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JUNE 18 (GMT) – JUNE 19 (AEST), 2019

AUSTRALIAUkWORLD

Iran ‘isn’t seeking war’

Iran is not seeking to wage war against any nation, the country’s president said, while at the same time stressing that Iranians will withstand mounting US pressure and emerge victorious.The remarks by President Hassan Rouhani came as Tehran and Washington are edging toward a flashpoint after Iran announced it was breaking compliance with the nuclear deal with world powers and the Trump administration ordered 1000 more troops to the Middle East.

Mexico cracks down on migrants

Mexico’s efforts to slow Central American migration across its territory has shown some bite as people turned around to head south in the face of increased enforcement, while government officials said they would target human smuggling rings. One government official announced that the 6000 National Guard members, who officials had repeatedly said would be sent to the southern border, will actually be distributed across the northern border and other areas.

Pollies pocket thousands in rise

Victoria’s politicians are getting a pay boost of 2.92 per cent in a couple of weeks, taking a backbencher’s salary to more than $176,000. As the state tries to restrict public sector pay increases to limit pressure on the budget, all of Victoria’s MPs will get a bump in wages from July 1.

Tories ‘would accept Uk break-up’

Conservative members would be prepared to sacrifice the union, destroy their party or suffer economic damage to get the UK out of the European Union, a poll has suggested. The YouGov survey of party members – who will decide the next prime minister – suggests that almost half (46 per cent) would be happy to see the Brexit Party’s Nigel Farage as their new leader.

Gatwick Airport earnings soar

London’s Gatwick Airport has reported a 7.3 per cent hike in annual earnings as it saw rising long-haul demand boost passenger numbers. Britain’s second biggest airport – in which French construction and transport concession group Vinci recently bought a majority stake – posted underlying earnings of £441.4 million for the year to March 31.

Foreign drivers fail test

Ninety-seven per cent of international drivers who sat a New Zealand driving theory quiz in Queenstown failed the test. Only seven of the 226 drivers passed the test that includes 35 real theory questions – most had already been driving in the country for more than a week.

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JUNE 18 (GMT) – JUNE 19 (AEST), 2019

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Morsi buried after dramatic death

Egypt’s first democratically elected president, Islamist leader Mohammed Morsi, has been buried under heavy security, a day after his dramatic collapse and death inside a Cairo courtroom, a member of his defence team said.Morsi’s family attended funeral prayers in the mosque of Cairo’s Tora prison, followed by the burial at a cemetery in the city’s eastern district of Nasr City, said Abdul-Moneim Abdel-Maqsoud, a member of Morsi’s defence team.

Pakistani army saves six climbers

A pakistani army helicopter has rescued four Italian and two pakistani climbers stranded at an altitude of around 5300m (17,390 feet) in the country’s north, after an avalanche struck the team the previous day, a mountaineering worker said. A pakistani member of the team was killed. The expedition was hit while descending a peak in the Ishkoman Valley, located in the northern district of Ghizar.

Care system fails elderly

The primary health care system is failing older Australians in remote areas where services are deficient, royal Flying doctor service chief executive Martin Laverty says. Dr Laverty told the aged care royal commission in Broome that people in remote areas used Medicare at one-fifth of the rate of metropolitan residents and had much higher rates of avoidable hospital admissions.

Number of new home builds up

The number of new house builds started has increased to a nine-year high, according to figures from Homes England. Between April 1, 2018 and March 31, 2019, there were 45,692 new houses started on site under programmes managed by Homes England – the highest level of starts for nine years.

Storm warning for the Uk

More weather warnings have been put in place as thunderstorms, torrential rain and flooding look set to batter parts of the UK again. The Met Office has issued a yellow warning for the south East, East Anglia, the East Midlands and some of the North East as strong winds and lightning strikes are also expected.

Sick animals sent to meat works

Hundreds of cows, calves and sheep are being sent to meatworks in an injured, diseased or pregnant state, violating new animal welfare rules and prompting instant fines. Legislation brought in last October allows the Ministry for primary Industries to fine farmers and transport providers for low-level animal offending rather than having to go through a full prosecution process.

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JUNE 18 (GMT) – JUNE 19 (AEST), 2019

WORLD

raftsmen set off across the suchiate river with a load of Mexican corn for a Guatemalan

buyer. - Ap

Mexico cracks down on migrants Mexico’s efforts to slow Central American migration across its territory has shown some bite as people turned around to head south in the face of increased enforcement, while government officials said they would target human smuggling rings.

One government official announced that the 6000 National Guard members, who officials had repeatedly said would be sent to the southern border, will actually be distributed across the northern border and other areas as well, while another suggested measures were showing results.

A senior Mexican official, who requested anonymity to discuss negotiations with the US, said that three weeks ago about 4200 migrants were arriving at the Us border daily and that now that number has dropped to about 2600 per day. The official warned it was too early to draw conclusions from such a small window, but that Mexico was optimistic its measures would work.

On the suchiate river that forms part of Mexico’s southern border with Guatemala, usually bustling cross-water commerce appeared to slow at this border town a day after just a half dozen marines showed up on the Mexican shore.

Tomas Leyva, a 65-year-old construction worker-turned-pastor from El salvador, was preparing to board a raft back to Guatemala. saying he fled his home under threat from a gang, he planned to return later to Mexico vis the border bridge and apply for asylum at an official immigration control station. 

Wilmer Guerra, 28, was returning to Guatemala with his four-year-old son, saying they had been stopped at a checkpoint in Tijuana on Mexico’s northern border with the US.

Before, people said that “with children we’d be able to pass easily, (but) things got hot in the past week,” Guerra said. He said he would try again when the situation calmed down.

Mexico’s government also highlighted the weekend “rescue” of nearly 800 migrants packed into semi-trailers, calling the operation a message that authorities are getting serious about combatting human smuggling. ■

Iranian president Hassan rouhani. - Ap

WORLD

Iran ‘isn’t seeking war’ with any nationIran is not seeking to wage war against any nation, the country’s president said, while at the same time stressing that Iranians will withstand mounting US pressure and emerge victorious.

The remarks by President Hassan Rouhani came as Tehran and Washington are edging toward a flashpoint after Iran announced it was breaking compliance with the nuclear deal with world powers and the Trump administration ordered 1000 more troops to the Middle East.

“We do not wage war with any nation,” rouhani said, speaking during the inauguration of a new terminal at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport that will raise its capacity from 8 million to 13 million passengers a year.

“The entire Iranian nation is unanimous in confronting” Us pressures, rouhani said. “The end of this battle will see victory of the Iranian nation.”

He added that despite the Us withdrawal last year from Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal world powers, Iran had remained “loyal to its commitments, to … international agreements”.

But Iran’s nuclear agency announced it will surpass the uranium stockpile limits set by its 2015 nuclear deal in the next 10 days, raising pressure on Europeans trying to save the accord a year following the Us withdrawal.

Hours later, the Pentagon announced it was sending about 1000 additional American troops to the Middle East to bolster security in the region in the face of what Us officials said was a growing threat from Iran.

The announcement by Iran’s nuclear agency marked yet another deadline set by Tehran. Rouhani already has warned Europe that a new deal needs to be in place by July 7 or the Islamic republic would increase its enrichment of uranium.

The developments indicate Iran has begun its own maximum pressure campaign after facing one from president donald Trump that deeply cut into its sale of crude oil abroad and sent its economy into freefall. Europe has so far been unable to offer Iran a way around the Us sanctions. ■

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JUNE 18 (GMT) – JUNE 19 (AEST), 2019

UK

Gatwick Airport earnings soarLondon’s Gatwick Airport has reported a 7.3 per cent hike in annual earnings as it saw rising long-haul demand boost passenger numbers.

Britain’s second biggest airport – in which French construction and transport concession group Vinci recently bought a majority stake – posted underlying earnings of £441.4 million for the year to March 31.

It added 1.1 million long-haul passengers, up 14.3 per cent on the previous year, helping overall passenger numbers swell to 46.4 million.

London Gatwick said the long-haul growth was driven by increased Far East connections, which jumped 45 per cent higher year-on-year.

One in five airport passengers now travel long-haul to and from Gatwick, it said.

Gatwick also saw average income from each passenger increase 4.5 per cent to £17.47, with total revenues lifting 6.1 per cent to £810.8 million for the year.

It also stressed its so-called noise footprint was cut by 7 per cent over the year thanks to better operational procedures and quieter aircraft.

And £249.3 million of capital investment was made on improving passenger facilities and operational performance, which comes as part of a £1.1 billion five-year spending programme to 2023.

stewart Wingate, chief executive of Gatwick Airport, said: “Over the last year, we have achieved strong passenger growth matched by a reduction in our local noise footprint; robust financial results matched by record levels of investment back into the airport; and growing global connections fuelling increased trade and tourism opportunities.”

He added the group will unveil its “master plan” later this year, setting out long-term growth and developments for the airport. ■

Brexit party’s Nigel Farage. - pA

UK

Tory members ‘would accept break-up of UK’Conservative members would be prepared to sacrifice the union, destroy their party or suffer economic damage to get the Uk out of the European Union, a poll has suggested.

The YouGov survey of party members – who will decide the next prime minister – suggests that almost half (46 per cent) would be happy to see Nigel Farage as their new leader.

despite the strong support for Brexit, even if it had major repercussions, Tory members indicated they would be prepared to call it off rather than see Jeremy Corbyn enter Number 10. The survey found that 63 per cent of members would be prepared to see Brexit take place even if it meant Scotland leaving the UK.

some 61 per cent would rather Brexit took place even if it caused “significant damage” to the economy, 59 per cent would prioritise leaving the EU even if it meant Northern Ireland breaking away from the rest of the UK, and 54 per cent would accept the Tory party “being destroyed” to secure Brexit.

But only 39 per cent of the members who responded to the question said they would want Brexit to take place if it meant Labour leader Corbyn becoming the next prime minister, with 51 per cent saying they would rather the UK did not leave the EU in order to avoid that happening.

The survey also found 26 per cent of Tory members would be happy to see scotland leave the UK, as would 20 per cent be if Northern Ireland did so, regardless of the Brexit issue.

YouGov’s Matthew smith said: “Conservative members are not just ideologically committed to Brexit – they also genuinely believe that the failure to deliver on the result of the 2016 referendum will bring about the destruction of the party’s electoral chances.

“Indeed, half (51 per cent) of members believe that Britain ending up staying in the EU after all would damage the party to the extent that it will never lead a government again, and another 29 per cent think it would put the party out of power for multiple elections to come.” ■

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JUNE 18 (GMT) – JUNE 19 (AEST), 2019

NEW ZEALAND

Majority of foreign drivers fail testNinety-seven per cent of international drivers who sat a New Zealand driving theory quiz in Queenstown failed the test.

Only seven of the 226 drivers passed the test that includes 35 real theory questions – most had already been driving in the country for more than a week.

The results were revealed in an Otago University report, but the research has come under fire from the tourism industry, which says the number of crashes involving overseas drivers has remained steady even though visitor arrivals have boomed.

Judy richards has been fighting to tighten rules on foreign drivers for three years.

Her son Rhys died when his motorcycle was struck by a Chinese tourist pulling onto a highway near Hawke’s Bay in February 2016.

“Foreign drivers who come to New Zealand should sit some form of test before they hire a vehicle, because if they can’t read the signs or they can’t drive properly then they’re not only a danger to themselves, but they’re a danger to the New Zealand public,” richards said.

Losing a loved one was a devastating blow, she said.“Life is not the same, you think of them day, night. It just

doesn’t go away, you keep going on but your life is never the same. You hear them laughing, you can visualise their cuddles, their smiles, their laughing, but you just can’t physically be with them anymore. I wouldn’t wish anyone to go through what this family has gone through.”

The international visitors were quizzed in Queenstown in February and March this year. The tests contained 30 questions from actual New Zealand driving theory tests. ■

premier daniel Andrews. - AAp

AUSTRALIA

Victoria’s pollies pocket thousands in pay riseVictoria’s politicians are getting a pay boost of 2.92 per cent in a couple of weeks, taking a backbencher’s salary to more than $176,000.

As the state tries to restrict public sector pay increases to limit pressure on the budget, all of Victoria’s Mps will get a bump in wages from July 1.

It means premier daniel Andrews will take home $394,000 next financial year and backbenchers will get more than $176,000 which includes extra cash for expenses.

“I’m very grateful for the fact that I’m well paid and members of parliament are well paid and that’s why we need to work hard,” Andrews said.

It’s the last time MP pay will automatically increase in line with wage inflation as calculated by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, since the government has overhauled the system to an independent remuneration tribunal.

But some Mps, including special Minister of state Gavin Jennings, who was in charge of pushing through the pay reforms, say they were unaware of next month’s boost.

“In relation to what’s already locked in in existing arrangements, to be perfectly honest I haven’t actually concentrated on that matter at all,” Jennings said.

“In the future, Mps won’t be determining when they get their pay rise or the circumstances of their pay rise. The tribunal will do that and I think that’s an important reform.”

Opposition Leader Michael O’Brien, who will take home more than $300,000 a year, said he was also unaware of the situation until the media reports.

“I didn’t even know it until I read it in the paper,” he said.“Labor’s now brought in a new system where it’ll be set by an

independent tribunal and we’ll see how that goes, if it leads to big pay rises I suppose daniel Andrews will need to explain why he changed the system.” ■

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JUNE 18 (GMT) – JUNE 19 (AEST), 2019

WORLD

Mountaineers receive initial treatment following a rescue. - Ap

Pakistani army saves six climbersA Pakistani army helicopter has rescued four Italian and two Pakistani climbers stranded at an altitude of around 5300m (17,390 feet) in the country’s north, after an avalanche struck the team the previous day, a mountaineering worker said. A Pakistani member of the team was killed.

The expedition was hit while descending a peak in the Ishkoman Valley, located in the northern district of Ghizar.

Karrar Haidri, head of pakistan’s Alpine Club, said the six surviving climbers were taken to a hospital in the nearby town of Gilgit for the treatment of injuries.

“sadly, one pakistani mountaineer was killed, but six other members of the expedition are being treated at a hospital,” he said.

“A pakistan army helicopter was used for this complicated but successful rescue operation, despite the fact that the stranded mountaineers were present at an altitude of around 5300m,” he added.

Ashraf Aman, a pakistani tour operator who arranged the expedition, confirmed that pakistan’s military had dispatched the helicopter to rescue the climbers.

He said the body of the pakistani mountaineer, Mohammad Imtiaz, would be brought down later.

Aman said none of the surviving team had life-threatening injuries. ■

Egypt’s ousted Islamist president Mohammed Morsi. - Ap

WORLD

Morsi buried after courtroom deathEgypt’s first democratically elected president, Islamist leader Mohammed Morsi, has been buried under heavy security, a day after his dramatic collapse and death inside a Cairo courtroom, a member of his defence team said.

Morsi’s family attended funeral prayers in the mosque of Cairo’s Tora prison, followed by the burial at a cemetery in the city’s eastern district of Nasr City, said Abdul-Moneim Abdel-Maqsoud, a member of Morsi’s defence team.

Morsi’s son, Ahmed, said security agencies refused to allow Morsi to be buried at the family’s cemetery in his hometown in Sharqia province, and instead had him interred at a cemetery dedicated to prominent Islamists in Cairo.

security agents turned reporters away from the cemetery, banning them from taking photographs of the funeral. reporters were also barred from traveling to Morsi’s hometown.

Morsi, 67, hailed from Egypt’s largest Islamist group, the now outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, and was elected president in 2012 in the country’s first free elections following the ouster the year before of longtime autocratic leader Hosni Mubarak.

The military toppled Morsi in 2013 after massive protests and crushed the Brotherhood in a major crackdown, arresting Morsi and many others of the group’s leaders.

During his years in prison, Morsi, who was known to have diabetes, was often held in solitary confinement and was largely barred from receiving visitors. His family was only allowed to visit three times. While in detention, Morsi continued to appear in court on a range of charges.

In early court sessions he gave angry speeches until judges ordered him kept in a glass cage where they could turn off his audio. Morsi’s Brotherhood accused the government of “assassinating” him through years of poor prison conditions. The group demanded an international investigation into Morsi’s death and called on Egyptians to protest outside Egyptian embassies across the world. ■

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JUNE 18 (GMT) – JUNE 19 (AEST), 2019

UK

Britain braces for more thunderstorms, rainMore weather warnings have been put in place as thunderstorms, torrential rain and flooding look set to batter parts of the Uk again.

The Met Office has issued a yellow warning for the south East, East Anglia, the East Midlands and some of the North East as strong winds and lightning strikes are also expected.

Forecasters have said the storms and floods could cause power cuts, train and bus delays and disruption for drivers.

The warning states: “Thunderstorms may develop, bringing torrential rain, hail and lightning to a few places, with potential disruption to travel and flooding.

“There is a small chance that homes and businesses could be flooded quickly, with damage to some buildings from floodwater, lightning strikes, hail or strong winds.

“Where flooding or lightning strikes occur, there is a chance of delays and some cancellations to train and bus services.”

The Met Office warning adds: “spray and sudden flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and some road closures.

“There is a slight chance that power cuts could occur and other services to some homes and businesses could be lost.”

some flood-hit communities, such as Wainfleet in Lincolnshire, look set to face further damage, despite having already seen around 225 Olympic-sized swimming pools’ worth of water pumped out to sea.

Lincolnshire Police said almost 600 homes remain evacuated as the clean-up operation continues, while around 350 tonnes of sand and ballast were dropped in the area by rAF Chinook helicopters over the weekend.

despite the predicted rainfall in Wainfleet, the Environment Agency said it is “ready to act as needed” if more flooding hits the town. ■

UK

Number of new home builds jumpThe number of new house builds started has increased to a nine-year high, according to figures from Homes England.

Between April 1, 2018 and March 31, 2019, there were 45,692 new houses started on site under programmes managed by Homes England – the highest level of starts for nine years.

some 40,289 houses across England were completed – the highest for four years.

Two-thirds (67 per cent) or 30,563 of the starts on site were for affordable homes – a 10 per cent increase on the previous year.

But Labour pointed to figures showing the number of housing completions for social rent in 2018-19 stood at 961.

John Healey, Labour’s shadow housing secretary, said: “deep cuts to investment mean the country is now building 30,000 fewer social rented homes each year than we were when Labour was in government.”

The figures also show 28,710 (71 per cent) of housing completions in 2018-19 were for affordable homes, which is an 11 per cent annual increase and the highest numbers for four years.

Homes England is a public body supported by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, with responsibility for increasing the number of new homes built.

Nick Walkley, chief executive of Homes England, said: “At a time where the average house costs around eight times the average income, these are positive signs that the delivery of homes, and particularly affordable homes, is on the up.

“However, there is still a huge amount of work to do to make sure this trend continues.

“We’re just getting started and need the sector to join us in our mission to make sure we continue to deliver homes across the country for the people who need them the most.” ■

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JUNE 18 (GMT) – JUNE 19 (AEST), 2019

Sick animals sent to meat worksHundreds of cows, calves and sheep are being sent to meatworks in an injured, diseased or pregnant state, violating new animal welfare rules and prompting instant fines.

Legislation brought in last October allows the Ministry for primary Industries to fine farmers and transport providers for low-level animal offending rather than having to go through a full prosecution process.

Cattle with cancer in their eyes, sheep with ingrown horns digging into their faces, cows giving birth in slaughter house pens, lameness in animals and mastitis are among the 431 offences vets have spotted at meatworks over the past eight months.

The breaches now result in instant $500 fines which MpI’s acting compliance manager Gary Orr said saved prosecution processes and dealt with them quickly.

“All of these things are either preventable, as in the case with pregnant cows, or treatable, and as such none of those animals should be put on the truck until they’re treated or can be euthanised on the farm if they’re untreatable,” he said.

Orr said in most cases the animals were suffering during the sometimes long trips to the meatworks.

“don’t extend the suffering by putting the animal on a truck and having it travel for extended periods of time. If it’s so sick that it should be put down then you don’t do it through the works, you should do it through the farm.”

Orr said in the scheme of things the numbers were very small – with nearly two million bobby calves sent to the works last year there were fines relating to 228 beef cattle offences, 98 dairy cattle offences, 35 offences for calves and 57 for sheep. ■

NEW ZEALAND

Care system fails elderly in remote areasThe primary health care system is failing older Australians in remote areas where services are deficient, Royal Flying Doctor Service chief executive Martin Laverty says.

Dr Laverty told the aged care royal commission in Broome that people in remote areas used Medicare at one-fifth of the rate of metropolitan residents and had much higher rates of avoidable hospital admissions.

This reflected poor access to health professionals, he said.“The longer you are able to maintain your health through

access to adequate primary care, the longer you are likely to avoid the necessity of access to the formal aged care setting.

“We are letting older Australians down by a failure of the primary medical care system in remote Australia.

“The commission has an opportunity to articulate a reasonable standard. It then requires resourcing.”

While the rFds is focused on emergency healthcare, it has responded to requests by aged care service providers to help with dental care, with a trial underway in Victoria’s Mallee district.

“There is an absence of awareness among the care staff to the importance of oral health,” dr Laverty said.

“Anecdotally we’re being told there isn’t the time within the workload of some care staff to be able to bush teeth, to support brushing teeth.”

Providing health services in remote communities is not easy, with challenges including travelling vast distances and the northern wet season causing extreme flooding. ■

AUSTRALIA