Qlders may never see asset sale studies

QUEENSLANDERS may never see scoping studies into the sale of public assets, the state treasurer says.

Tim Nicholls says the government has already received some of the studies, but warns they are very complex documents that contain a substantial amount of confidential information.

"We'll consider those scoping studies, they could have confidential information that would lead them to not being able to be released, particularly if the government tried to get the maximum value for things that it does own," he told reporters in Townsville.

The treasurer wouldn't commit to showing Queenslanders the documents.

"What we'll be bringing to Queenslanders is the information that is necessary in order to be able to make a decision around which way to go," Mr Nicholls said.

"I've never said those scoping studies will be released. I've always said we will conduct those scoping studies, they will be considered by government, they will contain confidential information."

The previous Labor government also refused to release scoping studies when it undertook unpopular asset sales in 2009-10.

Mr Nicholls says Queenslanders have three choices to increase revenue: increased taxes and charges, reduced services or the sale of assets.

The government has always said it won't proceed with any sales without an election mandate.

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World Vision to employ married gays

WORLD Vision, the international Christian-based aid organisation, has made a surprise announcement on one of the most divisive social issues of the day, saying it will employ Christians in the US who are in legal same-sex marriages.

Calling gay marriage one of the stormiest issues that has divided denominations, congregations and families, the humanitarian group's President Richard Stearns said leaders wanted to prevent it from "tearing World Vision apart and potentially crippling our ability to accomplish our vital kingdom mission of loving and serving the poorest of the poor in the name of Christ".

The company said its employee-conduct policy had been updated to reflect the change, which came more than a year after a majority of Washingtonians voted to legalise same-sex marriages, now legal in 17 states and the District of Columbia.

The decision, first announced on the website Christianity Today, followed years of prayer and discussion by the board, Mr Stearns said in letter to employees, and added that it in no way suggests an endorsement of same-sex marriage.

World Vision continues to affirm "traditional" marriage as a God-ordained institution, Mr Stearns wrote, but added that leaders also recognised that many of the 50-plus denominations his employees were part of had sanctioned same-sex marriage in recent years.

He said he was not bowing to outside lobbying or any concerns about government funding, but on this divisive issue was choosing to defer to "the authority of local churches" that had been struggling with the matter for some time.

"I want to reassure you that we are not sliding down some slippery slope of compromise, nor are we diminishing the authority of Scripture in our work," Mr Stearns wrote.

With more than $US1 billion ($A1.10 billion) in revenue, World Vision is the largest global Christian relief organisation, with more than 40,000 employees in 100 countries, including about 1,200 in the US.

More than 15 per cent of its employees worldwide were not Christian, though all its US employees were, and were required upon employment to sign a statement of faith affirming that they believed in the deity of Jesus Christ and the Trinity.

Stearns said the organisation would continue to require all employees sign the statement and would continue to expect them to observe abstinence before marriage and fidelity within marriage.

The announcement comes as gay-rights advocates across the country continue to gain substantial ground on same-sex marriage and as religious organisations struggle with how to reconcile the apparent conflict with their teachings.

Fourteen federal courts have struck down anti-gay-marriage laws since the US Supreme Court last year ruled that federal agencies could deny benefits to people in same-sex unions.

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Aust youth unemployment is rising

TURNED away by business after business across Melbourne, Chris Saunders is one of the growing number of young Australians who can't find work.

Parts of Australia have experienced youth unemployment rises of up to 88 per cent in two years, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics data analysed by the Brotherhood of St Laurence.

In the northern Queensland city of Cairns, one in five adolescent job-seekers can't find employment.

Communities in west and northwest Tasmania and outback Northern Territory are also experiencing similar figures.

For 24-year-old job-seeker Saunders, the hardest part isn't putting in the effort, it's getting a foot in the door.

"I've handed out dozens of resumes but it's usually the same response: 'sorry, we're not hiring'," Mr Saunders told AAP.

Youth unemployment is projected to affect nearly half of all young Australians in Cairns by 2016, the Brotherhood of St Laurence said.

One in three young job-seekers in outback Western Australia and Northern Territory will also be out of work, it said.

Brotherhood of St Laurence executive director Tony Nicholson said the data proves youth unemployment is not only at crisis point, but is continuing to grow at an alarming rate.

"Australia is facing a generational crisis," Mr Nicholson said on Monday.

"For young people caught up in this jobless spiral, this can be a road to long-term poverty and reliance on welfare."

The Brotherhood called on the federal government to implement a plan to aid the transition of young Australians from school to the workplace.

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Labor says it has a mandate in SA

RETURNED South Australian Labor Premier Jay Weatherill has rejected suggestions his government is "illegitimate".

Mr Weatherill will lead Labor into a fourth consecutive term after independent MP Geoff Brock agreed to support the party to form a minority administration.

That provided Labor the 24 votes it needs in the state's House of Assembly after the March 15 election delivered a hung parliament.

The premier said Labor had a mandate to govern because it won more seats than the Liberal opposition.

"We've formed a majority of seats on the floor of the House of Assembly which is the way governments are made and unmade," he told ABC radio on Monday.

"We've secured more seats than the Liberal Party, which is the contest."

However, both state Opposition Leader Steven Marshall and federal Education Minister Christopher Pyne have questioned the legitimacy of Labor continuing in office after the Liberals clearly won the popular vote.

Mr Pyne said the result showed that the state's electorate boundaries were drafted in such a way that Labor could win with just 47 per cent of the two-party vote.

"That needs to be closely looked at," he said.

"Jay Weatherill's government is an illegitimate government."

Mr Marshall said he was disappointed at Mr Brock's decision which he believed was not in the best interests of South Australia.

He said the decision might bring short-term stability but would end up delivering long-term disaster for the state.

"I think this is a death wish for South Australia," he said.

But Mr Brock reaffirmed that he made his decision to prevent South Australia returning to the polls or operating with a caretaker government for the next few months until it was clear who fellow independent Bob Such would support.

Dr Such is in hospital ahead of surgery this week and is expected to be away from parliament for at least the next two months.

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NSW urged to get flu-ready

PREGNANT women and the elderly are being urged to prepare for winter and get a flu shot following an "unusually high" level of influenza in NSW this summer.

The Director of Health Protection NSW, Dr Jeremy McAnulty, said the northern hemisphere had experienced widespread influenza over the past months, with influenza A(H1N1) pandemic strain, A(H3N2) and influenza B circulating to different extents in different countries.

An unusually high level of influenza had also been seen in NSW over summer, he said.

He and other health professionals are now urging people, especially the elderly and pregnant women, to prepare for winter.

"The Australian flu vaccine has been updated to more closely match the influenza strains likely to circulate in NSW this year.

"So get a shot in preparation for this season," Dr McAnulty said on Sunday.

He said the seasonal flu shot continues to be the best defence for pregnant women and has the added advantage of protecting babies during their first six months when they are too young to have the vaccine.

NSW Health Minister Jillian Skinner said the government's Be Winter Wise campaign, launched on Sunday, was focusing on pregnant women, the elderly and people with chronic medical conditions.

"Although we are still experiencing warm weather, people should not be complacent when it comes to the dangers of the flu," she said in a statement.

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One-punch killers to face life in Qld

One-punch killers will face life imprisonment under proposed changes to Queensland laws. Source: AAP

ONE-PUNCH killers would face life imprisonment under proposed changes to Queensland laws.

The Newman government's draft plan to tackle alcohol-related and drug-related violence, released on Sunday, would create an offence - unlawful striking causing death - to deal with one-punch killers.

If convicted, defendants would be required to serve at least 80 per cent of their life sentence behind bars before being eligible for parole.

"We have all seen the devastating and often tragic effects of coward punches not just in our state but across the nation," Premier Campbell Newman said in a statement.

"The Queensland government is determined to counter this dangerous trend and make Queensland the safest place in Australia for people to go out and enjoy themselves."

Under the plan, the maximum penalty for aggravated serious assaults on ambulance officers would rise from seven to 14 years' imprisonment.

Drunkenness would no longer be a viable excuse to mitigate an offender's sentence and courts would have the power to ban people from licensed premises for life.

ID would be installed in all licensed venues trading after midnight to keep out problem patrons and banned people.

The government would also set up 15 "safe night precincts" across the state where there would be late-night lockouts and more police on the beat.

Police would be given the power to detain people for their own safety if they were unduly intoxicated and at risk of serious harm, or behaving in a potentially violent or antisocial manner.

The government would also introduce a compulsory drinking awareness plan for all students between years 7-12 as part of the school curriculum.

The public has been asked to comment on the draft policy before April 21.

The opposition called on the Newman government to introduce a blanket 1am lockout across the state.

"If you don't tackle trading hours you don't tackle alcohol-fuelled violence. It's that simple," Opposition Leader Annastacia Palaszczuk said in a statement.

"Unfortunately we have a premier too scared to act and showing no leadership."

Opposition police spokesman Bill Byrne questioned whether the government had failed to introduce a lockout because it was beholden to vested interests.

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Lufthansa pilots to strike

Lufthansa pilots have overwhelmingly voted to go on strike for better pay and conditions. Source: AAP

AN overwhelming 97 per cent of Lufthansa pilots have voted to go on strike for higher pay and better benefits, their union says, after counting ballots.

Major travel disruptions are expected in the coming weeks on Lufthansa flights and the company's budget airline, Germanwings, but no date for the stoppages has yet been set by the so-called Cockpit Union (VC).

The union will announce any stoppage 48 hours in advance, union spokeswoman Ilona Ritter said on Friday at Frankfurt international airport, where Lufthansa has its headquarters.

She said that VC would exempt the busy April 11-21 Easter vacation from strikes, provided Lufthansa was not "aggressive" towards the union.

The strikes will not affect Lufthansa's subsidiaries Swiss and Austrian Airlines, which have separate labour contracts.

The airline group, which is Europe's biggest, is in on a drive to cut labour costs so it can compete with Gulf-based long-haul carriers and a raft of cheap and cheerful carriers on European routes.

Lufthansa urged the union to resume negotiations, but said it had no concessions to make.

The group's 5400 pilots are demanding pay hikes and a revival of a deal that allowed them to retire at 55 with up to 60 per cent of their last pay. Currently, the average pilot's retirement age is 59.

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Reasonable chance of finding plane: RAAF

Three planes have left Perth to continue the search for a missing Malaysia Airlines plane. Source: AAP

THERE is a reasonable chance of finding something in the Indian Ocean in the search for the missing Malaysian Airline plane MH370, Royal Australian Air Force group captain Craig Heap says.

Acting Prime Minister Warren Truss said from Perth's north on Saturday afternoon the Australian search effort had so far covered some 500,000 square kilometres.

There had been no finds of note since some large debris was defined last week, he told a large international media contingent at the RAAF Pearce air base.

Mr Truss said there had already been 15 sorties from the base, mainly Australian and New Zealand Orion aircraft.

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New laws for farm, mine disputes in Qld

RESOURCE companies will no longer be able to use court action to railroad Queensland farmers under new state laws.

Under the old system, if landholders and resource firms couldn't strike a compensation and land access deal within 40 days, the company could take the farmer to the Land Court.

Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney says the threat of costly court proceedings had been used by companies in the past as leverage over landholders.

But under new laws passed by parliament on Thursday, resource firms will have to apply for a development approval with the state government if negotiations with farmers fail.

Mr Seeney says, if a project is approved or knocked back, both parties have the right to appeal in the Planning and Environment Court.

"I have watched for years as rural producers felt threatened, resource companies felt constrained and local councils were caught in the crossfire of disputes that needn't have happened," the deputy premier said in a statement.

The Queensland Farmers Federation says the new rules put land owners at the forefront of decision making about projects on their land.

"It begins to address the power imbalance between farmers and resource proponents and quite rightly prioritises agricultural activity on what is a finite and critical resource for Queensland," chief executive officer Dan Galligan said.

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Vic kindy kidnapper jailed for bashing

SERAFETTIN Huseyin once kidnapped a group of terrified kindergarten kids and doused them in petrol to highlight his wife's medical compensation battle over the birth of their son.

More than two decades on, it was a belief that his wife misled him about the timing of that pregnancy that led Huseyin to bash her with a hatchet in an attempt to permanently disfigure her.

In an attack described by a judge as "cold, calculated and premeditated", Huseyin struck his sleeping wife with the butt of a heavy steel hatchet at least three times in their Dandenong home in November 2012.

Huseyin, who was found guilty by a jury of intentionally causing serious injury, was jailed on Friday for nine-and-a-half years and must serve at least seven years before being eligible for parole.

The now 62-year-old had planned the attack for nine months, believing his wife had misled him about the timing of, and reason for, her pregnancy, which resulted in the birth of their son more than 30 years earlier.

It was that birth, he believed, that caused his wife health problems, caused the compensation battle and led to him kidnapping four children at a Hawthorn kindergarten in 1989.

Huseyin served 14 years in jail for the kidnapping.

Sentencing him on Friday, Victorian County Court Judge Frank Saccardo said both crimes involved Huseyin using extreme and violent measures to bring attention to what Huseyin believed was a wrong done to him.

"In that sense, it is clear that you have little regard for the rights and safety of members of the public or your family," he said.

Judge Saccardo said the crime was cowardly and committed against a defenceless woman.

The attack was interrupted by the couple's son, just as Huseyin had the hatchet above his wife's head to deliver another blow.

The attack left Huseyin's wife with a fractured cheekbone and wounds to the back of her head.

Judge Saccardo said Huseyin had shown no remorse for his crime and had refused to undergo a psychological assessment.

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