Industry News

The Victorian Government has hit out at the recently announced 3-year rollout plan of the National Broadband Network (NBN), saying that the state has been duded.

State Technology Minister Gordon rich-Phillips said Victoria has received less than 20 per cent of program funding, giving a disproportionately low amount of funding for the state that is home to a quarter of the country’s population.

Mr Rich-Phillips said although there had been a slight increase to Victoria, the rollout still clearly favoured the Labor-held states of South Australia, Tasmania and ACT.

"Although South Australia has just 7.3 per cent of national population, it is receiving 9.2 per cent of the funding. Tasmania, which represents just 2.3 per cent of population is receiving 5.9 per cent of the program funding,” Mr Rich-Phillips.

"With only 19.5 per cent of the premises in the total plan allocated to Victoria, our share of NBN construction activity is still too low given we represent a quarter of the national population."

NBN Co recently announced that Stage 1 of the large-scale rollout of the National Broadband Network is now underway and will see of the fibre optic component of the network delivered or be underway to areas of the country containing 3.5 million premises in 1500 communities in every state and territory in Australia, comprising one third of the nation’s homes and businesses.

Across Australia, the numbers of homes, businesses, schools and hospitals that will see construction begin or be completed by mid 2015 are:
·         1,010,700 in New South Wales
·         691,600 in Victoria
·         678,600 in Queensland
·         429,200 in Western Australia.
·         327,300 in South Australia
·         135,300 in the ACT
·         65,200 in the Northern Territory
·         209,100 in Tasmania

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has released a report on exchange traded funds, outlining how the growing industry is regulated in Australia and the impact if proposed international principles to address concerns by overseas regulators. 

“Identifying the regulatory risks arising from potentially complex financial products, such as ETFs, is part of ASIC’s role to promote confident and informed investors and fair and efficient financial markets. ASIC has a range of regulatory powers relating to ETFs that help to promote these objectives,” ASIC Commissioner Greg Tranzer said.

The ETF industry attracts significant funds. As at 2012, approximately $4.3 billion, based on ASX data, is invested in ETFs in Australia, with a high level of retail participation (50-75% across most types of ETFs). The ETF industry continues to expand at a rapid rate in Australia, with new types of ETFs and new issuers continuing to emerge.

“The regulation of ETFs in Australia is in line with proposed international standards and reflects consideration of the issues identified in IOSCO’s consultation. Our view is supported by surveillance of current ETF issuers in Australia and discussions with industry participants,” Mr Tanzer said.

‘”In developing this report and considering how to use our powers, we have been involved in ongoing consultation with the ETF industry and will continue to liaise with the industry in the future, including with the ASX in relation to their rules on ETFs.

‘”In addition we conducted surveillance visits on the current ETF issuers, and will continue to watch this area closely to help reduce some of the complex regulatory risks that continue to emerge.”

The report can be found here

http://www.asic.gov.au/asic/pdflib.nsf/LookupByFileName/rep282-published-29-3-2012.pdf/$file/rep282-published-29-3-2012.pdf

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has released its first report detailing its enforcement actions for the period 1 July to 31 December 2011.

The report outlines categories of gatekeepers against whom ASIC has taken action including financial advisers, responsible entities, credit licensees, market participants, directors, company officers, insolvency practitioners and auditors.

ASIC Chairman Greg Medcraft said, ‘Broadly, there are four principles of conduct gatekeepers must observe. They must display honesty by respecting other people’s property and not using a position of trust for self-advantage; diligence by applying due care and skill to advice or decision making; competence by meeting any applicable conduct, licensing, registration and training obligations; and independence by managing conflicts of interest appropriately.”

‘When gatekeepers do not demonstrate these behaviours, we act. We are committed to tracking down and punishing wrongdoers and deterring further misconduct. No one is beyond the law, and we have the resources to take on the big cases where it is in the public interest to do so,’ he said.

The enforcement outcomes set out in the report relate to a wide range of matters from offences attracting significant penalties to record-keeping type offences grouped under the heading compliance and deterrence. They include 355 enforcement outcomes, including 252 criminal actions, in the six-month period.

The report can be found here 

The Office of the Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate will replace the Office of the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) affecting the building and construction industry.

The bill is known as the Building and Construction Industry Improvement Amendment (Transition to Fair Work) Bill 2012.

The new inspectorate retains coercive powers to compulsorily obtain information or documents relevant to investigations. Some safeguards, however, will be put in place, such as the right to have a lawyer present and the right to refuse to give information on the grounds of legal professional privilege and public interest immunity.

The ACTU supports the change despite the coercive powers.

Employer representative Ai Group opposed the bill.  It wants the Government to consult industry on the appointment of the Independent Assessor, who will have the power to switch off the Inspectorate’s compulsory interrogation powers for particular projects, and the appointment of members of the Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate Advisory Board.

 For more information, click here.

The Federal Government has announced it will invest $719 million to deliver improved primary health care and increase access to dental and allied health care services as part of the Strong Futures package.

The funding will be delivered over the next 10 years with an aim to improve the health and wellbeing of 65,000 Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory, which is set to include new alcohol and drug treatment services.

The Australian Government will continue to fund Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations and the Northern Territory Government to deliver primary health care services, which involves more than 250 full-time staff delivering medical, nursing and allied health services in 80 primary health care clinics. 

The Government is also providing funding for more than 2000 hearing checks and follow up services, including for children in remote communities, as well as a community education program to educate families about their children’s ear and hearing health.

The funding will also deliver four new community mental health services in the territory between 2012 and 2014.

South Australian doctors are set to benefit from the state’s first doctors only clinic which is set to open in the coming week.

Staffed by up to 15 doctors, the clinic, in the south of Adelaide’s CBD, will only treat their GP colleagues.

"There are doctors who are quite happy seeing other doctors, and other doctors who may be a little bit uncomfortable about it," Dr Roger Sexton, one of GPs who will staff the clinic, told the ABC.

"Those doctors who don't have their own doctor clearly need something more than just their own treatment."

Dr Sexton said the clinic was established to reverse the alarming trend of South Australian GP’s generally not having their own doctor.

"Things like being embarrassed, for example, knowing when the right time is to go see the doctor," Dr Sexton said.

"There's also issues about doctors who work very hard and who may not have the time in the daytime to go to a doctor, so there's a number of things that have stopped doctors having their own doctor."

The Dow Chemical Company and The University of Queensland have unveiled a strategic partnership that will establish the Dow Centre for Sustainable Engineering Innovation.

Funded through a Dow contribution worth $10 million over the next six years, the newl Centre will pursue a program of research and collaboration aimed at harnessing solutions to the sustainability challenges of the 21st Century.

“This is a lighthouse initiative - hot-housing innovation at the urban energy, water and carbon nexus, which will attract international attention to the issues of sustainability and position Dow and UQ as leaders, achievers and contributors to society,” Dow Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Andrew Liveris said.

 “The Center confirms our mutual commitment to sustainability through its focus on high impact outcomes of global significance and delivery of knowledge and leadership for future generations within an operational framework that provides economic prosperity while respecting community values and the environment.”

This is the first time Dow has signed such an agreement with an Australian university.

“Dow and UQ are natural partners,” Mr Liveris said. “The University's strategic intent and core strengths in science and engineering align well with those of Dow. Dow's culture of discovery and innovation, a focus on advanced manufacturing and new markets, and a commitment to sustainability are closely matched by the new initiatives driven by global sustainability challenges that are defining UQ's strategic direction.”

UQ Vice-Chancellor Professor Deborah Terry said The Dow Centre for Sustainable Engineering Innovation would be a driving force of the University's sustainability agenda.

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“We expect the Centre to become a magnet for talented staff and students and to affirm UQ's leadership in the fields of science and engineering.”

Sydney doctor and philanthropist Tom Wenkart has donated $4 million to endow the University of Sydney Wenkart Chair in Endothelium Medicine at the Centenary Institute.

The inaugural Chair is Jennifer Gamble, Professor of Vascular Biology and one of the pioneers of endothelium research.

Professor Gamble's work has already transformed our understanding of the role of endothelial cells.

"Fifty years ago we just regarded blood vessels as simple pipes," she said. "Today we know that they're much more complex - a living, changing organ that rapidly reacts to threats.

"You prick your finger on a rose thorn - within the hour the wound is inflamed and itching as your body mobilises to fight infection. That's the endothelium in action," says Professor Gamble.

These same endothelial cells are implicated when things go wrong in atherosclerosis and auto-immune disease. And tumours need endothelial cells to form blood vessels - without new blood vessels, tumours won't grow.

We each have within us some 80,000 kilometres of pipelines, that carry the essential supplies needed to all parts of our body. The endothelial cells that form this network of blood vessels are essentially a hidden organ weighing about one kilogram.

The endothelial cells maintain these perfect, smooth pipelines year after year but then, when there's an accident they turn into traffic police within minutes, allowing white blood cells to pass through the wall of the blood vessels, and giving emergency services access to the scene.

In 1985, working in Seattle and Adelaide, Professor Gamble showed that if endothelial cells are stimulated then white blood cells bind to them - the start of inflammation.

Now we know much more about the role of these cells in immunity, heart disease, cancer and other conditions. But Professor Gamble says it's still early days in this field of study.

"I hope that, over the next decade or two we'll be able to understand and control the endothelium in diseases — especially inflammation and those associated with ageing such as atherosclerosis and Alzheimer's."

Tom Wenkart says that's what excites him about this field of research. "These endothelial cells play a critical role throughout the body. I believe they're the key to understanding heart disease, for example. What is happening in my body today that could lead to a heart attack in 20 years?"

The Centenary Institute, University of Sydney is an independent leader in medical research seeking improved treatments and cures for cancer, cardiovascular and infectious diseases.

Dr Bates Gill, formerly Director of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of the United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney.

Dr Gates, who will succeed Professor Geoffrey Garrett,  is a distinguished think tank leader with strong policy links in the United States, Asia and Europe. His previous positions include serving as Freeman Chair in China Studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and as inaugural Director of the Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution, both in Washington DC.

An expert on American defence and security issues in East Asia with a focus on China, Dr Gill has overseen the publication of the last four SIPRI Yearbooks on Armaments, Disarmament and International Security, all published by Oxford University Press. He is also author of Rising Star: China's New Security Diplomacy published by the Brookings Institution Press.

Dr Gill is expected to take up the appointment in October. Until then, Professor Garrett will continue to serve as CEO of the US Studies Centre in addition to his new duties as Dean of the University of Sydney Business School.

The University of Sydney has appointed two internationally regarded experts to head up its China Studies Centre.

Dr Kerry Brown  will take up the role of Professor and Executive Director of the Centre, and Professor David Goodman will become the Academic Director of the Centre.

Dr Brown is currently Head of the Asia Programme at Chatham House and Leader of the Europe China Research and Advice Network (ECRAN), funded by the European Union and offering advice directly into the External Action Service.

Dr Brown has held a number of high level diplomatic, government and think tank posts as well as holding affiliations with various academic institutions in China, at Cambridge, the London School of Oriental and African Studies and Nottingham University. He was previously Head of the Indonesia, Philippines and East Timor Section at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London, Head of Policy at UK Visas, First Secretary at the British Embassy in Beijing, and worked in the China Section at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Professor David Goodman is currently the Acting Director of the China Studies Centre and Professor of Chinese Politics at the University. He was previously the Director of the East Asia Centre at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Chair of the Asian Studies Program and Director of the Asia Research Centre at Murdoch University. At University of Technology, Sydney he established and developed the Institute for International Studies and later became Pro Vice-Chancellor, and then Deputy Vice-Chancellor International. More recently, he was the Director of the University's Institute of Social Sciences and Associate Dean International within the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences.

"With his track record of academic leadership Professor Goodman is the ideal person to steer the research and teaching programs of the China Studies Centre", said Vice-Chancellor Dr Michael Spence. "We are delighted to have secured his expertise."

Professor Goodman has a PhD in Chinese Politics from the London School of Oriental and African Studies. He has been involved in course and program design of numerous degree programs at three different universities in the last 25 years. He has taught undergraduate and postgraduate students in Chinese politics, history, language and literature.

The University of Sydney China Studies Centre is dedicated to working for the mutual benefit of Australia and China. Established in 2011, it has more than 130 academic staff engaged in the study of China and facilitates cross disciplinary research and teaching as well as extensive public programs.

 The William Angliss Institute has been announced as the successful applicant for a million dollar Strategic Tourism Investment Grant, and will develop and deliver a tailored business skills curriculum through the Indigenous Land Corporation's (ILC) National Indigenous Training Academy at Ayers Rock Resort.

The William Angliss Institute is the largest specialist single purpose provider of tourism, hospitality and foods training in the Southern Hemisphere and has experience in delivering Indigenous training in Western Australia, Victoria, South Australia and the Northern Territory.

This grant builds on the work by the Institute, in partnership with the ILC, to train Indigenous trainees at the Ayers Rock Resort through the Australian Government's Indigenous Employment Program.

The Minister for Tourism, Martin Ferguson said that using the National Tourism Accreditation Standards, the training by William Angliss will include customer service and understanding customer expectations, preparing plans for business, marketing, environmental management and health and safety.

"Importantly it also includes a mentoring program which will match students with mentors who have hands-on business experience," said Minister Ferguson.

"There is a lot of local interest in this training and over the long-term it is expected to improve the Indigenous tourism experience in the region by not only increasing a trained local workforce, but also expanding the diversity and quality of Indigenous businesses.

Strategic Tourism Investment Grants under the T-QUAL Grants program offer funding to eligible tourism projects aimed at delivering three key national priorities - Indigenous tourism, economic development and tourism employment.

More information on the T-QUAL Grants – Strategic Tourism Investment Grants is available at http://www.ret.gov.au/tourism/business/tq/tgrants/stig/Pages/default.aspx

The University of Tasmania has received a $3 million philanthropic grant from the JO and JR Wicking Trust to support research on dementia.

The grant builds on the original $1.5million given by the Trust in 2007 for the establishment of the UTAS Wicking Dementia Research and Education Centre in the UTAS Faculty of Health Science.

The second grant will enable the further growth and development of the UTAS Wicking Dementia Research and Education Centre for the next five years.

Instigators and Co-Directors of the Wicking Centre, Professor Andrew Robinson and Professor James Vickers, said the grant will allow them to continue translational research, which focuses on dementia, looking at the biological basis of the diseases that cause dementia and the development of health services provided for people with dementia and their carers.

Prof Robinson said the Centre’s goal is to prepare Tasmania and Australia for the increased number of people with dementia.

“As our population ages and one million people in Australia are projected to have a dementia by 2050, we need to explore ways in which we can better support people with dementia and their carers, both in the community and in residential aged care.”

Prof Vickers said being supported by the Wicking Trust to 2017 allows the Wicking Centre to build capacity and capability.

“This funding will allow us to attract more high profile researchers in neuroscience and nursing to better understand the causes of and treatments for dementia,” he said.

Teresa Zolnierkiewicz, Head of Philanthropy for ANZ Trustees which administers the JO and JR Wicking Trust, said the UTAS Wicking Dementia and Research Education Centre grant is a flagship grant of the Trust, which since 2005 has made grants totalling $33mill to address issues of ageing, Alzheimers and dementia.

 “The benefactors, John and Janet Wicking, had the vision to devote their Trust to these issues, and would be proud of the world class work carried out by the Centre. We have been impressed with the Centre’s achievements over its first five years and are delighted to support them for a further five years.

For more information about the UTAS Wicking Dementia Research and Education Centre, visit http://www.utas.edu.au/wicking/

The University of Wollongong and BlueScope Steel have joined forces with Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute, one of the world’s leading renewable energy and sustainable building research organisations, in a new solar technology research and demonstration project with the support of $477,000 from the Australian Solar Institute.

Research will be undertaken into optimised configurations for a unique arrangement of solar cells that will not only provide solar electricity but also assist in heating and cooling the buildings they are fitted on.

The focus of the partnership will be the development of Building Integrated Photovoltaic Thermal (BIPVT) configurations suited to existing buildings, which aligns with retrofitting as the major focus of the University’s Sustainable Buildings Research Centre (SBRC).

The BIPVT retrofit system involves refurbishment of an existing roof by adding a new roof deck above the existing roof surface. The new roof deck incorporates solar cells, and air then flows in the duct created under the new roof surface.

This air flow will not only help cool the solar cells during warm weather, improving generation efficiency, but it will also help to heat and cool the building. Warm air generated in winter is used for heating, and as heat is radiated from the cells on summer nights, cool air is then supplied to the building, increasing overall energy efficiency.

“The ultimate goal of the collaboration with BlueScope Steel and the Fraunhofer Institute is to develop design and decision-support tools to optimise the system for retrofitting to a wide range of building types and climates,” Director of the Sustainable Buildings Research Centre, Professor Paul Cooper said.

“We will also be studying ways in which we can incorporate new phase-change materials to further improve the efficiency of these BIPVT systems.

“We are focussing on retrofitting because less than 2 per cent of existing building stock in Australia is replaced in any given year.

“New system configurations will not only be tested in laboratory settings but will also be demonstrated on the roof of our new Research Centre and other buildings in the Illawarra region as part of our Living Lab project to work out the best way to install the newest of technologies on older buildings,” Professor Cooper said.

“The Sustainable Buildings Research Centre building, which is under construction on the Innovation Campus, is targeting net zero energy use and we will be using the BIPVT technology to help us achieve that goal.”

The University of Wollongong’s Sustainable Buildings Research Centre will play a major role in the national research effort required to develop new technologies that help to reduce carbon emissions from existing homes and buildings.

The latest figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) shows an in increase job vacancies by 0.7 per cent in February, showing a turn around from a previous spate of declines.

The ABS findings come after the Commonwealth Bank (CBA) released findings that show medium sized companies are increasingly looking to expand operations.

The CBA’s Future Business Index found companies are reporting a far more confident outlook for business conditions over the next six months and are reporting strong expectations for increases in revenue.

The bi-annual index of mid-sized companies earning between $10 - $100 million, found that despite patchy results across sectors and states, all companies surveyed reporting a positive increase from the September index.

According to Symon Brewis-Weston, Commonwealth Bank’s Executive General Manager of Corporate Financial Services, the latest findings were a clear sign that confidence was returning to the market.

“We’ve been on wobbly ground for some time, however businesses are showing us that it’s not all doom and gloom and are adopting a much more bullish attitude than has been seen previously,” said Mr Brewis-Weston.

“Appetite for investment is on the way up; the fact that businesses are looking at this over a six month time horizon also shows they have more conviction about the direction they want to take. This shift in attitude comes against the backdrop of continuing change in financial markets and at a time when cost pressures remain relatively high.”

“What this means is they are prepared to look at expansion despite the challenges that are still confronting them. Many mid-market companies have been sitting on sizeable cash reserves for some time and it’s clear they are now re-visiting original investment plans that had been put on hold.”

Almost half (49%) of businesses expect their revenue to increase over the coming six months, with a similar figure (44%) indicating this will flow on to an associated increase in profits. On net balance, both revenue and profit expectations were up 8% since September. Over one-third (38%) said they expected to increase capital expenditure, up 12% on net balance, with roughly one-third (31%) saying they expected to take on new staff over the next six months, up 5% on net balance.

The Federal Government has released a new handbook to assist farmers, landholders, waste operators and other clean energy businesses take part in the Federal Government’s Carbon Farmining Initative.

“The Carbon Farming Initiative Handbook will be a great resource for Australia’s farmers. It sets out how farmers and landholders can improve land and farm sustainability while generating carbon credits that can be sold on domestic and international markets,“ Parlimentary Secretary for Climate Change and energy Efficiency.

So far, several methodologies have been approved under the CFI, including reducing methane in piggeries, flaring landfill gas, planting n ative tree species and reducing pollution from savanna fires.

CSIRO, universities and other research bodies are developing a number of other methodologies with the federal government, including dairy cattle food supplementation, enhanced efficiency fertilisers, manure management and soil carbon.

“Climate change poses a serious risk to the future of Australian agriculture and food production, with scientists confirming a strong link to less predictable and more intense weather events,” said Mr Dreyfus.

“Australian farmers and landholders have an important role to play in our nation’s clean energy future by increasing the land sector's resilience to climate change and improving long term farm productivity.”

Further information about the Carbon Farming Initiative is available at www.climatechange.gov.au/cfi

The Federal Government has opened the detailed modeling tool used by the Gonski Review of School Funding to state and territory governments, non-government schools and school education unions.

School Education Minister Peter Garrett said the education community would benefit the use of extensive and up-to-date data and allow them to test the School Resource Standard (SRS) model.

Mr Garrett said sharing the modelling tool used by the review panel in developing its recommendations will allow school authorities to trial how an SRS could work in practice for schools and school systems. Representatives from state governments, non-government schools and unions will also be given separate technical briefings of the Gonski modelling over the next few days.

“As Mr Gonski and the review panel made clear, there is still a lot of work to do to test and refine the various elements of their proposed funding model. This includes testing the proposed funding amount per student, and examining whether the loadings for disadvantage are set at the right levels,” Mr Garrett said.

“We are asking everyone involved in school funding to carry out these tests and come back and share the results with the various working groups we’ve established, as well as the Ministerial Reference Group.

“This will allow us to see where the SRS model might need refining and tweaking, how it might impact on schools and systems, and also gain a better understanding of any financial implications.”

NSW is able to enjoy one of the healthiest sex industries ever documented due to the decriminalisation of sex work in NSW combined with a free market approach, according to a report into NSW Health.

International authorities regard the NSW regulatory framework as best practice – the result of decades of partnership by government, community organisations, health workers and researchers, according to the report, The Sex Industry in New South Wales.

The report was launched by Mr Peter Collins, Minister for Health in the Greiner Government 1988-91 and the Coalition representative on the ground-breaking NSW Parliament Select Committee on Prostitution that reported in 1986.

Decriminalisation of the industry in 1995 led to a dramatic reduction in police corruption and sex worker exploitation.

There is still room for improvement. Many local councils routinely refused development applications for brothels, resulting in some brothels masquerading as massage parlours with poor occupational health and safety standards.

Lance Schema, Executive Director of the lead sex worker agency in NSW for HIV, STI and Hepatitis C education and prevention, Sex Workers Outreach Project said, “This report provides clear evidence to inform policy development. We commend the Kirby Institute for pulling together this report that will and should assist governments in developing future policies relating to the sex industry.” 

More information can be found here.

Mining exploration company Mindax has announced the appointment of Loh Kgai Mun as the company’s new director.

Mr Loh has been appointed with immediate effect and will offer himself for election at the companty’s next annual general meeting.

Mr Loh is the Executive Director of Lion Asiapac Limited, a company listed on the Singapore Exchange, since August 2008.

Mr Loh has extensive experience in wealth management, including companies with multi-national operations.

Prior to 2008, he was the Group General Manager of Lion Asiapac  Limited  and oversaw operational, financial, and management matters of the Lion Asiapac group. 

Jetstar has announced the appointment of Barathan Pasupathi as the new Chief Executive Officer of the company’s Asia brand.

Mr Pasupathi brings 16 years of experience in senior roles, including in the energy, aviation and finance sectors. Mr Pasupathi previously served as Jetstar Asia’s first Chief Financial Officer.

Chairman of Newstar (holding company of Jetstar Asia) Mr Dennis Choo said Mr Pasupathi, a Singapore national, would lead Jetstar Asia and Valuair as their networks expand into some of the fastest-growing aviation markets in the world. 

“We are very pleased to have an executive of Mr Pasupathi’s calibre to lead Jetstar Asia into the next phase of its development,” Mr Choo said.  

“As one of the founding executives of Jetstar Asia, Mr Pasupathi has a first-hand understanding of our business as well as the aviation sector overall. 

“His 10 years’ experience in oil and gas industry has equipped him with detailed knowledge of the leading cost driver in aviation, namely fuel, and his familiarity with supply chain management gives him a sharp sense of process optimisation,” Mr Choo added.

Paul Daff will continue as acting Chief Executive Officer of Jetstar Asia until Mr Pasupathi starts in his new role on 2 July 2012.