Syria opposition seeks deal on PM-in-exile

SYRIA'S opposition umbrella group, which most Western and Arab powers opposed to the Damascus regime have recognised, is meeting in Istanbul in a bid to name a prime minister-in-exile, one of its leaders says.

The Syrian National Coalition is discussing the idea of a government-in-exile but differences have emerged between members of the group, including over who should lead the new executive, an opposition official told AFP.

"A proposal was made to name Riad Hijab but it has run into much criticism," the official said on condition of anonymity.

Hijab is a former prime minister under President Bashar al-Assad who defected in August last year and has since worked closely with Turkish leaders to help restructure the fragmented Syrian opposition.

He is now based in Jordan.

The Istanbul meeting is also scheduled to discuss what the opposition leader said were unkept promises by countries that had pledged diplomatic, military and financial support to the coalition.

The National Council, which is the leading component of the Cairo-based umbrella group, has called for the establishment of an interim government with full executive powers in areas of Syria controlled by the rebels.

The group is also due to meet on January 28 in Paris, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Sunday.

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Assad's mother in Dubai: Syrians

ANISA Makhluf, the mother of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, has left the war-torn country and joined her daughter in Dubai, expatriates in the United Arab Emirates and an activist say.

Makhluf has been living next to her daughter, Bushra, the only sister of Assad, in Dubai for about 10 days, Syrian expatriates told AFP.

Bushra's husband General Assef Shawkat, an army deputy chief of staff, was killed along with three other high-ranking Syrian officials in a July 18 bombing at the National Security headquarters in Damascus.

In September, Syrian residents in the Gulf emirate said that Bushra had enrolled her five children at a private school in Dubai where she had moved.

Makhluf's "departure from Syria is another indication of Assad losing support even from within his family," said Ayman Abdel Nour, head of the newly-formed group Syrian Christians for Democracy and editor-in-chief of opposition news website all4syria.com.

Analysts say that Assad is increasingly relying on the tightly-knit circle surrounding him, which includes Maher, his only brother still alive and who commands the army's notorious Fourth Brigade.

Assad's two other brothers Bassel and Majd are dead. The embattled president also relies on relatives from his mother's side, analysts say.

A large number of businessmen and wealthy Syrians who had close ties with the regime have fled the deadly bloodshed in Syria to Dubai in the past few months.

More than 60,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in Syria's 22-month conflict, according to the United Nations.

The conflict has sent some 600,000 people fleeing the country, most of them to neighbouring countries, according to the world body.

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Gillard speech to have China, cyber focus

PRIME Minister Julia Gillard will reportedly seek to boost Labor's defence credentials in a speech singling out China and cyber attacks as key security concerns.

Ms Gillard will make the comments in her first important speech of the election year to the Australian National University's National Security College in Canberra on Wednesday, The Australian newspaper reports.

She will also outline Australia's national security objectives, actions and priorities over the next five years.

Sources familiar with the document told the paper it was a "much more substantial" contribution than former prime minister Kevin Rudd's 2008 national security statement to parliament.

The document focuses on Australia's strategic environment - in particular, the growing economic, political and military clout of China - and a massive escalation in cyber attacks against government and industry.

It's not expected to contain new policy initiatives or resource commitments, the paper said.

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IMF chief urges Greece to carry out reform

NO additional measures would be necessary for Greece if it carries out the reforms under its bailout program, IMF chief Christine Lagarde says.

"But if the structural reforms are not carried out ... then more cuts would be necessary," the head of the International Monetary Fund has told the Greek newspaper Kathimerini in an interview.

Entering a sixth year straight of recession, the heavily indebted country is relying on EU-IMF bailout packages.

It also received a private-sector debt cut early last year.

Since 2010, the EU and IMF have committed 240 billion euros ($A307 billion) in rescue loans to Greece, while last week the IMF unblocked a frozen tranche of 3.2 billion euros from its pending aid package.

"Greece holds its future in its own hands ... It is up to the country itself to succeed in its program," Lagarde said.

The IMF chief said she had a very good working relationship with both the Greek prime minister and finance minister.

Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and I "have a very good and honest relationship", she said, adding that he has even "surprised" her with his stance following his election.

Lagarde also said she believed the co-existence of three different parties in Greece's coalition government is beneficial.

"Regarding the implementation of the program and the responsibilities towards the people, a wide coalition is much more important than a tight majority," she said.

Conservative Prime Minister Antonis Samaras's coalition government has lost 16 deputies since coming to power in June, as a result of opposition to continued austerity.

It now counts a majority of 163 seats out of an overall 300.

On Friday, the IMF's mission chief for Greece Poul Thomsen said the country will still need additional help from its European partners next year.

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Legal challenge to Manus launched in PNG

A LEGAL challenge to Australia's asylum seeker processing centre on Manus Island has been launched by Papua New Guinea's opposition.

Lawyers acting for PNG Opposition Leader Belden Namah filed a summons with the National Court on Friday.

Mr Namah said in a statement that he regretted taking the action against the PNG government but he believed the processing centre was unconstitutional.

"The ministers of the O'Neill-Dion government have now received a summons to appear and defend their conduct in the National Court," he said in a statement.

Mr Namah said the detainees on Manus were being held illegally in PNG.

"We will take this matter as far as necessary to ensure that the values of our nation's constitution are upheld," he said.

"This legal challenge also attempts to remedy the many abuses of PNG law and of ministerial powers which have given rise to the situation on Manus."

Mr Namah said the opposition challenged the right of the government to force people seeking refugee status in Australia to enter PNG, where they were being held "illegally and indefinitely under inhumane conditions".

"We challenge the right of the government to make this arrangement with the government of a foreign nation, again in contravention of our constitution," he added.

The injunction seeks to have the current detainees released and to prevent the government from receiving or detaining any more asylum seekers from Australia.

"I am confident that our justice system will succeed in upholding this truth, where our government has so regrettably failed," Mr Namah said.

The National Court is yet to set a date to hear the challenge, the ABC reports.

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Too much money spent on fires: researcher

AN Australian researcher has suggested too much money is being spent on bushfire prevention and more lives could be saved if some of that money goes elsewhere.

Insurance researcher Brian Ashe concedes his findings might upset some people, but says a rational analysis of the $12 billion in annual spending on fire prevention backs his case, Fairfax reports.

If $4.5 billion of the money spent on fire safety was instead returned to businesses and consumers as tax cuts, health and nutrition would improve, Dr Ashe has written in the Australian National University journal Agenda.

His modelling suggests such a tax cut could save between 90 and 225 lives a year.

About 114 lives are lost each year from fire - 14 of them from bushfires.

"This is a very sensitive matter and really what we're looking to get is the best out of our investment," Dr Ashe told Fairfax Media.

"We just have to be careful that we don't put too many resources into one hazard."

But NSW Rural Fire Service deputy commissioner Rob Rogers said anyone who had lost their home in a bushfire would not agree with the study.

"You can't discuss fire safety spending as a simple equation," he told Fairfax.

"It's not just above saving lives but properties and what's in them - the things that can't be replaced."

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Gandhi seeks to woo 'young and impatient'

RAHUL Gandhi, newly named to the No.2 post in India's ruling Congress party, has delivered a powerful call for change to meet the aspirations of the nation's "young and impatient" population.

"We have to rethink and transform our system and the country," Gandhi, 42, told party members on Sunday as Congress ended a three-day brainstorming session in the northwestern city of Jaipur ahead of a general election next year.

Congress must listen to the voice of a "young and impatient" India to ensure they do not feel alienated from the political system, he said, a day after being unanimously voted party vice-president.

The scion of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty, whose family has given India three prime ministers, is now second in the Congress hierarchy behind his mother, Sonia, who is president.

Rahul Gandhi's elevation represents a generational shift in Indian politics in which most of the leaders are over 60, while roughly half of the country's 1.2 billion population is under 25.

The party stopped short of naming him its candidate for prime minister, amid lingering uncertainty about his political talents and his hitherto apparent reluctance to assume a major political role.

In a speech drowned often by applause, Rahul Gandhi sought to dispel doubts about his political commitment, declaring the "Congress party is now my life".

"I will fight for the people of India with everything I have," he promised, adding he was "optimistic as we already have the building blocks for a better future".

He gave no hint of whether he wanted to be a candidate for prime minister.

But analysts said it was unlikely any other Congress leader would be fielded and his mother, who has long been seen grooming him for the post, was now expected to push him to take a bigger role in running the party.

"Congress has no other choice. It would be very difficult to name some other person because there would hardly be any consensus," said Sanjay Kumar, political analyst at the Centre for Study of Developing Societies.

The Nehru-Gandhi clan has ruled India for most of its post-independence history and many Congress members cannot conceive of the party without a Gandhi at the helm.

Newspapers predicted a showdown for the prime minister's job between Rahul Gandhi and hardline Hindu opponent Narendra Modi, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief minister of western Gujarat state, in the 2014 election.

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Steam train chugs through London's Tube

TOURISTS waiting for their train to Madame Tussauds in London have been treated to an unusual sight: a 19th century steam engine chugging down the tracks.

Officials sent the Met Locomotive 1, built in 1898, down London's Metropolitan Line to mark the 150th anniversary of the Tube network, the world's oldest.

Hundreds of train fans, costume-wearing enthusiasts and curious onlookers gathered at platforms and bridges across the city to watch as the locomotive travelled non-stop from Kensington Olympia station in the west to Moorgate station in central London.

London Mayor Boris Johnson was among the invited passengers aboard the historic black-and-red locomotive. He said the trip was "romantic", describing "thick clouds of white steam going past and then bits of soot coming through from the engine".

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Beijing choked by third day of smog

BEIJING has endured a third day of pollution at hazardous levels, as authorities warned a thick cloud of smog may not lift from the Chinese capital until the middle of the week.

While those venturing outside wore face masks, dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei went one step further, posting pictures of himself on Twitter in a gas mask.

As the dense smog shrouded large swathes of northern China, flights were cancelled and traffic delayed as visibility was reduced to 100 metres in some areas.

The dangerously poor air quality was highlighted by a steady stream of news broadcasts on state television, many of which warned residents against venturing outside.

The pollution also provoked China's huge number of microbloggers to take to the internet, with some high-profile web users calling for a re-evaluation of China's rampant modernisation.

Rapid economic growth has led to a dramatic increase in the consumption of coal and clogged city streets with cars.

"The foreign media is laughing at us. I agree with their laughter," said Hu Xijin, the editor of the state-run Global Times newspaper on Weibo, China's version of Twitter.

"This is a warning to the Government and Beijing's citizens. We have to think about what kind of modernisation we want and how to manage it."

Hu said the pollution issue would be on the front page of his newspaper on Monday.

Beijing-based Ai, 55, an outspoken critic of China's communist government, posted three pictures of himself on Twitter standing against a white background wearing a gas mask, his beard frizzing out beneath. But he did not make any verbal comment.

Beijing's municipal environment warning centre issued its second alert in two days, warning people to avoid outdoor physical activity.

The centre also urged government officials to set an example to other residents, by not using their cars.

Air quality in Beijing showed small airborne particles with a diameter small enough to deeply penetrate the lungs at a reading as high as 993 micrograms per cubic metre on Saturday evening, the warning centre said.

The World Health Organisation says the figure for such particles, known as PM2.5, should ideally be no more than 25 micrograms per cubic metre.

High levels have been linked to health problems including respiratory disease, heart disease and lung cancer.

Official PM2.5 figures have only been monitored in China's major cities since the beginning of last year.

The lack of official data makes it difficult to compare the recent smog with previous cases of pollution, said Ma Jun, director of the Beijing-based Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs.

"But it is interesting to see that residents have been warned about the dangers of pollution by official media," Ma told AFP.

"This has never happened before, and is a result of the transparency that we now have with the figures."

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Small retailers clear way for extra hours

The state's small traders association has withdrawn its long-held opposition to deregulating retail trading hours in Queensland as retailers struggle with a slower economy and increased internet shopping. Source: The Courier-Mail

SHOPS are a step closer to deregulated hours, with the state's small traders association reversing its opposition to a push to allow retailers to open when they want.

The United Retail Federation (URF) has withdrawn its long-held opposition to deregulating retail trading hours in Queensland and has called on the Government to "consider the best path towards deregulation".

The sudden about-face could hand major retailers, such as Coles and Woolworths, a key advantage in their battle for extended trading hours.

It comes as retailers struggle with a slower economy and increased internet shopping.

Under the current system, applications are assessed individually by the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission (QIRC) on a case-by-case basis.

While the Newman Government has consistently said it was not reviewing the system, in which applications are individually assessed by the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission (QIRC), the change of heart by the URF - which is understood to represent hundreds of shops - could give the case to lift trading hours restrictions a significant boost.

The group claims to be the peak representative of corner stores and independents and had staunchly opposed any relaxation to trading hours.

But late last month, it suddenly reversed its position, calling on the State Government to forge ahead with deregulation.

The National Retail Association, which represents some of the biggest retailers, is preparing a fresh push to relax trading hours, with up to eight separate applications to extend opening hours across the state scheduled to be heard by the QIRC so far this year.

NRA deputy chief executive officer Bianca Seeto said the URF had previously been the main opponent in applications for extended trading hours and their opposition had been taken into consideration in the final judgment.

Ms Seeto said Queensland's trading hours regime was complicated and outdated. "It is pretty silly to operate under all these different regimes, even in south-east Queensland.

"In one suburb you might be able to trade until 5.30pm on a Saturday and others it might be 6pm," she said.

"That is because there have been individual decisions that have dictated that as opposed to legislation."

Applications include a proposal to extend trading hours in inner-city Brisbane, New Farm, Toowong, the Townsville CBD, Ipswich and Hamilton.

URF general manager Bruce Mills described the group's change of position as an "historic move" given its previous long-term opposition to deregulation and a response to internet shopping, which was a major challenge for retailers.

"The United Retail Federation will today be calling on the Queensland Government to consider the best path towards the deregulation of retail trading hours across southeast Queensland and put an end to the uncertainty and confusion surrounding when shops can and can't be open to their customers," Mr Mills said.

The policy shift came after the group split ways with the Metcash IGA brand late last year.

Metcash IGA - which has more than 1000 stores - has vowed to continue its battle against what it described as an "onslaught" of extended trading applications by major retailers this year.

"The independent sector contributes greatly to local domestic economies and creates jobs," IGA state board chair Roz White said.

"These applications for extended trading hours are just another nail in the coffin."

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