Greens to push for federal ICAC

THE Australian Greens want politics cleaned up by a national anti-corruption body after "on-going revelations" about corruption in NSW.

The party will next week push for a vote on the National Integrity Commission Bill, now before the Senate, which would create a federal level independent anti-corruption commission, similar to those operated by states.

Greens leader Christine Milne said the "revolving door" between business and political parties should be examined.

"We need to clean up politics right around the country and it should start here in Canberra," she told reporters on Tuesday.

The Greens will need the support of a major party to push through the legislation.

Senator Larissa Waters said a proposal by MP Clive Palmer's mining company Waratah Coal to tender for an Abbot Point coal terminal extension proves the bill's importance.

Mr Palmer would need approval from the government, which needs his vote in the Senate to pass legislation, Ms Waters said.

"It's about time we had these conflicts of interest properly dealt with," she said.

But at a media conference Mr Palmer, who is a shareholder in Waratah Coal, played down a suggestion he had a better chance of succeeding with the Abbot Point proposal now he had left Queensland's Liberal National Party.

"It's not a consideration for me, politically," he told reporters in Brisbane.

"I've retired from active business and I don't worry about those things."

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Westfield sweetens local split plans

SHOPPING centre giant Westfield Group has sweetened its plan to split its Australian and New Zealand assets from its international operations.

Westfield's Australian and New Zealand assets, which includes 47 shopping centres, are set to merge with Westfield Retail Trust, a joint owner of the Australian shopping centres.

The merged entity will be called Scentre Group, and under new changes to the proposal, Scentre Group will now carry $300 million less in debt than originally planned.

Westfield chairman Frank Lowy said key investors supported the merger, but the new debt arrangements were made to address some concerns raised.

Security holders are due to vote on the split on May 29.

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Woman stabbed in heart three times: court

A QUEENSLAND woman has recalled a brutal knife attack that she was not expected to survive, telling a court her former partner had put his arm around her, before calmly pushing his thumb into her chest after which he stabbed her in the heart three times.

Margaret Revesz says her lips went numb and her whole body ached during the alleged murder attempt.

The mother of three says that her ex-partner, David Allan Baldwin, 53, had been visiting at her house north of Brisbane in 2009.

The couple had broken up a year earlier but Baldwin was desperate to rekindle the romance and said he couldn't live without her, the court was told.

Baldwin had put his arm around Ms Revesz and then calmly pushed his thumb into her chest, "and the next moment he puts a knife into me", she told the court.

"I said, 'David are you going to kill me?' and he said, 'yes.'"

"He then put the knife back into me."

Ms Revesz, then 42, was allegedly stabbed three times in the heart and hit in the head with a piece of wood.

"I remember quite clearly asking myself what's happening to me," she told the Supreme Court.

"I could feel my lips going cold and numb and I could feel an extreme ache going through my entire body."

The witness said she woke up with Baldwin standing over her saying, "Oh Margie, what have I done? I will be going away for a long time for this, will you wait for me?"

Ms Revesz says she replied yes, and then asked Baldwin to ring triple-zero, which he did.

On arrival at hospital, the injured woman was labelled a "red blanket case" which meant she was expected to die, Crown Prosecutor Dennis Kinsella said.

Ms Revesz recovered following open heart surgery, although told the court she still suffers nightmares and doesn't like going out.

Baldwin has pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm but not guilty to attempted murder.

The trial continues.

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Tax office takes up laundering

TAXPAYERS will foot the bill for washing machines, a tumble dryer and sandwich makers for the Australian Tax Office.

A tender closes this week for whitegoods to go into ATO offices around the country over the next four years.

Among the items being sought are two washing machines and washing powder, a tumble dryer, triple-door glass-fronted fridges, 354 bar fridges, 32 pie ovens and 454 sandwich presses.

The tender documents state the items will meet the ATO's "business requirements" and ensure that "breakout areas, communal spaces and beverage points are equipped with quality whitegoods".

The ATO is seeking one national contractor to supply, deliver, install, maintain and replace the goods to all of its sites, including new buildings and refurbished offices.

It also requires the "bulk supply of consumables" such as dishwasher tablets and washing powder.

Among the objectives of the tender, according to the documents, is to "represent value for money" and provide a "healthy and safe working environment".

Comment is being sought from the tax office.

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Westpac shares down despite record profit

Westpac has announced a first half cash profit of $3.77 billion and has lifted its interim dividend. Source: AAP

SHARES in Westpac are flat in early trading after the bank revealed a record first half cash profit of $3.77 billion.

Australia's second-largest and oldest bank opened higher before pulling back - just as ANZ did after its record profit was announced on Thursday.

Westpac shares were seven cents down at $34.80 at 1025 AEST on Monday.

ANZ shares were down again on Monday while rivals Commonwealth and NAB had made gains.

Westpac's shares had been predicted to fall given the record run in bank shares of late with many investors regarding them as being full-valued.

Westpac's cash profit - the bank's preferred performance measure - was up eight per cent from the prior corresponding period, beating analysts' expectations.

Net profit for the six months to March 31 was $3.62 billion, up from $3.29 billion a year ago.

Westpac lifted its fully-franked interim dividend to 90 cents, from the previous 86 cents.

However, unlike the two previous half years, no 10 cent special dividend will be paid on top of the distribution this time as some had expected.

The bank followed ANZ's lead last week in posting a decline in margins due to high competition for mortgage customers.

Westpac had been expected to increase net interest margins - the difference between its funding and lending costs - but it declined eight basis points to 2.11 per cent.

The bank still increased housing loans by five per cent. It already has Australia's second largest share of housing loans, behind Commonwealth Bank.

Westpac chief executive Gail Kelly said that the world economy had improved in recent times with Europe pulling out of recession and the US slowly moving towards trend growth.

Mrs Kelly said that she was positive about the second half for the bank.

The bank's tier capital adequacy ratio of 8.82 per cent - equity capital versus total risk-weighted assets - is the best of the big four banks.

"Our focus on tilting to growth is delivering, and this is expected to continue into the second half of the year," she said.

IG market strategist Evan Lucas said the profit result was stellar but, digging deeper, the result looked benign with institutional banking's earnings going backwards - an area in which the other major banks have increased.

"At the moment, the banks are really easy to poke holes in because they are so fully (share price) valued," he told AAP. He predicted a repeat of ANZ, with a possible fall in its share price on Monday despite a record profit.

"(The profit) comes down to their consolidation rather than growth story ... they are eking out profits that way."

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Budget reason for ditching trip: minister

THE only reason Prime Minister Tony Abbott dumped a planned trip to Indonesia was for hands-on involvement in his government's first budget, a senior minister insists.

Immigration Minister Scott Morrison denies a reported boat turn-back operation is behind Mr Abbott's cancelled plans to attend a regional forum in Bali on Tuesday.

The minister also refused to say whether a boat had in fact been intercepted, in line with his policy of not commenting on "on water" matters.

"The prime minister's reason is as articulated," he told Sky News on Monday.

Mr Abbott's office has not given a reason for cancelling the trip.

But Mr Morrison said it demonstrates Mr Abbott's "very hands-on" approach to the budget.

"He's steering the ship."

The Indonesian government says it was given no explanation on Friday for Mr Abbott's decision to postpone the meeting, nor any indication that asylum seekers are being sent back.

In the lead up to the budget Mr Abbott has attended every meeting of cabinet's razor gang - unusual for a prime minister.

The final full cabinet meeting ahead of the budget this week was pushed back to Wednesday to accommodate Mr Abbott's planned trip.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono invited Mr Abbott to attend the Open Government Partnership forum in a move that was seen as a real step towards repairing the bilateral relationship, which hit rocky waters last year.

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Vic govt to unveil infrastructure spend

Tuesday's Victorian state budget is expected to contain a number of major infrastructure projects. Source: AAP

MELBOURNE'S East West Link tunnel will get more funding and light will be shed on plans for a Melbourne airport rail link in Tuesday's state budget.

Victoria is expected to remain in the black with the state on track to reach its net surplus target in a budget that will focus on major infrastructure projects six months out from an election.

State funds will flow for the second stage of the $18 billion East West Link road project, including $1.5 billion from the Commonwealth, while details of a plan to link Melbourne's CBD by rail to the Tullamarine airport will be unveiled for the first time.

Treasurer Michael O'Brien says that in contrast to the federal budget, which is expected to include significant spending cuts and possible tax increases to cut the deficit, Victorians can expect strong surpluses over the next few years.

Net debt will also fall over the forward estimates and there will be a focus on major infrastructure projects which create jobs, he says.

"The Victorian budget is in a very different position to the federal budget," Mr O'Brien told reporters on Friday.

"We're in surplus here in Victoria and we're going to have strong surpluses across the forward estimates."

Mr O'Brien says the government will be delivering the major infrastructure projects Victorians want to see to improve their quality of life, thanks to good economic management.

"We're funding major job creating infrastructure through strong surpluses, through good economic management and through asset recycling," he said.

The budget is expected to contain more money to progress the Melbourne Metro Rail project, a $10 billion underground cross-city tunnel designed take on thousands of extra passengers and connect the Dandenong and Sunshine rail corridors.

A swag of pre-budget announcements have been made, so far including: more than $1 billion to remove eight level crossings across Melbourne; $190 million to cut elective surgery waiting lists; a $220 million project to upgrade country rail and build a standardised rail link between Mildura and Geelong.

Mr O'Brien says the public service is safe from further cuts this budget, but it is yet to be seen what further pain may be in store for Victorians.

The government has already blamed a cut in the state's GST revenue from 90 cents in the dollar to 88 cents in 2014-15 for a $32 hike in car registrations and an increase in vehicle stamp duty.

The government says the extra charges would fund major transport infrastructure in the budget.

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Firefighter bravery recognised

FIREFIGHTERS who attended a fuel spill with the potential to ignite and threaten a Sydney peninsula faced a choice.

Leave the two million litre tank to leak, evacuate the peninsula around Banksmeadow on Botany Bay and wait for a catastrophic explosion.

Or volunteer to wade through the fuel pool and repair the leaking valve.

NSW Fire and Rescue (NSWFR) station officer Ron Morasso looked at his colleagues and made his choice.

"I said to him, 'what was going through your mind'?" NSWFR commissioner Greg Mullins told AAP after presenting Mr Morasso with the fire service's highest bravery award.

"[Mr Morasso] said to me, 'I looked at my crew and thought - he has two young kids, his wife is pregnant, he is only young...it's got to be me'."

Mr Mullins said even a spark from a car passing the Caltex fuel terminal would have risked an explosion with enough ferocity to close Sydney airport and any subsequent fire might have taken days to extinguish.

Mr Morasso, who has since retired, was presented with the NSWFR medal for conspicuous bravery on Saturday.

Other crew members who responded to the spill in July 2013 also received commendations.

Meanwhile, two firefighters who rushed to the aid of a man on fire after a petrol tanker crash on Sydney's northern beaches were also recognised.

Mosman crew members Lloyd Mulder and George Cheeke stayed with the man, who crawled from his car after it burst into flames, until he died at the roadside last October.

Witnesses Andrew Cochran and Maria Tosone also received commendations for trying to pull the man and another person from the car on Mona Vale Road.

And 12 firefighters who responded to a fire at a unit complex in Bankstown in the city's west, where two women attempted to escape by jumping from a fifth floor window, were also among commendation recipients.

Mr Mullins said the blaze was so intense that firefighters' uniforms caught fire and helmets melted.

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Greens say they're the party to fix NSW

The Greens have announced their upper house line-up for the upcoming March 2015 NSW state election. Source: AAP

THERE'S a smell wafting from the Labor and Liberal party rooms in NSW parliament, the Greens say.

Just days after police minister Mike Gallacher stepped aside following claims in front of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) over illegal donations to the Liberal Party, Greens NSW MP John Kaye announced on Sunday his new upper house team for the March 2015 election.

Joining him on the ticket will be existing MP Mehreen Faruqi, as well as coal seam gas campaigner and political advisor Justin Field.

Mr Kaye said the team would be highlighting their credentials as an alternative to the major parties.

"NSW politics has been plunged into crisis, not just by the Labor party but also by the Liberal party's endemic addiction to collecting funds from tainted sources," he told AAP.

"This is the time for reform. This is the election campaign where politics needs to change."

Mr Field, who is third on the ticket, said he will be taking out the message of clean water, energy and politics out into the community.

"A stench of corruption now hangs over NSW parliament, but only the Greens are able to say they can clean up politics."

The announcement comes after the Labor party revealed on Sunday that a "record number" of their party's supporters had voted for former MP Verity Firth to be the next state candidate in the Sydney seat of Balmain.

She narrowly lost the marginal inner-city seat to Greens candidate Jamie Parker at the 2011 election.

Mr Parker said the Greens were confident that there needs to be change.

"It doesn't matter who the candidate is, we have seen before that he structure of Labor means they are silenced ... I stand for a different approach to politics," he told AAP.

He said one of the bills the Greens would be be introducing to parliament in the following months is a push to implement 2010 ICAC recommendations on lobbying in NSW.

This included a recommendation to set up an independent body to oversee the role of lobbyists.

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Call for release of Liberal donation audit

AN audit of Liberal Party donations in the wake of damaging slush fund allegations needs to be released publicly, the NSW opposition says.

The call comes after another political head rolled this week as the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) probed party donations.

Police Minister Mike Gallacher resigned from his plum role on Friday after he was implicated in a Liberal Party slush fund scheme.

It was two weeks after Barry O'Farrell resigned from the state's top job over an undeclared, gifted bottle of wine.

NSW Liberal party director Tony Nutt is leading an audit into the party's political donations.

But Opposition Leader John Robertson says the results need not be only for Liberal eyes.

"Tony Nutt is a political operative from way back," he told reporters on Saturday.

"Tony Nutt is someone who has been involved in the activities of the Liberal Party for years and years and years.

"The only way someone can have confidence in that audit is if it is publicly released so everyone can see the process that was put in place to look at these donations."

Mr Robertson, whose own party was dragged through the mud after adverse ICAC findings over coal mine approvals, said he understood why people would question the motives of every politician in NSW.

He said he wanted to work with Mr Baird to put an end to what was playing out at the ICAC.

"I want to see Mike Baird not simply talk tough but the steps to end the scandal and put in place measures that are going to give the public confidence," he said.

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