Month: May 1993

A very-fast train link between Canberra and Sydney could enable Sydney’s second airport to be built in Canberra instead of Badgery’s Creek, according to a technology consultant.

Dale Budd, who formerly worked for the VFT consortium, said no-one questioned that Australia should have world-class road and air links between Canberra and Sydney, with dual carriageway and new jets. However, as soon as world-class state-of-the-art rail was mentioned, the sceptics said it would not work.

Mr Budd was speaking at a forum, including a panel of 15 academics, at the University of Canberra last week on “”Future Options for Canberra”. It was a lead-up to the September “”Canberra: Face of the Nation?” conference sponsored by the university, the Canberra Business Council, the ACT Government and the National Capital Planning Authority.
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His motives for his high profile pro-Republican stand were under vicious and severe scrutiny. Did he want a Republic only so he could be president?

Why had he turned against what would seem to be an anglophilic, high Tory upbringing: Sydney Grammar School, Oxford, the Bar and a merchant bank?

The attack was coming from Bronwyn Bishop, merciless cross-examiner of taxation commissioners, and Paul Lyneham, pitiless exposer of political hypocrisy.
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The head of the Prime Minister republic advisory committee, Malcolm Turnbull, said yesterday that he hoped the Opposition would change its mind on being on the committee.

The Leader of the Opposition, Dr John Hewson, has refused to nominate someone for the committee.

Mr Turnbull said the views of all political parties, including the Liberals, would none the less be welcome.
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Independent Ted Mack has questioned the use of Better Cities money for North Canberra rather than for “”more serious problems in larger cities”.

In questions on notice tabled in Parliament last week he asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Community Service, Brian Howe, (subs: plse check if it is Howe. it might be someone else since the election. ta) he asked whether Better Cities money was being used for the development of Section 22, Blocks 6-9, Braddon, along Torrens Street; whether architects had described the development as “”an alienating downmarket block of flats”; whether met guidelines on open space, streetscape, siting and design, sunlight and energy efficiency; and whether it should have funding.

He asked whether Bobundra Pty Ltd was associated with the development for its own profit and whether Peter Phillips was a director of Bobundra and whether Mr Phillips was on the staff of a minister in the Hawke Government and chairman of the ACT Electricity and Water.
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An inquiry into a North Canberra development was condemned by the Canberra Conservation Council yesterday after the inquirer rejected all of the submissions to it by the council.

The inquiry was set up by the ACT Legislative Assembly into difficulties identified with the redevelopment of Section 22, Torrens Street, Braddon.

The council put 21 points to the inquirer, former Administrative Appeals Tribunal member Robert Todd. He rejected them all saying they did not identify difficulties, but asked a wide range of questions.
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Robert Tickner reaches into the shelves and drags out a school social-studies textbook. The page falls open easily on to a page on Aborigines that he, as Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, has used before to illustrate a point.

“”That was my text book for the NSW School Certificate in 1967,” he says, pointing to some underlined bits.

“”Look at this stuff,” he says.
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The ACT Supreme Court has ruled that the word “”pornographer” is too imprecise to found a defamation action.

The Master, Alan Hogan, was ruling on a case over a Letter to the Editor of The Canberra Times brought by Robert Swan, who described himself in the statement of claim as parliamentary lobbyist and media consultant and an editorial and creative consultant on Ecstasy: The Australian Journal of Erotic Arts.

Mr Swan has represented the X-rated video industry against attempts to impose a special tax on it or to make it illegal.
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This is not the Bruce Shepherd of the 30-second TV grab _ the aggressive conservative getting stuck into Labor’s plans to “”nationalise medicine”.

This is a more reflective mellow man. Dr Shepherd stands down as president of the Australian Medical Association on Sunday (May 30).

What would he do if he were Minister for Health tomorrow?

You’d expect him to say “”tear down Medicare”, but no.
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The proposed boundaries marginally favour the Liberal Party and damage Independent Dennis Stevenson.

The Liberals benefit because a Labor-voting chunk of Woden has been dragged into Brindabella (Tuggeranong) which is already saturated with Labor voters, leaving an more pro-Liberal chunk in the seven-member central electorate to ensure the Liberals get a third seat there, which they would otherwise might be struggling to get.

Stevenson looses because his prime areas last election were the Oaks Estate and Tuggeranong. The Oaks Estate gave him nearly 25 per cent last election. Under the new boundaries Oaks Estate is in the central electorate. So Stevenson will have to get a quota in Tuggeranong without it. He is probably doomed anyway, because he needs a quota of 16.6 per cent. Last election he got 7 per cent overall and up to 11 per cent in some Brindabella (Tuggeranong) booths. Even with a generous spill of preferences for the fifth seat in Brindabella it will be a hard task, and harder without the Oaks Estate.
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Mr Moore said that an Auditor-General’s report last year had referred to the work practices in the Department of Urban Services, ACTION and ACT Electricity and Water but they had still not been dealt with, though ACTEW had dealt with its meal-allowance overpayments.

The head of the department, John Turner, said the matter was being addressed, but it could not be dealt with overnight.

Mr Moore said he had questioned officials at a Public Accounts hearing last week but had not been given satisfactory answers.
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