ABC NewsMail - Morning Edition

NewsMail Morning Edition Fri 24 Jan, 2014 Top Stories More Top Stories » Abbott vows to promote free trade as G20 chair By Europe correspondent Philip Williams and staff Prime Minister Tony Abbott has called for freer trade and increased global growth at a keynote speech at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland. More » Indonesia says Australian border policies unhelpful Australian 'middleman' accused of helping countrymen fight in Syria Three dead, 30 missing after fire at nursing home in Canada Justin Bieber arrested for drag-racing, drink-driving Indian woman gang-raped as punishment for affair Stanislas Wawrinka beats Tomas Berdych to book place in Australian Open final More Analysis » When is a blue tie more than just a blue tie? Call me old-fashioned, but I would like to think this of my Prime Minister: that he is a man of intelligence, independent thought and creative intellectual flexibility; a man who knows, trusts and expresses his own mind. Call me trivial, but I'll never be able to convince myself that Tony Abbott is any of those things while he keeps wearing those blue ties. To me it marks him as a politician compulsively obsessed by the finest detail of political messaging; a man prepared to surrender even something as small, simple and silly as the choice of a tie to the necessities of political craft. More » What an "Anglo" foreign policy actually looks like Tony Abbott's inflation headache All's quiet on the Nauru front Wasting energy on climate change sceptics Abbott's constitutional curveball on paid parental leave Twitter babble disguises its worth Sending young men to prison won't make you safer The festering injustice that is Guantanamo Bay Neo-prohibition isn't the answer to violent crime Just In More Just In » Original Coles store burns down in north-west Tasmania A piece of retail history has gone up in flames with the original Coles store in Tasmania's north-west destroyed by fire. More » European leaders voice concern for Ukraine as protests spread Indonesia says Australian border policies unhelpful Pope says the internet is 'a gift from God' Plastic surgeon faces fine for jawbone towers Blatter plays down World Cup spats with Brazil South Sudan factions sign ceasefire Rights group says Muslims massacred in Myanmar Hong Kong to destroy 30 tonnes of ivory Chinese maker Lenovo to make huge IBM purchase World More World » European leaders voice concern for Ukraine as protests spread By Europe correspondent Barbara Miller and staff European leaders have expressed deep concern about the worsening situation on the streets of the Ukrainian capital where thousands of people have massed in often violent clashes with authorities. The protests against president Viktor Yanukovich began in November, when he pulled out of signing a free trade deal with the European Union in favour of closer economic ties with former Soviet overlord Russia. The unrest has swelled in scale in recent weeks, and turned violent on Sunday when hard-core radicals broke away from the main protest area in the capital Kiev and clashed violently with riot police. German chancellor Angela Merkel says she is outraged by new laws passed last week, while former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev is calling on the Russian and US presidents to get directly involved to prevent "catastrophe". More » Pope says the internet is 'a gift from God' Plastic surgeon faces fine for jawbone towers Blatter plays down World Cup spats with Brazil South Sudan factions sign ceasefire Rights group says Muslims massacred in Myanmar Business More Business » China manufacturing sector posts surprise contraction By business reporter Michael Janda China's manufacturing sector has contracted for the first time in six months, sending the Australian dollar lower. The widely-watched HSBC flash manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 49.6 in January from 50.5 in December - a level below 50 indicates the sector is contracting. However, some analysts caution that little can be read into January and February Chinese data as it is skewed by the massive Lunar New Year holiday. More » Abbott vows to promote free trade as G20 chair Murray Goulburn to sell Warrnambool Cheese and Butter shares Bankers at Davos say regulation may have gone too far ASIC bans mortgage brokers for submitting false documents Politics More Politics » European leaders voice concern for Ukraine as protests spread By Europe correspondent Barbara Miller and staff European leaders have expressed deep concern about the worsening situation on the streets of the Ukrainian capital where thousands of people have massed in often violent clashes with authorities. The protests against president Viktor Yanukovich began in November, when he pulled out of signing a free trade deal with the European Union in favour of closer economic ties with former Soviet overlord Russia. The unrest has swelled in scale in recent weeks, and turned violent on Sunday when hard-core radicals broke away from the main protest area in the capital Kiev and clashed violently with riot police. German chancellor Angela Merkel says she is outraged by new laws passed last week, while former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev is calling on the Russian and US presidents to get directly involved to prevent "catastrophe". More » Indonesia says Australian border policies unhelpful Tasmanian Labor MP says Giddings 'did more for the Greens than Bob Brown' Niue rejects plan to house Australian asylum seekers Emergency Services Minister defends watching tennis during bushfires Sport More Sport » Wawrinka books place in Australian Open final Stanislas Wawrinka has reached the Australian Open final after a four-set semi-final win over Tomas Berdych. More » Federer eyes off wounded Nadal Cibulkova to meet Li in Aussie Open final Hurricanes blow Heat away to secure BBL finals' berth Blatter plays down World Cup spats with Brazil ASADA tests Fittler straight away Science and Technology More Science and Technology » Ex-military spy drone to conduct NASA climate tests in Australian skies By international correspondent Mark Corcoran US space agency NASA is preparing to launch drone missions high in Australian skies during the next six weeks. The ex-US Air Force RQ-4 Global Hawk drone has a wingspan of a Boeing 737 airliner and a flight endurance exceeding 30 hours. It costs a hefty $US200 million when fitted out with sophisticated eavesdropping equipment and is designed to circle the globe on secret military missions. The drone has been fitted with different instruments to help NASA "track changes in the upper atmosphere and help researchers understand how these changes affect Earth's climate". Pilots have been warned to be on the look out for the Global Hawk - the largest, most sophisticated drone in operational service today - until March 2. More » National Zoo unveils rare tree kangaroo joey Federal Government to seek costs over Antarctica rescue Facebook predicted to fade 'like a disease' Mystery white rock appears near Mars rover Environment More Environment » Twitchers in a flap after croc blocks sewerage By Mark Di Stefano Bird watchers are furious at being blocked from a Darwin sewerage facility where a lost Arctic bird has been spotted, because a crocodile is lurking in the ponds. The Grey Phalarope with its dirty white feathers has been floating around the Leanyer sewage facility for the last few days. Local bird watchers do not know how it got to Darwin, as it usually breeds in the Arctic tundra and there have been no sightings of it in Australia for years. More » 2013 fourth hottest year on record for planet: reports China pollution wafting in large quantities across Pacific to the US: report Murray-Darling water allocations to be sold back to farmers Fishermen cautious over WA shark cull amid safety fears, Premier says About this email You received this email because you are subscribed to ABC News email alerts. This message was sent to you at starnewsposting@gmail.com Please add newslists@your.abc.net.au to your email address book to see images by default and stop the email being treated as spam. This email address is not monitored - Please don't reply to this email. Manage your preferences | Unsubscribe | Contact Us   This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced. Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 700 Harris Street, Ultimo NSW 2007 © 2014 ABC | Conditions of Use | Privacy Policy | Discover other ABC Email newsletters