Survey respondents want Kevin Rudd to challenge Julia Gillard again

Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard. Source: AFP

ALMOST half of Australia wants Kevin Rudd to have one last crack at the Labor leadership ahead of the September election.

A News Limited online survey of more than 5000 people canvassed their views on what will be a marathon Federal campaign after Julia Gillard announced Australians will go to the polls on September 14.

The extraordinary move to announce a date so early drew speculation it was designed to limit Mr Rudd's ability to challenge - a claim flatly denied by the Prime Minister.  Mr Rudd has also remained silent on the issue so far - pledging only his support for the party this week as he wascaught on camera laying into a tree with a chainsaw.

But 48 per cent of people who responded to the online questionnaire said the former PM should challenge, despite the fact he was the least popular choice for best Prime Minister out of Ms Gillard, Opposition Leader Tony Abbott and the Liberal communications spokesman Malcolm Turnbull.

Just slightly fewer - 42 per cent - wanted Mr Turnbull to challenge Mr Abbott. Both the 42 per cent and 48 percent are seen as significant numbers.

Mr Rudd, who has dismissed questions on another tilt at the leadership after last year's failed bid, was the best candidate to lead the country in the eyes of just 13 per cent.

Ms Gillard was slightly more popular, scoring 15 per cent of the vote when faced with four possible candidates.

Mr Abbot was overwhelmingly voted the best choice for Prime Minister at 45 per cent, followed by Mr Turnbull, who was chosen by a quarter of people.

Interestingly, 53 per cent of people said they liked elections.

But people are not impressed at the prospect of an eight-month campaign and said their trust in candidates will likely fall because of it.

Almost three quarters said eight months was too long to endure electioneering and only one in 10 said they were more inclined to trust a politician after seeing them on the hustings for so long.

The survey was run over a 24-hour period on Thursday and Friday. 

Survey respondents want Kevin Rudd to challenge Julia Gillard again

My election wish list for both parties

Illustration: John Spooner.

JULIA and Tony, now that the campaign is under way I would like to submit my wants to you.

As a self-funded retiree I don't want any pork barrelling and want you to concentrate on policy issues, not personal attacks, as we voters find them a turn-off. I want adequate funding for first-class education and health outcomes for all Australians. This can be easily funded by tackling tax avoidance by those at the top end of town, phasing out tax breaks for negative gearing and family trusts, and raising the GST to 12 per cent.

I want policies that benefit future generations, including tackling environmental issues such as climate change and our excess reliance on fossil fuels, by extending the carbon tax coverage and increasing the minerals resource tax.

Illustration: Ron Tandberg.

It is way past time issues with our indigenous population were adequately addressed. May I also request a more civilised approach to the way genuine refugees are treated. And for good measure, I wouldn't mind a republic and an Australian flag minus the Union Jack.

Glenn Stanmore, Cohuna

Time to sort out spin

EIGHT months' notice is good for our democracy; it gives the public and media outlets time to sort the spin, hyperbole and fearmongering from the facts. We may even have an election fought on policy rather than on a media blitz about personalities and shaky promises. Who knows, by September it could be Bill versus Malcolm; eight months is a long time in politics.

Peter Topping, North Melbourne

True to form

MEDIA outlets are already reporting that Tony Abbott has rejected calls for detailed policy costings. It wouldn't be a fair dinkum federal election unless the opposition stonewalled on costings right up till the actual election date … and beyond.

John Kirk, Camberwell East

Long gone

TONY Abbott stresses in his Press Club speech what his government will not be: ''The mining tax will be gone, the carbon tax will be gone'' (''Abbott has time to prove he's a leader - but is it enough?'', 30/1).

I don't want to sound like Mr Abbott but, if the election goes his way, I think we can add a number of things to his list of ''gones''. Environmental protection: gone. Sustainable energy: gone. Educational equity: gone. Humanity: gone. Separation of church and state: Gone.

Stewart Monckton, Mont Albert

Babies do grow up

THE early slogans of Mr Abbott's campaign are ''Hope, Reward and Opportunity''. Ah, now I get it. Tony Abbott hopes women will be so pleased with his paid parental leave scheme that they will reward him with their votes in September, giving him the opportunity to slash the school kids' bonus. Can someone please remind Mr Abbott that babies grow up to be school kids.

Liz Temple, Mount Clear

Two peas in a pod

THE geniuses who masterminded the Gillard coup should be asked to explain in what essential ways Julia Gillard differs from the still publicly popular Kevin Rudd.

The PM's poll ratings are lower than his were after he junked the promises on climate change policy. Gillard has broken another promise, this time the budget surplus.

In her recent arbitrary decisions (on Nova Peris and setting an election date) Ms Gillard has acted without reference to her parliamentary party in the same manner Rudd was accused of - a criticism used to justify his removal.

Thomas Hogg, East Melbourne

ALP lacks the ticker

JOHN Spooner makes it clear Julia Gillard will be executed well (Comment, 31/1). If the polls are an indication, Gillard hasn't a snowflake's chance in hell of winning the next election. It is difficult to pinpoint the reason as she has good policies. Sadly, the parliamentary Labor Party appears to lack the ticker to change the leadership before it is too late.

Bill Mathew, Parkville

Designed to mislead

THE government says a ''12 per cent pay rise for teachers over three years would cost Victorians $13 billion'' (''Teachers' pay rise 'unsustainable','' 31/1.) It is not the pay rise that would cost $13 billion but the total payroll for all the state's 40,000 teachers for three years, assuming an average salary for each teacher of $100,000.

Please, can we have some estimate of costs that is not designed deliberately to mislead. I put the difference in the first-year cost between the 2.5 per cent the government is offering and the 4 per cent the teachers are claiming at about $60 million. Almost exactly the cost of the Grand Prix subsidy.

Irwin Faris, Torquay

Minister not living up to responsibility

THE delay in delivering on commitments on school bullying is unacceptable (''State accused of lagging on school bullying'', 31/1). The recent report by the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission, ''Held Back - the experience of students with disabilities in Victorian Schools'', found that students with disability were three times more likely to be bullied than the general school population and that two-thirds experienced bullying or harassment.

Further, international research highlights the devastating consequence bullying can have on children, including high rates of physical and mental health problems and, in extreme cases, self-harm or suicide.

Minister Martin Dixon has more than one reason to make this work a priority. As well as being Education Minister, he has been appointed a ''Disability Champion Minister'' for COAG's national disability strategy. In this role he has committed to identifying and advocating opportunities for inclusion of people with disability.

Stephanie Gotlib, executive officer, Children with Disability Australia

Real truth is taboo

ROGER Howard's explanation for the violence in Mali is simplistic (''High population growth a seed to rising unrest'', Comment, 1/2).

The fact is this violence has been fostered and triggered by a radical interpretation of the Islamic religion. The men who committed systematic atrocities against the Malian civilian population chose to do so and this choice was based on religious belief.

Howard then states it is ''taboo'' to expose his reality; that rapid population growth has caused these atrocities. No, it is politically incorrect to expose the real truth; that this is a result of a flawed religious belief system. If you doubt this, direct me to the corresponding unrest in Singapore, China and India.

Max Dunn, Kew

Easing our conscience, but that's about it

THE linking of high population growth with international violence raises the issue of where Australia can get best value for its aid dollar. At present we are committing ourselves to billions of dollars of future expenditure to accommodate refugees, the consequence of high birth rates and limited resources in the conflict zones.

If that money was instead put to tackling the causes of the turmoil by providing resources for family planning we could have some impact. With 80 million people born into poverty each year, taking 20,000 refugees may ease our conscience, but will not solve the problem.

Peter Liston, Southbank

Price of growth

PROBLEMS with population growth - driven by an unsustainable immigration program and an unwillingness of state governments to decentralise - have arrived in Australia, too, in the form of high rents, house prices and council rates, and congestion on roads and rail and so on.

Wait until we have diesel shortages when peak oil turns into another nasty oil war in the Middle East or when Mother Nature throws so many fires, floods and storms at us that our power supply breaks down. People living in high-rise flats - where much of the additional population is crammed - will be especially hard hit.

We have seen during the Queensland floods how quickly shelves in shops can turn empty when trucks come to a standstill. When will these lessons be learnt?

Matt Mushalik, Epping, NSW

System is broken …

BILL Howard (Letters, 30/1), while I respect your opinion I do believe our constitutional monarchy system is ''broken''. Chief among my reasons is that no Australian citizen can be our head of state. That, of course, means that neither you, your children nor your grandchildren can be our head of state. I love the fact that our Governor-General, Quentin Bryce, is our first female Governor-General. I would love it even more if she were our head of state.

Susan Hayden, Cheltenham

… and overloaded

WHILE it is distressing and dangerous for discharge summaries to carry the wrong diagnosis (''Patients discharged with wrong diagnoses'', 31/1), one must also examine the cause of the problem. This is a symptom of our overloaded hospital system, staffed by overworked doctors.

Our reliance on hospitals to fix all our health woes is outdated and ignores the fact that many admissions can be avoided by good investment in community-based care and preventative services.

Bo Li, Preston

Grievous omission of ABC reporter's coup

I LISTENED to Jon Faine on ABC radio on Wednesday morning when he interviewed Leigh Sales on her coup of interviewing Hillary Clinton. He was so pleased for Sales and it was a pleasure to hear them speaking about her US experience.

I later watched the ABC television 7pm news; no mention of Sales. I then watched 7.30 and still no mention. Thank goodness The Age picked up on the story and printed a photograph (''Clinton puts in one last Sales pitch as US Secretary of State'', 31/1). Well done, indeed, Leigh Sales.

Carolyn Reynolds, Lake Boga

Enlightening coverage

I AM appalled that Jon Faine was admonished by managers for using his legal knowledge to point out to Julia Gillard's accusers on the AWU affair, how and why their claims were spurious (''Presenter censured on coverage'', 31/1). That is not bias. It is information that enlightened many of us. Faine is a fair interviewer with a broad general knowledge and should be valued by the ABC.

Graeme Lee, Fitzroy

Egregious misuse

MORE of concern than the overuse of certain words is their egregious misuse, particularly by reporters and commentators. These days, a player is ''bought'' on to bowl rather than ''brought'', and we hear about ''the amount of times'' something occurs rather than ''the number of times'', and that people are ''vunerable'' to something instead of ''vulnerable''.

Jeff Gray, Trafalgar

Brought up short

I MUST have cured a generation of children from asking, ''Can I go to the toilet, please?'' My answer was invariably, ''I expect so at your age, but do you need a hand?''

Countless red-faced little boys soon learnt to ask if they may go to the toilet. My response was then shortened to ''You can, the question is may you'', usually bringing them up short as they made to leave the room. Oh, the joys of teaching.

MaryAnne Needham, Traralgon

Private matters

IF NICHOLAS Tonti-Filippini (Comment, 30/1) wants to keep his club private and only employ select folk, then society doesn't have to pay his way by awarding his club tax-free status.

Lee Matthews, St Kilda

Regain some good will

THE Insurance Council of Australia's chief executive Rob Whelan says that councils and government need to spend more on flood-prevention methods such as levees. He estimates that a relatively small investment, typically $15 million to build a levee around a mid-size town, may be recouped 100-fold over the life of the levee. This is money that would be mainly paid out by insurers.

Perhaps, then, Australia's insurers should tip in the millions required. It would seem an excellent investment. And as a bonus they would regain some sorely needed public goodwill. Seems like an ideal win-win scenario.

Ross Hudson, Camberwell

Spare us one-liners

PLEASE save us from eight months of pithy one-liners. The column ''And Another Thing'' should be quarantined from political comment until after the election.

The Age could also stipulate that political comment directed to the Letters page contain a minimum of three complete sentences. We could then take the opportunity to teach our politicians how to better communicate their ideas and ideals.

Guy Hoschke, Sunshine North

What's more...

CLEVER move, Julia Gillard; there is no way Tony Abbott can stay positive for that length of time.

Henry Herzog, St Kilda East

Election

I'LL show you mine if you show me yours. We're off to a good start.

Richard Opat, Elsternwick

THE man who said climate change is ''crap'' and that the post-GFC stimulus was ''waste'' now says the big issue is the Prime Minister's judgment.

Neil Hauxwell, Moe

IS AN allegation of ''running a protection racket'' not actionable? Ask a Rhodes scholar perhaps?

Norman Morton, Kew

IT MIGHT be time for all Labor politicians and their union friends to go through a probity check to see where the money trail leads.

Hans Majewski, Thomastown

IT'S not that Julia wants to lock Kevin out, she wants to lock Tony in.

Robert Pizzari, East Brunswick

ONLY in Australia do we whinge about having a set election date. In many countries people dream of being able to have a free vote.

Michael Dawes, West Footscray

AFTER eight months of standing for election and running for office, all candidates will be more desperate than ever to become sitting members.

Barry Lamb, Cairns, Qld

RICHARD Lustman (Letters, 1/2), since when were we obliged to consult a minority group before we could set a date for something as important as a federal election?

Victor Radywonik, Ascot Vale

I WOULD like to remind all voters, including our Jewish friends, that there is such a thing as a postal vote. It certainly will be a day of atonement. But for whom?

Sue Johnson, Terang

Language

RECEPTIONISTS asking ''What was your name?'' imply that most clients are using an alias.

Brian Bywater, Warrnambool

DID I buy something from the internet or off the internet?

Lesley Rank, Lalor

THE term ''denier'' is also a measure of thickness (in the hosiery industry).

Vikki O'Neill, Narre Warren South

And finally

SBS, you have made my day, and my footy year, by programming Marngrook Footy Show. Intelligent footy discussion, great music and a good laugh. What more could I want.

Pauline Santillo, Altona North

My election wish list for both parties

Pirates of the Suburbs - Destroying Communities

I was doing a bit of digging and came across a web site http://www.brumbywatchaustralia.com/Principality01.htm and this site has a lot of documentation about the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and our local Councils that they are in fact illegal Entities and have no right to exist under The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australian.

Also until coming across this website I didn’t even know we had a Constitution.

Local Council:

The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australian (Let’s call it CCA) “was created to amalgamate the Australian colonies into a Commonwealth, and to set the rules by which the Commonwealth would be governed by the people as a self-governing colony. It was styled under the format of the Westminster Parliamentary system and clearly established the Parliament of the Commonwealth, and the Parliament of the States. It also clearly established the powers and responsibilities of both those parliaments. It allowed the provision for certain alterations of those powers, while specifically restricting alteration of certain others. Such alteration of the way in which the Commonwealth of Australia would be governed by the people was strictly limited to alteration by way of referendum of the population.
THERE IS NO OTHER MEANS BY WHICH OUR SYSTEM OF SELF-GOVERNMENT CAN BE LEGALLY ALTERED.”

So there is no way our Constitution can be changed without a vote of approval from The People, because when The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australian was written there were no local councils and the only way a local council can be added to our system is a vote of approval from the people.

“The Courts of Australia have long held that council rates are a tax. Yet, under the Australian Constitution, the Parliaments of the States do not have the power of taxation.
“John Winston Howard, Peter Howard Costello & ‘Commissioner for Taxation’ Michael Joseph Carmody all stated before the introduction of the infamous “Goods and Services Tax”,

Quote: “Local government Council Rates will attract no GST because Council Rates ‘ARE A TAX AND WE CAN’T TAX A TAX’.”

“Also, the High Court of Australia ruled that “State Governments couldn’t raise ANY TAX”, and because of this the ‘State Excise on Fuel, Tobacco & Alcohol’ was removed.
It can be clearly seen that the authors of the Constitution were not allowing for any Parliament other than the Federal Parliament to impose a tax. Therefore, the only land rates tax that can be imposed within Australia, is one imposed by the Federal Parliament through the Commissioner for Taxation.
Unless we receive a “Rates Notice” from the ‘Commissioner for Taxation it is INVALID and UNLAWFUL.
In view of the above, this proposed action can only be withdrawn.”

“Since the ‘Local Government Act 1993′ did not exist at the time of Federation, there can be no continuance of that Act. Since the Parliament of the State of New South Wales did not have the power to impose a land rates tax under the Local Government Act of 1993 (or any other Act) at the time of Federation, there can be no continuance of that power.”

Does this mean we shouldn’t be paying land tax??

“Question 3 from the referendum was: A Proposed Law; ‘To alter the Constitution to recognise local government.’ Do you approve of this alteration? [Annexure C]

The SPECIFIC (federal Referendum) proposal was:

(3) Constitution Alteration (Local Government) 1988…. 119A, “Each state shall provide for the ESTABLISHMENT AND CONTINUANCE of a system of local government, with local government bodies elected in accordance with the laws of the state, and empowered to administer, and MAKE BY-LAWS FOR, their respective areas IN ACCORDANCE with the laws of the state” (emphasis added).
It was recognized that the Parliaments of the States did not have the power to establish a third tier of government via ‘local government’ and an amendment to the Constitution was necessary for them to OBTAIN these powers.

If the Constitution had to be altered to allow for the ESTABLSIHMENT of ‘local government’, before there could be a CONTINUANCE of ‘local government from the time of federation, then it is clear that these powers did not exist at the time of the Federation of the States into a Commonwealth.

Ergo, if the Constitution had to be altered to allow for the “establishment and continuance” of ‘local government’ these powers did not exist at the time of federation OR SECTIONS 106 TO 108 OF THE CONSTITUTION WOULD HAVE APPLIED AND THE CONSTITUTION WOULD NOT HAVE HAD TO BE ALTERED.

For the Constitution to be able to be changed, there must be a majority, (either for or against), in each state, and, a favourable majority must be returned in a majority of States.

The 1988 referendum was not carried. It obtained a majority in no State and an overall minority of 3,084,678 votes. [Annexure D]

No other conclusion can be derived from this result other than that Local government was not legally recognized by the people of Australia, who are the Government of Australia through their agents the Parliaments.

The Parliament of the State did not have these powers before the Referendum, and they were most certainly prohibited from having them after the Referendum.”

“Since the people do not wish to recognize ‘local government’, and since the Constitution does not recognize or grant the power to establish a third level of government, then under Section 109 of the Constitution it was illegal for the Parliament of New South Wales to enact the Local Government Act of 1993.”

More info can be found at http://www.brumbywatchaustralia.com/Principality03.htm

Image above shows the vote for a local council you can see that the majority is against.

Taxation:

“Section 112 allows that: “After uniform duties of customs have been imposed, a State may levy on imports or exports, or on goods passing into or out of the State, such charges as may be necessary for executing the inspection laws of the State….”

Section 113 allows for some control over ‘all fermented, distilled or other intoxicating liquids.’

The Constitution SPECIFICALLY makes taxation the power of the Commonwealth. Nowhere does it allow a provision for the Parliaments of the States to impose a tax.

As previously stated, “John Winston Howard, Peter Howard Costello &’Commissioner for Taxation’ Michael Joseph Carmody all stated before the introduction of the infamous “Goods and Services Tax, Quote:

“Local government Council Rates will attract no GST because Council Rates ‘ARE A TAX AND WE CAN’T TAX A TAX’.
Also as stated, the Courts of Australia have long held that council rates are a tax. Yet, under the Australian Constitution, the Parliaments of the States do not have the power of taxation.”

Section 55 of the Commonwealth Constitution states:

“Laws imposing taxation shall deal only with the imposition of taxation, and any provision therein dealing with any other matter shall be of no effect. Laws imposing taxation, except laws imposing duties of customs or of excise, shall deal with one subject of taxation only; but laws imposing duties of customs shall deal with duties of customs only, and laws imposing duties of excise shall deal with duties of excise only.”

Therefore, since the Local Government Act 1993 deals with a great Variety of subject matter, as well as land rates tax, the Parliament of New South Wales, and the organization calling itself ‘local government is left with two choices:

1. They can remove all other subject matter from the Local Government Act 1993, leaving only the matter of taxation, (which would render all other ‘local government’ laws invalid, but still be in conflict with the sole right of the Commonwealth to impose a tax); or,

2. They can remove the subject matter of land rates taxation from the Local Government Act, 1993, (which would render all their subject matter technically valid in relation to taxation, but not valid in relation to a third tier of government).

In either case, as previously stated, the Courts of Australia have long held that council rates are a tax. Yet, under the Australian Constitution, the Parliaments of the States do not have the power of taxation.

Unless we receive a “Rates Notice” from the ‘Commissioner for Taxation it is INVALID and UNLAWFUL.

Unless this is done, the proposed action can only be withdrawn.

Below is a Transcript from a DVD titled “We are young and free?”:

Can be found here: http://members.iimetro.com.au/~hubbca/young_and_free.htm

The Taxation Office

Henke: And of course the first thing we found was that there was no such animal. The fact is nobody had ever actually created the Taxation Department. The constitutional basis on which our money was taken off us was never done. And in October 1999 before the federal court, we actually proved that it had never been done.

Here was something which should have been absolutely fundamental. If you or I set up new a company and didn’t register it or didn’t file the right papers, or didn’t appoint people the right way, we would be in court and fined, and yet here we have the most influential and important department in the country which had no legal existence.

Well we went into courts, we fought now some nine High Court cases, numerous cases in other courts,  and we sought to apply the very simple standard, that if the people had to obey the law then the Taxation Offices had to obey the law and we discovered that the courts were not prepared to make the Taxation Offices obey the law. The courts were not prepared to say, “This is not legally done the right way, it must be fixed.”

The courts allowed the Taxation Offices to carry on illegally and in one fell swoop they demonstrated that the true function of the courts was not justice, it was not all of the separations of powers etc which they like to protest is their true guide, but they were simply an executive instrument whose job it was to safeguard the revenue and the money coming in to pay their own salaries.

Bryant: The courts are an instrument of government, they are set up in the constitution as an instrument of government, although they are supposed to be independent. How can you have an independent court, say an independent High Court when the politicians, in particular a prime minister, appoints the judges? How can they be seen to be independent?

Siminton: If an entity is not a legal entity, is that not one and the same as saying that it is an illegal entity? To which the Australian Federal Police, on a transcript tape which we will be making available shortly on our website said, “Yes, that is correct”. I think from memory it is the 1899 Crimes Act currently represented as the 1914 Crimes Act, that actually stipulates that if you interact with, or encourage, a known illegal entity it is is a seven year jailable offence. And here we have on the website, a document stating that our Australian Taxation Office is illegal.

Henke: The constitution under section 51 gives the government the right to make laws for peace, order and good government. Yet in the Ryan case in the high court about two years ago the high court ruled that we were not entitled to fair and just tax laws. And that’s the statement by the chief justice of the high court. Now if fair and just tax laws are not laws for peace, order or good government, what are? And what people seem to forget is that just about every major revolution in history started on the basis of unjust taxation.

Bryant: Taxation, whethere it is based on transactions whether its debits, credits or whatever, is based on all transactions without exception, without any exclusion, everybody pays an equal amount of tax. People who have avoided tax to a larger degree – the mega corporations – all those people will have to pay their fair share of tax, and that’s not happening at the moment, the mums and dads pay all the tax.

Henke: When our tax system was first set up we had a system which taxed most of the business in this country. Today most of the business in this country is done by overseas owned companies, who in turn pay their taxes overseas but not in Australia. The result is that you’ve got to collect more and more tax from the ordinary taxpayer, from the small man, from the ordinary punter in the streets and that of course, gets more and more unfair.

Phil Faulk: The Goods and Services Act of 1999 Section 165.55 talks about Commissioner having disregard in making declarations for various purposes. And those purposes are such things as, and there’s several listed, (a) treat a particular event that happened as not having happened. Well that’s interesting, an amazing piece of legislation that gives the commissioner a veto right over and above tangible things that would have happened.

Nik Faulkner: Now this seems to me to be a clear example of where the parliament has made a law that allows the commissioner who administers the law, to lie or to set somebody up in a position which is not correct. Now to me that is unconstitutional. We only have the laws to obey and if a person obeys those laws then they cannot be found to be at fault, but under that act of the GST 165.55, it means that if you acted lawfully, the commissioner can actually make a statement saying that you acted unlawfully, and you have no right to do anything else other than to comply with his direction”

Here is page one of a document from the High Court of Australia:

Page 2 section (c) states “The ATO is not a legal Entity”

Please leave a comment

What do you think? Do you  agree?, disagree? or don’t care?

THE RATS ARE ABANDONING THE SINKING LABOR SHIP...Labor shock: Minister Chris Evans to resign, Nicola Roxon to go

THE third most senior member of Julia Gillard's team, Senate leader Chris Evans, will announce his shock resignation as a minister and Attorney-General Nicola Roxon will also resign from the cabinet.

According to the The Australian newspaper, Ms Roxon will step down from her cabinet portfolio and retire from politics at the September 14 election.

Ms Roxon's apparent departure comes on the heels of news that the government leader in the Senate, Chris Evans, will resign from the ministry on Saturday. His departure could lead to a battle to replace him as Senate leader between Communications Minister Stephen Conroy and Finance Minister Penny Wong.

The shock resignation of Ms Roxon, a solid Gillard supporter, created a storm of commentary within ALP ranks late last night as the word spread she was stepping down and not expected to contest the next election.

One senior Labor MP told The Weekend Australian late last night that "Rome is burning".

Attorney-General Nicola Roxon is expected to announce her shock retirement from politics, in another bombshell blow to Labor.

"Nicola Roxon to resign from cabinet early tomorrow,'' van Onselen tweeted late on Friday.

Chris Evans with Julia Gillard last year. Picture: Kerris Berrington

In the Senate, the party leader is elected by MPs and traditionally from the party's Left faction. Senator Conroy has been deputy leader for five years but is from the Right faction.

Last night there was a suggestion Senator Wong would support Senator Conroy and become deputy to replace Mr Evans, although some MPs were urging her to run for the top spot. A ballot would be held on Monday, if required.

Senator Evans is Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Science and Research. One option being considered by Ms Gillard is giving that post to Immigration Minister Chris Bowen with his nightmare portfolio going to Small Business Minister Brendan O'Connor.

Ms Gillard was still working on the changes last night and is expected to finalise the line up today.

Attorney-General Nicola Roxon, Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Minister for Families Jenny Macklin at the Parliament Offices in Sydney late last year. Picture: Renee Nowytarger

Small Business is tipped to stay in Cabinet and some believe Treasurer Wayne Swan should add that portfolio to his job to elevate the importance of the sector ahead of the election.

Mental Health and Ageing Minister Mark Butler may pick up Mr O'Connor's other portfolios of Housing and Homeless.

It is unclear if there will be a new Cabinet minister but there will be a new junior minister. Victorian Mark Dreyfus or Mike Kelly from NSW are among those who could be promoted.

There was no response from Senator Evans' office last night but his WA Senate colleague Mark Bishop confirmed his departure on Twitter.

Senator Chris Evans with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Perth late last year.

"Resignation of Chris Evans a loss. Serious, hardworking competent minister. Unassuming, consistent and effective senate leader."

The low-profile Senator Evans has also been minister for industrial relations and as immigration minister dismantled the Pacific Solution, which Ms Gillard was forced to resurrect last year. He has been an MP since 1993.

Senator Evans' WA Senate colleague, Mark Bishop, told AAP the senator's Perth colleagues had been aware for "some time'' that the commute to Canberra was taking its toll.

"I think the actual timing is a surprise,'' he said on Friday night.

"Chris has been commenting to people for some time that he is tired."

He said the resignation could have serious organisational and political "consequences" for Labor in WA.

"Chris had access to everyone who was important in Western Australia ... the government will lose that inside edge," Senator Bishop said.

Christopher Pyne, manager of opposition business in the House, said Senator Evans' resignation "spoke volumes" about the state of federal Labor nearly eight months from the election.

"The information that I have is that Chris Evans has resigned not because of ill health, which was my first thought, but because he's just had enough," Mr Pyne said.

"And for the Senate leader and a cabinet minister to decide that he's just had enough speaks volumes for a dysfunctional Labor government."

He said he believed more resignations would follow.

"I don't want to speculate that this might be part of a (Kevin) Rudd push for the leadership, but it seems particularly odd that two days after the prime minister has fired the starter gun for an election campaign, her Senate leader has resigned, Craig Thomson has been charged with 149 offences, and one would have to say that the election campaign has got off to a very rocky start,'' he said.

Labor shock: Minister Chris Evans to resign, Nicola Roxon to go

Handwriting expert on Thomson case

Craig (CROOKED)Thomson in Sydney.

AUSTRALIA'S pre-eminent handwriting expert is helping Victorian police as they try to prove fraud charges against former Labor MP Craig Thomson.

It is understood Paul Westwood, a principal of Forensic Document Services, has been hired to provide expert advice on key aspects of police evidence - including Mr Thomson's handwriting and samples of his fingerprints taken as he was arrested on Thursday.

But as the Opposition intensified its attack on Prime Minister Julia Gillard over the union scandal, it appeared Mr Thomson may be able to defer a court hearing - set down for next Wednesday - until later this month.

Parliamentary rules allow federal MPs and Senators to avoid appearing in court if the parliament is sitting within five days of the court appearance.

Mr Thomson is scheduled to appear in a Melbourne court next Wednesday, during which the 149 fraud charges laid by police will be tabled. They broadly follow the allegations outlined by Fair Work Australia in civil proceedings broughts against Mr Thomson.

The MP's lawyer, Chris McArdle, confirmed he was "obtaining advice from the Clerk of the Parliament and police are getting their own advice about whether Wednesday can or should go ahead".

If the matter is deferred, Mr Thomson would likely appear in court about a fortnight later - when parliament is in recess.

It is understood police will use Mr Westwood's forensic expertise to try and prove that Mr Thomson spent more than $7000 of Health Services Union funds to pay for prostitutes and escort services while he was the union's boss between 2002 and 2007.

Mr Thomson told former Sydney broadcaster Michael Smith in August 2011 that his signature had been forged, as he fended off claims of using HSU funds to pay for prostitutes.

But Mr Westwood, at the time, said he had "not found any evidence" of forgery after he was asked by Mr Smith to examine samples of the MP's handwriting.

It is expected Victorian police will also use samples of Mr Thomson's fingerprints as evidence when the matter goes to trial.

A spokesman for Victorian police said there would be "no further comment" on the allegations involving Mr Thomson as the matter is before the courts.

Mr McArdle yesterday hit out at prison guard "goons" who he claimed had forced Mr Thomson to strip on Thursday as part of "absolutely extraordinary intimidation of an innocent man".

But the prison officers' union said Mr Thomson had been treated in a "professional and respectful manner".

Anne Gardiner, general secretary of the Prison Officers Vocational Branch of the Public Service Association of NSW, said the officers involved in the search of Mr Thomson were "at all times acting in accordance with the Standard Operating Procedures of Corrective Services NSW and the Crimes (Administration of Sentences) Act 1999".

Meanwhile, Opposition leader Tony Abbott has seized on the latest embarrassing revelations to reinforce his message that he will "clean up corrupt unions" if he wins office.

He criticised the Government for continuing to accept the MP's vote in the federal parliament. "We have refused Craig Thomson's vote ever since the Fair Work Australia report came down," he said.

"Every day that the government continues to accept his vote is a day when the government continues to be under this dreadful ethical pall of the Health Services Union."

Handwriting expert on Thomson case

Another one bites the dust...Cabinet shuffle expected as Evans resigns

THE FALL OF THE ALP !
THE Gillard government faces a major cabinet reshuffle following senior federal Labor MP Chris Evans' decision to resign from the ministry.
News of the Senate leader's departure comes just two days after Prime Minister Julia Gillard called the 2013 federal election for September 14.
Senator Evans, the minister for tertiary education, skills, science and research, will formally announce his resignation in Canberra on Saturday, according to media reports on Friday night.
Uncertainty surrounds Senator Evans' future in parliament. The ABC reports he is expected to quit his portfolios immediately and stay on in the Senate for only two more months, although there are three years left to his term.
Senator Evans' WA Senate colleague, Mark Bishop, told AAP the senator's Perth colleagues had been aware for "some time" that the commute to Canberra was taking its toll.
"I think the actual timing is a surprise," he said on Friday night.
"Chris has been commenting to people for some time that he is tired."
He said the resignation could have serious organisational and political "consequences" for Labor in WA.
"Chris had access to everyone who was important in Western Australia ... the government will lose that inside edge," Senator Bishop said.
Appearing on ABC television on Friday night, Labor MP David Bradbury said he was unsure that Senator Evans was stepping down.
"What I would say about Chris is that Chris has been a wonderful member of the team, leading our team in the Senate," he said.
Christopher Pyne, manager of opposition business in the House, said Senator Evans' resignation "spoke volumes" about the state of federal Labor nearly eight months from the election.
"The information that I have is that Chris Evans has resigned not because of ill health, which was my first thought, but because he's just had enough," Mr Pyne said.
"And for the Senate leader and a cabinet minister to decide that he's just had enough speaks volumes for a dysfunctional Labor government."
He said he believed more resignations would follow.
"I don't want to speculate that this might be part of a (Kevin) Rudd push for the leadership, but it seems particularly odd that two days after the prime minister has fired the starter gun for an election campaign, her Senate leader has resigned, Craig Thomson has been charged with 149 offences, and one would have to say that the election campaign has got off to a very rocky start," he said.
News Limited speculated that Immigration Minister Chris Bowen was likely to be moved into the higher education and skills portfolio.
It also suggested Housing Minister Brendan O'Connor may take the immigration portfolio, while Stephen Conroy was believed to be keen to succeed Senator Evans as government leader of the Senate.
AAP understands Victorian senator Kim Carr may also put his hand up for the job.
A spokeswoman for Senator Conroy, who is the government's deputy Senate leader, said she could not confirm he would move to take the reins from Senator Evans.
A spokesman for Mr Bowen said he was unable to comment on the expected resignation or any cabinet reshuffle.
Senator Evans, first elected to the Senate in 1993, supported Ms Gillard in the leadership contest with Mr Rudd in February last year.
Mark Riley of Seven Network tweeted that Senator Evans had informed Ms Gillard of his decision last week.




Cabinet shuffle expected as Evans resigns