Bikie boss sent back to jail

The head of the Comanchero bikie gang has been charged for allegedly breaching parole. Source: AAP

THE head of the Comanchero bikie gang has been sent back to jail after being charged by Sydney police for allegedly breaching parole.

Officers arrested the 29-year-old at Coogee in Sydney's east on Friday.

Media reports have named the man as Mark Buddle, the Comanchero's national president.

A police spokesman was unable to confirm this, but he did say "the man is a senior member of the Comancheros outlaw motorcycle club".

After police charged Buddle by virtue of a warrant he was given to Corrective Services NSW, who took him to jail.

"If you're done for breach of parole you have to go back to jail and serve your time," the spokesman told AAP.

Police wouldn't say how Buddle had breached his parole.

Earlier this year, Buddle was granted parole after serving about five months for his part in a large pub brawl at Clovelly last September.

Three bikie clubhouses have also been shut down this week following raids across the city.

On Wednesday the Comanchero clubhouse at Turrella, in Sydney's south, was searched. Officers seized alcohol, documentation and all bikie paraphernalia.

Hells Angels' clubhouses at Annandale and Haymarket were closed by police the next day.

Evidence was uncovered of alcohol being illegally sold at each clubhouse but no arrests were made.

And despite the efforts of police, shootings are still occurring regularly in Sydney.

Teenage bikie associate Bassil Hijazi was murdered in Sydney's southwest in one of three targeted shootings in last week.

Vasko Boskovski, who was known to police, died in hospital early on Tuesday after he was shot near his Earlwood home.

Shots were also fired at an Eagle Vale home about midnight last Friday.

Detective Superintendent Mal Lanyon on Friday denied police are fighting a losing battle against Sydney's bikie gangs.

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Man dead in NSW north coast crash

A man has died after losing control of his car on the NSW north coast. Source: AAP

A MAN has died after losing control of his car on the NSW north coast.

The man's Honda was travelling south on the Pacific Highway at Mororo, near Iluka, when it drove into a drain and rolled a number of times about 11.40am (AEST) on Saturday, police say.

The man, aged in his 70s, died at the scene while his elderly female passenger was trapped inside the vehicle.

The highway was closed to allow a helicopter to land and fly the woman to hospital for treatment of leg and hip injuries.

Motorists were advised to avoid the Pacific Highway between Grafton and Ballina and consider using Summerland Way and the Bruxner Highway as alternate routes.

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Sept 7 in doubt as Rudd has things to do

Speculation is growing that Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is looking to approve a September 7 election. Source: AAP

KEVIN Rudd says he has "made no determination whatsoever" on when the federal election will be held, throwing doubt on the likelihood of a September 7 election.

The prime minister also told reporters on Saturday he wanted to attend a G20 summit just days before what had been considered the favoured poll date, raising the prospect the election could be pushed out to at least September 21.

Speculation had been building that Mr Rudd was planning to visit the governor-general on Sunday or Monday to seek approval for a September 7 election.

But Mr Rudd said the government had yet to conclude negotiations with Victoria over schools funding, with Western Australia on disability care, and with NSW over new environmental assessment procedures.

"We have a few things to attend to yet," he said after signing a new asylum-seeker resettlement agreement with Nauru on Saturday.

"So therefore on your question (about September 7), I've made no determination whatsoever in terms of the date of an election."

Whether Mr Rudd would attend the upcoming G20 leaders summit had also been a source of constant speculation, as the St Petersburg meeting is being held on September 5 and 6.

Mr Rudd confirmed it was "my intention to be in St Petersburg".

"But I'm very mindful also of the challenges that lie ahead of us as well," he told reporters in Brisbane.

"I place enormous priority to the G20 and its agenda.

"At the same time I will always balance that against other considerations before us as well."

If Mr Rudd does still decide on a September 7 election, it will need to be called by Monday to cover the minimum 33-day campaign period.

With September 14 all but ruled out because it had been chosen by his predecessor Julia Gillard, a September 21 election would be the next possible date.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott declared his team ready for the campaign.

"We've been ready for a long time," Mr Abbott told reporters in Melbourne, when asked about a September 7 election.

"I think the Australian people are eager to seize the chance to control the government once more.

"This election is a choice between strength and stability under the coalition, or more chaos, division and dysfunction under the Labor party."

Speculation over the election date came a day after the government's economic update, which predicted weaker economic growth, growing unemployment and more government debt, as well as a $33.3 billion writedown in revenues.

Shadow treasurer Joe Hockey said he expected the prime minister to "run to the polls in the next two days".

"Because the boats keep coming, the debt is blowing out by $3 billion a week and unemployment continues to rise, heading towards 800,000," he told reporters in Sydney.

"If I were Kevin Rudd I would be going to the polls as soon as possible."

But foreshadowing how central the economy will again be during the campaign, Finance Minister Penny Wong released government analysis which, she said, uncovered a $70 billion hole in the coalition's fiscal credentials.

"The government has laid out our plans and our budget," Senator Wong told reporters in Melbourne.

"It's time Tony Abbott did, because what this document shows against what Tony Abbott has said is that he would have to make $70 billion worth of cuts."

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Nauru signs up to Rudd's stop boats plan

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has announced a new refugee plan with the Pacific Island nation of Nauru. Source: AAP

PRIME Minister Kevin Rudd has announced a new agreement with the Pacific Island nation of Nauru, which like Australia's deal with Papua New Guinea, will deny asylum seekers the chance to resettle in Australia.

But the Opposition says it's just a ploy to win votes.

Mr Rudd and the president of the Republic of Nauru, Baron Waqa, signed the memorandum of understanding at a press conference in Brisbane on Saturday.

The deal supercedes the one struck between the nations last year and allows for asylum seekers to not only be processed in the Pacific Island nation, but also to be settled there.

"No matter where people smugglers try to land asylum seekers by boat in Australia, they will not be settled in Australia," Mr Rudd told reporters.

"This is our core principal."

The Nauru agreement is similar to the deal struck with Papua New Guinea's prime minister, Peter O'Neill, two weeks ago and is the latest salvo in Mr Rudd's tough new approach to asylum seekers.

Immigration Minister Tony Burke attended Saturday's announcement and agreed the number of asylum seekers sent to Nauru would be small.

They would comprise families or unaccompanied minors and a new site to house them had been chosen, he said.

The most urgent priority though was expanding the capacity of the island nation's prison, he said.

Australia will provide $29.9 million in aid to Nauru in 2013-2014 under the plan.

A further $17 million will be spent on rebuilding the prison, which was damaged in a recent riot on the island.

Funds from a contingency reserve will also be allocated according to the number of refugees Nauru accepts.

Mr Burke flagged the possibility of reaching similar deals concerning refugees with other nations in the region.

"I'm prepared to say there are other countries who have raised this with us as well," he said.

"There are a number of countries within the region who have signed the convention and who have a genuine commitment to wanting to take a regional approach, and if we're able to reach agreements with them then we will."

Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison said the plan was "elaborate staging" by Labor with no real substance.

"Nauru will play no real role in offshore processing arrangements for the foreseeable future under Labor," he said in a statement on Saturday.

"This announcement is just a patch-up for the devastation of the riots that cost taxpayers up to $60 million and was allowed to occur on Labor's watch."

The Australian Greens said the government had hit a new low on refugee policy.

"This is just more cruelty at the cost of Australia's generous heart and it is trashing our global reputation," Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said in a statement on Saturday.

"It seems there is no limit to the cruelty that either Kevin Rudd or Tony Abbott are prepared to inflict on refugees in their race to bottom as they race to the polls."

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UK house prices increase 3.9 pc

UK house prices have increased at their fastest rate in three years in signs of a market revival. Source: AAP

HOUSE prices in the United Kingdom increased at their fastest rate in three years in July in further signs of a market revival, the building society Nationwide reports.

The 3.9 per cent year-on-year rise is the strongest annual upswing recorded since August 2010 and takes average prices to STG170,825 ($A290,915), according to the society's figures.

On a month-on-month basis, prices recorded a "robust" 0.8 per cent increase in July, which was the biggest uplift since August last year, the report said.

Lenders, estate agents and property websites have all been reporting surges in activity and rising confidence following the launch of government schemes to give the housing market a shot in the arm.

Mortgage rates across the market have plummeted since the government launched a scheme called Funding for Lending a year ago, which gives lenders access to cheap finance.

Initiatives called NewBuy and Help to Buy have also been introduced to give people with smaller deposits a helping hand, and lenders have been reporting more first-time buyers entering the market, which should help free up some stuck chains.

The boost has led to some stronger-than-expected house price increases this year so far, leading some experts to revise their predictions upwards for 2013.

Concerns have been raised that Help to Buy, which will be fully fired into action next year and underwrite STG130 billion ($A221.4 billion) of low-deposit mortgage lending with state guarantees, must not lead to a property "bubble", with borrowers overstretching themselves.

Robert Gardner, Nationwide's chief economist, pointed out that the year-on-year growth was boosted by a low base to start from. House prices fell by 2.6 per cent annually in July last year.

He said house prices are around 12 per cent higher than the lows seen in the grip of the financial crisis, although they remain about 10 per cent below the all-time highs recorded in 2007.

Mr Gardner said the latest figures provide "further evidence of an upturn in the housing market".

He said: "Signs of a modest improvement in wider economic conditions and further modest gains in employment are likely to be lifting buyer sentiment.

"An improvement in the availability and a reduction in the cost of credit, partly as a result of policy measures such as the Funding for Lending and Help to Buy schemes, are also boosting the demand for homes."

Mr Gardner said a lack of homes for sale and "subdued" building activity are keeping the supply of homes constrained, which is helping to keep prices up at a time when buyer demand has strengthened.

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Labor's lost control of budget:Hockey

Shadow treasurer Joe Hockey has trashed the federal government's economic update statement. Source: AAP

SHADOW treasurer Joe Hockey has trashed the federal government's economic update statement and says Labor has lost control of the economy.

The update released by Treasurer Chris Bowen and Finance Minister Penny Wong on Friday downgrades economic growth and unemployment forecasts and points to much bigger budget deficits.

"It's blatantly obvious - Labor has lost control of the budget and is losing control of the economy," Mr Hockey told reporters in Melbourne.

The budget deficit is now expected to be $30.1 billion in 2013/14, almost double the original estimate.

Larger deficits are also forecast for the next two years before Australia reaches a surplus of $4 billion in 2016/17, which is smaller than the $6.6 billion expected two months ago.

"The budget is in freefall," Mr Hockey said.

"The budget has fallen $3 billion a week over the last 10 weeks."

Mr Hockey said if Labor didn't call the federal election this weekend, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd would need to recall parliament to seek approval to raise the national debt ceiling.

It's currently $300 billion but this could be breached in coming months.

Mr Hockey said he was not in any position to start setting timetables for the budget should the coalition win the election.

"I will not make the same sort of rash promises that the Labor party does," he said.

"I do not believe these numbers. If this is the best the Labor party has we should all fear the worst."

Shadow finance minister Andrew Robb said the government was killing both consumer and business confidence.

"People are anxious," he said.

"That is why they are saving 10 per cent of their disposable income, historically we saved one or two per cent.

He said businesses are reluctant to invest.

"They don't know what rule changes are going to take place, they do not know what is going to happen with the budget, they get no consultation," he said.

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Tokyo's Nikkei stock index closes up 3.29%

TOKYO stocks have surged 3.29 per cent on the back of a firmer US dollar, upbeat earnings results, and a strong lead from Wall Street.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index on Friday closed up 460.39 points at 14,466.16, while the Topix index of all first-section shares gained 2.82 per cent, or 32.78 points, to 1,196.17.

Investor sentiment brightened as the US dollar inched up against the yen as it makes Japanese exporters more competitive overseas and tends to lift their shares.

The US currency bought to Y99.62 in afternoon trade, compared with Y99.52 late in New York and Y98.63 in Tokyo earlier on Thursday.

Buying sentiment was also supported after a rally on Wall Street fuelled by strong manufacturing data from China, Europe and the United States saw the S&P 500 end 1.25 per cent up at an all-time closing high. The Dow added 0.83 per cent.

"The Nikkei will likely continue to advance as uncertainties surrounding global economies have waned and expectations for better earnings for Japanese exporters mount on the back of a stronger dollar," said Hiroichi Nishi, general manager of equities at SMBC Nikko Securities.

Big-hitters SoftBank and Sharp also helped drive the index higher after impressing with their first-quarter earnings released earlier this week.

SoftBank's net profit more than doubled for the three months to June, while Sharp managed to reduce its loss in the same period thanks to the weaker yen and cost-cutting.

SoftBank jumped 3.44 per cent to Y6,900 and Sharp leapt 3.40 per cent to Y425.

Sony, which swung to a net profit in April-June, rose 0.90 per cent to Y2,123 after giving up part of its earlier gains on profit-taking.

Toyota, which announced after markets closed a near doubling in quarterly profit and said it was on track to produce more than 10 million vehicles this year, soared 3.37 per cent to Y6,430.

Currencies and the US economic outlook will continue to drive the market, analysts said.

But Naoki Fujiwara, fund manager at Shinkin Asset Management, said the impact of Japanese earnings on the broader market may be limited as strong results from some firms were offset by lacklustre figures among others.

"My impression on the overall earnings is neutral as the results are mixed," he told Dow Jones Newswires.

"Currencies and US economic data will likely continue to act as catalysts in the absence of other drivers near-term," he added.

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Qld teen lifesaver's death confusing

A police probe into the death of a young surf life saver on the Gold Coast will determine his death. Source: AAP

SURF life saving officials can't understand how a teenager died during a routine training session on the Gold Coast.

The lifeless body of Jerry Dennis, 17, was dragged out of a canal at Mermaid Waters after a frantic search on Thursday afternoon.

He had fallen off his board 45 minutes beforehand.

Paramedics attempted CPR but the youngster was pronounced dead shortly afterwards.

Jerry was taking part in a training session with the Northcliffe Surf Club when he disappeared.

Club president David Shields can't understand how the tragedy unfolded.

"It was completely flat water, a very small canal," he told ABC Radio.

"That's all we can assume and we'll leave that up to the experts to decide exactly what happened.

"All I can say is that Jerry was a very, very good swimmer."

Surf Life Saving Queensland president Ralph Devlin said Jerry was a fit, strong athlete and a future champion.

"One has to suspect there's some medical background but only the police investigation will tell us for sure," he said.

A police spokeswoman said the investigation into the death would continue through the weekend.

Mr Devlin said the association would also be conducting its own probe.

The death is a blow to surf life saving, which has already had to deal with the death of three teenage competitors at the Australian championships since 1996.

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Mugabe party claims win in Zimbabwe vote

ZIMBABWE President Robert Mugabe's party claims the veteran leader has won the hard-fought election over his long-time rival, but local observers charge that the vote was seriously flawed.

"We have romped (to victory) in a very emphatic manner. We have defeated the MDC (Movement for Democratic Change)," a top member of Mugabe's ZANU-PF party said on Thursday.

He said Mugabe had trounced three-time challenger Morgan Tsvangirai in Wednesday's vote and that the ZANU-PF had retaken many parliamentary seats in urban areas, where support for the MDC was believed to be strong.

There was no immediate confirmation from election authorities about the claim, and no official results have yet been issued from the presidential and parliamentary vote.

And local observers cited a slew of flaws that called into question the victory claim, after the MDC charged that Mugabe's allies had been engaged in vote-rigging.

"The election is seriously compromised," said Solomon Zwana, the chairman of Zimbabwe Election Support Network. "Up to a million voters were disenfranchised."

Regional observers from the African Union had said the process had been "orderly and fair" while the United States said it was too early to make a full judgment.

Turnout was reported to be high nationwide after queues of Zimbabweans lined up for hours to vote in the first election since bloody polls in 2008 that led to the creation of an uneasy government alliance between Mugabe and Tsvangirai.

The 89-year-old Mugabe, Africa's oldest leader, is seeking a seventh term, but Tsvangirai has voiced hope the election will usher in a new era for the troubled southern African nation.

Final results had been expected within five days of the election and police warned on Wednesday that anyone trying to release unofficial figures ahead of time risked being arrested.

Mugabe had even threatened to arrest Tsvangirai if he tried to declare an early victory.

The African Union, which has been accused of whitewashing problems in the run-up to the vote, said initial reports indicated it was "peaceful, orderly, free and fair".

US State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf also said early signs indicated a "peaceful environment" - but that it was too soon to say if the election had been fair.

"We've made clear to the government of Zimbabwe and the region that further reductions in our sanctions will only occur if these next elections are credible, transparent and reflect the will of the Zimbabwean people," she said.

Despite the tensions over the rigging allegations and the fierce rhetoric of the campaign, there were no reports of widespread violence.

Many of the 6.4 million eligible voters started queueing before sunrise in the winter cold, hours before polls opened. The lines continued well into the evening, with many marking their ballots by candle light.

Mugabe said after he cast his ballot there was "no pressure" being exerted on voters.

On Tuesday the firebrand had vowed to step down if Tsvangirai was the victor, saying: "If you lose you must surrender."

Mugabe had focused his campaign on attacking homosexuals and on promises to widen the redistribution of wealth to poor black Zimbabweans.

Tsvangirai himself predicted the MDC would win "quite resoundingly".

"This is a very historic moment for all of us," he said on Wednesday. It is the time to "complete the change".

Tsvangirai won the first round of voting in 2008, but was forced out of the race after 200 of his supporters were killed and thousands more injured in suspected state-backed attacks.

But the 61-year-old former union boss has repeatedly voiced concerns that the election was being rigged and the MDC on Wednesday listed a battery of alleged irregularities.

Finance Minister Tendai Biti, a senior MDC member, said the names of thousands of voters were missing from the electoral roll and that there were two million dead people on the lists.

The MDC handed its evidence to observers from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and since no Western groups were allowed to monitor the polls, its account will be closely watched.

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Vic boy, men rescued after boat sinks

A COUPLE on a morning fishing expedition have come to the rescue of two men whose boat sank in Melbourne's Port Phillip Bay.

Police received a call about 9.30am (AEST) on Thursday saying a boat was sinking off Seaford, but the caller hung up without giving many details and a police patrol couldn't find it.

John and Barbara Shipston were fishing in the area when they spotted a man in the distance trying to get their attention.

"Thank goodness he had enough strength left to put his arm up and wave," John Shipston told the Ten Network.

"We whizzed over to him.

"The fellow wasn't in a good way at all, he was very incoherent, very stiff, very cold."

The man managed to tell the couple his three fishing mates, which included a teenage boy, were also in trouble.

"We were still battling to bring the second fellow on when police arrived, he was still on the rear of the boat at that stage," Mr Shipston said.

The remaining two males swam near to shore where they were helped from the water by onlookers about 10.30am.

The four were taken to Frankston and Dandenong hospitals suffering hypothermia, one in a serious condition.

Senior sergeant Adrian Sinclair said the four were "extremely lucky".

"This time of year the water's very cold," he told the Ten Network.

Water Police are trying to find the boat and determine why it sank.

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