“Surely the ACT Government isn’t going to be allowed to plough on in its usual arrogant fashion,” asks letter writer PENNY MOYES, emboldened by the Auditor-General’s damning report on the Phillip pool.
I write in regard to the citynews.com.au article about the ACT Auditor-General’s report on the Phillip pool.
It seems that the auditor agrees with the community that no proper analysis of the aquatic needs of the Woden community was ever carried out.
Instead the ACT Government told us they had done a needs analysis when it hadn’t and knew they hadn’t.
The ACT Government operates under its own rules with no regard for the community or a need to be transparent.
So what is to happen now? Surely the ACT Government isn’t going to be allowed to plough on in its usual arrogant fashion. I think they should be made to go back to the drawing board before more damage is done and let the community have a say.
It is just SO frustrating to have to keep dealing with this incompetent government.
Penny Moyes, Hughes
Shame on this ruthless government
As I sit here it is freezing cold, windy and raining outside. What this means, after the shooting of kangaroos out on the Pinnacles last night, is that any still dependent at foot kangaroo joeys which are now orphaned, will face a cruel death from exposure and starvation.
These joeys still depend on milk and warmth and when orphaned in these conditions, they have almost no chance of survival. We saw numerous joeys of this kind at the Pinnacles this past week yet mass shooting out there is taking place.
Every year, pouch joeys are clubbed to death by the shooters, but many at foot but still dependent are orphaned and are often seen on reserves the next day, alone and clearly stressed. It is not denied that they will likely die of exposure on days like this but they are just the uncounted “collateral damage” to this annual killing on our reserves.
This weather forecast on the evening bulletins gave ample time for the shooters to be told to stand down on that night, but no, shooting as wind and rain started and was forecast to get worse today, simply went ahead as usual.
I sought a commitment from the Conservator that when the evening forecast is for this sort of weather to impact the following day, that the shooters be instructed not to proceed that evening.
I have had no such commitment to date. To refuse such a request suggests to me that getting kill numbers is more important, regardless of the outcome for these unfortunate small kangaroos in this sort of extreme weather conditions.
Shame on this ruthless government, while claiming animal welfare is a priority, it does this sort of thing. Such hypocrisy!
Jennifer Macdougall, Farrer
Watch out for fleeing kangaroos
The ACT Government’s annual kangaroo and wallaby “cull”, which has been operating for 18 consecutive years, will this winter kill 3633 adults and hundreds of joeys in a violent and brutal manner that most Canberrans would find shocking.
During the “cull” residents may see kangaroos and wallabies in areas they wouldn’t normally see them, such as close to roads and houses, especially at night time. The animals are trying to escape their attackers. I would like to appeal to Canberrans to please show caution when driving past greenspaces and also for dog walkers to keep their dogs on a leash when walking near nature reserves.
Rebecca Marks, via email
Can Welcome to Country be ‘moving’ and ‘divisive’?
Let’s place side-by-side part of Senator Pauline Hanson’s first address to the National Press Club with part of King Charles III’s speech to Parliament House in October 2024.
King Charles: “Let me also say how deeply I appreciated this morning’s moving ‘Welcome to Country’ ceremony, which offers me the opportunity to pay my respects to the traditional owners of the lands on which we meet, the Ngunnawal people and all First Nations peoples who have loved and cared for this continent for 65,000 years.”
Senator Hanson: “Don’t expect a divisive Welcome to Country from me… This beautiful country belongs to all Australians born here and those who have come to join us.”
The reader may have already figured out where this is heading. Before getting there, to be fair, maybe Senator Hanson’s statement could be reasonably understood in one of two ways. Either she was telling the audience not to expect a Welcome to Country that is “divisive” (as distinct from one that isn’t). Or, presumably more likely, she was telling them that any Welcome to Country would be “divisive”.
So, assuming the two statements quoted, can a Welcome to Country be both “moving” and “divisive”? If that’s a contradiction, then who was mistaken?
The description of a Welcome to Country on the indigenous.gov.au website states that it “is a cultural practice performed by a Traditional Owner of the local region to welcome visitors to their Traditional Country.” By this definition, it already makes sense not to expect a Welcome to Country from her if it is given that she is not a traditional owner in that sense.
So, perhaps she meant that the audience wasn’t to expect an Acknowledgement of Country, which “recognises that you are meeting on the land of First Nations peoples”, according to the same website. But she may still be claiming that both are “divisive”.
Two questions: What, if anything, is “divisive” about paying one’s respects to traditional owners, as King Charles III did? And, is the claim being made that Welcome to Country was also “divisive” when practised in pre-colonial Australia or only in the context of modern Australia?
To consider another usage of the term “divisive”, note that it was included in the introduction from Tom Connell, National Press Club president and a host at Sky News Australia.
Tom Connell: “Arguably, no politician in modern Australia has been as divisive…”
Is there a reason Senator Hanson didn’t follow his lead and describe Welcome to Country as arguably “divisive”, instead?
Just for the record, that National Press Club address reached me in full via the broadcast from ABC. Credit where credit is due, right?
Mark Rendall, Duffy
Australians want a government that listens
Columnist Dr Andrew Hughes (“Why Pauline Hanson will never ever be PM”, CN June 11) argues that Pauline Hanson and One Nation have no path to government, but his analysis overlooks a deeper shift occurring in Australian politics.
Voters are not simply reacting to interest rates or short‑term economic conditions. They are responding to long‑standing frustration with major parties that no longer reflect their values or priorities.
His article reads less like independent analysis and more like a Labor Party marketing brochure, confidently asserting the permanence of the status quo while ignoring the change occurring in the community. Australians are increasingly demanding a government that listens and gives them a direct say in major policy decisions.
Hughes suggests that only Labor and the Liberals possess the organisational machinery required to govern. Yet political history shows that when public demand for change becomes strong enough, new movements rapidly build the structures they need.
He also claims One Nation cannot win cities, assuming the current party‑centric model remains fixed. A party committed to genuine democratic participation could appeal across traditional divides and could win cities.
If the major parties continue to resist meaningful reform, they may find themselves overtaken by those willing to offer Australians what they increasingly want: a government that listens.
William Ginn, via email
Kath and Kim needed to explain policy
Pauline Hanson has now given the whole ABC the evil eye (“Hanson gets quite a bit off her chest”, citynews.com.au June 18).
While it has the means and freedom to do so, the national broadcaster could respond to One Nation’s lack of policy detail by launching a new series of Kath and Kim.
At least 10 episodes would be needed to allow the two households and their friend Sharon to work through and settle on the meaning, parameters, and limitations of adhering to Pauline’s “monoculture” and its associated values, especially against a background of much lower immigration numbers.
In 10 follow-up instructional “implementation” episodes, they would attempt to monoculturally redecorate their homes and backyards, revamp their wardrobes, search out acceptable recipes while still stocking up furtively from about-to-close-down specialist food outlets, and deal with a myriad of what Kim calls “issues”.
The latter would include the extreme time management and money hurdles encountered when discovering a growing scarcity of GPs, medical specialists, dentists, hospital or aged care beds, tradespersons, carers, cleaners, personal trainers, sports club coaches, restaurants, nail salons, taxis, parcel and food delivery services, and Australian-grown meat, fruit and vegetables.
Sue Dyer, Downer
Was Karl already planning a pivot?
Is it too cynical to suggest that former TV presenter Karl Stefanovic has been planning to pivot to a social media platform for some time?
Could it just be that the wave of popularity his good friend Pauline Hanson is currently surfing, the coverage his “interview” with Tommy Robison is garnering, the subsequent appearance of the “interview” on the PHON website shortly following its deletion from his own site may actually be a well-planned “launch”, rather than a series of “unrelated” occurrences.
His former employer Nine, of course, would not have wanted to be associated with such inflammatory commentary from their then highest paid personality, potentially diluting their already shrinking advertiser base.
If one were truly Machiavellian, it could be suggested that Karl may even become a “star” recruit to PHON and appear on their Senate ticket.
Given he lives in NSW, it will be interesting to see who gets that top spot, Karl, or PHON’s other “star” recruit, Barnaby Joyce.
The current political machinations may not be good for the governing of our country, but it is highly entertaining.
Ian De Landelles, Murray’s Beach, NSW
High time for stronger action from the US
In recent weeks Donald Trump seems to have come to the realisation that Israel has been destroying a whole apartment to kill one militant in Lebanon.
There have been many instances of this happening across its campaigns against its neighbours and numerous innocent people have been killed in that way.
It is heartening that the US is specifically starting to denounce this.
Israel has been fighting difficult wars; many of the militants it is fighting are embedded among civilian populations, and many are living in underground tunnels.
However, as most of the defensive weapons for these campaigns come from the US and are paid for by US taxpayers, it should place greater conditions on how the funds are used and if not followed, reduce or cease its funding.
President Trump has in the past asked Prime Minister Netanyahu to “go easy” with its war effort. It is now high time for stronger action from the US.
Herman van de Brug, Holt
Tree-lined streets are one of Canberra’s great assets
Michael Moore is right to be concerned about the loss of urban tree canopy as planning laws change (“Planned city ‘bombed’ by complacent government”, CN June 18). The same trend is occurring in Victoria and NSW as governments race to deliver more housing.
As Moore notes, the loss of gardens and backyards reduces tree cover and intensifies the urban heat island effect. Trees can lower summer temperatures by up to 18°C through shade, while making walking, cycling and picnicking more comfortable.
They support mental health, store carbon and help combat climate change. Conversely, every tree removed and chipped eventually returns carbon dioxide to the atmosphere as it decomposes.
Canberra’s tree-lined streets and shady parks are one of its great assets. To retain its status as one of the 283 Tree Cities of the World, protecting and expanding urban forest must remain a priority. A city that loses its trees ultimately loses much of what makes it liveable.
Ray Peck, Hawthorn, Victoria
A haiku for Ray
Here’s a haiku Ray Peck asked for (letters, CN June 16):
Black coal in her heart,
Pauline scorns the solar age.
Aussies choose their roofs!
Karen Lamb, Geelong, Victoria
And another…
Along with his limerick about Pauline Hansen, (letters, CN June 18), Ray Peck asked “haiku anyone”? I offer the following, though it is strictly senryu, not haiku.
same old racist trope
yet One Nation is surging
please explain
David Briese, Mawson
It’s land that’s crippling affordability
An analysis of house prices in new estates reveals that it’s the retail land component that’s crippling affordability.
Profits are massive. Blocks are family-unfriendly. Trees and soil profiles go. Local authorities won’t challenge the situation, because rates are their main income source.
“Up-zoning” existing suburbs is not about precipitating housing affordability, but the latest form of rates maximisation. Land developers and local governments chant “it’s the market” – theirs.
Time for the Commonwealth to comprehensively nationalise the (compulsory if necessary) acquisition, and responsible planning and development of new suburban and satellite-town land, to maintain supply, to sell good-sized blocks only to bona fide owner-occupiers at the verifiable cost plus a small margin reflecting the block’s characteristics, to provide assistance to proven negative equity sufferers for a time, and to replace rates with a modest GST increase, with distribution extended to local governments.
Jack Kershaw, Kambah
News all day, every day at CityNewsQBN.com.au.
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