Scam swindles cash on bill refund promise

SCAMMERS are hitting the phones in NSW, swindling cash from the elderly by offering bogus refunds on bills.

NSW Fair Trading Commissioner Rod Stowe has urged people to hang up on anyone who calls promising rebates on power and phone bills.

"No government agency will make calls like this," he said in a statement.

"It's a total scam and people should warn their family, friends and neighbours not to respond to these offers."

An elderly woman living at a Coffs Harbour retirement village was fleeced by the scammers.

She was called and told she was entitled to a $4288 refund on her phone and power bills.

The money would come, she was advised, after $290 was deposited into a Western Union bank account.

The scammers gave the woman a reference number, AT100, and contact details for the manager of the reclaim department, purported to be Steve Harmilson.

She's not the only one to be hoodwinked.

Mr Stowe said staff at the Coffs Harbour Fair Trading Centre had received numerous similar calls from local residents contacted in the same way with the same or similar information.

"Reports from the Sydney metropolitan area in the past week have also involved the same dollar figures and details, so the scammers are spreading their net widely."

Mr Stowe said anyone who thought they had been scammed should contact their bank and the NSW government Fair Trading Department.

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Gandhi released from hospital

INDIA'S ruling Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi has been released from hospital hours after being admitted with fever, cold and a headache.

Gandhi, 66, was taken to hospital from the national parliament, where she had earlier urged lawmakers to pass landmark legislation offering subsidised food to millions of India's poor.

"She complained of a headache and she had a cough," said a doctor who did not want to be named because he is not authorised to speak to the media.

"We checked all her parameters. Once the team of doctors was convinced that she was all right, she was discharged," he told AFP, adding that she was released about 3am.

Late on Monday, parliament passed the Food Security Bill, which has been championed by the Congress leader, who included it as a manifesto pledge for the elections in 2009.

The bill - seen as a vote-winner by the ruling Congress party ahead of national polls next year - was adopted in the lower house after a nine-hour debate.

The scheme will provide food grain to nearly 70 per cent of the population, or 800 million people, for as little as one rupee per kilo.

In a rare speech in parliament, Gandhi had told MPs to send a message to the world that India is ready to eradicate malnutrition, which Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has described as a "national shame".

Television footage showed Gandhi leaving parliament on Monday evening, escorted by her son, to go to hospital.

"She was feeling uneasy in the parliament," Congress party general secretary Janardan Dwivedi told reporters outside AIIMS hospital.

"She was rushed here to AIIMS. She has gone back home, she is all right and her medical check-up has been completed.

"She is completely fine," he added.

In 2011, Gandhi travelled to the United States for surgery for an undisclosed illness, reportedly cancer.

Her health and private life are closely guarded by her advisors.

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Boat buyback an 'insult' to Indonesia

OPPOSITION Leader Tony Abbott's plan to buy boats from Indonesian fishermen to prevent the vessels being used by people smugglers has been criticised in Jakarta with the scheme described as an insult to Indonesia.

The boat buyback is part of a new $420 million regional deterrence policy announced last week by Mr Abbott as the asylum-seeker issue continues to be a key battleground in the election campaign.

It sets aside millions of dollars to buy boats from poor Indonesian fishermen who can be easy prey for people-smuggling syndicates that can offer much more money for the rickety vessels than can be made by fishing.

But Hikmahanto Juwana, an international affairs expert from the University of Indonesia, has described the plan as "humiliating", and says it shows the coalition has a poor understanding of Indonesia.

Mr Juwana warned the plan would risk a deterioration in relations between Australia and its northern neighbour, adding that it suggested Mr Abbott viewed Indonesian fishermen as "mercenaries who did dirty jobs".

"I think the (Indonesian) government should voice protests to the coalition's very insensitive plan which clearly shows their poor knowledge about the situation in Indonesia," Mr Juwana told The Jakarta Post newspaper.

"The coalition wants to make Indonesia look inferior because they just want to provide money and ask Indonesians to get the job done for the sake of their interests."

He said buying the boats would just cause the fishermen, many of who are already very poor, to lose their livelihoods and warned it would lead to resentment and even risk conflict between the local population and foreigners.

"The program could trigger vigilantism and (attacks) on foreigners ...," Mr Juwana said.

Mr Abbott did not say how much would be paid for each boat.

"It's much better and much more sensible to spend a few thousand dollars in Indonesia, than to spend $12 million processing the people who ultimately arrive here," he told reporters.

The broader plan announced by Mr Abbott in Darwin on Friday includes funding of $67 million to increase the presence of Australian Federal Police in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Malaysia.

Close to another $100 million would be spent to boost the aerial surveillance and search and rescue capacity of Indonesian authorities and $198 million to boost interception and transfer operations.

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Man pleads guilty to shooting WA teenager

A PERTH man has pleaded guilty to the shooting death of a teenager 15 months ago.

Joseph Giglia pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the WA Supreme Court via video link on Monday over the death of 18-year-old Dale Plaziuk in May last year.

Dale's older brother Corey read a statement to reporters outside court, describing it as a "good day" for the family because Giglia had finally admitted responsibility for Dale's death.

"It will be a huge relief to our family knowing Dale might finally have some justice being done and that this should now be dealt with before the end of the year," he said.

Mr Plaziuk said he had been afraid Giglia would never admit to the crime and would drag the family though the ordeal of a trial.

He said it had been a long and stressful process for the family so far, and they wanted to find out the truth about the circumstances surrounding Dale's death.

Dale's mother Michelle, who has three other sons and a daughter, said Dale's death had had a huge impact on the family.

"I spend every other day out with Dale cleaning his headstone and asking him to please come home because we all miss him," she said, holding back her tears.

Mr Plaziuk said he and his brother wore necklaces commemorating Dale with the inscription: "Forever my brother. Forever my best mate".

Giglia will remain in custody at Hakea Prison until his next court appearance on November 5.

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Man critical after Sydney hotel fall

A man is in a critical condition after he fell out a hotel window in Sydney's CBD, police say. Source: AAP

A MAN is in a critical condition after he fell out a hotel window in Sydney's CBD.

Paramedics were called to the hotel at Albion Place, Sydney, around 10.20am (AEST) on Sunday, an Ambulance NSW spokesman said.

It was initially unclear how far the man had fallen.

He has been taken to hospital in a critical condition.

Police are investigating.

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No batons, spray at revamped WA youth jail

DEMANDS for teen prisoners in Western Australia to be guarded by batons and pepper spray will not be granted by the state government.

The Barnett government is preparing to reopen the repaired and beefed up Banksia Hill youth detention centre, following a riot in January which virtually destroyed the facility.

That led to young prisoners being housed in an adult high security prison, a move that was challenged legally and led to furious opposition from human rights campaigners.

It also led to calls from youth custody officers to demand more measures to protect themselves - but Corrective Services Minister Joe Francis said he would not sanction batons and pepper spray at the centre.

"Some of these kids are here for significant offences, such as murder and rape," Mr Francis said.

"But this government will not at any time allow youth custodial officers to use pepper spray and batons."

Mr Francis also attacked some officers, who he said were "taking the mickey" out of the state with continued work absenteeism.

He claimed almost half of the youth custody officers rostered to work on Saturday failed to show.

He said that was hardening the government's view to a possible privatisation of the facility.

"They are clearly taking the taxpayer for a ride," Mr Francis said.

Some of the teen prisoners in the adult Hakea Prison will remain there until Christmas, despite work on the state's only youth detention centre being nearly complete.

After seven months, the works to repair and upgrade security, some youngsters will begin to move back in the coming weeks - but they will find a different atmosphere.

Additional bars on windows have been coupled with higher fences and more security, to ensure a repeat of the January 20 riot does not occur.

Mr Francis said the repairs and upgrades have cost about $1.5 million, out of a total of about $3.6 million the riot cost the government.

"I don't want it to look like a maximum security prison - in fact I want it to look more like a high school," Mr Francis said.

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Glass found in frozen broccoli bags

Bags of frozen broccoli are being recalled after bits of glass were discovered inside the product. Source: AAP

BAGS of frozen broccoli are being recalled after bits of glass were discovered inside the product.

Metcash Trading is recalling 500g bags of Black and Gold broccoli florets from IGA stores and other independent grocers across Victoria, NSW, Queensland, Tasmania, and in the ACT.

Only bags that have a best before date of July 8, 2014 with a batch code of YJ12190 are impacted by the voluntary recall.

The company said in a statement that it is in contact with the manufacturer to find out what happened.

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Abbott doesn't believe polls

TONY Abbott doesn't believe the polls that are tipping the coalition to win the election.

"I think this is a very, very close race", the opposition leader told reporters in Adelaide.

A ReachTEL poll of 2785 electors across Tasmania shows the Liberal Party is now almost certain to pick up the seats of Bass, Braddon and Lyons.

And the latest Fairfax-Nielsen poll shows Labor's primary vote has dropped two points in the past fortnight to 35 while the coalition's rose a point to 47 per cent. After preferences, this gives the coalition a 53-47 lead.

"Frankly, I don't believe them," Mr Abbott said of the polls.

He says there is a long way to go before September 7 and Labor is about to unleash "the mother of all negative campaigns" over the next two weeks.

Labor is "hopeless" at governing but "brilliant at low politics", he said.

Mr Abbott says Mr Rudd now has a spring in his step because he thinks Labor's negative campaign is working.

Deputy Prime Minister Anthony Albanese played down Labor's poor poll results, saying the campaign was only at the "half time siren".

"We're about to run on the field for the second half, and we all know the premiership quarter is the third quarter," he told reporters in Melbourne.

"Tony Abbott has his campaign launch tomorrow at the beginning of the third quarter.

"He has to come clean with his costings, where the cuts will be."

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Financial advice: to seek, or not to seek?

LIVING pay cheque to pay cheque and consumed by fears of how to keep up with their constant stream of bills, Simon and Felicity Doherty were sinking.

Simon had changed jobs from firefighting to policing, initially taking a 60 per cent pay cut, and with Felicity caring for their two young sons, they struggled for years on one pay cheque.

"You can't function in day to day life when you've got this weight on your shoulders that just doesn't go away," Ms Doherty said.

"You're thinking about it when you go to bed and as soon as you get up in the morning - it just becomes a burden."

Finally, it was a batch of bills they didn't know how they'd pay that pushed the couple to see a financial planner.

The decision changed their lives.

"I'd always wanted to get financial advice but it's one of those things we'd put on hold, we didn't have the money to go and pay somebody to give us the advice," Mr Doherty said.

"As soon as we walked out of our first appointment, we both had big smiles on our faces and a weight off our shoulders," Ms Doherty said.

"It makes your life so much happier."

Seeking financial advice can be a daunting experience for some, and it's not hard to see why.

If you're already struggling to make ends meet, paying a financial planner seems like another cost you don't need.

Then there's the dodgy operators who have given the industry's image a battering, including the case of seven Commonwealth Bank (CBA) planners banned by ASIC for dodgy practices that saw multi million-dollar losses for their clients.

Since then, the government has worked to clean the industry up with its Future of Financial Advice reforms, which became mandatory on July 1 and make it compulsory for financial advisers to act in the best interests of their clients.

Financial adviser and director at Hillross Bendigo Ash McAuliffe said the process shouldn't be daunting, as long as you find the right planner.

He recommends interviewing a few before choosing an experienced planner you can connect with on a personal level.

"People are reluctant to see financial planners but it's important that people don't feel intimidated or that financial planning is not for them," Mr McAuliffe said.

"People say, 'when I've got heaps of money I'll come and see you', but hang on, I can help you get that.

"It's not about having huge amounts of money and getting advice on how to invest it, financial advice is about achieving your lifestyle goals, whether that's retiring at 55 instead of 65 or buying your first house or your tenth house."

Consumer group Choice spokesman Tom Godfrey said the CBA case served as a timely reminder for consumers to ask the hard questions of their advisers and get clear answers in writing.

Free online financial advice is available for Financial Planning Week until September 1 at www.fpa.com.au/askanexpert.

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Gay sentenced slammed by shareholders

Former Gunns chairman John Gay has been fined $50,000 over insider trading charges. Source: AAP

SHAREHOLDERS have slammed as too lenient the $50,000 fine handed to former Gunns chairman John Gay for insider trading.

Gay, 70, has avoided jail after admitting to the crime, with Justice David Porter telling the Tasmanian Supreme Court it fell into the "less serious category".

He had faced a maximum penalty of five years jail or a fine of $220,000 after disposing of 3.4 million Gunns shares in December 2009 with "high grade" inside information.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) hailed the outcome as sending a message to company directors.

But Australian Shareholders' Association chairman Ian Curry said shareholders were entitled to be disappointed.

"We're surprised at the leniency of the judge's decisions," Mr Curry told AAP.

"Where a director has pleaded guilty to a charge of insider trading we would have thought that there would have been the potential for a jail term or a suspended jail term."

Mr Curry said the fine did not reflect the benefit Gay had received by selling the shares two months before the company's half-yearly report was released in February 2010.

Gay had in his possession the company's October 2009 management report, which was not released to the market and which showed the company's profit had fallen 139.5 per cent on the previous year.

He sold shares at around 90 cents, netting close to $3.2 million.

The price plummeted to 68.5 cents when the February report was released.

Justice Porter said Gay had made up his mind to sell the shares before he had received the information, making the crime less serious.

He said the decision had been made because Gay had been diagnosed with prostate cancer and had a desire to pay off debts in the event of his death.

The anxiety caused by the disease affected Gay's decision making, Justice Porter said.

"The sales were not triggered by the information," Justice Porter said.

Mr Curry said that did not explain the leniency of the sentence.

"Whilst one doesn't deny that he did have health problems, we don't believe that excuses him," he said.

"It's three-and-a-half years now since that decision and Mr Gay's health still seems to be under control.

"We think the judge accepted that claim lightly."

ASIC commissioner Cathie Armour said Gay was the most senior Australian executive to have been convicted of insider trading.

"The conviction of Mr Gay sends a message to directors to carefully consider the information they possess when making a trading decision," Ms Armour said in a statement.

But Mr Curry rejected that.

"I think there was a clear opportunity for the judge to send a message to the business community in a position where a chairman ... took this action and clearly profited at the expense of shareholders generally," he said.

" ... This case certainly doesn't send a strong message.

Justice Porter said Gay had been advised by company secretary Wayne Chapman that he was in a permitted trading window and the chairman had been reassured by this.

But the judge told Gay, who changed his plead to guilty earlier this month: "You ought to have exercised far greater care."

He described Gay as a person of "exemplary character ... with a reputation of honesty and integrity."

The former sawmiller who joined Gunns in 1973 built the company into a top 100 Australian company by 2005, employing 2000 people.

When Gunns collapsed last year, Gay still held 12 million shares which were "effectively valueless", the judge said.

Gay did not comment outside the court but released a statement asking for privacy as he continues his treatment for cancer, the ABC reported.

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