Three workers killed in NZ tornado

THREE people are dead, seven are in hospital and about 150 houses are so badly damaged they are uninhabitable after a tornado cut a swathe through west Auckland shortly after midday.

Two people were killed when concrete slab landed on a truck on St Georges Road in Hobsonville, a Fire Service communications spokesman told AAP.

Civil Defence says three people have been confirmed dead, but Superintendent Bill Searle told media two were dead and they held grave concerns for another construction worker at the site where a new high school is being built.

The site was still being cleared of debris, he said.

"It's early on in the investigation and we need to make sure we get all the facts straight before we release any information (on the two deceased and missing person)."

The death toll equals the previous worst tornado, which killed three people in Hamilton in 1948 and wrecked 150 houses.

Supt Searle said the tornado trapped a small number of people in their homes, but they had since been evacuated.

Police had been knocking on doors in the area and all residents had been accounted for, he said.

Families from up to 150 damaged homes - most home to Defence Force personnel - were evacuated and most of them will be housed at the Whenuapai Air Base.

"[It was] like a knife through butter for some of those trees," said mayor Len Brown. "A powerful tornado, devastating. Trees uprooted. Clearly a major weather event."

He said it was a "real disaster and tragedy for those families and for those that are in hospital and to the families who have been made homeless".

Power has been cut to around 400 customers in the Hobsonville-Whenuapai area after trees fell on lines.

Shaken construction worker Sam Nuthall, who was working at the school site, was forced to shelter between a block wall and a truck.

"You couldn't see it coming... there was debris flying everywhere, steel getting thrown around," he told Radio New Zealand.

A Whenuapai resident Suzanne McFadden told 3News it was "five minutes of utter devastation".

"It got very muggy, very still. Suddenly the sky went very, very black, almost like night, and a huge wind came across the river.

"It ripped century-old pine trees out of the ground, it's taken roofs off houses, it's crushed cars and boats.

"The main street of our village looks like a bomb's gone off and we're all very aware that it could turn around and another one could strike," she said.

Police have set up an operations base at Whenuapai and are advising motorists to be wary of flooding and drive to the conditions.

Some flights in and out of Auckland Airport were delayed or cancelled.

The weather front moved south to Bay of Plenty where another tornado touched down about 3.20pm at Hamurana injuring one person.

Trees and power lines were downed and roofs lifted in the town on the northern shore of Lake Rotorua about 17km from Rotorua.

Fire Service shift manager Colin Underdown said it also caused some children to be evacuated from Mokoia Intermediate, and an ambulance had to collect one person who was "thrown around by the tornado".

In May last year, a construction worker in Albany was killed when a tornado struck.

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Qld jobless rate drops

QUEENSLAND'S treasurer says a drop in the state's unemployment rate is a good sign but admits monthly figures are "volatile."

The state's seasonally adjusted jobless rate fell from 6.1 to 6.0 per cent in November, Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show.

Treasurer Tim Nicholls says more than 27,000 jobs were created in the state last month, including 9000 full-time positions.

He said there were an extra 5500 plus people with a job than when the Newman government came into power.

"These figures are volatile," he told reporters.

"They do jump around from month to month.

"I think at this time of the year we are seeing a return to positive activity."

He said it was also a sign the government's red-tape and cost of living reductions were restoring confidence in the economy.

Queensland opposition treasury spokesman Curtis Pitt says the figures don't look as good when compared to the "bus-loads" of people who end up on the unemployment queue, with about 60 people a day losing their jobs.

He's doubtful the government will meet its four per cent unemployment target over six years.

"We have seen an average of 24 jobs per day created under the LNP," Mr Pitt told AAP.

"That is a long way off the more than 190 jobs per day that is required to meet the 420,000 job target the premier has set."

Mr Nicholls said the government was focussed on meeting its target.

The government has a budget plan to slash 14,000 public service positions with the latest job cuts happening at the Royal Children's Hospital.

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SA premier seeks lower power prices

SA's premier says his government will do "what it takes" to drive down electricity prices. Source: AAP

THE South Australian government will do "what it takes" to drive down electricity prices, Premier Jay Weatherill says.

Mr Weatherill has backed the actions of the state's energy regulator as electricity retailer AGL Energy seeks to challenge an interim price ruling by the Essential Services Commission of South Australia (ESCOSA).

ESCOSA has determined that businesses and households on AGL's price regulated standing contract should get an eight per cent cut in 2013, worth about $160 to the average household.

AGL has taken the issue to the SA Supreme Court arguing that ESCOSA has wrongly exercised its power under the legislation to review prices due to special circumstances.

Mr Weatherill said the state government would watch the outcome of the court case and would review its legal options.

But he said the government's priority was to ensure South Australians paid the lowest possible prices for power.

"Obviously we want a functioning electricity market and we want people to be able to participate in that successfully," Mr Weatherill told reporters on Wednesday.

"But beyond that I want the lowest possible prices for South Australian energy consumers.

"We'll do what it takes to drive those prices down."

AGL's court action on power prices comes ahead of a final price determination by ESCOSA on December 14 and could delay that final ruling.

In its fiscal 2013 earnings guidance AGL Energy said adverse regulatory pricing decisions in Queensland and South Australia would reduce underlying profit by approximately $45 million.

When ESCOSA ruled on the price cut in October Mr Weatherill called on all electricity retailers to pass on the savings to their customers, even though many businesses and households operated on market contracts not subject to the same regulation.

"It's something they can do, it's something they should do and it's something that I demand of them," Mr Weatherill said at the time.

On Wednesday, the premier again called on energy retailers to do the right thing by consumers and also backed the work of the regulator.

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HSBC to sell stake in China insurer

HSBC will sell its 15.57 per cent holding in Chinese life insurer Ping An for $A9.01 billion. Source: AAP

BRITAIN'S HSBC says it will sell its stake in China's second largest life insurer Ping An for $US9.4 billion ($A9.01 billion), as it looks to shift its focus back towards its traditional banking business.

The lender said in a statement it will sell its entire 15.57 per cent holding in Ping An Insurance Group to Thai conglomerate Charoen Pokphand Group at HK$59 ($US7.66) a share, a two per cent premium to its Tuesday closing price.

Ping An recently hit the headlines after the New York Times said last month that relatives of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao had gained from its Hong Kong listing in 2004 by buying stock at a discount before the sale.

Ping An has denied those claims and threatened legal action against the US newspaper.

HSBC Group Chief Executive Stuart Gulliver said in the statement the Ping An sale would benefit shareholders, but added that China remained "a key market for the group".

He said the firm would "strengthen our focus on growing our own operations and building on our long-term strategic banking partnership with the Bank of Communications", China's fifth largest lender, in which HSBC has a 19 per cent stake.

The bank has been selling non-core assets as part of a broad restructuring plan designed to boost profitability.

"They can unload their non-core assets and resources to refocus on their main business, which is banking," Tanrich Securities Vice President Jackson Wong told AFP.

London-listed HSBC is also setting aside hundreds of millions of dollars as provision for fines related to possible criminal charges over money-laundering allegations in the United States.

Shares in Ping An climbed after the announcement. It was up 2.25 per cent at HK$58.95 in Hong Kong on Wednesday morning, while it rose 2.7 per cent to 38.38 yuan in Shanghai.

Last month the New York Times reported the chairman of Ping An wrote in 1999 to Wen, who was vice-premier at the time, and met his wife as the government considered a decision on whether to split up the company.

After the lobbying, it said, the government granted Ping An a waiver from a requirement that large financial companies be broken up.

Following the decision an investment vehicle - later controlled by relatives of Wen - bought shares in Ping An at a significant discount, long before most other investors could buy into it, the report said.

Ping An said of the report that "recent media coverage related to the company" contained "serious inaccuracies, facts being distorted and taken out of context, as well as flawed logic".

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Kids with disability abused more: study

DISABLED children are more than three times as likely as able-bodied children to be abused or neglected, a new report says.

The Children with Disability Australia policy paper released in Sydney on Tuesday says many abuse cases border on criminality and many go unreported because the victims were less likely to complain.

Report author Sally Robinson, from Southern Cross University, said the abuse ranged from extreme physical assaults to children being locked in rooms without windows.

There were also cases of children being pinned down by teachers trained in behaviour management by martial arts practitioners rather than behaviour management specialists, she said.

Such abuse was often swept aside and sometimes poorly recognised by people in positions to take action against it.

Reasons for under-reporting included lack of support to make a complaint, children not having the language skills to name the harm they underwent and intimidation and fear.

Dr Robinson said the vast majority of people who worked with disabled children were skilled, committed and well-intentioned.

"However, the fact remains that we know that kids with disabilities experience abuse and neglect at over three times the rate that children without disability do," she said.

The federal government's National Disability Insurance Scheme may provide an important safety net, giving people the resources they needed to overcome barriers stopping them from participating in society, Dr Robinson said.

The report recommended the government establish an independent statutory authority charged with protecting disabled children and investigating exploitation, violence and abuse.

Receiving the report on Tuesday, federal parliamentary secretary for disabilities Jan McLucas said it would help governments and the community sector prevent such abuse.

She said the report underscored the importance of the federal government's work in removing barriers for people with disabilities.

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National tour for Seekers' golden jubilee

Australian folk-rock band The Seekers will tour the country next year to mark their golden jubilee. Source: AAP

SIR Cliff Richard, The Wiggles and the Queen were among those who sent their best wishes to one of Australia's most successful exports, rock group The Seekers, for their 50th anniversary.

Half a century after they first performed in Prahran club The Treble Clef, the quartet gathered at Melbourne's Harmer Hall on Tuesday to announce a national tour next year to mark their golden jubilee.

"We're privileged, we know that," Athol Guy told guests gathered at Hamer Hall.

"Not only can we do our 50th, but also maybe our 60th and 70th too."

The Seekers found international fame as a wholesome folk rock group in the '60s with hits such as Georgie Girl.

The 50th anniversary album has already begun climbing the charts, debuting this week at number 31.

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PNG working on infrastructure, corruption

PNG's PM says his new government is working on improving infrastructure and stamping out corruption. Source: AAP

PAPUA New Guinea (PNG) is working on improving its infrastructure and stamping out corruption, which will make it a more attractive place to do business, its Prime Minister says.

Peter O'Neill also told a mining conference in Sydney on Monday that the PNG political environment had continued to stabilise since the elections earlier this year.

He said the improved political stability would be of benefit to the resource companies seeking to do business in the country.

"We have established a very strong and very stable political environment," he told the conference.

"We will soon make it stronger and more stable."

Mr O'Neill said the new government was also working hard to stamp out corruption, which was often an impediment to business, and had set up a taskforce to tackle the problem.

"We will take an uncompromising stand against corruption that our people are now demanding," he said.

"I will not pretend we can eliminate corruption completely but we will give it a very good shot."

The new government would also invest in much-needed infrastructure, which included roads to mining projects and improved telecommunications, which would encourage resource companies to invest in PNG, he said.

"There is no doubt the poor state of our infrastructure has added to the cost of mining," he said.

Resource companies would be consulted about which infrastructure areas needed to be prioritised, he said.

Productivity was another issue that PNG planned to tackle.

Mr O'Neill said the government was planning to establish a productivity commission.

The government was planning to review its taxes on mining and petroleum companies, but Mr O'Neill stressed that any changes would not act as a disincentive to business.

It would also be encouraging mining companies to keep their fly-in, fly-out arrangements for employees within PNG, in order to provide increased benefits for the local economy.

"We can then build more regional sectors that can benefit from some of these projects," he said.

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Schoolie hurt by tent peg recovers

A SCHOOL leaver who was rushed to a Perth hospital with a brain injury after a freak accident with a tent peg is recovering.

The 17-year-old was airlifted on Friday from the town of Busselton after being hit in the face by the tent peg as he packed up to leave Dunsborough Lakes Caravan Park.

On arrival at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, which specialises in head injuries, there were grave fears for the teenager as he was in a critical condition.

However, a spokeswoman for the hospital said on Monday his condition had improved significantly after treatment over the weekend.

The teenager is now in a stable condition.

He was unconscious when picked up by the Royal Flying Doctor Service.

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Qld party death prompts Facebook warning

A BIRTHDAY celebration that spiralled out of control near Brisbane has left a teenager dead and a man facing a possible murder charge, prompting police to warn about the dangers of promoting parties on social media.

Police say between 100 to 150 people were at the party at Station Road, Woodridge when a brawl erupted and spilled on to the street.

A 17-year-old boy was seriously injured in a hit-and-run during the fracas and later died in hospital.

A 21-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle and callous disregard, but is yet to be charged.

His car has been seized and is undergoing forensic testing.

Acting Superintendent Darren Harland says the party was gatecrashed after it was advertised on Facebook.

"(There is) the potential for uninvited people to arrive at your party and if you advertise on social media, this can be one of the consequences," Supt Harland told reporters in Logan on Sunday.

Detective Inspector Christopher Jorry said the victim's family were in shock, but may release a statement later on Sunday.

"We're providing them with the support they need and deserve, but they are a large family, they come from a close-knit family community and they're offering support to each other," he said.

Nearby resident Asmatullah Nasrullahi said he heard people swearing and yelling on the street before seeing a car speed away.

"I was a bit scared because I was at home by myself," he told AAP.

"I could just tell by the noise outside that something was going to happen."

Mr Nasrullahi said he was not surprised the incident occurred in his street.

"This is a low income area and the kids who live here don't have any chance for a good life," he said.

Insp Jorry rejected witness accounts the brawl was either gang or racially motivated.

"There's nothing to suggest that from our investigations at all," he said.

Police on Sunday were doorknocking residents in the street as they continued their investigations.

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Explosions, gunfire rock Afghan airport

A SERIES of explosions followed by gunfire have rocked the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad as its airport came under an attack claimed by the Taliban, witnesses and officials say.

The Taliban told AFP that they had launched an assault including a suicide bombing on the airport complex, which contains a major NATO base.

Militants entered the airport on Sunday, they said. An Afghan government official confirmed that clashes had taken place within the airport complex.

A guard said that after the initial huge explosion the airport had come under fire from rocket-propelled grenades, mortars and small arms.

There was no immediate word on casualties.

The hardline Taliban Islamists have waged an 11-year insurgency against the Afghan government, which is backed by 100,000 NATO troops, since being overthrown in a US-led invasion for harbouring al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

A spokesman for NATO's International Security Assistance Force confirmed that there had been "multiple explosions in the vicinity of Jalalabad airport", but had no further details.

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