Murdoch survives vote at AGM

Shareholders have failed to gain support to oust Rupert Murdoch as 21st Century Fox's chairman. Source: AAP

A SHAREHOLDER-LED revolt to dump Rupert Murdoch as chairman of his new TV and film conglomerate 21st Century Fox has failed, but the mogul's sons Lachlan and James suffered ego-bruising protest votes.

Murdoch will retain the chairman and chief executive roles at 21st Century Fox, which includes the Fox TV network, the 20th Century Fox film studio and other jewels of his global media empire.

His sons will also sit on the 12-member board.

But the shareholder vote at the company's annual general meeting in Los Angeles on Friday showed plenty of dissatisfaction with Lachlan, 42, and James, 40.

Lachlan received the lowest total vote of all board members, with 384 million votes supporting his place on the board and almost 126 million opposed.

James, who faced plenty of heat following the UK phone hacking scandal, had 411 million votes in favour of a board seat and almost 100 million against.

The numbers were significant considering the Murdoch family controls 39 per cent of the vote.

Shareholders easily voted 82-year-old Murdoch on the board, supporting him with 436 million votes and 46 million against.

There was less support for Murdoch to hold the chairman and chief executive roles.

A group of disgruntled shareholders, led by "faith-based socially-responsible" Christian Brothers Investment Services, put forward a proposal that the chairman be independent.

The proposal was unsuccessful, with 362 million votes against and 147 million for.

"Appointing an independent chair would give shareholders more comfort that real oversight of the executive team is being exercised," Tim Shayer, an investment adviser for Christian Brothers, told the AGM.

21st Century Fox board member Viet Dinh, speaking on behalf of the board, said the combined chairman-CEO role "ensures strong and consistent leadership of the company".

Murdoch's News Corp empire was split into two companies earlier this year, with 21st Century Fox holding its vast TV and film assets.

The new News Corp is largely comprised of Australian, UK and US newspapers.

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Emergency warning for Lithgow

A LARGE fire burning in Lithgow on the western side of the NSW Blue Mountains is threatening 20 properties, sparking an emergency warning.

The NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) says the blaze, which has burnt through 30,000 hectares, is threatening properties in the small township of Bell and residents are advised to take shelter.

"Fire activity has intensified in the Bell area," a spokesman said.

"There's about 20 properties in the community of Bell which are under threat at the moment.

"We have upgraded it to an emergency warning and we're sending out emergency alert phone messages in that area right now."

The defence department is investigating whether there is a link between the fire and an explosives training exercise that took place at the Marrangaroo training area on the same day.

Premier Barry O'Farrell said he had not been briefed on the investigation.

An RFS spokesman told AAP there were no fire bans while Defence was holding the training on October 16 and that it occurred a day before extreme conditions were expected.

Mr O'Farrell said defence had been helping in dealing with the Lithgow fire because it broke out on defence land as explosives were being detonated.

"I do know that yesterday when we were in Lithgow being briefed by the incident controller, he made the point that the defence agencies had been helpful in dealing with the State Mine fire because it did start on defence land," Mr O'Farrell said.

"I know for a fact he told me that at one stage they stopped any aircraft flying over that area because of those exploding ordnances."

He said "there was no suggestion from the incident controller" that defence explosives testing had sparked the blaze.

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Homes under threat from Springwood fire

FIREFIGHTERS are battling to protect more than 100 properties from a large bushfire burning in Lithgow and the Blue Mountains in NSW.

They were hoping to use the calmer and cooler temperatures on Saturday to control fires across the state, but blazes in and around the Blue Mountains have flared up.

Crews have been redirected from back burning operations to protect more than 100 homes in Bell, Dargan, Berambing and Bilpin that are now under threat, Rural Fire Service Deputy Commissioner Rob Rogers said.

The RFS has issued its highest emergency warning for fire burning between Lithgow and Bilpin and closed a number of roads in the area.

It has also issued an emergency warning for Springwood, where 193 properties have already been destroyed.

"This fire is by no means contained," Mr Rogers told reporters in Sydney.

"It's got absolutely kilometres and kilometres of fire front."

He stressed it was too late for people in Berambing and Bilpin to leave, as the roads were too dangerous to use.

"The message is to shelter in place and not to leave," Mr Rogers said.

He urged people in areas that might be affected in coming days to plan what they'd do if the fires reached them.

"There's now two instances this afternoon where ... people may have wanted to go but the situation developed so quickly that they couldn't leave and the decision is made for them," Mr Rogers said.

"If you want to be able to make the decision yourself, then decide now what you're going to do."

Mr Rogers described conditions as "okay", but said it would likely warm up on Sunday and winds could strengthen on Monday.

Firefighters were hoping there was going to be rain, but that now appears unlikely.

Mr Rogers said it was particularly difficult for firefighters working in their home area.

"There's a sense of failure when they lose homes because their mantra is to try and protect people and their homes," he said.

Meanwhile, the defence department is investigating whether there is a link between the Lithgow fire and an explosives training exercise that took place at the Marrangaroo training area on the same day.

An RFS spokesman told AAP there were no fire bans in place while during the training exercise and that it occurred a day before extreme conditions were expected.

Premier Barry O'Farrell said "there was no suggestion" that the explosives testing had sparked the blaze.

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Adelaide welcomes Art of India

BEAUTIFUL paintings, sculptures, textiles and even a mansion's towering teak gateway are on show at a new exhibition of Indian art at the Art Gallery of South Australia.

Visitors to the media preview leave with calm smiles on their faces, confirming curator James Bennett's observation that Realms of Wonder is a joyful exhibition.

"As I have been working on the show for the past 18 months, it struck me again and again, it's actually about joy," he told AAP on Thursday.

"It's not a subject we often see in art nowadays."

The vibrancy, life and colour of Indian society is well and truly reflected in the art, he says.

Realms of Wonder: Jain, Hindu and Islamic Art of India features more than 200 paintings, sculptures and decorative works including manuscripts, embroidered fabrics and silverware.

The earliest work dates back to the eighth century while the latest was created in 2009.

Bennett says the exhibition looks at the three great Indian religions and the way their spirituality and beliefs has inspired the country's art.

Music from the relevant area plays in the background of each section, adding to the exotic atmosphere of being in another world.

While Bennett says curators aren't supposed to have favourites, he particularly likes a simple stone.

"It's the only work in the exhibition that hasn't been made by human hands, but it was revered as a manifestation of Lord Shiva, called a linga," he said.

"It is a large naturally polished, perfectly spherical stone that was found in a sacred riverbed in India.

"It's so eloquent in its simplicity and beauty."

Most of the works are from the gallery's collection, while the rest are on loan from private owners.

The gallery's director Nick Mitzevich says the exhibition reminds us of the power of art to foster an understanding of the richness and diversity of the world.

* Admission is free to Realms of Wonder: Jain, Hindu and Islamic Art of India which runs at the Art Gallery of South Australia from October 19 to January 27, 2014.

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Patients fast-tracked for cancer surgery

A SYDNEY cancer patient has thanked her online supporters after the NSW government announced it will fast-track lifesaving surgery.

Nicole Perko's battle to get a peritonectomy garnered more than 76,000 signatures in an online petition and gained the support of celebrities including Russell Crowe, Charlotte Dawson and Jennifer Hawkins.

Following days of pressure in parliament, Health Minister Jillian Skinner announced on Thursday that peritonectomy surgery will be undertaken at two Sydney hospitals - St George and Prince of Wales.

Six category-one patients who have been waiting for the surgery will undergo the operation between November 4 and December 11.

It will be up to the hospitals to decide which patients are operated on, but Ms Perko said she was "absolutely thrilled".

"I'm so proud of the people power and I thank everyone who signed the petition and supported this campaign," she told Fairfax Radio.

"I hope this just takes the stress and pressure off all the 40 families that are waiting on this list."

"Peritonectomy surgery is a rare and complex procedure which is only available in NSW at St George Hospital, leading to significant pressure on the waiting list," Mrs Skinner said.

She said the government was continuing to investigate ways to combat waiting times.

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Chinese general visits Australia

A SENIOR general in China's People's Liberation Army has visited Australia as the latest step in building the growing military relationship.

General Zhao Keshi, director of the PLA's General Logistics Department and a member of China's Central Military Commission, is in Australia this week for talks with government and military officials, Defence says.

He has met junior defence minister Stuart Robert, Defence Force chief General David Hurley and defence department secretary Dennis Richardson.

This is the first visit to Australia by a member of China's Central Military Commission since General Guo Boxiong, then commission vice-chairman, visited in May 2010.

"General Zhao's visit provided an important opportunity to build on this strong foundation of practical engagement and dialogue and further strengthen the bilateral defence relationship," defence said in a statement.

In December, Australia and China celebrate the 41st anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties.

Since then, China has become Australia's leading trading partner and in recent years Australia has expanded defence links.

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Political chaos pushes US up against debt

The White House has rejected the latest effort by Republicans to resolve an impasse over the budget. Source: AAP

A DAY of political disarray has pushed America to within hours of a debt default deadline, but two veteran senators are chasing a last-gasp deal to stave off a sudden shock to the global economy.

Just 26 hours before the US government begins to run short of money to pay its bills, hopes for an exit strategy rested with late-night talks on Tuesday between Senate majority leader Harry Reid and Republican minority leader Mitch McConnell.

The two old foes saddled up after efforts by the House of Representatives to send a bill to the Senate dissolved into chaos, as Speaker John Boehner tried and failed to rein in Tea Party conservatives.

If Congress fails to raise US borrowing authority before midnight on Wednesday the US Treasury would begin to run out of money to meet all US obligations and slip towards a historic debt default.

In the face of the deadline, the US political system, divided between President Barack Obama's Democrats and Republicans who run the House of Representatives, has effectively ground to a halt.

Major world powers meanwhile looked on in dismay at the brinkmanship and political recriminations in Washington, fearing reverberations that could wreak havoc in their own sometimes weakened economies.

Amid rising anxiety on the markets, the financial rating agency Fitch put the US on warning for a downgrade from its top-grade AAA spot.

Despite the deepening impasse, Obama said he still expected the issue would be resolved in the end.

"My expectation is that this gets solved, but we don't have a lot of time," he told an ABC television affiliate in New York.

"What I'm suggesting to the congressional caucus is to avoid any posturing ... do what's right, open the government and make sure we pay our bills."

What was essentially a wasted day, with precious few hours to spare Tuesday, unfolded as House Republicans tried to extend US borrowing authority until February 7 and re-open the partially shuttered US government until December 15.

Several draft bills would have constrained aspects of Obama's signature health care law - and in effect stood no chance to pass the Democratic-led Senate.

But Boehner used the measures to try to corral the Tea Party faction and to pressure the Senate - but in the end was unable to amass sufficient Republican votes to even put the measures on the floor.

Senate talks, which had been on hold all day pending developments in the House, were quickly resumed on Tuesday evening.

Leadership aides on both sides said they were "optimistic" that an agreement was in reach.

"We're making very very good progress, we're not there yet, but we're getting real close," said Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer.

"I think the markets should feel pretty good about what's going on here tonight."

The likely Senate deal would require Democrats to make a minor concession on Obamacare, but the provision would fall well short of the drive to delay or defund the historic law which prompted Republicans to launch the government shutdown strategy and to use the debt ceiling hike as leverage.

Earlier, Reid furiously accused Boehner of seeking to save his own political skin at the expense of the United States.

"Let's be clear: The House legislation will not pass the Senate," Reid said. "I am very disappointed with John Boehner, who would once again try to preserve his role at the expense of the country."

Boehner may once again Wednesday be left with the unenviable choice that has come to define his speakership in Washington's divided government.

Does he stick with the Tea Party faction of his party, and possibly save his job but risk culpability in sending the US economy into a first default of modern times?

Or does he try to pass a compromise plan acceptable to Senate Democrats and Obama, with the help of minority Democratic votes - a scenario that could fritter away his party power-base and possibly cost him his job?

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Young Kiwi wins Man Booker Prize

New Zealand's Eleanor Catton has become the youngest winner of the prestigious Man Booker Prize. Source: AAP

NEW Zealand author Eleanor Catton is being feted as a heavyweight storyteller after becoming the youngest winner of the prestigious Man Booker Prize.

The 28-year-old's 832-page novel The Luminaries is the longest work to win the celebrated literary prize in its 45-year history.

The book is described as a "Kiwi Twin Peaks" - a gold rush murder-mystery set in the South Island town of Hokitika in 1866.

After accepting the STG50,000 ($A84,416) prize from the Duchess of Cornwall at a London ceremony on Wednesday, Catton said she hadn't been conscious about the book's length while writing it.

"It wasn't until I received the proof of the book that I thought, 'Jeepers, this is actually quite heavy'," she said.

"I've had to buy a new handbag, because my old handbag wasn't big enough to hold my book."

Judging panel chairman Robert Macfarlane said The Luminaries was "luminous", "addictive in its storytelling" and "vast without being sprawling".

He said Catton's youth did not influence the judges, and Catton said she felt "honoured and proud to be living in a world where the facts of somebody's biography doesn't get in the way of how people read their work".

Nor did the size of the book deter the judges.

"Those of us who didn't read it on e-readers enjoyed a full upper-body workout," Macfarlane joked.

Catton said she was stunned to hear she had won the award: "It was just a white wall, I don't really remember."

Prime Minister John Key was among those to heap praise on Catton.

"This is a hugely significant achievement on the world stage for a New Zealander," he said.

"This will be a tremendous boost for young New Zealanders in the arts and is a testament to the obvious talent and hard work of Eleanor Catton."

The next youngest author to take out the prize was Ben Okri who was 32 when he won in 1991.

Catton was born in Canada but has lived in New Zealand since the age of six.

Keri Hulme is the only other New Zealander to win the prize, for her 1985 novel The Bone People which was also set on the West Coast.

British bookmakers had made Jim Crace and his novel Harvest the favourite to win the prize.

The other shortlisted authors were Colm Toibin (The Testament Of Mary), Jhumpa Lahiri (The Lowland), NoViolet Bulawayo (We Need New Names) and Ruth Ozeki (A Tale For The Time Being).

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Seniors group hits out at $2 GP fee hike

A temporary freeze on the Medicare patient rebate could see patients stuck with extra costs. Source: AAP

A SENIORS group has hit out at a recommendation that GPs raise fees by $2 to cover a freeze in the Medicare rebate, saying older Australians may skip seeing a local doctor because of the increase.

The Australian Medical Association (AMA) has advised its members to increase standard GP consultation rates by $2 to $73, claiming the rebate had failed to keep up with increasing practice costs.

The indexation of the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) was temporarily frozen by the former Labor government, fixing the rebate for a standard GP visit at $36.30 until July.

New Health Minister Peter Dutton says the government will not overturn that budget measure, saying "sadly families are going to be paying for Labor's debt for a long time, including when they go to see their doctor".

"The rebate was frozen by Labor and, given the record debt, it is hard to see how that can be undone in the short term," Mr Dutton said in a statement.

Chief of National Seniors Michael O'Neill said the GP fee increase would only serve to widen the "rebate gap" faced by low-income retirees.

"This increasing gap means retirees on low, fixed incomes, may consider skipping seeing their doctor altogether," Mr O'Neill said in a statement.

"The onus is either on doctors to show goodwill by deferring any fee increases until July, or the new government to lift the MBS rebate freeze now."

AMA President Steve Hambleton defended the increase and said there was a "long history" of MBS indexation lagging behind the real costs of medical care.

"The MBS simply has not kept pace with the complexity or cost of providing high quality medical services," Dr Hambleton said.

Greens health spokesman Richard Di Natale blamed the new government for the GP fee increase, saying "governing is all about priorities and it's clear that Tony Abbott has his priorities wrong".

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Disturbing brawls in Doomadgee: Qld cops

EXTRA police are being sent to a remote Aboriginal community in Queensland after a series of violent brawls involving up to 150 people.

Mount Isa Police Superintendent Russell Miller says it's disturbing that people have been seriously injured with sticks and rocks picked up from the street during the huge fights in Doomadgee.

He says Mount Isa officers are being sent to Doomadgee to help local police keep the peace and investigate.

"Large-scale street disturbances, involving armed people, result in serious injuries and are just plainly unacceptable to the people of Doomadgee, who deserve to go about their daily business without having to worry about these types of instances," Supt Miller said in statement.

He said police had charged 44 people with offences including assault occasioning bodily harm, assault police, affray and public nuisance.

But Supt Miller also said there could be more charges following further investigations.

"We continue to investigate these disturbances, as well as attempting to counter some of the underlying, and often long-standing, issues," Supt Miller said.

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Cochlear expects steady profit in 2014

HEARING implant maker Cochlear expects profit to be flat in the current financial year as its operating margin comes under pressure.

The company will receive less revenue from foreign exchange hedges in the 2013/14 financial year, and will maintain its spending on research and development, chairman Rick Holliday-Smith says.

"These decisions mean there is some pressure in the short term on the operating margin," he told shareholders at the company's annual general meeting in Sydney.

Net profit in 2013/14 is expected to be similar to the previous year's $132.6 million, with most to be made in the second half of the year, he said.

Cochlear's interim dividend is expected to be $1.27 per share, compared to $1.25 in the prior corresponding period, Mr Holliday-Smith said.

The final dividend is also expected to be at $1.27, in line with the prior corresponding period.

Shares in Cochlear were down 90.5 cents at $59.005 at 1435 AEDT.

Cochlear's 2012/13 annual profit was significantly higher than the previous year's, when Cochlear was hit by costs from a recall of the CI500 series implant.

Chief executive Chris Roberts said Cochlear had invested heavily in research and the development of new products over the last five years, and those new products would start rolling out in earnest in 2013/14.

"There's more going out this year than in any other year that we've ever had," Dr Roberts said.

"Fiscal 2014 is a year of significant activity that is really going to set the company up for growing momentum in the second half of fiscal 2014, going into fiscal 2015."

Cochlear has just started to launch its Nucleus 6 sound processor, which the company says is the most advanced and smallest sound processor on the market.

It also expects its emerging range of acoustic implants to make progress in the 2013/14 financial year, following initial sales in 2012/13.

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Unions calls for commitment to car sector

Toyota will axe 100 jobs at its Melbourne facilities in response to a fall in export demand. Source: AAP

UNIONS have called for a strong commitment from the federal government to ensure the future of Australia's car manufacturing industry in the wake of job cuts by Toyota.

Toyota said on Tuesday it would axe 100 jobs at its Melbourne facilities by the end of November in the response to a fall in export demand.

It will also cut production from December and will look to slashing the cost of building each car in Australia by $3800 by 2018 to remain viable.

ACTU president Ged Kearney says the car industry must remain and unions believe it is an industry worth supporting.

"It's always terrible news when we hear that jobs are going to disappear," Ms Kearney told reporters in Adelaide.

"In light of the latest announcement we would like to see a really strong commitment from the federal government that they are keen to keep our car industry alive and vital."

Ms Kearney said the ACTU remains a strong supporter of ongoing assistance to the automotive sector, something other countries seemed to understand was necessary.

"The industry assistance that is given to it is vital, not only to the car industry but the rest of our manufacturing sector," she said.

The latest job cuts by Toyota follow the 350 the company axed last year and Holden's decision to cut 400 jobs earlier this year.

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Malaysian oppn leader to visit Adelaide

MALAYSIAN opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim is to appear at Adelaide's Festival of Ideas this weekend.

Premier Jay Weatherill said the festival had a history of bringing prominent thinkers to Adelaide and was proud to host the leading democracy campaigner.

"There are strong demands for strengthening democracies around the world - both in mature democracies and in some of the newer democracies," he said in a statement.

Independent Senator Nick Xenophon said Mr Anwar was a beacon of hope for democracy, not just in Malaysia but for the entire region.

"Despite over six years' imprisonment in solitary confinement on false charges - eventually quashed - and being severely beaten in custody, Answar remains an inspirational and optimistic icon for democratic change," he said.

Senator Xenophon, who was deported and banned from Malaysia earlier this year, said it was great Mr Anwar could come to Adelaide to share his experiences and insights.

Mr Anwar will appear in conversation with ABC broadcaster Waleed Aly on Saturday.

Adelaide's ninth Festival of Ideas opens on October 17 with a keynote address from cosmologist Paul Davies.

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iSelect CEO resigns

THE chief executive of iSelect has quit after disagreement with the board, less than four months after the company floated on the Australian share market.

Matt McCann, who had served as chief executive of iSelect, an insurance and utilities comparison business, since January 2012, resigned on Friday last week.

"Differences of opinion between the board and Matt led to him tendering his resignation last Friday evening," iSelect executive chairman Damien Waller said on Monday.

Mr McCann and the iSelect board had differed over the company's operating priorities.

"For example, Matt had a view around how to grow the business via acquisition. The board was much more focused on organic growth," Mr Waller said.

The differences were "amplified" by the fall in iSelect's shareprice and requests for information from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission in relation to iSelect's prospectus and the company's outlook for the 2013 calendar year.

Mr McCann's departure comes less than four months after iSelect, which has been operating for 13 years, was listed on the Australian Securities Exchange.

Current chief financial officer David Chalmers will take over as chief executive in the short term while iSelect begins a worldwide search for a permanent replacement.

The company has had a disappointing first few months, with its stock price falling from $1.85 to around $1.26 since its debut.

News of Mr McCann's resignation came as iSelect released a trading update.

The update affirmed the company's earnings expectations for the 2013 calendar year.

But it warned of a drop in expected revenue for the first half of the 2013/2014 financial year and the 2013 calendar year.

iSelect expects calendar 2013 EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) to be in line with its forecast at $30 million, which would represent a 51 per cent increase on calendar 2012.

Revenue for calendar 2013 is expected to be $126.5 million, down $6 million on the prospectus forecast of $132.5 million.

Revenue in the first half of the 2013/14 financial year is expected to be $2.4 million below the prospectus forecast, mostly attributable to a decision to defer a car insurance marketing campaign.

Mr Waller said the outlook for iSelect was strong.

"iSelect is robust. We are tackling the challenging economic conditions as well as recent regulatory changes that have affected out largest business segment," he said.

Shares in iSelect were 2.5 cents higher at $1.285 at 1349 AEDT.

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Child safety jobs left vacant: NSW inquiry

CHILD protection caseworker jobs across NSW have sometimes been left unfilled in an effort to save money.

The former deputy chief executive of operations at the Department of Community Services, Helen Freeland, told an upper house inquiry on ministerial propriety on Monday that the department had implemented a range of measures to "shave parts off the budget".

She said she noticed there had been a reduction in caseworker numbers across the state by January this year.

"We had positions which were vacant but we didn't have the salary to pay people if we recruited against those vacancies," she told the inquiry.

The inquiry, which was set up by the NSW opposition, is probing whether Minister Pru Goward misled parliament about caseworker numbers.

Ms Goward has faced sustained pressure since denying any knowledge of an Ernst & Young report that contradicted her claims that NSW had more than 2060 caseworkers. Only 1797 positions had been filled.

Ms Freeland told the inquiry she was required to make savings in the operations budget.

While the savings were not made by reducing caseworker numbers, she said a number of small savings measures were imposed.

"It has been standard practice for a number of years to fund salaries at the midpoint," she said.

"There were some weeks where a position might be vacated by a caseworker before you can appoint someone permanently to that position, so in that time you make some savings."

Labor MP Luke Foley asked whether one response to budget pressures was to stop filling the 2068 budgeted caseworker positions.

"It's a decision that some regional directors took because when they worked out what their salaries budget was, they calculated that there were positions that they couldn't fill from time to time," Ms Freeland replied.

The opposition has claimed Premier Barry O'Farrell is trying to protect Ms Goward after he announced last month that lower house ministers need not attend the inquiry.

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Bill Shorten elected Labor leader

Bill Shorten is the new leader of the federal parliamentary Labor Party. Source: AAP

BILL Shorten has been elected leader of the federal parliamentary Labor Party.

Mr Shorten won with 63.9 per cent of the caucus vote and 40 per cent of the members vote for an overall total of 52 per cent.

"Proud to announce that @BillShortenmp has been elected the new #LaborLeader!" tweeted the ALP.

Mr Shorten won 55 votes in the 86-member caucus.

Mr Albanese attracted 18,230 rank-and-file votes to Mr Shorten's 12,196.

Interim leader Chris Bowen predicted Mr Shorten would go on to become the next Labor prime minister of Australia.

"Bill Shorten is a man who has dedicated his working life to representing vulnerable people and to representing this nation," he told reporters in Canberra.

Mr Bowen also paid tribute to Mr Albanese saying he still had a "significant contribution" to make in parliament.

MORE TO COME

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Mongols patch over the Finks in WA

A POLICE operation has confirmed the notorious Mongols outlaw motorcycle gang has patched over the Finks in Western Australia.

Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan flagged concerns last week about the US-based bikie gang taking over the Finks and said police had been monitoring the situation.

There were previously only three Mongols in WA and all are in prison.

There are about 12 Finks members in WA and about half are in prison, while their club house has been frozen.

Deputy Commissioner Chris Dawson told reporters on Sunday that police were monitoring all gangs and played down the threat of the Mongols, who have a violent rivalry with the Hells Angels in the US.

"Irrespective of what they call themselves, police regard them (all) as criminal gangs and will continue to treat them as such," Mr Dawson said.

Laws allowing WA police and the state's corruption watchdog to declare bikie gangs illegal were passed by parliament late last year, but have not yet been proclaimed.

The intelligence was gathered as part of a national day of action against outlaw motorcycle gangs.

Police executed search warrants throughout Perth's metropolitan area on Saturday targeting two club houses and residences in Woodvale, Aveley, Balga, Henley Brooke, Butler, Ocean Reef, Landsdale, Quinns Rock and Wilson.

Seized items included a baton, a tracking device believed to be used for vehicles, 28g of white powder that is yet to be identified, and $56,000 in cash.

Further operations were carried out at licensed premises in Fremantle, Burswood and regional areas.

Charges included disorderly behaviour, five counts of possessing a prohibited drug and possessing a smoking implement.

In a joint operation with the Department of Corrective Services, 71 prison cells occupied by gang members were also searched and prison contraband was seized.

Nationally, 53 people were charged, 79 search warrants were executed and 362 licensed premises were patrolled.

Mr Dawson said the operation was successful despite a small haul in WA.

"The outcome of the operation is not necessarily the volume of what is seized, but it's the effective policing and the gathering of any evidence," he said.

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China pledges to close 2000 mines

CHINA says it will shut down at least 2000 small coal mines by the end of 2015 as it tries to improve safety standards in its deadly industry.

China's Cabinet says it will target mines with annual output of less than 90,000 tons, and those that fail to adhere to safety rules.

The statement late Saturday also said it will end approval for new coal mines with an annual capacity of less than 300,000 tons.

China's mines are the deadliest in the world. According to the official Xinhua News Agency, 1384 people were killed in coal mine accidents in 2012.

Safety improvements have reduced deaths in recent years, but regulations are often ignored and accidents are still common.

China has deep reserves of coal and 12,000 coal mines.

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