Road tolls would reduce traffic: report

TOLLS and congestion fees may be the answer to reducing traffic and improving the state of Australian roads.

An Infrastructure Australia (IA) report, released on Tuesday, argues there is reduced accountability for governments to provide quality infrastructure under the current taxpayer system.

"To get the infrastructure we want, when we want it, we need to pay more as users," the report said.

It says congestion pricing in London has reduced traffic by 21 per cent, increased average travel speeds by 37 per cent and reduced road emissions.

Revenue raised by the fee is invested back into public transport, contributing to increased bus and passenger rail patronage.

IA also called for a single national fund to be established to roll over the many different infrastructure investment sources.

The fund would account for over $100 billion for projects such as the National Broadband Network and clean energy funding.

AI says the current funding model has overlapping purposes, different assessment frameworks and different decision making mandates.

Australia's future economic performance would largely depend on how its major cities are planned, the report says.

This will be particularly important considering each of Australia's five biggest capital cities will nearly double their population by 2056.

Denser cities was the answer to more productive living, it said.

The closer businesses are to each other and to a deep pool of skilled labour, the report argued, the higher their productivity.

For individuals, this proximity also means lower costs when looking for a job.

The Australian Industry Group welcomed the report's findings.

"The time is right to make reforms that will facilitate greater and more astute investment, including from the private sector, and encourage efficient use of infrastructure," the group's chief Innes Willox said.

The Urban Development Institute of Australia said addressing Australia's infrastructure problems must be a key priority for the next federal government.

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Patents keep HIV drugs too pricy

DOCTORS Without Borders is warning that rising intellectual property rights are blocking the generic production of newer drugs to treat HIV and are keeping them out of reach of developing countries.

The medical aid group said at an international AIDS meeting here that prices of older drugs long used to treat patients have fallen sharply as India and other countries make generics. But newer drugs that are more effective against the AIDS virus are too expensive, costing up to 15 times more.

"It's good news that the price of key HIV drugs continues to fall as more generic companies compete for the market, but the newer medicines are still priced far too high," said Jennifer Cohn, medical director for Doctors Without Borders' access campaign.

"We need the newer treatments for people that have exhausted all other options, but patents keep them priced beyond reach."

Patients can be treated with a combination of three or four older drugs, but those who develop resistance to them need the expensive newer medicines.

According to Doctors Without Borders, the governments of Thailand and Jamaica pay $US4,760 ($A5,178.42) and $US6,570 ($A7,147.52), respectively, a year per patient for the new drug Darunavir alone.

Paraguay pays $7,782 for Etravirine, while Armenia pays $13,213 for Raltegravir. In comparison, a cocktail of older generic drugs costs as little as $139 per person a year.

Doctors Without Borders urged the United States and 11 other countries negotiating a Trans-Pacific Partnership not to sign the free-trade pact.

It warned that the pact will increase intellectual property rights across Asia and the Americas, expanding monopoly protection for medicines and threatening cheap access to drugs.

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Opposition does not support military coup

EGYPT'S main opposition coalition said it would not support a "military coup" and trusted that an army statement giving political leaders 48 hours to resolve the current crisis did not mean it would assume a political role.

"We do not support a military coup," the National Salvation Front (NSF) said in a statement.

"The NSF has been committed, since its formation on 22 November, 2012, to build a civil, modern and democratic state that allows the participation of all political trends, including political Islam. We trust the army's declaration, reflected in their statement (Monday), that they don't want to get involved in politics, or play a political role," it said.

Meanwhile US President Barack Obama is encouraging embattled Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi to respond to concerns being voiced by throngs of protesters seeking his removal from office.

The White House confirmed in a statement Tuesday that Obama called Morsi on Monday while travelling in Africa.

The statement said Obama told Morsi that the United States is committed to the democratic process in Egypt and does not support any single party or group. The statement also said Obama underscored to Morsi that the current crisis can only be resolved through a political process.

Obama also told Morsi he's particularly concerned about violence in the demonstrations, especially sexual assaults against women.

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Rights groups calls for borders to open

TURKEY, Jordan and Iraq must fully reopen their border crossings to allow thousands of Syrians fleeing their country's war to seek refuge, Human Rights Watch said on Monday.

"Iraqi, Jordanian, and Turkish border guards are pushing back tens of thousands of people trying to flee Syria," the international rights group said, adding that the lives of those trying to flee were in danger.

"Iraq, Jordan, and Turkey have either closed numerous border crossings entirely or allowed only limited numbers of Syrians to cross, leaving tens of thousands stranded."

The UN says more than 1.7 million Syrians have fled the conflict in their country. The vast majority have sought refuge in neighbouring countries.

But only Lebanon has kept an open-door policy for Syrian refugees, says HRW.

Syria's war broke out more than 27 months ago and has left more than 100,000 dead, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights watchdog says.

New York-based HRW stressed international law prohibits countries "from sending anyone back to -- or pushing back anyone trying to leave -- a country where their life or freedom would be threatened".

HRW urged donor countries to step up support to countries hosting Syrian refugees.

But "neither the pressure those countries are under due to rising refugee numbers, nor giving aid inside Syria, can justify violating people's basic right to seek asylum from persecution and other abuse," HRW stressed.

It said Jordan denies closing its borders, though "recently arrived refugees... say that Jordanian border guards blocked their and others' entry for days or weeks in May".

Iraq's Kurdistan regional government has admitted closing the Syria border but has since mid-June allowed some Syrians in need of emergency assistance to cross over.

Baghdad has "severely limited the number of Syrians allowed to enter since August 2012, and new arrivals virtually ceased in late March," HRW said.

Turkey is "blocking the entry of thousands of Syrians at the Bab al-Salam, Atma, and other border crossings with Syria", it added.

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Man stabbed in head during Brisbane fight

A MAN has been stabbed in the head during a fight in central Brisbane.

The 27-year-old was taken from the scene of the fight on Mary Street to Royal Brisbane Hospital with non life-threatening injuries in the early hours of Monday, police say.

A 20-year-old man has been charged with two counts of assault occasioning bodily harm, acts intended to cause grievous bodily harm, wounding and two counts of threatening violence over the fight.

He was taken to Princess Alexandra Hospital with non life-threatening injuries and is due before the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

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EU probes banks on credit trading

THE European Commission says many of the world's largest investment banks appear to have colluded to block attempts by exchanges to trade and offer more transparent prices for financial products known as credit derivatives.

The commission, the executive arm of the European Union, said Monday it has informed 13 banks - including Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley - as well as the industry association for derivatives and a data service provider, of its objections.

The objections detail what the groups are thought to have done. Sending these closes the first phase of an investigation that began in March.

Next the banks will have 30 days to respond.

Then the commission must make a decision on whether the companies violated antitrust rules before considering consequences, which could include fines.

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Pakistan backing Afghan peace efforts

British Prime Minister David Cameron has arrived in Pakistan for talks on the Afghan peace process. Source: AAP

PAKISTAN has assured visiting British Prime Minister David Cameron that it will promote efforts to reach a peace deal in neighbouring Afghanistan before NATO's planned withdrawal.

Cameron is the first foreign government leader to visit Islamabad since Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif took office in June after winning landmark elections in May.

Relations between Kabul and Islamabad are traditionally mired in distrust. The apparent headway made at a summit hosted by Cameron in February has since unravelled in a series of public rows.

Cameron flew to Pakistan from Afghanistan, where he joined an international push to revive peace efforts that recently collapsed in ignominy after the Taliban opened an office in the Qatari capital Doha.

"We hope that the UK will continue these efforts to seek sustainable peace and stability in Afghanistan," Sharif told reporters after Sunday's talks with Cameron.

He supported Afghan President Hamid Karzai's position that any peace process should be "Afghan-owned and Afghan-led".

"I have assured Prime Minister Cameron of our firm resolve to promote the shared objective of a peaceful and stable Afghanistan, to which the three million Afghan refugees currently living in Pakistan can return with honour and dignity," said Sharif.

Cameron welcomed Sharif's remarks about the "vital importance of the relationship between Pakistan and Afghanistan".

"I profoundly believe that a stable, prosperous, peaceful, democratic Afghanistan is in Pakistan's interest, just as a strong, stable, peaceful, prosperous, democratic Afghanistan is in Pakistan's interest, and I know that you and President Karzai will work together towards those ends," Cameron said.

The search for a peace deal is an urgent priority as 100,000 US-led NATO combat troops prepare to withdraw next year and Afghan forces take on the fight against insurgents that has lasted more than a decade.

The Taliban office in Qatar that opened on June 18 was meant to foster talks but instead enraged Karzai, who saw it as being styled as an embassy for a government-in-exile.

He broke off bilateral security talks with the Americans and threatened to boycott any peace process altogether.

On Saturday however, Karzai told Cameron that a subsequent Taliban attack on the presidential palace "will not deter us from seeking peace".

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EU alarmed over alleged US bugging

A top EU official says ties with the US could suffer over a report that America bugged EU offices. Source: AAP

A "SHOCKED" European Union is angrily awaiting explanations from Washington following allegations of US spying on EU offices, which could have a "severe impact" on relations.

Martin Schulz, the president of the European Parliament, said in a statement: "I am deeply worried and shocked about the allegations of US authorities spying on EU offices", both in Brussels and the United States.

"If the allegations prove to be true, it would be an extremely serious matter which will have a severe impact on EU-US relations."

Schulz demanded full and speedy clarification from the US authorities.

The German weekly Der Spiegel on Sunday published a report it claimed was based on confidential documents, some of which it had been able to consult via the fugitive US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden.

One document, dated September 2010 and classed as "strictly confidential", describes how the NSA kept tabs on the European Union's diplomatic mission in Washington, Der Spiegel said.

Microphones were installed in the building and the computer network infiltrated, giving the agency access to emails and internal documents.

The EU delegation at the United Nations was subject to similar surveillance, the newspaper said: the leaked documents referred to the Europeans as "targets".

The spying also extended to the 27-member bloc's Brussels headquarters.

Der Spiegel referred to an incident "more than five years ago" when EU security experts discovered telephone and online bugging devices at the Justus Lipsius building.

In 2003, the EU announced it had found phone taps in the building targeting the offices of several countries, including Britain, France and Germany. It was not immediately clear if Der Spiegel was referring to this case.

US spying was "out of control", said Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn.

"The US would do better to monitor its intelligence services instead of its allies," he added.

Even before the latest allegations, the EU's Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding wrote to US attorney general Eric Holder earlier this month calling for answers about its internet spy program.

"Fundamentally, this is a question of trust," Reding said in a June 14 speech. "Trust of citizens towards their governments and to the governments of partner nations."

The top-secret PRISM program collects and analyses information from internet and phone users around the world, with access to data from Google, Yahoo! and other internet firms.

US officials say the information gathered is vital in the fight against global terrorism.

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Crowds gather for anti-Morsi rallies

Egypt is bracing for mass protests as President Mohamed Morsi's opponents determine to oust him. Source: AAP

EGYPT is bracing for mass rallies with President Mohamed Morsi's opponents determined to oust him and his Islamist supporters vowing to defend his legitimacy, stoking fears of a violent first anniversary of his taking office.

Thousands of jubilant protesters gathered in Cairo's Tahrir Square ahead of Sunday's scheduled marches, waving Egyptian flags as patriotic songs boomed from speakers.

"The people want the ouster of the regime," the protesters chanted, the signature slogan of the 2011 revolt that ousted Hosni Mubarak and brought Morsi to power.

Some protesters held up red cards, others wore black headbands with 'Leave, Morsi!' written on them.

"This is the second revolution and Tahrir is the symbol of the revolution," said carpenter Ibrahim Hammouda, who travelled from the northern city of Damietta to join the protest.

Marchers were scheduled to set off at 5pm local time (0200 AEDT Monday) for the Ittihadiya presidential palace, close to a neighbourhood where thousands of Morsi supporters vowed to pursue a counter-demonstration in defence of the president.

Anti-Morsi demonstrations were also expected in provincial cities.

Police and troops have deployed to protect key buildings around the country, security officials said. The health ministry said hospitals have been placed on high alert.

A senior security official said the Suez Canal, the vital waterway that connects the Mediterranean with the Red Sea, has been placed under "maximum security."

The streets of Cairo were unusually quiet for the first day of the working week in Egypt, with banks and most offices closed.

The grassroots movement Tamarod - Arabic for rebellion - is behind a campaign that claims to have collected millions of signatures to a petition demanding Morsi's resignation and new elections.

The week leading up to the showdown has already seen eight people killed, including an American, and scores more injured as protesters from both sides took to the streets.

Morsi, previously a senior Muslim Brotherhood leader, is Egypt's first freely elected president, catapulted to power by the 2011 uprising that ended three decades of authoritarian rule by Mubarak.

His opponents accuse him of betraying the revolution by concentrating power in Islamist hands and of sending the economy into free fall.

But his supporters say that many of the challenges he faces he inherited from a corrupt regime, and that he should be allowed to serve out his term which ends in 2016.

Any attempt to remove him from office, they say, is a coup against democracy.

Leading opposition figure, Nobel peace laureate Mohamed ElBaradei, urged the president "to listen to the people" and step aside.

The fervent displays of emotion from both camps highlight the deep divisions in the Arab world's most populous country.

The army, which led a tumultuous transition after the revolt that ousted Mubarak, has warned it will intervene if there is major unrest.

Since taking office, Morsi has battled with the judiciary, the media and the police. The economy has taken a tumble, investment has dried up, inflation soared and the vital tourism industry has been battered.

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Snowden's father seeks deal with US govt

THE father of fugitive US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden has revealed he is trying to broker a compromise with the government that could bring his son back to the United States.

In a letter to the Justice Department, Lonnie Snowden said through his lawyer that his son wanted "ironclad assurances" he would not be held in jail before trial or subjected to a gag order, and would be allowed to choose where he would be tried on federal espionage charges.

The elder Snowden said the offer could end the impasse that has kept his 30-year-old son stuck in the transit zone of a Moscow airport and raised tensions between the US and other countries, including China, Russia and Ecuador, where the former National Security Agency contract employee is seeking political asylum.

"We believe you share our objective of securing Edward's voluntary return to the United States to face trial," Washington DC attorney Bruce Fein wrote to Attorney General Eric Holder on behalf of Snowden's father.

Lonnie Snowden, Fein wrote, "is reasonably certain that his son would voluntarily return to the United States if there were ironclad assurances that his constitutional rights would be honoured, and he were provided a fair opportunity to explain his motivations and actions to an impartial judge and jury".

If any of the conditions were "dishonoured," Fein added, then the prosecution "would be dismissed".

Justice Department officials did not comment on the proposal.

Meanwhile, the president of Ecuador demanded that the US stop suggesting that the small Andean country is provoking the situation by offering to shield Snowden from US justice, much as it has protected Australian WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

For the last year, Assange has lived in Ecuador's embassy in London after he was granted sanctuary.

"It is outrageous to try to delegitimise a state for receiving a petition for asylum," Ecuador President Rafael Correa said in a speech in Ecuador.

Correa contended that the news media at first welcomed Snowden's leaks about secret US programs to collect phone logs and emails but later suggested the actions were treasonous.

"What a joke!" the president said in a tweet.

The media, he said, are "making everyone forget the terrible things that he denounced in front of the American people and the entire world".

Correa added that, for the asylum request to be processed and approved, Snowden first must find his way to Ecuador's embassy in Moscow or to Ecuador.

"We don't know how it'll be resolved," he said.

Officials in Hong Kong, where Snowden flew when he left Hawaii, said they remained concerned about his claims that the NSA had hacked into Hong Kong's computer systems.

In the future, they said, Snowden will no longer be permitted in Hong Kong.

"We are very disappointed," said Lai Tung-kowk, Hong Kong's secretary of security.

"We hope the US government will as soon as possible give a full answer and explanation to the Hong Kong people."

US State Department officials said they were concerned about their worsening relationships with Hong Kong and Ecuador.

"These issues have an impact when we have a breakdown on co-operation," Patrick Ventrell, a spokesman, said in response to Hong Kong's statements.

Regarding Ecuador, Ventrell said it "would not be a good thing" if the country granted Snowden asylum.

"That would have grave difficulties for a bilateral relationship," he said.

Lonnie Snowden, who has not spoken with his son since April, said on NBC's Today show: "I love him. I would like to have the opportunity to communicate with him. I don't want to put him in peril, but I am concerned about those who surround him.

"I think WikiLeaks, if you've looked at past history, you know, their focus isn't necessarily the constitution of the United States. It's simply to release as much information as possible."

"At this point I don't feel that he's committed treason. He has in fact broken US law, in the sense that he has released classified information," Lonnie Snowden told NBC.

"And if folks want to classify him as a traitor, in fact he has betrayed his government. But I don't believe that he's betrayed the people of the United States."

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