Abbott and Putin discuss international enquiry into MH17.
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Russian President Vladimir Putin have help a telephone conversation “to exchange their views on aspects of organising an independent and objective international enquiry” into MH17, a Kremlin statement has revealed.
The pair agreed compliance with a UN Security Council resolution that called for full access to the MH17 crash site was of the utmost importance.
Labor Party passes motion critical of Israeli settlements.
The NSW Labor Party has passed a motion critical of Israeli settlements. The draft resolution, supporting the recognition of a Palestinian state, was passed without debate during the NSW Labor Party Conference yesterday.
The draft resolution was moved by former foreign minister Bob Carr. It said:
“NSW Labor welcomes the decision of the Palestinian Authority to commit to a demilitarised Palestine with the presence of international peacekeepers, including US forces.
“If, however there is no progress to a two-state solution, and Israel continues to build and expand settlements, a future Labor government will consult like-minded nations towards recognition of the Palestinian state.”
Parents treating teachers as free child-minders during out-of-school hours.
The President of the NSW Primary Principal’s Association, Geoff Scott, has said many parents are taking advantage of teachers who continue working during out-of-school hours.
Mr Scott has revealed that often those who are unable to access formal childcare drop their children at school early, or pick them up late, expecting teachers to be around and keep a watchful eye.
Top Comments
WHERE ARE ALL THE BLOODY JOBS?!
As an example of how tough the job market is in Australia at the moment: I have had to move overseas to find employment, leaving my husband at home to care for his terminally ill mother. It is likely that we will spend the next year or more apart.
This is not a sob story and I am not seeking sympathy, I merely raise the point that finding a job in Australia at the moment is very difficult. I have two tertiary qualifications and 8 years of experience and yet this is the situation I find myself in.
This is "anecdata" but I have several tertiary qualified friends with 10+ years of experience who are unemployed. We don't show up in the unemployment stats because we either had savings or spouses to support us in the short-term, meaning we don't need to claim Newstart. We are the lucky ones.
It makes me wonder how high the unemployment rate really is.
It is all good and well to screech "get a job or we'll make you starve for six months", but where are all the jobs that are supposedly so easy to get?
A University of Melbourne study has shown that people on work for the dole are no more likely to find a job than those not on work for the dole program. The reasons:
- People can only move off the dole/Newstart when jobs become available (and currently there aren't enough available).
- The work for the dole scheme does not provide sufficient skills for people to move onto other forms of employment.
http://cf.fbe.unimelb.edu.a...
So what? At least they are doing something for the community while they're on the dole.