Toronto mayor slams actor Kevin Spacey

Kevin Spacey cracked jokes at Toronto Mayor Rob Ford's expense when he appeared on a US talk show. Source: AAP

TORONTO'S combative mayor claims he wouldn't know Kevin Spacey "if I ran over him", a week after the House of Cards star poked fun at Rob Ford when both appeared on a late night talk show.

Ford's brother called the actor "an arrogant SOB".

The reason for their displeasure?

Spacey cracked several jokes at the mayor's expense when he appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live on March 2 shortly after a brief cameo by Ford.

"That's the first time I've had to follow a Ford," Spacey quipped. "And one that was so banged up."

When Kimmel thanked Spacey for sharing a dressing room with the mayor, Spacey responded: "Well, he threw up all over it, but those are the chances you take."

Ford has been under great pressure to resign since he admitted smoking crack last year, and several videos have emerged that showed him seemingly drunk or high.

His antics have made him the target of late-night television comedians and embarrassed Canadians.

City Council stripped him of many of his powers but does not have the authority to remove him.

Undaunted, Ford has vowed to run for re-election this year.

The Ford brothers took on Spacey during their show on YouTube named after the mayor's supporters, who he refers to as "Ford Nation".

Rob and Doug Ford complained that they were told they could not talk to, or have their picture taken with Spacey.

"In my opinion, he's an arrogant SOB," said Doug Ford, who however prefaced his comments by acknowledging that Spacey is an "incredible actor".

He then added: "Kevin, why don't you get off your high horse and be real and take pictures with people?"

Calls and emails to Spacey's publicist seeking comment were not immediately returned.

Rob Ford then softened the criticism, and cautioned that maybe Spacey "does take pictures and we're not aware of it".

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Double fatality on NSW north coast

Two men have been killed in a car crash on the NSW north coast. Source: AAP

TWO men have been killed in a car crash on the NSW north coast.

Just after 2.30am (AEDT) on Saturday police were called to The Coast Road at Lennox Head, south of Byron Bay after two cars collided.

A driver in a Toyota Camry died at the scene.

A driver in a Ford Fairlane also died at the scene while his male passenger was taken to hospital and is in a stable condition.

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Lusi batters Auckland beaches

EMERGENCY services are warning people to stay away from Auckland's northern beaches as high tide approaches and ex-Cyclone Lusi causes havoc.

Lusi hit Northland on Friday night, unleashing 91mm of rain near Whangarei over 27 hours and wind gusts of 139km/h at Cape Reinga.

A storm surge damaged a restaurant on Paihia's wharf and a seawall, several boats came ashore, Marsden Point was closed to all shipping and roofing iron lifted on a building in Mangawhai.

On Saturday, Auckland became the target.

Localised power outages, surface flooding and landslips occurred across New Zealand's largest city. Three boats broke from moorings and ferry services were disrupted.

One ship heading to Ports of Auckland was diverted to shelter off the Coromandel Peninsula.

An 11-year-old boy was reportedly swept out to sea at Takapuna Beach but police have not been able to find the person who alerted them, the boy, or any witnesses to the incident.

Auckland Council Civil Defence controller Clive Manley says weather conditions will deteriorate and coastal erosion will be a problem from 4pm to 10pm on Saturday at Snells Beach, Waiwera, Orewa, Milford, Cheltenham and Whangateau.

High tide is expected at 8pm local time.

"It's best to keep away from beaches," he said.

Power company Vector is providing frequent updates on power outages to thousands of customers across Auckland.

Wind gusts off 122km/h brought trees down and heavy rainfall fell in northern Auckland, the Waitakere Ranges, Hunua Ranges and south Auckland.

The storm is expected to pass over the South Island on Sunday.

Apple growers in Nelson are bracing for damage while residents of low-lying suburbs in Christchurch who have experienced two recent flooding events on top of earthquake damage are preparing for more woe.

Several events around the country, including Auckland's Polyfest, have been postponed or cancelled but thousands turned out to hear Tim Finn open the Womad music festival in New Plymouth with a moving ode to Parihaka and some Split Enz classics.

Lusi killed three people as it passed over Vanuatu.

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Man shot in western Sydney street

A MAN has been shot in the leg in a busy street in Sydney's west.

A spokeswoman for the NSW Ambulance Service has confirmed paramedics were called to Railway Parade, near Granville train station, just after 4pm (AEDT) on Thursday.

"We treated a 25-year-old male for a gunshot wound to the leg," she told AAP.

"That patient was transported to hospital in a stable condition."

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Leighton supports improved Hochtief offer

Hamish Tyrwhitt has resigned as chief executive of construction group Leighton Holdings. Source: AAP

THE board of construction and contract mining group Leighton has supported an improved offer from its majority shareholder Hochtief for a greater stake in the company.

Leighton has also axed chief executive Hamish Tyrwhitt and chief financial officer Peter Gregg, in line with Hochtief's request to change Leighton's management and board.

Mr Tyrwhitt will be immediately succeeded by Hochtief chief executive Marcelino Fernandez Verdes.

The new chief executive said Hochtief was committed to improving the performance of Leighton for the benefit of all shareholders, and the area of risk management was a priority.

"I intend to work with my colleagues on the Leighton board to complete the broad-based general review of Leighton's operating model that is currently being undertaken by Leighton management," Mr Verdes told reporters.

Speculation that Leighton may combine or sell some of the operating businesses such as Theiss and John Holland was premature, he said.

Hochtief also sees a benefit in maintaining Leighton's listing on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), and an Australian head office, Mr Verdes added.

Hochtief, A German-based and Spanish-owned construction company, lifted its offer for three out every eight Leighton shares to $22.50 per share, from its prior offer on March 10 of $22.15 per share.

Hochtief will lift its stake in Leighton from 58.77 per cent to a maximum of 73.82 per cent, for a total price of about $1.2 billion.

The offer is now unconditional other than requiring approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB).

The improved offer from Hochtief resulted from talks between Hochtief and Leighton's independent non-executive directors.

During the talks, the independent directors had urged Hochtief to make a takeover offer for all shares, rather than a proportional offer, but Hochtief refused, Leighton said.

Leighton shareholders will retain a dividend of 60 cents per share.

"In difficult circumstances, the independent directors have secured an improved offer which, we believe, is the best outcome for Leighton's shareholders and employees," chairman Robert Humphris said.

Mr Humphris described Mr Tyrwhitt and Mr Gregg as outstanding leaders who had successfully brought Leighton through a period of stabilisation and set the company on a pathway to growth.

The company's international operations have been the subject of allegations of bribery and corruption, which the company has repeatedly rejected.

Those claims remain the subject of a federal police investigation.

A long-term issue of collecting unpaid bills also dogs the company, with a $1.3 billion blowout to $5.8 billion owed at the end of 2013.

Leighton grew its 2013 full year net profit by 13 per cent to $509 million.

Shares in Leighton dropped 34 cents to $21.90 on Thursday.

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Head of The Reject Shop resigns

THE managing director of discount retailer The Reject Shop has resigned after more than four years in the role.

Chris Bryce will leave the company at the end of June, and said on Thursday it was time for a change.

Meanwhile, the retailer said it was on track to meet the full year profit guidance it provided in February.

The company expects to make a net profit of between $17 million and $18 million in the 2013/14 financial year.

The Reject Shop shares gained 36 cents, or 3.5 per cent, to $10.65.

Chairman Bill Stevens says Mr Bryce will leave the company in a very sound financial position, with the infrastructure in place to support potential significant growth.

"The board will be working closely with Chris over the next few months as we transition to a new chief executive officer," Mr Stevens said in a statement.

The retailer will launch a national and international search for a successor.

Mr Bryce joined the company 11 years ago and was appointed managing director in 2009.

"It is the right time for a change for me personally, with the chance to explore other opportunities," he said in a statement.

The company made a net profit of $16.9 million in the six months to December 31, down from $20 million in the same period a year earlier.

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Hockey confident about economic outlook

FEDERAL Treasurer Joe Hockey is confident about the medium-term outlook, even though there are conflicting economic gauges at the moment.

National Australia Bank's monthly business survey released on Tuesday showed conditions dropping sharply in February, reversing half the gains posted since September's federal election.

However, another survey showed small business is more confident about future revenues, albeit coming off a low base.

Mr Hockey also pointed to last week's run of strong data that included "astoundingly good" retail sales numbers and dwelling approvals figures that indicate an enormous pipeline of construction is building.

"There are conflicting data sets out there at the moment," Mr Hockey told Macquarie Radio, adding that people should not get distracted by one-off events either domestically or globally.

He said he was more positive about the global economy than three months ago.

"Over the medium term, things are going to get better and I think the economy will respond," Mr Hockey said.

NAB's business conditions index fell to zero in February from a three-year high of five points in the previous month, led by manufacturing unwinding January's surprising improvement.

While slightly softer business confidence remain above trend, sales and employment indicators fell markedly in the month.

NAB chief economist Alan Oster is sticking with his forecast for a jobless rate of 6.5 per cent in late 2014, but now expects it will stay "higher for longer".

He also expects the Reserve Bank will need to cut the cash rate again in November.

The latest labour force data for February is released on Thursday. In January, the jobless rate struck a 10-year high of six per cent.

Mr Hockey dismissed the opposition's continued gripes about rising unemployment, saying there shouldn't be any "shock value" because that's the economy Labor left behind and having predicted a jobless rate of 6.25 per cent by June.

Separate research by business software provider MYOB was slightly more positive, finding the number of firms enjoying rising revenues was the highest since March 2011.

The March 2014 MYOB Business Monitor also saw a significant increase in small- and medium-size enterprises anticipating a revenue rise in the next 12 months - 34 per cent compared with 25 per cent previously.

MYOB chief executive Tim Reed said the findings clearly told a positive story.

"Buoyed by record-low interest rates and a lower Australian dollar, local SMEs' hard work and resilience is now bearing fruit," he said.

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Govt refusal spurs SPC support: boss

Struggling food processor SPC Ardmona has announced a $70 million deal with Woolworths. Source: AAP

PEOPLE power, and the federal government's refusal to help SPC Ardmona, have been credited for a $70 million deal that has breathed new life into the food processor's fortunes.

Confirming the deal to supply an extra 24,000 tonnes of fruit over five years to Woolworths, SPC managing director Peter Kelly said Australians had rallied behind the label.

Less than two months after the coalition refused to contribute $25 million to an assistance package for the ailing company, Mr Kelly said the company's unsuccessful bid for government help focused attention on the business.

"It was probably the best $25 million we never got because it raised with consumers everywhere the issues that SPC is facing," he told ABC TV on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott said he always believed SPC was a sound operation and only the management and staff could save the business.

"It has been able to do that without $25 million from the government," Mr Abbott said on Tuesday.

SPC's Woolworths-branded peach and pear sales have increased by 60 per cent in 2014.

Mr Kelly said Australians had heard the company's story and were buying its products in numbers never anticipated.

"That's what caused the turnaround. Not anything else."

Consumers had started to question where their food came from, Mr Kelly said.

AUSVEG, the peak body for Australian vegetable growers, said the SPC Ardmona deal was a huge win but the government needed to do more to stop the ongoing threat posed by the dumping of foreign products.

"We have seen a number of Australian frozen and canning producers shut their doors in the last three years, and this includes iconic brands like Rosella, who have been really struggling to survive," AUSVEG spokesman Hugh Gurney told AAP on Tuesday.

"It's largely due to imports coming in from overseas and really flooding the market."

The practice of dumping - in which a product is exported at a price below its cost of production - is a major problem for Australian canned fruit and vegetable firms.

Cans of tomatoes from Italy can sell for as low as 68 cents, while a similar Australian product can cost three times that.

The federal government's decision in January not to help SPC, despite the prospect of job losses, unleashed widespread support for the company on Twitter and other social media.

Federal Liberal backbencher Sharman Stone was highly critical of the government's refusal to provide assistance, accusing the prime minister of lying when he blamed over-generous workplace entitlements for the decision.

Dr Stone said the Woolworths deal did not make it right for the government to reject SPC's pleas for help.

"This deal wouldn't have even been on the table but for the massive customer response to SPCA's product," said the Murray MP, whose electorate includes the Shepparton cannery.

She described the consumer campaign as a "cry from the heart" from Australians who put "their money where their mouth was".

"They Facebooked, and texted and tweeted, and said go buy Australian preserved fruit," she told AAP.

The Woolworths agreement, in which SPC will supply fruit, including tomatoes, for the retailers' home-brand line, will repair a major decline in its profitability.

The Victorian government is also taking credit for the company's good fortune, after it stepped in to offer SPC $22 million as part of a $100 million co-investment deal.

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US Navy funds two more vessels from Austal

SHIPBUILDER Austal has received funding to build two more vessels for the US Navy, taking the value of its current order book to record levels.

The company has received funds to build vessels seven and eight under a $US3.5 billion contract it has with the US Navy to construct 10 Littoral Combat Ships.

The new funding adds about $US684 million to Austal's order book, the company said, taking it to $3.3 billion.

The Littoral Combat Ship is a lightly armed vessel designed for missions in the littoral zone, or waters close to shore.

Austal is already building five Littoral Combat Ships at its US shipyard in Alabama, and the new funding secures work at the shipyard to the 2018/19 financial year.

Austal has a separate $US1.6 billion contract from the US Navy to build 10 Joint High Speed Vessels, which have been fully funded.

Austal shares were down one cent at 88 cents on Tuesday.

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Abuse survivor shocked by Pell's response

A NSW hearing will examine the response of the Catholic Church to John Ellis's claim of child abuse. Source: AAP

A VICTIM of sex abuse says Archbishop George Pell "slammed a door in his face" when he tried to pursue a claim against the church.

An inquiry in Sydney has been told in the initial stages of a complaint against the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney by abuse survivor John Ellis, Cardinal Pell wrote to him saying the case could not be resolved because the priest concerned was in no state to respond.

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse is examining Mr Ellis' experiences when he went through the church's internal process Towards Healing and then civil litigation.

Mr Ellis, a lawyer, was sexually abused between 1974 and 1979 when he was between 13 and 17-years-old by Aidan Duggan a Catholic priest at Bass Hill, in Sydney's west.

Mr Ellis had been groomed by him while the priest was in Sydney on leave from an abbey in Scotland.

Fondling and touching turned to frequent serious assault.

The experience had a profound effect on his personal and professional life, the commission heard.

Mr Ellis approached the church's Professional Standards Office (PSO) in 2002 to avail of the pastoral and redress options available under Towards Healing.

An initial investigation resulted in a letter from the then archbishop, Cardinal Pell.

The letter which has been tabled at the inquiry said: "On the one hand there is your allegation and on the other, Father Duggan cannot respond, and we have no records of complaints of this kind against him".

It also said: "It is clear now that Father Duggan is in no state to respond to the charges against him and that the facts of the matter cannot be established".

Mr Ellis said when he received Cardinal Pell's letter he "thought a door had been slammed in my face".

He later wrote to the PSO expressing his shock at the letter, which arrived on Christmas eve.

A month after Cardinal Pell's letter, Mr Ellis' mother, who knew nothing about the abuse, had visited Fr Duggan and said she found the retired priest in good spirits.

His mother told him she found the priest "frail but in good spirits" and he had recognised his old friends from Bass Hill.

Mr Ellis said he was extremely upset and emotional about the letter.

He said at no time was he ever asked for corroborative evidence and felt his own details should have been assessed on merit.

He also thought Fr Duggan, who had dementia, was going through a lucid period and could have been interviewed.

Mr Ellis later attempted to sue Cardinal Pell and the trustees of the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney but failed on both counts and the 2005 finding has been interpreted by some as creating a church immunity from prosecution over abuse.

In her opening address to the hearing Gail Furness SC, counsel advising the commission, on Monday outlined Mr Ellis' journey through Towards Healing and later the court cases.

"The manner in which this litigation was conducted caused harm and suffering to Mr Ellis. Concern for Mr Ellis' well being was not apparent at the time of litigation from either the Archdiocese or Cardinal Pell's chosen solicitors," she said.

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