Eddie Obeid in the box at ICAC

Former Labor powerbroker Eddie Obeid is due to give evidence to the NSW corruption watchdog again. Source: AAP

CROOKED former NSW minister Eddie Obeid has taken his place in the corruption watchdog's witness box.

Obeid's much-anticipated appearance before the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) began with an admission he had raised the subject of Australian Water Holdings (AWH) with several Labor heavyweights.

He said he'd talked about infrastructure firm AWH, or its chief executive Nick Di Girolamo, with former NSW treasurer Michael Costa, former water minister Phil Costa and former premiers Nathan Rees, Morris Iemma and Kristina Keneally.

The ICAC is probing allegations the Obeid family had a secret stake in AWH and stood to make millions if a $1 billion public private partnership with the NSW government got up.

But Obeid on Wednesday echoed the testimony of his sons Paul and Moses, who have already told the commission that a document entitled "Sale of Shares" in fact recorded a decision to lend $3 million to Mr Di Girolamo.

Despite intense media attention in the public inquiry, Obeid told counsel he had never heard any suggestion that his family had bought into AWH.

"I'm aware of a loan," Mr Obeid told counsel assisting Geoffrey Watson.

"I don't read the newspapers."

He also told the inquiry he was not aware Mr Di Girolamo was best friends with his son Edward, to which Mr Watson asked: "Aren't they godfather of each others' children?"

Obeid also said Edward never told him he was going to begin working for AWH.

Instead, he eventually heard it "down the grapevine".

"It wasn't a secret was it?" Mr Watson asked.

"Well I just wasn't told," Obeid replied.

"As far as I was concerned, Edward was working in the family business."

But Obeid emphatically denied raising AWH with former NSW ministers Joe Tripodi and Tony Kelly, who are both slated to follow him into the ICAC witness box on Wednesday.

Obeid will return to the witness box on Wednesday afternoon.

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Manufacturing not all bad news: report

AUSTRALIA'S manufacturing sector is not all doom and gloom despite the recent string of job losses, a report says.

The Manufacturing Workforce Study 2014 says the jobs decline was driven by a transition out of heavy industrial manufacturing and into hi-tech, and higher value-added, goods where Australia has shown it is globally competitive.

"Aggregate employment in this industry has been decreasing ... and at the same time Australia's prosperity has increased," said Sue Beitz, general manager of the Australian Workforce and Productivity Agency (AWPA) which prepared the report.

"We also know that it is not doom and gloom in every single (manufacturing) sector ... we do see that there are fabulous opportunities in the areas of pharmaceutical, biotechnology, food and beverage, either in moving to the higher end of production or entering new markets."

The report says Australia needs to increase the skill levels of the manufacturing workforce, noting almost half (45.2 per cent) of existing workers do not hold any post-school qualifications.

"Recently the high dollar has been touted as a real challenge ... The issue is really about how we continue to adapt our manufacturing industry from the capital intensive to knowledge intensive offering," Mrs Beitz said.

"And this challenge of getting clever people out of laboratories and into businesses."

The report found almost one million Australians (936,400) were employed in manufacturing and this has declined 10.2 per cent over the past decade (or around 106,600 jobs).

Under the "three most plausible scenarios" considered by the AWPA, manufacturing job were forecast to continue to decline 1.0 to 1.5 per cent per annum out to 2025.

The report's release comes amid speculation the Abbott government is preparing to abolish AWPA and merge its functions into the Department of Industry.

AWPA, established by Labor in 2012, includes representatives of Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), the Australian Industry Group and unions.

"The Abbott government claims it wants input from industry, yet it is apparently seeking to disband the key national policy and research body on skills, which brings stakeholders together," opposition industry spokesman Kim Carr said.

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Batts scheme termination killed business

FORMER environment minister Peter Garrett's word that the home insulation program would last caused the financial ruin of a Queensland company, an inquiry has heard.

Greg Rashleigh has told a royal commission his company, All Seasons Insulation, ramped up business after he attended a meeting in March 2009 where Mr Garrett said the scheme would run for two years or until the money ran out.

Mr Rashleigh built a $2 million manufacturing mill.

Eleven months later, the Rudd government scheme, introduced during the global financial crisis, was prematurely terminated after the deaths of four installers.

Mr Rashleigh was forced to close his Toowoomba-based business of 34 years in May 2010, leaving him with the unused mill and $3.36 million worth of stock, the inquiry was told.

He later received 15 per cent commonwealth compensation for the insulation stock.

"Mr Garrett was the minister at the time and he was the one who was going to tell us if we could ramp up or not," Mr Rashleigh said.

"Hearing it from him, especially from him, was sufficient for me to say we have to get going."

Mr Rashleigh said he could still picture Mr Garrett gesturing emphatically with his right hand while giving his word.

"I can see him doing it right now ... he's got a hand three times as big as mine," he said.

Mr Rashleigh said the early termination of the pink batts scheme left the industry in tatters.

"It was like someone turned the tap off," he said.

"One day you were working 24/7 ... the next day there was nothing."

Mr Rashleigh said the industry still hadn't recovered.

"Insulation is a dirty word. Nobody wants to know it," he said.

The inquiry continues.

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Talks on Japan trade deal difficult: PM

PM Tony Abbott says he's optimistic but not certain about finalising a free trade deal with Japan. Source: AAP

TONY Abbott's push to resolve free trade talks with Japan appears on shaky ground, with the prime minister admitting he's not certain of striking a deal during his visit to Tokyo.

Mr Abbott had hoped to finalise a free trade deal with Japan, Australia's second-largest trading partner, as a matter of priority on his first official visit to north Asia.

He ambitiously pledged at the September election to end years of stalemate and strike free trade agreements with Japan, South Korea and China within 12 months.

But a resolution from fierce last-minute talks in Tokyo has eluded negotiators, who have struggled all week to gain ground on several final issues.

Mr Abbott said on Sunday he was "optimistic" a deal could be struck during his stay in Tokyo, but conceded the talks had been difficult.

"This government is determined to bring them to a swift and satisfactory conclusion," he told reporters in Tokyo.

"I'm hopeful but not certain."

Trade Minister Andrew Robb arrived in Tokyo ahead of the prime minister to try and break the impasse, but after hours with Japan's agriculture minister could only say talks had entered an advanced but difficult stage.

Mr Abbott said negotiations had "meandered" under Labor after former prime minister John Howard initiated talks in 2007.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop also blamed the opposition for neglecting the task, saying the federal government had "six lost years" to regain.

She dismissed suggestions Australia's recent victory in the UN's top court over Japan's whaling program could have stalled talks, saying both nations would "move on".

"We are hopeful of signing, or at least getting an official confirmation about the state of the Japan Australia free trade agreement," she told ABC TV.

The deadlock could be on the agenda when Mr Abbott meets his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe on Sunday evening for a private dinner.

Mr Abbott's visit will be formally acknowledged in a state ceremony on Monday, but the prime minister said he'd been "thrilled" at the welcome so far.

He said there was more than trade behind his visit to Japan, with an announcement on defence co-operation with the conservative Abe government expected in coming days.

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Police shoot man in Brisbane

A man has been shot by police responding to a domestic disturbance on Brisbane's bayside. Source: AAP

A MAN is in a critical but stable condition after being shot by police during a domestic dispute on Brisbane's bayside.

Two police officers arrived at the Capalaba unit about 7.30pm (AEST) on Saturday.

When they tried to arrest the man, the male officer was allegedly thrown through a plate glass window and was severely cut.

It is understood a policewoman responded by shooting the offender twice in the stomach.

Police Union president Ian Leavers said the situation escalated quickly.

"She made an instant decision with the view of protecting her partner's life," Mr Leavers said.

"She is heroic. These are things where you don't get time to consider your decision, you have to make it immediately.

"We're very fortunate that we're not here at the murder of a police officer."

The injured officer is in a serious but stable condition and is expected to have surgery.

It is the second police shooting at the unit complex.

In March 2011, a policewoman shot a man in the groin who had threatened neighbours.

Mr Leavers said he was tired of violence against officers and renewed calls for mandatory sentencing for people who seriously assault police.

"If you threaten the life of a police officer you should go directly to jail," he said.

"There should be no other option."

The Ethical Standards Command is investigating.

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Abbott's plea to WA voters

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has pleaded for Western Australian voters to back Liberal candidates. Source: AAP

PRIME Minister Tony Abbott has made a last-ditch plea to West Australian voters as they head to the polls for a Senate election re-run.

Before jetting out of the country to Asia on Saturday, Mr Abbott recorded a message saying Labor and the Australian Greens in the Senate were standing in the way of his government's plan to repeal the mining tax and carbon tax.

"If you want to get rid of these anti-West Australian taxes ... that means voting Liberal," Mr Abbott said.

He said coalition candidates are "absolutely committed" to scrapping the taxes and the government hoped to get the numbers in the upper house from July to pass the repeal legislation.

"Send a strong message to Canberra, send a strong message to the Labor Party," Mr Abbott said.

"You can't say one thing in Perth and do the opposite in Canberra.

"That's my plea."

The outcome of Saturday's election is important for Australia's future, the prime minister added.

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Boy's parents located

POLICE have tracked down the parents of a young boy who was found wandering alone through suburban southwest Sydney.

Residents of Claymore called police after spotting the boy in the street wearing pyjamas about 7.30am Saturday.

Estimated to be aged two or three years old, the boy was cared for by officers until his parents were located and the search was called off.

The police thanked and updated the public about 2pm.

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Asylum seekers stranded by Abbott policy

PM Tony Abbott's hard line on the boats has left many asylum seekers stranded in Southeast Asia. Source: AAP

A UNITED Nations expert on people smuggling and human trafficking says Canberra's tough policy on dealing with asylum seekers arriving by boat has successfully destroyed the current migrant smuggling model into Australia.

Sebastian Baumeister, from the UN's Office on Drugs and Crime, says the government has halted the boats heading to Australia, but questions remain over the whereabouts of thousands of asylum seekers stranded in Asia.

"With the changes in Australian migration asylum policies, there's now been a significant drop of arrivals by boat to Australia," Mr Baumeister told AAP.

On Saturday, Prime Minister Tony Abbott declared no asylum-seeker boats had arrived in Australia for 100 days.

Mr Abbot dismissed those who had questioned the government's ability to prevent asylum-seeker boats reaching Australia, but he did not disclose the numbers of vessels turned back under Operation Sovereign Borders.

In January, Australia's Department of Immigration and Border Protection said throughout 2013, there were 300 suspected illegal entry vessels with 20,587 asylum seekers on board.

Mr Baumeister said thousands remain in Asia waiting for a fresh opportunity to travel to Australia.

"I'm pretty sure that there must be still in this region, a lot of people from southwest Asia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran and Iraq who were on their way to Australia," he said.

"Usually people would come through Thailand or from Thailand to Malaysia, and then to Indonesia. So they are somewhere here in Southeast Asia - Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia. So what happened to them? That's one question, but I cannot give you an answer."

He said the government's policy, while controversial, had succeeded.

"In this regard, the Australians I think quite successfully destroyed the migrant smuggling model.

"But I would assume there must be still significant numbers of people who are there already on the move, who are somewhere stranded," he said.

"So that's why I tend to believe that people still - migrants from southwest Asia - I would think there are still significant numbers in Indonesia, Malaysia and also perhaps Thailand.

And the question remains where these stranded asylum seekers will travel to next.

"This was a significant change on this route (to Australia). On this route, this was very well organised, the migrant smugglers had specialised basically on persons who had good prospects of being granted asylum," he said.

"They had specialised on asylum seekers to whom they could sell this basically," Baumeister said. "So this was a dramatic change and it remains to be seen what happens next," he said.

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NZ commits $NZ300k after Solomons flooding

NEW Zealand will make an initial $NZ300,000 ($A280,177) contribution to help in the immediate aftermath of deadly flooding in Solomon Islands.

Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully says heavy rain has caused flash flooding in the capital, Honiara, and reports are coming in of flooding in other parts of the island group.

At least eight people have been killed and thousands have been left homeless, according to media reports.

"The death toll is likely to rise and there appears to be significant damage to homes and infrastructure," Mr McCully said.

New Zealand will provide $NZ250,000 to agencies working on the ground to help provide emergency relief supplies and shelter to those affected by the flooding.

A further $NZ50,000 in emergency funding has been released to the New Zealand High Commission to help address areas of immediate need identified by the Solomon Islands government.

"We are in close contact with the local authorities in Honiara and stand ready to provide further assistance as required," Mr McCully said.

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Unions superglued site padlocks: court

Striking union bosses allegedly used coercive action to block a construction site in Brisbane. Source: AAP

UNION officials allegedly superglued padlocks at a Brisbane construction site to stop workers entering during a strike.

Construction workers who tried to get into the South Brisbane building site were verbally abused and their futures in the industry threatened, according to court documents.

Federal regulator Fair Work Building & Construction (FWBC) has taken the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union to court claiming the union engaged in coercive behaviour.

The allegations arise from a strike at a Queensland government housing project last month.

FWBC claims union officials allegedly used cars to block the entrance to the construction site, which was a 14-level building with 146 apartments, and abused workers who tried to enter.

The matter has been set down for a directions hearing in the Federal Court in Brisbane on May 2.

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