Hertz to review years of financial results

Car rental giant Hertz is to restate its 2011, 2012 and 2013 reports after an audit found errors. Source: AAP

HERTZ Global Holdings Inc says it has to review and correct its financial reports from the past three years after an audit by the car rental company found accounting errors.

The announcement, made in a government filing on Friday, sent Hertz shares down nearly 10 per cent in morning trading.

The New Jersey company said it will restate financial statements from 2011 and will correct and possibly restate statements from 2012 and 2013.

"Financial statements for 2011 should no longer be relied upon," the company said in the filing.

"It will take time to complete this process, and previously reported information is likely to change."

The errors were related to the depreciation of some of its non-fleet assets and an allowance for doubtful accounts in Brazil, among other items, it said.

Hertz is also delaying the release of its first-quarter earnings report again.

In May, it pushed the release date to June 9.

Now, the company expects to release it when it amends its past full-year results.

Its first-quarter results will be hurt by costs associated with the accounting review, the company said.

It said it is implementing new procedures to strengthen its accounting and finance departments.

Shares of Hertz fell $2.60, or 8.5 per cent, to $27.89 in morning trading Friday.

Its shares had risen 6.5 per cent so far this year through to Thursday's close.

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NSW govt to extend home owner grant

Next week's NSW budget will extend eligibility criteria for a first home owner grant. Source: AAP

THE NSW government has freed land for 6600 new homes in Sydney's northwest and will extend a first home owner grant in next week's budget.

Land at Marsden Park North, Richmond and Blacktown has been released or rezoned for housing, Premier Mike Baird announced on Saturday.

The Marsden Park land has space for 4000 new homes and is close to where the North West Rail Link is being built, while the land at Blacktown is on an old golf course.

"In western Sydney, there is a massive housing boom occurring and the unlocking of up to 6600 new housing lots at three sites will boost housing supply and make homes more affordable," Mr Baird said in a statement.

The government claims 100,000 new homes have been built across NSW since the March 2011 election.

Treasurer Andrew Constance also announced that next week's state budget will extend eligibility criteria for a first home owner grant by $100,000.

It means first-time buyers who purchase new properties worth up to $750,000 will qualify for the $15,000 payment. The previous threshold was $650,000.

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NZ's North Island rattled by 5.1 quake

NEW Zealand's central North Island has been rattled by a 5.1 magnitude quake.

The 76km deep earthquake was centred 20km west of Ohakune, in the Tongariro National Park, just before 4pm on Friday.

Thousands reported feeling the moderate quake on the GeoNet site, with people as far afield as Central Otago town Palmerston reporting a shake.

The GeoNet website is run by the Earthquake Commission and GNS Science.

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Qld govt to absorb fed pension cuts

The Queensland government will absorb all federal concession cuts to pensioners and seniors. Source: AAP

THE Queensland government will absorb all concession cuts to pensioners and seniors dished out by the federal government.

Two days after the state budget ruled out the move, Premier Campbell Newman backflipped after the grey army took the state government to task on talk-back radio.

Mr Newman says he's listened.

"We're not only listening to Queenslanders, but we're acting within the space of two days to reinstate the full level of pensioner and senior concessions," he told parliament.

"Queensland seniors and pensioners will not be worse off because of the Commonwealth cuts."

The federal budget, handed down in May, cut $223.2 million over four years meant to fund pensioner and senior concessions for electricity, rates and transport.

Mr Newman told parliament the state budget had raised pensioner and senior concessions by almost $26 million in the next financial year to help compensate.

But he's since realised seniors and pensioners can't fill the gap and would stump up the remaining 15 per cent.

"We will be continuing to send a clear message to the Commonwealth that Queenslanders won't stand for these kinds of cuts," he said.

Opposition Leader Annastacia Palaszczuk supported the move but said the government needed to show where it was getting the extra funding from.

Ms Palaszczuk said the premier's attack on Queensland pensioners' household budgets would not be quickly forgotten.

"The ink isn't even dry on this budget and the premier has scrambled to save his own political skin following a crisis of his own making," she said.

"He made a choice in his budget where he could help Queensland pensioners or hurt them.

"He chose to hurt them."

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Newman to defend Palmer court action

Queensland Premier Campbell Newman (pic) will defend a defamation suit taken by Clive Palmer. Source: AAP

QUEENSLAND Premier Campbell Newman has stood by claims Clive Palmer tried to buy his government, saying the public deserved to know how the businessman-turned-politician operates.

Mr Newman's lawyers on Wednesday lodged a defence against a statement of claim for defamation the Palmer United Party leader made against him last month, seeking $1.1 million in damages.

Mr Palmer alleges the premier has damaged his reputation by describing him in a press conference in April as "a guy who tried to buy ... my government".

But in the defence claim, Mr Newman's lawyers say the comment was in the public interest.

"The public had an interest in receiving information that might lead them to ask (how Mr Palmer) ... in his capacity as a businessman sought to influence government decision making in relation to his business interests," the defence documents read.

It goes on to detail a meeting with Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney in 2012 where Mr Palmer wanted him to allow the development of "Port Palmer" at Abbot Point and give him exclusive access to a rail corridor to the Galilee Basin.

"(He said) he had paid substantial sums to the LNP to have the LNP elected and that he had a lot more money to support the LNP in the future," it read, adding Mr Seeney refused the offer.

Mr Newman's lawyers also claimed former Liberal National Party MPs Carl Judge and Alex Douglas received "substantial gifts" from Mr Palmer and his companies to switch allegiances.

The premier said Mr Palmer didn't complain to the police or Crime and Misconduct Commission about his comments or even seek an apology.

Mr Palmer has denied claims he offered donations to the LNP for favourable treatment.

"Campbell Newman is simply telling untruths or he has been told lies by Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney and is using them to try and defend the defamation action," Mr Palmer said in a statement on Thursday.

"This is nothing more than a desperate attempt by desperate people to discredit me."

Mr Newman said his last donation to the LNP was in 2010 - two years before the Newman government was elected.

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Nuclear waste would boost economy: Hawke

AUSTRALIA should allow the world's nuclear waste to be dumped in the country's most remote areas, former prime minister Bob Hawke believes.

Mr Hawke has used an address to the National Press Club in Canberra to outline his vision for the Australian economy, as well as reflect on his political career.

The former Labor leader said Australia had a limited capacity to grow the economy and create jobs, while at the same time providing a decent social security safety net.

"The one thing this country ought to do is have the disposal of nuclear waste in remote areas," Mr Hawke said.

He said reports his government received in the early 1990s showed the viability of such an industry and its importance in helping clean up the global environment.

"In doing good for the rest of the world we would be doing good for ourselves," Mr Hawke said.

"We would get an enormous stable flow of income which could be used for the benefit of the world and our own benefit."

Reflecting on domestic politics, Mr Hawke said the states should be abolished because they are a "blight upon the optimum development of this country".

"The duplication and all that goes with that division of power is not in the interests of the country," he said.

He also called for greater bipartisanship in parliament, which was at present being held in contempt by the Australian people.

"I think something ought to be done to lift the performance in the parliament," he said.

Former prime minister John Howard, who joined Mr Hawke on the same platform at the Press Club, said he did not think Australia would ever get rid of the states.

"If you were starting again, you wouldn't have them," he said.

"But you won't get rid of them. I think our obligation remains to try and make the federation work better."

The former Liberal prime minister said one of the problems with modern politics was that neither major party was any longer a "mass movement".

"There is not a sense that their membership represents a very broad cross-section of the Australian community," Mr Howard said.

"I think as a consequence of that, both political parties in different ways and to different degrees in different forms suffer from the disease of factionalism."

A second problem with political parties was the selection of candidates whose only life experience has been in politics, he said.

"You end up with far too many people whose life's experience has only been about political combat."

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Low paid workers get $18.70/week pay rise

The Fair Work Commission is to announce its decision on whether the minimum wage will be increased. Source: AAP

AUSTRALIA'S 1.5 million lowest paid workers will get an $18.70 a week pay rise.

The increase falls below the $27 per week rise the ACTU argues is necessary to avoid creating an underclass of working poor, but will disappoint business groups who argue they can only afford an extra $8.

Fair Work Commission president Justice Iain Ross said the wage rise was appropriate given pay inequality in Australia was increasing.

"While real earnings have generally increased over the past decade, earnings inequality is increasing," he said on Wednesday.

"Over the past five years, the rate of growth in average earnings and bargained rates of pay have outstripped the growth in minimum wages for award-reliant workers.

"This has reduced the relative living standards of award-reliant workers."

The rise means the national minimum wage will now be $640.90 a week.

Workers on the minimum wage will now earn $16.87 per hour, an increase of 50 cents on the previous hourly rate.

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Westfield in court before restructure vote

WESTFIELD Retail Trust (WRT) is in court to seek approval to conclude an investor vote on a controversial proposed merger with the Australasian business of Westfield Group.

The planned merger hit a brick wall last week when an investor vote was postponed at the last minute amid heated debate about its merits.

WRT is in the Supreme Court in Sydney on Tuesday afternoon, seeking approval to send documents to securityholders ahead of a rescheduled vote.

Details of the date and venue for the conclusion of the meeting are included in the documents, which are likely to be made public soon after court approval is granted.

Under the restructure plan, Westfield's Australian and New Zealand businesses would merge with WRT to create a new entity, to be called Scentre.

Westfield Group's international business, which includes malls in Great Britain and at Westfield World Trade Center being built in New York, would become Westfield Corporation.

A significant number of WRT securityholders believe the proposed restructure favours Westfield Group to the detriment of WRT, and a number of proxy votes lodged last week by WRT securityholders in favour of the proposed merger fell just short of what was needed to push the restructure over the line.

Shortly before WRT investors were due to vote, Mr Lowy said Westfield Group would still seek to split its Australasian arm from its international business even if WRT securityholders did not approve the planned merger.

Proxies lodged before the original meeting will remain valid, but securityholders will be allowed to lodge new proxy votes if they have changed their view on the proposal, the company has said.

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RBA leaves interest rates on hold

Ambulance torched in van blast

AN AMBULANCE has caught fire when its crew stopped to help a man whose van had burst into flames at a busy intersection in Melbourne's east.

Paper planes to crash World Cup

AUSTRALIA'S Socceroos may not be tipped to win the World Cup, but they are one of the hot favourites to be struck by a paper plane launched from the hands of a fan in Brazil.

Paper planes to crash World Cup

AUSTRALIA'S Socceroos may not be tipped to win the World Cup, but they are one of the hot favourites to be struck by a paper plane launched from the hands of a fan in Brazil.

Paper planes set to crash World Cup

AUSTRALIA'S Socceroos may not be tipped to win the World Cup, but they are one of the hot favourites to be struck by a paper plane launched from the hands of a fan in Brazil.

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Fairfax scales back job cuts

FAIRFAX Media will push ahead with cuts to its staff but has saved some positions from the firing line.

Staff at Fairfax papers, including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and The Australian Financial Review, walked off the job last month after learning 70 jobs would be axed.

Twenty-five positions were set to go in editorial production, 30 in photography and 15 in the Life Media division.

Fairfax Media confirmed to staff on Monday job losses would occur but the number of cuts had been scaled down.

However, 52 positions are still tipped to go.

Australian Publishing Media managing director Allen Williams said the company had reviewed and carefully considered alternatives put forward by staff and the media union.

In an email to staff, he said there would be 17 full-time equivalent positions made redundant in editorial production.

Thirteen positions would be cut from Life Media, down from 15 cuts foreshadowed last month.

In photographic, eight jobs have been saved with redundancies reduced from 30 to 22.

Photography will retain 28 staff.

"This follows the extensive consultation process undertaken over the past three and a half weeks with staff and MEAA (Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance)," Mr Williams stated.

Two "quality manager roles" in Sydney and Melbourne will be created and desk editor positions will be increased by six.

The voluntary redundancy program starts from Monday.

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Modelling missing on Medicare co-payment

Indigenous health advocates say a proposed Medicare co-payment is breaching human rights. Source: AAP

THE Abbott government did no modelling on how its $7 Medicare co-payment would impact on emergency departments, despite doctors and the states warning patients may inundate hospitals to avoid it.

Doctors groups such as the Australian Medical Association have for months said a GP co-payment would cause some to delay going to the doctor, and could instead drive them into hospital emergency wards.

But health officials have revealed they did not undertake any modelling on whether a co-payment would cause a spike in hospital visits.

Instead they relied on analysis of the introduction of quicker four-hour targets for emergency department visits, which showed the measure did not create the feared "honeypot" for traditional GP clients.

The revelation shocked Greens Senator Richard Di Natale, who said the four-hour access target was "a completely different scenario" to the co-payment.

"You asked if we'd modelled what might occur with the introduction of a co-payment - we haven't done that," deputy health secretary Kerry Flanagan told a Senate estimates hearing in Canberra.

May's budget lifted restrictions on hospitals charging patients for GP attendances to address state and territory concerns.

However, most have already ruled out introducing such a payment.

"Some states and territories have already come out and said they're not intending to do that but it is up to the states and territories to make those decisions," Ms Flanagan said.

Earlier on Monday a prominent indigenous health advocate said the Abbott government was breaching human rights with the co-payment.

Julie Tongs, from the Winnunga Nimmityjah Aboriginal health service in Canberra, said the charge would have a major impact on the centre.

"Health is a human right. And by doing what they are doing they are taking away that human right," she said.

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Mickelson says he's co-operating with FBI

US golfer Phil Mickelson confirms that FBI agents investigating insider trading approached him. Source: AAP

US golfer Phil Mickelson has confirmed that FBI agents investigating insider trading approached him at a tournament this week.

The winner of five major championships says he has done "absolutely nothing wrong".

A federal official briefed on the investigation has said the FBI and Securities and Exchange Commission are analysing trades Mickelson and Las Vegas gambler Billy Walters made involving Clorox at the same time activist investor Carl Icahn was attempting to take over the company.

The official was unauthorised to speak about the ongoing investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

Reports of the investigation appeared in several newspapers, including the Wall Street Journal.

Smiling as he stood before a room packed with reporters and cameras, Mickelson said the investigation had not been a distraction until FBI agents approached him after Thursday's opening round of the Memorial Tournament.

He did not offer any other details, including his relationship with Walters or any stock advice he might have received.

He said it would not affect his preparations for the US Open in two weeks, the only major he lacks for the career Grand Slam.

"It's not going to change the way I carry myself," Mickelson said after an even-par 72 at Muirfield Village left him far behind the leaders.

"Honestly, I've done nothing wrong. I'm not going to walk around any other way."

The federal official told the AP that Mickelson and Walters placed their trades at about the same time in 2011.

Federal investigators are looking into whether Icahn shared information of his takeover attempt of Clorox with Walters, and whether Walters passed that information to Mickelson.

The New York offices of the US Attorney and the FBI declined to comment.

The newspaper reports said federal officials also were examining trades by Mickelson and Walters involving Dean Foods Co in 2012.

After a brief interview, Mickelson stepped outside and signed autographs for about 20 minutes, like it was any other day at a tournament.

Fans were supportive as ever on the golf course, and Mickelson gave away so many golf balls to children that his caddie had to ask a tour official to retrieve more balls from his locker when they reached the turn.

He released a statement early on Saturday.

"I can't really go into much right now, but as I said in my statement, I have done absolutely nothing wrong," Mickelson said.

"And that's why I've been fully co-operating with the FBI agents, and I'm happy to do in the future, too, until this gets resolved."

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Man charged after baby attacked

A 30-YEAR-OLD man has been charged with grievous bodily harm and cruelty after an injured baby was admitted to a Brisbane hospital.

The one-year-old boy was taken to hospital with unspecified injuries, police say.

The man will appear in the Pine Rivers Magistrates Court on Monday.

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