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President George W Bush has made his farewell speech to the United Nations, offering assurances of his commitment to stabilising world markets threatened by the American financial crisis.

North America correspondent Michael Rowland reports that Mr Bush has told the UN General Assembly the US government had taken bold steps to avoid a severe disruption to the US economy which in turn could have had a devastating gloal impact.

He has used his speech, his last to the UN as US President, to underscore the speed with which he was addressing the problem.

"I can assure you that my administration and our Congress are working together to quickly pass legislation approving this strategy and I'm confident we will act in the urgent timeframe required," Mr Bush said.

The UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon has expressed fears the financial crisis could jeopardise the UN's plans to reduce world poverty.

But resentment is growing on both sides of the US political divide over a plan to bail out Wall Street firms with bad mortgage debt.

Consumers struggling with unsustainable amounts of debt need not risk losing their assets and going into bankruptcy, as a reputable organisation can help work out a suitable solution to their problems, it has been claimed.

Michael Richardson, a financial follower of DebtBuster Loans, believes seeking professional help during times of economic difficulty is crucial in ensuring affairs are handled in the appropriate manner.

He claims low-cost solutions are available to consumers but enlisting the assistance of qualified persons is necessary to make sure the correct plan of action is put in place to stop people losing their home and possessions.

"There are a lot of opportunities but only a few professional or expert companies will give to their clients the right solution…it is better to find a solution from an expert or a specialised company than risk losing your assets and go into bankruptcy," Mr Richardson said.

According to DebtBuster Loans, bankruptcy need not be considered as an option because more suitable options are available such individual voluntary arrangements which can eliminate a large percentage of debt and organise the remainder into monthly payments over a five-year period.

A group of community activists and State Rep. Mary Moore said today the county should increase property taxes and impose non-user fees on water customers to resolve the county's $3.2 billion sewer debt crisis. At a Friday, Aug. 29, 2008, news conference, advocates distributed this outline of the plan:

The People's Plan for Dealing With Jefferson County Sewer Crisis!!
The People in District One and District Two of Jefferson County (80 percent of whom are black) have formulated a plan to deal with the present sewer crisis.
We feel that all other plans have failed to recognize the disparity that the 329 percent in crease in sewer rates have had on the poorest citizens in the county. $3.2 billion was distributed among white contractors, lawyers and bond dealers, and blacks received only $900,000 (less than 1/3 of 1 percent). Now Governor Riley is purposing a plan that might include bankruptcy, which will leave the burden of this debt solely on the backs of the poor.

1. We propose that a clean water fee be imposed on every Jefferson Co. water customer who is not connected to the sewer.
2. We propose that impact fees be increased on commercial and subdivision development s that reflect the regional average.
3. We propose that all new subdivisions be mandated to connect to the sewer if trunk lines are available.
4. We propsoe that all septic tanks be inspected for clean water compliance.
5. We propose that an Advalorem tax increase be initated to pay sewer debt.
6. We propose that ratepayers only be charged for opeartions and maintenance.
6. We propsoet hat the County repay to bondholders the $400 million that they still have from the oriiginal loan to reduce the debt.
8. We propose that if the County fails to act on these proposals that the Cities of Birmingham, Bessemer and Fairfield (136,000 of the 146,000 rate payers) initiatie Rebate and lease programs to return their citizens to high tech septic tanks.
9. We propsoe that legal class action be taken against the County to relieve the poorest citizens from this burden.
10. Create a Sewer Authority to manage sewer operations.
11. We will ask Brmingham Water Works to stop telling people that if they don't pay sewer bills, their water will be cut off.

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CityRail network buckles under the weight of thousands of new commuters each week, RailCorp is trying to clear room at crowded Town Hall station to accommodate them.

After a successful trial of marshals moving passengers to empty areas on afternoon peak trains, a minor upgrade is under way to make more room on some platforms. The renovations will fall well short of the extra capacity required at the ageing station, however.

Work is being done on platforms five and six to remove storage and cleaners' supply rooms to create 40 to 45 square metres of extra space.

Town Hall's platforms are 158 metres long, however, and the work will not create a huge amount of breathing space for commuters. But with the station straining at its capacity, RailCorp's management is trying to remove all non-essential items to free up room.

It is all the organisation can do until the State Government signs a hugely expensive, and disruptive, station upgrade plan that continues to gather dust.

A 2007 RailCorp plan exists for a $600 million overhaul to bring Town Hall up to fire safety standards and provide capacity for growth. It has failed to meet these standards since 2001.

Consultants have warned that "Town Hall cannot currently be fully evacuated in the morning and evening peaks within times stipulated by the Standards for Fixed Guideway Transit and Passenger Rail Systems". It still has no fire-escape stairs.

About 150,000 passengers use the station every day and the Government estimates this to rise to more than 168,000 within eight years. The actual figure is likely to be even higher.

With mounting household debt and strong CBD jobs growth in past years, railway patronage is rising by more than 8 per cent a year on some lines.

Overall, the growth rate was more than 4.7 per cent for the 12 months to February this year, which is more than 200,000 extra passengers using the network a week.

In June the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal said an urgent increase in capacity was needed in the CBD railway network to prevent Town Hall and Wynyard stations becoming swamped by passengers.

In 2005 the then Premier, Bob Carr, announced a plan to install a $5 billion rail line through the city, with new stations that would alleviate the crush at Town Hall and bring relief to every part of the rail network for decades.

This was plan scrapped in March with the announcement of the North West Metro. "The likely growth in peak-period demand means that meeting the Government's objective of reducing the cost of CityRail services while also improving the quality and reliability of these services will be a major challenge," the tribunal's report says.

A review of station operations by Boston Consulting Group has led to some changes in the way Town Hall operates. One of the most successful reforms has been the introduction of marshals on busy city platforms to move people to either end of the train, where there are fewer people.