It’s sobering to see how quickly things can fall apart (“Labor screw-ups enable Dutton”, December 7). The Labor government, until recently generally respected for a range of national and international successes, is now unravelling under sustained pressure from a Liberal opposition with a poor track record and nothing to offer. Under a barrage of criticism from the opposition, and in a self-serving attempt to neutralise accusations of mismanagement, the government is allowing itself to be panicked into rushing through parliament poorly conceived legislation that’s designed more to reduce the political pressure on itself than to responsibly address community safety. Peter Dutton has nailed it; accuse the government of being soft on just about anything, and appeal to our paranoia, racism, and nimbyism, and Australians will overlook negativity, political expediency, lack of vision and a policy vacuum. Prue Nelson, Cremorne Point
Albanese needs to change or he will go down. It won’t matter how ugly Dutton’s style of politics is.Credit: Dionne Gain
The government continues to spend its time, efforts and political capital in actually governing the country, by working hard to remedy the many disasters bequeathed to it by years of Conservative mis-rule. Hence its failure to spend enough time “politicking” to satisfy the commentariat. I am not the only person who is grateful and relieved to see a government that is actually doing its job, as opposed to the Coalition years of climate denialism, wages going backwards, our name being mud internationally, and the too many to list other examples of general incompetence. The Coalition has nothing to offer except chaos and self aggrandisement. All governments should be criticised but the baying of the Coalition over the recent High Court decision only shows their continuing unfitness to be in power. Dutton aims to destroy Labor but his actions show that he is a one-trick pony. Pauline Croxon, Undercliffe
Anthony Albanese doesn’t need to change, he needs to stick to his foundational ALP roots and to firmly put the ALP brand on his government. Many supporters are wondering why the AUKUS arrangements were so enthusiastically endorsed, why the stage 3 tax cuts have not been disowned and why it is taking so long for the government to make meaningful improvements in, for example, health, education and social services. The issues to which Niki Savva refers that have enabled Dutton to look likely would have been sideshows if the Albanese government had embarked on a decisive program to address the budget deficits enabling it to rectify the incompetence, inaction and neglect of the previous Coalition government. Such actions formed part of the expectations of those who elected the ALP and not meeting those expectations accounts for Albanese’s and the government’s slide in popularity. With good reason, Albanese takes great pride in the heritage of the ALP and his dedication and devotion to the party. As leader his role is to represent the ideals of the ALP at every opportunity and to implement policies and programs that reflect the party’s long-established values and ethos. Ross Butler, Rodd Point
Savva might well be correct in her claim that the PM is floundering. But it is hard to say this about the government as you watch Mark Butler, Penny Wong, Bill Shorten, Jim Chalmers and the team work with complex issues calmly and competently. Contrast this with the aggressive shouting of the opposition leader and others. Alan Russell, Unley (SA)
Dutton has nothing to say except No to everything. So why does the media give him so much space to say nothing constructive? How about journalists quiz him on how he intends to tackle the cost of living, Indigenous disadvantage and interest rates. If Albanese is losing support the media has played a big part in it by its constant referral to Dutton. Carole Hayes, Newtown
Racecourses and golf courses could be Sydney’s housing quinella
Although a horse racing enthusiast, I applaud the proposal to develop Rosehill racecourse as a “mini-city” (“Sydney racecourse to make way for ‘mini-city”’, December 7). But why not rein in a couple of nearby golf courses as well? Brian Roach Westleigh
The plan to build an extra 25,000 homes on the Rosehill Racecourse site sounds good in theory but who will be able to afford the homes due to the current house prices in Sydney? With the number of homeless growing surely social housing should be a priority for the government. The big winners with this plan will be the developers. Until the government can see the need for more social housing the housing crisis will continue to grow with the rising cost of Sydney real estate. Robyn Lewis, Raglan
RosehillCredit: Google Maps
Turning Rosehill into housing is the dumbest thing I’ve heard for years. I well remember the floods that left Rosehill two metres under water and just behind it is Camellia, probably the most polluted land in the country, the former site of an oil refinery, an asbestos plant, a fine carbon plant and a
repository for some of the most carcinogenic and mutagenic chemicals in the world. Chernobyl would be a safer option. Phil Morey, Kalaru
Rosehill is an opportunity not to be missed. It would be great to use the redevelopment as an opportunity to establish new best practice in housing tenure as well as urban design and environmental sustainability. Rather than developers building to sell individual apartments to negative gearing Baby Boomer investors or their inheritors, let’s look at providing opportunities for that cohort to invest through property trusts or super funds. Rental units could be managed by registered community housing providers that offer long term, secure and affordable rental housing, where tenants have a say in managing their apartment complexes. Development costs for developers could be minimised by de-risking the process through government underwriting of rentals and dedicated state government managed approvals processes. They could go further by exploring community land trusts and co-operatives. Let’s hope the state government can establish a creative team to explore these options rather than giving it to the old mates in the business as usual. Donald Proctor, Cremorne
I trust our planners will change the name from Rosehill Gardens to Rosehill Towers. And while they’re on the job of destroying our cultural and urban history you might consider turning Royal Randwick Racecourse, Queen’s Park sporting fields and even Coogee Oval into tower complexes. For those old enough to recall the Big Yellow Taxi, its motor is still on the go. Richard Webb, Oyster Bay
Moore Park, Rosehill: What’s next for this government and their developer mates?
If you have a long-standing love of a sporting ground, especially if it is near transport, be prepared to lose it. Not just prepared but afraid. Be very afraid. Michael Walsh, Croydon
The government’s proposal to half the number of holes at Moore Park Golf Course isn’t about think striking a blow against Sydney’s rich, it’s about opening up green spaces to all of the population (“Why making the cut at Moore Park takes a swing at wrong target” , December 7).
Daniela Catalano, Haberfield
Can an Anzac Bridge toll help?
Christopher Standen’s item on the Rozelle Interchange exposes the bone-headed brutality of Transport for NSW planners who are throttling Victoria Road and City West Link – ie local inner west – traffic until it “evaporates” (“The Rozelle interchange is working exactly as planned”, December 7). A shockingly blunt axe. However, like the planners, he has ignored the obvious tool to manage traffic flows – flexible tolls.
The Harbour Bridge is tolled, why not the Anzac Bridge? And why not set tolls to achieve congestion targets? The hip pocket is the most effective behavioural change agent - continuing to ignore its obvious role in traffic management maximises traffic congestion and driver - and voter - frustration.
Michael Britt, MacMasters Beach
Wrong motivation?
Chris Minns has an unenviable task to house thousands of low-income people close to where they work, without destroying amenity for those who love their community (“Fast rezoning to target 31 stations”, December 7). Already choked roads, loss of green space and urban heat sinks can only get worse. More of the same will not work. At cause, are federal issues, tax laws that prioritise housing as something to make money out of, instead of living in. Time to roll back negative gearing, tax deductions for property maintenance and capital gains concessions. As a sweetener, it could be offered that rental income become tax free. Those boomers with empty rooms might be persuaded to open their doors. David Ramsay, Bexley
While the Minns Government is sensibly targeting railway station hubs and using the air above them, why not build above the huge space above the railway tracks? With clever planning, the current Sydney housing crisis might be addressed in one fell swoop. Bruce Hall, Avalon
Refugees not illegal
Congratulations to the five correspondents (Letters, December 5) whose letters highlight the ALP’s 22-year and ongoing frenzy about refugee issues. Ever since the 2001 Tampa outrage, the ALP has panicked every time the Coalition mentioned refugees, and has fallen for the oft-repeated and outrageous lie about “illegal arrival” (it isn’t, thanks to the UN Refugee Convention, signed in 1954 by Robert Menzies). Surely, it’s time for the Albanese government to stand up and definitively declare that refugees have a right to come here, and that when they do, they should be treated exactly the same as everyone else. Steve Cornelius, Brookvale
Not-for profit health
Your correspondent is right about our health system (Letters, December 7). One of the big problems is private health insurance. A quick search this morning found 33 separate health funds that do nothing but administer payments, and two websites that do nothing but compare health funds. Not only do people have to pay huge premiums, but they also have to pay extra every time they use the system, and the government has to forgo tax to incentivise lifetime health cover for over 30s. Imagine if nobody had to pay for private health insurance, the government did not have to incentivise health insurance, and all the assets, expenses and profits generated by privatised health went into our public health system instead. Sounds like a good start to me. Tom Orren, Wamberal Heights
Slow diagnosis
Now let us take a closer look at just some of the symptoms of endometriosis (“Men are writhing in pain and millions of women can’t stop watching”, smh.com.au, December 7). Painful periods and bloating. Pain during sex. Pain in lower back and pelvic area and during ovulation. Pain on going to the toilet. Pain that stops you from carrying out your usual activities. This can also lead to loss of libido and low mood and anxiety. Good heavens, it’s no wonder that living with these chronic conditions results in it taking an average of seven years to be formally diagnosed. Pauline McGinley, Drummoyne
Education divide
The fact that, on average, 15-year-olds from families experiencing disadvantage are now behind their advantaged counterparts by five years of schooling confirms the need for more specialised, targeted support for those young people who have fallen behind, so that Australia’s education system is both better and fairer (”PISA results: Australian teens in academic slide”, December 6). Education is a key factor in enabling the 1.2 million young people in this country currently experiencing disadvantage to improve their circumstances, which benefits not only them but us as a nation. With work underway on the latest National School Reform Agreement, my hope is that by the time the next PISA results are released in 2026, we will have made significant headway in narrowing the achievement gap between our most advantaged and disadvantaged students, and a lot more young people are able to participate in and fully contribute to our society . Doug Taylor, The Smith Family CEO, NSRA ministerial reference group
AI the scam police
Artificial intelligence applications are becoming ubiquitous but they’re not always as useful as we’d like (“Predicting how AI might change our lives is a mug’s game”, December 6). I’d prefer to have AI applications intercepting and eliminating all digital scams and junk communications. They should never even get to my devices. If I can spot them, why can’t AI software do the job for me? Arthur Gerozisis, Riverview
Human need
We are told that online banking has replaced the need for human interaction at a branch (Letters, December 7). My recent experience opening a joint term deposit online is a cautionary tale. Although our existing accounts with that bank are in joint names, separate identification was required. Documents no older than 12 months had to match the full name and address. I duly submitted a document online which I naively thought would suffice. After the application was blocked I rang and when talking with a real person it transpired that the document did not match exactly. It was a statement from another bank which had added Australia to the address for good measure. The computer could not cope. A rate notice or utility account was suggested as an alternative but were no use as they were issued with initials only. In the end the only acceptable document I could find was a tax assessment. AI may be taking over many processes done by mere mortals, but there did not seem to be much intelligence involved on this occasion. Judith Campbell, Drummoyne
Roosters Wallabies
Perhaps if the Roosters could be persuaded to play Bledisloe Cup we’d win it back (“Koroibete shelves retirement as Nawaqanitawase eyes NRL move”, December 7). Andrew Cohen, Glebe
Investigative journalism shines a light on Jones
Congratulations to Kate McClymont for yet again exposing the dark underside of our society - this time allegations against Alan Jones (“Jones accused of indecent assaults”, December 7). This man made the most revolting comments about our first female prime minister over 10 years ago but his misogyny and bullying was allowed to run unchecked on public radio for many more years. It seems it takes an investigative journalist to expose these allegations. Stephanie Edwards, Roseville
Alan JonesCredit: SMH
Finally. Andrew Moody, Forster
Well, this will make a lot of Sydney lawyers very happy. Ron McQuarrie, Budgewoi
Jones made a lucrative career out of judging people to be sinners or saints. Lack of accountability was his superpower. The serious allegations against him merit a long overdue investigation. Rob Mills, Riverview
It’s Taylor’s time
A Taylor-made choice or simply a case of Tay Tay pulling a swifty (“Pop star Taylor Swift named Time Person of the Year for 2023″, smh.com.au, December 7)? Allan Gibson, Cherrybrook
Can’t Minns them all
Christopher Minns is not who your correspondent claims (Letters, December 7). The “Kid from Kogarah” was, and always will be, none other than Clive James. Graham Ellison, Berry
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