LETTERS: Aged care, pipe band, politics, high-rise

I FIND the comments of Cheryl Dorron (NM, 15/09) very hard to understand.

Federal opposition leader Bill Shorten speaks at a Gladstone Town Hall meeting on March 20, at Gladstone Entertainment and Convention Centre. Picture: Matt Taylor GLA200318BILL

Backing Pitt

I FIND the comments of Cheryl Dorron (NM, 15/09) very hard to understand when she accuses Member for Hinkler Keith Pitt of having "abysmal ignorance" of nursing care when he suggested lower paid staff do basic duties of care.

While I do not agree with everything Keith Pitt says or does I agree with his comment that qualified and higher paid nurses should not be used where it is more practical and economic to use lesser paid and qualified staff to do basic tasks like assisting changing elderly patients' clothes.

There are many other staff qualified to assist changing clothes without endangering the patient one bit.

Rugby union

VIEW GALLERY

The qualified nurses can then have more time to do other tasks that need a higher qualification like the medical and medicinal needs of the patients.

This makes far more common sense to me than employing highly qualified staff to do tasks easily done by someone on a lower pay grade. Should the qualified accountant issue all receipts or can the reception staff give someone a receipt?

It makes good business sense to not tie up qualified staff doing basic tasks.

This leaves more in the budget for other care needs.

KEN WILSON

Millbank

Piping up

I ATTENDED the recent Bundaberg Caledonian Pipe Band Concert at the Moncrieff.

Theatre when the pipers and other local outstanding talent put on a great entertaining evening and the applause by all attending said it all.

The pipe band, which is I believe the longest serving pipe band in Queensland, was simply outstanding.

It's their annual fundraiser and a pity the charges are so high for the theatre, given they attend so many major community events giving their time throughout the district year after year.

Maybe Bundaberg Regional Council could give a little in return for what they do in so many areas of the community.

Thank you, pipers.

JENNIFER EY

Bundaberg North

Time for change

AFTER two terms in office, the LNP has squandered its community support, and is now busily setting financial and social time bombs for the ALP which seems almost sure to form the next government.

The main issues that will need resolving include power pricing, unemployment, wages, welfare, infrastructure, education, climate change, health and aged care.

The level of gross government debt now at an unprecedented half a trillion dollars really is a debt and deficit crisis, and personal debt is at a world record high.

Small wonder that the people are waiting with the proverbial baseball bats for them at the next elections.

MAX TANZER

Elliott Heads

Bill's coal dilemma

DOES anyone else wonder what Bill Shorten actual believes in when it comes to Australian coal?

One minute he is appeasing the left by saying coal is bad and we are going to stop Adani and close down the entire coal industry and have 50 per cent renewable energy then, on the flip side, he says coal is good for Australian jobs.

Now you can't be half pregnant Bill, you can't say that you are happy for the rest of the world to buy our coal and burn it to their hearts content while telling the Australian public that we can't burn it here because it is bad for the planet.

The irony is that the countries who are buying our coal are using for generating electricity at a fraction of the price we have to pay for it here.

Carbon dioxide is not the sole cause of climate change so stop peddling this lie in order to convince us your policies have merit.

In the meantime, let us enjoy cheaper electricity via clean coal-fired power stations like the ones we are currently fuelling overseas.

IAN BROOKFIELD

Svensson Heights

Confusing scenario

THERE are a number of questions about the nine-storey development at Bargara that are confusing.

Firstly there is the considerable amount of ratepayers money the council spent preparing a Town Plan which as far as I can tell sets the maximum building height of five stories.

But the council appears to ignore this plan whenever it suits them.

Then along comes a developer with a plan to build a high-rise.

His first step in this process would be to check out the town plan to see what the height restrictions are. And there in black and white is the schedule that says "five stories".

But the developer ignores this and immediately lodges a submission to build nine storeys. What the!

In the meantime the councils own engineering staff recommends that the building height remains at five stories.

The council then goes into a huddle giving the impression to the public that they are really struggling to arrive at a satisfactory answer that would necessitate them overturning the town plan.

Whatever the outcome, the ratepayers can draw their own conclusions about what should have been a fairly straightforward outcome to a proposal that contravenes the council's own town plan.

B. BARRY

Bundaberg