Nine continued to pay Matthew Johns when he was “taken off air”. No one has ever reported this, but it is true. I work there. That’s why they were so mad when he went to Seven. He punched the gift horse in the mouth.

Add Roger Price to your list of retiring MPs. He will leave it to the last minute and Ed Husic will be parachuted into the seat (Chifley). It will be a last-minute job because of local party opposition to the National Executive pre-selection of Michelle Rowland in neighbouring Greenway — all branches bar her own (Lalor Park) opposed the lack of a ballot, and five of them (Blacktown, Quakers Hill, Riverstone, Marayong South and Prospect) straddle the boundary of Chifley/Greenway.

I have heard a rumour that Kristina Keneally has been promised a federal seat if she can do a “good enough” job at the next election…

Melbourne’s real estate agents are revelling in a story doing the rounds which they say demonstrates how out of touch The Age‘s management is. In a recent visit to agents to try and shore up shrinking revenues, Age CEO and former NZ newspaper manager Don Churchill asked agents for their views on The Age and Fairfax.

Faced with a hostile response — with one agent labelling Fairfax a “faceless organisation” and agents complaining that they were not contacted for news anymore — Churchill was then asked who The Age‘s property editor was.

Silence fell around the room as a stony-faced, fumbling Churchill couldn’t name the journalist responsible for The Age‘s multi-million dollar real estate coverage.

Regarding your story on Antony Catalano‘s new Fairfax-killing Melbourne real estate weekly. Agents Bennison Mackinnon also hold a 15.6% founding stake in MMP, the owner of Catalano’s Metro Media, alongside Marshall White, Jellis Craig and Kay & Burton.

The new CEO of Principals Australia has never even been a principal — or a teacher — and they are now getting in a guru to decide ‘future strategic directions’ who has never been a school leader (but was an art teacher about 10 years ago). Also, just like NSW (tips and rumours last week) we here in Queensland have not seen any information for months on where the money is going.