Monday, 26 April 2004
Thursday, 22 April 2004
Monday, 19 April 2004
Nice try Pat, but it's a goal, The Australian, 19 April, 2004.
Nice try Pat, but it's a goal: [1 All-round Country Edition]
Stapleton, John. The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 19 Apr 2004: 6.
Abstract
[PAT Rafter], one of Australia's most popular sporting figures and a former Australian of the Year, has been struggling with retirement, missing the excitement of international tennis but not wanting to go back to the grind of touring.
Rafter, from Queensland, often trained with the NRL's Brisbane Broncos and has regularly played touch football in Sydney.
PAT Rafter, former world number one tennis player, has re- emerged into the world of sport with an appearance playing Australian rules in Sydney yesterday.
He played a spirited game for the North Shore Bombers second grade team.
Grinning broadly and deliberately mixing his codes, keen rugby league follower Rafter told Channel Nine he had "scored two tries". Then he laughed and said: "No, I kicked a couple of goals."
Rafter, one of Australia's most popular sporting figures and a former Australian of the Year, has been struggling with retirement, missing the excitement of international tennis but not wanting to go back to the grind of touring.
Modelling underwear for Bonds and caring for a toddler with partner Lara Feltham just wasn't keeping him busy enough.
He is the second Australian tennis star to don football shorts recently after Lletyon Hewitt played a charity match with members of the Adelaide Crows.
Rafter has spoken often about being bored in retirement from tennis.
Last summer he occupied himself by playing doubles with good friend Joshua Eagle in the Australian Hardcourt Championship in Adelaide and the Australian Open, but they were bundled out in the first round each time.
He then played an exhibition match against Mats Wilander in Townsville.
Rafter, from Queensland, often trained with the NRL's Brisbane Broncos and has regularly played touch football in Sydney.
SECOND EDITION:
SECOND EDITION:
Pat's new game worth a try: [2 All-round First Edition]
Stapleton, John. The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 19 Apr 2004: 6.
Abstract
[PAT Rafter], one of Australia's most popular sporting figures and a former Australian of the Year, has been struggling with retirement, missing the excitement of international tennis but not wanting to go back to the grind of touring.
Rafter, from Queensland, often trained with the NRL's Brisbane Broncos and has regularly played touch football in Sydney.
PAT Rafter, former world number one tennis player, has re- emerged into the world of sport with an appearance playing Australian rules in Sydney yesterday.
He played a spirited game for the North Shore Bombers second grade team.
Grinning broadly and deliberately mixing his codes, keen rugby league follower Rafter told Channel Nine he had "scored two tries". Then he laughed and said: "No, I kicked a couple of goals."
Rafter, one of Australia's most popular sporting figures and a former Australian of the Year, has been struggling with retirement, missing the excitement of international tennis but not wanting to go back to the grind of touring.
Modelling underwear for Bonds and caring for a toddler with partner Lara Feltham just wasn't keeping him busy enough.
He is the second Australian tennis star to don football shorts recently after Lleyton Hewitt played a charity match with members of the Adelaide Crows.
Rafter has spoken often about being bored in retirement from tennis.
Last summer he occupied himself by playing doubles with good friend Joshua Eagle in the Australian Hardcourt Championship in Adelaide and the Australian Open, but they were bundled out in the first round each time.
He then played an exhibition match against Mats Wilander in Townsville.
Rafter, from Queensland, often trained with the NRL's Brisbane Broncos and has regularly played touch football in Sydney.
Wednesday, 14 April 2004
Plumbers unimpressed by election pitch The Australian 2004
John Stapleton
AS debate raged in parliament over who would and would not benefit from the Budget; the plumbers being held up as the archetype of the working Joe were largely unimpressed.
There is the full range of political views at Mr Drains, from die-hard Howard supporters to die-hard Latham supporters. Most of the 14 staff at the small but thriving plumbing business in Sydney's north are united in one thing however: the Budget is a yawn, doesn't benefit them personally and isn't going to change their vote.
The only exception is a young father with three young children. He thinks the extra cash payments - $600 times three in his case - will be very handy indeed.
Plumbers were high on the political agenda yesterday when Shadow Treasurer Simon Crean tried to embarrass Peter Costello in question time over who would benefit from the Budget. Crean cited the example of a plumber on $800 a week who got no tax cuts this year, while a high income earner like Costello would. Why should the plumber pay for Costello's tax cuts, Crean wanted to know.
Mr Drains himself, otherwise known as Bill Miller, 37, says the Budget doesn't much benefit the eight full-time plumbers he employs.
Most plumbers, he said, earns around $52,000 a year. The fact that they will benefit in coming years from the shift in the 42% tax bracket to $63,000 a year was not playing large on their minds.
``Your average plumber is not going to be helped with this new Budget,'' Mr Miller says. ``There's not a lot of interest in the Budget because it doesn't do a lot for them. It has not been greeted with enthusiasm.
``If they were about to have a baby, which they're not, they might get excited. That would be the only area.''
And while Mr Drains, who has two young children, says he is a staunch Howard supporter, the budget doesn't help his family. ``If I had twins every year I could possibly be better off,'' he said.
And while Mr Drains, who has two young children, says he is a staunch Howard supporter, the budget doesn't help his family. ``If I had twins every year I could possibly be better off,'' he said.
Also working at Mr Drains, Warwick Gartrell, 48, who is on $50,000, says the budget doesn't help him at all. His wife works part time and they have two children, including a teenager, still at home. He says he has not voted for Howard ``for a while'' and nothing in the Budget has changed his mind.
``We are over the threshold for the family allowances on a joint income basis because we both work, but because our incomes are below the average we don't come anywhere close to getting a tax cut,'' he says. ``What I find amazing is the budget doesn't help Joe average.
``The majority of the workforce that earns from 35 to 50,000 a year get no help whatsoever. They have been totally ignored.
``I do not feel better off after eight years of Howard. I feel worse off. With the GST, every year we pay more. We pay more on our gas electricity and telephone. We pay more at the supermarket. It's a tougher and more transient work force.''
The most ardent supporter of the Budget at Mr Drains is plumber Daniel Moran, 29, who has three children under four.
``It is quite good for me with the payments for the children and the tax breaks,'' he said. ``We are eligible for Tax Benefit A, and will therefore receive $1800 cash for the kids.
``It is quite good for me with the payments for the children and the tax breaks,'' he said. ``We are eligible for Tax Benefit A, and will therefore receive $1800 cash for the kids.
``I think we will also get some tax breaks. I don't think the budget is too bad. I vote Liberal anyway, and after this I'll stay with Johnnie Howard.''
Tuesday, 6 April 2004
Foster takes on Cherie, The Australian, 6 April, 2004.
Foster takes on Cherie: [3 All-round Metro Edition]
John Stapleton, David Nason. The Australian; Canberra, A.C.T. [Canberra, A.C.T] 06 Apr 2004: 3.
Abstract
FIRST he accused Tony Blair of having an affair with his one- time girlfriend, and now convicted conman Peter Foster has claimed the British Prime Minister's wife, [Cherie], kept secret offshore bank accounts.
FIRST he accused Tony Blair of having an affair with his one- time girlfriend, and now convicted conman Peter Foster has claimed the British Prime Minister's wife, Cherie, kept secret offshore bank accounts.
The latest unsubstantiated allegations -- which Foster claims can be backed by documents that he refuses to release -- centre on the so-called Cheriegate affair.
Foster, who has been jailed three times, said the Blairs had been less than truthful over the assistance he had given them.
"I think the real issue is her financial dealings," he said. "Cherie has or uses offshore trusts in the Caribbean."
He learned of the trusts, he claimed on the ABC's Enough Rope last night, when he was helping Mrs Blair buy two flats in Bristol.
"I am not in the business of bringing down the Blairs, I don't want to be seen to be vengeful," he said.
Monday, 5 April 2004
MP'S supporters one-eyed, The Australian, 5 April, 2004.
MP's supporters one-eyed: [1 All-round Country Edition]
Stapleton, John. The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 05 Apr 2004: 16.
Show highlighting
Abstract
Students from a tiny bush school felt so sorry for Liberal backbencher Alby Schultz, who lost the sight in his eye last November, that they decided to do something for their local MP.
Now, just as he promised the students at Crookwell, in parliament each day Mr Schultz has been wearing a different, brightly coloured eye patch.
The designs by the students include the Australian flag, skull and cross bones, a cyclops head, an easter egg with stripes on it and others with feel-good messages such as "Poor Alby" and "My friend Alby". "They have used their imagination," Mr Schultz said.
A MAN with brightly coloured eye-patches has been seen roaming the corridors of federal parliament.
Students from a tiny bush school felt so sorry for Liberal backbencher Alby Schultz, who lost the sight in his eye last November, that they decided to do something for their local MP.
Mr Schultz lost the use of his eye after an accident with pool chemicals.
When they heard the news, the 59 students from Laggan Public School, near Crookwell on the NSW southern tablelands, designed a batch of fashion eye patches and sent them to the one-eyed MP.
The Member for Hume is one of the country's most colourful politicians; one of those who is unlikely to grace the front bench because of his blunt, outspoken ways.
He ran away from a difficult home situation when he was 14, and at one time slept under a bridge over the Murray River -- before people took pity and helped him to create a new life for himself.
Now, just as he promised the students at Crookwell, in parliament each day Mr Schultz has been wearing a different, brightly coloured eye patch.
The designs by the students include the Australian flag, skull and cross bones, a cyclops head, an easter egg with stripes on it and others with feel-good messages such as "Poor Alby" and "My friend Alby". "They have used their imagination," Mr Schultz said.
"It tells you heaps about our most precious asset, our children, how switched on they are, what lovely little hearts they have got.
"It indicates the parents are teaching the right thing about compassion for your fellow man, and it is being carried over into the schools by the teachers."
Mr Schultz told parliament the students, aged between six and 11, were very concerned about his accident.
"These young people were very, very upset about the fact that I had injured my eye," he said.
"They presented me with about 50 eye patches, and they're typical of the imagination of young children. Some of them are quite funny.
"The one that I'm wearing today is another colourful one, and it says, `Poor Alby'.
"I think that gives you an indication of just how caring young children are." Mr Schultz has travelled around local schools in his electorate telling children about his disability and warning them against the dangers of chemicals.
"I have been taking flags around the schools in the electorate and the kids invariably see you and spot the patch," he said.
"You have anywhere from 15 to 20 little kiddies from six to 11- years-old talking to you and expressing their concern about the loss of your sight.
"They ask you all sorts of intimate questions about it. Then they build up courage and ask -- can we have a look at your eye?"
At the end of the school talks teachers often asked the students what they had learnt.
"We have to listen to our parents and teachers about not going near chemicals," is the response.
Laggan Public School principal Lyn Collett said that being a rural school, the children had been excited about a visit by such a high-profile figure as Mr Schultz.
She said he seemed quite overwhelmed at being presented with 55 eye patches, and the students seemed convinced that their designs would be much better than the plain one he was wearing.
"The kids learnt that accidents can happen in your own backyard if you let them," Ms Collett said. "They learnt to give thought to those people who have had accidents."
Wednesday, 31 March 2004
Truckies blockade 'deadly' highway, The Australian, 31 March, 2004.
Truckies blockade `deadly' highway: [2 All-round First Edition]
Michelle Gilchrist, John Stapleton. The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 31 Mar 2004: 2.
Show highlighting
Abstract
MOST road deaths on the Pacific Highway in NSW result from head- on collisions, with almost half of the major link between Sydney and Brisbane still to be upgraded to a four-lane dual carriageway despite a 10-year, $2.2 billion investment program.
MOST road deaths on the Pacific Highway in NSW result from head- on collisions, with almost half of the major link between Sydney and Brisbane still to be upgraded to a four-lane dual carriageway despite a 10-year, $2.2 billion investment program.
The findings by a NSW government inquiry into the Pacific Highway add new urgency to calls to improve the road within a decade.
The highway was at flashpoint last night, with truck drivers in a blockade at Macksville on the northcoast, protesting against the condition of the highway.
"We have to stop the carnage of workplace accidents in our industry," said Australian Long Distance Owners and Drivers Association chief executive Jerry Brown-Sarre.
Last year 56 people were killed in 44 accidents between Hexham, north of Sydney, and Queensland.
Some of the highway's worst blackspots will be divided by wire barriers to reduce head-on collisions under a $14million program announced yesterday by theNSW Government.
The money will be spent between Grafton and Byron Bay, where most of the highway remains a two-lane road.
A spokesman for NSW Transport Minister Carl Scully said the projects to divide two-lane sections of the road were an urgent measure, prompted by the first findings of the study by new RTA safety general manager Professor Soames Job.
But the $14 million is only a fraction of the $4 billion needed to make all the highway a four-lane dual highway.
Thursday, 25 March 2004
Uranium scare hits mine staff, The Australian, 25 March, 2004. Page One.
Uranium scare hits mine staff: [2 All-round First Edition]
Stapleton, John. The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 25 Mar 2004: 1.
Show highlighting
Abstract
AUSTRALIA'S most controversial mine, Ranger in Kakadu National Park, was shut down yesterday following a uranium scare affecting 20 staff.
The federal Government's supervising scientist at Ranger, Arthur Johnston, whose field station receives water from the mine, said his staff were at the mine helping owner Energy Resources Australia investigate the incident and were sampling water in surrounding creeks.
The open-cut Ranger mine, 250km east of Darwin, is bordered by a uranium processing plant. It has been the subject of repeated demonstrations by conservationists. A Senate inquiry last year found regulation of the site to be "flawed, confusing and inadequate".
AUSTRALIA'S most controversial mine, Ranger in Kakadu National Park, was shut down yesterday following a uranium scare affecting 20 staff.
The scare occurred after workers coming off the night shift complained the water in the showers was making them itchy. The water was found to contain levels of uranium up to 400 times safe drinking levels.
The uranium mine's water systems were shut down and all non- essential staff sent home. Most concern is held for several workers who took prolonged showers. There are also fears some staff
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may have drunk the water. Ranger is expected to stay shut at least until the weekend.
The federal Government's supervising scientist at Ranger, Arthur Johnston, whose field station receives water from the mine, said his staff were at the mine helping owner Energy Resources Australia investigate the incident and were sampling water in surrounding creeks.
It is the most serious uranium incident since the spill of 110,000 litres of radioactive waste liquid at Olympic Dam, South Australia, last October.
The open-cut Ranger mine, 250km east of Darwin, is bordered by a uranium processing plant. It has been the subject of repeated demonstrations by conservationists. A Senate inquiry last year found regulation of the site to be "flawed, confusing and inadequate".
ERA said it had immediately advised the airport and other businesses near Ranger whose water supply is provided by the mine.
A spokeswoman for ERA said investigators were still interviewing workers and going over the mine last night in an attempt to understand what happened. She said it was believed that late on Tuesday night a change in the water supply made by one or more night shift workers may have led to the incident but exactly how this happened was still uncertain.
Environmental and Aboriginal groups called for urgent government action.
The Australian Conservation Foundation said yesterday's incident was the latest in "a history of spills, leaks and breakdowns" at Ranger.
"There have been over 100 leaks and spills since the mine commenced operation in 1981," ACF nuclear campaigner Dave Sweeney said.
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