Britain's new coalition government has suffered a blow as high-profile finance minister David Laws resigned, following revelations over his expenses claims.

Mr Laws stepped down as chief treasury secretary after the Daily Telegraph newspaper reported he had channelled more than 40,000 pounds ($68,000) of taxpayers' money in rent to his long-term male partner.

"I do not see how I can carry out my crucial work on the budget and spending review while I have to deal with the private and public implications of recent revelations," Mr Laws said at a brief press conference.

Kakadu... Picture by Gus

Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett says he would like to seize the opportunity to expand Kakadu National Park, following a request from traditional owners.

The French mining company Areva wants to mine the Koongarra deposit for uranium.

The site is surrounded by Kakadu National Park and home to the Djok Aboriginal clan.

For years, traditional owners have rejected the company's requests to mine the site, but now they are taking their fight even further.

On behalf of Aboriginal land owners, the Northern Land Council has submitted an application for the site to be included in the national park.

Currently in Vogue: Ringing the Deficit Alarm

By CARL HULSE

WASHINGTON — Deficits finally matter.

After years of citing national security, social necessity and economic crisis as sufficient justification to pass costly legislation without paying for it, members of Congress are getting cold feet about continually adding to the national vat of red ink.

ICC tries to calm Howard row

International Cricket Council (ICC) president-elect Sharad Pawar has sought to defuse the row over the nomination of former Australian prime minister John Howard as an ICC vice-president.

Pawar is set to take over the presidency of world cricket's governing body from Welshman David Morgan next month, with former politician Howard becoming a vice-president.

Under ICC procedures, Howard would normally become ICC president in two years' time.

Germany vs. Europe

Germany’s commitment to the European Union has been central to its postwar rehabilitation and its economic success. For years, Germany played the role in Europe that America so frequently plays globally — the locomotive whose dynamism and demand helps turn around recessions before they deepen into depressions.

Climate change no longer 'crap': Abbott says man makes a difference

LENORE TAYLOR

Colonel Klink and sergeant Schultz...

Asylum seekers could again face processing in overseas countries under a Coalition government, Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has announced.

The Opposition's immigration policy, released today, also includes plans to bring back temporary protection visas and would make visa holders work if they wanted to claim welfare.

The Coalition has also vowed to turn back boats from Australian waters if necessary.

The processing policy would be similar to the Howard government's so-called Pacific solution, which saw asylum seekers processed in countries such as Nauru and Manus Island in Papua New Guinea.

Mr. Geithner lobbied against Chinese government procurement rules that give preference to products with intellectual property developed in China. American businesses, particularly in technology, complain that this handicaps them and deprives China of state-of-the-art products.

“Innovation flourishes best when markets are open, competition is fair, and strong protections exist for ideas and inventions,” he said.

The Chinese have their pet issues as well: Beijing is pushing for the United States to loosen controls on exports of high-technology equipment with potential military applications. A raft of questions from reporters for state-run Chinese media organizations suggested a coordinated campaign.

2010’s Debates Still Trapped in the 1960s

By MATT BAI

You would not think Richard Blumenthal and Rand Paul would have anything in common, aside from the fact that they are both running for Senate.

 

Silicon chips that are allowed to make mistakes could help ensure computers continue to get more powerful, say US researchers.

As components shrink, chip makers struggle to get more performance out of them while meeting power needs.

Research suggests relaxing the rules governing how they work and when they work correctly could mean they use less power but get a performance boost.

Special software is also needed to cope with the error-laden chips.

from the BBC

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kakadu uranium mine (picture by Gus)

Millions of litres of radioactive water from the Ranger uranium mine have flowed into world heritage-listed wetlands in Kakadu National Park.

Aboriginal traditional owners say they will oppose plans for a huge expansion of the 30-year-old mine by Energy Resources of Australia unless the company upgrades its environmental protection procedures.

Education officials in the US state of Texas have adopted new guidelines to the school curriculum which critics say will politicise teaching.

The changes include teaching that the United Nations could be a threat to American freedom, and that the Founding Fathers may not have intended a complete separation of church and state.

Critics say the changes are ideological and distort history, but proponents argue they are redressing a long-standing liberal bias in education.

Analysts say Texas, with five million schoolchildren, wields substantial influence on school curriculums across the US.