THE DIARY

Paul Keating ... "If the public takes him they will get a large kick in the bum and they will deserve it." Photo: Lee Besford

It surprised nobody to hear the former prime minister Paul Keating had once again held little back when asked what he thought of the current crop of politicians, but it was interesting yesterday to see the man's grasp of fauna as he railed against Tony Abbott, Julia Gillard and even the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, while speaking at the Eureka Report Congress in Melbourne.

Merkel, he said, was ''intellectually limited and she is taking the whole world down''. Gillard's government, he said, ''just don't have a convincing and persuasive narrative''.

And Abbott? He was ''dumb'', an ''obstructionist capuchin'' (that's either a small monkey or a member of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, depending on how you view Keating's sense of humour) and: ''If the public takes him they will get a large kick in the bum and they will deserve it.''

Advertisement: Story continues below

Uplifting ... It was all hands on deck for the Wall of Hands. Photo: Nick Moir

The Eureka Congress will continue in Sydney tomorrow.

LOVES A GOOD BOOK

Don't be too surprised if the young adult sections of Australia's libraries start filling out in coming weeks. Ryan Stokes, son of the Perth media baron Kerry Stokes, has been named incoming chairman of the National Library of Australia Council. Ryan, who at 36 years old is three decades younger than the outgoing chairman, the former judge James Spigelman, would begin his three-year-term next month, said the Arts Minister, Simon Crean. It's hoped Stokes, with his youth, will bring a new vigour to the council, particularly in the one area he has most experience: digital. ''Mr Stokes has extensive experience serving on a number of boards across a range of industries and brings a high level of corporate expertise to the National Library,'' Crean said yesterday. ''He has shown leadership in driving digital content and developing the digital economy. This experience will assist the National Library as it continues to open-up its collection through digitisation.'' Not that it means he'll be abandoning the old, Stokes was quick to tell the Financial Review; he's well aware of the library's ''obligation to retain the physical heritage''. His appointment follows a family tradition in the Stokes clan. His father was chairman of the National Gallery of Australia in the late 1990s.

More:

Hipsters hit London