Author: roymorgansocial

Motor neurone disease: Researchers hope existing drugs can reverse deadly nerve damage

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Original article by John Elder
The New Daily – Page: Online : 25-Jan-21

Motor neurone disease sufferers gradually lose the use of their limbs and ability to speak, swallow and breathe, although their mind and senses generally remain unimpaired. The average life expectancy of someone with MND is 2.5 years, while over 2,000 people in Australia currently have MND. MND causes damage to the nerve cells, but Scottish researchers may have found a way to reverse this damage, by increasing the energy output from the mitochondria, the nerve cells’ "power supply". They believe that this can be achieved with existing drugs

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Under-insurance risk in super: Cbus

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Original article by Glenda Korporaal
The Australian – Page: 13 & 14 : 25-Jan-21

Cbus CEO executive Justin Arter has called for the government to exempt workers in high-risk jobs from the ‘stapling’ provisions of its proposed superannuation legislation. Under the legislation, a person’s superannuation fund would be the first fund that they signed up for. Arter notes that many of its members work in dangerous roles, but that 80 per cent are not first-time workers and would have super funds from their previous occupations; he is worried they risk being under-insured under the government’s proposals. He says Cbus offers superior insurance for people killed or injured while working, with Cbus insurance paying out $298 million in claims in 2019-20.

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CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING UNIONS’ SUPERANNUATION FUND

Calls to expand vaccine portfolio

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Original article by Natasha Robinson
The Australian – Page: 4 : 25-Jan-21

Australians are likely to be to access three probable COVID-19 vaccines over the coming 12 months, but the Moderna vaccine is currently not one of them. It and the Pfizer vaccine, which five millions Australia are due to receive, have shown the highest efficacy in clinical trials, but Australia has not been able to come to an agreement with Moderna over the supply of its vaccine. Epidemiologist Zoe Hyde says Australia should seriously consider using the Moderna vaccine in preference to the Oxford/Astra-Zeneca vaccine; Hyde says the Moderna vaccine will better prevent disease and is more likely to deliver herd immunity, which she contends should be Australia’s aim.

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MODERNA INCORPORATED, PFIZER INCORPORATED, ASTRAZENECA PLC

China talks only if no conditions

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Original article by Greg Brown, Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 25-Jan-21

Prime Minister Scott Morrison says he is happy to meet with China’s leaders to discuss how the strained relationship between the two nations could be improved, as long as there are no conditions attached. The Chinese embassy released in 2020 a list of 14 grievances that China has with Australia; Morrison says that if they are to be the conditions then any meeting will be a long time coming. He says that the relationship between Australia and China has been changing for some years, "not over any one thing but over time". Morrison says he is confident new US president Joe Biden will support Australia in its handling of the China relationship.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Fanny sweeps Golden Guitars

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Original article by Andrew McMillen
The Australian – Page: 5 : 25-Jan-21

Celebrating excellence in Australian country music, the 2021 Golden Guitars were held in Tamworth on 23 January before a COVIDsafe reduced crowd of around 600 people. Fanny Lumsden won five Golden Guitars, including album of the year, single of the year and female artist of the year. The McClymonts won the Golden Guitar for group of the year, while Luke O’Shea took home the Golden Guitar for traditional country album of the year for ‘There In the Ochre’.

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Lynas shares surge on US rare earth plant agreement

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Original article by Nick Evans
The Weekend Australian – Page: 21 & 26 : 23-Jan-21

Shares in rare earths producer Lynas Corp closed up 13.7 per cent at $5.56 on 22 January after it advised it had struck an agreement to construct a $60 million processing plant in Texas to produce rare earth products. The US Defence Department will pay half the cost of the plant, which will make products for US strategic stockpiles. Lynas is the only non-Chinese refiner of rare earth products, which are used in the manufacture of equipment such as missile systems and high-­performance magnets, and the increased tension between the US and China has seen the US keen to reduce its reliance on China for the supply of such products.

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LYNAS RARE EARTHS LIMITED – ASX LYC, UNITED STATES. DEPT OF DEFENSE

Nine faces ad hit with diminished Australian Open

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Original article by Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 19 : 25-Jan-21

Ben Willee from advertising agency Spinach says advertisers are worried what impact delaying the Australian Open tennis for three weeks might have on Nine’s audiences for the event. Nine has a $300 million, five-year broadcasting deal with Tennis Australia, on which it has sought concessions because of the delay, and it has won a discount of over 10 per cent on its $60 million payment for this year. Katie Rigg-Smith from media agency Mindshare notes television networks traditionally use live sport in the first quarter of the year to promote new and returning shows.

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SPINACH ADVERTISING PTY LTD, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, TENNIS AUSTRALIA, MINDSHARE

‘We don’t respond to threats’: PM responds to Google’s ultimatum

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Original article by Miranda Ward
The Australian Financial Review – Page: Online : 23-Jan-21

Google has threatened to withdraw its search product from Australia if the federal government’s legislation for a mandatory news bargaining code proceeds in its present form. The code would see Google and Facebook required to strike deals with media publishers to pay for the journalistic content they use on their platforms. However, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has told Google the federal government does not respond to threats, while Liberal senator Andrew Bragg has accused Google of attempting to "blackmail" Australian policymakers by threatening to withdraw from Australia.

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GOOGLE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FACEBOOK AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Big Tech urged to challenge virus lies

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Original article by David Swan
The Australian – Page: 19 : 25-Jan-21

A coalition that includes the Immunisation Foundation of Australia and Doherty Institute is calling on the big technology companies to do more to prevent the sharing of misinformation about COVID-19 online. The coalition is concerned this misinformation is causing a growing mistrust about potential COVID-19 vaccines and vaccines in general, along with causing a growing number of people to ignore public health directives about social distancing and lockdown measures because they see COVID-19 as being a government-led hoax.

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IMMUNISATION FOUNDATION OF AUSTRALIA, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE. PETER DOHERTY INSTITUTE FOR INFECTION AND IMMUNITY

The Agency to defy debt claim with sales jump

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Original article by Lachlan Moffet Gray
The Australian – Page: 16 : 25-Jan-21

Real estate group The Agency has reported revenue of $29.1 million for its latest first half, with the result being a record for the company. Unaudited EBITDA for the half came in at $1.6 million, excluding government benefits like JobKeeper, while the company recorded positive operating cashflow of $1.54 million. The record revenue result came just days after a creditor sought to place The Agency in administration over a disputed fee of $385,000.

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