Aussie towns hold key to long life

Port Pirie resident Maureen Bairstow takes her Jaguar for a spin. Picture: Simon Cross Source: News Limited

AUSTRALIANS enjoy a lifestyle envied around the world but there are some areas of the country where life is simply better than others.

A News Limited analysis of official data and published research has pinpointed the places where locals live longest, stay healthiest, are more likely to be married, give the most to charity and pay the lowest tax.

The research shows there could well be something in the water in Sandgate, on the outskirts of Newcastle, with locals enjoying the longest life of any suburb in the nation.

Almost 13 of every 100 people in the quiet waterside location are aged 90 and over.

Not far behind, further down the NSW coast, is Worrowing Heights where 11 in every 100 live to a grand old age.

Port Pirie in South Australia and Rowes Bay in Queensland also hold the secret to long life.

Thousands of kilometres across the country in Northam in Western Australia, the locals may not live as long but they could well be our healthiest inhabitants.

The area, which offers bush trails, hot air ballooning and white water rafting, has the lowest likelihood of chronic diseases such as diabetes, high cholesterol, arthritis and osteoporosis.

Goondiwindi in Queensland is the next best health hotspot.

But if marriage is the key to happiness then maybe those living way up the WA coast in North West Cape may lay claim to our best place to live.

Three-quarters of the adults in the isolated and relaxed area are hitched  the highest rate in the country, ahead of Sydney suburb The Ponds.

Cabramatta, in Sydney's south-west, is number one when it comes to big families.

There are 64 locals there with 10 and more children, putting it ahead of Springvale (61) and Reservoir (60) in Victoria.

Professor Stewart Lockie, from the ANU, believes happier and healthier communities are ones with community spirit and economic and cultural diversity.

"Happy communities have a dynamic feel. People feel it is a place worth visiting and staying,'' he said.

Professor Brenda Happell, from Central Queensland University, said areas away from the hustle and bustle of big city life usually offered health and lifestyle advantages as they are less stressful, slower paced and friendlier.

When it comes to giving up your hard earned to the tax man, the SA suburbs of Davoren Park and Elizabeth Downs are the tops, paying a national low of $5,754 average per taxpayer.

Doveton and Frankston in Victoria were next lowest.

And the most charitable taxpayers in the nation reside in the well-to-do Sydney eastern suburbs of Darling Point and Edgecliff, donating an average of $6,859.45.

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Police hunt savage cafe attacker

CCTV shows how the seemingly unprovoked attack unfolded outside a St Kilda cafe. A man becomes involved in conversation with a group of people before grabbing a glass and assaulting one of them

A MAN sitting in an outdoor cafe has been glassed in a savage street attack caught on security camera in St Kilda.

The sickening attack happened on Acland St about 1.30am on Thursday.

Police have been told a 27-year-old Essendon man and several friends were sitting in an outside cafe when they were approached by two women who had just walked out of a nearby nightclub with another man.

The two women, who appeared to be affected by alcohol, stopped at the table and spoke to the group for a short time before moving away.

The man then approached the table and was talking to the group when he grabbed a glass off the table and struck the victim in the face.

The man then walked off along the footpath towards Barkly St.

Two of the victim's friends caught up with the offender, but after a short scuffle he broke free and ran off.

The victim was treated at the scene by paramedics before being taken to the Epworth Hospital.

The offender is described as Caucasian, about 180cm tall, medium build, with short dark hair with a Scottish accent.

Police are appealing to anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000

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Tax bill looms for health fund members

A survey has found 53 per cent of the 2.4 million fund members affected by means-testing have not made any changes to their insurance. Picture: Guy Bailey. Source: Supplied

MORE than 1.2 million Australians face a retrospective tax bill of up to $1,000 because of the means-testing of private health insurance rebates.

A Galaxy survey conducted for health fund broker iSelect has found 53 per cent of the 2.4 million fund members affected by the test have not made any changes to their insurance since it was introduced.

Individuals earning over $84,000 a year and families earning over $168,000 a year had their 30 per cent government subsidy reduced or eliminated in July this year.

It was their responsibility to notify their fund of their income so their premiums could be adjusted to reflect the new lower government subsidy.

However, the survey of over 1,300 Australians found most of those hit by the means test have failed to take any action to avoid a tax penalty.

They will face a tax bill of between $339 and $1,000 next July when the government moves to claw back subsidies they were not entitled to.

The bad news for the government is that this tax bill will arrive around the same time as a federal election is due.

One in four people in the income band affected by the new means test don't have private cover and they could be facing a higher tax penalty as well because the Medicare Levy Surcharge that applies to them has also been increased.

The Galaxy survey found 91% those affected by the test were aware of its introduction.

However, only 5 per cent said they had contacted their fund to inform them of their income level.

Sixteen per cent of those affected avoided the impact of the means test for the first 12 months by pre-paying for at least a year of cover before June 30 this year.

And 53 per cent told the Galaxy poll they had not made any changes to their insurance in the last 12 months.

One in five people affected acknowledged they should look into the means test and admitted they didn't know how it will affect them.

"This picture signals a level of inertia, if not complacency among Australians with their PHI that is setting them up for some unhappy tax returns in the year ahead," the poll analysis says.

Individuals earning over $130,000 and families on over $260,000 will lose the 30 per cent government premium subsidy altogether but 48 per cent of them have taken no action to avoid a tax bill.

Given that these people expect a tax refund of approximately $1,942 a year the loss of the PHI rebate "may be unexpectedly disappointed when it comes time for their tax return," the Galaxy survey says.

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Tradies jump on apprenticeship program

Almost 500 potential apprentices have registered for the Gillard government's $57.5 million Kickstart program launched two weeks ago, giving tradies who take on a new apprentice before the end of February a bonus $3350 from the commonwealth.   Source: AP

ALMOST 500 potential apprentices have registered for the Gillard government's Kickstart program since it was launched two weeks ago.

The $57.5 million Kickstart program was designed to create up to 21,000 extra apprenticeships in the construction industry.

Tradies who take on a new apprentice before the end of February will get a bonus $3350 from the commonwealth, tripling the upfront incentive paid to employers in the first year.

Minister for Skills, Senator Chris Evans said applications had been received from across the country, with the strongest demand so far in carpentry, plumbing and engineering fabrication.

"This is the perfect opportunity for school leavers in particular to get a head start on a successful and rewarding career in the industry," Senator Evans said.

"We will need more skilled tradespeople in the housing sector as we approach the predicted upturn in 2014 and 2015."

The three east coast mainland states have registered the most interest, with more than 200 potential apprentices applying in Victoria, 112 in NSW and 109 in Queensland.

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Top-secret tourism at outback US air base

OPERATION EXPOSED: The hangar of the former wartime US airbase near Charleville. Pic: Adam Head Source: The Courier-Mail

IT was the top-secret air base so covert even the locals were sworn to silence.

The US Air Force base, outside Charleville in outback Queensland, was deserted after World War II and has sat forgotten in the desert for more than 60 years.

Until now.

A chance discovery by an amateur World War II historian uncovered ruined parts of the base three years ago.

Until then the land had been earmarked for an industrial estate by the local council.

Jane Morgan outside a disused bomb vault at the former WWII US Air base located just out of Charleville. Pic: Adam Head

It has now been converted into a tourist attraction run by the Charleville Cosmos Centre.

Relics are still being discovered as locals piece together the story of the top-secret operation, which doesn't even show up on many official US military records.

The base was camouflaged by mulga tree branches and chicken wire.

Even Australian civilians contracted to work on the base had to sign oaths to the US president pledging never to reveal the base's existence.

The remains of the mess hall at the former US Air base. Pic: Adam Head

Jane Morgan, manager of the Cosmos Centre, said the base was a fascinating chapter of Charleville's history.

"People suspected the Americans were out here, but they didn't know what they were doing," she said.

"Here is a whole chapter of the shire's history that had been completely forgotten.

"The story has just got bigger and bigger."

The base housed up to 160 aircraft, including B-17 bombers used to knock out supply lines for the Japanese army in the Pacific.

The old hangar is now used by the Royal Flying Doctors, but other fragments are still being uncovered with the help of old aerial photographs.

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Singleton makes move on Fairfax

Advertising guru John Singleton has opened discussions with fellow Fairfax Media shareholder Gina Rinehart. Picture: Wayne Ludbey Source: Herald Sun

ADVERTISING entrepreneur John Singleton has purchased a strategic share in Fairfax Media and with investment banker Mark Carnegie has opened up talks with the company's biggest shareholder Gina Rinehart.

Hancock Prospecting, owned by Mrs Rinehart and Gutenberg Investments, backed by both Mr Singleton and Mr Carnegie announced they have "agreed to consult with each other on key matters affecting Fairfax Media".

Mr Singleton said he and Mr Carnegie had met with Mrs Rinehart to discuss their "mutual interest in working together," according to in a statement released late last night.

"However it is important to state that both Gina and I believe that the lifeblood of Fairfax is the integrity and accuracy of its journalism," Mr Singleton said.

The talks are "at a very early stage" and the allies said they will "file a substantial shareholder notice on Monday to inform the market of our association before developing any plans," the statement read.

Fairfax sources told The Australian though, that they believed Gutenberg Investments holds less than 1 per cent in the company while Hancock Prospecting holds 15 per cent, down from the 19 per cent it held several months ago.

Mr Singleton and Mr Carnegie set up Gutenberg Investments after their failed in their bid to buy Fairfax's radio assets.

In the statement Mr Singleton said he bought his shares in Fairfax "as a result of the Fairfax board definitively closing the door on a sale or joint venture of their radio assets to Macquarie Radio Network."

"For the amount of money I was prepared to pay for the radio assets of Fairfax I could buy a significant amount of all the assets of Fairfax at a far lower price to earnings multiple," Mr Singleton said.

Mr Singleton and Mrs Rinehart have been friends for years and last year the advertising guru attacked Fairfax's board after it rejected previous changes she had sought to the make up of the board.

But Mr Singleton took a swipe at the board, and said the Fairfax Charter of Independence should be reviewed.

"I think the current board has struggled to come to terms with the new environment, which is there for all to see in the share price and the lack of direction at the company," he said.

"I was on the board of Fairfax when Sir Zelman Cowen was chairman of the board some 20 years ago, when the existing Fairfax Charter of Independence was drawn.

"There is no reason why a group of eminent and experienced Australians should not review the charter to ensure and enable its relevance for today, and the current very challenging times for the media."

Last night Fairfax chairman Roger Corbett played down the move.

"The directors will continue to work and make judgments in the interests of all shareholders of Fairfax, as we have done in the past," Mr Corbett told The Australian.

- with AAP

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Aussies missing in Bolivia found safe

The world's largest salt flats at Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia / Flickr user Casablance

FIVE Australians reported missing in Bolivia have been found safe after the group got lost in the Salar de Uyuni, the world's largest salt flat.

A search party made up of Bolivian police had been looking for the group of Aussie tourists and their guide who failed to return from the Salar de Uyuni, the world's largest salt flat.

The group was made up of three males and two females aged between 21 and 31 who went missing after leaving the nearby southern city of Tupiza on Thursday, local police said.

But a spokeswoman from the Australian Consulate in La Paz said the group had been found safe and had only been missing because their car had gotten severely bogged in mud on the salt flat.

"They are ok," Cristina Fernandez, honorary consul in La Paz, told The Sunday Telegraph.

"They were not missing and nothing really happened...they were on the salt flat which is very big and their vehicle got stuck in the mud because there is a lot of water on there at the moment," Ms Fernandez said.

"There is no phone reception in that area because it is very high so they couldn't call anyone."

Ms Fernandez said all five of the tourists were in good condition and were staying in the city of Uyuni near the salt flats.

It is currently the wet season in Bolivia which is the most popular time to see the salt planes. Increased moisture causes visual effect popular with tourists because it makes the surface of the salt plane look the same colour as the sky.

At 10,582 square kilometres, the Salar de Uyuni is the largest salt flat in the world.

There are no roads in the Salar, which is located near the crest of the Andes, some 3,650 meters (11,975 feet) above sea level, and spread across a desolate expanse of 12,000 square kilometers (4,600 square miles).

Visitors usually navigate their way around the treacherous landscape by relying on tracks left by previous vehicles, but these can be washed out by heavy rain.

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Stolen macaws found in midnight raid

Two stolen macaws stolen from Featherdale Wildlife Park on Christmas Eve have been recovered in a Sydney backyard. Source: News Limited

TWO rare and valuable birds stolen from a wildlife park over Christmas have been recovered from a Sydney backyard.

Some time after 9.30pm (AEDT) on Christmas Eve, an unknown number of offenders broke into Featherdale Wildlife Park on Kildare Road, in the west Sydney suburb of Doonside.

They made off with 10 birds including two blue and yellow macaws worth $6000 each, two red-tailed black cockatoos, and six white-breasted ground doves.

The birds were not missed until 4.30am on Christmas Day.

Police received a tip-off and visited an Auburn house after midnight on Friday night.

There, they say they found the two stolen macaws in a backyard aviary.

The other birds were not found.

Police say they have spoken with the home's residents and no charges have been laid, but inquiries are continuing.

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