Confusion over why PM cancelled Bali trip

The federal government won't say why Prime Minister Tony Abbott cancelled a trip to Indonesia. Source: AAP

LABOR is demanding to know why Prime Minister Tony Abbott cancelled a planned trip to Indonesia, accusing him of further straining the relationship with one of Australia's closest neighbours.

Arrangements were being made for Mr Abbott to visit Bali early next week, where he'd been invited by Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to attend a regional forum on open government.

But the trip has been put on ice, with speculation an asylum seeker operation underway northeast of Australia could be the reason behind the last-minute decision.

The prime minister's office has not confirmed why the visit was junked just days before the two leaders were expected to meet on the sidelines of the conference.

The invitation was seen as an opportunity to salvage relations damaged after a spying scandal late last year that saw Indonesia suspend high-level co-operation with Australia.

Shadow foreign affairs spokeswoman Tanya Plibersek is calling for answers.

"Rejecting this invitation at this late stage really does put extra strain on the relationship," she told reporters in Sydney on Saturday.

"It's very important that the prime minister discloses the reasons that he's really not going."

It's understood the trip was deemed too politically risky while Australian authorities were in the process of intercepting an asylum seeker vessel heading towards the mainland.

Turning back or towing an asylum seeker boat to Indonesia during the prime minister's visit could have caused embarrassment President Yudhoyono, sources say.

The Australian Greens said Mr Abbott's "cruel" asylum seeker policy had robbed Australia of a real chance to mend ties with Indonesia.

"That's the extent of the embarrassment that Tony Abbott is to Australia both domestically and internationally," Greens leader Christine Milne told reporters in Hobart.

"He's hoist on his own petard."

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann said there was nothing unusual or remarkable about the decision to cancel the trip, suggesting the impending budget was the reason.

"The prime minister is obviously very focused on his responsibilities here in Australia, 10 days out from our first budget," he told Sky News on Saturday.

Labor frontbencher Ed Husic rejected this explanation, accusing him of undermining Australia's foreign interests by snubbing Indonesia.

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Friends, relatives mourn L'Wren Scott

Mick Jagger has sung Bob Dylan's Just Like a Woman at a memorial service for L'Wren Scott. Source: AAP

MICK Jagger has sung Bob Dylan's Just Like a Woman at a celebrity-filled memorial service for longtime companion, fashion designer L'Wren Scott, who committed suicide in March.

The service, held at St Bartholomew's Church in Manhattan, included words of tribute from Jagger as well as Scott's brother, Randy Bambrough; her good friend actress Ellen Barkin; fashion personality Andre Leon Talley; and actress Sarah Jessica Parker, according to a statement from Jagger's publicist Vicki Scarfone.

Poems were shared by Scott's niece, Hannah Bambrough, and Jagger's son, James Jagger. The Rolling Stones rocker's grandchildren, Mazie and Zak, read Psalm 23. Besides Jagger's rendition of the Dylan song, his longtime backup singer Lisa Fischer sang "Amazing Grace."

The service was followed by a reception.

Others attending included actresses Julianne Moore, Meg Ryan, Olivia Munn and Renee Zellweger; Vogue editor Anna Wintour; film directors Martin Scorsese and Baz Luhrmann; and Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter. Fans lined against barricades to take photos.

A small private funeral was held for Scott in Los Angeles in March.

* Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467 or follow @LifelineAust @OntheLineAus @kidshelp @beyondblue @headspace_aus @ReachOut_AUS on Twitter.

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Man abducts, attacks Qld woman in her car

A MAN has attacked a woman after jumping in her car at a north Queensland car wash and telling her to drive to an industrial area.

Police say the woman was cleaning her car in the early hours of Saturday morning when a man jumped in and told her to drive to a nearby industrial area.

When they stopped he snatched the keys from the ignition and the pair began to struggle.

But the sight of a patrolling police car caused the man to run away.

The woman was taken to hospital with cuts and abrasions to her face, back, legs and an injury to her arm.

Police are searching for the man.

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NSW police minister stands down

NSW Police Minister Mike Gallacher has stood down following evidence at a corruption inquiry. Source: AAP

NSW Police Minister Mike Gallacher has stood down from the ministry, pending the outcome of the NSW corruption watchdog's explosive inquiry into banned donations.

The announcement was made by barrister Arthur Moses SC at the Independent Commission Against Corruption hearing in Sydney.

He asked counsel assisting Geoffrey Watson SC to confirm he would pursue a corruption allegation against Mr Gallacher.

"Oh, yes," came Mr Watson's prompt reply.

"My learned friend has said that - I assume - having given it some thought," Mr Moses said.

"Having stated that, then the position of the minister, which will be announced shortly, (is that he) will stand aside as minister pending the outcome of the inquiry."

NSW Premier Mike Baird is expected to release a statement shortly.

The corruption watchdog earlier heard a top executive at Nathan Tinkler's Buildev group had Mr Gallacher and former Liberal frontbencher Chris Hartcher "on tap", thanks to tens of thousands in secret donations.

Mr Gallacher is the second cabinet minister and fifth Liberal MP to be sidelined as a result of the current inquiry, dubbed Operation Spicer.

The developments come only weeks after Barry O'Farrell's shock resignation as premier for providing misleading testimony at ICAC over an unregistered $3000 bottle of wine.

Mr Watson on Friday accused Mr Tinkler associate Darren Williams of hatching a corrupt scheme with Mr Gallacher and Mr Hartcher to funnel $66,000 from Buildev to the NSW Liberal Party.

Mr Williams is accused of arranging the payments in return for favourable decisions about a lucrative coal terminal proposal at Newcastle, which he agreed was worth "a fortune" to Mr Tinkler.

"You were paying good money to get good access to politicians," Mr Watson said, as phone records showing extensive contact between Mr Hartcher, Mr Gallacher and Mr Williams were flashed before the inquiry.

"I always had good access to politicians," Mr Williams replied.

"You had them on tap," Mr Watson pressed on.

"You could ring them any time for a favour."

It is alleged the controversial donations were funnelled via Mr Tinkler's stud farm Patinack and then through a slush fund set up by Mr Hartcher's staffer Tim Koelma.

It is alleged Mr Hartcher helped "work up" the crooked scheme but that Mr Gallacher was central to the plan.

Mr Baird is in Canberra for the Council of Australian Governments meeting.

The stunning new allegations came less than 24 hours after the emergence of a damning 2010 email exchange that implicated Mr Gallacher in the unfolding cash-for-favours scandal.

In one email, Mr Williams asked an associate of Mr Tinkler, David Sharpe, "which entity will I give Mike Gallagher (sic)".

Mr Sharpe replied: "Ask Nathan as I think it's best to come through patnack (in reference to Mr Tinkler's horse stud Patinack) get right away from property minning infristructure (sic)."

Developers have been barred from making political donations in NSW since 2009.

Another email sent by Mr Williams to Patinack Farm director Troy Palmer in November 2010 carried the subject heading: "Mate can you get the payments to Tim the Liberal Party please mate as there 2 months behind (sic)".

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Cuts to tourism would be devastating: oppn

FEWER travellers will head Down Under if tourism funding is cut, the federal opposition's industry spokesman has warned.

The National Commission of Audit report recommends halving funding for Tourism Australia (TA) because, it says, the department's benefits aren't obvious.

It also supports cutting regional tourism grants.

Shadow minister for tourism Anthony Albanese has warned that if the Abbott Liberal government goes ahead with the cuts, the impact on the tourism industry, especially in struggling regions like far north Queensland, would be devastating.

"We know that tourism creates 900,000 jobs nationally and yet we have a proposition of cutting tourism funding in half," he told media in Cairns on Friday.

"[TA] will lose the expertise and essentially have just a few bureaucrats running the tourism agenda for Australia."

Mr Albanese said the audit was an example of the government's short-sightedness.

"If you have a series of cuts such as the cuts to tourism then that will lower future economic growth ... you are cutting off your nose to spite your face," he said.

National industry body Tourism and Transport Forum has said cutting funding to TA would dramatically impact business, local jobs and investment prospects for Australia.

"Tourism Australia's work is helping the tourism industry deliver $42.3 billion in direct GDP each year," chief executive Ken Morrison said in a statement.

"While there are a number of constructive suggestions in this report, halving Tourism Australia funding is not one of them."

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Cyber extortion ring busted in Philippines

DOZENS of people have been arrested in the Philippines for their involvement in a giant, global Internet "sextortion" network, local police and Interpol say.

Victims in foreign countries were lured by people in the Philippines into giving sexually explicit photos or videos about themselves online, then been blackmailed for many thousands of dollars, the authorities said in a joint press conference in Manila on Friday.

"The scale of this extortion network is massive," the director of Interpol's Digital Crime Centre, Sanjay Virmani said.

"These crimes are not limited to any one country and nor are the victims. That's why international cooperation in investigating these crimes is essential."

Philippine police chief Alan Purisima said the 58 people arrested would be charged over a range of crimes, including engaging in child pornography, extortion and using technologies to commit fraud.

It was not immediately clear whether all 58 arrested were Filipinos, although authorities initially made no mention of any foreigners who may have been directly involved in the Philippines.

However, authorities emphasised the Philippines was not the hub of the global sextortion network, only that the current investigation had focused on the Southeast Asian nation.

Purisima said the scam typically involved someone posing as an attractive, young lady making contact with people overseas via Facebook and other social media, then seeking to establish a relationship with them.

"After getting acquainted with the victims ... they engage in cybersex, and this will be recorded unknown to the victims," he said.

"They then threaten to release it to friends and relatives."

He said victims had paid between 500 Philippines pesos ($A12) and 500,000 pesos ($12,075).

While he said elderly men were often targeted, children were also victims.

A Scottish police chief who also briefed reporters at the press conference said one boy in Scotland had committed suicide after being extorted.

He said the boy was 17 when he killed himself.

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Pink batts costings were 'drawn on napkin'

The royal commission into the Rudd government's home insulation program resumes on Thursday. Source: AAP

THE costings for Labor's home insulation program were drawn on the back of a napkin by a senior politician, possibly Kevin Rudd, and an industry representative, a former government contractor claims.

Troy Delbridge, a technical advisor for the scheme, has told a royal commission how he learned about the napkin when he asked a departmental colleague to see the program's costings.

Under-cross examination by counsel assisting Keith Wilson, Dr Delbridge said the senior politician who wrote on it might have been Mr Rudd.

"It was one the prime minister's inner circle, whether it was himself I'm not sure," Dr Delbridge told the inquiry.

"It was the kind of message that was going around that was 'you didn't hear that from me'."

Dr Delbridge said he believed the industry representative was Insulation Council of Australia and New Zealand (ICANZ) chief executive officer Dennis D'Arcy.

He said he ended up being provided with a basic spreadsheet of the costings, which he may still have.

Earlier, Dr Delbridge told the inquiry he was seen as a squeaky wheel, who was told to basically shut-up, when he raised concerns about safety aspects of the home insulation program.

The use of foil insulation was among his concerns.

When asked whether there was any discussion early in the program about whether certain insulation products shouldn't be used, he said the suitability of foil was discussed.

"Absolutely, and foil was the main example of that," he told the inquiry.

"We actually considered the banning of foil from the program because of the risks."

The three Queensland tradesmen who died under the scheme were installing foil insulation.

The $2.8 billion home insulation program has also been linked to the death of a NSW tradesman and more than 200 house fires.

The royal commission before Ian Hanger QC continues.

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Holden reverses Aust engineering closure

Holden will maintain an engineering centre in Australia after local car production ends in 2017. Source: AAP

HOLDEN will maintain an engineering centre in Australia after local car production ends in 2017 but says it will mainly only re-tune imported models for local conditions.

The company will maintain about 70 staff at its Victorian proving ground which General Motors International Operations president Stefan Jacoby said would re-tune imported cars for Australian buyers and may perform some work for GM's international engineering team.

Holden announced the closure of the Lang Lang facility as part of its December decision to cease making the Commodore, Statesman/Caprice and Cruze range of locally-made cars, costing 2900 jobs in total.

Mr Jacoby denied reversing the decision to retain Lang Lang, part of Holden product development since the 1950s, was a marketing exercise as its market share falls after it announced local manufacturing will cease.

"As we continue to plan for the company's success now and in the future, it is important that Holden and its vehicles retain their Australian DNA," he said.

"It will be involved in global engineering development as well, but mainly for fine-tuning for these vehicles which we will introduce for the Australian market."

But Mr Jacoby said Holden engineers would no longer have the capability to engineer a car from the ground up.

Mr Jacoby made the announcement at Holden's headquarters in Melbourne on Thursday, where he also launched three new niche European models to be sold in Australia and New Zealand from the first half of 2015 - the Astra hatch, Cascada convertible and Insignia performance sedan.

The models are built by GM's European arm, Opel.

The Astra was on sale as an Opel in a separate Opel dealer network until that network was wound up in August 2013.

Mr Jacoby refused to comment on further product announcements.

It is rumoured that American vehicles including the Cadillac luxury brand and the iconic Chevrolet Camaro - engineered in Australia on a platform it shares with the Commodore - might appear in Australia in the future.

Mr Jacoby said Holden intends to keep all its staff and build all its local models until 2017.

"We expect around 2900 people (the current workforce) will maintain their jobs until 2017," he said.

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Toronto mayor seeks substance abuse help

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford will go on leave to seek help for substance abuse, his lawyer says. Source: AAP

TORONTO Mayor Rob Ford will take a leave of absence to seek help for substance abuse, his lawyer says, as a report surfaced about a second video of the mayor allegedly smoking crack cocaine.

The Globe and Mail newspaper reported on Wednesday it had viewed a second video of Ford smoking what appears to be crack cocaine in his sister's basement.

The national newspaper reported two Globe reporters viewed the video from a self-professed drug dealer showing Ford taking a drag from a pipe early on Saturday morning.

The video is part "of a package of three videos the dealer said was surreptitiously filmed around 1.15am, and which he says he is now selling for 'at least six figures'," the paper reported.

News reports of the existence of an earlier video of Ford apparently smoking crack first surfaced last May, igniting a media firestorm around Ford.

The latest crack tape report comes as Ford's lawyer, Dennis Morris, said the mayor will take a leave of absence for substance abuse. Ford is seeking re-election in the October 27 vote.

Morris said he spoke to Ford earlier on Wednesday and said Ford accepted he had a problem.

"He acknowledges he has a substance abuse problem and he wants to do something about it," Morris told The Associated Press.

Ford, who launched his campaign for re-election earlier this year, acknowledged last year after months of denials that he smoked crack in a "drunken stupor" after police said they obtained a video that appears to show him smoking crack. The video has never been released to the public.

Ford has lurched from one scandal to another, becoming a national embarrassment for many Canadians.

The mayor has refused to resign, despite mounting pressure after a string of incidents, from public drunkenness to an appearance in another video that showed him threatening "murder" in an incoherent rant.

Toronto's city council has stripped him of most of his powers.

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Sydney cyclist critical after hit by truck

A CYCLIST is in hospital with life-threatening injuries after being hit by a truck in Sydney's inner-west.

Emergency services were called to the intersection of May Street and the Princes Highway in St Peters at about 9am on Wednesday where a 26-year-old cyclist was trapped under a truck.

The man has been taken to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in critical condition.

The 59-year-old truck driver was not injured but has been taken to hospital to undergo mandatory blood and urine testing.

Police are appealing for any witnesses to come forward.

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WA's shark cull ends, but may return

The trial of WA's shark culling program is concluding, and could extend for a further three years. Source: AAP

BAITED drumlines that have caught more than 100 sharks off the West Australian coast are being pulled from the water with the conclusion of the state government's culling trial.

Data from the Department of Fisheries for the period from January 25 to March 16 shows 31 sharks were killed while a further 14 were found dead on hooks, including two mako sharks.

The vast majority of those caught were tiger sharks, but a blacktip and dusky whaler were also caught and released alive.

No great white sharks, which are responsible for most fatal attacks on humans, were caught.

While the controversial catch-and-kill policy targeted great white, bull and tiger sharks bigger than three metres, all but two of those that were found dead on hooks were smaller, including the makos, which measured only 1.7m and 2m.

Earlier this month, the state government applied to the commonwealth to continue the program for three more years.

That would see up to 72 baited drumlines set one kilometre off the metropolitan and southwest coast between November 15 and April 30, starting this year, and would be reviewed in 2017.

Last week, WA's Environmental Protection Authority opened a four-week public submission period on the planned extension, despite declining to formally assess the trial program even though a record number of public submissions - more than 23,000 - had been received.

The new proposal was also referred to the Commonwealth Department of the Environment, with a decision about whether it will undertake a separate assessment expected next month.

Premier Colin Barnett said the policy, which he still refused to label a cull, had been a success with authorities learning more about sharks and there being no bi-catch.

"I think it has been a success, and maybe there'll be a fair bit of contention about that, but we have caught some very large sharks close into popular swimming areas," he told ABC radio on Wednesday.

The premier said people would be surprised, if not horrified, that off Floreat beach alone there were two sharks caught over 4.2 metres.

"That's twice the length of [2.11m-tall AFL footballer] Aaron Sandilands," he said.

"I mean, these are very large, mature sharks.

"They were tiger sharks. They are proven around the world to be a dangerous shark."

Mr Barnett added that the behaviour of some people who objected to the policy was poor.

"I welcome the debate, but some of the behaviour has simply been vulgar and obscene," he said.

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Gold stars at refurbished Perth Mint

THE biggest, heaviest and most valuable gold bullion coin in the world is the centrepiece of a new permanent exhibition at the refurbished Perth Mint.

The piece is one tonne of 99.99 per cent pure gold - making it worth more than $50 million.

The coin, which is 80 centimetres in diameter and more than 12cm deep, depicts a red kangaroo surrounded by rays of sunlight.

West Australian Premier Colin Barnett said the $5.5 million redevelopment of Perth Mint, which was completed in two stages, was the biggest since it was founded 115 years ago.

Other items on display in the exhibition include more than $25 million worth of natural and refined gold, a rare opportunity to handle a solid gold bar worth more than $500,000, gold pours, the minting of Australian precious metal coins, and a multimedia heritage tour.

Perth Mint was established as a branch of Britain's Royal Mint in 1899.

Its primary functions of refining gold from the eastern goldfields and striking gold coinage continues today but at its refinery near Perth Airport, with precious metal coins struck onsite at the mint.

The Mint, which attracts almost 80,000 visitors a year, also issues the nation's official bullion and commemorative coins.

In 2012-13, Perth Mint refined more than 300 tonnes of precious metals, reported close to $3 billion worth of holdings in its depository, and sold 4.3 million gold, silver and platinum coins.

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Plane catches fire at Perth Airport

A PLANE has made an emergency landing at Perth Airport after a suspected engine fire erupted shortly after take-off.

The Cobham Aviation flight landed safely after the mid-air incident on Tuesday, a Perth Airport spokeswoman confirmed.

Witnesses have reported seeing the flames coming from the right engine.

The Perth Airport website shows that a Cobham Aviation flight was scheduled to depart at 10.45am for Barrow Island.

Pictures have emerged on social media of a plane with an engine appearing to be on fire, but it has not been confirmed as the plane involved in the emergency.

The aircraft is currently being assessed at the airport.

Cobham operates aircraft on behalf of Qantas regional subsidiary QantasLink.

A spokesman for the regional carrier said a statement would be issued later on Tuesday.

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Abbott confirms Obama meeting plans

Tony Abbott has confirmed plans to meet with Barack Obama (R) when he visits the US in coming weeks. Source: AAP

TONY Abbott has confirmed plans to meet with Barack Obama when he makes his first prime ministerial visit to the United States in coming weeks.

The prime minister is expected to have face-to-face talks with the president at the White House in June.

"I am planning to go to the United States in the middle of the year and I'd certainly expect to have a meeting with the president," Mr Abbott confirmed to Fairfax Radio on Tuesday.

Mr Abbott will lead a large business delegation to the US. The visit will also include a trip to New York.

The prime minister is also expected to visit Canada for talks with Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

But the trip will begin in France, with a visit to Normandy to mark the 70th anniversary of D-day. Mr Abbott is also expected to visit other European World War I battlefields.

Mr Obama is expected to make his second presidential visit to Australia in November, for the G20.

The White House on Tuesday confirmed in a statement that Mr Abbott would visit Washington on June 12 for meetings with Mr Obama aimed at "deepening their nations' close alliance", French news agency AFP reported.

"The two leaders will discuss a range of issues of mutual interest, such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, Australia's leadership of the G20 this year, the future of Afghanistan, and the growing bilateral defence relationship, including the rotation of US Marines through Darwin," the statement said.

"They will also address some of the most serious security issues that confront both Australia and the United States, including Syria, Russia's actions in Ukraine, North Korea, and the security and stability of the Asia-Pacific region."

The statement described Australia as "a valued friend and stalwart ally".

"The President looks forward to working with Prime Minister Abbott to deepen US-Australia cooperation on these and other issues," it said.

The statement was released just before Mr Obama was due to leave the Philippines, ending an Asian tour that also took him to Japan, South Korea and Malaysia.

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Donor was told 'no one will know': ICAC

THE NSW builder whose $5000 payment to an alleged Liberal Party front company sparked a sensational inquiry says a fundraiser for NSW MP Chris Hartcher urged him not to declare the donation.

Matthew Lusted told the corruption watchdog he decided to stand for Liberal preselection in the federal seat of Dobell after a chance meeting with then Opposition Leader Tony Abbott at a steakhouse on the eve of Australia Day, 2011.

"He encouraged me to consider it," Mr Lusted told the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) on Tuesday.

"And eventually I did."

Mr Lusted was ultimately beaten to the Dobell preselection by Karen McNamara, who he claims "gloated" that as campaign manager for Darren Webber's 2011 state parliament tilt at the seat of Wyong, she raised $200,000, though she declared less than $100,000.

Days earlier, Mr Lusted says, he had met with Hartcher associate Ray Carter, who asked him to "contribute for the boys who are standing on the coast".

The "boys" were Mr Hartcher and NSW Central Coast MPs Chris Spence and Mr Webber, all of whom have been banished to the crossbench over the controversial donations.

It is alleged that Mr Carter arranged for the money to be paid not to the Liberal Party but to "sham" company EightByFive.

Documents show Hartcher staffer and EightByFive founder Tim Koelma billed Mr Lusted's company for $4545.46 plus GST for "Products and services as agreed".

Mr Lusted said he did not realise the money had been funnelled in this way until he attempted to declare the $5000 donation to the Electoral Funding Authority and one of his staff was unable to find a record of it.

"I had a gut feeling something was not right," Mr Lusted told the ICAC in a statement.

But he says Mr Carter reassured him that the apparent discrepancy would go away, telling him: "No one's going to find out about anything. You've got nothing to worry about."

"I wonder if he thinks that now," Mr Lusted mused.

Counsel for Mr Koelma has suggested Mr Lusted is lying to the ICAC "as a form of retribution for having not been preselected" in Dobell.

The inquiry into political donations continues.

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Disaster relief funding to be reviewed

THE federal government wants to use disaster relief funding more effectively.

It has asked the Productivity Commission to look into how relief money is spent in the aftermath of cyclones, bushfires and the like.

Releasing the terms of reference on Monday, Justice Minister Michael Keenan said the human and economic costs of natural disasters are soaring.

The government needs to be proactive, not reactive, to future crises.

That may mean, for example, looking at whether destroyed roads will be rebuilt to the same standard.

However, the review will not consider cutting disaster relief funds.

"This is not about saving money. This is about making sure the money we do spend is being spent in the most effective way possible," Mr Keenan told reporters.

The commission will deliver its report by the end of the year, with a draft due in September.

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NSW Liberal donations under ICAC spotlight

NSW Liberal figures used a sham company to secretly funnel more than $400,000 in donations to prospective MPs and associates in exchange for favours, a corruption inquiry has heard.

"This inquiry will expose the systematic subversion of the electoral funding laws of NSW," counsel assisting Geoffrey Watson told the Independent Commission Against Corruption as the Operation Spicer hearings began.

In the ICAC's sights are former NSW energy minister Chris Hartcher and former staffer Tim Koelma.

Mr Koelma's company EightByFive is said to have solicited illicit political donations and funded election campaigns for Central Coast MPs Darren Webber and Chris Spence in return for favours from Mr Hartcher.

One-time mining magnate Nathan Tinkler's Buildev Group paid $66,000, the Gazal family's development firm Gazcorp paid $137,000, and the notorious Obeid-linked Australian Water Holdings (AWH) paid $137,000 for fake services invoiced by EightByFive, the inquiry has heard.

Mr Hartcher resigned from the front bench last year after ICAC investigators raided his office.

The inquiry comes on the heels of Operation Credo, which felled former NSW premier Barry O'Farrell.

The new probe has already threatened to draw in Police Minister Michael Gallacher and Energy Minister Anthony Roberts.

The inquiry has heard that Mr Roberts may have joined Mr Hartcher as a guest on Nabil Gazal's yacht, which came replete with private chef, and in 2007 sailed to Hamilton Island, the luxury resort island in Queensland's Whitsundays.

The inquiry has heard Liberal MP Marie Ficarra took a banned $5000 donation from property developer Tony Merhi.

Operation Spicer will also examine a false corruption complaint levelled against former Sydney Water managing director Kerry Schott.

The ICAC has heard Mr Koelma's brother Eric made an anonymous complaint against Dr Schott - which later proved to be baseless - because she was seen as a stumbling block in EightByFive donor AWH's bid to secure a lucrative government deal.

Mr Watson said Eric Koelma made a complaint involving allegations of "cover-ups" and "jobs for the boys", which were included in a document sent to him by his brother.

"No, it was not done to disguise (Tim Koelma's) hand in this - he says he sent it on to Eric because his printer had run out of toner," Mr Watson said.

The first witness will appear on Monday afternoon.

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Oklahoma tornado kills two

Officials say a tornado has killed at least two people and destroyed buildings in Oklahoma. Source: AAP

A TORNADO system that ripped through the central and southern United States has left at least five people dead, officials say.

Four people were killed as the storm ripped through suburbs of Little Rock, Arkansas, Matt DeCample, a spokesman for Arkansas Governor Mike Beebe said on Sunday night.

The large tornado stayed on the ground as it moved northeastward for at least 48km, with television footage showing badly damaged buildings and vehicles.

A separate tornado from the same storm system moving through the central and southern US killed one person in the small Oklahoma town of Quapaw.

Authorities earlier had said two were killed in Quapaw. Sheriff's dispatcher Kelli Soechs declined to explain the discrepancy.

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Abbott won't rule debt levy in or out

PM Tony Abbott has refused to comment on reports his government may soon introduce a debt levy. Source: AAP

PRIME Minister Tony Abbott has refused to comment on reports his government may soon introduce a debt levy to tackle the budget deficit.

Based on the Queensland flood levy, News Corporation says a "one off" tax will be introduced in Treasurer Joe Hockey's May budget.

The levy would be targeted at high income earners, with the tax thresholds yet to be decided by the government.

The government's commission of audit has also recommended scrapping Family Tax Benefit B payments aimed at single income families, News Corporation said.

Mr Abbott said he was not going to get into the business of ruling things in and ruling things out of the May 13 budget, but the coalition had committed to fixing the "fiscal disaster" left by the Labor government.

Australia had debt and deficits "stretching out as far as the eye can see", he told reporters in Brisbane.

"It's important that the mess be tackled," the prime minister said on Sunday.

"Now we are going to do it in ways which are faithful to the commitments that we made to the Australian people.

"We will do it in ways which are fair, which are equitable, and which I believe will be seen to be fair by the Australian people."

Labor says the levy would breach Mr Abbott's pre-election commitment not to impose new taxes.

"Make no mistake, this will be the biggest broken promise of all," shadow treasurer Chris Bowen told reporters in Sydney.

"Tony Abbott told the Australian people he would cut taxes and he specifically said he would introduce no new taxes."

Mr Bowen accused Mr Hockey of creating a "conflated budget emergency".

"But that doesn't justify a tax on Australian families who would pay the cost for this breach of promise from Tony Abbott," he said.

But Mr Abbott said the government would keep its election commitments.

"A very important commitment was to get the budget back on track to a sustainable surplus, but we will do that in ways which keep faith with our commitments to the Australian people in the election campaign," he said.

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Speargun used in Qld road rage attack

A SPEARGUN and a crowbar have allegedly been used in a road rage attack on a Gold Coast highway.

The occupants of a car travelling on the M1 near Helensvale say they were threatened with the weapons by two people who chased them for about 10 minutes on Sunday morning.

The pursuit was sparked by an incident on Government Road, Labrador at about 10am, and ended when the cars collided, police say.

The people allegedly threatened with the weapons waited for police, while the other vehicle drove off.

Investigators found the car on Jane Lane, Helensvale a short time later.

A woman, who resided at the home, and a man, found nearby, are being interviewed over the incident.

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Palmer won't back lifting pension age

The Palmer United Party will not support any pension age increase, says leader Clive Palmer. Source: AAP

CLIVE Palmer says his party won't support a rise in the pension age, which has been a major focus of pre-budget speculation.

Treasurer Joe Hockey last week described any increase in the pension age as an "inevitability", but stopped short of confirming his first budget will lift it to 70.

Mr Palmer, whose Palmer United Party will soon hold the balance of power in the Senate with other crossbenchers, said he would not back a rise in pension age.

"I just couldn't employ Joe Hockey or Tony Abbott at 69, no matter how competent they are," Mr Palmer told ABC Television on Sunday.

"They wouldn't have a good future and I wouldn't invest the time in training them because they would be retiring the next year."

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