AAP National News Wire Round-Up for Midday, Aug 29

AAP General News (Australia)
08-29-2006
AAP National News Wire Round-Up for Midday, Aug 29
Midday Round-Up: HIGHLIGHTS OF THE AAP RTV FILE AT 1130


Tennis Open (NEW YORK)

ANDRE AGASSI has taken the court for what could be his last match after 21 years as
a professional tennis player.

AGASSI is taking on Romanian ANDREI PAVEL in the first round of the US Open in New
York .. where entry to the match is the hottest ticket in town.

Even ground passes to watch it on the big screen at Flushing Meadows have been sold
out .. as fans flock to see the American legend perhaps for the last time.

A clearly emotional AGASSI struggled to hold back tears as he unwrapped his racquet
and approached the net.



Neiwand (MELBOURNE)

Former champion cyclist GARY NEIWAND has been sentenced to 18 months' jail for stalking
a former girlfriend .. her mother .. and the girlfriend's boss..

The Olympic silver medallist is already in jail for breaching an intervention order
to stay away from his ex-wife.

He'll serve a minimum of nine months' jail .. after pleading guilty to five counts
of stalking .. two of theft .. three of using a carriage service in an harassing manner
.. and one of breaching an intervention order.



Chipp Democrats (CANBERRA)

Politicians are paying tribute today to Australian Democrats founder DON CHIPP .. who's
died aged 81.

Former leader NATASHA STOTT-DESPOJA says her dear friend and mentor was an extraordinary
individual .. who remained committed to the Democrats to the end.

Former Democrats senator VICKI BOURNE says he was a humble man who championed the underdog.

And current Democrats leader LYN ALLISON says Mr CHIPP was a politician of great courage
and integrity .. who voted according to his conscience .. and strongly supported social
justice.

She says he understood the need for an alternative to the two major parties .. and
she's sent the party's condolences to his wife IDUN and his children.



Chipp Howard (ADELAIDE)

The Prime Minister says DON CHIPP was an admirable man who made a huge impact on Australia.

JOHN HOWARD says he was saddened to learn of Mr CHIPP'S death last night.

He says he was a very colourful figure in Australian politics .. who was passionate
and committed to the causes he believed in.



Thomas Costello (CANBERRA)

Treasurer PETER COSTELLO says the government's decision to apply for a control order
on Victorian man JACK THOMAS was made to safeguard Australia.

A Victorian court earlier this month quashed convictions against Mr THOMAS for receiving
funds from al-Qaeda and holding a false passport .. and overturned a five-year jail sentence.

But on the weekend .. the government successfully applied in the Federal Magistrates
Court for a control order on Mr THOMAS .. who is now under a curfew.

Mr Costello says the purpose of the control order was to provide surveillance for
the protection of all Australians.



Poll Qld Caravan (YEPPOON)

Queensland Premier PETER BEATTIE will stop the bulldozing of caravan parks on state-owned
land .. under a plan to preserve cheap accommodation for grey nomads and other budget
travellers.

Mr BEATTIE who's campaigning in the central coastal Queensland town of YEPPOON .. says
his Labor government will no longer accept applications from developers .. seeking to
transform caravan parks into five-star luxury accommodation.

He says Labor's committed to a permanent network of caravan parks .. from Coolangatta
to the Cape .. to cater for the annual pilgrimage by grey nomads and other budget travellers.



Beverages (SYDNEY)

Softdrink manufacturers will remove sugary drinks from school canteens .. and stop
advertising directly to children as part of a major marketing overhaul.

The Australian Beverage Council has unveiled tough new guidelines .. in response to
increasing pressure to battle childhood obesity.



US JonBenet (BOULDER)

Colorado prosecutors aren't charging schoolteacher JOHN MARK KARR with the murder of
six-year-old JONBENET RAMSEY.

They say tests show KARR'S DNA doesn't match that found at the scene of the six-year-old
beauty queen's murder in December 1996.

But after initially saying the 41-year-old would be freed from jail .. they now say
he'll remain in custody because California wants him to face child pornography charges.



Privacy Costello (CANBERRA)

PETER COSTELLO says breaches of privacy by Australian Taxation Office staff are absolutely
unacceptable.

The treasurer's told ABC radio .. the good news is management has identified the breaches
.. and dealt with them.

The Australian newspaper says the ATO has taken action against 27 employees for inappropriately
accessing taxpayer files .. sacking four of them.



Parrot (CANBERRA)

The bird which stopped a 220 million dollar wind farm development is now about to come
into the money itself .. through a 3.2 million dollar federal government grant.

The orange-bellied parrot is barely hanging onto existence in its heartland .. on the
margins of Bass Strait in southern Australia.

Environment Minister IAN CAMPBELL says it's one of the world's rarest and most endangered
animals .. with only about 50 breeding pairs left.



Sci Dinosaur (RIO DE JANEIRO)

Brazilian paleontologists have discovered a new giant dinosaur species based on fossilised
fragments of the herbivorous reptile that lived 80 million years ago .. in the late Cretaceous
period.

The Maxakalisaurus topai was 13 metres long .. weighed about nine tonnes .. and had
a large body .. long tail and neck .. and a relatively small head.



Briefly in other news ..



Girl (ADELAIDE)

An 11-year-old South Australian girl will face court .. accused of sparking a series
of searches after lying about the whereabouts of a seven-year-old runaway boy .. who was
found hiding under her bed.



Escape (MELBOURNE)

A smoke alarm has saved a family of four .. including a three-week-old baby .. from
a fire that engulfed their Melbourne home this morning.



Katrina Bush (GULFPORT)

One year after Hurricane Katrina battered the US Gulf Coast and his political standing
.. President GEORGE W BUSH has acknowledged the recovery is still a long way off.



US Ford (ROCHESTER)

At the age of 93 .. former US president GERALD FORD has been discharged from hospital
.. after receiving a pacemaker to regulate his heartbeat.



US Springsteen (NEW YORK)

Rock star BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN has denied reports he's split with his wife .. singer PATTI
SCIALFA .. saying they've been together for 18 years .. and it's been .. the best years
of his life.



In finance ..

Westfield (SYDNEY)

Shopping centre owner Westfield has reported a 120 per cent rise in first half net
profit .. to 3.37 billion dollars.



Rebel (SYDNEY)

Rebel Sport has announced it'll open six new stores over the next 12 months .. after
reporting a 38 per cent increase in annual net profit to 22 million dollars.

Finance Markers

At 1120 AEST the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index was UP 34.6 points to 5058.8.

The all ordinaries index was UP 30.1 points to 5026.4.

The Australian dollar was trading at 75.98 US cents, DOWN from 75.81 at yesterday's close.

It was at 59.34 euro cents UP from 59.24 yesterday.

In Sydney, gold bullion was trading $7.55 DOWN at $US615.5 an ounce, from yesterday's close.



In Sport:
Tennis Open Aust (NEW YORK)

Australians ALICIA MOLIK and SAMANTHA STOSUR have both crashed out of the US Open with
disappointing first-round defeats.

NICOLE PRATT, LLEYTON HEWITT and MARK PHILIPPOUSSIS are Australia's only three players
left in the singles events at Flushing Meadows and all play their first-round matches
tomorrow.

HEWITT, the men's 15th seed, takes on Spaniard ALBERT MONTANES, PHILIPPOUSSIS is up
against Spanish second seed RAFAEL NADAL, while PRATT meets MILAGROS SEQUERA of Venezuela.



ENDS MIDDAY ROUND-UP

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