Credit: Cathy Wilcox
To submit a letter to The Age, email letters@theage.com.au. Please include your home address and telephone number below your letter. No attachments. See here for our rules and tips on getting your letter published.
PUBLIC DISTRUST
The inquiry into the impact of COVID-19 found public trust in the governments of the day has been eroded. However, there are other factors that have contributed to this. In the last decade, there have been royal commissions and inquiries into banks, insurance companies, casinos and robodebt, and despite findings of multibillion-dollar frauds and other crimes, no one has been held to account and sent to jail.
Only when the rule of law is applied to all will my confidence be restored.
Peter Heffernan, Balaclava
Largesse afforded to ruling elite has no integrity
Joe Aston has done the public a great service in shining a light on the Qantas chairman’s lounge. The spending of such largesse on a ruling elite of politicians, bureaucrats, directors and judges is truly alarming. Its purpose can only be to garner favour for Qantas’ commercial ends.
The provision of such a speakeasy can only be subversive of the appearance and reality of proper decision making and corrosive of legitimate decision making.
Its purpose is essentially anti-competitive. It is no answer that politicians may to some or other extent, sooner or later, declare favours that have been granted to them.
The spending of shareholders’ money this way should simply be outlawed. The private grant of privileges of this kind can only distance politicians, bureaucrats and judges from the people for whom they make decisions.
Any system of integrity would ban the grant or acceptance of such privilege.
Rodney Garratt KC, South Melbourne
Ban lobbyists’ access to elected officials
The very existence of licensed lobbyists puts all politicians into the likely to be targeted basket. Get rid of the lobbyists.
Doris LeRoy, Altona
Robodebt was due to incompetence
Victims’ dismay over the National Anti-Corruption Commission decision not to act over robo-debt are unlikely to assuaged by the NACC commissioner finding that NACC had not behaved correctly. Corruption requires a person to have intelligence and a bit of rat-cunning to manipulate a system to their or others’ advantage.
Robo-debt was a display of blistering incompetence by people operating well beyond their capabilities, a classic example of the ‘Peter Principle’.
The NACC revisiting robo-debt is unlikely to come to a different conclusion as it is designed to seek out corruption, not incompetence.
Ross Hudson, Mount Martha
Plea to bank for special consideration refused
My brother aged 91 and spouse, both on an aged pension, are about to be admitted at a permanent care facility where a substantial sum is required.
Forming part of the liquid assets, they have three term deposit accounts with NAB which amount in total t-o $180,000. These were established at different times during 2024 each for a period of 12 months.
Meeting with NAB staff at the suburban branch, we were informed that the penalty for early withdrawal would amount in total to $2400. A request for special consideration in these circumstances was passed up the line to the branch manager to no avail.
Apparently, the only way that the penalty could be avoided was if my brother were deceased and the money then withdrawn to his estate – little comfort.
Mercy from NAB? None.
Lino Bresciani, Toorak
Deny access all areas
Shaun Carney is right (″Albanese’s Qantas perks might not break any rules, but they don’t pass the pub test″, 31/10). The real evil of freebies from Qantas, or from anyone else, is that ″it opens up the potential for corruption”. This is because upgrades and freebies are subject to the understanding that recipients of this largesse will help Qantas when it needs help, especially in strangling the competition, and also that they will go easy on Qantas when it is in trouble.
I learnt this from my own experience. Until Qantas changed its name, the luxury lounge was called Flightdeck, of which I was a member. I never asked for an upgrade or freebie, either by calling them or by email, fax, morse code, smoke signal or funny handshake.
Nor, did I do anything for them except apparently give them the right to lose my luggage, or, like one of my colleagues, send it to Dubai instead of Darwin.
But when I left the parliament, I immediately received a charming letter saying that from that day forth I should not ″access″ the club or its facilities. In other words, I was welcome while I was an MP, but as soon as I was of no use to them, I became persona non grata. It looks as if nothing has changed.
Like Groucho Marx, I realise now that I should never have become a member of a club that would have me as a member.
There is only one way of stopping this potential corruption. All MPs and all public servants should be banned from the Chairman’s Lounge and any equivalent hideaway, with no exceptions. Ministers should also have to give a prompt and real-time report on whom they have had any communications with in the six months prior to their making any significant decision.
Neil Brown KC, South Yarra
THE FORUM
Covid regrets
Chip Le Grand (Comment, ″I wrote a book and no one read it″, 31/10) is no doubt right that few people want now to revisit the experience of the pandemic. The people who are most likely to enjoy revisiting it are those who see some strategic advantage in criticising the politicians who were responsible for determining public policy at the time.
Those politicians had the unenviable job of piloting us through an uncharted and potentially catastrophic event. Their critics easily overlook the immensity of that task. The reason that those critics are now able to look back and attack the measures adopted at the time is that they have survived the pandemic. Millions around the world didn’t. Perhaps they owe their survival to the very policies they are attacking.
Mike Smith, Croydon
We were in safe hands
Re “I wrote a book and no one read it”. The pandemic was an unknown force. The Victorian government aimed to protect the vulnerable - as a community we locked down. Mistakes were made. No doubt about it. Mistakes are always made facing the unknown. Overreach, panic, sacrifice. I am sure it is disappointing for Le Grand that few people read his book.
My children were homeschooled for two years and I couldn’t attend their year six graduation celebration. I lost at least a year’s work, probably more. I didn’t see my old mum for months at a time. A dear friend’s dad died of Covid.
However, I believe we were in safe hands in Victoria. Flawed human hands yes, but as safe as we could be at the time, guided by the information the Victorian government had available. The biggest mistake was the failure of the Federal government to provide available vaccines in a timely manner.
Jackie Smith, Brunswick East
Easy in hindsight
Isn’t hindsight wonderful stuff?
There were certainly mistakes made during the Covid panic, some of which were apparent at the time, such as the handling of quarantine measures in hotels and the housing commission blocks.
Others became clearer with time and perspective, such as the length of lockdowns and school closures, but most decisions seemed to be based on a conservative response to the best information available at the time.
The expectation that the authorities could get it all right in a situation fraught with unknowns is unrealistic.
Certainly, the unnecessary delay in ordering the best vaccines was a major failure, but the overall primary objective of saving lives still seems valid.
Clearly, the pandemic and its handling has had major long-term effects, but how much of these could have been avoided or minimised can only be assessed in retrospect.
Our death toll was far less than many other countries, for which we should continue to be thankful. On a population basis, the death rate in the US was about 3.5 times that of Australia.
Michael Meszaros, Alphington
Premier’s plan lacks detail
The article by Premier Jacinta Allan (″Brighton, I want you to know that I’m not a blocker. I’m a builder″, 31/10), lacks any detail about the actual policy it is implementing. In many areas such as Camberwell, the sewerage and stormwater systems would not be able to cope with a sizeable influx of residents.
To make this high-rise policy viable, hundreds of millions of dollars will need to be spent in upgrading such infrastructure, which also includes roads, schools and medical facilities. Targeting Brighton is just cheap politics. It is a base form of class warfare. The premier would be better served by publishing fine point detail rather than targeting the residents of a particular suburb.
Peter Farrar, Brighton East
Ethnic cleansing
Israel’s oldest newspaper, Haaretz, said in an editorial two days ago that ″grave suspicions have arisen that Israel is effectively perpetrating ethnic cleansing in northern Gaza″ in an operation ″intended to permanently empty this area of Palestinians″. The editors continued, ″If this process does not stop immediately ... the moral and legal stain of this crime will cling to and pursue every Israeli″.
If an Israeli newspaper can see and say this, why can’t we? Australia’s hand wringing and expressions of concern are execrably inadequate.
Richard Barnes, Canterbury
Grim outlook
Thanks to Tim Winton (″Billionaires and lobbyists have seized control of our national narrative″, 30/10) for his insightful call to arms over the wanton over-usage of the world’s finite resources.
Governments worldwide, appear to have the priority of winning and maintaining office, over maintaining what belongs to all of us. The environment is ours to destroy or protect.
Whilst the Middle East is intent on a daily bombing exchange, we are consequently affected globally by the destruction of our shared atmosphere.
Our individual footprints are overwhelmed and minimalised by the catastrophic wholesale destruction of our planet’s lungs by some major political powers.
The war perpetrated by Russia against Ukraine, and consequent retaliation by the latter, has resulted in environmental degradation.
Lives, whole cities, homes, and unique irreplaceable historic sites are destroyed; for whose benefit? A few powerful tyrants are arrogantly flexing their masochistic muscles, and meanwhile polluting the atmosphere.
At home, both major political parties are promoting the continued use of fossil fuels at the expense of the environment.
We are ruining our planet as some powerful individual megalomaniacs with no regard for universal heritage, are adversely affecting, and will ultimately destroy our world.
Sue Parrington, Port Melbourne
AusNet compo claim
AusNet wants $175 million compensation for the public turning away from gas usage (“AusNet wants gas customers to pay $70m extra, to make up for lost customers”, 30/10).
Obviously, an increase in the wholesale gas price from $4/gJ in 2014 to $16/gJ in 2023 (400 per cent ) isn’t enough profit for the industry. Who wouldn’t be seeking an alternative?
Next, we’ll be subsiding oil companies for switching away from ICE cars.
Stephen Brown, Bentleigh East
Cheap thrills add up
Our environment has just finished being haunted by Halloween plastic waste. But the expected amount of cheap fast fashion purchasing between now and Christmas is even scarier (“You better watch out, Shein, Temu are coming to town”, 31/10). At an average of 56 items, Australians buy more clothes per person per year than any other country on the planet. And much of it ends up in landfill. How we can collectively be spending $6.7 billion over the Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales during a cost of living crisis is anyone’s guess.
Repair, share, shop second hand, I don’t care, so long as we dare to change what we wear.
Amy Hiller, Kew
Bad omens
I was temporarily confused when I saw the photo’s of the ‘Halloween people’ and the article on Australia’s climate disaster together in The Age (30/10). I thought that they were related, a portent of things to come.
Phil Labrum, Trentham
Final Countdown
I look forward to watching Countdown 50 Years On. It was a weekly must-view, and one of the highlights of my life was going to the taping with Adam and the Ants. Through a contact of my Dad’s, I was also able to go to the rehearsal. And like any good fan club member, I had each of my A4 pictures signed while the band were in the ″nondescript canteen″(″Do yourself a favour: check out this Countdown 50th anniversary top 10″, 31/10).
More than 40 years later, they are still so precious to me I keep them in a safe.
Samantha Keir, East Brighton
AND ANOTHER THING
Credit: Illustration: Matt Golding
Halloween
There is enough “maudlin, dark night of the soul” in our hugely suffering world already without glorifying yet more witches, bats and all things eerily spooky. I prefer to wait one day later, November 1, All Saints’ Day. Lightness, optimism and hope.
Tris Raouf, Hadfield
Re ″Read the sign″ (Letters, 31/10), it is denying his Celtic heritage from which Halloween originates. Be proud of your past and get into the ″spirit″ of the celebration.
Michael Carroll, Kensington
Longevity
Shane Wright (Comment, 31/10) demonstrates that in avoiding the “demographic iceberg” of longevity, Father Time can’t beat Mother Nature.
Joe Wilder, Caulfield North
As my very long life gets shorter, I’m overjoyed to know that because of me, I enrich other lives. My support crew. The Grim Reaper can look elsewhere.
Margaret Skeen, Pt Lonsdale
Furthermore
The new Australian Centre for Disease Control is ACDC. We’ll rock the next pandemic.
David Zemdegs, Armadale
For goodness’ sake, of course the prime minister, or indeed any of our politicians who are constantly travelling and representing our government, should be upgraded and have some private space at the airport. Grow up.
Patricia Rivett, Ferntree Gully
The Coalition claimed the $300 electricity rebate was contrary to RBA actions and would fuel inflation. Now, Angus Taylor says the only reason inflation has fallen is because of the rebate.
Andrew Dods, Apollo Bay
We’re at 1.5 degrees and rising but hopefully the airconditioning will work when Dutton’s nuclear reactors finally come on line.
Pete Garfield, Echuca
The sobering news of Australia’s temperature rise of 1.5 degrees reflects the shameful actions and influence of the conservative politicians and media who over two decades have ignored the reality of climate change.
Paul Jurkovsky, Ferntree Gully
The opinion newsletter is a weekly wrap of views that will challenge, champion and inform your own. Sign up here.