| | Court dismisses attempt to disqualify bushfire witness from judicial review after report into fires at bushfire trial
A state prosecutor has dismissed an attempt by a former witness in the trial of a bushfire case in which he had been unable to identify his own name from the bushfire's aftermath, a court heard on Monday.
The State Court's chief judge, Jonathan Loughton, ruled that the witness' name was not included in a court summary released just before his cross-examination of the accused, George Reid, by defence barrister Chris Davies.
The statement was sent by prosecutor Elizabeth Aylward and confirmed by Davies.
Reid was charged last December with causing damage through negligence to bushfires in Tasmania's north, north Queensland and Tasmania in the past year. But he faced four counts of failure to give a truthful report and one count of obstruction of justice.
Loughton ruled that because he and Aylward had not been allowed to access the evidence on the trial court's website, they were not entitled to have the statement sent in advance of the cross-examination of Reid on the trial date.
Aylward described the witness as a "good and reliable witness", who told her that he had been in and around the scene of the fires. Loughton said that had the witness been able to identify himself from photographs available, he might have taken a "somewhat different" view than Davies and defence barrister Craig Morgan.
The cross-examination into the evidence was part of a series of cross-examination by Aylward, who sought to question the witness about how long he had been working in the fires, and whether he could properly identify his own name to describe himself.
Morgan said: "What Mr Reid said “ it is absolutely correct “ he was not in the area at that time in fact we have evidence to suggest that he has not been working in those fires for a whole year or two years and that that would be very difficult to establish.
"So, what we ask you, if you are Mr Reid, we want to know how long have you been in the area?"
Aylward asked about his previous knowledge of bushfires: "I assume that you have worked in these fires as well for the last five or six months to two years and perhaps in some of the other fires in that time."
Morgan asked whether the witness could have explained to them how long he had been there.
The witness replied: "I would think so maybe a year or two years."
Morgan then asked: "So, if we had that evidence, we are not interested in looking at all the facts, we are interested in the testimony, the witness is not going to say 'n
More funds sought for disability support service
TORONTO - Health Minister Eric Hoskins says he will ask Parliament to give the federal government an extra $50 million to help people with disabilities in the future.
The money will be used to give people up to five years of job assistance with an equivalent of four weeks of pay.
The money will start this fall if not more.
If approved by the House of Commons on Dec. 15, that will give the government the ability to provide this program in other countries, including the U.S.
"I am seeking support in this House from my cabinet colleague from the Coalition government, and that includes my own fellow cabinet minister," Hoskins said in an email to CBC News.
"The support will include a commitment to meet the requirements of that bill to make it possible for our provinces and territories to help make those investments."
Currently, some 12 provinces and one territory provide job support services that include disability support with two weeks' pay or less.
Ontario, which has the second highest rate in the country of people with intellectual disabilities, and British Columbia are also considering providing their disability supports with up to four weeks of pay, but there is currently no money for this in the federal program.
Hoskins also says his department will continue its work in creating the Disability Support Employment Program, which provides job assistance for people on welfare without disabilities.
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