Month: May 2001

THIRTY years ago, at a meeting of the parliamentary Liberal Party Keven Cairns asked a question of then Prime Minister John Gorton.

Gorton was under pressure from his own party and from an increas� ingly confident Labor Party. Gorton was facing a no-confidence motion as a result of his secretiveness and dis� loyal treatment of potential leader and young bull Malcolm Fraser, who was then Defence Minister.

Even though the Calition had a majority there was no guarantee that it would survive because a critical number of Liberal Party MPs were fed up with Gorton’s leadership.

Cairns’s question was: what would Gorton do if he lost — call an election or resign as Liberal leader and Prime Minister and ask the Governor-General to get the new Liberal leader to form a government?

The difference was crucial, Cairns explained, because he had a large family and no resources. If Gorton opted for a general election, Cairns, sitting in a marginal seat, would be out of Parliament and without an income within six weeks.
Continue reading “2001_05_may_gorton howard”

Car rego cut $58 per car

Free school buses

Extra police for Gungahlin

$12m surplus

Kindergarten class sizes cut

$214 capital works:

> Civic revitalising

> Shops upgrades

> Monaro duplication

> Gungahlin access road
Continue reading “2001_05_may_glance”

This week a committee of the ACT Legislative Assembly rejected government proposals for reform of the defamation laws. The Government had proposed a new defence for publishers. If a publisher could show that it had not acted negligently then it could not be successfully be it sued for defamation.

It would mean that that a publisher would have to show — in the case of the media — that the journalist had given the plaintiff a reasonable opportunity to respond to any allegations and that after the response that the journalist still had an honest areasonable belief in the truth of the allegations.

In short, and defamation or would become like other areas of the law where the plaintiff has to prove the that the defendant was negligent and that the negligence caused damage. This is what plaintiffs have to show if they sue a doctor for a medical mishap or a driver for road injury, for example.

At present, defamation is different. All the onus is upon the publishing defendant. The law presumes that everything published is false until it is proved to be true. And the law presumes that everything published a is damaging. Plaintiffs can sue over any statement that would cause ordinary people in the community to think less of them – which gives them a lot of scope.
Continue reading “2001_05_may_defo axed”

HUMANS love to trade and trading can be one of the most rewarding and insightful part of travel, tourism, holiday or vacation – – call it what you will.

The Trobriand Islands are off the north coast of the eastern tail of Papua New Guinea. I went there very briefly after some engaging tropical diving near Milne Bay — the scene of the first Japanese defeat of World War II.

The Trobriands were just one stop on an island hop back to Port Moresby. At the airport a large number of islanders gathered at the perimeter gate, about 30 metres from where the aircraft had come to a stop. They were displaying beautiful ebony carvings with inlaid pearl. Now I am a sucker for ethno junk, precisely because I it don’t believe that this craft is junk. Usually, it is an expression of culture as well as a way for local people to make money. And the cost per hour of work is good value anyway – – better than the average painting at a gallery in suburban Australia. But if there is nothing else to do, no other employment, why not work for hours for some rare cash to obtain things otherwise unobtainable.

I looked at the carvings and was then attracted by a very odd shaped bundle being held on a coconut string by a young man.
Continue reading “2001_05_may_crabs”