Dally M's cap to go under hammer

Australian Rugby League player Dally Messenger in 1908.

Dally Messenger's 1910 Kangaroos Cap is up for auction at Leski Auctions in Melbourne. Picture: Robert Mckechnie Source: Herald Sun

THE captain's cap worn by Dally Messenger to lead the Australian side against a British Lions team in 1910 will tonight be auctioned in Melbourne.

Herbert Henry "Dally" Messenger, the man after whom the NRL named its highest individual honour (The Dally M Medal), played for Australia in two rugby union Tests and seven rugby league Tests.

And tonight a rare piece of memorabilia from a 1910 series against the Great British Lions will tonight draw greatest interest when it is one of "several hundred lots" Charles Leski Auctions offers in Melbourne.

"He was captain of the Australian team when they hosted the 1910 Great Britain Lions team in Australia so it's a very significant cap, and we don't see international rugby caps very often," Charles Leski said.

"Most of the publicity around sporting caps seems to surround the famous Baggy Green from our cricket team, but there's no doubt that the items of clothing from the football teams from this period are more scarce and rarely come up for auction.

"So to have Dally Messenger's is a quite an honour and a coup for us."

Mr Leski said it was difficult to know how much the cap may fetch at auction or the level of interest, with potential buyers able to bid over the phone or online.

"Well we've put an estimate of $20,000 to $25,000, that's consistent with our experience," Mr Leski said.

"We've had about 20 years of experience selling sporting memorabilia at public auction and while other honour caps have come up and usually they're not in very good condition, this one is in really lovely condition and we think this is very significant.

"It's a bit like having Victor Trumper's cap from about the same time. I think if we had Victor Trumper's cap from 1905 to 1910, that would probably bring $100,000, so it'll be interesting to see."
 

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Your super is safe under us: Abbott

Julia Gillard cannot make a commitment to leaving our superannuation untouched. Picture: Colin Murty Source: News Limited

• Penny Wong brushes off Budget speculation
• Liberals say Labor ''desperate to find revenue'' 
• PM to leave Aussies in loads of debt 

JULIA Gillard has failed to rule out if Labor will raid superannuation funds in the May budget, saying any decisions made for the sector will be in Australia's long term interest.

It comes after Tony Abbott declared the Coalition will make ''no adverse unexpected changes'' to superannuation in its first term of government.

Asked directly if superannuation funds would be used to supplement the tax revenue base, Ms Gillard would not give a clear answer.

''Any decisions we make will be about the long term interest of the superannuation system,'' Ms Gillard told ABC radio.

''When we think about superannuation we think about what is in the interest of decent working people … and what is in the interest of the long term sustainability of the system.''

She said superannuation had been brought in by Labor and it would always be a ''Labor creature''.

''I can assure people superannuation is a Labor creature and we will always nurture it well,'' Ms Gillard said. 
 

Oppostion leader Tony Abbott says a Coalition government would not touch superannuation in it's first term.

Earlier today, Mr Abbott said there had been ''far too much fiddling'' with superannuation from Labor and if elected as Prime Minister on September 14 he would put a stop to it.

''There have been at least five significant changes to superannuation from this government,'' Mr Abbott said.

''I want to say to people that super is safe under the Coalition.

''We will make no adverse unexpected changes to superannuation in our first term.''

The Liberal party has previously confirmed it is their policy to reintroduce the 15 per cent tax on superannuation for 3.6 million Australians earning $37,000 and under, which was cut by Labor.

It could mean a tax slug of up to $500 per year for one in three Australian workers under an Abbott government
 

Senator Penny Wong has brushed off speculation higher income earners would have their superannuation contributions and earnings slugged.

The Opposition Leader’s comments come as Finance Minister Penny Wong this morning attempted to brush off speculation superannuation would face the budget razor on May 14 in line with Treasury’s stance raiding funds would help sustain the tax revenue base as the population ages.

Senator Wong called for calm over the issue and said Labor was the only party committed to ''building on superannuation''.

''I don’t get into hypotheticals and I don’t get into any gossip about what might and might not have been discussed in the Cabinet committee,'' Senator Wong told Sky News.

''What I would say to people is don’t believe everything you read. Budget speculation is always abounds at this time and I would say to people look at our record and look at support for superannuation.''

Liberal MP Jamie Briggs said Labor was ''desperate to find revenue to plug their ever increasing budget deficits''.

''It is a farce and it’s little wonder the Australian people are over this government,'' Mr Briggs told Sky News.

Treasury Secretary Martin Parkinson last year urged the government to cut superannuation tax concessions in the May 14 budget in order to secure its revenue base as the population ages.

''With the Commonwealth budget coming under increasing pressure over the next few decades, the fiscal sustainability of all policies, including superannuation, will demand greater public scrutiny,'' Dr Parkinson told an Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia conference.

On Tuesday Julia Gillard said while Labor would ''safeguard superannuation'', revenue also needed to be sustainable.

''We've always got to make sure that the system is sustainable and is meeting the nation's needs and the needs of individuals,'' she said.

The stoush over superannuation comes as News Limited revealed today that government debt levels were forecast to blow out by 80 per cent to $165 billion, equal to $14,000 for every Australian.

Analysis of Budget documents revealed that between the 2010 election and Federal Treasury's update in October last year, the 2012-13 net debt estimate rose $54 billion to $144 billion.

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Cricket at risk under media reforms

• Changes to 75 per cent rule may end coverage in some areas
  
• Perth, Adelaide, regional WA and SA may miss out
• Concerning for fans and Cricket Australia
• Greens' red line on reforms | Political interest at heart of changes
• Regional TV's future at risk | Conroy's answers require correction  

CRICKET may no longer be broadcast in parts of regional Australia if a key plank of Labor's media reforms is passed into law.

Chief executive of WIN television Andrew Lancaster has told a parliamentary inquiry cricket broadcasts could be put in jeopardy in Perth and Adelaide if the 75 per cent reach rule was abolished.

Mr Lancaster said if Southern Cross and the Nine Network were able to merge after the reach rule was abolished, WIN TV would no longer take the Nine feed and thus cricket broadcasts would no longer be shown.

He said regional areas in Western Australia and South Australia who didn't get Southern Cross feeds could potentially miss out.

"There is a fear for those in Perth and Adelaide, in regional South Australia and regional West Australia," Mr Lancaster said.

WIN TV'S Chief executive Andrew Lancaster has told a parliamentary inquiry cricket broadcasts could be put in jeopardy in Perth and Adelaide if the 75 per cent reach rule was abolished.

"I would say that would be of great concern for cricket fans and of even more concern for Cricket Australia."

Under existing media ownership laws the merger of Southern Cross Media and Nine Entertainment Co is not lawful, however if changes to the legislation put forward by Communications Minister Stephen Conroy are passed the proposal would be able to go ahead.

Southern Cross CEO Rhys Holleran told the committee there was "no reason" why all Australians couldn't continue to enjoy cricket broadcasts.

However he conceded that his network did not broadcast right around the nation.

Ian Audsley, Prime TV CEO, admits current technology makes news deadlines more immediate and information efficient. SKY News

"We don't broadcast in Western Australia and there are pockets of the eastern seaboard that we don't broadcast to," he told the committee.

"I don't think the reach rule is relevant to whether people receive their cricket or not. If other people make commercial decisions it is their commercial decisions. There is no reason why everyone in Australia can't continue to enjoy their cricket."

Media executives have descended on Canberra today for two separate hearings reforms for the sector.

A 10-person joint select committee is probing the changes that will affect television broadcasters and is this morning hearing evidence from WIN TV, Prime, Southern Cross and Network Ten.

Southern Cross CEO Rhys Holleran told the committee there was “no reason” why all Australians couldn’t continue to enjoy cricket broadcasts. SKY News

It is considering the abolition of the reach rule, giving the Australian Communications and Media Authority powers to insist on broadcasting apologies and whether ACMA should consider content sharing in assessing ownership.

A separate Senate hearing will consider the broader package of reforms and will hear evidence from News Limited CEO Kim Williams, Fairfax, Seven West Southern Cross Austereo and Foxtel.

Officials from the Communications Department were probed this morning on media ownership this morning and fielded a range of fiery questions from coalition and independent MPs.

They said it would be a "relatively easy" legislative process to abolish the current 75 per cent reach rule and maintained that regional television newsrooms would not be largely culled if the reform was put in place.

News Ltd CEO Kim Williams believes the government's media regulation plans represent an attack on media freedom and unfairly target his company.

Opposition communications spokesman Malcolm Turnbull said today was another "shambolic" day for Labor.

He said trying to push the reforms through parliament this week and through two committees was a "vain exercise on the part of Stephen Conroy".

He said the reforms would be a "big election issue" for the Coalition.

Liberal MP Paul Neville, who is a member of the joint select committee, said the expedited timeline "demeans parliament".

Hamish McLennan, CEO of the Ten Network states the position of Ten regarding the 75% reach rule and the risk to media diversification. SKY News

"To try and do this all in a matter of days is ludicrous."

Senator Conroy wants the package of six bills passed by both houses of parliament by Thursday.

But with all of the crossbench MPs yet to state their support for the bills, the package is unlikely to pass as it stands.

Independent MP Rob Oakeshott this morning said he didn't believe the reforms would hurt free speech, but he still won't support the package as it stands right now.

"If the voting bells went right now I'd probably be on the negative side," he told ABC News 24.

Cabinet minister Tony Burke said he believed the current timeline for the legislation was fair.

I don't think we are going to need extra time although I think some people might want to keep the debate churning on for some time," he told ABC News 24.

In a written submission to the committee, Network Ten hit out at the lack of time given for scrutiny the bills.

"Network Ten is extremely concerned about the timeframe and processes imposed on the parliament, industry stakeholders, and the public to digest, analyse and comment on legislation which will shape the future of our businesses and Australias media landscape" it said.

Ten said it was opposed to a proposed public interest media advocate to oversee standards and provide a check on media mergers and acquisitions.

It is also opposed to the axing of the 75 per cent rule, which it says could allow metropolitan broadcasters to merge with regional affiliates and reach 100 per cent of the population.

"Senator Conroy has stated repeatedly in the last week that anyone opposed to further concentration of media in this country should support this media reform package," the network said.

"But the only guaranteed outcome from removing the audience reach rule - in isolation from other changes - will be less diversity."

- with wires

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Still living under a shadow

Jay Thomas Hart / Pic: Today Tonight Source: The Daily Telegraph

A NORTH coast community organisation is standing behind one of its employees after it was revealed he was living under a new name after twice being acquitted of murder.

Jay Thomas Hart, 45, had passed all the criminal checks required for his job with young people, a spokeswoman for the community centre said.

Hart, who was acquitted in 1994 and in 2006 of the murders of two young Aboriginal neighbours in the north coast community of Bowraville, was tracked down this week to his new job and the new home in the Newcastle area where he has been living under his new identity.

He was living in Bowraville when the two young people - Clinton Speedy-Duroux, 16, and Evelyn Greenup, 4 - went missing in 1990 and 1991.

No one was charged following the disappearance and suspected murder of another neighbour, Colleen Walker, 16, about the same time. Hart has always denied any involvement in any of the three cases.

A spokeswoman for the community organisation which now employs Hart, which helps disadvantaged and troubled youth including young Aboriginal people, said yesterday that they had no plans to sack him.

"All our staff members have had criminal checks and they have all come back clean," she said.

The Daily Telegraph has chosen not to reveal his new identity.

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Womad under pressure to dump act

Internet troll Tristan Barker singing with his dad Michael Barker in bottom right corner, on drums. Source: Supplied

• Internet troll's father in WOMADelaide act
• Father and son have played together in concerts
• Unmasked: Australia's worst internet troll

WOMADelaide festival organisers are facing pressure to dump a lead act after one of the band's two members made derogatory comments about a suicide victim.

Top drummer Michael Barker, a former member of groups Split Enz and The John Butler Trio, is to play with his two-man blues and roots group The Swamp Thing at this weekend's four-day WOMADelaide music festival.

Mr Barker was revealed by News Ltd on Sunday as the proud father of Tristan Barker, Australia's most prolific internet troll.

The father and son have both played together in previous performances as The Swamp Thing.

The 18-year-old son has posted numerous questionable comments about celebrities, Muslims, murder victims such as Melbourne’s Jill Meagher and emotionally unstable young people.

However, the teenager’s father has now been criticised after commenting on his son's views, particularly about United States teenager Amanda Todd, who hanged herself in October 2012.

Are they Super XD Trollz, cyber-bullies or brats with brains? You decide if Nebz and Tristan from Facebeef have too much time on their hands.

Following the death Mr Barker jnr posted online comments about Miss Todd, calling her "slutty", "attention seeking" and a "histrionic attention whore".

When News Ltd spoke to Mr Barker snr about his son’s views, he said: "Was she? Was she slutty and attention seeking?"

Ruben Cunningham of anti-bullying charity Angel's Goal has called on WOMADelaide organisers to remove Mr Barker snr from the line-up.

"I am disgusted, this is disgraceful that he would question why a young girl killed herself when he doesn’t even know her," Mr Cunningham said.

"He shouldn’t be allowed to play at an event sponsored by government organisations."

The parents of internet troll Tristan Barker - musician Michael Barker and his wife Cathy.

WOMADelaide is supported by Adelaide City Council and the Government of South Australia.

WOMADelaide’s Mr McGrane told News Ltd today "this is about Tristan, we don't know all the facts, we are declining the opportunity to comment, we are not taking a position".

Sponsors of WOMADelaide include Hills Cider, Coca Cola, Coles and ABC. A number of sponsors said they had just learned of the comments made by the musician and were meeting to discuss them.

WOMADelaide's website says The Swamp Thing plays "gritty songs of love, loss, hope and salvation"; remarkably different to the diatribes posted on Mr Barker jnr's Facebook pages.

The father and son have played onstage most recently in January at Rotorua's Okere Falls Festival as The Swamp Thing.

New Zealand born Tristan Barker is wanted by authorities in Australia over comments made on the internet. Picture: Kerry Grant/ Herald on Sunday NZ

Meanwhile Mr Barker snr said he did not try and give his son guidance about internet use. "I think for an 18-year-old those rules go out the window, it's basic rules of co-habitation; we leave each other alone and don't hurt one another and we give each other our space. Tristan is his own man now...I would say he is a ratbag."

He then went on to comment on his boy’s hateful posts: “The people that apparently read his crap on (the internet) is more than most regional newspapers,” he said.

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Super savings less under Labor: Cormann

THE federal opposition says earnings on retirement savings are lower than they should be because of Labor government red tape.

Shadow Assistant Treasurer Mathias Cormann says the government has so far imposed more than $8 billion in increased taxes targeting people saving for their retirement.

Over the past five years the government has also cut super co-contribution benefits for lower income earners by more than $3.3 billion.

"We know that Labor is looking to impose more new taxes and more new red tape on super," Senator Cormann said in a statement on Thursday.

He said the government is desperate for more cash to pay for their wasteful spending and for the failure of their mining tax.

"Australians saving for their retirement deserve certainty and stability in super policy settings so they can plan their future retirement with confidence," he said.

Senator Cormann's comments came as a new study by global banking group HSBC found that Australians are underestimating the amount of income they will need in retirement.

Respondents expect they can survive of just two-thirds of their working life income, the lowest of the 15 countries surveyed.

"This attitude fails to take into account how they will cope with the likely increase in health and aged care cost of a 'frail' retirement," HSBC's head of retail banking and wealth management Graham Heunis said in a statement.

The 1000 Australians surveyed - in the wider global survey of over 15,000 people - expect their savings to last just 11 our of the 21 years in retirement, putting pressure on the aged pension, and despite reducing their living expenses.

Australians also have a short-termism approach to savings, with 53 per cent more likely to save for a holiday than retirement, the second highest proportion amongst all countries behind the UK.

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