AAP National News Wire Round-Up for Evening, Feb 14

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AAP National News Wire Round-Up for Evening, Feb 14EVENING ROUND-UP: HIGHLIGHTS OF THE AAP RTV FILE AT 1630

BOAT PARLY (CANBERRA)

The opposition has moved to censure Prime Minister JOHN HOWARD over his role in thechildren overboard scandal, accusing him of covering up the truth in the matter.

Opposition Leader SIMON CREAN moved that Mr HOWARD be censured for not ensuring keyelements of the ministerial code of responsibility were upheld in the period leading upto the federal election last year.

Mr CREAN says it is a sad day for the parliament, for Australians and the prime minister,because he abused the trust of people, and the government lied, spied and denied.

A report revealed yesterday that the government knew no children had been thrown overboardfrom the boat for a full month before the federal poll.

But Mr HOWARD insists he was not told by his department before last year's electionthat claims asylum seekers threw children overboard were wrong.

And Senior Liberal minister TONY ABBOTT says the government acted on advice from theDepartment of Defence.

Defence Minister ROBERT HILL also says there is no doubt Mr HOWARD believed that asylumseekers threw children overboard when he made the claims.

Meanwhile, a survey of workplaces in New South Wales shows unionists are key supportersof the federal government's handling of asylum seekers.

And independent MP TONY WINDSOR says the federal coalition's election win has beentarnished by its false claims over the refugee children issue.

SPY MUA (CANBERRA)

The Maritime Union of Australia says it will lodge a formal complaint against the federalgovernment over allegations that the government spied on its communications with the MVTampa.

National secretary PADDY CRUMLIN says the government has not been able to justify its actions.

The Defence Signals Directorate is alleged to have provided the government with transcriptsof conversations on the Norwegian ship MS Tampa during the asylum seeker crisis last year.

The ship rescued hundreds of asylum seekers from a sinking boat near Christmas Island.

UNFAIR ABBOTT (CANBERRA)

Workplace Relations Minister TONY ABBOTT says Labor had been prepared to ease its oppositionto unfair dismissal laws in the Senate but has been stymied by the ACTU.

The government yesterday introduced yet another bill seeking to exempt small businessemployees from unfair dismissal laws.

But it seems certain to be thwarted again by Labor and the Australian Democrats in the Senate.

Mr ABBOTT says Labor hasn't put any alternative proposals to him, but he says he believesROBERT MCCLELLAND, the new opposition workplace relations spokesman, has been rolled onthe issue in caucus.

JOBS ABBOTT (CANBERRA)

Meanwhile, Mr ABBOTT says there is growing evidence that labour market conditions willimprove in the first half of this year.

New figures show the jobless rate rose to seven per cent in January despite the creationof more than 100,000 new jobs.

But Mr ABBOTT says there are encouraging signs of a pickup in job vacancies.

BUDGET SLIPPER (CANBERRA)

The government has sought parliamentary approval for more than $800 million in newspending, enough to put the Budget into deficit.

The measures were contained in an Appropriations Bill requesting an extra $2.57 billionto meet new demands on the 2001/02 Budget.

Parliamentary Secretary to Finance Minister, PETER SLIPPER, says an extra $351 millionwill be allocated to the defence department and $145 million for the immigration department.

FROGGY (SYDNEY)

A group of people connected with a failed investment scheme run by Froggy.com bossKARL SULEMAN have had their assets frozen.

A spokesman for liquidators Horwath Accountants, PAUL WESTON, says seven people whoacted as agents for the scheme have been served Supreme Court orders that freeze theirassets worldwide.

Mr WESTON says three of those have already fled overseas.

TERROR LINDH (ALEXANDRIA)

JOHN WALKER LINDH has pleaded NOT guilty to conspiring to kill Americans but was laterdenounced as a traitor by the family of a slain CIA officer who had questioned him inAfghanistan.

Outside the court, the CIA officer's widow said LINDH should be sentenced to death.

Meanwhile, British terrorism experts believe many al-Qaeda fighters have escaped fromAfghanistan and are regrouping in the Middle East to prepare more attacks.

And US law enforcement authorities warn of a possible Valentine's Day Teddy Bear bomb threat.

The FBI says a man, possibly of Arab descent, has bought 14 gas canisters, 12 packagesof lead gun pellets and nine white Valentine teddy bears in California.

YUGO MILOSEVIC (THE HAGUE)

SLOBODAN MILOSEVIC's bitter showdown with the war crimes tribunal will begin in earnestwhen he takes centre stage to defend himself against charges of genocide and ethnic slaughter.

The former Yugoslav president will formally open his defence at The Hague, today.

Overnight, he tore into the court's justice process and accused the UN tribunal ofhaving already decided on his guilt.

BALDWIN (CANBERRA)

After a three-year absence from federal politics, Liberal MP BOB BALDWIN has walkedinto parliament calling for state governments and the Senate to be ditched.

He admits it's a radical plan, but one which would save duplication and waste across the nation.

The member for Paterson and former Port Stephens counsellor reclaimed the Hunter Valleyseat from Labor's BOB HORNE at last year's election.

CARDS (CANBERRA)

MasterCard International says the Reserve Bank's proposed changes to the credit cardsystem are drastic and would drive up costs for consumers.

Credit card issuers like MasterCard will be big losers if the RBA succeeds in openingup the $3 billion credit card industry to more competition and reforming fees and charges.

MasterCard's Asia-Pacific president ANDRE SEKULIC says the RBA's ill-advised coursewill only benefit large retailers.

SHOOTING (SYDNEY)

Police say a man carrying a high powered rifle was filmed on video running into a Sydneycinema complex where a teenage boy was shot dead last Thursday.

USERPH RIMA, a panelbeater from Hinchinbrook in the city's southwest, died after beingshot in the chest in the foyer of the cinema complex around 11pm (AEDT) last Thursday.

A spokesman says the security camera footage from outside the western Sydney cinemaalso shows the man fleeing from the scene at the Westfield complex in Liverpool.

It also shows a red Toyota Camry and an Asian-looking man wearing a white t-shirt signallingthe gunman.

AND BRIEFLY . . .

The federal government has moved to plug a funding gap threatening the education ofalmost 5,000 students and created by its controversial cost formula for secondary schools.

Three Melbourne men accused of killing 34-year-old EDWARD JOSEPH GUTKOWSKI and thenchopping his body into pieces will stand trial for murder in the Supreme Court.

The developer of an Australian-designed artificial heart pump says it'll be testedon patients for the first time within weeks.

A British daily reports the 101-year-old QUEEN MOTHER is too ill to eat after an accidentat home but remains determined to attend her daughter's funeral.

And, as it is Valentine's day, it's been revealed an 82-year-old American ex-servicemanis searching for the Australian woman who stole his heart during World War Two.

AND IN SPORT . . .

CRICKET AUST (SYDNEY)

SHANE WARNE and RICKY PONTING have put their hands up for the newly vacant positionof Australian one-day cricket captain.

Legspinner WARNE and batsman PONTING both say they would be honoured to step into thejob made available after STEVE WAUGH's axing from the one-day squad.

But WAUGH says his determination to get back into the limited overs side has been inspiredby stricken Winter Olympian JACQUI COOPER's refusal to give up.

OLY AUST (SALT LAKE CITY)

The Australian men's short-track relay team has narrowly missed a berth in the Olympicfinal after a typically rough and tumble semifinal in Salt Lake City.

In better news, Australians STEVEN BRADBURY and MARK McNEE both qualified for the quarterfinalsof the 1,000m, while skiers AJ BEAR and CRAIG BRANCH were disqualified in the alpine combinedevent.

LEAGUE BRONCOS (SYDNEY)

ALLAN LANGER has not ruled out a return to State of Origin football after being giventhe green light to return to the National Rugby League with the Brisbane Broncos.

ENDS EVENING ROUND-UP

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KEYWORD: EVENING ROUND-UP