today.

Greenhouse gases rise to record levels
Levels of climate-warming greenhouses gases rose to record highs in 2007, leading to a 1 per cent increase in the overall warming effect, the World Meteorological Organisation said.

Greens slam SA backing for clean coal
The Greens say the South Australian Government is taking a big backward step by promoting technology to turn coal into liquid fuels.

Greenpeace trio fined over smoke stack stunt
Protesters paint 'solar' on a smoke stack at Swanbank Power Station in July.

Scientists push PM for 25pc emissions cut
A group of top level climate change experts has written a letter to the Prime Minister arguing that cutting greenhouse gas emissions by only 10 per cent would be dangerous.

Greenpeace criticises clean-coal plans
The environmental group Greenpeace has called on the Federal Government to rethink its support for clean coal technology.

Garnaut too soft on emissions target: expert
A leading Australian climate scientist has criticised the greenhouse gas reduction targets proposed by the Government's climate change adviser Professor Ross Garnaut.

Green groups slam failure to set firm targets
THE Federal Government has refused to commit itself to any of the pollution reduction models outlined by its handpicked climate change expert, Ross Garnaut, saying it will make its own decisions by the end of the year.

Native forests should be part of the solution
The Greens leader Bob Brown says lifting Australia's reserves of native forests should be part of the Federal Government's solution to climate change.

Sea levels could rise 4m this century
An expert in climate change says the world's sea levels could rise by up to four metres this century.

Greens: Tougher ETS in Senate
Greens Leader Bob Brown has vowed to use his party's new power in the Senate to push for a tough emissions trading scheme (ETS). The Greens now share the balance of power in the Upper House and Senator Brown says he will use his vote to force stronger action on climate change.

Greens urge swift response to Garnaut draft
The Greens say the Federal Government can not be worried about electoral popularity and must move quickly when it responds to economist Ross Garnaut's draft report on climate change.

Climate change fight needs political ardour: Greenpeace
Greenpeace says the only thing Australia lacks in the fight against climate change is political will.

Leaving petrol off emissions trading scheme 'dangerous'
The Greens say any moves to leave petrol out of the Federal Government's emissions trading scheme will render it ineffective.

Aust's ecological footprint one of biggest in world: index
The annual Climate Living Index, which measures humanity's demand on natural resources, has listed Australia's ecological footprint as one of the biggest in the world.

Climate change hot topic at youth 2020 summits
More than 500 schools held talks during the past month ahead of the Federal Government's Youth Summit in Canberra this weekend. Ms Gillard says she is not surprised the environment is the number one concern of many children.

Greenpeace to give Treasurer carbon capture petition
A petition with 30,000 signatures will today be handed to the Federal Treasurer's office urging the Government to abandon its investment in carbon capture and storage.

Day care putting children at risk

Australia's early childhood services are among the worst in the developed world, according to a UNICEF report that warns of the risk of placing children in care before the age of one.

Among 25 developed countries Australia ranks third last, meeting only two of 10 benchmarks considered essential to protect children in their formative early years.

Only Sweden meets all the standards but Australia is one of only three countries, with Ireland and Canada, to meet less than three. Mexico, Slovenia, Portugal and Korea are all ranked well ahead of Australia.

The report, called The Child Care Transition, describes the mass movement to child care as a "high-stakes gamble" to the extent it is unplanned and unmonitored.

It proposes an internationally applicable set of 10 core minimum standards drawn up after worldwide consultations as a first attempt at comparing early childhood services.

Australia fails to meet standards on minimum staff-to-children ratios in pre-school education set at 1:15. It fails on a measure of having 80 per cent of all child-care staff trained. The Government also fails to spend 1 per cent of GDP on early childhood services.

We do not provide subsidised and accredited early education services for 80 per cent of four-year-olds; and unlike most of the other countries in the survey, we have no national child-care strategy that gives priority to disadvantaged children.

We do not provide near-universal outreach of essential child health services. Child poverty rates exceed 10 per cent. And Australia is one of a handful of countries that fails to provide parental leave of one year at 50 per cent of salary.

The only standards Australia meets are the provision of subsidised and regulated child care for 25 per cent of children under three. And 50 per cent of child-care staff have relevant qualifications.

The report, which draws on global and scientific studies, favours children being cared for at home for the first year of their life. It notes that when parents have choice, including financial support, they have tended to vote with their feet, with nursery care plummeting in Sweden after the introduction of 12 months' parental leave at 80 per cent of salary.

The report says that the mass movement of young children into child care is a revolution in how children are being brought up in developed countries.

At the same time a revolution has occurred in understanding the importance of experience in shaping the infant brain.

"Today's rising generation … is the first in which a majority are spending a large part of their early childhoods not in their own homes with their own families but in some form of child care," the report says.

Child-care staff were working incredibly hard but under appalling circumstances, said Associate Professor Margaret Sims, director of the Centre for Social Research at Edith Cowan University.

Dr Sims said inadequate care had led to a generation of maladjusted children. "We've seen increases in youth violence, drug and alcohol addiction, obesity."

Lynne Wannan, the past national convenor of the community-based children services sector, said Australia had allowed too much child care to go into private hands, and the private sector was a strong lobby against improved ratios and qualifications.

Quote: In addition day care is also for lazy parents and (especially lazy mothers, some with better things to do) who don't want to raise their children, even if the children's father can provide enough money for the children's mother to stay home and look after them. So in reality, unnecessary day care could be seen as neglect.

Fed welfare plan discrimitary: NT council

Going in with the big stick approach rather than actually actively trying to engage parents in the whole adventure of schooling: NT council of gov schools

The Federal Government plan to link school attendance to welfare payments is discriminatory, according to a peak Northern Territory education group.

Legislation passed by Federal Parliament will see some parents lose Centrelink payments for 13 weeks, if their children miss too much school.

The plan will be trialed in eight regions next year, including six Aboriginal communities in the Territory.

Michael Duffy from the N-T Council of Government Schools has said punishing parents isn't the way to go.

"They haven't discussed it with anybody, they haven't gone out and talked about how do you come to grips with this attendance business, what's school about?

"We have to set in place a process of education and we've actually got to be patient.

"The fundamental difficulty is that it's going in with the big stick approach rather than actually actively trying to engage parents in the whole adventure of schooling."

Related:

Pat Dodson delivers peace prize lecture
Patrick Dodson...Important for indigenous people to play a role in determining solutions for their problems "and be resourced to do so".

Lawyer prepares UN case against intervention
An Indigenous leader from central Australia has asked a human rights lawyer to take a case against the federal intervention to the United Nations.

Aboriginal welfare quarantine 'like apartheid'
An Aboriginal health lobby group is asking the Federal Government to reconsider its decision to keep compulsory income management as a part of the Northern Territory intervention, against the advice of an independent review panel.

Damning report on Aboriginal scheme
THE radical intervention into remote indigenous communities in the Northern Territory has "fractured" the relationship between governments and indigenous people and led to an even greater sense of betrayal and misery among many people, an independent panel has found.

NT intervention blamed for man's suicide
The family of a Northern Territory man who killed himself two months ago has blamed the federal intervention for his death.

Indigenous rights complaint lodged with UN
The Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement (ALRM) has now sent a formal complaint to the United Nations about treatment of Indigenous people.

NT intervention failing to curb abuse
The head of one of Australia's peak Aboriginal child protection agencies says the federal intervention has failed to achieve one of its key goals.

NT intervention increasing murders
The North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) is blaming the federal intervention for an increase in the number of murder cases it is defending in the Northern Territory.

Aborigines want end to NT intervention
Thousands of Aborigines are petitioning to have the Northern Territory intervention abandoned.

New NT laws: 'more Aboriginal people jailed'
The Australian Council for Civil Liberties says more Aboriginal people will go to jail under proposed mandatory sentencing laws in the Northern Territory.

Intervention delivering 'empty shipping containers, no houses'
A member of the Maningrida community in the Northern Territory's Arnhem Land says he cannot see any infrastructure changes as a result of the emergency intervention, and wants to know where the money has been spent.

Abandon NT intervention: Commissioner
The Northern Territory's Anti-Discrimination Commissioner Tony Fitzgerald says the Federal intervention into remote Aboriginal communities should be abandoned and the legislation underpinning it should be repealed.

Budget to roll out new welfare card
Welfare plan: The new card will be initially rolled out in NT Indigenous communities. The Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) says the Rudd Government's proposed welfare debit card is not the best way to help struggling families.

Police cannot cope with backlash
Chief Minister, Paul Henderson, has warned the Federal Government that many indigenous people displaced by the emergency intervention are creating unrest and straining police capacity.

Discrimination Act should apply to intervention: Calma
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner wants the Racial Discrimination Act immediately reinstated in the Northern Territory's Indigenous communities.

Porn ban in Indigenous communities 'racist'
The Australian National Adult Retail Association (Eros) says the Federal Government's ban on X-rated pornography in Aboriginal communities is pointless, racist and should be revoked.

Retailers' warning on welfare card shop spies
EMPLOYEES across the country will be at risk of entrapment by government "spies", retailers have warned, under a Federal Government proposal to control fraudulent use of a new welfare debit card.

Aboriginal delegation heads to UN
The National Aboriginal Alliance is taking its concerns about the Northern Territory intervention to the United Nations

Indigenous welfare quarantine scheme gets go ahead
Parents in four Cape York Indigenous communities could soon have their welfare payments quarantined if they do not take care of their children and homes and do not stay out of trouble with the law.

Report backs refugee detention changes

Researchers say a new report on the mental health of refugees backs the Federal Government's decision to greatly reduce its use of mandatory detention.

The study from the University of New South Wales examined problems faced by 700 Iraqi refugees between 2003 and 2007.

Co-author Zachery Steel says it shows rates of mental illness such as depression increased dramatically, the longer the refugees spent in detention.

"This is profound clinical depression that lasts for many weeks and people are highly disabled every day," he said.

"Rates of depression up to 40 per cent of people who'd been there for over six months."

Related:

Year in detention 'excessive'
The lack of judicial review has meant that women and children had been held unreasonably, the report said.

160 juveniles housed in NSW police cells

We have seen a massive increase in the number of kids who are being held on remand partly due to the changes in bail laws: Juvenile Justice Minister

The New South Wales Government says overcrowding in the juvenile justice system will be alleviated by the availability of new beds in the next few months.

Last year, about 160 juveniles who were remanded in custody spent time in police cells because there was not enough room at detention centres.

The Juvenile Justice Minister, Graham West, says while there is a short-term problem, a new facility in Sydney's west and extensions to other centres will eventually relieve the pressure on the system.

"We recognise there is a shortage of beds in our facilities which is why we are building an extra 80, including 50 in a specialist remand unit," he said.

"We have seen a massive increase in the number of kids who are being held on remand partly due to the changes in bail laws and also because of changed policing practices."

But the Opposition's spokesman on juvenile justice, Anthony Roberts, says union sources have told him the changes will not be made in time.

"There'll be no juvenile justice beds for young offenders between Sydney and the Victorian border," he said.

"The Government, in light of this - they are spending $2,000 a day keeping young juveniles locked up in police cells - needs to overturn the decision to close the Keelong Juvenile Justice Centre and they need to do that immediately."

Related:

Judge rules youths be taken out of adult jail
IN A victory for prisoner rehabilitation, a Supreme Court judge has ordered three young offenders be removed from adult jails and returned to juvenile detention centres by Monday to complete their sentences.

Laws will push teenagers into adult prisons
TWELVE young offenders who have brought a court challenge against their transfer from juvenile to adult jails have been dealt a blow after the State Government rushed laws into Parliament that may ensure they are moved.

Juvenile jails crisis: inmates turned away
THE state's juvenile justice system is so overcrowded that at least three institutions are refusing to accept any more inmates.

Juvenile detainees sharing single cells
SEVERE overcrowding in the state's juvenile detention centres is forcing young people to share cells designed for one person, to sleep on mattresses on the floor and be held in "segregation" rooms usually used as punishment cells.

Doctor's appeal rejected - now accepted

A tribunal has rejected an appeal by a Wimmera doctor against a decision denying his family permanent residency because of his son's disability.

Dr Bernhard Moeller and his family have had their application for residency refused because of the costs associated with the care of their son, who has Down Syndrome.

The Member for Mallee, John Forrest says the Migration Review Tribunal decided yesterday to support the Department's decision.

He says the Minister for Citizenship, Chris Evans, will now be asked to intervene.

"The Minister's indicated on a number of occasions his willingness to consider the use of his powers," he said.

"He's recently done it in regard to a professional nurse in Australia and we are hopeful he will come good for the Moellers."

Updated 4:12pm (AEST)

Doctor with Down syndrome son granted residency

A German doctor who was refused permanent residency because of his disabled son has been given a reprieve by the Federal Government.

Immigration Minister Chris Evans has granted a permanent visa to Dr Bernhard Moeller and his family.

Dr Moeller asked Senator Evans this morning to intervene in the case.

He had been denied a visa by the Immigration Department because his 13-year old son has Down syndrome.

Today Senator Evans told the Upper House that Dr Moeller would be able to stay.

"As Minister I can take into account all the circumstances and it was clear to me that Dr Moeller and his family are making a very valuable contribution to their local community," he said.

"Dr Moeller is providing a much-needed service in the area the family have integrated very well and they have substantial community support."

Dr Moeller says it has been very stressful waiting for the news,

"I was very tired yesterday when I got this news about the refusal from the tribunal and I was thinking is it really worthwhile? But now I am really happy. We've been jumping for joy," he said.

He said the system needs to be changed.

"I think something has to be done about it. It has to be set up more flexible. because I don't want more people to have such an experience like I had."

"It was a lot of stress and I think it was unnecessary," he said.

Dr Moeller is the only internal medicine specialist servicing 20,000 people in Horsham in western Victoria.

Related:

Disability group: review migration laws
The Down Syndrome Association of Western Australia says the Commonwealth must review legislation which makes it hard for people with children with disabilities to migrate to Australia.

:

Aust ratifies UN protocol on discrimination

Australia has signed a UN convention to provide Australian women with international legal protection for their human rights.

The Federal Government has ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.

The Minister for Women, Tanya Plibersek, says women now have the option of making a sex discrimination complaint to the United Nations after exhausting all legal channels in Australia.

"I think it's a very important thing for men and women that Australia says internationally, that equality between men and women is important in this country and that we're prepared to be judged by international standards," she said.

"We live in a region where a number of countries have very high rates of domestic violence and sexual assault and as we campaign in Australia to reduce domestic violence and sexual assault, as we try and help our neighbouring countries, it's very important to say that we are prepared to be judged by the same standards."

Quote: The problem with this though is that Australia doesn't uphold its UN protocol's on anything so in reality this is just a worthless piece of propaganda by the Australain Government and the alleged United Nations. All people are discriminated against in this country all the time. It's one thing to state these protocols but another to uphold them. Shame on Australia.

Domestic murders hit 10-year high

The New South Wales Government is being urged to hold an immediate review into domestic violence homicides, with the number of women and children killed in NSW at its highest level in almost a decade.

The state's Bureau of Crime Statistics says 29 women and children were murdered in domestic incidents between July last year and June this year, six above the average for the past 10 years.

The State Opposition's spokeswoman for women, Pru Goward, says it is obvious police and community services systems are not working.

"These record figures are an absolute indictment of the State Labor Government," she said.

"The State Labor Government has had the opportunity to introduce a domestic violence homicide review for some time.

"It's been called for by the sector, we've called for it. We've asked the Government and they consistently refuse to do it."

Quote: But when we write our article then we may need to leave out say, the statistics in relation to women who commit 'domestic murders'? That's if we are going to succeed changing public opinon that it's only the men. Another fact is that women don't commit domestic murders? Of course this is just a guess?

Related:

Anti-violence plan for children
A Federal Government agency is developing a plan for anti-violence education programs for children.

Pensioners demand payment increase

About 200 pensioners have gathered at the Melbourne Town Hall to demand an increase in their payments.

The Government is giving pensioners a one-off payment of $1,400 next month, but they say it will not be enough to cover the rising cost of living.

Seniors groups want the Federal Government to increase the pension rate from 25 per cent of average weekly earnings, to 35 per cent.

The Council on Ageing spokeswoman Patricia Reeve says pensioners are struggling to survive.

"Some people are talking about a $30 a week increase and that's just not enough that won't make the difference that's required," she said.

"The other thing is Government has many calls on it. We're asking a whole community to say to the Government it's time to do something about pensions."

Related:

Sydney pensioners rally for long-term reform
Pensioner, retiree and welfare groups have rallied together in Sydney, calling on the Federal Government to improve their standard of living.

Sydney pensioners rally for long-term reform

Pensioner, retiree and welfare groups have rallied together in Sydney, calling on the Federal Government to improve their standard of living.

The Fair Go for Pensioners Coalition is urging the Government to make sure next year's pension reforms deliver an adequate pension over the long-term.

The coalition's chairman, Jon Bisset, says he is hopeful the Government will provide a boost.

"We understand that there are other economic issues on at the moment but they're not excuses for forgetting about pensioners in the future," he said.

Single-aged pensioner Noreen Hewitt says the constant worry about money is exhausting.

"There needs to be an increase for us to just survive," she said.

The coalition also plans to lobby the Government to introduce new cost of living indices just for pensioners and retirees.

Villawood detainees go on hunger strike

More than 100 detainees at Sydney's Villawood Detention Centre are on a hunger strike.

Refugee advocates say the detainees are disappointed the Federal Government has talked about change but nothing has happened.

The Department of Immigration says it was made aware of the action yesterday and food and water are always available.

A spokesman for the Department says it has no way of knowing how many detainees are involved.

Ian Rintoul of the Refugee Action Coalition says the detainees are prepared to go without food until their concerns are heard by the Minister for Immigration.

"They've waited a long time for various things, for the Minister to review things, to settle into their new job and still nothing has changed," he said.

"With hunger strikes in detention, people get desperate so... we we've got nothing to lose, we're going to keep the hunger strike going."

Related:

Detainees climb Villawood roof in deportation protest
The Department of Immigration has confirmed two Chinese nationals have climbed on to the roof of Sydney's Villawood Detention Centre.

Wotton jailed for 6 years for a loser cop

Lex Patrick Wotton has been jailed for six years for a loser cop who incited a riot on Palm Island off north Queensland in 2004.

The sentence was handed down in the District Court in Townsville by Judge Michael Shanahan.

Two weeks ago, a jury in Brisbane found Wotton guilty of inciting the 2004 riot following the death in custody of Mulrunji Doomadgee after a loser cop bashed him to death.

This morning Judge Shanahan sentenced Wotton to seven years, but that has been reduced to six taking into account time already served.

He will be eligible for parole in July 2010.

White Wash

Last year, Queensland Police Senior Sergeant Chris Hurley was found not guilty of Mulrunji's death and this week police involved in quelling the riot were awarded bravery medals.

Financial crisis hits poor hardest: ACOSS

The Australian Council of Social Services (ACOSS) says the global financial crisis is set to make things worse for the millions of Australians on or below the poverty line.

The global economic situation was a major talking point at the ACOSS annual general meeting yesterday.

ACOSS president Lin Hatfield Dodds says she is urging the Federal Government to use its surplus to increase spending on welfare groups and services.

"If we can't do it now then when?" she asked.

"If we're seriously looking at an economic downturn - and that looks increasingly likely - then the earlier we act the sooner we are going to ameliorate the effects of that downturn."

Lawyer prepares UN case against intervention

An Indigenous leader from central Australia has asked a human rights lawyer to take a case against the federal intervention to the United Nations.

Barbara Shaw from the Intervention Rollback Action Group says she believes the compulsory quarantining of welfare payments and the continued suspension of the Racial Discrimination Act is wrong.

Her UN case will argue that the federal intervention into Northern Territory Aboriginal communities is racially discriminatory.

The Government says it will reinstate the Racial Discrimination Act in the next phase of the intervention, once it has consulted with Indigenous communities.

But Ms Shaw says that is not acceptable.

"I believe that the intervention is wrong and a lot of people are suffering," she said.

"The Minister for Indigenous Affairs and the Prime Minister thinks that everybody likes the intervention and it's helping our children and women, and in fact it's not."

Related:

Aboriginal welfare quarantine 'like apartheid'
An Aboriginal health lobby group is asking the Federal Government to reconsider its decision to keep compulsory income management as a part of the Northern Territory intervention, against the advice of an independent review panel.

Damning report on Aboriginal scheme
THE radical intervention into remote indigenous communities in the Northern Territory has "fractured" the relationship between governments and indigenous people and led to an even greater sense of betrayal and misery among many people, an independent panel has found.

NT intervention blamed for man's suicide
The family of a Northern Territory man who killed himself two months ago has blamed the federal intervention for his death.

Indigenous rights complaint lodged with UN
The Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement (ALRM) has now sent a formal complaint to the United Nations about treatment of Indigenous people.

NT intervention failing to curb abuse
The head of one of Australia's peak Aboriginal child protection agencies says the federal intervention has failed to achieve one of its key goals.

NT intervention increasing murders
The North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) is blaming the federal intervention for an increase in the number of murder cases it is defending in the Northern Territory.

Aborigines want end to NT intervention
Thousands of Aborigines are petitioning to have the Northern Territory intervention abandoned.

New NT laws: 'more Aboriginal people jailed'
The Australian Council for Civil Liberties says more Aboriginal people will go to jail under proposed mandatory sentencing laws in the Northern Territory.

Intervention delivering 'empty shipping containers, no houses'
A member of the Maningrida community in the Northern Territory's Arnhem Land says he cannot see any infrastructure changes as a result of the emergency intervention, and wants to know where the money has been spent.

Abandon NT intervention: Commissioner
The Northern Territory's Anti-Discrimination Commissioner Tony Fitzgerald says the Federal intervention into remote Aboriginal communities should be abandoned and the legislation underpinning it should be repealed.

Budget to roll out new welfare card
Welfare plan: The new card will be initially rolled out in NT Indigenous communities. The Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) says the Rudd Government's proposed welfare debit card is not the best way to help struggling families.

Police cannot cope with backlash
Chief Minister, Paul Henderson, has warned the Federal Government that many indigenous people displaced by the emergency intervention are creating unrest and straining police capacity.

Discrimination Act should apply to intervention: Calma
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner wants the Racial Discrimination Act immediately reinstated in the Northern Territory's Indigenous communities.

Porn ban in Indigenous communities 'racist'
The Australian National Adult Retail Association (Eros) says the Federal Government's ban on X-rated pornography in Aboriginal communities is pointless, racist and should be revoked.

Retailers' warning on welfare card shop spies
EMPLOYEES across the country will be at risk of entrapment by government "spies", retailers have warned, under a Federal Government proposal to control fraudulent use of a new welfare debit card.

Aboriginal delegation heads to UN
The National Aboriginal Alliance is taking its concerns about the Northern Territory intervention to the United Nations

Indigenous welfare quarantine scheme gets go ahead
Parents in four Cape York Indigenous communities could soon have their welfare payments quarantined if they do not take care of their children and homes and do not stay out of trouble with the law.

Aboriginal welfare quarantine 'like apartheid'

The Racial Discrimination Act should be immediately reinstated.

An Aboriginal health lobby group is asking the Federal Government to reconsider its decision to keep compulsory income management as a part of the Northern Territory intervention, against the advice of an independent review panel.

Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance of the Northern Territory spokesperson John Paterson says income management is racially discriminatory and he has likened it to apartheid.

"It's taken us back to the dark old days of the South African apartheid regime," he said.

"I thought we'd come past that era. Aboriginal people in 1967 were given the referendum to vote and the freedom to be treated as Australian citizens."

Mr Paterson says men in the Territory have been screaming out for a response to a health summit held in Alice Springs earlier this year.

He wants the Territory to have programs such as 'Men's Sheds' where men get together, support each other and hear talks by role models.

"We seem to be the forgotten component of this whole intervention," he said.

"Aboriginal men are also in need of the amount of support and programs and services for themselves, that they can have the opportunity to be good fathers and good parents and good role models for Aboriginal communities and Aboriginal families."

One of the communities covered by the intervention has also criticised the decision to keep compulsory income management.

Darwin Bagot Community president Lyle Cooper says the Racial Discrimination Act should be immediately reinstated.

"After going and visiting 31 communities ... all we want to do is be responsible for our actions and roll back intervention in terms of taking back the blanket approach for income management," he said.

He has questioned the purpose of having the review.

"We're at a loss understanding why all this money was spent on a review committee, going in and speaking to us who live the dream at the moment, going back to Canberra and having Prime Minister Rudd and Macklin having our recommendations fall on deaf ears," he said.

Related:

Damning report on Aboriginal scheme
THE radical intervention into remote indigenous communities in the Northern Territory has "fractured" the relationship between governments and indigenous people and led to an even greater sense of betrayal and misery among many people, an independent panel has found.

NT intervention blamed for man's suicide
The family of a Northern Territory man who killed himself two months ago has blamed the federal intervention for his death.

Indigenous rights complaint lodged with UN
The Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement (ALRM) has now sent a formal complaint to the United Nations about treatment of Indigenous people.

NT intervention failing to curb abuse
The head of one of Australia's peak Aboriginal child protection agencies says the federal intervention has failed to achieve one of its key goals.

NT intervention increasing murders
The North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) is blaming the federal intervention for an increase in the number of murder cases it is defending in the Northern Territory.

Aborigines want end to NT intervention
Thousands of Aborigines are petitioning to have the Northern Territory intervention abandoned.

New NT laws: 'more Aboriginal people jailed'
The Australian Council for Civil Liberties says more Aboriginal people will go to jail under proposed mandatory sentencing laws in the Northern Territory.

Intervention delivering 'empty shipping containers, no houses'
A member of the Maningrida community in the Northern Territory's Arnhem Land says he cannot see any infrastructure changes as a result of the emergency intervention, and wants to know where the money has been spent.

Abandon NT intervention: Commissioner
The Northern Territory's Anti-Discrimination Commissioner Tony Fitzgerald says the Federal intervention into remote Aboriginal communities should be abandoned and the legislation underpinning it should be repealed.

Budget to roll out new welfare card
Welfare plan: The new card will be initially rolled out in NT Indigenous communities. The Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) says the Rudd Government's proposed welfare debit card is not the best way to help struggling families.

Police cannot cope with backlash
Chief Minister, Paul Henderson, has warned the Federal Government that many indigenous people displaced by the emergency intervention are creating unrest and straining police capacity.

Discrimination Act should apply to intervention: Calma
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner wants the Racial Discrimination Act immediately reinstated in the Northern Territory's Indigenous communities.

Porn ban in Indigenous communities 'racist'
The Australian National Adult Retail Association (Eros) says the Federal Government's ban on X-rated pornography in Aboriginal communities is pointless, racist and should be revoked.

Retailers' warning on welfare card shop spies
EMPLOYEES across the country will be at risk of entrapment by government "spies", retailers have warned, under a Federal Government proposal to control fraudulent use of a new welfare debit card.

Aboriginal delegation heads to UN
The National Aboriginal Alliance is taking its concerns about the Northern Territory intervention to the United Nations

Indigenous welfare quarantine scheme gets go ahead
Parents in four Cape York Indigenous communities could soon have their welfare payments quarantined if they do not take care of their children and homes and do not stay out of trouble with the law.

Brisbane man fined over prostitute motel

A District Court judge has fined a 55-year-old Brisbane businessman for allowing prostitutes to work out of his Kangaroo Point motel.

Timothy Brendon Parker pleaded guilty on Monday to one count of having an interest in a premises used for prostitution.

The court heard police from the Prostitution Enforcement Taskforce targeted the Queensland Motel in 2006 after they became aware prostitutes were working there.

Judge Milton Griffin fined Parker $2,500 but did not record a conviction after hearing Parker had no criminal history and had given up his motel lease.