Combet takes charge of insulation scheme

BIG Australian companies will help shore up the botched home insulation scheme in new safety measures announced by the government yesterday.

Safety costs hit bungled scheme

FEWER homes will have insulation installed under the government's suspended rebate in order to pay for safety measures to shore up the scheme, Treasurer Wayne Swan says.

The Irvine Index

AND THE Oscar for supporting man goes to (slight pause as I fumble with the envelope): Greg Combet, for his role as "Mr Fix-it" in The Great Insulation Debacle, directed by Peter Garrett and produced by GFC Productions.

THE TOP TEN What everyone was talking about this week.

AUSTRALIA and Indonesia signed a new pact to tackle people smuggling. Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono addressed Federal Parliament, saying his country would introduce five-year jail sentences for those convicted. Yudhoyono called on both countries to dismiss national stereotyping. In talks with Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, he also spoke of his sympathy for the relatives of the Balibo five. The day before, Governor-General Quentin Bryce appointed Yudhoyono an honorary companion of the Order of Australia. The Government gave him a Maton guitar. Yudhoyono also confirmed during his visit that Dulmatin, a mastermind of the Bali bombings, had been killed in a police raid near Jakarta.

Rudd pledges no batts blowout

THE multimillion-dollar cost of fixing the bungled home insulation program will be met by drawing unspent money from the scheme that could otherwise have been used to insulate more homes, the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, says.

Letterbox

Make the switchI hate wasting electricity but I hate bumping my head against the keyboard holder even more. In the past when trying to unplug devices I didn't need, I'd shift backwards and bump my head due to the position of the electrical plugs and keyboard holder.

A Family Switches On To Switching Off

BRIGHTON resident Pat Calver and husband David have been spending their weekends shopping for light bulbs and shifting heavy furniture to get to hard-to-reach power points.

Tweed Joins The Suits On Board Of Struggling Stokes

DAVID TWEED, the man comfortable buying shares from elderly folk at a steep discount to prevailing market prices, has got himself a board seat at a very out-of-the-way company.

Tests Fail To Pick Up Dangerous Electric Products

SUBSTANDARD imported electrical goods are slipping through the testing net and threatening the safety of Australians, according to manufacturers.

How To Stay Safe In A Storm

UNIVERSITY of Wollongong associate professor Ted Bryant has this advice during an electrical storm:

Krytrons The Complex Detonators Needed For N-blasts

LONDON, Thursday: The sophisticated nuclear triggers known as krytrons are the ultra high-speed electrical switches that start the extremely complex process necessary to achieve a nuclear explosion. A nuclear warhead resembles a hollow ball of conventional explosives surrounding a plutoni

Safety Switches A Must In New Homes

Special electrical safety switches will be mandatory in houses built in NSW from July next year, the Minister for Minerals and Energy, Mr Pickard, said yesterday. Mr Pickard said the decision followed the release of figures showing that 22 people had died so far this year in NSW from elect