VIC: Lead stories in today s Melbourne newspapers = 2

AAP General News (Australia)
02-16-1999
VIC: Lead stories in today s Melbourne newspapers = 2

THE AGE:

PAGE 1: Hostilities between the state ALP and the trade union movement grew yesterday after
the Opposition Leader, Mr John Brumby, accused a senior union official of being a "bitter and
twisted" lapdog of the Kennett Government. Melbourne's building boom and fast-track approval
process for new developments has led to a spate of unauthorised building and demolition. The
East Gippsland Lakes, one of Victoria's major tourist attractions, is being choked by
chemicals and silt from agricultural runoff.

PAGE 2: Residents groups often ignored the key role local councils played in urban
planning, State Planning Minister Rob Maclellan said yesterday.

PAGE 3: The Federal Government expects East Timor will gain independence as early as July
2000. Mobile phone sales are soaring with 6 million subscribers across the country - almost 40
per cent of the country aged over 15.

PAGE 5: Needle exchange programs had operated successfully in Swiss prisons since 1992 and
there had been no incidents of syringes being used as weapons, a conference was told
yesterday. National Australia Bank yesterday cut off refund facilities on its Australia-wide
Eftpos network after losing millions of dollars in a sophisticated fraud.

WORLD: Ethnic Albanians have indicated they are ready to sign a peace deal at the Kosovo
peace conference but the Serbian leadership is resisting key elements of the plan. The Iraqi
government said today it was able to attack American and British bases in the Gulf that are
used to launch air strikes against Iraq.

BUSINESS: The diversified manufacturing group Pacific Dunlop has put in a solid start to
the year, posting an interim net profit of $101.7 million, up 13 per cent on the previous
year. News Ltd, the Australian arm of Mr Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, and Mr Kerry Packer's
Publishing and Broadcasting Ltd, last night announced they were joining forces in a $429
million telecommunications deal.

SPORT: The Australian Cricket Board is considering holding some cricket games at the
Docklands stadium with the roof closed to avoid financial losses incurred when rain interrupts
play at other venues.

AAP ba/kr

KEYWORD: FRONTERS VIC 2 MELBOURNE

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