Melbourne, Sept 14 : They might be tiny, but when it comes to destroying things in the home, the pint-size chihuahuas can be monsters, that’s what a new of list of the world''s most destructive dog breeds claims.

The peewee pooches are ranked just behind great danes in the list conducted by pet insurer Esure, reports the Daily Telegraph.

According to the survey, chihuahuas and great danes clock up repair bills averaging 1376 dollars and 1420 dollars respectively during their lifetime.

Sydney - Carmakers need a government subsidy to roll out the vehicles that Australians want to buy, an industry lobby group said Sunday.

The three local carmakers - Toyota Motor Corp, GM Holden Ltd and the Ford Motor Co - only make big, petrol-thirsty cars that have lost their appeal because of higher petrol prices and environmental concerns. Smaller cars, all of them imports, are what the customer wants.

Canberra, Sept 13 : A group of prominent Australians have warned that remote Australia has become a "failed state" fuelled by dysfunction and neglect that threatens the nation''s security, social cohesion and rare ecosystems.

The Remote Focus Group, which includes academics, politicians, public servants and mining executives, has produced a "prospectus", detailing the extent of the crisis and calling for an urgent national debate.

Canberra, Sept. 13 : Australia’s refusal to sell uranium to India will adversely affect bilateral ties, a spokesman of Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith, has warned.

The Herald Sun quoted Andrew Robb as saying that India is "deeply affronted" by Australia''s decision not to sell it uranium.

"At every level they (the Indian government) are deeply affronted by the decision of the Australian government to refuse to sell our uranium while encouraging the rest of the world to sell uranium to India," Robb told ABC Radio.

"They can''t understand it, they are affronted and it will affect our relationship and it will cost Australians billions of dollars in the years ahead," he added.

Melbourne, Sept 13: A sex club run by three six-year-old boys at a Brisbane state school has come to light, where they demanded and received sexual favours from Year 2 classmates.

The news indicates that sex abuse among Aussie school kids is quite rampant.

An irate father of one of the boys, has now claimed that the school never bothered to tell him about his son’s misdemeanours more than a week after the story broke.

The Brisbane resident revealed that his son was one of a trio seen performing various sex acts in a toilet block.

Brisbane, Sept. 13: Indian steel giant Bhushan is to acquire a 64 percent stake in Queensland’s Bowen Energy.

The Australian reported that Bhushan had paid 560,000 dollars to take its holding to 19.91 per cent and that the two companies had also entered into an agreement for Bhushan to subscribe to 100 million of Bowen shares for 32 million dollars.

The first 50 million share purchase, which will take Bhushan''s interest to 50.5 per cent, will be voted on at Bowen''s AGM in November.