Victorian baby's murder 'inexplicable'

Prosecutors say the savage murder of a baby by a Victorian burglar demands a life sentence. Source: AAP

IT was an evil and ferocious killing of an 10-month-old baby boy with no explanation.

Harley Hicks used a homemade baton made of copper wire wrapped in tape to bludgeon Zayden Veal-Whitting more than 30 times about the face and head during a burglary spree in Bendigo in June 2012.

Zayden's murder will haunt his mother, 24-year-old Casey Veal, forever.

"Zayden was my mini-me, full of my physical appearance. Just catching my own reflection can destroy my day in seconds if I'm not strong enough," Ms Veal said.

"Just the simplest moment can destroy my heart and mind."

Ms Veal found Zayden covered in blood in his cot.

"Some days I am scared to close my eyes to relive that experience again."

She says she is a shadow of her former self.

Zayden's older brother, five-year-old Xavier, has also been shattered.

"His grief has consumed my daily life," Ms Veal said in a victim impact statement.

"I constantly worry about his thoughts and sometimes what he has to express.

"For his age, he has lived through more than most adults - without a large voice and a large vocabulary."

Prosecutor Michelle Williams SC said no one would ever know what sparked the attack, but said perhaps baby Zayden stirred.

"We consider what he did was an extreme, extreme way to respond to any thought of self-preservation, to react in such a violent way," she said on Monday.

"It is an evil killing without any rational explanation."

Prosecutors want Hicks, 21, jailed for life but with a minimum term.

Ms Williams compared the case to other child killers like Robert Farquharson, who drowned his three boys in a car on Father's Day 2005.

Farquharson is serving a life term with a minimum non-parole period of 33 years.

"This is different, in some ways maybe worse, because this was a cold, calculated killing of a baby in a vacuum," she told the Victorian Supreme Court, sitting in Bendigo.

Defence barrister David Gallowes said Hicks used the drug ice before the murder.

"Perhaps it goes some way to explain the inexplicable," he said.

He urged the judge to consider other sentencing options, citing Hicks' troubled childhood, drug and alcohol use, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, anti-social personality disorder and youth.

"There is some prospect of rehabilitation even if the prognosis is poor," Mr Gallowes said.

But Justice Stephen Kaye said he was concerned Hicks carried the baton intending to use it "if necessary".

"You couldn't argue the proposition that this case falls squarely into the most serious cases of murder," Justice Kaye said.

Ms Williams said Hicks had an extensive criminal record, with nine court appearances before his murder trial dating back to 2007 for crimes including wilful damage, thefts and burglaries, and had breached almost all orders made against him.

The last, a community corrections order for a 2011 armed robbery, was made two months before Zayden's murder.

Hicks, of North Bendigo, will be sentenced on a date to be fixed.

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Teacher charged over NSW mine protest

A QUEENSLAND school teacher faces a possible jail term after chaining himself to an excavator and disrupting work at the NSW Maules Creek mine.

Simon Wells, 55, became the 159th person to be arrested this year at the Leard State Forest in the state's north, following a series of protests aimed at halting development of three open-cut coal mines.

Mr Wells, from the Sunshine Coast, locked himself onto the excavator at Whitehaven Coal's $767 million Maules Creek mine before dawn on Monday and unfurled a banner reading "coalruption".

He was arrested several hours later and charged with entering inclosed land, remaining on inclosed land and interfering with a mine, the latter of which carries a maximum seven-year prison sentence.

Mr Wells was released on bail and is due to appear at Narrabri Local Court in a fortnight.

He said the development of the mines, which involve the clearance of wildlife habitats, was "damaging environmentally, economically and socially."

"It became clear to me that it was time I did something concrete as a citizen and also as the parent of a teenager," he told AAP.

"I've been involved in environmental activism for over 30 years and I decided I would finally take the step of doing some civil disobedience and risking arrest."

Aside from the Whitehaven project, Japanese firm Idemitsu is developing the neighbouring Boggabri mine and Idemitsu and Whitehaven have a joint venture mine also nearby.

The Leard State Alliance is calling for a judicial inquiry into approval of the Maules Creek mine, which has been under development for five months.

The call for a judicial inquiry follows allegations at NSW's Independent Commission Against Corruption on May 5 that two Aston Coal directors and their wives gave donations to the NSW National Party in 2011.

Aston Coal was a subsidiary of Nathan Tinkler's Aston Resources, the company that initially developed Maules Creek mine, and the donations were allegedly not disclosed in a development application for the mine.

Aston Resources merged with Whitehaven Coal in 2012 and Mr Tinkler sold his stake in Whitehaven Coal in mid-2013.

A Whitehaven Coal spokesman strongly rejected the suggestion that the company had been implicated in any wrongdoing at the ICAC.

"Opponents of Maules Creek freely claim the moral high ground but shamelessly resort to lies and misrepresentation in pushing their radical agenda on the rest of us," the spokesman said.

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Arbib blames Garrett for pink batts

Former Labor senator Mark Arbib is to front the home insulation royal commission on Monday. Source: AAP

FORMER senator Mark Arbib has put the blame for Labor's botched home insulation program squarely on the shoulders of his ex-colleague Peter Garrett.

Mr Arbib claimed the former environment minister was the man in charge of the program, which has been linked to four deaths, when giving evidence at a royal commission into the scheme on Monday.

Before the hearing even began, Mr Arbib caused a stir by slipping into the Brisbane Magistrates Court complex through a back door and avoiding the waiting media scrum.

The commission later said the former Labor powerbroker had been allowed to make the unusual entrance after he raised "security concerns".

In the witness box Mr Arbib laid the blame for the home insulation debacle on Mr Garrett, who will get his chance to respond on Tuesday.

He said while he'd co-ordinated the government's stimulus programs as parliamentary secretary to the prime minister, Mr Garrett was the one designing the program.

"I didn't have any decision-making role in terms of the HIP (home insulation program), I was working with the co-ordinator-general's office," he said, adding that Mr Garrett was the minister responsible.

Mr Arbib said he didn't know that three tradesmen had died under a similar scheme in New Zealand in 2007.

He claimed he never saw an email sent to the government in July 2009, which raised the risk of electrocution and the NZ deaths.

"I would have been ringing alarm bells," he said.

Mr Arbib said the prospect of deaths or serious injuries was never raised as a safety risk.

"Death was never mentioned as a prospect," he said.

But death became a reality under the program when Queenslander Matthew Fuller, 25, was electrocuted while driving a metal staple into an electrical cable while installing foil insulation on October 14, 2009.

It was the same practice that led to the deaths of the three NZ installers.

Mr Arbib said he never thought about suspending or reviewing the program after Mr Fuller's death.

"I don't recall considering that," he said.

He said he wasn't involved in any high-level discussions about Mr Fuller's death either.

"I was informed that the prime minister's office and Mr Garrett were dealing with it," he told the inquiry.

"I wasn't being asked into those meetings."

The royal commission is investigating what advice Labor received about the scheme and whether the four deaths could have been avoided.

Mr Arbib is due to finish giving evidence on Tuesday, while the man he claims was responsible for the scheme, Mr Garrett, is expected to enter the witness box immediately afterwards.

Former prime minister Kevin Rudd is due to appear on Wednesday.

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Union cash handover at Gillard's house

A former union official told an inquiry he gave cash to workers at former PM Julia Gillard's home. Source: AAP

A FORMER union official went to the home of former prime minister Julia Gillard and gave cash to workers doing renovations, a royal commission into union corruption has heard.

Ralph Blewitt, the former secretary of the Western Australia branch of the Australian Workers' Union, told the commission he had $10,000 or $20,000 in cash when, in 1994, he went to Ms Gillard's Melbourne home to meet Bruce Wilson, his union boss and Ms Gillard's then-boyfriend.

In an extraordinary opening day, the Royal Commission into Trade Union Governance and Corruption heard the payment was one of a series of cash deliveries drawn from a secret fund and flown across the country by Mr Blewitt.

The cash was from the Workplace Reform Association - a secret entity allegedly set up by Mr Blewitt and Mr Wilson with legal advice from Ms Gillard, who was a lawyer advising the AWU at the time.

Allegations surrounding the fund dogged Ms Gillard's political career, although Ms Gillard has maintained she knew nothing about any impropriety.

Mr Blewitt told the inquiry Ms Gillard was at home when he arrived for the 1994 meeting, and the future PM directed him to the back of the house to find Mr Wilson.

Mr Wilson was in the kitchen or veranda where three men in "workers'-type overalls" were doing renovation work, he said.

Mr Blewitt said Mr Wilson asked him to pay one worker $7000.

"I counted off $7000, gave it to that gentleman. He stuck it in the front pocket of his bib and brace overall and went back outside to join the other two workers," he said.

He said he gave the rest of the money to Mr Wilson, but Ms Gillard was not present during the handovers.

In an eventful day, Mr Wilson was spotted outside the commission building on Monday after a meeting with his barrister, and shoved, swung a punch and shouted abuse at a news photographer who took his picture.

Mr Blewitt detailed a series of flights in which he carried cash, drawn from the Workplace Reform Association, from Perth to Sydney to give to Mr Wilson.

In one 1993 example, Mr Blewitt took $50,000 that he gave to Mr Wilson at a Travelodge hotel in the inner-Sydney suburb of Camperdown, the commission heard.

Mr Blewitt also said that $93,000 from the fund was used by Mr Wilson to buy a $230,000 house in Melbourne in 1993.

The commission heard the Workplace Reform Association was established without the knowledge of the broader AWU in 1992 to receive payments from construction firm Thiess, which had a major infrastructure project in Western Australia.

Mr Blewitt said he submitted invoices to Thiess, including one for more than $25,000, to cover the cost of a union-appointed workplace safety adviser, but no work was ever done.

Mr Wilson told him the association's purpose was to raise funds for union elections, he said.

Mr Blewitt said he was instructed by Mr Wilson to regularly withdraw cash and keep it until it was time to deliver it to him in Sydney.

Once, he had so much cash at his WA home, Mr Blewitt buried almost $10,000 in his yard and the money was water damaged.

He followed Mr Wilson's orders because he was afraid for his job, he said.

Mr Blewitt, 69, flew in from his home in Malaysia for the hearing and will continue giving evidence on Tuesday.

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Puffing Hockey silent on cigar tax

Treasurer Joe Hockey has avoided a question about a tobacco tax after being caught having a cigar. Source: AAP

JOE Hockey probably hoped he had got away without being questioned about having that sly cigar with his finance minister.

But in any interview there is always that last question.

Twitter has been abuzz since Friday ridiculing photographs of the treasurer and Senator Mathias Cormann having a cigar after putting together their first budget.

"There's nothing like the satisfying flavour of other people's dreams ... going up in smoke!" was one tweet.

Having a puff is not illegal, but having a celebratory drag on a fat cigar when you are about to impose the budget with the toughest impact on Australians in almost two decades isn't a particularly good look.

The latest ribbing came in a more traditional form.

In an interview on Channel Nine on Sunday, political stalwart Laurie Oakes just had to ask one last question after a 15-minute grilling that covered broken promises, infrastructure, rising petrol prices and a freeze on politicians pay.

"For some reason there has been speculation on Twitter about the impact for the budget from the price of cigars. Will tobacco excise go up?" Mr Oakes teased.

Mr Hockey declined to comment on that.

"But I do note that I think in the first budget in 1901 they had taxes on opium, so I can assure you that's certainly not in the budget. There is certainly nothing to tax there," he said.

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Buswell light rail report light on insight

Ex-WA treasurer Troy Buswell's report on his taxpayer-funded trip to Europe has few fresh insights. Source: AAP

FORMER West Australian treasurer Troy Buswell's light rail report from a taxpayer-funded trip across Europe is so paltry it could have been compiled in his office, the state opposition says.

Mr Buswell came away from the trip to Europe and China with six key findings about light rail as he planned a network for Perth.

Mr Buswell, now a backbencher after quitting cabinet following a car crash controversy in March, visited Switzerland, Germany and France in August and September last year to study light rail systems.

Before making the trip, Mr Buswell had said non-essential government travel would be temporarily banned and instructed the public service to tighten its belt amid spiralling state debt.

And in December, the state government shelved its MAX light rail project due to WA's ailing finances.

A 20-page report since submitted by Mr Buswell on the trip contained six insights about light rail, with the fact it could be a "very effective, embedded and highly valued component" of a public transport system split over two bullet points.

Mr Buswell also used two bullet points to report that trams could operate effectively in confined urban settings at sensible speeds and with clear community awareness of the operation.

His other points were that right of way for light rail in congested parts of a city was important and that a tram system could be delivered effectively via a public-private partnership, particularly in a greenfields environment.

Opposition transport spokesman Ken Travers said Mr Buswell could have compiled the light rail report from his Perth office and saved taxpayers money.

In China, Mr Buswell met with state-owned conglomerate CITIC and Industrial Bank of China about investment opportunities including Perth Stadium and the long-awaited Oakajee port.

And with his then-fisheries minister hat on, he also held several meetings about artificial reefs, shark barriers and seafood trade.

The total cost of the trip is expected to be tabled in parliament in coming weeks.

On his return to parliament as the Member for Vasse last week, Mr Buswell told reporters it was "entirely appropriate" for ministers to travel for work.

Mr Travers said on Sunday Mr Buswell's report, which used swathes of general information from websites, was light on insights.

"I don't think there was anything in that report that added value to what we do," he told AAP.

He believed Mr Buswell already knew funding for the MAX project was questionable before he got on the plane.

While Mr Buswell provided a brief report to parliament one month after the trip, the full report took eight months to be tabled, said Mr Travers, who admitted he'd once returned a late travel report too.

He expected more than $20,000 had been spent on the light rail trip.

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Hospitals to suffer under GP co-payment

A survey says hospital emergency wards would be inundated with patients with a GP co-payment system. Source: AAP

HOSPITAL emergency wards would be inundated with extra patients under a GP co-payment system being considered by the Abbott government.

A survey, conducted just days ahead of the Tuesday's budget, has found that most Australians oppose paying any co-payment to visit a GP.

The survey of 1000 people, commissioned by the Consumers Health Forum, found 72 per cent thought a $6 co-payment would send more people to hospital emergency wards.

Sixty-nine per cent said a $6 co-payment would also discourage people from visiting their GP.

Consumers Health Forum chief executive Adam Stankevicius said another survey of almost 600 consumers found co-payments would hit the chronically ill and those on low incomes the hardest.

"If people have to pay to see a doctor, a lot of things are going to change," he said in a statement.

"If they are paying $6, then many people who are used to seeing a GP at no cost are going to put off a visit. Any introduction of a co-payment will be a clear barrier to primary health care."

There has been speculation ahead of the budget that the coalition government will introduce a co-payment for GP visits of $7.50.

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Qld police name pair in abduction case

Police say 3 men and a woman who abducted Queensland toddler Bella Goulding are known to her family. Source: AAP

POLICE have publicly named two people they want to question in relation to the abduction of a two-year-old girl from her father's house southwest of Brisbane.

Bella Rose Goulding was taken from a house at Willowbank, near Ipswich, on Saturday night and police say her abductors are known to the family.

Queensland police believe Lisa Maree Carroll, 21, and Michael Kenneth Winning, 42, may be able to assist their investigation but have not said how they are related to Bella.

Acting Inspector Alison Jewell said three men and a woman abducted the toddler from the home, where she was temporarily staying.

"We believe that Bella is in the company of people who are known to the family," Inspector Jewell told reporters outside Yamanto police station.

"However, we still hold concerns for her safety."

The 8pm abduction occurred on Sancroft Street, which is near a park and the Cunningham Highway.

The girl's father Steven declined to speak publicly on Sunday.

Witnesses saw the abductors in a white Holden Commodore and a silver Mitsubishi sedan.

Bella is described as Caucasian with blue eyes and blonde, curly hair. She was last seen wearing a Dora The Explorer t-shirt and grey leggings.

Insp Jewell said there weren't any specific child safety issues but declined to say if her mother was among the people who abducted the girl or with whom she lived permanently.

"We are consistently getting information from the public and we're following all those leads," she said.

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Four arrested over train station stabbing

An 18-year-old man is in hospital after he was stabbed at a railway station south of Sydney. Source: AAP

THREE men and a teenage girl have been arrested after a stabbing at a NSW train station.

Policy say an 18-year-old man was found with a stab wound to his back at Sutherland Railway Station early on Saturday.

He was taken to St George Hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Three men, 19, 23 and 26, and a 17-year-old girl were arrested less than an hour later at Engadine.

Police are questioning them at Sutherland Police Station.

Police are still searching for a fifth man thought to be linked to the stabbing.

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PM pays tribute to beef baron Graeme Acton

Australian beef baron Graeme Acton has died aged 63, after falling from a horse. Source: AAP

PRIME Minister Tony Abbott has paid tribute to Australian beef baron Graeme Acton, describing him as a great and proud man.

"He was a proud Queenslander and a great Australian," Mr Abbott said in a statement following news of Mr Acton's death on Friday in Brisbane.

"Graeme contributed so much to agriculture in our country, in particular to the cattle industry around Rockhampton where the Actons have been farming for four generations."

Mr Acton, 63, had been on life support in the Royal Brisbane Hospital after falling from a horse on May 2 while competing in a campdrafting event in central Queensland.

Queensland Premier Campbell Newman said he was shocked and saddened.

"He was an outstanding character who was much loved by all," he said in a statement.

"A hard working Queenslander, he devoted his life to the land and growing the cattle industry in this state."

Federal Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce said Mr Acton was a hero of the cattle industry and a fierce advocate for agriculture.

"We are truly indebted to this great Australian, for the blessing he has been as a father, husband, friend, pioneer and great captain of the agricultural industry in Australia," he said.

Just last week Mr Acton had told Mr Joyce how the government could do things better.

"His words of wisdom were not lost on me," Mr Joyce said.

"Graeme possessed a unique ability to communicate with people irrespective of their background or social standing and united tens of thousands through his love of the art form of campdrafting."

Mr Acton headed Acton Land and Cattle - one of the country's largest farming operations.

The firm owns 180,000 head of cattle on seven Queensland farms which span about 1.58 million hectares of land.

Acton Land and Cattle exports 30,000 beasts to the Middle East and Asia each year.

Mr Acton is survived by his wife Jennie and their children Tom, Hayley, Victoria and Laura.

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