UNIONS are calling on the Australia Day public holiday to be expanded into a week off work so the nation can celebrate over five days.

The push for an Australia Week holiday comes as indigenous author and writer Larissa Behrendt firms as hot favourite to be our next Australian of the Year for her advocacy of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander rights.

Teen yachtswoman Jessica Watson is considered most likely to be named Young Australian of the Year after becoming the youngest person in history to sail non-stop and unassisted around the world.



Sportsbet, believed to be the only bookmaker taking bets on the 2011 Australian of the Year, stopped accepting wagers on the awards last week after a stream of punters tried to place sums of up to $10,000 on Professor Behrendt.

Victorian Trades Hall Council secretary Brian Boyd said he supported the idea that workers should have a week-long public holiday each year to commemorate Australia's foundation, instead of a single day on January 26.

"Australia Day should have more significance and recognition about how we're developing as a nation," he said.

"I think the idea has some merit. How you go about it in terms of taking the week off would have to be worked through with annual leave and enterprise bargaining."



The proposal, put forward by Unions NSW secretary Mark Lennon, may be tabled at the ACTU executive next month, Mr Boyd said.

Prof Behrendt, an academic at Sydney's University of Technology, was backed from $2.75 into $1.60 before the market was closed on Wednesday.

Sportsbet spokesman Haydn Long said the size and number of the wagers raised suspicions that the name of the winner had been leaked.

"We offer markets on anything and everything, but based on the amount of interest in Professor Behrendt it was commonsensical to suspend betting as we believe the result is a foregone conclusion," Mr Long said.

"When we priced the markets, out of all categories we were by far the most confident of Jessica Watson winning the Young Australian of the Year award."

The Australian of the Year winners will receive their awards tonight at a special ceremony at Parliament House in Canberra.

Australian of the year nominees

ACT - Professor Ian Chubb (higher education icon)

NSW - Professor Larissa Behrendt (indigenous rights lawyer)

Northern Territory - Professor Michael Christie (indigenous language expert)

Queensland - Associate Professor Noel Hayman (Queensland's first indigenous doctor)

South Australia - Professor Tanya Monro (physicist

Tasmania - Deborah De Williams (breast cancer campaigner)

Victoria - Simon McKeon (philanthropist)

Western Australia - Malcolm McCusker (philanthropist/barrister)

Young Australian of the Year nominees

ACT - David Bresnik (youth support volunteer)

NSW - Tara Winkler (orphan rescuer)

Northern Territory - Kalinda Griffiths (indigenous health researcher)

Queensland - Jessica Watson (adventurer)

South Australia - Vincent Bucksin (Aboriginal culture teacher)

Tasmania - Kirsty Albion (climate change campaigner)

Victoria - Angela Barker (Young care advocate)

Western Australia - Clinton Heal (skin cancer survivor)

Click here for the full list of nominees