Australia's top Y2K official is heading for the hills on New Year's - not because he expects trouble, but because he doesn't.

"I don't see any reason to change my normal New Year plans," Graeme Inchley, chief executive of the government's Y2K industry taskforce, told foreign correspondents at a briefing on what Australia has done to stamp out the Y2K computer bug.

Many other officials will work through the night at a media centre in Canberra, briefing the world on whether the estimated 12 billion Australian dollars (US8 billion) spent on battling the Y2K bug has paid off.

Inchley sees the bug itself causing only sporadic and minor problems for Australian business. His main fear is vandalism - either physical damage to infrastructure or a computer virus designed to simulate a Y2K problem.

"I'm absolutely certain that someone out there has decided to write something nasty that'll hit on January 1st," he said.

"But I'm also confident the major organisations and the banks in particular will have insulated their systems enough to reduce the risk to a very, very low level."

-- Reuters

-- Risteard Mac Thomais (uachtaran@ireland.com), December 16, 1999

Answers

Same as we've been hearing from top CEO's and gov't types. They've ALWAYS liked having their New Year's Eve parties underground. (cuts down the noise complaints from the neighbors)

Situation NORMAL....A F U

-- Linda (lwmb@psln.com), December 16, 1999.