National Radio Midday Report

Lamb Ruling – Health Tax – Foreign Doctors – Child Scaldings – Dash-8- Air Agreement – NCEA – Bush Missiles – May Day – Middle East Violence – Palace Protests – Bus Conflict

- LAMB RULING: The United States administration says it is considering the WTO ruling that its restrictions on Lamb imports contravene WTO regulations and will respond within the required time.

- HEALTH TAX: The Health Minister Annette King is looking at the idea of a dedicated health tax and scrapping the Community Services Card altogether.

- FOREIGN DOCTORS: Qualifications organisations working for doctors and dentists say a bill proposing to fast track applications from overseas doctors looking into working in New Zealand could compromise medical standards.

- CHILD SCALDINGS: Research by the South Auckland Burns Service found that nearly three out of four child scaldings occurred to children under three.

- DASH-8: The High Court in Palmerston North has heard that most of the passengers on board the Ansett Dash-8 piloted by Gary Sutheran, who is on trial for the manslaughter of four people on board, survived because of the terrain it hit in the Tararua foothills.

- AIR AGREEMENT: Origin Pacific Airways has confirmed it is finalising arrangements with Qantas Airways to provide regional and main trunk support to the Australian airline.

- NCEA: The author of the report on the National Certificate of Educational Achievement has dismissed fears that the first group of student who study for it, next year’s fifth formers, will be disadvantaged.

- BUSH MISSILES: US President George W. Bush has called for a new approach to international security in a key speech, where he again proposed the controversial National Missile Defence Project.

- MAY DAY: A crowd of protesters in London’s Oxford street was held for seven hours what was one of a string of anti-capitalists May Day protests around the world that have seen hundreds of rallies and arrests.

- MIDDLE EAST VIOLENCE: Violence between Israelis and Palestinians continues unabated as Israel’s Foreign Minister Shimon Perez discusses the peace process in Washington.

- PALACE PROTESTS: Authorities in the Philippines are preparing for more unrest after the attack on the Presidential Palace in Manila by protesters.

- BUS CONFLICT: The Canterbury Regional Council is under fire from competing bus companies in Christchurch over a proposal that would require the companies to paint their buses the same colour.

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