12PM TUESDAY JANUARY 6, 2009

The Holden Commodore is Australia’s favourite passenger car for the 13th consecutive year after finishing 2008 as the nation’s best-seller. The result continues Commodore’s unbroken record from 1996 as the country’s leading passenger car range, extending its run as one of the modern automotive world’s longest consecutive market leadership records. 

Sales figures for 2008 released today by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries show Australians purchased a total of 51,093 vehicles from the VE Commodore range. The results follow GM Holden’s strong sales performance in December, which saw dealers defy difficult economic conditions, new competitive entrants and heavy price competition in the market to sell 10,848 new cars.  

Audio news grabs –

MR ALAN BATEY, GM Holden Executive Director of Sales, Marketing and After-sales

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: MONDAY JANUARY 5, 2009

Australians are more likely to search for a rental property in January than any other month, according to the latest industry research on rental trends released by realestate.com.au today.

Based on data from January 2008, traffic to the RENT section of the website increased by 41 per cent indicating a strong demand for rental accommodation, with this trend set to follow.

Jamie Pride, Australia CEO of realestate.com.au suggests that while securing a rental property may be challenging for some, there are certain things individuals can do to improve their chances of securing their next home.

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JAMIE PRIDE, Australia CEO of realestate.com.au

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE. JANUARY 1, 2009

The 2009 World of Difference program, which is open for applications from today, is giving four Australians the opportunity to spend a year working for charity with their salary and expenses, up to $75,000, paid by the Vodafone Australia Foundation.

Layne Beachley, seven times women’s surfing World Champion and Ambassador for World of Difference says the program gives passionate Australians the chance to live out their dream of changing the world.

Over the past six years the Vodafone Australia Foundation’s World of Difference program has helped nineteen extraordinary Australians commit over 41,000 hours to a variety of causes.

World of Difference hopefuls are invited to visit www.vodafone.com.au/worldofdifference and submit their applications between 1 January and 6 February 2009.

Audio grabs available with:

LAYNE BEACHLEY. World Of Difference Ambassador

EMBARGO: TUESDAY DECEMBER 30, 2008

Taking a holiday and making extra mortgage payments were top priorities for many Australians in 2009, according to a New Year’s resolution survey conducted by realestate.com.au.

The survey which polled more than 2,500 Australians revealed that 46 per cent of Australians indicated that they still intend to put extra money onto their mortgage and take a well deserved holiday.

Forty two per cent of respondents said drought proofing their home also ranked high on the New Year’s resolution priority list, given the lack of rain.

Jamie Pride, Australia CEO of realestate.com.au said the survey sent a clear message about the Australian spirit and priorities for the new year.

Audio news grabs - 

JAMIE PRIDE, Australia CEO realestate.com.au

EMBARGO: MONDAY DECEMBER 29, 2008

We can all identify with the feeling of having taken celebrations to excess and had a little too much of a good thing during the festive season.

FebFast invites people to make a New Year’s resolution to sacrifice their alcohol intake during the shortest month of the
year and at the same time raise funds to support the reduction of alcohol and other drug related harms in young ustralians.

Coming hard on the heels of Christmas, New Year and Australia Day celebrations, FebFast’s fundraising campaign challenges people to take a month off their alcohol consumption, get healthy, spend some time reflecting on consumption and restore balance.

Audio Grabs available with:

Fiona Healy. Feb Fast CEO and Founder.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE. DECEMBER 26, 2008

Proving that the thought really doesn’t count for much, Australians have been left nursing a post Christmas financial hangover as they try to figure out what to do with more than 18.8 million unwanted gifts worth a total of $978 million.

According to research commissioned by eBay , this year we each spent an average of $667 to buy 12.8 Christmas presents, with an average cost of just over $52 per gift. Yet despite this $8.4 billion spend, and the ‘significant effort’ that 41% of Aussies said they put in to buying their gifts, more than half the respondents still received at least one unwanted present on Christmas day.

The most common unwanted gifts for Christmas 2008 included socks and jocks, perfumed bath products, pyjamas and candles; with some of the more unusual unloved gifts including a concrete snail, a bag of clay, an empty box and a jar of gherkins.

Audio grabs available with:

Sian (pron: Sharne) Gipslis. eBay Australia

EMBARGO: WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 24, 2008

According to a national realholidays.com.au survey, men take fewer risks than women on the road,
when planning to reach their holiday destination by car.

The survey results revealed that 78 per cent of men would rather stop overnight, take regular power
naps or leave at an odd time, compared with just 32 per cent of women.

Tina Seirlis, spokesperson for realholidays.com.au believes there may be a misconception about men
being more aggressive on the roads, particularly as people embark on their holidays for the Christmas
season.

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Tina Seirlis. Spokesperson. realholidays.com.au

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE. MONDAY DECEMBER 22, 2008

GM Holden will build an all-new small car in Australia alongside the country’s best-selling
Commodore range.

The second carline will start in the third quarter of 2010 with support from the Federal and
South Australian Governments.

The vehicle will be based on General Motors’ global Delta small car platform and feature new
technologies to increase fuel efficiency and reduce greenhouse emissions.

The new front-wheel-drive vehicle will be built as a sedan and hatch at GM Holden’s
Elizabeth manufacturing facility in South Australia. Design and engineering work will take
place at the company’s headquarters in Port Melbourne, Victoria.

Audio grabs available with:

Mark Reuss (pron: Royce) GM Holden Chairman and Managing Director.

EMBARGO: FRIDAY, DECEMBER 19. 2008

Australians will be carrying an extra half leg of ham in weight on average by the end of the four-week festive season, thanks to an over indulgence of kilojoule laden Christmas treats.

Senseless snacking over Christmas can add an extra half a kilogram to the scales, and in many cases up to three.

The findings come from British specialists1, but local dietitians warn that obesity trends at home show Australians are susceptible to the same Christmas spread and recommends simple steps to watch their kilojoule intake over the holidays.

New research suggests that chewing sugarfree gum is a simple way to help curb kilojoule intake over Christmas.

Audio Grabs available with:

Sharon Natoli. Accredited Practicing Dietitian and Director of Food & Nutrition Australia

WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 10, 2008

Visa today released details of a five year agenda to strengthen payment security in Australia.

The plan includes seven key initiatives, including an upgrade to chip technology for all Visa cards and ATMs, a broad rollout of PIN verification for all domestic transactions with the aim of ending the use of signature, and a move to password protection for online shopping.

The initiatives will provide greater protection against fraud for cardholders, merchants and financial institutions and are aimed at addressing online fraud, fraud resulting from lost, stolen and counterfeit cards and from the theft of personal information.

Audio news grabs –

CHRIS CLARK, VISA General Manager for Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific

EMBARGOED: 1AM WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 10, 2008

Earth Hour 2009 aims to enlist one billion people in more than 1,000 cities around the world to switch their lights off for one hour from 8.30pm on Saturday March 28 next year.

The global event, to be held for the third time, will target world leaders attending the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen next December, encouraging them to strike a new global deal on climate change.

The campaign, which began in Sydney in 2007, has grown significantly over the past two years and now has 62 countries signed up to flick the switch in 2009.

WWF-Australia CEO Greg Bourne said it was a critical time for global action on climate change.

“Earth Hour 2009 will provide a strong visual mandate, a vote from people around the world to say ‘we must deal with climate change,’ a vote which we hope to channel to the world’s leaders at the Copenhagen conference,” he said.

Audio news grabs –

GREG BOURNE, CEO WWF Australia

TUESDAY DECEMBER 9, 2008

According to a recent poll, Australians look forward to taking a holiday five times more than the prospect of a new romance in 2009, and well ahead even of a pay rise or job promotion.

When asked why going away on holiday was so important, the poll revealed that Australians appear to be suffering from end-of-year exhaustion, with more than 40% of the survey’s over 1,000 respondents saying their ideal holiday would be ‘total relaxation’ – well ahead of it being an opportunity to spend more time with family (20%) or learn about other cultures (18%).

Just under half the respondents said they would be travelling on holiday this summer, with 75% of those saying they would be holidaying in Australia, followed by around 18% within Asia Pacific.

About a third of those not going away on holiday this summer cited the economic downturn and need to reduce debt as the main reasons for staying put.

Audio news grabs –

LOUISE HURBERT-BURNS, spokesperson for Expedia Australia

EMBARGOED: 5AM MONDAY DECEMBER 8, 2008

Single women have declared the trend for dating metrosexuals is well and truly a thing of the past. The down to earth, cheeky Aussie bloke is want woman really want, according to a survey which found that single women are much more interested in dating tradesmen than men in suits.

The survey of over 700 female members of RSVP.com.au, Australia’s largest online dating site, saw 93 per cent of respondents saying they would like to date a “tradie”. Almost half the women surveyed (49 per cent) believe tradesmen are “more relaxed and fun than men in stuffy suits”.

RSVP’s Customer Support Director, Lija Jarvis said “Australian women want real men – guys with a sense of humour, an outdoorsy attitude and a man who is prouder of his tools, not his tie collection. Women are over sharing their hair products, moisturisers and mirror time. Clearly, it’s sexier to know how to fix a tap or change a tyre.”

Audio news grabs -

LIJA (pron: Leah) JARVIS, RSVP’s Customer Support Director

EMBARGOED: TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 30, 2008

Veteran bushwalker and Melbourne secondary school teacher, Michael Mitchell is bushwalking 6022km - from the northern-most tip of Australia to the southern-most point of the mainland – to raise $1 million for The Cancer Council in aid of lifesaving cancer research and education programs.

Michael’s historic bush walk, which started at Cape York in far north Queensland on May 5, 2008 and travels through three states and one territory to finish at Wilsons Promontory in Victoria on June 27, 2009, will follow the Bicentennial National Trail, including historic stock routes, walking tracks and fire trails that are now mostly used by bush-walking and outdoor enthusiasts.

When Michael embarks on the next leg of his epic journey at 10am on Tuesday September 30th from Mt Morgan, near Rockhampton, he will be supported in spirit by his good friend Chris Judd. Michael was the AFL star’s junior footy coach and Judd says his latest act of generosity is an inspiration to all.

Audio grabs are available from –

MICHAEL MITCHELL, Melbourne secondary school teacher and Great Cancer Bushwalker

CHRIS JUDD, Carlton Football Club and AFL star