Credit: Badiucao
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INVESTIGATION
Thank you for your articles on taxi drivers overcharging (“How nation’s largest taxi company has taken public for a ride”, 15/2). I hope your exposure will end this practice. Recently my husband spent several weeks in Cabrini Hospital. We live nearby. A few years ago it was a short stroll but now, with progressing Parkinson’s disease, I can no longer walk there. I can understand taxi drivers don’t like short trips but the cost to travel there by taxi varied greatly; up to $20 difference. Sometimes a driver would say for a short trip we charge a flat rate, some would use the meter, others would give me a cost on arrival. The metered trips were always cheapest. A few years ago I believe I would have queried this cost variation. But now, in my mid-80s, it can be easier to accept the loss rather than argue the toss.
Joanna Eccleston, Malvern
We need a fix
The horrifying and disturbing footage of taxi driver abuse towards our most vulnerable (“Cab driver caught on CCTV abusing, ripping off passengers with disabilities”, 16/2) and accounts of fraud using the CabCharge voucher system is of significant concern. One of the few positive legacies of the Kennett government was an attempt to improve the image and quality of the service provided by taxi companies (yellow taxis, drivers in uniform and so forth). However, clearly standards have slipped and the excellent investigative journalism by The Age and the tireless efforts of Leading Senior Constable Tim Schnepf reveals an industry that is rotten and not learnt the lessons of disruptors, such as ride share company Uber.
The government needs to launch an urgent inquiry into the state of the taxi industry, perhaps even a royal commission, to focus on everything from driver knowledge, payment systems for drivers, licence-holders and users, safety, accreditation and training and more.
In London you cannot get a licence to drive a black cab until you learn and pass The Knowledge, a brutal but necessary series of tests that assesses a potential cabbie on key landmarks, streets and routes to get from point A to B. However local knowledge is only part of the broader picture in that we need cabbies who are trained and paid appropriately, have safe vehicles and have exemplary customer service skills in addition to a payment system that is above reproach and impenetrable to fraud. The meter is ticking.
Steven Haby, Hughesdale
Barely holding back tears
I was barely holding the tears back while watching the vision on Nine News of the taxi driver defrauding and assaulting his wheelchair-bound passengers. For some reason, his hitting the passenger on the side of the head – just one of his horrible actions – was the one that really got me. The victim could only sit there and take it. As if he hasn’t had enough of a hit in life.
Gerry Lonergan, Reservoir
Poor treatment the tip of the iceberg
Your report is a timely reminder that all is not well when it comes to the treatment of the disabled. Yes, ride share and taxis are a problem but there is a widespread lack of access to many and varied public places. This latest discovery does not address the underlying factors or the widespread nature of discrimination against the disabled. In my case, a person having an assistance dog.
In my experience, ride share drivers regularly discriminate against the disabled, especially against those who have an assistance or guide dog. At least twice weekly some member of the public unknown to me sees fit to interrogate me as to why I have an assistance dog. Ride share companies say they have robust safety measures and education of drivers in place, but I find they refuse access more than a quarter of the time I make a booking. The Victorian Human Rights Commission has the power to institute cases against repeat offenders who discriminate. It doesn’t!
What was the point of the Disability Royal Commission? Seemingly, just another bucket-load of cash into the pockets of the legal profession for all to then forget about.
Charles Hamilton, Preston
THE FORUM
Divisive politics
Sean Kelly (“As Dutton parades his softer side, let’s not forget how hard he’s played the politics of race”, 17/2) accurately identifies where Peter Dutton wants to lead Australia. Back to an Australia where “new Australians” were sneered at and treated as second-class citizens. I was a child of “new Australians” and was a regular witness to the prejudice experienced by my family and other immigrants. Directed at them because of their accent, their appearance and their customs. Made to repeat their request numerous times because they didn’t get the pronunciation quite right, criticised for embracing friends in public, sneered at for having a new car, and even mocked for taking pride in their garden. It is sad to see people again seeking to target new arrivals or anyone that isn’t like “us”. These people seek to take Australia back to a time when people were discriminated against. What happened to our principles of egalitarianism and fair-mindedness? If the government is required to act as an exemplary litigant and employer, then why don’t politicians act as exemplary Australians? We do not need political leaders who, for their own political gain, wish to bring back the divisions around the politics of race that should remain firmly in the past.
Rosemary Marcon, Hawthorn
Why the rise?
Peter Dutton is surprisingly (to me) doing very well in the polls. The LNP primary vote indicates he could become the next prime minister. We are seeing stories that humanise him and “soften” his “hard man” image. And he is benefiting enormously from the Trump-effect and the rise of right-wing parties in Europe.
These developments are all the more surprising as he doesn’t appear to have any real policies other than talking out about the cost of living and a nuclear plan on the never-never. He was a significant player in previous LNP administrations which abounded in incompetence. But that’s all forgotten now as we surf the new wave of all things Trump.
David Fry, Moonee Ponds
The people and the others
Peter Dutton plans to dismantle government diversity and inclusion programs because, he claims, they do nothing to improve the lives of ordinary Australians. So the people who merely seek equal employment opportunities and safe workplaces are something other than “ordinary Australians”? This is pure popularism. It was Dutton’s strategy with the Voice, and now, imitating Donald Trump, he seeks to divide along diversity, equity and inclusion lines. It is the strongman’s claim to represent the people, and those who aren’t of one mind with him are simply not “the people” and can be ignored and neglected.
Jenny Herbert, Metung
Duty to veterans
I cannot believe how quick many in the media are to jump on Anthony Albanese. And are giving Dutton a free ride. This is especially galling when you look at Veterans Affairs – the past government left 60,000 veterans in the lurch, the current government has finalised all of their claims in less than three years. How long, if Dutton gets in, will it be before there is another huge waiting list? As a veteran I am chuffed that we have a government that actually cares.
John Giroud, Tarwin Lower
Insurance costs
It is ridiculous for Opposition Leader Peter Dutton to talk tough on insurance companies (“Cut him some slack: Dutton says Trump relationship needs different approach”, 16/2) when at least some of the blame for the 35 per cent increase in insurance costs since 2022 must lie with the continuing inaction by Dutton and his LNP colleagues on climate change.
It is really quite simple: every tonne of CO2 dumped into the atmosphere from burning fossil fuels contributes to climate change happening around the world. And the way the insurance/reinsurance industry works ensures that a catastrophic climate event anywhere leads to an increase in premiums everywhere (whether it’s the devastating fires in Los Angeles, record flooding in North Queensland or Cyclone Zelia in WA). So, for the sake of Australians’ cost of living – if nothing else – please get serious about real climate action and stop delaying the transition to renewables with a nuclear fantasy that will not happen for at least 15 years.
Rob Firth, Red Hill, ACT
Going backwards
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton seems to be following more and more of Trump’s ideas as we approach the federal election. He has continually criticised Labor for the cost of living crisis, while at the same time voting against cost-of-living measures introduced into parliament by Labor, including the stage 3 tax cuts, energy rebates, medicine decreases and childcare costs etc, and failing to announce any alternative policies. This is akin to Trump’s campaigning on their southern border crisis while demanding that Republican congressmen renege on an agreement to increase funding for border control, because he didn’t want the situation to improve before the election.
On Sunday, in a move that mirrors Trump’s egregious appointments of people such as Robert Kennedy jnr as Health Secretary, Dutton signalled he would reappoint sacked Home Affairs secretary Michael Pezzullo if re-elected, saying he was “unfairly vilified” by the Labor government. For the record, Pezzullo was sacked after an independent inquiry found he had breached the government’s code of conduct 14 times, including using his power for personal benefit. Hardly a fitting résumé for a government appointee.
Ray Pilbeam, Camberwell
Left in the lurch
The Russian empire once included some 18 countries that are now sovereign states. This list included some European countries such as Ukraine, Belarus, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Finland, Poland and Moldova. If Putin wants to use Russia’s historical hegemony as an excuse for Ukraine, then NATO better decide on how the other seven are to be protected after Trump sells out Ukraine.
Mike Pantzopoulos, Ashburton
Deregulation a disaster
Ross Gittins’ decoding of the Business Council of Australia’s “business bulldust” submission to the upcoming budget deliberations is as fierce as it is elegant (“Short of leaders but we have many false prophets”, 17/2).
What possible public benefit could politicians of any persuasion read into the ritual “key points” offered by the BCA? Take its request for a “more aggressive deregulation agenda”. In my view Australia is already staggering under a load of deregulation disasters, from electricity to aged care, building construction, rental rip-offs, fake training colleges, wage theft, taxi fraud, medical fraud, visa fraud etc.
Oh yes, the BCA is also asking us to “address our uncompetitive tax system”, which is code for “reduce taxation on multinational companies”. And thank you Gittins for reminding us that the Business Council speaks on behalf of fossil fuel and mining companies that are approximately three-quarters foreign owned.
Jill Sanguinetti, East Brunswick
Investing in people
Despite the debate (“Unwelcome divide: the battle over an ancient ceremony”, 15/2), I am grateful for the learning opportunity that Welcome to Country ceremonies provide. I often reflect on the understanding my children have of Indigenous culture and appreciation for the lands we live on. Welcome to Country ceremonies help expose most Australians to Indigenous traditions and offer an opportunity to show respect to those who have lived in our lands for so long.
In my 1980s classroom our learning was limited to the mantra that the local mission “saved the Aboriginal kids”. I welcome my taxes contributing to Welcome to Country ceremonies to build understanding and connection. It’s also an opportunity for Indigenous Australians to demonstrate their pride in their culture. That’s a sound investment in our future, for “You can’t be what you can’t see”. Anna Lidgerwood, Ararat
Untidy roads
I keep hearing politicians to the right claiming that the state government has dropped the ball with respect to road funding, given the potholes on major roads. I beg to differ. As a regional driver who regularly travels major highways, the issue isn’t potholes. The repairs appear commensurate with previous years and governments.
The real issue is the poor quality of pavements and the untidy nature of major transport links. This is particularly the case in the Western Highway north-west of Beaufort and on the Princes Highway east of Melbourne. Road signs, markings and weed eradication are all of an unacceptable standard. The Princes Highway east of Melbourne is an embarrassment with faded and damaged roadsigns, weeds growing close to the road and a general unkempt look. Perhaps it’s time for the federal government to assume responsibility for not only funding but also the construction, maintenance and development of the National Highway system.
David Burt, Traralgon
A downpayment
There are many complaints that our grandchildren will be paying for all the current metro transport infrastructure that is being built. So what! They will be using it when it is most needed. Imagine a future in Melbourne without rail and road upgrades.
Peter O’Brien, Newport
Tap in
Re Andrew Fuhrmann’s review of Melancholia (13/2), I was surprised at how captivated I was by a tap concert. The ensemble was perfectly in sync and so talented the choreography built and took me along with it. I didn’t have the same experience of being stuck and monotony that Andrew had. I went to a second show and took my sceptical husband. He was also amazed.
Dianna Medic, Leopold
AND ANOTHER THING
Credit: Matt Golding
Donald Trump
US Vice President J.D. Vance stated that “free speech was in decline across Europe”, just as Trump has banned Associated Press reporters from the White House because they call it the Gulf of Mexico. Go figure?
George Djoneff, Mitcham
Donald Trump has finally got something right. He has said that the war between Russia and Ukraine should never have started. True, oh so true. But he’s doing what he can to reward the side that started it.
G.T. Agnew, Coopers Plains, SA
Trump’s proposed peace deals in Gaza and Ukraine appear to be examples of the rich exploiting the desperate – they’d make America richer but certainly not great.
Eileen & David Dunnicliff, Spring Gully
Instead of condemning DEI, Trump should simply rename it: Discrimination, Exclusion and Inequity.
Ivan Glynn, Vermont
Politics
Independents and minor parties must tell us who they will support to govern in a hung parliament.
Michael Langford, Flinders
With Peter Dutton adopting the slogan ″Get Australia back on track″, does that mean he endorses the SRL?
Mark Hulls, Sandringham
Furthermore
Reading the article about “sneaky snacks” (“Good Food, 17/2) I wondered what happened to the quaint old habit of eating a piece of fruit? Fruit even comes in its own biodegradable packaging. Good for you and good for the environment.
April Baragwanath, Geelong
Thank you to The Age and Malcolm Knox for a great piece on the ABC and the Lattouf saga. I wish there was enough space to recap the entire fiasco, and I’m sure Knox would have done an excellent job.
Alene Neuman, Caulfield South
Nowadays, when I try to contact a business or organisation by phone, I’m told to send my query in “online”. When I do this I hardly ever get a reply. All my friends have had similar experiences — how do we solve this problem?
David Ginsbourg, East Bentleigh
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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.