Gillard, Noda talk on trade and security

SECURITY and trade concerns have dominated the agenda of a meeting between Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Japanese leader Yoshihiko Noda on the sidelines of the East Asia Summit.

At their bilateral meeting in Phnom Penh on Monday afternoon, Mr Noda congratulated Ms Gillard on Australia's successful UN Security Council campaign and welcomed the release of the Asian Century white paper.

The two leaders agreed to work closely on global security issues during Australia's term on the council.

Other issues on the table included the South China Sea, North Korea's nuclear program and Australia's malaria initiatives.

Working towards a free trade area in the Pacific and the ongoing talks on the Japan-Australia free trade agreement were also discussed.

Time constraints led a bilateral meeting with the Sultan of Brunei to be cancelled.

Ms Gillard and other national leaders are attending a gala dinner in Phnom Penh ahead of formal summit talks on Tuesday.

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Others' drinking habits 'affect the young'

NEW research has found almost 85 per cent of young Victorians aged between 16 to 24 have been affected by someone else's drinking.

The study by the Centre for Alcohol Policy Research (CAPR) found harms experienced by the 5000 people surveyed fell into two categories - tangible harms and amenity harms.

Tangible harms included verbal and physical assault and car accidents while amenity harms involved feeling unsafe in public or being annoyed by drinkers.

CAPR researcher Dr Sarah Callinan says the issue of subjectivity is one of the problems in measuring harms to others from alcohol use.

"Two people may live through the same experience and only one might consider themselves harmed," Dr Callinan said.

"Interestingly, it may be that the social acceptance of alcohol is in fact reducing the perception of harms."

The research found that women, people living in major cities, binge drinkers and those taking drugs other then cannabis were more likely to experience amenity harms.

People aged between 18-21, those with a positive attitude to drinking and all types of drug users were likely to experience tangible alcohol and drug harms.

Dr Callinan will present the study to the Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and Other Drugs in Melbourne on Tuesday.

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Research only way to reduce dementia

THE number of Australians who will develop dementia by 2050 could be cut by one-third if research breakthroughs can delay its onset by just five years, according to a new analysis.

New medicines to delay or slow the progress of major diseases that lead to dementia are currently under trial.

But current research efforts are slower and more difficult than hoped.

A report commissioned by Alzheimer's Australia, released on Tuesday, shows that even small breakthroughs - delaying the onset by two or five years - could dramatically reduce the number of people who contract the disease.

The report, Modelling the impact of interventions to delay the onset of dementia in Australia, was prepared by the Dementia Collaborative Research Centre (CRC) at the University of New South Wales.

It's estimated that almost 900,000 people will live with dementia in 2050, about three times the current number.

Between now and 2050, more than three million people in total are likely to develop the disease.

If research comes up with a way to delay the onset by two years, and it is put into practice in 2020, it could reduce the number of people developing dementia by almost 400,000.

And if interventions or treatments can delay the onset from average age 85 to age 90 then almost a million people would be spared.

This means their quality of life would be greatly improved from if they had developed the disease, and they and their carers would be free of the stigma, loss and grief dementia brought, the report says.

Reducing the number of people likely to contract the disease would also lessen the burden on health systems.

Alzheimer's Australia has used the findings in the report to renew its calls for an extra $200 million to be put into dementia research over the next four years.

"While Australia can claim many world leading scientists, the dementia research sector lacks capacity and has been falling behind other health research areas for over a decade," president Ita Buttrose writes in the report's foreword.

Dementia CRC director Henry Brodaty said research had already found lifestyle changes people could make to reduce the risk of dementia, including looking after body, brain and heart.

"But, in the long term, an increased investment in dementia research is the only hope we have for the development of medical interventions to delay, stop or reverse the diseases that lead to dementia," he said.

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Cameron secures Australian election guru

BRITISH Prime Minister David Cameron has hired Australian election specialist Lynton Crosby to formulate the next Tory campaign.

Labelled the "wizard of Oz" by UK media outlets, and both championed and lambasted for his straight-talking style, Mr Crosby worked as a strategist for John Howard's government, leading the coalition to successive federal victories.

The appointment of Adelaide-born Mr Crosby, 55, to Mr Cameron's stable was strongly supported by London Mayor Boris Johnson - a former client - who told the British PM to "break the piggy bank" to secure the Australian's services.

However the appointment of the economics graduate, who has an Order of Australia (AO), is not without criticism.

While supporting Mr Johnson in his 2012 bid to retain the mayoralty, Mr Crosby allegedly made a racial slur.

"An insider accused the strategist of telling Mr Johnson he should concentrate on wooing traditional supporters, not 'f***ing Muslims'," reports Britain's Daily Mail newspaper.

The allegation has gained traction as it is reproduced across the UK, although a Downing Street spokesman said there was "no recollection" the comment was made.

Britain's Labour opposition has pounced on the allegation linked to Mr Crosby, telling the Financial Times his appointment means "David Cameron can't be the 'one nation' prime minister Britain needs".

The Financial Times further reported that some of Mr Cameron's colleagues are wary of Mr Crosby because his past campaigns have "focused on visceral political issues such as immigration that may turn off some floating voters".

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Businesses more lenient on customer credit

BUSINESSES have adopted stricter lending and credit policies during the tough economic climate of the past year but a new survey suggests they may be more lenient in coming months.

In its annual assessment of credit management, data provider Veda found organisations are concerned about the economic stability of Europe, increasingly cautious consumers, a lack of confidence in the housing market and the subsequent collapse of construction businesses.

"In response to these negative economic conditions and deteriorating customer payments, participants have changed the way they manage their credit application and accounts," the report released on Tuesday says.

However, it found a modest improvement in the number of businesses that expect to be negatively impacted by general economic conditions in the next six to 12 months - 59 per cent from 74 per cent in 2011.

The survey of more than 250 companies found 63 per cent had made their lending and credit criteria stricter in the past year.

However, only 16 per cent intend to do the same in the next six to 12 months.

Similarly, 64 per cent reported an increase or tightening in debt collection processes but only 22 per cent said they will follow this path in 2013.

The survey of organisations with between 500 to 10,000 customers across a range of industries found demand for credit grew by 32 per cent in 2012, building on the 47 per cent increase in 2011, but 53 per cent reported customer payments had deteriorated.

"This continues to be a problem for business cash flow," the report said.

Thirty-day payment terms remain the standard for most credit managers, although this has shrunk from 80 per cent in 2011 to 36 per cent in 2012, with a shift toward other payment options and shorter terms in response to economic conditions.

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Warning over button batteries and kids

WHEN Dr Simon Craig saw the severe damage a bright, shiny button-sized battery did to a child unlucky enough to have swallowed it, he was surprised.

Working at the Monash Medical Centre's emergency department in Melbourne, Dr Craig said he had come across two cases in the past 18 months where children suffered serious injuries after ingesting the battery.

"I was a little surprised about how severe the complications were," he told AAP.

It only takes a matter of an hour or two after the batteries are swallowed before they begin their offensive.

"If it gets stuck in the oesophagus then you see it set up a bit of an electrical current within the tissue," Dr Craig said.

The current eventually causes burns and perforations, and if it moves forward will wound the windpipe or, if it points backwards, will damage the spine.

In one case Dr Craig saw a boy aged 14 months admitted to emergency with a fever.

Doctors eventually spotted the offending item in his oesophagus and after six days of treatment the boy was discharged from hospital.

But two weeks later the boy was readmitted with a severe spinal infection, which required three months of intravenous antibiotics and ongoing treatment for a narrowing of his oesophagus.

Dr Craig said he was sharing the case at the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine's annual scientific meeting in Hobart on Monday.

"If you can prevent one of these then you are preventing a child going through a lot of pain, spending three months in hospital and one family a whole lot of heartache," he said.

He urged parents to keep the devices holding the batteries - sometimes as large as a 10-cent coin - out of children's reach.

According to the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine, about four children go to emergency departments across Australia each week with an injury relating to the batteries.

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New data shows surplus of skilled labour

INDUSTRY groups might regularly complain about a skills shortage, but new data shows there is actually a current oversupply of skilled labour.

Employment services firm Clarius Group's Skills Index for the September quarter showed there was a skilled labour surplus of 19,500 across the 20 occupation categories examined, compared to a shortage of 2,300 in the June quarter for 2012.

Employees representing Generation Y are appreciating their jobs more too, now they are seeing colleagues made redundant and employers can afford to be more choosy, according to the Clarius report.

The turnaround was driven by an increase in unemployment in the three months to September 30 (5.2 to 5.4 per cent) and decrease in employment opportunities in what was a volatile economy, the study found.

However, Clarius chief executive Kym Quick warns large skills shortages still exist in the sectors expected to drive economic growth in the next 12 months.

Seven of the 20 occupations representing 2.6 million workers analysed in the report were in shortage.

The index weakened from 100.1 "balanced" in the June quarter to 99.2 "moderate" in this quarter, with a score under 100 meaning the skilled labour market has moved from a shortage to an oversupply.

The effect of that was a fundamental shift in employer and employee behaviour, especially among Generation Y (roughly aged 32 and under).

"Expectations are now more realistic and they appreciate the fact they've actually got a job, having seen many of their colleagues face a very different scenario," Ms Quick said.

In many cases the probation period for a new employee has doubled from three months to six months.

Employees were also being asked to do more work to cover redundant positions because, while the people may not be there anymore, the task still is.

The index found there was a shortage of 6,900 engineers, 5,900 information and communications technology professionals, 2,700 accountants, company secretaries and auditors, 3,200 sales and marketing professionals and 700 legal professionals.

The most "in demand" occupation was corporate service managers, with a 4.9 per cent increase in the shortfall.

That role had become increasingly important given post-global financial crisis compliance and stakeholder scrutiny, Ms Quick said.

There were surpluses in various industries, among them were finance jobs and skilled technician, clerical and administrative roles.

With signs of the Chinese economy picking up, the shortages in some professions could adversely impact Australia's ability to take full advantage of upturns in Asian economies in the short to medium term, she said.

The index reported growth in labour demand in the Australian economy was primarily occurring in higher-skilled occupations and professionals representing a significant proportion of employment in growth industries.

The unemployment rate among Australian professionals is just 1.8 per cent, compared with the national rate of 5.4 per cent, with a shortage of 15,300 professionals.

The data used for the index is from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.

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Peres says Israel acting in self-defence

ISRAELI President Shimon Peres has welcomed efforts by his Egyptian counterpart to secure a ceasefire in the Gaza conflict but accused Hamas of rejecting the proposals.

He also said he could foresee a scaling back of the situation and stressed that Israel was taking great pains not to hit civilians in the Gaza Strip.

Asked by Britain's Sky News television if he saw any possibility of a de-escalation of the conflict, he replied from Jerusalem: "As far as we are concerned, the answer is yes.

"We also appreciate the efforts of the president of Egypt (Mohamed Morsi) to introduce a ceasefire. But until now, Hamas has rejected the proposal of the Egyptian president."

Hamas "don't even listen to their Arab brothers", he said.

"We don't escalate at all. What Israel is doing is self-defence.

"We don't have any purpose to conquer Gaza."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday threatened to expand the assault on Hamas-run Gaza as the Jewish state pressed ahead with a fifth day of strikes, killing six people including four children as truce efforts intensified.

"Basically our purpose is peace; their purpose is to destroy Israel. It's not an easy situation," Peres said.

"We are very careful not to hit any civilian life and they are concentrated on hitting our civilian life.

"Hamas is shooting at our settlements, at our houses, at our kindergartens, at our schools. What would any other country do but to try to stop it and do so without hitting civilian life?

"They shoot at our children. We are trying to answer and shoot against the ones who fire against us."

The 89-year-old said Israel was making a "supreme effort" to avoid civilian casualties but "unfortunately they use their homes, even their mosques to hide the arms, to make them headquarters of shooting.

"In spite of it, and until now I believe, almost no civilians were hit.

"We shall keep on with our principles. We are not being carried away by anger or misconception. The government is behaving as a responsible government that has to defend their citizens, young and old."

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Firebrand who renamed Bombay dies

BAL Thackeray, who has died aged 86, was a firebrand Indian politician whose right-wing Hindu party renamed Bombay and became synonymous with deadly ethnic violence.

His death on Saturday leaves the western state of Maharashtra and its capital - now known as Mumbai - without one of its most controversial figures, who more than once expressed his admiration for the Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler.

Born on January 23, 1926 to a social activist father who played a key role in the movement to establish the Marathi-speaking state of Maharashtra, "The Tiger", as he was known, began life as a political cartoonist.

But he later became more involved in calling for greater rights for local Marathi-speaking people and protecting their culture and language from migrant workers.

Renaming Bombay as Mumbai in 1995, after a local deity, and city landmarks was seen as an attempt to rid the city of its British colonial past and emphasise its Marathi roots.

Thackeray had founded the Shiv Sena or Shiva's Army in 1966 in honour of the legendary 17th-century Marathi figure whose battles established a Hindu kingdom in a land then run by Muslims.

The party's ideology to protect and promote local "sons of the soil" evolved into a high-profile campaign against south Indian clerks and restaurateurs, Gujaratis, Muslims, north Indians and Bangladeshis who had come to the area for work.

A tightly-controlled network of Shiv Sena cells across the city often followed up threats and intimidation with violence.

Among the Sena's targets were shops selling Valentine's Day cards, cinemas showing a film with a lesbian theme, and Pakistani sportsmen and entertainers.

In 2010, activists forced some Mumbai cinemas to close in protest at "unpatriotic" comments by Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan lamenting the absence of Pakistani cricketers from that year's Indian Premier League.

Most significantly, Thackeray stoked the fires of tension after Hindu militants destroyed a mosque in 1992 said to have been built on the site of a Hindu temple in the northern town of Ayodhya.

As reprisal attacks spread throughout India, he called on Hindus to "teach (Muslims) a lesson".

A subsequent judicial inquiry later pointed the finger at Thackeray, accusing him of directly inciting anti-Muslim violence that left more than 1000 people dead in India's financial and entertainment capital.

Thackeray was never brought to book by the authorities.

In 1994, the Shiv Sena came to power in Maharashtra in a coalition with the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), buoyed by anti-Muslim sentiment and a wave of bomb blasts blamed on Islamist extremists.

One of its first acts was to rename the city in a move that was widely criticised at the time, though Mumbai has since become its globally accepted title.

Thackeray was never a legislator - indeed he once said he hated politics - but his hand was seen in many of the state government's decisions.

Some saw the measure of his power and influence in his invitation to Michael Jackson to play a concert in the city in 1996 - and donate the profits to a Shiv Sena youth charity.

The late US singer is said to have autographed a toilet he used in Thackeray's bungalow.

The party lost power at state level in 1999, but has retained a presence ever since, with a BJP-Shiv Sena coalition in February winning a fourth consecutive term over Mumbai's civic body, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation.

The ageing Thackeray's pronouncements continued to be watched with both interest and fear as power passed to his son Uddhav and his nephew Raj set up a new, rival party.

His fiery speeches - in later years through the Marathi-language newspaper Saamna (Confrontation) - ridiculed revered Indian political figures and showed "The Tiger" still had teeth.

He appeared by videolink to his followers in October during a Hindu festival, looking frail and describing his weakened state in what sounded like a farewell speech.

"People should keep their loyalty intact (towards Shiv Sena).... You took care of me, now take care of Uddhav and Aditya," he said, referring to his son and grandson.

Behind every pronouncement stood Thackeray's regionalist agenda or desire to protect traditional Indian values, but it stood increasingly at odds with India's fast-growing economy that was embracing globalisation.

He may have found support among those whose jobs were threatened, but for many the communalism he espoused looked out of touch with modern India.

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Uganda records rise in gorilla numbers

THE population of Uganda's mountain gorillas has grown to 400, up from 302 in 2006, according to a census conducted last year.

This brings the total number of mountain gorillas in Africa to 880, giving hope to conservationists trying to save the critically endangered species.

Uganda is now home to nearly half of the world's mountain gorillas remaining in the wild, a source of confidence for a country that has come to depend heavily on the popular apes for substantial tourism revenue.

The rest of the surviving mountain gorillas - the species Gorilla beringei beringei - are in Congo and Rwanda.

"The increase in the population of mountain gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is testimony to the sound natural resource management policies that are being implemented in the protected areas," Uganda's Ministry of Tourism said in a statement on Friday.

"This result confirms beyond reasonable doubt that Uganda's conservation efforts are paying off."

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, a network of forested jungle deep in the country's southwestern frontier, is recognised by UNESCO as a heritage site of world value.

A permit to track gorillas there costs at least $US500 ($A485) and the World Wildlife Fund estimates that each gorilla brings in up to $US1 million in revenue each year for the East African country.

The census shows a stunning recovery for a species that once faced a real threat of extinction.

Mountain gorillas in the wild still face threats ranging from habitat loss to poaching, especially in Congo, where lawlessness in the country's vast eastern territory has allowed illegal hunters to prosper.

Mountain gorillas are hunted for their meat in Congo, according to the World Wildlife Fund.

Even a common cold can kill a mountain gorilla, as the species is particularly vulnerable to respiratory diseases usually associated with humans.

The conservation group Gorilla Doctors said the population growth was partly due to "extreme conservation" methods such as daily ranger monitoring in the forest.

Ugandan wildlife officials have been able to build successful partnerships with local communities in part by pouring some of the revenue into local projects, converting previously hostile groups into friendly advocates for the gorillas' survival.

"The mountain gorilla is the only non-human great ape that is actually growing in number," said Mike Cranfield of Gorilla Doctors.

"The growth of the mountain gorilla population can be attributed to the intensive conservation and collaboration between multiple conservation groups and government authorities."

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