Why I tip my hat to Bob Katter just this once

BOB Katter and I don't see eye to eye on a lot of things.

PERMANENT FIXTURE: Bob Katter and his famous hat. Picture: The Australian

BOB Katter and I don't see eye to eye on a lot of things.

His brand of agrarian socialism goes against my beliefs in a free market.

I think crocodiles should not be culled.

I don't see North Queensland as the centre of the universe.

The less he says about homosexuality the better, in my book.

And, as far as I'm concerned, Joh Bjelke-Petersen was the worst premier in the state's history.

But there is at least one thing I will happily give Bob credit for.

He is never seen without his Akubra-style hat (it seems he may have ditched the brand itself when they began using foreign rabbit skins a few years ago).

Wide-brimmed, it is the perfect headwear for this country and this state, the skin cancer capital of the world.

All of our leaders should be setting a proper example in respect to this.

Far too few do.

The Prime Minister gets around in baseball caps, which, while better than nothing, do not offer enough sun protection.

TV journalists regularly report on heat and skin cancer while standing in the blazing sun without any protection.

While I can forgive Vogue editor Anna Wintour for not wearing a hat at the tennis (although her eternal bob seems to be ideal for hat wearing), I nearly choked when I saw a lily-white Nicole Kidman sitting next to her also hat-less.

In her defence, Wintour is rarely seen without her protective Chanel shades, a smart decision given she's losing her sight to an hereditary eye condition.

Skin cancer is a killer and leaders of all kinds should set better examples.

We wouldn't be happy with politicians smoking in public every time we saw them, but we don't bat an eyelid when they appear in the blazing sun without a hat.