"One day a rooster, the next day a feather duster!"
By LAURIE PATTON | 24 February 2020
The buck has to stop somewhere. Despite the prime minister’s best efforts when it comes to the so-called ‘sport rorts’ affair it’s unlikely to stop with a temporarily sacked minister. Now the work of his highly politicised department head is firmly under scrutiny.
Continue reading “Sports rorts shows need for public sector re-think”
By LAURIE PATTON | 16 February 2020
The OTIS group of disgruntled federal Labor politicians has helped Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese in a number of ways they probably didn’t intend.
For starters, forewarned is forearmed. His supporters – which is a majority of the caucus and overwhelmingly the grass roots party membership – want ‘Albo’ to become our next PM and nothing else comes close to being second prize.
Continue reading “How the OTIS group did Albanese a favour”By LAURIE PATTON | 6 October 2019
For a mixture of political and economic reasons Australia will continue to rely on mining in the foreseeable future, at least to some extent. Yet unresolved debates over a number of proposed coal mines have exposed a politcial rift that may well determine the outcome of the next federal election, just as the issue had a major impact on this year’s poll.
While the risk is arguably greater on Labor’s side the turning tide of public opinion spurred by concerns about Global Warming suggests both the major parties would be well-advised to start thinking about their future responses to the demands of the mining lobby.
One solution is to create jobs in other sectors for the people displaced when mines close or new mining licences are rejected.
Continue reading “Time to stop digging our way out of trouble. A lesson from the past?”
By Laurie Patton | 12 July 2019
The New South Wales deputy premier wants to allow logging in a national park in the state’s Riverina. John Barilaro says he intends removing statutory protection of the 42,000 hectare Murray Valley National Park – either by de-gazetting the entire area or reducing its size.
Forty years ago we fought to stop the logging of a rainforest at Terania Creek in northern NSW. I cannot believe this issue is back on the political agenda.
Continue reading “Barbarians at the gate — don’t let them destroy Murray Valley National Park”