Gillard was said to have voiced opposition over paid parental leave.

Labour looked almost certain to win theAustralian election with Julia Gillard at the helm, however has she done a Gordon Brown that will see victory handed to the opposition?

Just a few weeks ago the Australian polls all told of the popularity of Australia’s first female Prime Minister. What a difference a day and an embarrassing leak makes!

The Prime Minister has admitted that she raised doubts over paid parental leave. Paid parental leave was approved during Rudd’s reign and proved to be highly popular with the people. The legislation will come into effect in January 2011 and will entitle both parents up to 18 weeks paid leave at minimum wage rates. Parents may also have up to 52 weeks shared unpaid leave.

However the Prime Minister was said to have questioned the costs of such a policy along with pension rise proposals. She has now been forced into an explanation of her opposition after the cabinet leak was made public.

She angrily defended her actions then, telling reporters in Adelaide: “I understand that some might say that if you don’t sign on the bottom line … as soon as a proposal is put in front of your nose, you somehow you lack passion or enthusiasm for it. Frankly, I believe that analysis is completely ridiculous and absurd.”

She also defended her stance on paid parental leave saying; “when these proposals were raised … the question in the forefront of my mind was are they affordable?” However she maintained that once she looked into the proposals in more detail she became supportive of them. She also angrily dismissed Liberal accusations that she was against pension rises because the elderly did not vote Labour, saying that she had devoted her whole life to support equal opportunities.

On the question of the leak, it is certain that someone is out to undermine the Prime Ministers election campaign, but Ms Gillard has said that she will not assume is it a cabinet leak and will therefore not be asking for an investigation.

So just what has the leak done to her popularity? Well today’s Australian media is full of the leaked story and with the pension rises and parental leave being some of the most popular Rudd legislation, it remains to be seen what the people will make of the leak, whether they accept Ms Gillard’s rather shaky defence or not.

Perhaps the former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown will be able to offer a few comforting words. His own election campaign in the UK plummeted when his microphone picked up comments he made about a Labour voter, calling her a bigot for questioning East European immigrants in the UK.

But in Mr Brown’s case the gaffe was truly shocking as it could not be hidden behind spin. The public may be more forgiving in Ms Gillard’s case as the leak was made public by underhand tactics. The next polls should make interesting reading.

Award winning play comes to London.

Award winning Australian director Adam Spreadbury-Maher is turning his artistic talents to London and performing the critically acclaimed Hotel Sorrento by writer Hannie Rayson, at the Cock Tavern Theatre in the heart of the city.

Written by one of Australia’s most significant playwrights, Hotel Sorrento tells the harrowing tale of betrayal, lost love and rivalry when three sisters are reunited after ten years apart because of the publication of a tell-all autobiography.

Set in the sleepy seaside town of Sorrento it examines the sisters’ relationships with each other and their buried past which is dragged out into the open by novelist Meg, who emigrated to England but has returned to Australia for the launch of her autobiography. The play is an emotional look at family roots, culture and a sense of identity and has already won the Australian Writers Guild Award, NSW Premier’s Literary Award and the Green Room Award for Best Play. The film adaptation of Hotel Sorrento starring Joan Plowright was nominated for 10 Australian Film Institute Awards in 1995.

The Australian Newspaper has heralded it as: “A powerful Australian play that begins as a comedy about national identity and develops into a familial drama of great poignancy and reverberation.” Michael Billington (York Realist) said the previous London show was: “Lovingly revived.”

Now London theatre goers have the unique opportunity to see the play at the splendid Cock Tavern Theatre. Click on the link for tickets but do be advised that ticket numbers are limited so you will need to book early to ensure your place to watch one of Australia’s most famous plays re-enacted live.

The monster shark was caught off NSW, Australia.

Meet the latest tourist attraction for Queensland. He may not be the best looking of exhibits but he’s certainly bound to draw plenty of attention!

The monster 1200kg hammerhead shark was caught off the northern coast of New South Wales and bought by enthusiastic shark hunter Vic Hislop who has transported it to Queensland to be put on display for the benefit of tourists.

The monster will be used to all the limelight, he made the headlines last month when he was caught by a surprised fishing boat crew who were reeling in a smaller shark snagged on the line when the monster hammerhead swallowed the catch, becoming quite a catch himself! And we don’t use the term ‘monster’ lightly, this beast measures 5 metres long – that’s longer than your average family car with plenty of room in the boot!

At 40 years of age the hammerhead had lived a grand old life in the ocean until his untimely end. However the beast will now have pride of place at the Hervey Bay shark show.

Although Mr Hislop has yet to decide when the monster hammerhead will be on display, it needs to be preserved before it starts to get a bit fishy! The hammerhead shark can grow up to 6 metres long but despite their fearsome appearance they do not usually pose a threat to people. There are nine species altogether and three are listed as endangered. It’s not reported which species of hammerhead this particular beast is, but I’ll bet it was regretting having that last bite!

Fancy a steak on the barbie?

The French love it, but how well would horsemeat go down in Australia? Will the public vote yeah or neigh to the latest meaty offering?

A butcher known as the Prince of Flesh, aka Vince Gareffa from Perth, has just received special permission from the West Australian government to be able to supply horsemeat to the general public.

Mr Gareffa will be selling the horsemeat from his shop in Perth as well as supplying it to many restaurant chefs throughout Australia. To him it’s just another meat source that might as well be used. “We’ve got so many horses running in the wild, and we kill camels, we kill kangaroos, we kill emus,” Mr Gareffa said. “There’s no way in the world it’s any different. It just happens to be more emotional.”

Previously horse meat was only sold as pet food, so those opposed to the idea of horse meat may have been unwittingly feeding it to their dogs for years. No doubt the dog isn’t complaining. But is horsemeat any good for humans? Well many food experts think so. Australian Gourmet Editor Pat Nourse is a huge fan of horse steak and thinks that the only thing stopping the Aussies from trying it is their perception of horses as pets.

Nourse has bet a Melbourne chef $50 to introduce the meat to foodies at a food festival next month in Melbourne. Visitors to the Taste of Melbourne festival in August will be able to sample the dish specially prepared by Nicolas Poelaert of Embrasse Restaurant. Msr Poelaert has no problems in eating horsemeat, he was brought up in France where the dish is very popular.

The meat itself is said to be like a cross between beef and venison and is extremely lean. Steaks cost around the same price as a good beef steak but they need to be cooked lightly. According to those who have tried it, it is extremely tasty.

Well Australians can now make up their own minds as it slowly becomes available in restaurants and butchers. If you have tried horsemeat do let us know what you thought by filling out the comments box below!

A huge saltwater croc similar to the one the Australian tried to ride.

A traveller on a visit to Western Australia had to beat a snappy retreat his week when his drunken prank to ride on a 5m crocodile went wrong.

The man didn’t hang around to find out if the crocodile had bitten off more than it could chew after the giant croc, named Fatso, took offence to the intruder in its enclosure and gave him a nasty bite on the leg.

It is thought that the man, who may have partaken in a little more alcohol than was good for him, climbed into the crocodile enclosure in Broome, Western Australia, to pat the giant croc and take a ride on its back. However Fatso had other ideas and promptly bit the man on the leg.

Luckily for the hapless traveller, Fatso doesn’t like his meat marinated and so the man managed to escape with just severe lacerations to his leg. He managed to rescale the high cyclone fence that surrounded the crocodile enclosure before hobbling back to a nearby bar, where he had been previously thrown out for drunken behaviour, for some help.

Local police say that the man is lucky to have escaped with his life as Fatso, at nearly 5 metres long, isn’t the sort to start polite conversation with drunken intruders. The park’s owner, Malcolm Douglas, stated that crocodiles of that size are capable of crushing a man to death with a single bite. He reckons the cool nights probably saved the intruders life as Fatso would have been a little sluggish.

The tourist was taken to Broome Hospital for surgery and is now making a recovery. But his ordeal is not yet over as he may be charged for trespass. Meanwhile Fatso is none the worse for the excitement.

Every year around two people are killed by crocodiles in Australia. The saltwater crocs are the biggest and most aggressive of the species and can grow up to almost 5 metres and weigh in at a staggering 2,600lbs. Perhaps next time the drunken visitor will pick on someone his own size!

The Ted Smout bridge as it was being built in Queensland.

Australia now has another ‘big thing’ to add to its list as Australia’s longest bridge opened this weekend in Queensland.

The Ted Smout bridge, named after a World War I veteran from Queensland, spans an incredible 2.7 kilometres to join Brisbane with Redcliffe and has three traffic lanes, a cycle lane, pedestrian path and even fishing spots!

The bridge has been built to last 100 years and apparently can cope with any severe weather the Queensland coastline can throw at it.

As more and more people are populating Queensland, the bridge was part of the infrastructure plan to cope with a population increase, joining communities together.

The bridge cost $315 million to build and used 120,000 tonnes of concrete and 10,000 tonnes of steel. Main Roads Minister Craig Wallace, a keen fisher, admitted that he was most excited about the fishing platforms that are right above the fishing channel. He hopes that people from the communities will make plenty of use of them.

The bridge has even been designed to help support some of Queensland’s famous residents – the pelicans. Pelicans can also do a spot of fishing on their inbuilt pelican perch.

We’ll have to add the bridge to our feature on Australia’s big things!

Rolf played as good as he always does!

Glastonbury had a very Australian feel this weekend as Rolf Harris and Kylie Minogue thrilled the crowds with their performances.

Rolf provided the opening act for the Pyramid Stage on Friday morning. Looking like the man from Del Monte he delighted partygoers with renditions of old favourites such as ‘Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport’ and ‘Stairway to Heaven’.

The old Wobbleboard was also brought back to a rapturous applause. Rolf was certainly on top form and the crowd lapped it up. Australia’s favourite export has played Glastonbury before in 1994 and was named as the best entertainer to ever have appeared at Glastonbury. Might he enjoy that acclaim again? Well perhaps not, at 80 some of the sparkle may have gone but Rolf shows that he is still on top of his game!

Kylie Minogue was also there to help celebrate Glastonbury’s 40^th anniversary. Tonight saw her perform alongside Scissor Sisters on the Pyramid Stage. It was a great performance and made up for her forced cancellation in 2005 after being diagnosed with breast cancer.

It was great to see her back on stage and the crowd loved every minute of it! Two of Australia’s greatest performers, both live on stage in possibly the greatest music festival in the world. What could be better?

The boys from EXPATRIATE ready to rock the UK.

The UK are soon to get a taste of rock – Australian style as Sydney-based indie rock band, EXPATRIATE play their first headline gig in the UK .

The band have enjoyed enormous success in Australia, being nominated for Best Breakthrough Artist at the equivalent of the Australian Brits and are now ready to conquer the UK with their much-acclaimed debut album In The Midst Of This. They’ve already featured on the cover of Australia’s Rolling Stone magazine after being named as “one of the most important bands of the year.”

EXPATRIATE have successfully toured most of Europe and have gathered together quite a fanbase, playing at some of Europe’s most prestigious locations, such as Paris with Placebo and the famous Rockwave festival in Athens. They’ve also supported the likes of Simple Minds during their Australian tour and had their hit single, The Spaces Between, featured in the film ‘Yes Man’.

The band’s name stemmed from the experiences of lead singer Ben King who grew up as an expatriate being ferried between Indonesia and Australia, and drummer Cristo who was the child of Greek immigrants living in Sydney. It seemed only natural therefore, that the band should be called EXPATRIATE.

Their album was launched in the UK in March following their first whirlwind tour, playing at London’s Flowerpot venue. Because of the huge success of that tour the band are to return this month playing alongside Pearl Jam at the Hard Rock Calling Festival on Friday 25^th June and their own headline show at the Hoxton Square Bar and Kitchen on Tuesday 29 June.

If you want the chance to see one of Australia’s hottest rock bands either at the Hard Rock Calling Festival or the Hoxton Square Bar and Kitchen then log onto their website EXPATRIATE for a night of pure musical bliss.

The asteroid is thought to originate from the beginnings of the universe itself.

The Australian desert is used to dust, but the dust that will be landing in Australia today will be of an extraordinary nature.

A heatproof capsule is due to land in the Australia desert today and it will contain some of the oldest dust in the universe collected from an asteroid that is thought to be hundreds of millions of years old.

The tiny spacecraft set off from Japan in 2003 – its mission was to collect dust samples from an asteroid 300 million kilometres from earth in order to try and unravel some of the mysteries of the beginnings of the universe. However there was a malfunction when it landed and scientists are not sure what, if anything, it will have collected.

The asteroid is said to have broken away from an ancient celestial body that was formed during the early stages of the birth of the universe. As such it could provide invaluable information about the origins of the universe itself.

Now a team of scientists and astronomers are gathered together in the Australian desert anxiously awaiting the capsule’s, named Hayabusa, touchdown in what will end a remarkable journey of around three billion miles over seven years.

Skygazers should be able to witness the spectacular re-entry of the spacecraft into the earth’s atmosphere. Scientists say that it will glow brighter than Venus and will appear as a shooting star blazing a trail across the sky.

Australian aboriginal people will help to locate the capsule once it has landed where it will be taken to Tokyo where scientists will open it to see what precious cargo it contains.

Muse announce Australian tour dates.

The famous British rock band Muse have announced details of their travel tour dates to Australia – pleasing many of their Australian fans!

Muse will travel to Australia in December to play at Brisbane on December 5^th before travelling to Sydney and Melbourne and finishing their tour in Perth.

It will be one of the biggest shows they’ve ever played in Australia and the Devon boys will be pulling out all the stops to make it one of the most spectacular – so if you’re in Australia in December it will be well worth making the effort to see one of the best British bands around.

Past live performances have seen the boys dancing around in silver pants, robot armies marching across big screens accompanied by some of the best rock and roll music your ears will ever hear. Stuff.co.nz said of one of their performances: “Space age stadium act MUSE proved just how tight, focused and uncompromising three blokes with a love of psychedelic rock can be. With a dazzling light show thrilling a massive crowd, even doomsday anthem ‘Time is Running Out’ sounded uplifting and euphoric.”

Other reviewers have described the trio as “impressive and breathtaking”. So there really is no excuse to miss this fantastic opportunity to catch the boys live on their whistlestop tour of Australia.

The tour dates are:

• Brisbane Entertainment Centre – December 5
• Sydney ACER Arena – December 9
• Melbourne Rod Laver Arena – December 14
• Perth Bassendean Oval – December 19

For cheap flights to Australia try Emirates or Qantas.