The Sydney Morning Herald from Sydney, New South Wales, Australia • Page 4

4 www.smh.com.au THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1999 ored Laws cens six City critics Westpac ex-head blames program Golden tonsils: What they were paid The complaint 6 November 1998 DearJchn, I am writing to express my grava concern about your faffura to taka a strong stance in support of Star Oty during an attack on the complex by the Victorian Premier. You will recaS that on 6 November you played an excerpt from Mr Kemett on 2UE in which he said Crown Casino made Star city look Bke "a filthy rabbit warren. He went on to compare Star Oty wiift a 20 year old Leagues Ciub and described ft 35 "smefiy and grtitty The transcript of the exchange Indicates that you made no attempt to defend Star Oty dsspfte the fact that we are paying a substantial fee for your endorsenwrt Foxtel 1997-August 1999: (terminated) $300,000 a year Registered $200,000 a year Clubs Assoc Australian 1996 -now: Trucking $200,000 a year Assoc 1999 TALLY: $1,950,000 Alan Jones Optus 1995-1997: $100,000 a year 1998 -now: $500,000 a year Qantas 1997-now: $100,000 plus $50,000 contra plus first-class ticket to London each year Colonial 1998 -now: State Bank $433,000 a year By ANNE DAVIES Radio 2UE's king of talkback, John Laws, regularly stopped callers critical of Star City Casino from going to air and avoided mentioning the death of a patron after a struggle with the casino's security guards, as part of his endorsement agreement with Star City, the Australian Broadcasting Authority was told yesterday. Laws's admissions were contained in a letter which he wrote to Star City's chief executive, Mr Neil Gamble, on November 9 last year. It was a reply to a blistering attack by Mr Gamble about an interview that Laws had done with the former Victorian premier, Mr KennetL Mr Kennett had described Star City as "a filthy rabbit warren" and a 20-year-old leagues club which was "smelly and Mr Gamble was so angry when he read the transcript of the broadcast on November 6 last year that he immediately penned a letter to Laws.

"I am writing to express my grave concern about your failure to take a strong stance in support of Star City during an attack on the complex by the Victorian Premier," he said. "Nowhere in our transcript is there any evidence of you 9 November 1998 DcarNcil I believe that I have displayed my loyalty to Star City constantly and perhaps in a way of which you aren't aware. We get reasonably frequent calls wanting to be critical of Star City, as we do with faxes and e-mails. I either dismiss mem totally or defend Star City. At no time did I allow any comment on the unfortunate incident cccerning the security guards even though I was strongly encouraged to do so.

We have provided, I believe, absolute support for anything mat Star City is doing. I have written and talked about the functions being held there, as recently as the Fred Hollows ball, singing the praises of the ballroom and the staff JOHN LAWS C.B.E. other things behind the scenes to fulfil his obligations. He said he proposed to go on air that morning the Monday after Mr Gamble's complaint and defend Star City. Banks 'didn't ask for Hadley feud wins on timing Mr Gamble said he was amazed that Laws had replayed the interview in his Friday Best of Laws compilation.

"Indeed I have to question the value of our endorsement agreement if support' thetic to the banks, he said. Giving evidence to the hearing, Mr Aveling said the association was aware Law's criticism of banks arose from a commercial arrangement he had with RAMS Home Loans. The association felt that by giving Laws "the facts, he was likely to change his Mr Aveling said he believed the association had been "transparent" in its backing of the Laws programs. There were credits at the beginning of 74 programs and at the end of another 38 acknowledging the banks as the sponsor. Regular listeners would have had "no doubts" it was- a commercial arrangement.

Philip Cornford The Australian Bankers Association had never asked John Laws to stop criticising banks, the association's chief executive, Mr Tony Aveling, told the Australian Broadcasting Authority yesterday. He said even though one of the association's main aims in signing a contract with Laws was to stop his criticisms, this was never discussed with Laws in his three meetings with the broadcaster. Nor was it part of Laws's agreement with the association. The Australian Bankers Association agreement with Laws prompted the authority's inquiry into the so-called cash for comment affair on talkback Tuesday, the day that the Australian Broadcasting Authority began its hearing into the financial arrangements between Jones, Laws, 2UE and various companies, Jones and Hadley were in a station corridor in front of a dozen witnesses screaming at each other over perceived undue influence. "I've had plenty of fights with Alan Jones the only difference this time is' I gave a bit better than I normally do," Hadley said yesterday.

"Normally I get lectured, this time I gave a lecture." The pair have been playing no talkies for some months over differing views on the future of the National Rugby League Ne3 Gambia Chief Executive Officer sticking up for Star City and endorsing it as a great entertainment venue. In contrast you describe Crown, our principal competitor, as 'wonderful' on several occasions." radio, when it became public on the ABC's Media Watch Counsel assisting the authority, Mr Julian Burnside, QC, outlined yesterday how Mr Bob Miller, of Australia Street Consulting, had pitched the idea of a sponsorship deal with Laws to the bank lobby group in October 1998. Soon after, Mr Burnside said, the tone of Laws's comments on banks bega to change. He had been a trenchant critic of the banks but, as the contract was being negotiated by his friend Mr Miller, Laws appeared to soften his attacks, he said. The deal was signed in February this year and after that Laws became more sympa starting a new church.

The Sydney vote represents a fundamental break with the principles of the Anglican reformers." One option for Archbishop Goodhew is to assent to the legislation, passed by the Synod 346-1 94, but refuse to act on it another is to act on it selectively, for instance by authorising "one or two of our women deacons" only to preside at Holy Communion. Archbishop Goodhew, who is due to retire next year, has a month to decide whether he will veto the lay presidency legislation. But he acknowledged a certain inevitability about the outcome. "I can't see a successor being elected who won't support this," he said. "So do you say 'It's going to happen in any case, take the heat for somebody else' or do you say 'Well, if a certain thing is right I'll stand for it and I h'fliTilfTiR this sort of attack on Star City can go unchallenged on your radio program," he said.

Mr Laws replied that he had not tried to defend Star City at the time, but had done many Jones and By BERNARD ZUEL They don't do things small at 2UE. That goes for ratings, egos and salaries. So it should be no surprise that when it comes to fights at the North Sydney home of Sydney's highest rating radio station, they don't do mere disagreements, they do feuds. The latest to surface is between senior sports commentator Ray Hadley and breakfast announcer Alan Jones. It's not as loud as the one that raged between afternoon announcer Mike Carlton and mornings man John Laws, nor as titanic as the stoush between Laws and Jones.

But it certainly wins for timing. As Hadley has confirmed, on would have to take it into account in weighing his options. "But it doesn't change the responsibility I have to the wider church in Australia and the wider church around the world, and it doesn't change the fact from my point of view that this will have an impact on the credibility of Our diocese when it participates in other things." One of those who may be among the first lay people to preside at Holy Communion if the legislation is ratified is Mrs Claire Smith, of St Ives. Mrs Smith said that she would not hesitate in applying to preside at Holy Communion. "I'm a very ordinary person," Mrs Smith, a full-time mother and founding member of the Laity for Biblical Leadership, said.

"But this would give me the opportunity to be involved." By PAUL SHEEHAN John Laws and his staff went looking for sponsorship from the banks, according to a former Westpac chief executive, Mr Bob Joss. He told the Herald the Australian Bankers Association had never tried to keep secret its sponsorship of the radio segment The Whole Story and it was Laws, not the banks, who initiated the arrangement. In a new book published this week, Managing in Australia, which Mr Joss co-authored with a former Telstra chief executive, Mr Frank Blount, he is dismissive about ethical standards on talkback radio: "Talk-back radio isn't journalism. It's at best infotainment and, more often, just entertainment." Mr Joss writes that the banks made a mistake in not having their sponsorship clearly stated before the segment "We never had any intention of being involved in anything that wasn't totally aboveboard. "We were naive in not insisting that our sponsorship of the series be more than transparent In retrospect, we should have ensured that our involvement was patently and unreservedly stressed and reinforced at the beginning of each segment" The banks were receptive to the Laws initiative, he said, because it had become "continually frustrated by the unrelenting negative publicity banks were receiving on talkback The new book states: "When Laws and his radio station came looking for a major sponsor for a series of programs designed to explore little-known elements of major Australian stories, the banks saw a chance to partly redress the balance." He added that they were only trying to "put a little balance back in the Mr Joss is dean of the Graduate Business School at Stanford University but was Westpac CEO and a member of the Bankers Association when it agreed to sponsor Vie Wlutle Story.

ripped off $204,000, no prosecutions were likely. There were doubts over the admissibility of ICAC evidence in court and two of the staff had left the country. He said the ICAC in Hong Kong, a far larger organisation with extraordinary coercive powers, had secured more prosecutions in six months than the NSW ICAC had in 10 years. The report stated that while royal commission-style public investigations may still have a place, new powers in the 10 years since the establishment of ICAC, such as listening devices and phone taps, made it possible to gather admissible evidence for prosecution. There is widespread support within the Government's ranks for a change in the focus of ICAC to more private investigations to secure prosecutions.

(BCCD MPs push for secrect ICAC inquiries Synod 'on brink of new church' John Laws Optus 1992-94: $100,000 a year; 19941998: $825,000 a year Qantas 1992-93: $50,000 a year plus $25,000 in travel credits; 1994 -now: $200,000 year plus 4-6 first class air tickets anywhere RAMS 1997viow: $250,000 a year Australian Bankers Association Feb 1999 to July 99 (terminated): $500,000 a year Star City 1997-now: $250,000 a year; VIP status at casino and $4,000 per month in free food, drink, accommodation NRMA 1998 -now: $300,000 a year SMH GRAPHIC He also said: "We get reasonably frequent calls wanting to be critical of Star City. I either dismiss them totally or defend Star City." Laws also told Mr Gamble he had not allowed any comment on the "unfortunate incident concerning the security guards" to go to air. "Again let me reassure you of my total support for Star City," he said. and Jones's pet team, the threatened South Sydney. But it appears somewhere between Tuesday's 6 am news bulletin, which named only Laws in relation to the ABA inquiry, and the 6.30 am bulletin, which named both Laws and Jones, matters worsened.

While confirming that the argument was over the news coverage of the ABA inquiry "and other Hadley would not detail what was said "I wouldn't want to visit the kind of language on your readers. It was a colourful exchange." but he agreed this was not a relationship easily repaired, even by management. Hong Kong ICAC operated successfully by completing all its investigations in secret. The NSW ICAC did not have the same primary focus and its emphasis on exposing corruption in public hearings with evidence inadmissible in court needed reviewing. "It may be that continued use of public hearings and early exposure of corruption allegations is adversely jeopardising prosecution of corruption offences and in some cases disciplinary proceedings," the report said.

Mr Hatzistergos said the committee was considering recommending that ICAC change its role to focus more on securing prosecutions. "We have to make a policy decision on whether we want an ICAC which has an emphasis on tailored reduced rate 1999 TALLY: $1,083,000 Sponsors declared at ABA inquiry. Presenters may have other deals not subiect of inquiry. The inquiry was told that Laws is paid $250,000 a year under his endorsement agreement with Star City. He also receives VIP status at the casino and $4,000 a month in free food, drinks and accommodation.

The agreement is understood to include a clause which prevents Laws denigrating gambling. Mr Gamble and Laws are yet to give evidence at the hearing. "It's pretty hard to repair something when you're not talking," he said. "We may take the summer to let things cool down. I think at the moment there are other concerns with management other than a ght between two boofheads." Nobody else at 2UE was volunteering to join in the fight yesterday.

Station manager Ian Wallace did not return calls and the station's news director, Julie Flynn, said "I know nothing about it I was busy on Tuesday judging Walkley Awards." Asked if he still had respect for Jones, Hadley paused for some time before venturing: "Qualified respect" exposure and education or whether its focus should be Public hearings and early exposure of corruption allegations may be jeopardising prosecution Parliamentary report on ICAC exposure, prosecution and education," he said. "At the moment, prosecution is a secondary function. We are saying prosecutions may have been sacrificed in favour of maximum exposure." Mr Hatzistergos said the ICAC report this week on ferry ticket fraud was a "perfect example" of its problems. Despite finding five former ticket sellers at Manly Wharf had car insurance. By MARK ROBINSON The Independent Commission Against Corruption may have to shift its emphasis to more secret investigations after a report warned that its focus on public hearings may be hampering attempts to secure prosecutions.

The report, by two members of the Parliamentary Committee on ICAC, was tabled yesterday after an investigation of the operations of Hong Kong's ICAC. It came as the committee accepted the Government's nomination of the NSW Ombudsman, Ms Irene Moss, as the new head of the corruption watchdog, clearing the way for her to take over from Mr Barry O'Keefe next month. The committee chairman, Mr John Hatzistergos (Lab), and a member, Mr Andrew Fraser (Nat), found evidence that the 2 i i i Mrs Smith it's somebody else's responsibility when they come along'?" Archbishop Goodhew said he was surprised by the strength of support for lay presidency and By CHRIS McGILLION and ELLEN CONNOLLY The Primate of the Anglican Church of Australia, Archbishop Keith Rayner, says that if the Sydney Synod's decision to allow lay people and deacons to preside at Holy Communion is ratified it would be tantamount to starting a new church. Melbourne's Archbishop Rayner made his comments as the Anglican Archbishop of Sydney, the Most Rev Harry Goodhew, began considering his options after the Diocese of Sydney's Synod voted on Tuesday to pass legislation to end the centuries-old tradition that only bishops and priests can officiate at Holy Communion. Archbishop Rayner said "At the Reformation in the 16th century, the Anglican reformers made it clear that they were not We've found Subject to GIO's Vfcmnxtm) dlwdtrs fftooily wto fey dteidtrm few vtmrnm Cdll ill 0 0 women drivers to be a much better risk than men, so we're offering them specially normal underwriting criteria.

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