Brisbane's Eagle Farm to get $22m upgrade

A LONG-AWAITED upgrade of Brisbane's Eagle Farm racecourse is off and racing with a $22 million refurbishment to be complete ahead of next year's winter carnival.

The makeover, the first since 1972, includes the reconstruction of the racing surface and will open up the area inside the track for stabling and training facilities.

The Queensland government announced the project on the city's biggest race day, Stradbroke Day.

"This long overdue refurbishment of the Eagle Farm track will stimulate wagering growth on the venue, which provides more funding for the industry as a whole, and will get more patrons to the track for race days," Treasurer Tim Nicholls said on Saturday.

The upgrade is part of the government's $110 million pledge to improve racing infrastructure across the state.

Construction is due to begin in early August.

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Hertz to review years of financial results

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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Clavell's ex denies causing SA road death

THE ex-girlfriend of dead fugitive Rodney Clavell has been ordered to stand trial over the hit-and-run death of a cyclist who was a leading Adelaide midwife.

Samantha Magdaleine Farrer, 37, of Queensland, pleaded not guilty on Friday to three charges in the Adelaide Magistrates Court, just around the corner from where her former boyfriend shot himself dead in a brothel after a 13-hour siege on Thursday.

She denied causing the death of Kathleen Heraghty, 48, by dangerous driving in December at Inman Valley Road, near Victor Harbor.

Farrer also pleaded not guilty to an aggravated count of driving without due care and to failing to stop at the scene of a fatal accident.

Mr Heraghty's obstetrician husband was cycling several minutes behind her and was one of the first people on the scene.

Farrer was ordered to stand trial in the District Court and the matter was adjourned to July 7.

Clavell accompanied her to an earlier court appearance in March, months before he became South Australia's most wanted man.

Farrer left court wearing dark glasses and a cap pulled down over her face and did not respond to media questions about her ex-boyfriend.

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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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Shipyards warned projects may go overseas

THE federal government has warned Australian shipbuilders it could look overseas for new frigates if they don't lift their game in building three new air warfare destroyers (AWD).

The $8.5 million AWD project is running almost two years late and costs $360 million more than planned, with shipbuilders performing well below international standards.

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann says the project is in serious trouble and getting worse.

A remediation plan - the third for AWD - aims to get it back on track, starting with "the urgent insertion" of an experienced shipbuilding management team into the main contractor, the government-owned ASC.

Construction of ship modules will then be reallocated among three firms doing this work.

"This is a final opportunity to get this right - there's no two ways about it," Senator Cormann told reporters in Canberra on Wednesday.

Defence Minister David Johnston warned there might not be local capacity for future projects if Australian firms' productivity was not acceptable.

"I don't believe the government will support an enterprise that cannot deliver productively," he said.

That includes eight new vessels to replace the navy's Australian-made Anzac frigates.

Under the AWD project, launched in 2007, the navy will field three high-tech warships able to defend vast areas of ocean against aircraft and missile attack.

But costs are over target and the first ship, HMAS Hobart, will be delivered in March 2016, rather than December 2014.

A review by former US Navy secretary Don Winter found a range of problems, including inadequate management and contractor performance - in line with an audit office report and regular reviews by UK consultant First Marine International (FMI).

World benchmark for warship production is 60 man hours a tonne. Hobart comes in at 150 man hours a tonne.

In its review of ASC and subcontractors BAE Systems in Melbourne and Forgacs in Newcastle, FMI found in all but a few measures they were outside performance benchmarks.

Under contract arrangements, cost overruns are met half from Defence and half from final success fees to contractors.

Senator Cormann confirmed the Commonwealth and taxpayers would face some costs.

"We will seek to minimise whatever exposure there is for the government and for the taxpayers," he said.

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