Levy could be approved within weeks

Prime Minister Julia Gillard says she will legislate to increase the Medicare levy. Picture: Hamish Blair Source: Herald Sun

THE federal government's tax hike to help pay for a new national disability care scheme could pass parliament in two weeks, after the coalition offered to support the measure.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has agreed to consider a 0.5 percentage point rise in the Medicare levy to two per cent, neutralising a key election issue for Labor Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

Following talks with shadow ministers overnight and Thursday, Mr Abbott said the coalition recognised the need to secure funding for DisabilityCare, despite Labor's "mismanagement" of the federal budget.

This morning Mr Abbott said the Coalition was prepared to consider supporting a "modest increase" to the Medicare levy to help fund the scheme.

The Opposition Leader said he wanted the issue to be dealt with in this parliament, but called on Julia Gillard to release more details on how the scheme would be fully funded.

Federal opposition leader Tony Abbott says the coalition will consider supporting an increase to the Medicare levy to fund the NDIS. Picture: Mark Brake

"We want this scheme to come into being as soon as possible because we want millions of vulnerable Australians to have the security and assurance they deserve," Mr Abbott said.

"But at the same time … it is important the Prime Minister come clean with all of the details on this scheme. How will it be fully funded?"

"We do want to see this come into the parliament in this term."

Ms Gillard now plans to introduce a bill during the budget session of parliament beginning May 14.

All eyes will be on Tony Abbott today as he responds to the PM's challenge to back an NDIS funding proposal.

"I am very pleased that today the leader of the opposition has said ... he is prepared to support an increase," she told reporters in Launceston.

"The leader of the opposition has changed his mind on this matter.

"On the basis of that change of mind by the leader of the opposition, I will bring to the parliament the legislation to increase the Medicare levy by half a per cent."

This means the bill to enact the increase will be introduced to parliament before the September federal election.

Mr Abbott's consideration rests on a number of conditions and he's promised to scrap the impost if the coalition wins the September election and the budget returns to strong surplus.

Ms Gillard said most of the detail had already been legislated, while work on the remainder was under way. Other funding details will be available in the budget due on May 14.

Labor could have had the support of the Greens and enough cross-benchers to pass the bill, although it risked a battle with the Greens in the Senate if the minor party tried to link the bill with a widening of the mining tax.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has announced a 0.5 percent increase to the Medicare Levy to support the National Disability Insurance Scheme. Courtesy ABC News

The prime minister said to get lasting reform she needed the coalition's support.

Ms Gillard yesterday announced Labor would seek to increase the Medicare levy from 1.5 per cent to 2 per cent to pay for disability support.

The Medicare levy increase will raise about $3.3 billion a year - less than half the $8 billion or more annual cost to run the disability care scheme when it begins full operation from 2018/19.

To fill the funding gap, Labor needs to make further budget savings and the states and territories will also need to contribute.

There are just five sitting weeks left of parliament in the Lower House before the September election. The Senate will sit for just three weeks before September 14.

Mr Abbott said he had always been supportive of a National Disability Insurance Scheme and a bipartisan approach to seeing it made reality.

"I would not be riding more than 1000 kilometres to support Carers Australia if I wasn't fair dinkum about a NDIS," Mr Abbott said.

"I am profoundly committed to a National Disability Insurance Scheme. I have been calling from the beginning for a bipartisan approach to this."

Mr Abbott said it was important that the issue be dealt with in this parliament so that it had a "substantial monument".

Disability campaigner and former NSW Labor minister John Della Bosca said Thursday's outcome was "fantastic".

"We've seen the best of Australian politics in Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott showing great leadership," he said.

Meanwhile, department store Myer has apolgosied after its chief executive Bernie Brookes sparked outrage and boycott threats by saying the levy rise wasn't "good for our customers", who would have less money to spend at his department stores.

Disability discrimination commissioner Graeme Innes was furious about Mr Brookes' comments and demanded Myer employ 10 per cent more disabled people by 2015.

Earlier this morning Mr Abbott called on Ms Gillard to release the full eligibility criteria for the scheme.

He said when that came out a lot of Australians would be "disappointed" when they realised they would not be included.

But Disability Reform Minister Jenny Macklin brushed off his concerns.

"The Leader of The Opposition should read the legislation that he voted for at the end of March," Ms Macklin said.

"The eligibility of criteria is very clear in the legislation. It is not responsible to raise these issues when you have voted for this legislation just over a month ago."

The indication of support from Mr Abbott came as Tasmania became the fourth state to sign up to the multi-billion-dollar NDIS.

Ms Gillard and Tasmanian Premier Lara Giddings signed a deal this morning to secure funding for the scheme.

In a statement following his press conference Mr Abbott said the NDIS was "too important to become a partisan football".

"Australians with a disability and their carers want the confidence that the NDIS means a permanent change in the way that our country supports people with a disability," he said.

"People with a disability should not have to wait any longer than is necessary for the support they need."

Mr Abbott said if elected the Coalition would ensure the Medicare levy increase was only temporary.

"If elected to government the Coalition would resolve to ensure that the increase to the Medicare levy is a temporary increase and will be removed when the budget returns to strong surplus and the NDIS can be funded without it," he said.

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A test of honesty for foreign workers

A ''Genuineness' test is being considered to  preventing 457 visas being used to fill unskilled positions. Source: Supplied

A ''GENUINENESS'' test for foreign workers on 457 visas is being considered by the government as it contemplates expanding a crackdown.

The test, if adopted, would be applied through a criteria aimed at preventing 457s being used to fill unskilled positions or as a back door way to move family and friends to Australia.

A government discussion paper was released today as former Labor MP Maxine McKew slammed the government's rhetoric about foreign workers, saying it could offend Australia's neighbours.

''Loud declarations about 'foreigners getting to the back of the queue' and 'Aussie jobs first' are a very unpleasant throwback to a time when unions demanded a protected labor market,'' she told the Australia India Institute today.

''Historically, that meant it was white labour that had to be protected - and if some in the region saw echoes of that historic artifact, I wouldn't be surprised.''

The discussion paper outlines 12 measures that were previously considered by former Immigration Minister Chris Bowen.

Immigration Minister Brendan O'Connor, who was yesterday in Sri Lanka where he is meeting officials about people smuggling, has implemented five of the recommended changes with the remainder under consideration.

If the ''genuineness'' criteria was adopted a visa applicant could be scrutinised about ''whether the nomination is genuine in circumstances where the nominee is a relation or personal associate of an owner or relevant person of the sponsoring business.''

Businesses could also be required to account for the number of 457 visa holders after previously businesses who had intended to sponsor a small number of workers then employed hundreds.

Meanwhile, a 35-year-old Sri Lankan asylum seeker died of a suspected heart attack after arriving on an asylum boat at Christmas Island this week.

The man's distraught nine-year-old son travelled to Australia with him and has been comforted since the death of his father on Wednesday by an adult cousin who was also on the vessel.

Australian authorities rushed the man to Christmas Island Hospital, where he died.

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Boy bashes teacher with baseball bat

A SCHOOL has been closed after a teacher was hit on the back of the neck by a primary school student with a baseball bat.

The attack, which happened on Monday, was the latest in a string of violent assaults on staff at Angurugu School on Groote Eylandt, in the Gulf of Carpentaria, The Northern Territory News reports.

Ther Year 7 student has been suspended for a month. The male teacher is recovering.

Other attacks include a student smashing a window in the principal's office with an axe and a teacher having her hand broken after a student threw a chair, a table and a rubbish bin at her.

Another teacher was left bleeding after being bitten and one staff member was stabbed in the leg with sharpened pencils.

The NT News reported on a male teacher who was choked by a student and a female teacher who had to be flown off the island after a student threatened to rape her in March.

Education Union NT president Matthew Cranitch said the school had a long history of violence against teachers, which resulted in staff asking for the school to be closed yesterday.

"Sadly these types of attacks are continuing and it just highlights that this is a dangerous job, particularly in some remote communities," he said.

Read the full report on the baseball attack in The NT News
 

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Missing fisherman sparks croc fears

POLICE are investigating a possible crocodile attack in far north Queensland after concerns about a missing fisherman.

Police have released images of a cast net and thongs found on a beach near Weipa and are asking people who can help identify the owner of the property to come forward.

Volunteers from the State Emergency Service are currently searching the area, which is a known crocodile habitat.

The gear was found by a member of the public about 7am today on the bank of the creek near the carpark of a hotel. 

Weipa Town Authority posted a warning of a large "aggressive" crocodile stalking people and dogs on the beach just ten days ago.

WTA chief executive Ian Pressley said police had found a cast net and pair of thongs and were treating the matter as "suspicious"

"There are no signs of a body or an attack," said Mr Pressley.

"We are not aware if anyone has even been reported missing yet.

"But at this stage it is being treated as a possible croc attack, there has been a big one hanging around."

One local Weipa fisherman said tourists had been seen fishing off the beach at in knee deep water in recent days.

The WTA warning on April 24 said: "Recent sighting of a large size crocodile has been reported along the Rocky Point Beach area over the last few days.

"Reports indicate that the crocodile has been stalking people and dogs moving along the beach.

"Numerous sightings of Large Aggressive Crocodile have been reported in Trunding Creek near the Albatross Hotel Resort and Weipa Camping Grounds.

"Please be extra vigilant and cautious while in these areas, but also remember that crocodiles inhabit most waterways on Cape York so caution applies to all these areas."

In the last near-fatal attack, Todd Bairstow, was lucky to survive after he was trapped in the jaws of a crocodile in March 2011.

The Rio Tinto bauxite mine worker was fishing on the banks of Trunding Creek near the Albatross Hotel in Weipa when a 4m crocodile lunged out of the water.

He told how the croc kept rolling "around and around" in the death roll trying to drag him into deeper water.

He revealed how he battled the monster croc which lunged "out of nowhere" and latched onto his leg for 40 minutes by punching it, poking it in the eyes and trying to pull its jaws apart.

Both his legs were broken in the death rolls and he was up to his neck in water when a hero rescuer heard his screams.

Anyone with information which could assist with this matter should contact Crime Stoppers anonymously via 1800 333 000 or crimestoppers.com.au.

 

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Clive Palmer in TV ad blitz

Aspiring prime minister Clive Palmer has released a series of clips promoting his United Australia Party which he says will run on commercial television networks from Monday.

Clive Palmer has expanded on his plans for the United Australia Party. Picture: Mark Calleja Source: The Courier-Mail

BILLIONAIRE aspiring prime minister Clive Palmer will launch a television advertising blitz next week, insisting he wants to keep his campaign positive and steer clear from negative personal attack ads.

Professor Palmer has released a series of clips promoting his United Australia Party which he says will run on commercial television networks from Monday.

The mining magnate declined to detail the budget for the campaign or how long the ads would continue for but insisted he would campaign until September 14 and do "whatever it takes for people to have an alternative".

While he criticises the major parties' involvement with lobbyists, the short ads mainly feature Professor Palmer looking relaxed, calling for support, talking about how he will unite Australians, promoting his website and talking about his desire to cut taxes.

Although they are light on policy detail, Mr Palmer said he wanted to get the basic themes of his party out there after its recent launch.

Professor Palmer said he did not know how much of his own money had been given to the party but that there were other contributes as well.

"There is a party executive and a committee," he said.

"I do contribute but it's not all my money."

But he said he would not participate in the vicious attacks ads that the major parties relied on during campaigns.

"I can't see us doing that," he said.

"Our basic philosophy is that politics should be about ideas, not attacking people."

 

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Defence to get new jets, patrol boats

Julia Gillard launching the 2013 Defence White Paper in Canberra today. Picture: Ramage Gary Source: News Limited

AUSTRALIA will purchase 12 new electronic warfare fighter planes to cover the delays in the Joint Strike Fighter project, Julia Gillard has announced.

The Prime Minister this morning unveiled the 2013 Defence White Paper and said $1.5 billion would be allocated over four years to make the aircraft purchases.

Ms Gillard said the JSF program had experienced cost overruns and delays and in order to cover the gap in capability 12 Growler aircraft would be added to Australia's fleet.

The Prime Minister made the announcement along with Defence Minister Stephen Smith who said Australia would be ''the only country outside of the US'' to have access to the Growler planes - an electronic version of the super hornet.

Last year it was announced in the budget that 12 of the first 14 F-35A Joint Strike Fighters would be delayed by two years, creating a potential gap in Australia's air force capability.

The first three of the JSF fleet are now not expected to arrive in Australia until 2020.

''Defence remains committed to the JSF program and anticipate its delivery,'' Ms Gillard said.

In addition to the aircraft announcement Ms Gillard also outlined a $25.5m plan to improve mental health services for serving and ex-serving troops.

She said work on ''off-the-shelf'' submarine options would be suspended and the focus would turn onto looking at creating an ''evolved Collins class or entirely new design''.

''Decisions about Defence, however cannot be made in isolation of our fiscal position,'' Ms Gillard said.

She said the government would seek to increase spending to 2 per cent of GDP ''when fiscal circumstances allow''.

Both Ms Gillard and Mr Smith said there would not be any cut to the overall Defence budget, in light of last year's $5.5 billion purge.

''Defence spending will rise in absolute terms,'' Ms Gillard said.

''Once again we have allocated more than $100 billion to defence over the forward estimates period.''

Ms Gillard said the white paper ''reaffirms the central and enduring importance of our alliance relationship with the United States''.

It also underscores the deeper Defence partnerships in the region, including with China, she said.

''We welcome China's rise,'' Ms Gillard said.

''We seek to have a constructive and co-operative relationship with China. We also recognise that China's rise and military organisation is pivotal to our region.

''Our posture here is one of continuity.''

Ms Gillard said the government remained committed to manufacturing 12 advanced new submarines in South Australia.

However, due to the need for detailed design analysis, any further work on buying an existing or modified overseas model was off the table because it was unlikely to meet Australian requirements.

The government would work on the remaining two options - an all-new design or an evolution of the existing Collins-class submarines.

KEY POINTS OF THE 2013 DEFENCE WHITE PAPER

Main technology decisions:

Australia remains committed to buying the advanced Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter;

Australia to buy an additional 12 Boeing Super Hornets, configured in the electronic warfare Growler version, giving the RAAF a total of 36;

Government committed to buying 12 new submarines, based on an evolved version of the Collins class. Rules out buying an existing model from a European manufacturer;

Navy supply ships HMAS Sirius and HMAS Success will be replaced;

Government to ramp up plans to replace the navy's Armidale-class patrol boats;

No plans for a fourth air warfare destroyer.

Overall thrust of the White paper:

More conciliatory to China than the 2009 White Paper;

Welcomes China's rise and the modernisation of its military as a legitimate outcome of its growth;

Unlike the 2009 White Paper, new document makes no commitment to a particular level of defence funding;

Government committed to fiscal discipline and wants a defence budget that meets operational requirements

Source: Federal Government

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Asylum seeker boat arrival biggest

Asylum seekers arrive on Christmas Island. Source: Supplied

AUSTRALIAN authorities have intercepted a vessel carrying 184 asylum seekers and two crew - the largest boatload to arrive this year.

The overloaded fishing boat was found north west of Christmas Island on Wednesday.

Asylum seekers were taken to Christmas Island for initial healthy, security and identity checks.

The mega boat follows a record month of arrivals in April with 3316 people reaching Australia by boat.

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Kiesha's step-father jailed over death

Robert Smith stood by and did nothing as Kiesha was killed, before he burnt her body.

Kiesha Weippeart's step-father Robert Smith has been sentenced over her death. Source: The Daily Telegraph

THE man who left Kiesha Weippeart to die then hid her body in a shallow grave will spend at least 12 years behind bars.

Kiesha's step-father Robert Smith was this afternoon sentenced in the Supreme Court over the six-year-old's 2010 death.

The young girl was reported missing from her family's Mt Druitt home in August, but her remains were not found until April the following year.

In a secretly-recorded conversation with undercover police, Smith said he heard a "loud bang" from the girl's bedroom more than two weeks before she was reported as having disappeared.

He found Kiesha lying on the floor unconscious and tried to wake her, but instead of calling an ambulance he went to bed then to work the following day.

When Smith returned home he found the girl dead.

Kiesha's body was hidden in a suitcase for several days before he took it in a taxi to nearby Shalvey, where it was doused in petrol and set alight before the remains were buried.

About two weeks later, emergency services received a triple-0 call reporting the girl missing from her bedroom after the from door of the unit was left open.

For the next eight months Smith maintained the young girl has disappeared, with the 33-year-old even telling police he had been like a father to Kiesha.

"She's not my daughter, you know, but I treat her like she was," he said.

In April 2011, Smith finally admitted to undercover officers that Kiesha was dead and he had hidden her body.

"She wasn't waking up or nothing. I was like 'how can this shit happen to me?'," he said.

Smith was eventually charged with the girl's murder, but he later pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of "gross criminal negligence".

He also admitted to being an accessory to her murder.

Justice Megan Latham today sentenced Smith to a maximum 16 years in jail with a 12-year, non-parole period.

She said his crimes were among the most serious imaginable of their type, with his decision to burn the young girl's body a "particularly heinous act".

Justice Latham said Smith made a "simple and cowardly choice" to protect his own interests – rather than those of a vulnerable and "gravely injured" child.

"These were not spontaneous, ill-conceived acts carried out in panic, such as are usually encountered by the courts when dealing with this offence," she said.

Justice Latham said finding an unconscious six-year-old would move anyone except the most "callous and unfeeling of adults" to seek medical help.

With time already served, Smith will be eligible for release in 2023.

A woman, who can't be identified for legal reasons, is expected to face trial for Kiesha's murder later this year.

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Grandparents may become endangered

Parents who begin a family much later in life may limit the interaction their children have with aging grandparents who may struggle to keep up. Picture: Martin Novak/ Thinkstock

• Older parents limit the capacity for some to care for grandkids
• Could change face of traditional grandparenting
• Caring for young children gets physically harder with age

AUSTRALIA could be heading toward a generation of "grand-orphans" as societal trends turn grandparenting into an endangered institution.

With an increasing number of women delaying childbirth until their late 30s and 40s more people are becoming grandparents at an older age, limiting their capacity to care for grandchildren.

In 2011, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported a record 12,800 babies born to women over 40, up from just 7100 in 2001, with the median age for Australian mothers sitting at 30.6.

A 40-year-old mother who has to wait the average 30.6 or 40 years for her child to become a parent will be 70 or 80 by the time she herself becomes a grandparent, something Queensland University of Technology social psychologist Associate Professor Evonne Miller says is undoubtedly changing the face of traditional grandparenting.

"The reality is that the trend towards late motherhood is likely to change the role of grandparents and how they interact with their grandchildren," she said.

Cate and her husband Gerold adopted surrogate grandparent Irene Sills (centre) who has now become part of the family. Picture: Justin Lloyd

"Caring and interacting with a baby or toddler is typically much more physically taxing for someone in their late 70s, 80s and 90s than at age 50 or 60."

Ms Miller said other societal factors such as marriage breakdowns and geographical separation were also helping to redefine the role of the grandparent.

"Rather than frequent face-to-face visits, contemporary grandparents - especially those who live overseas or interstate - will use technology such as Skype and Facebook to interact with their grandchildren," she said.

"Instead of daily or weekly visits, grandparents may instead visit for extended times or take holidays together - it is about redefining our expectations about the role of grandparents in families."

Director of Grandparents Australia Anne McLeish said while women shouldn't feel pressured to have children earlier, they should realise the limitations delaying childbirth might place on their own parents.

"Parents need to continue to make the decision that's best for them but they have to understand at the same time that if they delay having children too late then it does limit the help that they can expect from the grandparents," she said.

"There are going to be a lot of children who miss out on the traditional grandparenting role as a result of marriage breakdown, relocation and losing contact with grandparents altogether."

That trend is being reflected in the skyrocketing popularity of Find-A-Grandparent, an online service that matches Australian families in need with "surrogate grandparents".

Director Cate Kloos, who launched the service last year to find a surrogate for her own two children, said she is desperate to recruit more grandparents to meet the demand from families.

"We have heaps of families registered but we could have heaps more if there were more grandparents to go around," she said.

"We get emails from interested families almost every day, but we have to turn them away. There's definitely a huge demand from families."

With Ms Kloos' and her husband Gerold's own parents living in Germany, their children Amelie, 5, and Luca, 3, now have a surrogate grandparent in Irene Sills, 75.

"It's really good because she only lives a couple of houses away from us so we can pop in and see her regularly, she's become part of the family," Ms Kloos said.

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Power use drop leads to emission cut

A decline in manufacturing, the introduction of the carbon tax, decreased demand from consumers and use of renewable energy have all helped cut Australia's electricity emissions, according to a new report. Source: AFP

• Electricity emissions lowest since 2001-2002
• Coal-use being scaled back
• Price-war consumers also helped lower emissions

THE introduction of the carbon tax, power bill shock and a decline in manufacturing is all behind a drop in Australia's electricity greenhouse gas emissions to levels not seen for more than a decade, a report says.

The Climate Commission's report examining escalating global action on climate change, released today, reveals emissions from electricity generation in 2012 dropped by 4.7 per cent on the previous year.

And emissions from electricity hit the lowest levels seen since 2001-02 in the last six months of last year.

Coal-use is being scaled back as gas and green energy grows, with Australia nearly doubling its renewable energy capacity since 2001.

Other reasons behind the fall include price-conscience households and businesses cutting down on power use, an embracing of energy-saving equipment and a run on rooftop solar panels, which hit one million households last year.

A decline in demand for electricity was also partially driven by a decline in some manufacturing sectors, it said.

"The introduction of a carbon price in 2012 has also contributed to the shift away from coal."

Chief Climate Commissioner Professor Tim Flannery said GDP continued to grow while emissions "seem to have peaked".

"Fingers crossed we've turned the curve downwards."

Australia's experience came in the context of "a fundamental global shift" to renewable energy, Professor Flannery said.

The report found accelerating action on climate change worldwide, including by the world's biggest polluters, China and the US.

It notes China halved its growth in energy demand in 2012 as it invested US$65.1 billion in clean energy - a massive 30 per cent of the entire G20 nations' investment in the same year.

That was ahead of the introduction of seven emissions trading schemes this year crossing the country that would cover a quarter of a billion people and be the largest trading scheme on the planet.

Meanwhile, US emissions were declining and the country was second to China in investing in renewable energy, spending US$35.6 billion last year.

"The action is happening, the giants are moving, so if that's a sign for action, it should be all systems go in Australia," Professor Flannery said.

"The last nine months have seen the beginnings of a fundamental global shift, an irreversible shift towards renewable energy."

Thirty-five countries have emissions trading schemes and 98 countries have committed to limit their greenhouse gas emissions.

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Sitting MPs to join Palmer's party

BILLIONAIRE federal candidate Clive Palmer said that by tomorrow, two or more current sitting MPs will defect to his party ahead of the election.

Mr Palmer told journalists today that he will run a candidate in every lower house seat, with two or more being current sitting MPs.

He also revealed his Queensland office was broken into last night, and he claims it is part of a political conspiracy.

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Let's vote on gay marriage now - Milne

Pro-gay marriage activists kiss in Paris after French lawmakers legalised same-sex marriage. MP Tony Windsor is urging the government to have a referendum on the issue. Source: AFP

FINANCE Minister Penny Wong has questioned Independent MP Tony Windsor's idea of having a referendum on same-sex marriage laws.

Mr Windsor wants the controversial issue taken out of the hands of politicians and instead let the people decide.

"Polls on gay marriage say it's what the population wants," Mr Windsor is quoted as saying by Fairfax media.

"A way to resolve it is through a referendum. It's a bit like the gun debate in America - the politicians appear to be out of step with the people."

Mr Windsor voted against the most recent same-sex marriage bill but said his views had softened after attending a civil union ceremony last year.

Mr Windsor says he supports the idea of a plebiscite on the issue but clarified he won't necessarily be leading the push to make it happen.

He said both sides of the gay marriage debate claimed they had the numbers so "if enough Australians wanted one" a plebiscite would be an opportunity to have the issue resolved.

"What tends to happen is politicians get captive to various interest groups," Mr Windsor told ABC Radio.

"It's a bit like the gun debate in America - the politicians appear to be out of step with the people."

But Finance Minister Penny Wong, who is in a same-sex relationship, said she would "sound a note of caution" about the idea.

She said a plebiscite would be a "very high bar to jump".

"My view is the parliament has a responsibility and will one day discharge that responsibility," Senator Wong told Sky News today.

Senator Wong pointed to the 1999 republic referendum which failed across all states despite having strong public support.

"John Howard and Tony Abbott ran a very good fear campaign and we lost that referendum," she said.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott told reporters today that he thought the September election was not the right time for a referendum on gay marriage.

"I think the coming election should be uncomplicated by other matters...I think the election should be a referendum on the carbon tax .. the current government, do you really want three more years of this?

"If there's ever to be a plebiscite on this subject it should be held quite separate from this election," he said.

But Australian Greens leader Christine Milne says holding a national poll on gay marriage is a "distraction" and the real stumbling block is Opposition Leader Tony Abbott's position.

"The only impediment is that the coalition won't provide a conscience vote," Senator Milne said.

"Tony Abbott should give a conscience vote to his members in both houses of parliament and we can legislate this before the election."

Australian Marriage Equality national convener Rodney Croome said a plebiscite was unnecessary and potentially divisive.

"We fear cashed-up opponents of marriage equality would exploit a referendum to polarise the electorate and demonise gay and lesbian people in a way that will impact badly, particularly on young gay people," Mr Croome said in a statement.

Independent Senator Nick Xenophon says he generally believes parliament should decide issues like gay marriage but a plebiscite could be a way to break the impasse.

"When you've got a vexed, intractable issue sometimes a referendum ... might be a way to cut through the issue," he told the Seven Network.

"A vote, a referendum, might be a circuit breaker."

Marriage equality advocates, buoyed by decisions in France and New Zealand in recent weeks to pass laws in favour of gay marriage, hope supporters of same-sex marriage will make take the issue to the nation's leaders at the upcoming federal election.

France last week became the 14th nation to allow gay marriage after its parliament voted in favour of a bill legalising same-sex marriages and adoptions for gay couples.

Australian Marriage Equality national director Rodney Croome said French political leaders had upheld the European country's guiding principles of liberty, equality and fraternity for all.

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'Feds, not Newman, behind holiday limit'

The State Government is proposing to rewrite the calendar for public holidays. Picture: Thinkstock Source: news.com.au

ATTORNEY General Jarrod Bleijie has distanced the Newman Government from a proposal to limit public holidays, saying the plan was a federal government recommendation.

"The fact is having a standard 11 public holidays across the nation was a recommendation from a Federal Labor Party commissioned report," Mr Bleijie said.

"Federal Minister Bill Shorten wrote to me to ask my thoughts on the proposal."

"I told him that any move by the Federal Government to progress this issue would have to be done with greater consultation because we have more than 11 public holidays in some years.

He said the plan – which would effectively cap the number of public holidays to 11 – was "not a Newman Government proposal".

Earlier, The Courier-Mail reported workers would be prevented from double dipping on public holidays under a plan put to the Newman Government.

The plan would rewrite rules allowing an extra public holiday to be added when Christmas, Boxing or New Year's days fall on a weekend.

The plan to effectively cap the number of public holidays on the Queensland calendar to 11 would save business about $300 million each time such a scenario occurred.

However, it would mean hospitality and retail workers would be paid normal rates when rostered for Christmas, Boxing or New Year's days when they fall on a weekend.

Queensland had 13 public holidays last year after New Year's Day fell on a Sunday and an additional day off was granted to coincide with the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.

The next time an additional public holiday is due to be added is for Boxing Day in 2015.

The public holiday cap revelation comes as Justice Minister Jarrod Bleijie yesterday lauded the Government's decision to move Labour Day to October as a win for workers.

"By moving the Labour Day public holiday from May to October, it will break up the concentration of public holidays that generally fall in the April-May period," he said.

"This move will provide a break for Queenslanders during the second half of the year because of an even spread of public holidays."

Mr Bleijie's push to reform public holidays is revealed in a letter to Federal Employment Minister Bill Shorten.

The letter, written in December, came after an independent panel reviewing the Fair Work Act last year recommended limiting the annual number of days when penalty rates are payable to 11.

Queensland Chamber of Commerce and Industry president David Goodwin backed Mr Bleijie.

Mr Goodwin said hospitality businesses often did not even open their doors on public holidays because of penalty rates, a scenario that had a flow-on effect for tourism.

However, Queensland Council of Unions president John Battams opposed the proposal.

"Most of these people are casuals, most of them are very low paid and the penalty rates they get on these days help them ensure ends meet," he said.

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PM: Federal Budget decisions 'grave'

Confirming newspaper reports today, Ms Gillard told a forum in Canberra the government's revenue had slid $12 billion since the last budget update in October.

PRIME Minister Julia Gillard has declared that decisions about the nation's finances are so "grave" and "urgent" every option is on the table at the Budget - even those previously off the table.

Confirming newspaper reports today, Ms Gillard told a forum in Canberra the government's revenue had slid $12 billion since the last budget update in October.

But the PM went further, saying that "everyone" had to cover their share of the burden although she insisted would not "cut to the bone".

"As a Labor Prime Minister, I find these decisions both urgent and grave," Ms Gillard said.

"This revenue discussion is not historical, it's very contemporary.  There is new news here compared to six months ago - and new news here compared even to three months ago. 

"Therefore, I have expressly determined we need to have every reasonable option on the table to meet the needs of the times, even options previously taken off the table."

Ms Gillard said today the May budget will be more about the economic challenges facing the nation, rather than the upcoming federal election.

She said the key challenge was to respond to huge reductions in revenue growth over the next four years, with the amount of tax revenue collected for 2012/13 now expected to decline by $12 billion.

"Tuesday 14 May will be no old-fashioned pre-election budget night," the prime minister said.

"What the treasurer will deliver will not be a political pamphlet - he will outline an economic program.

"The budget will outline the fiscal path for the coming four years, one designed both to take account of the nation's current circumstances and to shape the nation's future."

Ms Gillard said the main goals were to maximise jobs and economic growth, properly fund services over the long-term, invest in ways to strengthen the economy, keep inflation in check and give the Reserve Bank of Australia maximum opportunity to keep interest rates low.

But Ms Gillard said Labor was committed to its medium-term strategy to deliver budget surpluses on average over the course of the economy cycle.

She said domestic economy was stable and resilient.

"Our economic fundamentals are sound," Ms Gillard said.

"We have contained inflation, low interest rates, low public debt."

Australia's prospects looked bright, given the global economic shift toward Asia.

"However - and this is key - while Australia is stable, resilient and close to centres of growth, the wider world economy is quite a different story," she said.

"There is serious, persistent weakness in global growth - and continued volatility in the global economy."

But while the strong Australia dollar showed the nation was a great investment, it came at a price.

"The persistent high dollar, as well as squeezing exporting jobs, also squeezes the profits of exporting firms - with lower profits for these companies comes lower company tax going to government," Ms Gillard said.

"We can't assume this will change soon."

Australia was creating more jobs, exporting more goods and services and buying and selling more from each other, but prices were growing at a slower rate and affecting gross domestic product growth in nominal terms.

"We expect nominal GDP growth for future years to be revised down," Ms Gillard said.

"For the budget bottom line, it's a very meaningful fact - because, naturally enough, companies don't pay tax on volume, they pay tax on value, which is driven by price."

Ms Gillard warned against "economic simpletons" who argue revenue in 2013/14 would be more than this financial year.

This did not take into account a larger population and rising health and aged pension costs which will be far higher than the growth in tax money.

"It's clear that the extraordinary revenue peaks of the mid-2000s won't be repeated," she added.

In the future, new spending in the budget must be matched with savings.

"I trust that all would acknowledge the government has some serious decisions to make and announce in the coming two weeks," Ms Gillard said.

She said Labor's education reforms and disability care programs must not be jeopardised.

"But - because we now are confronted with new facts and far more significant reductions in tax money than was expected - we are going through the process now of making decisions to spend less in some areas than we had hoped, to raise more in revenue in some areas than we had planned," she said.

"The nation and the government must have maximum flexibility to deal with these complex - and rapidly changing - events," she said.

Under questioning, Ms Gillard said she didn't want to play a rule in, rule out game ahead of the budget - but then ruled out changes to the GST.

With just three weeks until Treasurer Wayne Swan hands down his most politically important Budget - and 20 weeks until election day - Ms Gillard announced that fresh Treasury advice shows a "significant fiscal gap".

The new hole in revenue is almost double the surprise $7.5 billion shortfall that caused Labor to abandon just before Christmas its three-year pledge to have a $1.1 billion surplus.

The PM offers an analogy to help explain the cuts that will need to be made in the upcoming budget.

It sets the scene for a bigger than expected deficit when Mr Swan hands down his sixth Budget on May 14.

It will also make it tougher to pay for multi-billion dollar spending plans for schools and the national disability insurance scheme, which the PM has guaranteed will be in the Budget.

But the PM asked voters to trust her government to make the right choices and vow not to "fail the future".

The Treasurer has never delivered a surplus despite the repeated promise "come hell or high water" to have one before the election.

In a speech to the Per Capita think-tank in Canberra today, Ms Gillard said the Budget trouble is not because of too much spending.

"This unusually low revenue, which wasn't forecast even a few months ago, creates a significant fiscal gap over the Budget period," she will say.

The Prime Minister in Canberra addressed the Per Capita Reform Agenda Series Forum at the National Portrait Gallery. The Prime Minister with Treasurer Wayne Swan. Picture: Gary Ramage

"Put simply, spending is controlled but the amount of tax money coming to the Government is growing much slower than expected."

The Opposition, which has also dumped its promise of a surplus, has been attacking Labor over spending which it says is now $100 billion a year higher than when Labor came to power in 2007.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has warned there would be some "hurt" to repair the nation's finances, blaming Labor, which has not had a surplus since 1989.

When asked about the appropriateness of Coalition MP Steve Ciobo's claim today that Julia Gillard was "like an alcoholic" with spending taxpayer funds, Mr Abbott said: "Look it was colourful language, which I wouldn't probably use myself, but I think everyone knows this government spends money like a drunken sailor."

"You will never see fiscal responsibility from this government," he added.

Shadow Treasurer Joe Hockey said he was not surprised by the latest figures.

"The Government says it's not collecting enough money but it's absolutely determined to continue with big spending initiatives," Mr Hockey told ABC radio today.

"As every day passes we're getting a new number from the government."

He said coalition policies were subject to "constant review" in light of the difficult financial circumstances it potentially may inherit after the next election.

Former Federal Treasurer Peter Costello has warned future generations will pay for the irresponsible spending of the Gillard Government.

Heading into Parliament House in Brisbane to sell his 1000-page fix for the Queensland economy to MPs, Mr Costello said the federal budget would be in a "far better position if the government hadn't spent money it didn't have".

"You might think to yourself if they saw their taxes were failing like their mining taxes, that they'd actually pull back their expenditure but they went and spent money they didn't have," said Mr Costello who delivered 12 federal budgets including ten surpluses.

"Now they're finding they're in a budget deficit. Who gets to pay for these budget deficits? Future generations.

"That's all it's about now - Labor passing on the debt to future generations."

The new Treasury advice is believed to show the biggest hit has been to company tax receipts. Ms Gillard says the high dollar and continued effects from the global economic crisis are still hurting business.

The Prime Minister in Canberra addressed the Per Capita Reform Agenda Series Forum at the National Portrait Gallery. Picture: Gary Ramage

"The prices for what Australian companies sell overseas are lower, imports are cheaper, local competition is fierce. Those things add up to business making less profit than planned," she will say.

"When businesses make less profit than planned, it also means government gets less money in tax than expected."

But the PM has rejected calls for the Government to slash and burn, saying it is more important to have a Budget that protects jobs and economic growth and invests for a fairer future.

"We won't, during this time of reduced revenue, fail the future by not making the wise investments that will make us a stronger and smarter nation," she says.

"What is more, these necessary investments are affordable if we make smart decisions."

The PM will seek to use the speech to cast the Budget as a choice for voters, claiming the Coalition would be too brutal.

"Our opponents and their friends crudely flaunt the bitter language of the cut throat and the brandished axe," she says.

"We govern for all Australians, we govern to strengthen the economy and to spread the benefits to all."

Despite repeatedly promising a surplus, before dumping the pledge last year, Mr Swan has now hit out at calls for a surplus as "mindless austerity".

Mr Swan said despite the pressure on the Budget "we will never cut to the bone, putting jobs and growth at risk by taking an axe to the economy".

He said 900,000 jobs had been created since Labor came to power in 2007 while 28 million jobs had been lost worldwide over the same period.

''We can proudly point to an economy that is 13 per cent larger than at the end of 2007 while half of all advanced countries are yet to get back to the starting line.''

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Uni prof 'sold prisoner's organs'

A Sydney University professor has been accused of being involved in removing organs of executed prisoners without permission. File photo. Source: Supplied

SYDNEY University is reviewing the honours given to a former Chinese health minister after reports that he presided over the removal of organs from executed prisoners without their consent.

Huang Jiefu, currently an honorary professor at the university and the former vice-minister of health in China, was involved in removing organs of executed prisoners without permission, ABC television's 7.30 reports.

The university's vice-chancellor Dr Michael Spence said a staff member had written to him this month, proposing that the university should consider revoking his honorary professorship.

"I have asked Sydney Medical School, which was responsible for Huang's appointment, to investigate carefully these submissions, and to recommend what action the university should take," Dr Spence said in a statement issued to university staff.

"On the basis of those recommendations, I will respond to the staff member in due course.

"In short, Sydney Medical School condemns the retrieval of executed prisoners' organs for transplantation in China.

"However, it supports Huang's work to reform China's organ transplant system, which has been recognised internationally."

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'Tragic mistake' retaining abusive priest

Disgraced former Catholic priest Gerald Ridsdale leaves the Melbourne Magistrates Court, date unknown. Picture: Peter Ward Source: Herald Sun

THE former bishop of Ballarat made a "tragic mistake" by not removing one of Australia's worst pedophiles when he first became aware of sexual abuse allegations against the priest, the current bishop of the diocese admits.

Bishop Ronald Mulkearns knew about child abuse complaints against Father Gerald Ridsdale as early as 1975 but let him remain as a priest and moved him to other parishes, a Victorian parliamentary inquiry has heard.

Church records reveal 67 abuse complaints have been made against Risdale, who is currently in jail for sex offences.

The church admitted on Monday that it effectively facilitated abuse by allowing a known abuser to continue to have access to children.

In 1975 police told Bishop Mulkearns of complaints against Ridsdale, but he was moved to other parishes, the inquiry heard.

Ridsdale should have been removed when a child abuse complaint was first made, current Ballarat bishop Paul Bird said.

"From my reading of the accounts it wasn't wilful blindness. It was a tragic mistake on his part," Bishop Bird told the child abuse inquiry on Monday.

"He explained it to me ... It was, he believed, the accepted opinion at the time that dismissal was not the first option, but that a person might be referred for treatment in the hope that they can correct their behaviour.

"Tragic consequences. A terrible mistake on behalf of Bishop Mulkearns.

"Gerald Risdale should have been taken out of the ministry when there was a first report of offences."

Bishop Bird said Bishop Mulkearns decided against appearing before the parliamentary committee because he had recently suffered a stroke and had a poor long-term memory.

Another former Ballarat bishop, Peter Connors, agreed the church had effectively facilitated sexual offences against children by putting a known offending priest in positions that enabled him to continue his abuse.

The inquiry heard 109 abuse complaints have been upheld in the Ballarat diocese since 1975, most against Ridsdale.

Bishop Connors said he had been told by a victim about a ring of pedophiles in Ballarat East, but as far as he knew Risdale acted alone.

"I have no knowledge of a priest being involved in a nest of pedophiles in Ballarat East. If the Christian Brothers were, I can't answer for them," Bishop Connors said.

Bishop Connors also told the inquiry Bishop Mulkearns destroyed two documents, both relating to psychological reports for a priest, Father Paul David Ryan.

He destroyed one on his on volition and one on legal advice.

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Journey of hope ends in disaster

Ibrar Hussain Rajabi Source: Supplied

BOARDING an asylum boat in Indonesia at 11pm last Thursday were three Hazara teenagers full of hope for a better life in Australia.

One teen's father and brother had been murdered and his mother wanted her son to escape, another had wanted peace while the third had a cousin waiting in Perth for him, their families say.

Within hours their vessel, carrying 72 asylum seekers, had sunk and just 14 survivors had been plucked from the water near the Sunda Strait, south of Indonesia.

The families of Mahdi Fadayee, 16 and 17-year-olds Rehmatullah Muhammad Jan and Ibrar Hussain Rajabi are clinging to hope they were alive.

A freind of Ibrar's family, Hassan Rezai, said from his home in North Carolina in the USA that the teenager had lost his father to the Taliban and his brother was murdered on the Iranian border 18 months ago.

The pair had spoken online early last week, he said.

"He was excited, he was happy, he was telling me `If I reach Australia my future will be bright, I will save my family,"' Mr Rezai said.

His distraught mother had wanted him to have a new life in Australia.

Rehmatullah, a Hazara whose family is in Quetta, Pakistan, told relative Mehdi Fabre he was excited about the prospect of reaching Australia.

"He was in search of freedom, he was in search of peace, he was in search of a better life," Mr Fabre said.

The teenager, who has two sisters and a brother, last spoke to family on Wednesday morning and had spent almost three weeks in Indonesia waiting for a vessel.

Mahdi left his accommodation in Indonesia on Wednesday and called his family on Thursday night telling them he was "now on the sea."

His cousin in Perth, Ali Mohammad Fidayee said the next call his family received was from a friend who said "14 passengers mostly friends were rescued by fisherman but Mahdi was not one of them."

Mr Fidayee, who said he was "disappointed" by Indonesia's limited efforts to find the stricken vessel, said his cousin had wanted a life of "freedom" in Australia.

The relatives and friend of the teenagers said they had been disappointed by Indonesia's search efforts.

There have been reports a second vessel may have capsized last Wednesday, also close to Indonesia.

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Treat bowel diseases with emu oil

Emu oil, like that made by Tony Deroy at his emu farm in Nowra called Maryong Park, can help reduce the debilitating symptoms of bowel diseases according to new research. Picture: Renee Nowytarger Source: News Limited

• Stimulates growth of the intestinal crypts
• Longer crypts and villi mean a healthier bowel
• Supports traditional use of oil as anti-inflammatory

EMU oil has been found to help treat a variety of common bowel diseases as well as the intestinal damage caused by cancer chemotherapy.

Research at the University of Adelaide has supported emu oil's traditional anti-inflammatory properties and has also shown it can help repair damage to the bowel.

Laboratory experiments by physiology PhD student Suzanne Abimosleh found emu oil - which is rendered from the fat of the large native birds - accelerates the repair process by stimulating growth of the intestinal crypts, the part of the intestine that produces the villi that absorb food.

Longer crypts and villi mean a healthier bowel that can better absorb food.

"Disorders of the gastrointestinal tract, such as the inflammatory bowel diseases and chemotherapy-induced mucositis, are associated with malabsorption of food together with inflammation and ulceration of the bowel lining," Ms Abimosleh said.

"The variable responsiveness of treatments to these diseases shows the need to broaden approaches, to reduce inflammation, prevent damage and promote healing."

Lead researcher Gordon Howarth said the next step in the use of emu oil included clinical trials, possibly with patients suffering from conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome.

"We've now done sufficient studies in the laboratory to show that emu oil has potential to help reduce the debilitating symptoms of these conditions and to enhance intestinal recovery," Professor Howarth said.

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Acrobat 'lied' to girlfriend over HIV

Godfrey Zaburoni charged with knowingly passing on HIV to his girlfriend. Source: The Sunday Mail (Qld)

A HIV-positive circus acrobat charged with knowingly passing on the virus to his girlfriend repeatedly told her he did not have the condition, a court has been told.

Zimbabwean national Godfrey Zaburoni is standing trial in Southport District Court on the Gold Coast, charged with transmitting HIV with intent.

During his opening address Monday morning, Crown Prosecutor Mark Whitbread told the jury Mr Zaburoni's former partner asked him if he had had STD tests before they first had sex and several other times throughout their 20-month relationship.

"She was aware he was from Zimbabwe and AIDS was common in Africa," he said.

"She asked him specifically about it (but) he said he would not have been allowed in to the country if he had it.

"He lied to her."

The woman underwent blood tests in 2009, about six months after the end of the relationship, and learnt she had HIV.

Mr Whitbread told the court Mr Zaburoni had known of his condition since at least 1998.

"He met with an infectious diseases specialist three times and he was well aware that HIV could be transmitted through sexual contact," he said.

Mr Zaburoni admits passing on HIV to his former partner, but denies doing so intentionally.

He has told police that he thought the disease 'might go away', or could only be passed on through sharing needles.

The prosecution will dispute those claims, saying Mr Zaburoni was well aware of the health risks associated with HIV.

The trial is expected to last three days.

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Cuts needed to pay for school reforms

NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell says he will need to make cuts in other areas to fund his state's share of the proposed education reforms. picture: Cameron Richardson Source: News Limited

NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell has warned of further belt-tightening if the state government is to find the $1.7 billion needed to meet the federal government's proposed education reforms.

He said the state government supported "the broad thrust" of the Gonski reforms, which will be discussed by cabinet when it meets later this afternoon.

"State finances are tight... if the (money) is to be found it will only happen through further budget savings and belt-tightening," he told reporters in Sydney.

"I don't have $1.7 billion sitting around ready to go."

Mr O'Farrell said he would speak with other premiers over coming days and expected to have a clear idea if NSW would be able to find the savings to sign up to the reforms by the end of the week.

Julia Gillard has unveiled details of Labor's school improvement plan.

The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meets to discuss the matter on Friday.

NSW would pocket $5 billion of the $14.5 billion the federal government wants to pump into the national education system over the next six years.

Mr O'Farrell orefused to sell state assets to pay for the reforms, saying: "You don't sell off parts of your house to pay (your) mortgage".

"This is a commitment not just for four years, if Gonski is to be agreed to it's a commitment that goes into the future," he added.

The PM says overcoming state and university opposition to deliver school funding reforms is worth the fight.

The premier also rejected suggestions the money could be found by winding back school transport subsides.

"That's one of the informal suggestions that has come through federal officials," he said.

"I don't want to have the best resourced schools in Australia but have a situation where parents can't afford to use transport to get those children to those schools."

Opposition Leader John Robertson described the federal offer as a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" and called on Mr O'Farrell to do the right thing by the state's students and get behind the reforms.

Kathryn Greiner, an expert panel member of the Gonski review, said the states should be prepared to negotiate with the federal government to help children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Ms Greiner was speaking after signing a letter with 15 members of NGOs urging the states to accept the funding reforms. The letter will be presented at COAG.

She said it was understandable that states such as Western Australia and NSW would be opposed to some of the aspects of the review, but the reforms met the states' different needs.

"This is now trying to tailor-make the funding to the schools, to the families and have the educational outcomes achievable for all children," she said.

She said Prime Minister Julia Gillard may have to be prepared to fund other kinds of needs as a compromise.

Cassandra Goldie of the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) said the cuts to the university sector to pay for the package was an acceptable compromise if Australians didn't want to pay more tax.

"If we as a country are not prepared to be paying generally more tax, we have to be prepared to be targeting government revenue where we really need it the most."

Earlier, the Victorian premier accused the prime minister of robbing universities to pay for the proposed school education reforms.

He attacked Ms Gillard's decision to cut university funding to help pay for the reforms.

"This is very disappointing that the prime minister is seeking to rob Peter to pay Paul, rob the universities to pay for primary and secondary education," Dr Napthine told reporters.

He said the government had failed to properly consult with the states before releasing information to the media.

"I would have thought a more professional approach would have been to have proper information given to states and territories well in advance so they could analyse it ... before they attend the meeting."

Under Ms Gillard's plan, the states would fund about 35 per cent of the Gonski reforms.

Dr Napthine said he would also raise the issue of mobile telephone reception in the bush at Friday's COAG meeting.

"It seems extraordinary to me that when you're within 150 kilometres of Melbourne you can have a fundamental black spot," Dr Napthine said.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has already said it's not too much to ask universities to slow their growth rates to help deliver school funding reforms.

But university leaders have criticised the government's move to cut tertiary funding to help pay for the initiative.

The prime minister told ABC Radio earlier today that under the Labor government, funding to universities had increased by more than 50 per cent.

Overnight businessman David Gonski, who chaired Labor's review on which its reforms are based, questioned major cuts to tertiary funding.

Last night Mr Gonski said he wasn't asked to consider how the review panel's recommendations could be paid for, declaring: "I fervently believe in and will continue to advocate that increases be made in funding the university sector."

WHY THE GILLARD GOVERNMENT CAN'T BURY BAD NEWS

She said universities were now only being asked to moderate their rate of growth, taking a two per cent efficiency dividend one year and a 1.25 per cent efficiency dividend a second year.

"It's not a cut in the sense of you've got less next year than you had this year," she said.

"Universities will still see more money, it's just the rate of growth in that money will be less."

Ms Gillard said Asian nations were pumping up their education systems and for Australia to have a strong economy with high-skilled, high-wage jobs in the future, it had to get school education right.

"I don't think in that context it's too much to ask our universities that have seen the amount of resources into them growing strongly, to moderate growth rates for a couple of years," she said.

PM DISMISSES LATEST BAD POLL

Ms Gillard's proposed reforms will also require state governments to pitch in funds with NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell describing them as "ambitious and visionary", but he questioned how his state would pay its share.  

Mr O'Farrell said his cabinet will consider signing up to the plan to boost schools funding, but warns budget cuts will have to be made elsewhere.

NSW would need to contribute $1.7 billion to the $5 billion promised to it by the commonwealth, Mr O'Farrell said.

Cabinet would consider its options ahead of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting on Friday, he said.

Mr O'Farrell said the NSW government has always supported the Gonski reforms, but it will be difficult to come up with the extra money.

"Having lost $5 billion in federal GST refunds last year, it'll be tough to find the $1.7 billion being asked of us by the federal government," Mr O'Farrell told ABC Radio today.

"If we were to sign up to Gonski, we would have to find further savings across the budget."

Mr O'Farrell said the state government would have to look at the details of the proposal.

"(and) whether we're able through targeted savings, more fat trimming and belt tightening, to be able to afford not just the $1.7 billion over the next four years but the ongoing costs," he said.

Opposition education spokesman Christopher Pyne said it would be "irresponsible" of Ms Gillard to proceed with the new funding model after the COAG meeting if any of the states and territories were in disagreement.

"If the prime minister thinks that is viable, then she really has lost it," he told Sky News today.

He said the current funding model introduced by the Howard government was "perfectly good" and the coalition would index that on the current arrangements which meant around six per cent.

This was more than the 4.7 per cent the government was offering, Mr Pyne said.

West Australian Liberal Premier Colin Barnett is among those voicing opposition to the plan and he said Prime Minister Gillard has shown a low regard for students in his state.

Mr Barnett said the proposal would be a "massive backward step" for the funding of state government schools.

His state would gain an extra $300 million, while NSW would see $5 billion and Victoria $4 billion, under the proposal.

"If you look at it on a state-by-state basis, you can see the brazen politics in this," Mr Barnett told ABC radio today. "A disdain for Western Australia and West Australian children."

The federal government has denied "playing politics'" with its proposed education reforms after Mr Barnett claimed it was a terrible deal for his state.

But federal education minister Peter Garrett denied it was about winning seats and said WA was not losing out under the Gonski model.

"Each state is at a different starting point in reaching that schooling resource standard - some states are much closer than others," he told ABC Radio on Monday.

While the amount given to WA would be less than states like Tasmania, the contribution from the Tasmanian government was also greater, Mr Garrett said.

He said the distribution varied according to need and how much the schools received from their state governments, and praised the WA government for its strong investment in schools.

Mr Garrett said he was "cautiously optimistic" the states could reach an agreement with the federal government at this week's Council of Australian Governments meeting.

He later tweeted: "Is Colin Barnett really going to turn down $300 million more for WA schools? That's enough for about 500 more teachers".

"Schools in WA will be worse off by $560 million in next five years if WA doesn't sign up to our plan."  

Queensland Premier Campbell Newman said his government couldn't afford to put in the $1 billion more into education to fund the reforms without imposing massive cuts to other areas.

"I don't see where our money will come from without cuts to something else," the Premier said.

"I can't believe they're going to find the money, because they don't have it. The whole thing should be held in the balance until there's a federal election."

But Ms Gillard says the federal government has made a good offer and now it's down to the Queensland government "and the budget choices it's prepared to make".

"You live in a world of tough choices. We've made some to put our kids first. I'm obviously asking Premier Newman to do the same," she told ABC radio.

"That is to make sure that every child goes to a school that is properly resourced and that we get the school funding system right for generations to come.

"Our competitors are improving their schools. If we just sit and let them get in front then that only ends one way ... with us having a weaker economy and less ability to have the high-skilled, high-paid jobs of the future."

Queensland Education Minister John-Paul Langbroek said he was unsure whether the funding would have a positive impact on the state's schools.

"As a parent I'm confused, I'm sure teachers and students and principals are confused as well," he said.

"That's something we need to clarify, to make sure that our worse-off schools do not continue to be worse off under a standard that the federal government set originally."

But South Australian Labor Premier Jay Weatherill said the $600 million for his state would give pupils extra support in the classrooms.

"That is what we have been working very hard with the commonwealth to try to reach agreement," Mr Weatherill said.

Under the proposed school resource standard, the amount for 2014 would be $9271 per primary school student and $12,193 for every secondary pupil.

And there would be extra money per student and loadings for schools with disadvantaged pupils, including indigenous children, those with disabilities and depending on a school's size or location.

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Holocaust hero made an Aussie

An undated black and white photo showing World War II hero Raoul Wallenberg, who is credited with rescuing tens of thousands of Hungarian Jews from the Nazis. He disappeared after being arrested by the Soviet Red Army in 1945. Picture: AP /Scanpix Sweden, File Source: AP

• Issued protective passports and provided shelter to Jews during the war
• Saved tens of thousands from the Holocaust
• His fate remains a mystery

THE late Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg will become an honorary Australian citizen for saving tens of thousands of Jews from the Holocaust in World War II.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard, who made the announcement on Monday, said it was the first time Australia was bestowing such an honour.

The award of becoming an honorary Australian citizen was a "symbolic recognition of Mr Wallenberg's tireless devotion to human life during the Holocaust".

"The lives of those he rescued are Mr Wallenberg's greatest memorial and Australia is honoured to have survivors he rescued living in Australia today," Ms Gillard said in a statement.

Mr Wallenberg led a rescue operation in Hungary during World War II, saving tens of thousands of Jews from the Holocaust by issuing protective passports and providing shelter in diplomatic buildings.

He was arrested by Soviet troops in January 1945 and his fate remains a mystery, although some reports say he died two years after the war ended.

In 1957 the Soviet Union claimed he had died of a heart attack in his cell in July 1947, but several former prisoners from the infamous Gulag prison system say they knew him as Prisoner Seven. Rumours have circulated that the diplomat cooperated with American intelligence agencies and a former KGB general once referred to a Western Diplomat held prisoner at the organisation's headquarters at the Lubyanka prison for 30 years.

Why he was captured and kept a prisoner by the Soviets remains unknown, despite an admission by Russian authorities in 2000 that he was executed at the Lubyanka in 1947.  Last January Swedish authorities announced they were holding a new inquiry into his death.

Mr Wallenberg had previously been recognised as an honorary citizen of the United States, Canada, Hungary and Israel.

Governor-General Quentin Bryce will host a presentation ceremony at Government House in Canberra on Monday, May 6.

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Asylum boat picked up near Broome

The asylum boat that arrived in Geraldton, 420km north of Perth, on Tuesday with 66 Sri Lankans. Source: Supplied

AUSTRALIAN authorities have intercepted a suspected asylum seeker boat near Broome, a week after another boat managed to reach Western Australia's Geraldton port.

HMAS Ararat, with the help of the WA police vessel Delphinus, found the boat with 72 people on board on Sunday.

Some have been taken to Broome for medical treatment, Customs and Border Protection said on Monday.

The remainder will be transferred to Christmas Island for health and security checks.

Last week, a boat with 66 Sri Lankan asylum seekers managed to reach WA's Geraldton port after spending weeks travelling more than 5000km.

Another boat arrived near Darwin last week, with 75 people on board.

Under existing legislation, asylum seekers who reach the mainland can avoid being sent to processing centres on Nauru or Manus Island in Papua New Guinea.

Labor wants to change this and the legislation is currently before the Senate.

If it succeeds, mainland Australia will join the Ashmore Islands, Cartier Island, Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling) Islands in being designated out of the migration zone.

Asylum seekers who land outside the zone cannot make visa applications and must be processed offshore.

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Wicked Campers slapped down again

The Advertising Standards Bureau has upheld another three complaints against Wicked Campers. Source: Supplied

SERIAL offender Wicked Campers has done it again, this time they are accused of homophobia, sexism, and objectifying and degrading women in three slogans featured on their camper vans.

The Advertising Standards Bureau, which the van hire company has refused to comply with in the past, has upheld another three complaints against the Brisbane-based company.

The complaints related to slogans written on the back of the company's vans which read: "I'm straight, don't rear-end me", "If you've ever met a woman with crooked teeth, you've met a woman who has given Chuck Norris a blow job" and "I wouldn't trust anything that bleeds for five days and doesn't die".

The complaint over the first slogan said it was "blatantly homophobic, heterosexist, and sexist", while the complaint over the Chuck Norris slogan said it was "sexual in nature", "disgusting" and sexist in that it was "objectifying women as sexual objects".

The ASB upheld both complaints noting that the first "portrays homosexuality in a negative light and that this is discriminatory towards homosexuals", while the second "uses a sexual reference in a manner which is demeaning and degrading to women" and that "the advertisement employs sexual appeal in a manner which is exploitative and degrading and that it breaches Section 2.2 of the Code."

The third complaint said the slogan about bleeding for five days was "offensive in the extreme" and "totally reprehensive material and should be outlawed".

The ASB agreed upholding the complaint and noting: "The Board considered that the inclusion of text of this nature that applies specifically to the female gender was highly likely to cause offense."

In all three cases Wicked Campers did not provide a response to the ASB over the complaints.

The ASB has received numerous complaints about the company, and it has sought help from police to force the company to remove the slogans it has deemed obscene, discriminatory and derogatory in decisions dating back to 2008.

The bureau is also pursuing the company over an internet promotion offering discounts to customers who identify as marijuana smokers.

Last month ASB CEO Fiona Jolly told News Limited that Wicked Campers, whose controversial graffiti-style painted vans have been the subject of more than 40 advertising complaints since 2008, was Australia's biggest serial offender when it came to ignoring the watchdog's rulings.

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Going, going... Gonski?

PM Julia Gillard and School Education Minister Peter Garrett join pro-Gonski parents and their children at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: Ray Strange Source: News Limited

NOT one state has committed to the Federal Government's plan for education reform.

While some states have indicated in principal agreement to the national plan, noe of the premiers hve said they would sign up at Friday's Council of Australian Government's meeting.

This is despite the Commonwealth's offer to double every dollar spent by the states to reach a targeted increase of $14.5 billion over the next six years.

Labor premiers have joined a chorus of criticism over how the Gonski reforms are being implemented, as Western Australia insists it will reject the proposed changes.

With no national agreement, the Government will negotiate with individual states to implement the reforms, a situation the Federal Opposition describes as a fiasco.

The PM says she'll keep fighting to convince the states to 'put the kids first' and back her school reforms.

"The idea that we would have different states being treated differently by the Commonwealth is anathema to anyone in education sector and to the coalition and if the Prime Minister continues down that track she will demonstrate that she has finally lost the plot," said opposition education spokesman Christopher Pyne.

Mr Pyne also confirmed that if agreement were reached at COAG, the Coalition would not repeal any changes to education funding should it win Government.

A national agreement is increasingly unlikely, however, Labor Premier Jay Weatherill saying yesterday that he believed South Australia deserved a bigger share of the funding and that "there's been no deal done".

"This negotiation about Gonski and whole range of other issues is a very substantial discussion and it is not concluded," Mr Weatherill said.

"There is a long way to travel and we will be protecting South Australia's interests in those negotiations."

The premiers of Queensland, NSW and Victoria remained uncommitted and said any increase in education funding would mean cuts to their state budgets.

Outspoken Liberal Premier Colin Barnett said the "grossly unfair" proposal would see a reduction in spending on schools in Western Australia.

Dr Ken Boston, former director general of the NSW Department of Education and one of the five member Gonski Review panel, said even if Western Australia opted out of the agreement, the state would be able to sign up to it later.

"We never envisaged that every state had to adopt it at the same time," Dr Boston told News Ltd.

Meanwhile, universities have continued their criticism of Government plans to move $2.3 billion from tertiary education and $500 million in tax breaks for education expenses into schools funding.

Universities Australia Chief Executive Officer Belinda Robinson warned the deep cuts would likely deter disadvantaged students - those whom the Gonski review is seeking to support - from taking up tertiary studies.

"It will make it more difficult for some students," Ms Robinson said of the cuts which include scrapping scholarships for poorer students.

"It's going to affect those students who are probably most needy of having some support of being able to take themselves on this higher education path."

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G'Day China is next for Australia

Prime Minister Julia Gillard with China's President Xi Jinping. Source: Supplied

AUSTRALIA will use big-name celebrities to lure Chinese tourists Down Under to create jobs and cash in on Asia's economic boom.

In Shanghai today, Prime Minister Julia Gillard will announce a "G'Day China" tourism campaign based on the successful "G'Day USA" scheme.

Ms Gillard is targetting tourism as a massive way for Australia to benefit from the Asian Century.

G'Day US has featured big name Australian and American celebrities including Hugh Jackman, Olivia Newton John, Paul Hogan, Miranda Kerr, Nicole Kidman, Keith Urban and John Travolta.

A record 625,000 Chinese visited Australia last year, but the market is set to soar. China's President Xi Jinping yesterday predicted 400 million Chinese would travel abroad in the next five years.

Ms Gillard held formal talks with President Xi while First Bloke Tim Mathieson scored an audience with China's First Lady, Madame Peng Liyuan.

Madame Peng requested the meeting to discuss Mr Mathieson's work promoting men's health and her campaign to cut smoking rates in China.

Australia and China will strike a landmark currency agreement today.

The Australian dollar will be the third major currency after the US dollar and Japanese yen to be directly traded in China with the yuan.

The PM says this will boost Australia's banks, super funds and the financial services sector.

The $1.75 million G'Day China campaign will begin next year and aim to boost tourism, trade,  investment and Australia's reputation as a world leading destination.

The Chinese event will be a week of cultural activities showcasing contemporary performing and visual arts and a gala dinner in Shanghai.

Ms Gillard, who is on a five-day visit leading the most senior Australian political delegation to ever visit China, is seeking to deepen the relationship with Australia's biggest trading partner.

In a speech in Shanghai today she will pay tribute to China's "vast and vibrant society" and confidence.

"This is the China which I believe can embrace and manage future change," she said.

The PM will praise China's network of high-speed rail to connect growing cities, its running of the 2008 Beijing Olympics and its space program.

Ms Gillard yesterday spoke at the Bo'ao business pow-wow attended by Mr Xi,  Microsoft founder Bill Gates, former PM Bob Hawke and hundreds of business and political leaders.

She warned that rising economic growth in Asia "will keep changing the strategic order of our region".

Mr Xi told the forum he was pro-growth and investment and China needed to "abolish outdated mindsets and unleash all potential for development".

He did not name North Korea or its recent nuclear threats but he talked about "regional hot spots" and said China called for world peace through "dialogue and negotiations".

Billionaire mining boss Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest, whose company Fortescue was a top sponsor of the Bo'ao forum, said "we salute the china dream".

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Slipper forced to plead not guilty

Former Speaker Peter Slipper faces faces charges relating to three occasions in which he allegedly dishonestly used Cabcharge dockets.  File picture: Ray Strange Source: news.com.au

UPDATE: FORMER parliamentary speaker Peter Slipper has been ordered to enter a plea of not guilty over the alleged misuse of taxpayer-funded taxi vouchers.

Mr Slipper's Queensland-based lawyer Peter Russo today asked for a further adjournment of the matter which was denied by ACT magistrate Bernadette Boss.

Ms Boss entered a not guilty plea for Mr Slipper to progress the matter.

The former Liberal MP-now-independent will be required to front the court on May 23 at 11am for a case management hearing.

Mr Russo said he was seeking a five week adjournment over the matter.

"We are in a situation where we are awaiting advice from counsel in relation to the matter," Mr Russo told the court.

Ms Boss said due to the matter having been adjourned twice before in February and March she could not justify pushing the matter back any further.

Prosecutor Karen Musgrove said she was awaiting evidence from a geospatial expert in order to complete the brief of evidence on the matter.

Peter Slipper's lawyer, Peter Russo, addresses the media after an earlier hearing. Picture: Gary Ramage

She said she envisioned it would be complete in six weeks time.

Mr Slipper was originally given leave not to attend today's hearing on the proviso he enter a plea.

Mr Slipper, who stood down from the role of Speaker of the House of Representatives amid controversy last year, faces charges relating to three occasions in which he allegedly dishonestly used Cabcharge dockets to visit Canberra wineries in hire cars in 2010, amounting to $1194 in charges to the taxpayer.

He faces the possibility of a jail sentence, with the offences carrying a maximum penalty of five years' imprisonment if he is found guilty.

Mr Slipper last year denied misusing Cabcharge dockets, saying allegations against him were a "complete farbrication".
 

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Crash driver 'taught by PowerPoint'

A Commission of Inquiry into the vehicle crash that killed Sapper Jordan Penpraze is under way in Sydney. Picture: Ross Schultz Source: News Limited

Sapper Jordan Ronald Penpraze died from injuries suffered in a crash at the Holsworthy army barracks. Picture: Defence Department Source: Supplied

A YOUNG army engineer had just three hours of cross-country driving experience in a Unimog truck when the vehicle he was driving crashed last October killing 22-year-old Sapper Jordan Penpraze.

A Commission of Inquiry into the incident in Sydney today, before former Magistrate Warren Cook, was told that the truck driver, Sapper Alexander Gall, had a mere 14 hours of total experience of the heavy vehicle when the Unimog rolled on October 8, 2012 at Holsworthy army barracks near Sydney.

Sapper Penpraze, from Mount Martha in Victoria, was just a few days away from graduating from the School of Military Engineering when he suffered massive head injuries in the rollover and died three days later.

After establishing that his client could remain in the hearing room throughout the two-week inquiry, Counsel representing Sapper Gall, Lieutenant Colonel David McLure said that at no point during his 14 hours of training did Sapper Gall have unrestrained personnel in the back of a Unimog.

PowerPoint slides were the only training aides used to teach him how to drive a vehicle with people in the back, Colonel McLure said.

He said the entire lesson on speed and passengers involved 33 slides and took just 20 minutes.

Army doctrine specifies that unrestrained personnel must not be carried in the back of a Unimog when the driver was under training.

Under questioning from Colonel McLure the Officer in Command of the Engineer Training Squadron, Major Adam Kavanagh told the inquiry that he was not a qualified Unimog driver and he accepted that drivers trained by the Army School of Transport were qualified to operate the vehicles listed on their licence.

He said he did not know that drivers only completed 14 hours of training to become qualified on the Unimog.

When asked if he was surprised by that he replied: "Yes.''

When asked if believed it was adequate, he said: "I have to believe that when they come back to me qualified that they are correctly trained.''

Counsel assisting the Inquiry Colonel Frank Hollis objected to the line of questioning on the basis that Major Kavanagh was not qualified but inquiry president Mr Cook allowed the questions to continue.

When asked if he considered driver training adequate, particularly in relation to speed and passengers, Major Kavanagh said: "They should be driving to the road rules and conditions.''

Sapper Penpraze's parents Kathleen and Daryl and his fiancee Jacinta Thomas attended the opening day of the inquiry.

Police said at the time of the accident that they were examining whether or not speed was a factor.

Sapper Gall has been charged with unspecified offences under the Defence Force Discipline Act.

The inquiry continues.

    
 

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Vodafone plans for fastest 4G network

Vodafone has announced plans for the fastest 4G mobile network in Australia. Picture: AFP Source: AFP

THE smartphone speed war is poised to intensify as Vodafone today announced the country's fastest 4G mobile phone network due to launch in June, outpacing rivals Telstra and Optus.

The smallest of the major telcos will launch its 4G network in all mainland state capitals and three regional centres, and promises speeds that are "up to 15 times faster on average than our current 3G network".

But Vodafone's 20MHz network will be equipped to deliver downloads as fast as 150 megabits per second, a spokeswoman said - 50 megabits per second faster than the top speed on Telstra's 15MHz network.

That top speed could theoretically let users download an album in one second or a high-definition movie in fewer than 30 seconds.

But telecommunications experts say the company, widely dubbed "Vodafail" by disgruntled users, will have to prove its claims before winning new and old customers.

Vodafone chief executive Bill Morrow said the 4G network announcement was part of a larger move to win back consumers' trust and improve services.

"Our customers have said they want faster speeds, more coverage, and a dependable network," he said.

"We are proud to be able to deliver our customers Australia's fastest 4G network in metro areas, backed by a solid 3G+ experience."

Vodafone's 4G network will cover large parts of Sydney and Perth when it launches in June, with coverage in some parts of Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Newcastle and Wollongong.

But, unlike other networks, Vodafone is able to use the widest 4G bandwidth that can deliver faster download speeds than competing networks. Customers must use a Category Four smartphone or USB modem to access faster downloads, however.

Telsyte research director Foad Fadaghi said demand for 4G smartphones and services had been "phenomenal" in Australia and Vodafone needed to announce a 4G network just to compete.

But he said the company should be careful not to promise faster speeds it could not deliver.

"Vodafone have called its 4G network 'potentially the fastest' and that's important," he said.

"There are inherent risks in claiming specific speeds. Nevertheless, it's important for them to have that speed leadership to get back in the market."

Mr Fadaghi said Vodafone could not simply rely on a faster network to win back customers, however, and would also need to announce competitive plans, discounted 4G handsets and prove that its new network was reliable.

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Parents from hell ruining junior AFL

A lack of coaches is hurting junior sport. Picture: Eugene Hyland Source: Leader

• 'Ugly parents' pushing away volunteer junior sport coaches 
• Many coaches are over 50, with few young coaches coming through
• Study suggests lack of coaches could affect future of Australian sport 

UGLY parents are pushing coaches away from junior sport and creating a national coaching crisis, a landmark Deakin University study reveals. And no sport has uglier parents than AFL.

The AFL has an official 12-point Code of Conduct for parents and spectators at all junior matches which includes such helpful pointers as:

- "Recognise the value and importance of volunteer coaches"

- "Demonstrate exemplary behaviour by not using foul language, or harassing players, coaches or officials"

But The Deakin Uni study reveals that these and other points on the code of conduct are being shunned by loudmouth parents desperate to see their offspring achieve the successful footy career which eluded them. As the study says:

"Parents appeared to be an issue in particular for AFL coaches with most of the comments focused on parents' negative comments about their coaching, lack of support and living vicariously through their children."

In a first for Australian sport, researchers from Deakin's Centre for Exercise and Sports Science conducted a thorough survey of country's coaching workforce.

They found that 38 per cent of coaches rated dealing with players' parents as having a negative impact on their coaching.

About 42 per cent also struggled in their dealings with administrators and other adults involved with the club.

"The key message I got out of the research was that the most stressful component and tricky part of working with a team was not with the (junior) players, but with other adults, whether parents or administrators," researcher Dr Andrew Dawson said.

Many "mum-and-dad-type-coaches" reported they had been shocked to discover that despite giving their time for free to the club their efforts were not appreciated, he said.

"It was a shock because they had gone into it believing they'd be appreciated for the job they did," he said.

Parents often had unrealistic expectations not only of their children's sporting abilities, but also of the coach's skills, he said.

In many cases, junior sports coaches did not have a vast amount of coaching experience.

The study revealed more than half of all coaches had less than 10 years' experience.

It also showed more than 40 per cent of coaches were aged above 50.

The combination of aging coaches and pressure from parents and club officials on volunteers who were not adequately supported was leading to a decrease in the number of future coaches, Dr Dawson said.

"That we are seeing a drop in the number of next generation coaches is concerning for the future of Australian sports," he said.

The issues highlighted in the Deakin study needed to be addressed if the future of Australian sport was to be ensured, Dr Dawson said.

This meant there had to be better support for coaches and their enthusiasm had to be nurtured.

"In particular, we need to find better ways to develop the volunteers the mum and dad coaches who are the backbone of sports in this country.

"The recent focus on coach development has been on the performance of our elite and professional coaches, but this research reveals there is a much bigger problem emerging in the long-term development of Australia's coaching workforce," Dr Dawson said.

The Profiling the Australian Coaching Workforce study involved a survey of 1374 coaches and interviews with 40 coaches from grassroots community and school sport level through to senior and professional levels. 

The majority of survey respondents were from Victoria, with most respondents coming from the sports of athletics, Australian football and netball.

About 60 per cent of the coaches interviewed were volunteers and therefore unpaid for their efforts, but coaching could hit them in the back-pocket, as they covered travel and other costs themselves, the report found.

"Overall, coaches enjoy their work," Dr Dawson said.

"They began coaching because they wanted to give something back to their sport and continue to coach because of the intrinsic rewards such as seeing their athletes develop and succeed. "However, coaches did say the stress of coaching can take a toll on their health and personal finances." 

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