CityNews 210610

MICHAEL MOORE / RELUCTANT AUSTRALIA FALLS BEHIND THE VACCINE PACK JUNE 10, 2021

Well written, well read

Saving wildlife from killer cats ROBERT MACKLIN Spin from Ministry of Misinformation

PAUL COSTIGAN A special spell from the birthday fairies

KATE MEIKLE

HEAR ME ROAR New MLA MARISA PATERSON finds her feet among the Assembly’s female workforce

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NEWS / Canberra Community Law

Funding cuts will put poor people at legal risk

By Danielle

NOHRA ALMOST 200 vulnerable community members could miss out on receiving free legal help over the next year when covid-related funding to Canberra Community Law ceases on June 30, says its executive director and principal solicitor Genevieve Bolton.

It’ll come after the free, independent legal service, that’s run by community managed boards, had already been struggling with funding reductions over recent years, she says.

However, the service, which is the only ACT service that specialises in housing, Centrelink, disability and racial discrimination law, and homelessness law, will face one of its biggest funding hits at the end of this month, when it will be forced to decrease its service delivery capacity by 20 per cent.

“In the last financial year, we provided free legal help to 859 clients – 93 per cent were experiencing financial disadvantage and 68 per cent were experiencing, or at risk of homeless-

INDEX

ness,” Genevieve says.

“If this 20 per cent reduction in our services occurred last year, this would have meant that 170 of some of the most vulnerable in our community would not have been able to access a lawyer to help with their legal problem. “Without ongoing funding it is inevitable that many people will miss out on free legal help.”

But the days are running out and Canberra Community Law still doesn’t know if the ACT government will give it the $550,000 it needs. “$550,000 is not going to meet the demand we’re going to need, but it will make up for the shortfall that we’re currently facing,” Genevieve says.

“That [money] will enable us to maintain current staffing levels at a time that we continue to see a significant spike in demand.

“And to highlight how significant that demand is on our services, at the moment we’ve also got two fulltime lawyers from a couple of the big Canberra law firms working here pro bono, and we’re still struggling to keep up with demand even having those additional lawyers, so I can only imagine what’s going to happen if that money is not found.”

Without the funding, Genevieve’s greatest concern is that Canberra Community Law will have far less capacity to provide the ongoing support

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and representation that its clients need.

“We run an advice line for initial advice, but what it’s going to mean is our capacity to do the follow-up work is going to be significantly reduced and that’s going to lead to prolonged homelessness, people being at a high risk of eviction and people not having legal issues resolved at the earliest opportunity,” she says.

“There will be nowhere else for them to go for assistance with those matters. It’s ultimately going to cost the ACT government more by way of community-based support.”

Demand has always been going up for their services but there’s been a significant hike since the onset of covid last March, Genevieve says.

“There’s also a housing crisis in the ACT at the moment in terms of public housing stock and crisis accommodation,” she says.

“It’s almost impossible to access crisis accommodation and there’s very limited public housing stock at present, which has generated a lot of work for us in terms of people contacting us seeking our advocacy for them to get on to the most urgent list.”

The end of the rental eviction moratorium has increased workloads, too, she says.

“Recently our ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (ACAT)

Managing Director: James Anderson, 0404 077605, james@citynews.com.au Director: Kate Meikle, kate@citynews.com.au Senior advertising account executives: David Cusack, 0435 380656 Tracey Avery, 0477 939999 Advertising account executives: Damien Klemke, 0439 139001 Karen Davis, 0427 410442 Editor: Ian Meikle, editor@citynews.com.au Digital news editor: Danielle Nohra, danielle@citynews.com.au Journalists: Andrew Mathieson, andrew@citynews.com.au Nick Overall, nick@citynews.com.au Belinda Strahorn, belinda@citynews.com.au; Kathryn Vukovljak, kathryn@citynews.com.au Arts editor: Helen Musa, helen@citynews.com.au Production manager: Janet Ewen Graphic Designer: Douglas Lima Proof reader: Glenda Anderson

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duty lawyer has seen their workload doubled with Housing ACT bringing applications to ACAT where rental arrears are very high due to delayed debt recovery action,” she says.

The service has also seen an increase in helping more people with Centrelink debt, as Services Australia has started to recover debts – many of which were still being accrued during the debt-recovery pause, unbeknown to clients, Genevieve says.

“This has resulted in our clients being very distressed at the high debt amounts, especially now that the covid payments have stopped and they receive less money,” she says.

“The ending of JobKeeper has also seen people needing to access Centrelink for the first time and requiring assistance to navigate a complex system.”

Other areas where Canberra Community Law is seeing demand are with people with disability seeking employment discrimination advice around flexible working arrangements to accommodate their disability as COVID-19 restrictions ease, and there has been an increase in demand from people in the Alexander Maconochie Centre seeking out services.

Donations can be made by calling 6218 7900 or via canberracommunitylaw.org.au

Canberra Community Law executive director Genevieve Bolton… “Our capacity to do the follow-up work is going to be significantly reduced and that’s going to lead to prolonged homelessness.”

Photo: Danielle Nohra

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SEVEN DAYS

Tree trims might be cheaper with an orthopod ONE of my snouts, with a tree problem, wrote wondering when it was that tree surgeons became more vital (and wealthier) than knee surgeons.

“Just wondering if anyone is thinking ‘extortion’ in regard to tree trimming near power lines in Canberra?” he wrote.

He says his power company orders property owners obliged to carry out tree trimming near power lines to use only a contractor from a supplied list.

“I contacted seven, most of whom did not respond,” he writes.

“One couldn’t do the work for three months, another quoted $900 and a third asked $550 (10 per cent discount for cash).

The job took 15 minutes; $550!”

There are 15 accredited arborists on, for example, the Evoenergy list along with the warning that “only Evoenergy accredited arborists are authorised to work in close proximity to powerlines”, but that none of them are employees or contractors of Evoenergy.

Unhelpfully, there’s no guide to ballpark costs residents can expect to pay.

Maybe they should be listing orthopedic surgeons, too.

THE commodore is not impressed.

Canberra Yacht Club’s Sue Hart has sensibly thrown overboard the gimmicky idea of landing seaplanes on the west basin of Lake Burley Griffin.

The club, the lake’s biggest recreational user for 60 years, is objecting to the National Capital Authority against the runway plans of two seaplane operators from Sydney and the south coast.

“When a seaplane wants to come and land at whatever frequency, I can’t get 90 boats off the lake at the time they’re going to land,” the commodore says.

“I can’t believe they will be bringing in a sufficient number of tourists to greatly impact the Canberra economy.”

world championships in Turkey.

For Melhuish, it would have been her first championship in the senior ranks.

Training to go nowhere… orienteering world championship team member Tara Melhuish.

ON citynews.com.au the other day, we published a story calling for volunteers to help on the specially fitted-out Sleepbus to give older homeless women a bed.

Reporter Andrew Mathieson says they had only enough volunteers to drive and pick up needy women for three nights a week to sleep in the bus.

“Inside 30 hours, since the story went online, the organisers have had 50+ volunteers!” he says.

“They’ll now be doing it every night of the week! It proved that not only the story resonated with readers, but our audience is wide if as many as 50+ of our readers alone are prepared to give up their nights.”

AS the Olympics wobble into life after a year’s delay, it must be heartbreaking for others to be selected for a world championship only to be grounded by the effects of covid.

For example, Orienteering Australia has decided not to support or endorse sending Australian-based athletes overseas due to ongoing travel restrictions and the COVID-19 situation in Europe.

Which neatly snuffs out the dreams of the four Canberra Cockatoos named in Australian teams for the orienteering world champs.

Grace Crane, Tara Melhuish and Matt Doyle were named in the Australian Boomerangs team for the senior championships in Czechia and David Stocks was included in the team now not heading to the junior

DITTA Zizi, the newly-elected chair of the Canberra international Music Festival, is bringing a “formidable combination of skills” to the job, says arts editor Helen Musa.

Ditta is a Ditta Zizi… familiar face in “formidable”. local arts circles and was a founding member of Stopera chamber-opera group and served on the boards of “Muse” magazine and The Street Theatre.

She also holds a bachelor and master’s degrees in music and has a graduate diploma in applied corporate governance both from the ANU.

tank at the BP Raglan Roadhouse, where he paid $1.549 a litre for premium unleaded.

Back home last week, the bowsers at Caltex Dickson bit him $1.619 for the same petrol.

He wonders, and don’t we all, how petrol can be hauled to the Bathurst region and sold for less than bigger-volume metropolitan Canberra.

WA publican Ian Trevarton’s historic Railway Tavern in Northampton, almost 500 kilometres north of Perth, was shattered by tropical cyclone Seroja. Columnist Clive Williams spotted this heading on the SBS news site: “A freak cyclone destroyed Ian’s pub. A warming climate could mean more are on their way”.

“Presumably the editor means cyclones and not pubs?” he muses.

Ian Meikle is the editor of “CityNews” and can be heard on the “CityNews Sunday Roast” news and interview program, 2CC, 9am-noon.

RAGLAN is a town of 1199 people east of Bathurst named after FitzRoy Somerset, 1st Baron Raglan, commander-in-chief of the Allied forces in the Crimean War from 1850 to 1855. In a recent swing around NSW, gardening guru Cedric Bryant filled up his

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Marisa’s at the fore of the female majority

By Andrew

MATHIESON HEELS clatter on to the hard floors, the sound booming down the corridors of the office of territory political power.

The woman walking nearly breaks stride into a strut, but the click-clacking of every step addresses a gender imbalance felt in Canberra that failed to emanate from Capital Hill.

The turbulent weeks in Parliament House were metaphorically a world away from the surrounds of the Legislative Assembly of the ACT. The chamber on London Circuit is a swathe of women outnumbering men.

The 14 elected females filling the 25 seats on the floor prove a dichotomy from an old-world order, but a fair reflection of the city’s progressive society.

In response to the questionable behaviour of federal government members and a former senior adviser, allegiances between the three ACT parties are for once cast aside in favour of unifying towards a women’s network line.

Marisa Paterson, a fresh face to the unicameral legislature after claiming a first seat in Murrumbidgee for Labor at last October’s elections, is already one of the formative forces and authoritative voices behind female pollies and staffers.

“As a new member to the Assembly, what’s interesting is probably what the problem at Parliament House is: how offices are set up. They work within their party and work within their office, so you can become very isolated,” she says.

“I don’t know what goes on in those Liberal Party offices and the staff don’t talk about it, but I think that is the danger and probably the difference of the parliament as opposed to a normal workplace.

“I think if that is really explicit and people understand, and recognise where the vulnerabilities are, that’s an important first step.”

The latest alleged actions of a non-consensual sexual nature, down dark halls and inside the corners of hidden offices at Parliament House, really are nothing new. But victims and survivors at least are standing up.

So did Labor’s newest addition to its 10 seats in the coalition government.

Before giving up a piece of privacy to be publicly answerable to the ACT taxpayers, she was a victim of sexual harassment, stalking and bullying from a prominent NZ university academic.

The anthropological doctor of philosophy claimed her pleas were ignored after lodging a

complaint to ANU amid denials from the accused.

But only when Marisa stood upright from her new seat, bravely reaching deep into her soul to pull out a first political speech detailing her pain and suffering that action was taken against the perpetrator.

So when ex-Defence staffer Brittany Higgins, the first of a growing litany of accusers that left parliament in tears, went public in front of that very same Australian bastion of democracy of where the alleged crimes occurred, the women’s network line had a cause.

“That’s really the thing that I think we need to transition from because at the moment, it’s very much the impetus is on victims to come forward and to go to their employer and say, ‘This is what’s happening to me’, when actually what we need to be doing is looking at creating safe work environments,” Marisa says.

“It actually should be on the employer to ensure that their employees are safe at work and not experiencing these behaviours, rather than waiting until you get into some awful situation.

“And what I mean, out of my own personal experience, what comes of it is significant reputational damage to the organisation.

“So you look at Parliament House, it’s just in tatters at the moment. How is this a good thing for their kind of image? It doesn’t work, it is not a good model to cover this stuff up, to ignore it and to not prosecute perpetrators.”

The network is more a support group for female staffers that nearly fill every office in the Assembly than it is for their female MLA employers.

The purpose is to meet and discuss issues relevant to women, akin to their health and safety in the building and workplace respect to name a few.

The informal conversations not only cross party lines but are conducted in privacy, never to leave the room.

Every four years a new members’ behavioural code of conduct is reviewed, but the 10th Assembly in ACT political history is expected to implement amendments relating to managing sexual indiscretions better.

And unlike any of Labor, Liberals or Greens battling for enough numbers, the women’s network has the only majority of sorts in the chamber.

“I think that will take the power and balance out of the discussion because what you know has really come out of Parliament House is that you have a really unequal power structure, and that’s why this stuff is able to happen,” Marisa says.

“That’s really a lot of what’s behind sexual harassment and why people get away with it.”

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POLITICS / vaccinations

Reluctant Australia falls behind the vaccine pack THE consequences of the disease and the risks of getting it are much greater than any risk associated with a vaccine.

This fundamental concept should answer the concerns that so many have had over specific covid vaccines.

In Australia, until recently, reluctance to immediately vaccinate for COVID-19 has largely been driven by comfortable confidence in our quarantine system and faith in our governments to contain the virus.

The outbreak in Victoria highlights a flimsy system.

Effective contact tracing, isolation, social distancing and mask wearing have all provided some preventive defences against spread of the virus.

The most uncomfortable of the techniques is lock down with its widespread ramifications in economic and social terms. However, for effective protection none of these measures compare to widespread vaccination.

Crazy theories about vaccines have always abounded – even from the early days of the smallpox vaccines when anti-vaxxers postulated that those receiving the “cow pox” would transition into

Community confidence in the Australian federal government is rapidly slipping as a result of the recent handling of the pandemic and the vaccine rollout in particular. cows themselves. The idea that Bill Gates is somehow using this outbreak to provide microchips into all those vaccinated appeals as a Hollywood sensationalist thriller, but is so far removed from reality to be totally laughable.

However, this and other not quite so outrageous ideas do circulate on social media. It is factual that the Astra-Zeneca vaccine is responsible for blood clots in a very small percentage of the population. However, the risk is much less than the risk of the disease. This is why I did not hesitate to have my first jab of this vaccine some time ago.

Community confidence in the Australian federal govern-

ment is rapidly slipping as a result of the recent handling of the pandemic and the vaccine rollout in particular.

The pace of the vaccine rollout has been pathetic compared to other countries. For a while, Australia was in a position to delay while countries that were experiencing thousands of deaths a day were forced to move quickly. This has put us back behind the pack.

However, there are important questions about why all our systems of vaccine distribution were not used as soon

as enough vaccines were being manufactured. The influenza vaccine is widely available in nursing homes, through general practice and through pharmacy. Additionally, the states, territories and many local councils are also involved in vaccine distribution.

Failure of the federal government to ensure a rapid and effective roll-out is illustrated by the way the states have been stepping in to make up for the Morrison

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government’s inadequacies. In NSW, Gladys Berejiklian has established huge vaccination centres that provide for walk-in jabs. Others are following suit.

It is easy to blame vaccine hesitancy for the delays.

However, there is rarely just one factor behind such failures. The planning for vaccine distribution was disrupted in the early days with a temporary setback when expected vaccines from Europe did not arrive.

At the start of the pandemic, Prime Minister Scott Morrison was very proud about the establishment of the “national cabinet” to ensure a co-ordinated response between all jurisdictions to deal in a co-ordinated manner with the challenges. This approach may not have been perfect, but it did prove largely effective. It still raises the question: was the real leadership coming from Dan Andrews, Gladys Berejiklian and Annastacia Palaszczuk rather than from Scott Morrison?

It is time to learn lessons from failures, or when something has not gone as well as it should. The federal Minister for Health and the Minister for Ageing, instead of constantly quoting statistics of how many jabs have been distributed, should be looking carefully at where the system can be improved and acting on it as soon as possible.

Until such time as this country is largely vaccinated, there will be repeats of outbreaks, lockdowns, restrictions on travel and economic hardship for many.

Michael Moore is a former member of the ACT Legislative Assembly and an independent minister for health. He has been a political columnist with “CityNews” since 2006.

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NEWS / The Queanbeyan Junior Brass

Thanks to Barbara and Don, the band’s all here

By Belinda

STRAHORN A QUEANBEYAN band that formed on the cusp of covid is now reaping the benefits of a donation that helped equip them 12 months ago.

Through the generosity of the Kirk Family Foundation, the Queanbeyan Junior Brass Inc. band was supplied with a full suite of musical instruments it needed to start performing.

The foundation, started by Queanbeyan couple Don and Barbara Kirk, donated $11,000 for the band to buy 24 brass instruments including cornets, tenor horns, baritones, euphoniums, trombones, and tubas.

“We wanted to give the band a kick start,” Don said.

“What they were asking for fell within the foundation’s selection criteria and it felt good being able to support them,” Don said.

Don left St Edmund’s College in Canberra when he was 14 and went on to build a successful career as a fuel distributor, cattle breeder and developer.

In 2007, the Kirks donated $1 million of their own money to start the foun-

dation. To date they have distributed more than $500,000 to children from hard-up backgrounds and the organisations that support them throughout the Queanbeyan, Palerang and Yass regions.

“Barbara and I had done well in life, we had more than enough for ourselves, and we wanted to help those who were less fortunate, particularly kids,” Don said.

“There’s a lot of kids that fall through the cracks… it’s heartbreaking to see the need out there in the community.”

Former symphony musician John Thompson, who lives in Bungendore, noticed a gap in the musical education of young people in the region and decided to champion the establishment of a brass band in Queanbeyan, albeit on the cusp of covid.

“Unfortunately, we don’t have enough music in schools,” John said.

“It’s a well-known thing that kids who learn music will do better at school, will develop better social skills, and most will go on to be leaders in their community.”

After much perseverance and hard work, John and wife Paula, acquired a church hall in Queanbeyan for the band to rehearse in, and the Kirk Foundation donation is the realisation of their vision to give young people the chance to learn a brass instrument.

From left, back row, Barbara and Don Kirk, Trudi Kirk, Paula and John Thompson.

Front Ruby Holden and Will Smith.

Photo: Belinda Strahorn “Queanbeyan didn’t have a community band,” John said.

“Music is a lifelong thing, if you are lucky enough to do music at school or join a community band then you can play for the rest of your life.”

The ex-St Edmund’s College music teacher said the band had to wait for their instruments to be shipped from China.

Having taken possession of them, sometime later, the pandemic hit and with it brought band practise to a halt.

Only now, with the worst of the pan-

election

ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body

2021

An election will be conducted to elect 7 members of the ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body.

Nominating as a candidate for the Elected Body

Key 2021 election dates: Election start date (Candidate nominations open)

Monday 17 May

Nominations close

Tuesday 1 June (12 noon)

Candidates announced

Wednesday 2 June (12 noon)

Order of ballot paper determined

Wednesday 2 June (after nominations declared)

Electoral roll closes

Monday 21 June

Polling start day

Saturday 3 July

Polling close day

Saturday 10 July

Scrutiny starts

Not before Wednesday 21 July

Election result declared

As soon as practicable after the scrutiny is completed

To be eligible to be nominated as a candidate for the election you must be an Aboriginal person or Torres Strait Islander, at least 18 years old, and on, or entitled to be on, the ACT electoral roll. Candidates cannot be under sentence of imprisonment for 1 year or longer for an indictable offence.

Nominations open on Monday 17 May 2021. Nominations must be given to the ACT Electoral Commissioner by the close of nominations at 12 noon on Tuesday 1 June 2021. Forms can be scanned and emailed to elections@act.gov.au or hand delivered to the office of the Commissioner.

The form required to nominate as a candidate is available from the office of the ACT Electoral Commissioner or from the Elections ACT website www.elections.act.gov.au.

Late or incomplete nominations will not be accepted under any circumstances.

Voting for the Elected Body To be eligible to vote you must be an Aboriginal person or Torres Strait Islander, at least 18 years old and on, or eligible to be on, the ACT electoral roll.

Voting for the Elected Body is from Saturday 3 July 2021 until Saturday 10 July 2021 at various locations across ACT. Locations and times will be available from elections@act.gov.au closer to polling start day.

If you are not able to vote in person, you can apply for a postal vote. You can apply for a postal vote on-line at the Elections ACT website, over the phone by calling Elections ACT on 6205 0033 or by email to elections@act.gov.au. You cannot vote on-line, over the phone or by email.

How to vote for your preferred candidates Ballot papers for the election will show the names of all candidates in a single column.

To make your vote in the election, you need to number 7 boxes from 1 to 7 in the order of your choice.

You may then show as many further preferences as you wish by writing numbers from 8 onwards in the other boxes.

Voting in this election is not compulsory.

The election will be conducted by Elections ACT in accordance with the requirements of the ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body Act 2008.

For further information on the election visit www.elections.act.gov.au.

make your voice count

AUTHORISED BY DAMIAN CANTWELL AM CSC, ACT ELECTORAL COMMISSIONER, ACT ELECTORAL COMMISSION

12 CityNews June 10-16, 2021

demic behind them, can the members start rehearsing and realising their musical dreams.

“It’s great to have the band together and practising again,” John said.

“The musicians range in age from about seven to 14 and attend various schools in Queanbeyan and Canberra.”

One of the band members, hoping for a bright musical future, is 13-yearold Ruby Holden, from Queanbeyan.

Ruby, who attends Daramalan College, is learning the tuba but she really wants to be a country music singer

with a guitar slung over her shoulder.

“This is my first time in a band and my first time learning a brass instrument… I’m really loving it,” Ruby said.

“When I grow up, I want to be a country music artist, but for now, being in the band is helping my music skills and it’s nice to be a part of a team.”

The best thing about the band is that it’s giving youngsters with an interest in music a chance to develop further skills, and for some members, it’s an opportunity to learn an entirely different instrument.

Will Smith, for instance, started learning the violin but has now moved to mastering the trombone.

“A trombone is an expensive instrument, so having it donated was a really nice thing for them [the Kirk family] to do,” Will said.

For the 11-year-old St Gregory’s Primary School student, music is more than a hobby – it’s a passion.

“I love it,” he said.

“Music helps me stay focused and calm and it’s my first time in a band so I’m meeting new people, and I’m learning from others who play the trombone.

“My favourite band pieces so far are ‘Rock Around the Clock’ and ‘Advance Australia Fair’.”

Interested musicians wishing to join Queanbeyan Junior Brass Inc. should email qjbrass@outlook.com

THE GADFLY / containing cats

Saving native wildlife from killer cats AT last, one Australian government has had the courage to recognise cats as an existential threat to our native wildlife… and to do something about it.

The ACT administration has released a 10-year plan to confine cats to their owners’ homes and set $1600 fines for those who break the rules.

Under the plan, all Canberra cats will have to be registered, fitted with microchips and “contained” within the owners’ homes. The containment policy has been tested on 17 suburbs and will be extended to the entire ACT from June next year.

ACT Environment Minister Rebecca Vassarotti said: “Every year, freeroaming but owned Canberra cats are estimated to prey on 61,000 native birds, 2000 native mammals, 30,000 native reptiles, and 6000 native frogs.”

The plan is also aimed at feral cats, with predator-proof fences in the territory’s nature reserves and a determination to “control [them] where feasible”. Presumably, that involves trapping and euthanising them, but the minister was too genteel to spell it out.

Either way, it is a welcome and remarkably brave decision given the powerful cat lobby across the country.

But it’s only the first small step in what must become a national drive to contain – or better still, eliminate – the carnage to native wildlife perpe-

Cat containment is a welcome… first small step in what must become a national drive to contain – or better still, eliminate – the carnage to native wildlife perpetrated by this imported predator.

Grounded… all Canberra cats will have to be registered, fitted with microchips and “contained” within the owners’ homes.

trated by this imported predator.

It must surely be part of the learning experience that so many of us find as we grapple with the concept of an Australia of 65,000 years of history with a little 200-year blip of whitefella settlement on the end.

No doubt we have brought a great deal to the table in that most recent element of the Australian story – especially the astonishing power of science to understand aspects of the world around us and the capacity to live a little longer and in greater comfort. But underpinning our “progress” was a culture of unchecked exploitation of the land with little thought, much less respect, for the people who had tended and revered it

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as well as the creatures with whom they interacted.

We are now paying the price of our arrogance with fire and flood, drought and cyclonic winds that threaten the very advances that we brought to the great southern land.

Ironically, one of those existential hazards, the coronavirus, gave us the time to think about the country in which we’ve been confined. And instead of splurging our savings on that mirage we call “overseas”, we’ve discovered some of the unexpected

delights of Australia, from the dinosaurs of northwest Queensland to the giant forests of southwest WA. In between came the “Uluru Statement from the Heart”.

The movement for Aboriginal reconciliation is much bigger than it first appears. In truth, it’s a journey of discovery that incorporates that Australia the First Nations bequeathed to us, albeit that we ripped it from their hands. What beckons is a coming-of-age for a nation that melds the wisdom of both black and white, that transforms us from a place of multicultural newcomers to Australians one and all.

Incidentally, we already had a native cat before we imported the foreign predator. The spotted quoll flourished in its own evolutionary niche for thousands of years before we arrived. The ferals killed it. And when, quite recently, we tried to revivify the species, they killed it again. robert@ robertmacklin. com

BRIEFLY Choir with a united voice A CHOIR that sings about serious (and not so serious) things that matter is looking for new members. The Canberra Union Voices says it’s for people who believe in social justice and equality. No auditions. At the Dickson Tradies Club, 2pm-3.30pm, Wednesdays. Enquiries to Andrew at zipkow@optusnet.com.au

Bandannas are back THE Bold Bandannas, a Relay for Life team, is back at the Belconnen Fruit and Veg Markets’ charity stall raising funds for cancer research by selling, among other things, beanies and scarves, 8am-5pm, over the weekend of June 12-13.

Woolly bargains WINTER woollies are the focus of the Calvary Hospital Auxiliary’s stall in the main foyer, 8am-4pm, Thursday, June 17. They’re promising bargain prices for a wide variety of hand-knitted and crocheted goods including beanies, jumpers, mittens, children’s clothes, rugs and quilts.

New Yerrabi VIEW THE new Yerrabi VIEW Club next meets at Eastlake Gungahlin club, from 11.30am on Thursday, June 17. For more information email june3@iinet.net.au by Sunday, June 13.

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Real Estate Australia .com.au | W: realestateAustralia.com.au | E: info@realestateAustralia.com.au | P: (02) 6287 4577 | A: 39 Brierly Street, Weston, ACT 2611 CityNews June 10-16, 2021 13

LETTERS

Let loose to: editor@citynews.com.au

Is border hopping right way to die with dignity?

DEBATE has begun in the House of Representatives to repeal the Andrews’ Bill of 1997, which prevented the NT and the ACT from legislating on voluntary assisted dying.

Interestingly, at that time such legislation might have been defeated here but we were not given the opportunity to find out. The door was slammed on us.

Much has changed over these 24 years with an estimated 80 per cent of those polled across Australia – a remarkably consistent figure – supporting reform.

Three states (Victoria, WA and Tasmania) have passed legislation on death with dignity, with Queensland and SA also moving to do so.

Given such strong national support, it is difficult to see NSW holding out much longer and, importantly, the federal parliament denying the territories the right to introduce their own legislation.

Support for lifting of the territorial blockage does not indicate support for voluntary assisted dying, death with dignity, mercy death, to give the procedure some of its names. Parliamentarians still can cast a conscience vote on the actual legislation.

Thus I see no impediment to the introduction of an enabling law into the ACT Legislative Assembly in due course and, I hope, a successful result.

However, this is where my problem begins.

I am a long-term supporter of death with dignity – the phrase I prefer – and wrote a self-published novella “Twilight” in 2019, which garnered 1425 downloads in the publication month when I offered the email version for free.

Despite this proven personal commitment, I am concerned for the successful local legislative outcome if we decide to create our own law. Already individual states have different rules in approach, the granting of permission, even how long a patient has to live before the law can be applied.

This is no reason not to proceed with ACT legislation, but I am haunted by these interstate complications. Do we really need border hopping for the opportunity to die with dignity at one’s preferred time, for example?

Ideally, I would have liked a national plebiscite similar to same-sex marriage.

Given the current state enthusiasm it easily would have passed.

However, my plea was rejected on the

grounds health was a state responsibility, which ignores the question why we have a full-blown Federal Department of Health rather than a section of Finance to dole out the money and DFAT to handle our international responsibilities in this area.

So we are stuck with different laws, again, across the country, which leaves me with the only recourse to ask our ACT legislators to please borrow the law from one of the states, NSW would be convenient, and not add to the plethora of differing regulations which bedevil Australia.

This is too much of an important issue.

Indeed, a matter of life and death.

Greg Cornwell, former ACT Legislative Assembly speaker, Yarralumla

How about solar cells, Penleigh?

I ENJOYED Penleigh Boyd’s non-woke article (“Add it up, light rail isn’t so friendly after all” (CN May 27).

He might like to have a look at how long it takes to recover the energy (pollution and CO2) embedded in solar cells.

They are made from silicon, aluminium and glass, all smelted and refined at very high temperatures, then transported from China (where most are manufactured).

Keep on raising the hard questions.

Tony Butterfield, via email

We all have to go sometimes LETTER writers Sue Dyer (CN May 20) and Christopher Ryan (CN May 27) are right about the need for public toilets in public areas.

Canberra’s public transport network and public areas need public toilets in every part of Canberra.

Like the Dickson interchange, the recently approved plan for the much larger development of the Woden Bus Interchange contains no public toilets at all.

The government has also allowed the number of toilets in the Curtin shopping centre to be reduced from three to just two, from a now-demolished public toilet block to inside a private building.

Whether it is for Canberra’s ageing but active population, or for our youngest new people, or just for everyone – public life requires public toilets. We all have to go sometimes.

The cost of providing toilets and keeping them clean and maintained is just part of the cost of being a civilised city, and it should not be skimped on.

Disregarding the needs of people who actually use public spaces and public transport is just bad policy. Having no toilets will reduce active use of spaces and active use of transport.

Chris Johnson, Curtin Residents Association, Curtin

Scare the cat, spare the bird IT is about time cats are contained in the ACT. I love cats but, as I encourage native birds to visit my garden, I don’t have one.

However, that didn’t stop a large, hairy cat to come into my garden and take a native bird!

I saw the cat again in the garden two days later.

I had placed a wire barrier around the area favoured by birds so the cat was surprised especially when I charged out. I hope it got a good scare, but I’m not confident.

Responsible cat owners may need help to secure an area for their cats. I don’t want to see another bird taken in my garden.

Gillian Painter, Macquarie

What about Mrs Gredden?

“AN all-RAAF crew of Bomber Command veterans flew (Lancaster bomber G for George) home,” reported citynews.com.au All-RAAF? What about Mrs Gredden, the factory’s delivery pilot who together with Rockhampton boy Sgt Eddie Hudson (who piloted G on her final operations over Europe), brought her to Australia and flew her around on the fund-raising tour?

I am 100 per cent sure about that because my father, who was in charge of the RAAF contingent in Rocky on the day, arranged for me to climb into the fuselage and sit in the left-hand seat up front for a while. Oh bliss, oh rapture, wait until I tell the kids at school about this!

How am I certain about Mrs Gredden?

Like any boy of single-digit age, I was wearing shorts. As I began to get out of the seat, a gentle but firm hand pressed my right shoulder and me back into it.

Then the hand lifted the hem of the right leg of the shorts clear of a little lever almost out of sight beside the base of the seat.

Mrs Gredden was there to save me from unwittingly activating the lever thereby causing the undercarriage to start coming up.

At least, that’s what she told me at the time.

One tends to remember things like this.

Dougal Macdonald, Bungendore

The roar of George was amazing WHEN I was a young student at Murrurundi Public School we were all assembled in the playground to see G for George fly over.

The roar was amazing and still vivid in my memory. It flew right up the main street and was so low that the “G” was clearly visible on the side of its fuselage. Wow! Gordon Worrall, Torrens

A media world of too many half truths I HAVE read “The Canberra Times” for over 40 years and, since the digital age, continue to check the local and overseas news plus community views and interests.

What I find disappointing is since the buying and selling of media outlets over the years the standard of news has become half-truths and sensational.

The views of a lot of the journalists (in my opinion) have become left wing and out of touch with the people of the ACT. So, I say to myself when looking at the masthead of “The Canberra Times”, do they really believe in “To Serve the National City” and “the journalism you trust” or what was once true is now a distant memory because of the radicals creeping into media society to push their own agenda?

Any editor or journalist of a news organisation should have the nous to play a fair game and report both sides of a story without bias and favour and not just their personal views, which most times favour left-wing ideology, and try to influence a free-thinking society.

Errol Good, Macgregor

When will they ever learn?

THE quickest and cheapest way to reduce traffic congestion and traffic emissions is to put up T2 or T3 signs that give priority to all

vehicles that carry passengers.

When two friends or relatives travel together in a car, they cause half the traffic congestion of two people driving two cars.

They also cause less emissions per person than the average Canberra bus.

Twenty years ago 63 per cent of Canberra commuters drove cars all the way to work, 8 per cent travelled only as car passengers, 5 per cent travelled only by public transport, 4 per cent walked and 2 per cent cycled.

The government set targets for increased walking, cycling and public transport.

The government spent a billion dollars on public transport subsidies, a similar amount on road subsidies, about $50 million on walking and cycling, and a negligible amount to encourage car drivers to become car passengers.

By 2016 the combined mode shares of walking, cycling and public transport increased to 15 per cent, car passengers fell to 6 per cent and car drivers increased to 67 per cent. The end result was more traffic congestion and more pollution.

The government paradoxically removed incentives for people to travel as car passengers. It closed “3 for free” parking areas, and converted part of Adelaide Avenue’s T2 lane to a general traffic lane.

On May 26, the government launched its new “Make the Move – zero emissions transport” website. The website makes no mention of travelling by car with friends or relatives.

As Peter, Paul and Mary once sang: “When will they ever learn?”

Leon Arundell, Downer

Spin from a ‘devious’ government?

THE Australia Institute recently released its report on whether Australia is really reducing its carbon emissions as claimed by the Morrison government.

In fact, every emissions sector has been rising since 2005, except for electricity (due to energy efficiency and renewables) and, most strikingly, land use change and forestry. This was substantially due to Queensland banning large-scale land clearing after 2005 and a spike of clearing anticipating the ban which artificially lifted the base figure for emissions. Cynical spin engaged in by this devious government?

Richard Johnston, Kingston

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CANBERRA MATTERS

Spinning with the Ministry of Misinformation IT is a conversation I now have repeatedly. I have it with community group members, with people at Tilley’s, at the supermarket, while meandering through Dickson or other centres, and when wandering around galleries.

People in Canberra are struggling to get their heads around what drives the Labor/Greens coalition government and its bureaucrats to so boldly use alternative facts when discussing planning and development. So much continuous humbug is hard to comprehend!

The more complicated conversations are about how those in government are making decisions based on what most would deem to be questionable ethics. So many decisions ignore how ad hoc planning (or the lack of it) affects people’s lives and our urban environments.

Serious discussions were had when “CityNews” reported in April on the case of a City Renewal Authority senior bureaucrat, being a partner in a proposed Griffith development, asking for rule changes so that her development application could be forthcoming. The outcome was to be a breakdown of the residential codes along with a handy profit from the house to be redeveloped as a block of flats under the shonky Demonstration Housing Project scheme.

But the real question is not about the bureaucrat’s behaviour (develop-

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This city has a cabal of politicians and bureaucrats who view the aspirations of residents on planning matters as being of little relevance. ers do what they are allowed to do) but how directorate chiefs and their planning minister have allowed governance to be so warped that this action was deemed acceptable.

Have things become so bad within the Labor/Greens government that a senior planning/development bureaucrat is permitted to seek planning changes that affect the outcome of their own proposed unit development?

Really?

When questioned about such goings-on, the bureaucracy relies on spin doctors to pump out misinformation. This level of disingenuous language is now common. Community groups see it constantly in replies to submissions and requests for information. These are the submissions that residents continue to slog away at and submit even though they know they are largely ignored in the decision-making processes undertaken by the planning bureaucracies.

Have we returned to some form of medieval fiefdom where the ruling

Planning central, 480 Northbourne Avenue… As they look out from their pristine towers do the politicians and bureaucratic chiefs utter those fateful words, “the peasants are revolting”.

Photo: Paul Costigan class decides who lives where and when they need to be moved on to make way for the latest of the ruler’s fads – in this case more badly designed, suburban apartments.

This city has a cabal of politicians and bureaucrats who view the aspirations of residents on planning matters as being of little relevance. As they look out from their new pristine towers and observe the noise being made by residents’ groups, do the politicians and bureaucratic chiefs utter those fateful words, “the peasants are revolting”.

Then there’s that infamous reform of the planning system. This was announced years ago and every so often there’s a reminder that it is to happen hopefully soon.

In April, there was that farcical announcement about “thought leaders”.

A common method to start a strategic planning process is to throw the discussion open to left-field ideas and new thoughts. Once the big picture ideas have been contemplated, the real, hard slog begins to make the planning realistic to the circumstances.

The planning directorate announced in April that it is engaging “thought leaders” to inform the planning reforms.

Once people stopped laughing at the

ridiculous nature of the announcement, the seriousness sunk in. If this is the beginning of a process (paying more interstate mates), what the hell have they been doing for the last four years? This farce of a planning review is beyond belief.

The revolting peasants of Canberra know that it is the current planning directorate that has made a complete mess of the planning system. It has become unworkable.

How much more misinformation do residents have to endure while the planning minister allows all manner of disingenuous behaviour to be the norm within the planning directorate and its attached authorities? Maybe residents need to accept the reality that planning and development is being run by an ACT Minister for Misinformation.

Paul Costigan is an independent commentator and consultant on the visual arts, photography, urban design, environmental issues and everyday matters.

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CityNews June 10-16, 2021 15

NEWS / composer Bryn Evans

Bryn knows the score when it comes to music

By Nick

OVERALL BRYN Evans may write music from a small studio in a corner of Gorman House next to Civic, but it’s heard by millions of people around the world.

A composer who’s carved out a career scoring tracks for television and film, Bryn’s music has featured on networks such as HBO, MTV, E!, NFL, NBA and baseball telecasts, and even for the Bronx Zoo in New York.

One of his dramatic tracks was played to close out the NFL playoff between Green Bay and Tampa Bay last season, an event with 45 million viewers.

“I’ve always loved writing music, but came to Canberra to study economics at ANU and was working as a public servant,” he says “One day I was reading an article about the guy who scored the music for ‘Survivor’ and I thought, well I love writing music, saw you could get paid for it, and thought, this is what I want to do.”

His studio may be small, but inside it feels like a world of its own. Dual computer screens show hundreds of named folders: indie-pop, electro, hip hop, alt country. There’s genre stacked upon sub-genre, all filled with endless ideas.

The screens rest atop a desk Bryn stands, rather than sits, at.

It doesn’t take long to realise why.

“Say I’m writing music that’s meant to move me, if I’m not moving then it’s not flowing,” he says.

As he works, his feet tap around his studio, you can see his mind beating along like a drum.

“When you’re sitting down it doesn’t have the same impact, you can’t feel when something’s wrong. It’s about the movement.”

Not long after we’ve started chatting we’re interrupted by a “ding!” An alarm rings off behind us.

“Sorry, that’s my signal to start a new idea,” he says.

It’s the perfect segue for Bryn to explain a day in the life of a full-time composer.

“On a Sunday night I’ll go through all the emails I get during the week, and I’ll see something from one of the publishers I’m partnered with like, ‘Hi Bryn, we need a true crime track – bittersweet, ten-

Composer Bryn Evans… “I think if 16-year-old me could see me now he’d be pretty thrilled.”

Photo: Holly Treadaway sion building’ or something like that,” he says.

“On Monday, I make an album. I put together a bunch of ideas, and I start a new idea every half hour. When I hear

usic, M e r o M un...

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that alarm it’s time to start a new one.

“On Tuesday I’ll go back through them and I’ll have a ‘yes’, a ‘maybe’, and a ‘no’ pile and by the end of the week I’ll have finished the collection and sent it off to the publisher who then pitches it to the big entertainment studios.”

Bryn’s music also features in popular reality television programs in the US, forming a backdrop to build the tension for dramatic scenes.

“They say if you notice the music in a reality program something’s gone wrong,” says Bryn.

“An hour-long episode has around 44 minutes of footage, and there’ll often be around 42 minutes of music. We have to create music with drama and tension while at the same time never drowning out the conversation on screen.”

Bryn still has a collection of some of the first music he

Canberra Region MSers

ever wrote when he was 14, lyrics that his dad mistook for attempts at poetry. He laughs recalling the memory.

He bounced between bands throughout his younger years writing hundreds of songs, but it was a long time before he would be able to call himself a full-time musician.

“When I realised I wanted to do this full time, I reached out to industry professionals and got brutal advice. They told me if I was good enough to do it, I’d already be doing it,” he says.

“For six months I was the best in the world at being rejected. I pitched three different collections of songs to different music publishers every week.

“I got some great advice a long time ago: if you get rejected just let your emotions out the first day. I’d do just that, then a few days later look back at the work and think about how I could make it better.”

As is the case with music,

it’s better to hear the craft than have it explained. He opens some of his work on the computer and his talent immediately becomes more real.

“Once you have a main theme or idea of what the music is about you write the melody,” he says.

Mouse darting around his complex editing software, Bryn presses one of the dozens of play buttons. A dramatic string of notes plays through the studio, it’s the melody: the main idea.

Then, he presses play on other instruments one at a time that come in over the top.

More strings, a bass, drum beat. They overlap into a crescendo, all in perfect harmony with one another, but all complementing that original idea.

“It’s like a story. You start with your concept and then use the craft of writing to shape it,” he says.

Being a music composer in Australia, let alone Canberra, makes Bryn an outlier in his industry.

“I go to a music conference in the US once or twice a year and there are thousands of people. In Australia, you’re lucky to have 100 people,” he says.

As a result he’s looking to collaborate with others to continue his climb up the ladder.

“You just have to keep getting better. It’s like a relay,” he says.

“I can’t write a number one song now, but I can pass the baton to the future me who’s better and who might be able to write a feature album. Then maybe he can pass it on to the next me who can write a top 40 song, then a top 20 song and then one day, who knows.”

But for now living in Canberra, spending time with his partner Virginia and her kids, and writing music for a living has Bryn pretty upbeat.

“I think if 16-year-old me could see me now he’d be pretty thrilled,” he says.

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MUMMY

Praying the birthday fairies cast a special spell “MUMMY, will I stop screaming when I am five?” asks the boss baby.

“I sure hope so, darling,” I calmly replied.

“Would you like to stop?” I ask.

She sighs and replies, “Yes I think so…”

This was my conversation with my almost five-year-old daughter, the “boss baby” of our family.

If only wishes could come true when it comes to our little screamer.

Do not be fooled by her blue eyes and blonde curls. Her angelic little face is mostly observed by us in deep concentration, determination or pre-scream, mid-scream or post-scream. That’s just how she is, this greatly loved, powerful little girl who has always wanted to be in control ever since she was a baby.

Only when she falls into a deep sleep every night does her darling little face relax and the little angel appears once more.

She packs a

She’s already there in so many ways... except for the screaming. Boss baby chose this method of communication a long time ago and, sadly, it just hasn’t quit our lives. punch, this amazing, busy kid of ours and she has long had us all under her thumb. Her sharp mind and excellent memory means she has an answer for simply everything. I have no doubt that boss baby is an amazing little person and will turn out more than okay in the end, but I can’t help but feel my feisty daughter was sent to test and challenge me every step of the way as a mother.

There has been much talk about her turning five for some time in our house. Throughout the year she has cleverly used her age to suit her argument at the time. For instance someone might say: “Wow you are a tall girl”, to which she would reply sweetly: “I am only four”.

Other times she will strike up conversation with a fellow playground player and announce that she was aged five so that she could contrive to be the oldest of the children there.

Pure porkies!

I can see how hard it is for her to be the second born. As a competitive soul she is constantly nipping at her big brother’s heels.

“Run your own race,” I tell her.

“It doesn’t matter who gets out of the car first,” I remind.

“Slow down!” I shout as she fearlessly hops on her bike and pedals as fast as her legs can take her on her first ride without training wheels.

I was invited to watch her last ballet class for the term. She danced beautifully in her fluffy, pink tutu.

It was clear she was enjoying herself and had mastered some moves. When I asked her afterwards if she’d like to do ballet again next term she said: “No thanks, Mummy. I know everything about ballet now.” And that was that!

Somehow she is almost five. Five feels like a big one to me. She’ll be off to school next year, she’ll be tying shoelaces, learning to read (if she hasn’t worked it out already) and she will become a big little kid.

She’s already there in so many ways... except for the screaming. Boss baby chose this method of communi-

A detail from Edvard Munch’s “The Scream”... “Like nails down a blackboard, every time a screaming fit happens I go into a dark place.” cation a long time ago and, sadly, it just hasn’t quit our lives.

We’ve tried deep breathing, sticker charts and all sorts of bribes but this scream of hers comes from deep within. It’s also used in happiness as well as anger but there’s nothing more triggering to my ears and nervous system than the sound of her scream.

Like nails down a blackboard, every time a screaming fit happens

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I go into a dark place. I’ve been told that adults have their own triggering things when it comes to raising kids, moments in which they hear “shark music” playing in their heads. Like the soundtrack to “Jaws”, it’s the iconic “Du Nuh, Du Nuh, Du Nuh ‘’ that starts creating panic and tension in the parent. No one enjoys hearing their child scream but for me it sends me into shark-infested waters.

Like when some small children grow out of their dummies and the time comes when their parents help them “send” their dummies away to the fairies or “other” babies (or throw them out of the moving car into a tree as one of my friends famously did!) it’s time for the boss to give up the scream.

Perhaps the birthday fairies will cast a special spell, or just maybe she will look into my tortured eyes when the shark music is playing so loudly in my head, and decide to finally keep calm and carry on now she is (almost!) five.

As my favourite song lyrics go in “A Little Ray of Sunshine”, a song that seems to turn me to “mummy mush” every time I hear it: She can make you feel good.

She can make you feel like it’s all worthwhile.

Only by her smile.

Only by her smile.

Happy birthday, boss.

P/L

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ALL ABOUT BELCONNEN

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Thriving district where icons inspire suburb names BELCONNEN is the most populous district in the ACT, according to the 2016 census, which recorded a population of 96,049 people.

Its suburbs are named after some of Australia’s most iconic figures.

There’s Melba, eponymous with the ambitious opera singer, Dame Nellie Melba, Lawson, coined from the eloquent bush poet, Henry Lawson, and Cook, inspired by the now contentious 18th century explorer, Captain James Cook.

Taking an holistic approach to pain NOT only does Arthritis ACT have a team of specialists helping people manage arthritis, it also offers a huge range of activities and services in Belconnen that aim to improve the lives of people in the community, says CEO Rebecca Davey.

“At our Belconnen office in Bruce we have a fully functional gym that anyone from the community can utilise,” she says.

“The gym has times of the day set aside for quiet, so [it’s] perfect for peo-

Belconnen itself, which was established in 1966, was officially titled after one of the earliest land grants during colonial times.

But now, decades later, the name is known to represent a thriving hub for north Canberrans, with so much to offer residents and visitors.

ple wanting a more relaxed atmosphere to exercise.

“We also have specialised classes for people from the LGBTQI+ community, which you can also go to if you’re connected to an LGBTQI+ person in some way, like a friend or family member.”

That’s only the start of what Arthritis ACT has to offer though, Rebecca says.

“We run tai chi classes, which can be done in smaller sessions with only a few people if they prefer, or they can join in our large groups,” she says.

“There’s also our art therapy sessions, which can be done one-on-one, and we have a craft chat group on a Wednesday afternoon, where for a small fee people can bring their own craft or learn a new one.”

Rebecca says all the activities are a part of Arthritis ACT’s holistic approach to improving health and treating pain.

Arthritis ACT CEO Rebecca Davey.

Arthritis ACT, 170 Haydon Drive, Bruce.

Call 1800 011041, email info@ arthritisact.org.au or visit arthritisact.org.au

Teaching kids to love learning BRIGHT Minds Academy Belconnen gives children the opportunity to develop and grow a love of learning, says educational leader Annette Davis.

“We have a school readiness focus where we look at the important skills like literacy and numeracy and approach them in a dynamic way,” she says.

“We try to give kids the chance to find where they’re most confident in learning. For example, some learn better outdoors, some learn better indoors so we try to provide a fluid connection between those environments.”

The academy’s flexible hours are also a “game changer” for many parents trying to find a balance between care for their children and work hours, Annette says.

“We run from 6.30am to 6.30pm, Monday

to Friday,” she says.

“We’ve had people say that’s taken away the struggle of finding that balance between work hours and care for their kids. We really try to create an environment that’s suited to the needs of families.”

The academy also takes a keen focus on the kids’ creative side, she says.

“We try to build creative activities into our literacy and numeracy teaching,” she says.

“I think for children to learn and grow creatively it helps give them the sense that learning is something they can achieve and gives them confidence moving forward.”

Bright Minds Academy Belconnen, 5-9 Oatley Court, Belconnen. Call 6253 4062, email belconnen@brightmindsacademy.com.au or visit brightmindsacademy.com.au

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DO YOU HAVE PAIN OR A DISABLING CONDITION? THEN IT IS TIME TO MEET OUR EXERCISE PHYSIOLOGY TEAM

Gwen Estigoy

Sophie Bullock

Blake Dean

Gwen Estigoy has a passion for working for people from diverse backgrounds.

Sophie Bullock has post graduate qualifications in hydrotherapy, making her unique in Canberra.

Blake Dean is a walking encyclopaedia of exercise, with a passion for helping clients improve their mobility and decrease their pain through appropriate exercise intervention.

Gwen instructs Tai Chi for our Falls Prevention program as well as regularly supporting people to meet their exercise goals in our hydrotherapy program and within our own gyms.

Gwen works with individuals, groups, and also leads our LGBTI program.

As with all our Exercise Physiologists Gwen has a four-year university degree as well as extensive industry experience working with people with chronic pain conditions.

Full of enthusaism, Sophie is a non-sports centred Exercise Physiologist, meaning she does not have an intensive sports background herself, so she understands those who struggle with engaging in exercise due to a lack of participation in organised sport.

Sophie works with anyone needing to improve their health, whether one on one or in group exercise.

Sophie works with clients in our popular hydrotherapy program, in our gyms and through home visits, and has a passion for working with children.

Blake has been instrumental in delivering our ‘My Exercise’ program, which targets the relief of lower back pain, sciatic pain, shoulder and upper body concerns as well as leg, hip and and ankle interventions – for those who do not qualify for physiotherapy-led GLAD programs.

Blake provides individual and group exercise, including for teens and young adults with disability.

Blake can deliver programs in the clinic or through our hydrotherapy program as well as attending your gym with you.

CALL FOR YOUR APPOINTMENT – 1800 011 041 Physiotherapy – including the GLAD program for knee and hip osteoarthritis, sports injury prevention and rehabilitation, and pain condition support.

Exercise Physiology – Individual exercise prescriptions, small group classes to increase strength and improve rehabilitation, strength and balance classes, hydrotherapy support.

Occupational Therapy – access reports for NDIS and Disability Support Pensions, home modifications, equipment prescriptions.

Dietetics – meal planning, weight management support, food intolerance support.

www.arthritisact.org.au | e: info@arthritisact.org.au

ALL ABOUT BELCONNEN Volunteers that won’t need any prior experience

Imaging practice where patients take priority AT Kippax Medical Imaging, customers don’t have to worry about waiting times for X-rays, ultrasounds and CT scans, says radiologist Dr Ben Emechete.

“For most of our examinations, people can just walk in or call us at any time,” says Dr Emechete.

“We strive to ensure that every patient leaves confident that their high-quality scans will be examined by expert radiologists, with results sent promptly to their referring physician.”

An independently-owned company with an experienced team, Dr Emechete says the welfare and comfort of patients is a priority at their practice.

“We are Quality Innovation Performance (QIP) certified so you can trust that through every step of your journey with us you are

PEGASUS ACT, a charity that delivers therapeutic horsefacilitated programs to people living with disability, is always looking for new volunteers to join their team, says executive general manager Matthew Watson.

“The volunteers, staff and participants all work together to connect with the Canberra and region community vision is commitment, respect, quality and connection,” says Matt.

Matt says experience with horses isn’t necessary for volunteers at the charity either.

All training, Matt says, is provided on-site, whether it’s horse-leading or stable care, and includes how to work with those with special needs. “[Volunteers] assist the child while they’re riding or learning to ride. They help to communicate the instructions from the coach, giving them guidance, making sure they are sitting on the horse properly,” Matt says.

Other volunteers help out on the “idyllic”, 100 acre farm which is located around 10 minutes from Belconnen centre.

“But you wouldn’t know it when you’re on the farm,” Matt says.

He calls it Canberra’s best kept secret.

Always on the lookout for new volunteers, Matt says they are particularly in need of help on weekdays. While currently on staff, he says there is a wide range of age groups, from teens to seniors.

“People realise they feel good about helping someone achieve something like riding a horse, as well as the physical benefits,” he says.

“It is also a good social environment for [volunteers] as well.”

Pegasus Riding for the Disabled, 119 Drake Brockman Drive, Holt. Call 6254 9190, email volunteers@pegasusact.com.au or visit pegasusact.com.au

Pegasus participant Kamea on her pony, “Taverner’s Bill”.

receiving the highest quality of care,” he says.

“Our team understands that your visit to us may be due to an injury, illness, or for supervision of an existing medical condition [so we] provide a positive atmosphere to minimise any stress you may be feeling.”

Kippax Medical Imaging director Anbu Jeremiah says that they’re a bulk-billing practice, which means they accept the relevant Medicare benefit as full payment for the service.

“Our motto is ‘not to be served unto but to serve’. We are committed to ensuring that our services are accessible and affordable,” he says.

Kippax Medical Imaging, unit 7, 76-80 Hardwick Crescent, Holt. Call 6254 0271 or visit kippaxmedicalimaging.com.au

Kippax Medical Imaging director Anbu Jeremiah.

Volunteers Needed!

We NEED more volunteers to help get participants off the waiting list and into classes.

• • • • • • • •

Horse leaders Side walkers Horse grooming Stables Fundraising, marketing & events Administration activities Gardening Farm maintenance tasks

Training is provided.

For more information, visit: pegasusact.com.au call us on: 02 6254 9190 or email: volunteers@pegasusact.com.au Commitment | Respect | Quality | Connection Riding for the Disabled ACT Inc. (Pegasus)

20 CityNews June 10-16, 2021

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“If you’ve been broken into or the whipper snipper has thrown a rock through the sliding door we can come and fix that with our 24/7 service,” she says.

“But we also do planned work like upgrading for double glazed units, installing energy-efficient glass, or putting in the new mirror in the bathroom.”

Olivia says Discount Glass also installs pet doors, which allow easy access for cats or dogs without compromising the home’s security, a particularly popular service at the moment given the new pet laws in the ACT.

“Glass can make a big difference to the house in many ways people might not at first think,” says Olivia.

“Your glass is the final layer of insulating your house so if you can do everything you can to make it energy efficient it can go a long way.

“We can install glass that helps with that, safety, and decorative purposes.”

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“Our team is like a little family in themselves,” she says.

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ALL ABOUT BELCONNEN Rustic restaurant feels like home AS soon as people walk through the door of Olive at Hawker, it feels like they’re eating at mum’s house, says restaurant co-owner Dimitri Yianoulakis.

“We’re a family owned business with a family atmosphere,” he says.

“Together we’ve been running Olive at Hawker for four years now, but we’ve had a presence in the Canberra hospitality scene for over 30 years.”

A Mediterranean cuisine with strong Greek and Italian influence, Dimitri says some of their most popular dishes include the lamb shoulder and the seafood pasta, but they’ve also got a wide variety of choices as well.

“There’s a range of slow cooked meals, pizza, pasta, seafood and we have changing specials every day,” he says.

Customer service is also a big part of the experience at Olive at

Hawker, he says.

“Mum’s always taking orders, helping with recommendations and starting families with bread and dips,” he says.

“It’s a warm space, with a light, rustic feel and one with a homely atmosphere.”

Olive at Hawker, shop 2, 78 Hawker Place, Hawker. Call 6255 2858 or visit oliveathawker.com.au

Bottle shop offers unique and local tastes PAGE Bottler provides a home in Canberra to the smaller, local and more unique breweries and distilleries, says owner Tim Rasheed.

“In our store you’ll find lots of local craft beer, lots of Australianmade wines, gins, whiskies — really the stuff you won’t find in the big chains,” he says.

“Being family-owned and operated, we try to give shelf space to the smaller producers to support them and give Canberrans different tasting experiences.”

With more than 30 years of industry experience between them, Tim says he and his brother Harry are offering Canberrans a huge range of unique beers with their “16 can subscription cube”.

“Through our online shop

Olive at Hawker welcomes you back Olive at Hawker is now run by the whole family. This boutique restaurant specialises in Mediterranean cuisine, with strong Greek and Italian influences.

Olive at Hawker welcomes you for Lunch & Dinner Tue - Sun We offer takeaway and deliveries from 5pm Tue – Sun Shop 2, 78 Hawker, Place Hawker, Act Phone 02 62552858 Email Reservations@oliveathawker.com.au Web www.oliveathawker.com.au 22 CityNews June 10-16, 2021

you choose a few styles you like, whether that’s pale ales, IPA’s, sours, red ales, brown ales, or whatever it may be,” he says.

“We then make your box, which comes with 16 unique beers monthly or bi-monthly depending on how you want it, and you’ll never get the same thing twice.

“You can also change that to be seasonal, so you can have dark beers in winter if that’s what you enjoy and then you can change it up to sours and pale ales in summer.”

And best of all, Tim says the boxes are delivered right to the customer’s door.

Salon offers sale on microblading BEAUTIFY Hair and Beauty Salon owner Nathalie Lang says it makes her feel special to make her clients feel special.

“I believe it’s not just about the final outcome for the client, it’s about how they feel during and how they feel about you,” she says.

Having operated in Belconnen for more than seven years, Nathalie says the salon has everything in beauty under one roof for both women and men: hair cutting and styling, makeup, facials and, particularly famous is their cosmetic tattooing service.

“We are currently offering 50 per cent off on eyebrow microblading,” says Nathalie.

“It’s a semi-permanent hair stroke technique that creates a natural hair direction.

“The process can be used where people have gaps in their eyebrows (perhaps due to scarring), have only half an eyebrow, would like dark or more defined eyebrows or brows that appear thicker.”

Nathalie says the feedback she’s received from clients after microblading has been amazing.

“I’ve seen it completely transform the way a client feels about themselves,” she says.

“I’m blessed that I love my work and that I get to help people feel beautiful.”

Beautify Hair and Beauty Salon, unit 5, 66-74 Josephson Street, Belconnen. Call 6162 2148 or visit beautifyhairandbeautysalon.com

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Lots of beer and a few wrinkles

INSIDE

WENDY JOHNSON

Reel world will have to wait, Roger’s on the road

By Helen

MUSA WHEN muso Roger Mason comes to the Royal Hotel in Queanbeyan soon with Steve Kilbey’s band, The Winged Heels, he’ll be lugging around his guitar, a mandolin, a cello and his trusty keyboard.

“There are not too many people who are stupid enough to haul all that gear with them,” he tells me.

“But I’ve always been interested in a great variety of music since I was a kid and I own 100 or so instruments.”

But touring with a band can be tedious, and it isn’t his main thing – he’s one of Australia’s best-known film composers.

“When Steve Kilbey approached me, I hadn’t really played with a band for around 30 years. I walked away in 1992,” Mason says.

“I once did a theatre show and I nearly died of boredom – I can’t believe how a friend of mine played in ‘CATS’ for years and years.”

Like Kilbey, Mason is loquacious, telling me: “The whole band are talkers, you can hardly shut any of us up.”

A child musical prodigy, he began playing

piano at the age of four and went on as an adult to play and record with Gary Numan, the Models, the Divinyls, Icehouse, Jenny Morris and Diesel, with songwriting credits that include Wendy Matthews’ “Token Angels”.

But after being awarded a scholarship to Robert Redford’s Sundance Institute for Film Studies in the early ‘90s, Mason’s interest in orchestration, orchestral composition and arranging led to his first film score for the Japanese war-bride film “Aya”, directed by the late Solrun Hoaas, a well-known former Canberran.

There followed a long career in film, a swag of awards and nominations in the AACTAs, AFIs and APRA awards.

His latest big score has been for the television series “Reckoning”, which premiered on the Seven Network in April after releases in the US and UK. He says the series was shot over 18 months on Sydney’s North Shore, made up to look like North California, but with special attention to details such as having people drive on the right-hand side of the road.

“Reckoning” centres on a serial killer and a cat-and-mouse game where you know who the perpetrator is from the first frame – he’s the sports teacher at the very school where the detective’s son and daughter are pupils, an intricate character play, says Mason.

“It could be done cheaper here,” he says, and from that point of view it made for a very challenging musical score.

22 - 25 JUNE

Film composer Roger Mason… “I’ve always been interested in a great variety of music since I was a kid and I own 100 or so instruments.”

“It’s kind of interesting trying to get into the mind of a serial killer using a combination of sounds on synthesisers and a variety of acoustic instruments like the dulcimer, the

balalaika or the hurdy-gurdy, but blended to sound like something else.”

Mason abhors musical cliches, but he needs a fair bit of scary music as in scenes

5 - 7 JULY

where the killer is striking his victims right in front of the viewer.

“That’s where you have to pull all the stops out and create all manners of tension,” he says, adding that it’s still important to avoid predictability, so no, he didn’t replicate the shower scene from “Psycho”.

He enjoys a love-hate relationship with Eurovision, which he used to like for its “national folk sensibility”.

Not anymore. Nowadays, he says: “I enjoy a healthy dose of schadenfreude… what is interesting is the homogenisation of music… one act from Latvia sounded very much like Beyoncé – I found that a bit sad.”

That’s exactly the sort of thing Mason tries to avoid as he cuts and mixes his authentic acoustic material to make his own work.

Thirty years in film work, much of it in Hollywood, was turned upside down by covid.

“I reconnected with Steve [Kilbey] and worked on some tracks with him, then he said we should take the album, ‘Hall of Counterfeits’, to the road,” he says.

“I was never a comfortable live player, I was too shy, but I’m enjoying it more and more.

“When I got into the band, I felt like I’ve never walked away. It felt like the ‘80s, it was really disconcerting.”

Steve Kilbey and The Winged Heels, Royal Hotel, Queanbeyan, Friday, June 18. Book at royalhotelqbn.com.au

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Adventure calls and love conquers all in this nostalgic musical journey!

A very cheeky, very clever, utterly irreverent riff on Hamlet — made for kids!

For the whole family!

An honest, intensely funny and often unconventional window Autism Spectrum.

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IN a week when seven new films began their Canberra seasons, I immediately chose two for the simplest of reasons – they featured actors of whom I am inordinately fond.

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For the third, I chose the one about food, of which I am also inordinately fond. And if readers think beyond the hoo-ha put out by studios, all three carry political messages embedded in great entertainment. Here they are. There’s hope for movies yet.

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THE screenplay for director Tate Taylor’s movie about many of the things that characterise the US is Afro-American writer Amanda Idoko’s feature debut.

Without any blare of trumpets, those two people have built a solid foundation for a wickedly clever satirical vehicle in which Allison Janney once again reminds us that a woman doesn’t have to be young, gorgeous or a media flavour-of-the-week to be hugely gifted.

Sue Buttons (Janney) is a suburban housewife whose husband works at a bank. Sue is a mousey lady, slim of body, with not a lot of eye candy to flaunt nor a great dress sense. On the day in question, she catches her husband in flagrante with bigly-built Leah (Bridget Everett). Shortly after, he collapses and dies. More angry than distressed, Sue buries him and his possessions.

From that moment, “Breaking News in Yuba County” develops into a convoluted couple of days in Sue’s life, moving at a pace just short of being too quick to follow.

It’s packed with guns, automotive events, celebrity presenters on local TV, bags full of banknotes, dodging a wanna-be mobster (Awkwafina), a relentless lady cop (Regina Hall), Sue’s half-sister (Mila Kunis) who’s a local news reporter desperate

Wanna-be mobster Mina (Awkwafina), left, with Sue Buttons (Allison Janney) in “Breaking News in Yuba County”. for a story, and her husband’s deadbeat brother (Jimmi Simpson), who all set out to uncover the truth behind the disappearance.

It’s great fun, as in-your-face satire has to be. Through it all, Sue moves with awkward determination. Allison Janney has an unshakeable spot on the top shelf of my pantheon of magnificent actresses.

At Dendy, Palace Electric and Hoyts

“Minamata” (MA) THE title of writer/director Andrew Levitas’ film is also the name of the Japanese city where from 1932 to 1968, chemical company Chisso discharged effluent containing methyl mercury from its plant, contaminating Minamata Bay and accumulating in fish that the local population ate.

The film approaches the story through a decision by the editor of “Life”, the long-ago sadly-defunct weekly pictorial magazine, to engage noted war photographer W Eugene Smith (Johnny Depp) to go to Minamata and photograph what was happening among the population, particularly the children. Smith, with his Japanese-born wife Aileen (Japanese/French actress Minami) intended to spend not more than three months there.

The film runs for 115 minutes. Of necessity, it truncates what Smith found during the three and a half years he spent there.

Smith and Aileen later co-authored a book which became the basis for the movie. The

film plays a tad fast-and-loose about why they were there in 1971, but “Life” magazine was the medium that propelled the story to public attention.

Without doubt, Johnny Depp’s portrayal of Smith is an eye-popper, the sort of portrayal that collects nominations for awards.

Which brings me to the actor playing editor Robert Hayes (Bill Nighy). He’s been around for a lot of years and won a lot of awards. I’d watch him reading a page of the Yellow Pages.

If you go to see “Minamata”, stay for the closing credits, which demonstrate that industrial pollution of the environment continues active and thriving around the globe.

At Dendy and Palace Electric

“Breaking Bread” (M) WHAT’S going on right now in the cradle of the three book-based religious faiths and Western civilisation? People are killing people in support of religious differences. People are eating.

Examining one of the two activities that simply can’t deliver their complete sensory promises no matter how they are portrayed as moving images, “Breaking Bread” illustrates what happens when people focus on their humanity rather than on religion or politicians.

On a quest to make social change through food, Dr. Nof Atamna-Ismaeel – the first Muslim Arab to win Israel’s “MasterChef” – founded the A-sham Arabic Food Festival, where pairs of Arab and Jewish chefs collaborate on exotic dishes such as kishek (a Syrian yogurt soup), and qatayef (a dessert typically served during Ramadan).

Beth Elise Hawk wrote and directed this documentary about people cooking and eating and people killing people to show how those two activities are co-existing.

You can’t taste what’s cooking on the screen.

But you can see Israeli and Muslim cooks co-operating, exchanging recipes, comparing methods, above all, being friends. Anybody got a better idea?

At Palace Electric

WATCH IT! / streaming and stuff

In the trenches, the war streams on

By Nick

OVERALL IN the weeks following Anzac Day, an interest in the stories that tell of the conflicts and courage of war surge throughout streaming platforms.

The 2015 mini-series “Gallipoli” has got a second wind on Netflix after the drama that originally aired on Channel Nine was described as a “ratings disaster”.

And good on it, the show balances a tone that’s intense yet sincere, as should be strived for with such subject matter.

On Binge is “1917”, which gives the incredibly convincing illusion of the entire two hours happening in one single camera take – no cuts.

Inspired in the audience is a feeling of walking along right there with the soldiers through the bom-

barded trenches and far-stretching battlefields of northern France. With this one, the bigger the screen that it can be watched on the better.

But one show I really want to highlight is “Anzacs”, streaming on Stan.

A 1985 series of five episodes, the quite simply titled series fits its quite simple production.

I definitely don’t mean that in a bad way – this is an earnest slice of Australian television depicting the rugged resilience of the Anzacs.

The story follows a group of young Aussies shipped off to the dangers of World War I, fighting in Gallipoli and on the Western Front.

It came off the back of Australian new-wave cinema – a time during the ‘70s and ‘80s where the industry produced some of our country’s most famous films including another war classic: “Breaker Morant” (on Amazon Prime).

However, this series is more obscure when compared to the films it stands amongst, has its own unique and emotional charm, made

even more interesting by the fact that many of the extras were actually soldiers in the Australian Army.

DISNEY Plus didn’t muck around getting 2021’s best picture winner on its platform.

Even as it was still playing in cinemas, “Nomadland” started streaming and stars Frances McDormand as a wanderer through rural America, taking in the land and the intriguing characters who inhabit it.

Hailing from China is director Chloé Zhao, the second woman to ever win the best director Oscar and the first Asian woman to ever do so, an impressive feat.

In China, the Communist Party blocked all streams of the 2021 Oscars. Mentions of Zhao or “Nomadland” were censored and no reports of the film’s victory appeared across the country’s state-run media.

Why? Because in a 2013 interview with “Filmmaker” magazine, Zhao described the country as a place where there are “lies everywhere.”

Funny that.

ON a lighter note, here’s a spinout: “Shrek” is 20 years old.

That’s right, the Dreamworks animated classic first released in 2001 now has a comfortable streaming home on Netflix.

It’s hard to imagine someone not liking “Shrek”, but a controversial article recently published in “The Guardian” let loose on the animated classic for its twentieth anniversary.

The writer goes as far as to say: “It is a terrible movie. It’s not funny.

It looks awful” and attacks the film’s “abandonment” of its fairytale premise in favour of references to other cultural mastheads such as “The Matrix” (on Amazon Prime) and for toilet humour.

Shrek’s far-reaching mishmash of ideas, references and jokes were designed to be appreciated on all different levels of age or cultural wisdom.

That’s what’s made the film not only watchable, but endlessly rewatchable.

It’s like an onion, Donkey, it has layers.

DINING / Dickson Taphouse

Lots of beer and a few wrinkles DICKSON Taphouse has been transformed (from the former Ducks Nuts) to create a vintage feel, including framed historic drawings of beer-making equipment and beer makers at work.

Vintage-style lights are hung about the place and the dusty rose-pink and emerald-green accent colours add warmth.

It’s been open for less than a month.

We picked a spot near a window with the sun streaming in, settling for lunch.

The menu features several “fusion items”, a couple of which had us wondering if there was more “confusion” than “fusion” with the flavour profiles.

With the arancini we were wrong ($11). The Italian rice balls featured fermented kimchi in the stuffing.

The flavours were great and the kimchi packed a punch. The breadcrumb coating was crunchy.

One schnitty is on the menu (parmesan and panko-crumbed for $25). There are no burgers or pizzas. Aside from snacks, there’s a line-up of pasta, a Scotch fillet ($42) and a fish ($36). The sole sweet is a Campari cake ($9).

With pasta, you pick your type, a sauce and a size (small or regular). We ordered small and were glad, since the portions are generous.

The flavours in the spaghetti with meatballs were rich and comforting. The meatballs were handmade with pork, beef and fennel and the tomato sauce dynamic. Some of my pasta was slightly overcooked ($12 small/$19 regular).

A pasta also features under the menu’s “specials”. It was high on flavour with the pork, chilli and fennel working well together ($13/$20).

ARTS IN THE CITY

Mandolin music with memories

By Helen Musa THE music brought to Australia by more than four million immigrants after World War II will feature in a CD called “Hopes, Dreams and Memories” to be launched by the Canberra Mandolin Orchestra with massed mandolins, mandolas, mandocello, guitars and basses playing folk, popular and light classical music from more than nine countries. John Shortis and Moya Simpson’s Worldly Goods Choir and Greek-Australian Theodora Volti will also perform. Hughes Baptist Church, 2pm-4pm, Saturday, June 19. Tickets from eventbrite.com.au or at the door.

Kimchi arancini… the flavours were great and the kimchi packed a punch.

Radicchio salad… pretty and vibrant looking.

Photos: Wendy Johnson

We shared a radicchio, radish and orange salad (only $8) which was pretty and vibrant looking.

We longed for a perky vinaigrette to make the dish dance a little more.

It’s no surprise there’s loads of beer on tap.

The Dickson Taphouse’s wine list is a bit sparse (especially whites, which feature one riesling, a sauv blanc, chardonnay and moscato). The good news is all wines can be ordered by the glass and bottle.

Some systems need smartening up (a staff member agreed the Taphouse is working on this).

When we ordered, we weren’t told that all dishes would come out at once (even dessert) when the

buzzer buzzed. There’s no warning on the menu that they would, and we weren’t asked if we wanted dishes staggered. We assumed, incorrectly, that the starter would start our meal and mains would follow.

In the end, our pasta sat sadly waiting for attention and getting cold while we ate the arancini.

Other refinements include providing serving cutlery for salads and plates for shared dishes. With these types of matters resolved, Dickson Taphouse’s systems will be slick and smooth.

“THE Apprentease” is an Australia-wide competition coming to Canberra for the first time. Burlesque performer and teacher, Jazida (Rachel Reid) is behind the venture and aims to showcase new talent and semi-established solo artists competing for the Burlesque Excellence Award, mentorships and sponsored prizes. At Main Hall, Ainslie Arts Centre, Braddon, 8pm-11pm, June 19. Book via eventbrite.com.au MEANTIME, the Australian Burlesque Museum, dedicated to the research, collection and celebration of the artform in Australian history, will celebrate its incorporation and centralisation in Canberra with a focal weekend at Flazèda Hub, Unit 4, 68 Emu Bank, Belconnen until June 13. Information at australianburlesque.org CANBERRA Symphony Orchestra explores the elements of earth, wind and fire in a matinee program featuring the world premiere of “CO2 and the Ice Core” by Kim Cunio, Head of the ANU School of Music, Vaughan Williams’ “The Lark Ascending” and Haydn’s Symphony No. 59 in A major, “Fire.” Llewellyn Hall 2pm, Saturday, June 19, bookings at cso.org.au/classic-afternoon or 6262 6772.

SPANISH-born flamenco guitarist Paco Lara presents an evening of Spanish guitar, an eclectic fusion of flamenco, guitar standards, joined by guest flamenco dancer Deya Miranda Giner. The Q, Queanbeyan, Saturday, June 19, book at theq.net.au

THEATRE / The Street

Award affirms Stacey’s decade

By Helen Musa

WHEN Caroline Stacey, CEO and artistic director of The Street Theatre, got a call from Andrew Myer recently, she thought he was about to ask her to be on a committee.

When he told her The Street Theatre had won a $25,000 Sidney Myer Performing Arts Award, she was speechless.

“I’m rarely speechless, but I was utterly surprised,” Stacey says, praising the decision of the foundation to take in all states and territories this time round.

“It’s one of the most prestigious awards there is and it feels like a complete affirmation of what we’ve been doing for the last decade… we have held fast to our passion for artists and the commissioning, developing and producing of Australian performance works that talk about the world we experience now.”

She hasn’t made any decision yet about how to use the $25,000, except it will go to a specific project or award, saying, “it’s incredibly important that it be impactful”.

It’s a far cry from the situation when Stacey first took up her job at The Street in 2007.

Built out of the Canberra Casino premium with an idealistic vision

Caroline Stacey. of becoming a hub of Canberra professional theatre, it had seen audiences dwindle to as low as 25 people – I was there – and had become a space for hire for student groups, amateur societies and the odd professional practitioner blessed with a project grant. But, as she says, “it had no cumulative impact”.

“It was clear when I arrived that the old approach had run its course, that there was no audience attached to it, the work was siloed – The Street was underperforming,” Stacey says.

Stacey got on the phone to the then chief (and arts) minister Jon Stanhope’s office and made an appointment to discuss how the theatre could contribute.

“It was confidence-building for

me to talk to someone in that role who understood the difficulties,” she says.

Back at the desk, Stacey made herself incredibly unpopular, especially with amateur groups, by closing the theatre to hiring by all comers.

“My job was to brand The Street, to let Canberra know what we did,” she says.

It took a lot of hard work, over two years, to find out.

The Hive dramaturgical project started in the first two years but the “First Seen” program, where plays are shown to an in-camera audience, took longer.

“The decision was to make work that talks to the ‘now’ and to a whole range of outlooks and experiences, the silences in our country, and to meet the need of the professional and independent sector to be lifted up, profiled, grown, expanded, enriched and deepened, within the nation’s political heart,” she says.

“Now we are a theatre company and a meeting place for people across society.

“We want people to be with us in our space – buying a ticket would be a good start.”

The Street’s programs are at thestreeet.org.au and the Screencraft vimeo of high points prepared for for the Myer Awards, is at vimeo.com/ 534371825 CityNews June 10-16, 2021 25

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David Austin “Bathsheba”... a real stunner of a climbing rose with apricot-yellow buds opening to cupped, many petalled rosettes.

David Austin “Roald Dahl”... a beautiful shade of apricot, with soft, orange-red buds.

Legacy lives on in new blooms ROSE-planting time has arrived and garden centres are overflowing with different varieties.

It’s exciting and at the top of my list will be the new David Austin roses.

It was a great loss to the rose-breeding world when David Austin died in 2018 at age 92.

He broke the mould of rose breeding many years ago, when he crossed old-fashioned roses with modern varieties. An advantage of oldfashioned or heritage roses (bred before 1926), was their magnificent fragrance. However they didn’t last long on the bush, whereas modern roses, which generally had little fragrance, stayed in flower for long periods.

There was only one thing for it and David Austin found the secret: intensive breeding. This provided roses that had both a long flowering period and magnificent fragrance. Now known worldwide as English roses, these took the rose world by storm.

David Austin’s legacy lives on with his son, also David. This year he’s released two new varieties in Australia. It was hoped these would have been shown at the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show, but unfortunately due to covid, this event did not take place. However, they will be coming into stock at garden centres.

Firstly for the trial period from 2018 to 2020, David Austin “Roald Dahl” was presented with a silver medal and the prestigious Irwin Award for the most pest and disease-resistant rose in the three-year trial. It’s a beautiful shade of apricot,

with soft, orange-red buds. The blooms are quite stunning, with a medium tea fragrance. It’s a compact rose, growing to around one-metre high and wide.

The second new rose that came out with excellent trial results was David Austin “Bathsheba”, a real stunner of a climbing rose with apricotyellow buds opening to cupped, many petalled rosettes with a soft, myrrh fragrance.

When roses first arrive here, they’re planted at the National Rose Trial Garden of Australia, in the Adelaide Botanic Gardens. This is regarded around the world as a leading rose trial garden.

All new rose introductions are assessed for their suitability for growing here for a period of three years, in addition to assessment for pest and disease resistance by an expert panel of rosarians.

DAVID Austin’s daughter Claire specialises in bearded iris. Her nursery in Shropshire, in the west of England, has possibly one of the largest collections of these stunning plants in Britain.

Claire’s introduction to irises coincided with her father’s expansion of his rose breeding. He had a patch of ground taken up with a special bearded iris collection and needed the space for more roses. Claire took over the collection and went on to win a gold medal at the Chelsea Flower Show.

Her book, “Irises: A Gardener’s Encyclopedia”, is

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considered the bible on these majestic flowers.

Claire brings in different varieties for breeding from America and interestingly, from Australia.

Maybe it has something to do with being married to an Australian horticulturist. Claire now has more than 600 varieties, with the task of lifting and dividing more than 50,000 tubers every year.

I only wish she was in Australia.

Some tips for growing iris in Canberra: • Divide every three years to retain vigour.

• Rhizomes can be lifted six weeks after flowering.

• Replant close to the surface to bake in summer heat, to encourage flowering.

• Bearded iris are native to the Mediterranean region and revel in the heat; that’s why they do so well here.

THERE’S no stopping the Austin family and I have been fortunate enough to visit the awardwinning rose nursery in England and discuss with them their numerous horticultural adventures.

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Your week in the stars

General knowledge crossword No. 785

By Joanne Madeline Moore

June 14-20, 2021

ARIES (Mar 21 – Apr 20)

CHARTERED ACCOUNTANT

There could be misunderstandings involving friends, finances or social media, as Mercury is retrograde until June 22. Saturn squares Uranus on Monday and Tuesday, which could also affect your bank balance or your peer group. Despite the disruptions, keep your hopes, dreams and wishes alive! Your motto for the week is from birthday great, writer Salman Rushdie: “We all dream things into being… So things are often passing from the imagined realm into the real world.”

PITFALLS OF MAKING CHARITY DONATIONS

TAURUS (Apr 21 – May 21)

Are you tired of being a paddock-bound Bull? This week the planets rev up your usually tentative Taurean nature and you’ll feel more restless than usual. So it’s time to break free from boring boundaries (especially at work) and start exploring the world around you (in creative and covid-safe ways). Venture beyond your comfort zone. However – with Mercury reversing through your money zone until June 22 – be extra careful and thorough when it comes to financial matters.

GEMINI (May 22 – June 21)

A much-cherished goal or dream has temporarily been put on hold. With Uranus, Saturn and retrograde Mercury all stirring up your international wanderlust zone, it will be a while before you can escape on a globe-trotting adventure again. So make sure you are patient and stay covid safe! Look for exciting travel options in your own neck-of-the-woods. And don’t plan any major social events or local getaways until after June 22, when your ruler Mercury finally moves forwards.

CANCER (June 22 – July 23)

Saturn squares Uranus, and Mercury is reversing through your self-sabotage zone so there’s a tendency to be negative and self-critical. Despite the challenges, don’t give up … be adventurous and keep going! Your motto for the week is from actress (and birthday great) Nicole Kidman, “Life has got all those twists and turns.

You’ve got to hold on tight and off you go.” Channel your energy into meditation, contemplation, relaxation, yoga, journal writing and being kind to yourself.

LEO (July 24 – Aug 23)

Restless Lions – this week there’s the disruptive Saturn/Uranus square, where the status quo is questioned and rigid patterns are broken down. Where do you need to make serious changes in your life? Try to get the balance right between fulfilling responsibilities to other people (especially at home and work) and personal freedom. With mighty Mars charging through your sign, the more proactive you are the better. But don’t pounce until you have a well thought out plan.

VIRGO (Aug 24 – Sept 23)

Mercury (your patron planet) is currently reversing through your career zone. So it’s not a good time to initiate a professional project, apply for a promotion or look for a new job. Instead, wait until after Mercury goes direct on June 22. When it comes to a problem with a work colleague or a close friend, avoid being impatient.

There are no quick fixes at the moment. It’s a case of one step forwards and two steps backwards but if you are persistent, you’ll eventually make progress.

Down

1 Which Tennessee school teacher was prosecuted in 1925 for teaching Darwin’s theory, John T ...? (6) 8 What do we call certain university officials charged with various duties? (8) 9 Name a renowned US film actor, Elizabeth ... (6) 10 Name another term for a native. (8) 11 Which elementary particle is present in every atomic nucleus? (6) 13 What do we call a person aged between thirteen and nineteen? (8) 16 Which English king was known as “the Unready”?

(8) 19 Name the compounds that usually contain two elements only, one of which is oxygen? (6) 22 Which term applies to one’s female offspring? (8) 24 Which trousers usually do not extend below the knee? (6) 25 What is a bitter and violent denunciation? (8) 26 Which tripods are used for supporting blackboards, or the like? (6)

2 Which term designates the presiding officer? (5) 3 Who controls an aeroplane? (5) 4 What do we call a person who runs a race at full speed, especially for a short distance? (8) 5 A common myth wrongfully suggests that George Washington’s dentures were made of what? (4) 6 What is a mark of disgrace called? (6) 7 Which alloy consists essentially of copper and tin?

(6) 12 What is a profane expression, or a curse? (4) 14 Name one to whom a negotiable document is designated. (8) 15 Which precious yellow metal has the symbol Au? (4) 17 Which term describes something dreadful? (6) 18 Which fraction is twelve and a half per cent? (6) 20 What do we call fetters and chains? (5) 21 To praise highly, or laud, is to do what? (5) 23 What is a musical composition for three voices (4)

LIBRA (Sept 24 – Oct 23)

When it comes to sport, children, romance, friendship, creativity, hobbies and beliefs, be proactive and shake things up. If you sit on the fence and let things slide, then change will come in a more radical form that’s harder to manage. And is it time to review and refresh your peer group list, and add some exciting new faces? With Mercury still retrograde (until June 22) be extra careful when you’re walking, cycling and driving, plus double-check all travel arrangements.

Solution next edition

Across

FREE SUDOKU EVERY DAY AT citynews.com.au

Sudoku medium No. 293

SCORPIO (Oct 24 – Nov 22)

Money matters look confusing, as Mercury reverses through your joint finances zone. And is a family matter or a relationship issue weighing you down? Strive to get the balance right between fulfilling your responsibilities to other people and creating change for yourself. Uranus demands that you let go of some old habits, routines and beliefs that are no longer serving you. Then there will be room for new experiences, opportunities and people to come into your world.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov 23 – Dec 21)

Be extra careful how you give and receive information (especially in close relationships) as Mercury is still reversing through your partnership zone. If you have doubts or concerns, then don’t hesitate to double-check. Plus avoid making major purchases, starting joint ventures or signing important contracts until after June 22.

Be patient and focus your attention on revising, researching or reworking current projects. When it comes to a work matter or a health issue, expect the unexpected!

If you have any questions about donations or any other type of tax deduction, ask the friendly team at Gail Freeman & Co on 6295 2844.

CAPRICORN (Dec 22 – Jan 20)

Expect some frustrations and delays, as retrograde Mercury confuses communication and slows things down. Try not to over-react. There will always be projects to complete and mountains to climb. But perhaps a close friend or a work colleague needs your attention and affection right here and right now? Saturn (the planet of structure) squares Uranus (the planet of improvisation). So do your best to get the ratio right between being a gung-ho Goat and a cautious Capricorn.

Disclaimer This column contains general advice, please do not rely on it. If you require specific advice on this topic please contact Gail Freeman or your professional adviser.

Authorised Representative of Lifespan Financial Planning Pty Ltd AFS Lic No. 229892.

02 6295 2844

AQUARIUS (Jan 21 – Feb 19)

Copyright Joanne Madeline Moore 2021

Solutions – June 3 edition Sudoku hard No. 292

PISCES (Feb 20 – Mar 20)

Prepare for some drama as Saturn, Uranus and retrograde Mercury stir up issues with a relative or friend. Use your diplomatic talents to find practical solutions to current problems. The stars encourage ambitious plans and you’re keen to impress others, but don’t promise more than you can realistically deliver. The more disorganised you are, the more difficult the week will be. Contributing your talent and hard work to a community project will help to balance the karmic ledger.

Solution next edition

Crossword No. 784

With Mercury still retrograde (and Saturn squaring Uranus) prepare for a few frustrating problems to head your way. Making a snap decision seems like a good idea but it could backfire. You also need to slow down and think twice before you blurt out something controversial that you later regret. Be clever and uncharacteristically cautious, as you consider situations carefully before you respond. You’re hungry for change but don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater!

Christie plans to make payments to charities she supports before June 30, but wants to be sure the donations are tax deductible.

I told her that the main criteria for receiving a tax deduction was that the amount must be made to a Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR), it must be $2 or more and it must be a gift.

"If you make a gift to a crowd-funding platform that platform must be registered as a DGR," I said.

"By way of example, you make a payment of $50 through GoFundMe which is a crowdfunding platform.

"You need to check whether GoFundMe is listed as a DGR in Australia. You do this by going online to the Australian Business Register at abr.business.gov.au/ type in GoFundMe and check its DGR status.

"The site indicates that it is not registered as a DGR so you cannot claim a payment made to GoFundMe as a donation.

"This contrasts with PayPal, which shows the Paypal Giving Fund is registered as a DGR so the donation made through PayPal is tax deductible.”

I told her that one of the other potential areas for confusion was overseas donations.

"I often see clients who have made substantial donations to an overseas charity and have not checked that the organisation is registered as a DGR and then discover, sadly, that the donation cannot be claimed," I said.

"It's always a good idea if you are making a donation to an overseas charity to check that it is registered as a DGR in Australia. I recently saw a client who had made a donation to a recognised charity in the UK on the death of a family member, but the gift was not deductible in Australia and the client was very surprised as the charity is known here.”

Christie said: “I hadn't realised the issue with overseas donations.

I was thinking of sending some funds overseas, so now I will look carefully at whether it is going to be tax deductible.”

I told her that I'd noticed this year that a lot of people had made donations as gifts in the name of the donee and given the donee a receipt for that donation.

"It is important that only the person whose name is on the receipt makes the claim," I said.

"Again, I have seen clients with very low income making substantial donations in their name and expecting that their higher-income partner can claim the donation. This is not correct.

"Lastly, buying gifts or raffle tickets from a charity is not a donation. The reason for this being that you receive a benefit for your money.

"And because it is so close to the end of the financial year, I need to remind you that any deductible superannuation contributions you wish to make this year must be made before June 30.

"Most public funds will have an earlier cut-off date, often as early as June 20, so you need to take action on this now. If you make the payment directly to your SMSF, then June 30 will apply.”

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