Holden and Ford cars have long been icons of the Australian car manufacturing industry not only for its cars, but also for the thousands of jobs it creates.

Over ten thousand people rely on Australia’s Ford, Holden and Toyota plants for work, while another forty thousand people depend on the production lines for business.

But the idea of locally owned and manufactured car brands could all come to an end.

In a sign of an industry in decline…350 people lost their jobs at Toyota’s Melbourne plant this week, prompting fears the sector could disappear from Australian shores.

So what’s the solution?

Mark Ogge, communications director of NGO, Beyond Zero Emissions; believes smarter investment in electric and hybrid cars is the key to the long term viability of the car industry.

James Jooste reports.

Over 700 prominent Australians, including several former prime ministers, this week signed a statement calling for a Nuclear Weapons Convention.

The convention would provide a mechanism for the total removal of all weapons of mass destruction.

It would also go further than the current non proliferation treaty, by taking much stronger action to dismantle existing arsenals.

2ser’s Lily Ray spoke with Tim Wright from the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons.

http://nuclearweaponsconvention.org.au/

This week marks the one year anniversary of the collapse of Hosni Mubarak’s regime in Egypt.

The milestone comes in the same week as Egypt’s first session of parliament.

The Muslim Brotherhood already holds half the seats in parliament -- and is in a strong position to make a run at upcoming presidential elections in June.

But for the time being, the country remains under military control

So what does this mean for Egypt’s future?

2SER’s Anthony Sonego spoke with Dr. Anthony Billingsley, a Middle-East specialist at the University of New South Wales.

Guess which country has a whopping teenage unemployment rate of 17.3 percent?

This same country has also seen some 92-thousand jobs slashed for 15-19-year-olds over the past four years.

No, it's not any country in Europe. Nor is it Britain or the United States. It's right here in our very own backyard.

The Bureau of Statistics has released new data analysis that shows while Australia's overall jobless rate stands at 5.2 percent, it's our youth that are bearing the brunt of global economic uncertainty.

To explain the figures 2SER's Jennifer Lush spoke with the Director of the Centre of Full Employment and Equity, Professor Bill Mitchell.

In 2001, the Sydney Big Day Out was marred with tragedy, when Jessica Michalik a 16 year old girl was killed in a crowd surge.

Following a coroner’s report, every Big Day Out since then, has featured an extra safety barricade as a legacy to Jessica.

This year, organizers have opted out from using these extra barricades at half of the festivals.

2ser’s Tim Clarke spoke with George Michalik, Jessica’s father, about why he is so upset about these changes.

A string of shark attacks along Australian coastlines has prompted calls for some beaches to be temporarily closed.

Following the third incident in as many weeks, this time involving a snorkelling group in Western Australia, some say more should be done.

Experts disagree, saying an uptick in shark sightings is due to an increase in shark patrols.

2SER’s Sam Buckingham-Jones spoke to Martin Garwood, Aquarist from the Sydney Aquarium, about the supposed spike in shark activity.

Chances are you’ve been turned down from a night club at least once in your life.

But are you being turned down because of your race?

Night clubs in Kings Cross are under scrutiny for their refusal to allow people in based on their ethnicity.

Section 77 of the NSW Liquor Act gives staff the right to refuse entry to anyone deemed violent, quarrelsome or disorderly.

But Section 28 states the sale of alcohol cannot be limited to a particular class of people.

So are people being excluded because of race or just because they are trouble makers?

Stepan Kerkyasharian, president of the NSW Anti-Discrimination Board spoke with 2SER’s Anthony Sonego.

Over the last 5 years, the market for so called "energy drinks" has boomed.

Energy drink ads promise to increase our endurance, performance and concentration, so people consume them anywhere from exam halls to nightclubs.

But a new study has revealed that there's been a sharp rise in the amount of people being poisoned by these caffeine heavy beverages.

2ser’s Tim Clarke spoke with Dr. Naren Gunja, the Medical director and toxicologist at the NSW poison centre.

Claims that the cost of implementing poker machine reform would harm clubs and pubs have been greatly exaggerated, according to an independent think tank.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has spent the week pressuring Independent MP Andrew Wilkie to water down his poker machine reforms.

While the Australia Institute has described industry predictions of a $5 billion blowout for club owners as "fanciful" and based on reforms no one is proposing.

It conducted its own analysis of figures and says the real number is likely to be under 350-million dollars.

2SER's Jennifer Lush spoke with the Australia Institute's executive director, Dr Richard Denniss.

The battle over internet regulation is being fought on two fronts … in the American Congress and on the cyber frontlines, by those who wish to see the internet remain free from government censorship, such as Wikipedia and Google.

Wikipedia shut down its website for twenty four hours on Thursday, to protest against anti-piracy US legislation…that has been criticized for being “draconian” and “authoritarian”.

The Stop Online Piracy Act would force Internet service providers and search engines to block access to websites that host pirated material, and would also prevent advertisers using ad space on illegal websites.

Opponents say action should be taken against pirates themselves and not the internet.

2ser's James Jooste reports.

A new survey shows that mandatory bicycle helmet laws are deterring Sydney residents from riding.

Published in the Health Promotion Journal of Australia, the report found that 19% of those who do not regularly ride a bicycle - would - if they were not required to wear a helmet.

In Sydney alone, this percentage would equate to 400 000 more riders.

2SER’s Sam Buckingham-Jones spoke to Omar Khalifa, CEO of Bicycle NSW, about the survey, and his organisation’s stance on helmets.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is set to face the biggest public opposition to his party's rule in a more than decade today (sat).

More than 50-thousand demonstrators are expected to descend on Moscow to protest the parliamentary elections held in the country a week ago.

Protesters say the elections were rigged, should be declared void and new ones held.

And they have the backing of some key international figures.

2SER's Jennifer Lush filed this report.

A study done at the Australian Centre for Mental Health research at ANU has shown that internet programs are highly effective in treating and combating depression.

Health professionals say the internet is a useful way of addressing depression due to the anonymity of the medium whilst also being an economically viable option for assisting people in rural areas where mental health services might be poor.

About 20% of Australians will experience depression each year with 1 in 6 experiencing a severe depressive episode.

2SER’s Elizabeth Pratt spoke with Deputy CEO of Beyond Blue, Dr. Nicole Highet.

Earlier this week the ALP approved the controversial decision to sell uranium to India.

India remains a non - signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty which promotes peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

Critics say Australian uranium could help India build up its stocks of nuclear weapons, but India says the imports would only be used for electricity generation.

2SER’s Lillian Radulova spoke to the Australian director of the International Campaign to abolish nuclear weapons, Tim Wright.

A coal seam gas operation in northern NSW has been found to be polluting the local creek system.

Water samples taken downstream from Santos’s drilling in Narribri show levels of ammonia are 52 times higher than samples taken upstream.

The gas company says it treats the water according to NSW requirements, and is confident there will be no negative effects on the environment.

The conservation groups who discovered the incident are calling for immediate action.

2SER’s Sam Buckingham-Jones spoke with Carmel Flint, from the Friends of the Earth Organisation.

Currently, 45 per cent of people in NSW who choose to donate their organs have their families refuse the request.

But the government announced earlier this week that it’s looking at overhauling the system by scrapping the drivers licence donor registry.

Instead, it’s looking to use the national Medicare Australian Donor Register, along with all the other Australian states.

Included in the reform suggestions, is the removal of a family’s right to veto a loved one’s’ decision to donate their organs.

2SER’s Lillian Radulova spoke to the CEO of Transplant Australia, Chris Thomas.

The Boycott, Sanctions and Divestment campaign against Israel has been dropped as an official policy of the NSW Greens.

The party’s earlier support for the BDS received a lot of negative media coverage during the state election, and the candidate for Marrickville, Fiona Byrne failed to win the seat.

They Greens now say they recognise the BDS as a legitimate political tactic but have abandoned it as an official party position.

They say individual Greens members are free to support the boycott.

2ser’s Tawar Razaghi spoke to activist Vivienne Porzsolt, from the group Jews against the Occupation.

They're the headlines you don't see, the words that don't make the page- but if they did, these stories would cause quite a stir.

Project Censored is a United States media research group and they've released their 2012 list of the top 25 censored stories.

Number one on the list is the startling revelation that more US soldiers commit suicide than die in combat.

Other neglected scoops include Google spying on private citizens and the rampant trafficking of Iraqi women.

Peter Phillips is President of the Media Freedom Foundation, a non-profit organisation which helps to fund the project.

He told 2SER's Jennifer Lush about the news that doesn't make the news, and why.

(projectcensored.org)

Human rights defenders at a Sydney conference have called on Foreign minister Kevin Rudd to speak out, against a series of human rights abuses, by the Indonesian government on West Papuan civilians.

The first attack in October which left six dead and scores more injured has renewed tensions between the separatist West Papuan movement and the Indonesian government.

West Papuans were attacked again yesterday while celebrating their 50th anniversary of independence.

These tensions have even caught the attention of US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, who recently expressed her concerns about ongoing human rights abuses.

2ser’s Tawar Razaghi reports.

A new report has shown that the harassment and intimidation of Jewish people in Australia has risen by 31 per cent in the last year.

The 517 incidents reported, include physical assaults, property
damage, phone calls, emails and direct harassment as well as anti
Jewish graffiti.

2SER reporter Lillian Radulova spoke to the community affairs director for the Australian/Israel and Jewish affairs council Jeremy Jones, who produced the report.

Wayne Swan’s mid-year budget review was released this week with the Caucus promising a return to surplus by next year.

The mini-budget comes just after international credit rating agency, Fitch, announced an upgrade to Australia's credit rating from AA+ to AAA.
Is this good news for our economy?

Anthony Sonego reports

British American Tobacco is gearing up to fight the new Plain Packaging legislation introduced by the Federal Government.

From July 2012, all tobacco products, regardless of brand, will be sold in almost identical boxes, in a move to reduce the product’s appeal.

On the same day the legislation received Royal Assent, the tobacco giant submitted the constitutional challenge.

2SER’s Sam Buckingham-Jones spoke to Professor Simon Chapman, Director of Research and Professor of Public Health at Sydney University, about the significance of Plain Packaging.

SBS TV could soon be free of ads.

Legislation will be introduced next year to improve funding for the channel, which operates at less than a quarter of the cost of the ABC.

Greens Senator Scott Ludlum gave notice of the bill, which will seek to reduce commercial breaks during programs.

Currently, SBS receives most of its funding from the Federal Government, but is allowed up to five minutes of advertising every hour to meet costs.

2SER’s Sam Buckingham-Jones spoke to Steven Aujard, President of Save Our SBS about funding for the Special Broadcaster.

A key policy in Labors plan to reform welfare payments and jobs - Income Management - will be trialed across 5 regions in the nation including Bankstown starting in July next year.

An extension of the Howard governments’ intervention in the Northern Territory, the policy has been labeled as racist, humiliating and prejudiced against the poor.

Half of what is received on welfare payments will be set aside for basics such as food, housing, clothing and utilities.

As the ALP meets for its annual conference, social policy expert EVA COX has bitterly attacked the party for failing to seriously attack poverty.

Cox is a research fellow at the University of Technology, Sydney, and she spoke with 2SER's James Jooste.

The body representing Australian pharmacy owners has come under fire from industry unions.

Consumer and chemist groups say the Pharmacy Guild’s role in brokering deals -- such as a now-abandoned scheme to up-sell Blackmores’ alternative medicines when dispensing prescriptions -- has damaged the public’s trust in pharmacists.

The groups have now urged Health Minister Nicola Roxon to rethink the Government’s relationship with the Guild.

They’ve also threatened to resign from a government advisory group responsible for 15-billion-dollars worth of pharmacy funding if action isn’t taken.

2SER’s Jacqui Le spoke to Consumer Health Forum chief Carol Bennett.

The largest study of people living with psychotic illness was released this week, underlining the urgent need for the government to invest in reform.

The report found that many sufferers of serious mental illness continue to experience symptoms despite getting medical treatment.

They also have very high rates of obesity, alcoholism and drug abuse.

So how can medical authorities improve services for people with conditions like Schizophrenia?

Neda Vanovac spoke with Barbara Hocking, Executive Director of SANE Australia.

There has been a significant downturn in condom use in Australia, and STI’s are continuing to rise.

1 in 5 Australians aged between 16 and 49 reported not using condoms in the previous six months.

Cases of Gonorrhea jumped by 25% in 2010 to 10 000 and 74 000 more Chlamydia cases were reported.

Three quarters of these cases occur among young people and health professionals are concerned the situation will only get worse.

2SER’s Elizabeth Pratt spoke with Dr Rick Varma from the Sexually Transmitted Infections Research Centre.

Protesting their failed refugee applications, three Faili Kurds sewed their lips this week, while another two overdosed on medication.

The asylum seekers had been detained in the Darwin Immigration Centre for between one-and-a-half to more than two years before discovering their fate.

But despite their rejected applications the Australian government can’t repatriate them because technically, they’re stateless.

2SER’s Tawar Razaghi spoke with Pamela Curr from the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre about the more than 600 stateless asylum seekers currently in detention centres across the country.

The University of Sydney will cut back on up to 340 jobs in the next year, as it attempts to save over $50 million.

Despite recording a surplus of $141 million, the university says a decrease in the number of international students means there is not enough money to address necessary maintenance and repairs.

And Sydney is not the only university cutting back on staff, with La Trobe, Macquarie and the University of New South Wales also coming in below funding predictions.

2SER’s Sam Buckingham-Jones spoke to Genevieve Kelly, The State Secretary of the National Tertiary Education Union.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Harry Jenkins, announced his retirement in parliament on Thursday.

The news came as a surprise to politicians and political experts, and in particular the Opposition leader Tony Abbott.

In an unlikely move, Liberal Party MP Peter Slipper was elected as the new speaker, giving the Gillard Government an extra vote on the floor of parliament.

Mr Slipper is now being called a rat and a traitor by conservatives, but will Gillard's tricky strategy work in the long run?

2SER’s Anthony Sonego reports.

It has been described as natures love drug.

Oxytocin is a naturally occurring chemical in our brains, which prompts us to form bonds with one another, makes us trust, and reduces our general anxiety.

To add to this impressive list, recent studies have shown that oxytocin could be the key to help alcoholics and drug addicts overcome their addiction.

2ser’s Timothy Clarke spoke with Michael Bowen (Bo-wen), a researcher at the University of Sydney, to find out how this works.

Alcohol is the latest commodity to be used in the price war between Woolworths and Coles

Both companies have dropped prices to a bare minimum, sometimes below cost, encouraging fears of a violent festive season fuelled by alcohol.

The price war is another win for consumers but health authorities have warned that cutting alcohol prices this close to the festive season is a danger to society and are frustrated with the lack of action by the government in regulating the companies.

James Jooste reports.

Grief, tantrums, and an overuse of the internet may seem common, but they could soon be classed as mental illnesses.

Amendments to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM, considered to be the psychiatrists’ bible, have some experts outraged.

An online petition against the 5th revision of the manual has already gained over 6,400 signatures from mental health professionals, organizations and students.

They believe the additions will lead to an over-medication of patients.
Ray Moynihan is an award winning journalist and the author of the book, "Selling Sickness".

He spoke with 2SER’s Sam Buckingham-Jones about the DSM controversy.

A parliamentary inquiry has been commissioned to examine the ethics course taught in NSW schools.

The O’Farrell Government has allowed Fred Nile’s Bill repealing the classes to pass to a parliamentary committee.

Political commentators are saying the state government is pandering to the Christian Democrats in order to gain support in other areas.

In fact, most Christian educators have focused their efforts on improving their special religious education classes, rather than getting rid of its competition.

2ser’s Timothy Clarke spoke with Peter Adamson deputy chairman of the Inter-Church Commission on Religious Education in Schools.

The Occupy Wall Street movement this week in New York reached a turning point when a judge evicted protesters after several weeks of camping.

Occupations across the world have clashed with authorities, and organizers are now faced with the task of reevaluating how the movement will go forward, if at all.

Neda Vanovac reports the future of the movement in New York and Sydney.