CityNews 210909

SOIL GETS A GOOD START AHEAD OF SPRING’S GROWING SEASON Meet our new gardening writer JACKIE WARBURTON

SEPTEMBER 9, 2021

Well written, well read

Señor Wiggle

Mental health demand rises as funding is sliced JON STANHOPE When the police go to the dogs

HELEN MUSA discovers the Latino world’s ‘Red Wiggle’ is Canberra’s Frank Madrid!

NICHOLE OVERALL Greens turn backs on biodiversity

PAUL COSTIGAN Integrity fades in political life

MICHAEL MOORE

2 PAGES OF LETTERS

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Sophie has post graduate qualifications in hydrotherapy, and as a non-sports centred Exercise Physiologist-helps clients who struggle with engaging in exercise due to a lack of sports participation. Sophies goal is to improve clients health via our hydrotherapy program, gym instruction and in-home visits.

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NEWS

Neil’s superb plan to save endangered parrots

By Belinda

STRAHORN FROM nine metres up an old eucalyptus on a property near Cootamundra, Neil Hermes attaches a nest box to the hollow of a tree.

The Canberra ornithologist – someone who specialises in the study of birds – is assembling artificial homes for the vulnerable superb parrot fighting extinction.

“Superb parrots are the most exquisite birds,” Neil says.

“They fly like darts in the air and have a fabulous call. But they are highly endangered and they are very picky about the hollows they nest in.”

The superb parrot, found in the Murrumbidgee and Riverina regions and parts of the ACT, nests in large hollows of old trees.

Tree hollows can take more than 100 years to form, and tree clearing and development has taken a toll on the bird’s habitat.

But Neil hopes his specificallydesigned wooden nest boxes will tilt the odds in favour of this critically endangered species.

“There’s less than 10,000 superb parrots in the wild and we will lose

INDEX

The superb parrot… “They are the most exquisite birds,” says Neil Hermes.

Neil Hermes, right, and his brother Ashley atop a cherry picker from which they are installing nest boxes near Cootamundra.

them very quickly unless something is done,” Neil says.

“These boxes may be part of the answer to increasing the numbers of these birds.”

Pairs of superb parrots can nest in the same hollow for many years, Neil says, but if their nest tree is cut down, they find it difficult to locate and adapt to a new home.

Neil’s nest boxes, made from wood and weighing about 20 kilograms each, simulate the kind of hollow the parrots are used to.

“The boxes are not a long-term solution but they are a stop gap as we start

to plant younger trees to replace the older trees,” Neil says.

Neil has teamed up with his brother Ashley to trial the effectiveness of the nest-box design and using a cherry picker, the brothers have attached 50 nest boxes – up to nine metres high – to trees on Ashley’s Bethungra property.

“One of the challenges is getting the nest boxes high enough into the trees,” Neil says.

For the design of the nest boxes, Neil drew on research indicating that “choosy” superb parrots like only certain eucalypts, such as hollows in large tree limbs that have deep

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LEARNING IN LOCKDOWN

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chambers, wide entrances and enough space on the floor for nesting.

“We have used research by Canberra scientist Dr Laura Rayner from ANU to give us clues as to what might trigger the parrots to use nest boxes,” Neil explained.

“Dr Rayner discovered that the parrots are very fussy about where they choose to raise their young. Other species of parrots are very catholic in their tastes, but the superb parrot is very picky.”

Although nest boxes have been tried in the past, Neil – who’s been studying the superb parrot for many years – is

hoping his design will make a big difference.

“One thing we are trialling is the height and that’s why we are putting them so high up in the trees,” Neil says.

“We have also experimented with the thickness of the wood, the dimension of the boxes and we are locating them near existing super parrot nests.”

If Neil’s trial is successful, he hopes the nest boxes will be used in other areas where the superb parrot lives, such as Canberra.

Although not a native to the nation’s capital, growing populations of the superb parrot have made the ACT home in recent years.

“There’s a small population of them in Gungahlin and a flock regularly feeds in trees in the AIS car park,” Neil says.

“In recent years small flocks have also been spotted south of Lake Burley Griffin. I now get them in my backyard in Woden and people see them in Tuggeranong, so they are expanding back into Canberra.”

Neil has high hopes for his trial and with the breeding season underway, he remains optimistic the nest boxes will boost population numbers.

“These birds are beautiful and fascinating and an integral part of our natural landscape,” Neil says.

“We may not be successful in our trial but we have to try something, otherwise we will lose them.”

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SEVEN DAYS

Tired of making out on the telephone, anyone? ere I am again in this mean old town H And you’re so far away from me And where are you when the sun goes down?

You’re so far away from me

dose of dorin

THIS week’s ear-worm – “So Far Away” – came compliments of last week’s two-more-weeks (at least) edict.

I was whimsically trying to think of good lockdown anthems (“Stuck in the Middle” by Stealers Wheel tied with Vera Lynn’s “We’ll Meet Again” for second) and came up with the Dire Straits track from its classic album “Brothers in Arms”.

Given it’s number one in my head this week, there was a shock in discovering the song only made number 22 on the Australian charts in 1985. Weirdly, the Norwegians got it to number 4; maybe they saw this pandemic coming!

IT’S probably too early to tell if September 17 is it, but I was having a conversation with an eminently sensible person who has an

Gordon Worrall, of Torrens, loves this cartoon by Paul Dorin that we published on (the new-look) citynews.com.au. Gordon wrote: “What a fine cartoonist! His latest invites an obvious response – the little girl will grow up to be a politician.” arithmetically gifted mate who was able to convolute the Chief Minister’s (I thought positive) mention of the covid “reproduction number” being below the figure 1 into a sign that we won’t be sitting, drinking cappuccinos in Caphs any time soon.

It was a thought that coalesced in a subse-

quent press conference when the headminister said the ACT would only gradually ease restrictions as the vaccination rate increases.

Dangling the carrot of a “great Christmas with family and friends”, Andrew Barr said: “The next few months, while we fully vaccinate hundreds of thousands of Canberrans, are going to be difficult.”

And no breath holding for freedom day at 70 per cent vaccinations. “It’s not safe. But does allow some relaxation of restrictions.”

“HOW come women can’t get a mammo-

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gram, but we can go and see a chiropractor?” wonders one of my lady snouts.

“I just realised this when my chiropractor called to confirm my appointment. I was shocked to hear that they could still see patients but women can’t go to a breast screen appointment.

“Seems wrong to me, given that even a month’s delay of a breast screen could be the difference between treatable cancer and cancer that has spread into lymph nodes and is a lot harder to treat. Life and death, really.”

She’s right about BreastScreen ACT. They say they’re not making any future appointments at this time but that “all clients who have had a mammogram recently will have, if required, further assessment completed”.

Everyone else will have to wait or see their GP. THERE’S nothing that gets letter-to-editor writers into a lather more than when the grass grows too long in spring.

Steeling himself, so to speak, City Services Minister Chris Steel said it’s going to be slow mowing until the lockdown lifts as his directorate is obliged, thanks to covid, to take a staged approach to ramping up operations as more mowers return to work.

For now irrigated parks and sportsgrounds, which are getting extra traffic as locked down Canberrans exercise, will be an initial focus for mowing crews, as are roadside intersections.

“We ask for the community’s understanding and patience as our crews work to mow priority areas across the city while also complying with current health directions,”

the minister almost simpered.

But it won’t stop the letters…

NOTHING says spring like a Christmas plum pudding! “Surely we could wait a little longer for this,” sniffed my snout Paul Costigan.

LET’S finish with a warm glow. The other day “lovely listener” Sue won a $100 voucher on 2CC’s breakfast show to spend at The Butcher Shop (there’s actually five of them).

Sue asked that her voucher be donated to Garry Malhotra, the driving force behind Ken Behrens Helping Hands, which is a group of volunteers rustling up 7000 meals a day to feed needy people in the ACT and surrounds.

Nice, but it gets better: Ian Turner, a The Butcher Shop owner, heard about Sue’s donation and upped the donation to 100 kilograms of chicken thighs and beef mince.

That’s about $5000 worth of meat.

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YESTERDAYS / police dogs

Police go to the dogs when crime needs a nose

By Nichole

OVERALL AT the end of August, an alleged car-stealing, home-breaking duo were brought to heel by two ACT police dogs.

It’s not the first time such canines have earned local attention.

“Senior Constable Blue Dog 342” was your typical Australian Blue Heeler and from the late ‘70s became something of a Canberra celebrity.

Wandering into the Water Police HQ on the southern shore of Lake Burley Griffin, Blue Dog was adopted as mascot – even sporting a peaked cap – though not making the grade as a trained recruit.

It was 1983 before two-yearold German Shepherd, Senior Constable “Kaiser”, became the ACT’s first official badgeholder of this nature (and, yes, they are issued with ID).

Primary responsibilities involved working with the “Bomb Data Centre” – archival photos revealing duties includ-

A member of the AFP’s National K9 Centre… 14-month-old puppies are set on the path to learn to “detect drugs, money, firearms, and explosives”. ing scoping out the National Tally Room.

The NSW Police had established the first Australian “K9 Squad” for “searches, rescues and apprehending offenders” in 1932.

However, despite numerous successes, it was disbanded in 1954, not re-instigated until 1979.

Fast-forward to 1992 and in a stoush between two ACT politicians on public perception around the use of detection dogs and their effectiveness, it was suggested “police dogs had

been used rarely in Canberra”.

On the contrary, over almost a decade, the local “Dog Squad” – apparently a name also given to the AFP’s surveillance unit in the mid-1980s – received numerous mentions.

Sniffing out drugs at music festivals, hunting down car thieves in Stromlo Forest, searching for missing people – including a 46-year-old ANU physicist in 1989, tragically found drowned in the lake – and trying to track a balaclava-clad attacker who broke into a young

girl’s Kambah bedroom in 1990.

The following year, the squad was praised for searching out two suspected armed robbers in bushland near Belconnen.

Apparently, such an on-hand resource would have been a welcome addition even earlier.

In September 1962, “Australia’s top tracking dog, Dawn”, of the Commonwealth Police Tracking Station in SA, was flown into the ACT to assist with the search for a missing boy.

The seven-year-old German Shepherd had earned a widespread reputation in 1959 for helping track down Long Bay jail escapee and murderer Kevin Simmonds. On the run for 37 days, Simmonds “became an object of fascination during his weeks of freedom”.

Eight-year-old Nicky Summers had wandered off “in rugged country at the headwaters of Gudgenby River, 48 kilometres south-west of Canberra”, considered “some of the toughest in Australia”.

After two nights in “nearfreezing temperatures” and having covered more than 11 kilometres, the blonde-haired, worn-out little wanderer was successfully located.

At the RAAF Base, Fair-

bairn, trained patrol dogs had been enlisted as military members since at least 1963.

Complete with recorded names and service numbers, one of the early intakes for Canberra was PD – Police Dog – 379 Noro.

Attached to the “Security Guard Unit”, a June 27, 1968, “Canberra Times” article confirmed their primary role: “They guard RAAF stations by night”.

They could, though, also be employed when it came to local crimes. One example was the 1977 attempted murder of the Indian military attache to Australia, Col. Iqbal Singh.

Subjected to deep stab wounds, the diplomat fought off the attacker, who made his getaway. “Two RAAF tracker dogs were brought to the scene” and given the scent from a duffle bag left behind – though “unable to locate any trackable leads”.

It was November 19, 1993, when the first graduates emerged from a newly established ACT dog training complex.

Come 2007, a National K9 Centre opened at Majura. As the AFP’s key training facility in this regard, 14-month-old puppies are set on the path to

learn to “detect drugs, money, firearms, and explosives”.

General Purpose – GP – dogs are also used in searching for offenders and missing persons, tracking from last known locations and uncovering evidence.

Most recently, “technology detection dogs” are specifically trained to sniff out the likes of USBs and SIM cards.

While more widely known, highly trained Human Remains Detection, or cadaver dogs, are currently only formally attached to the NSW Police and since 2006, the Queensland Police.

Back in the days of Senior Constables Kaiser and Blue Dog, it seems the former proved a little too toothy with its fellow officers to continue in its duties (well, it’s stressful work).

Blue Dog, though, remained on guard until the end, suspicious of anyone not in uniform and, while keen on a boat ride, harbouring a “dislike of police diving wetsuits”.

The last shift ended on December 9, 1983. The plucky Heeler’s final place of rest was on the waterfront close by the Water Police flagpole.

For more on Nichole’s work, anoverallview.wixsite.com/blog.

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CANBERRA MATTERS / the lighter-shade-of-pale-Greens

Compromised Greens turn backs on biodiversity THERE’S a mature tree in Dickson that the bureaucracy is to remove despite all manner of facts that say it should stay.

The fate of this tree represents what is wrong with the workings of the Labor/Greens coalition government. This government does not get the importance of biodiversity in urban environments.

When the IPCC report on climate change was released in August, there was hope that, with immediate actions, some mitigation of disastrous change was possible. There are no longer any doubts about when actions are required. Yesterday was a good time!

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the UN body for assessing the science related to climate change.

Have there been any signs that the ACT government immediately ratcheted up the emphasis to put climate first as the basis for actions large and small?

Has a subsequent announcement reflected a higher priority being placed on the health of the planet and on the well-being of everyone reading this and our future generations? Sadly, it has been business as usual. A big fail.

The ACT Greens have spent a lot of time since the 2020 elections boasting about the wonders of their Parliamentary Compromise Agreement – officially, the Parliamentary &

The ACT Greens have been part of the ruling coalition government for a decade or more, yet trees are coming down, suburbs are redeveloped resulting in less shrubbery and fewer birds.

Governing Agreement.

This document sets out a lot of what a government would be expected to do with the addition of some worthy aspirations to make it sound meaningful. It isn’t.

Biodiversity is mentioned once in their agreement – as part of Natural Environment (should be part of Planning). Line 7.3 states: “Create a separate biodiversity offsets management fund”. Biodiversity offsets are recognised worldwide as being licences to reduce biodiversity. But never fear, there are many words about creating well-paid jobs for the ACT Greens. The priorities are obvious.

The ACT Greens have been part of the ruling coalition government for a decade or more, yet trees are coming down, suburbs are redeveloped resulting in less shrubbery and fewer birds while new suburbs are never going to become rich biodiverse urban forests.

Corflute election promises… “real climate action”.

Having distractions such as “Demonstration Housing” proves nothing that is not already well documented and does almost zero in addressing the climate crisis. Funding groups to have in-house talks about how to plan to think about the wonders of such concepts as “active travel”, signals more superficial stuff by this government.

Walking around major supermarkets, you will hear how they are committed to dealing with climate change and sustainability. Corporate supermarkets sound more committed to dealing with issues than the party that went to the 2020 elections with the naff slogan – “Building A Better Normal”. The ACT Greens then signed up to a compromising agreement that minimises commitments

Photo: Paul Costigan

made during the elections.

When you realise that the birds are disappearing, the tree cover is being mulched daily and the complexities of biodiversity are being offset (think West Basin), we are supposed to feel better because there is a Parliamentary Compromise Agreement in place.

Do the ACT Greens’ members believe the city is doing well on biodiversity?

That tree in Dickson is on the edge of a cleared Mr Fluffy block. Neighbours had fought for and obtained an agreement that the tree should stay.

Somehow, in the course of a couple of months, the decision was reversed by

another section of the bureaucracy.

The tree is to be removed. It is a mature tree that needs to be assessed as part of complexities of the local biodiversity, not as a stand-alone nuisance for a developer.

Biodiversity continues to be ignored by the Planning Directorate for redevelopments in established suburbs.

The city is reducing its biodiversity at a time when it is clear that caring for the planet’s biodiversity assists in dealing with the impact of changes.

Sadly, the ACT Greens have become a lighter shade of pale green. Their compromising agreement with ACT Labor needs to be shredded immediately (action one). Forget about the well-paid jobs and benefits. Read the latest IPCC report (action two) and do something real about biodiversity and related issues (action three).

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

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POLITICS

Integrity is fading as a key part of political life A SCATHING internal review on the performance of the WA Liberals has key lessons for all political parties across Australia.

Undemocratic and unfair selection processes along with failure to maintain key values was just the starting point for the internal report.

Branch stacking has always been a fundamental concern for all political parties. As the membership of parties has reduced, the temptation to stack has increased. For those who have a particular philosophy to push, recruiting like-minded members has been a tried and true technique.

There is a thin line between this style of recruiting and branch stacking.

However, the WA Liberals went to a whole new level. The review, which has been widely reported in the media, painted a picture of party members, including elected members of parliament, as “unethical and underhand”. The party, as a whole, has been affected by a “corruption of the essential mechanisms that guide and are intended to preserve the integrity of the party”.

The WA Liberals were severely punished in the most recent state election with just two members elected to the lower house of the parliament.

Fingers were pointed at the former leader, Zak Kirkup. However, it was

Powerbrokers within parties, whether elected or not, have a particular responsibility to ensure high ethical standards...

And yet, despite promises at successive federal elections, there is still no integrity and crime commission. also recognised that he was elected to the position just before the election in “a desperate and ill-advised move”.

The rot had set in well before this time.

The recent election in the US shows just how vulnerable democracies are to inappropriate behaviour. High ideals are set out in the inaugural speeches of almost all members of parliament. However, what this internal review reveals is just how often such ideals are undermined by the actions of elected people and the actions of political party officials.

Within the WA Liberal Party there was a group referring to itself as “the clan”. This group operated through the social media platform Whatsapp and were proud of the fact that they could legally manipulate branches to push their view through stacking.

Even more disturbing in the report

Former Finance Minister Mathias Cormann… leaked text messages pointing the finger at key powerbrokers. are the leaked text messages pointing the finger at key powerbrokers including former federal Finance Minister Mathias Cormann along with serving members of the Legislative Council, Peter Collier and Nick Goiran. The highest ethical behaviour is what constituents should expect from their elected members.

Structural changes to the culture and operations of the party were suggested as fundamental. These included preselection and training processes along with funding, party

membership and equal opportunity.

An “essential” factor, according to the review, was to increase the participation of women. Credit goes to the WA Liberals in releasing this warts-andall review, indicating the intention to take reform seriously.

Annabel Crabb’s recent series on the ABC “Ms Represented” provided an in-depth insight into the challenges that women have faced in parliament and in political parties.

Labor and the Greens seem to have largely found ways to resolve this issue. However, the Liberal Party, by refusing quotas and insisting on the “best person for the job” have fallen way behind. When men decide who is the “best person for the job” they just might frame things differently than a woman!

The ACT is an exception with a woman leading the parliamentary party and five women of the nine elected Liberal MLAs. In fact, 14 of the 25 members of the ACT Legislative Assembly are women, with five as ministers.

Powerbrokers within parties, whether elected or not, have a particular responsibility to ensure high ethical standards. The failure

of the WA Liberals has been revealed in the report, but they are not alone.

This report has federal ramifications.

And yet, despite promises at successive federal elections, there is still no integrity and crime commission.

Integrity is such a key element of political life that it is difficult to understand why members of parliament have not jumped at the opportunity to establish such a body that will ensure their behaviour and operations are above board.

A federal integrity and crime commission would play a part in reinforcing for the public that members of parliament are keen to act democratically, ethically and with the public interest as their priority.

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

Professor with a sharp eye on people in the past

By Kathryn

VUKOVLJAK FROM uncovering Roman “treasure” as a young man, emeritus professor Dr Peter Bellwood went on to dedicate his life’s work to archaeology.

He’s been awarded the 2021 International Cosmos Prize in recognition of his work, putting him among previous winners including Dr Richard Dawkins, Sir David Attenborough and Dr Jane Goodall, but recalls the time he “found buried treasure” while working for the Leicester Museum in 1962.

“It was when they were developing an area in Leicester called St Nicholas Circle, part of the Roman city,” he says.

“I was digging away in a drain and I found this gold ring. I’ll always remember it because what staggered me was, this gold ring came out of a muddy-looking drain, probably from the first or second century AD, and it was still shining. There was no tarnish on it.

“It’s with the Leicester Museum now – probably in a box in the cupboard!”

Covid restrictions mean that Prof Bellwood, based at the ANU and a fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities (AAH) since 1983, won’t

be able to travel to Osaka, Japan, to formally receive the award just yet, but he says he’s honoured, despite being “very surprised” at first.

“Covid delayed things in 2020, of course, so I forgot all about it,” he says.

“Then I started looking at it and when I saw who’d won it before… It’s very good”.

The Cosmos Prize is awarded to contributions in understanding the relationships between humanities and nature, and Prof Bellwood was selected from 171 nominees across 31 countries. He’s the first Australian to get the prize in its 28-year history.

Prof Bellwood says he’s finishing his latest book about human population history for Princeton Press called “The Five Million Year Odyssey”, about “humans, where they come from, what they’ve been doing, and how they migrated around the world, right up to recent times”.

A migrant himself, having travelled by boat from the UK to NZ in 1967 to work as a lecturer at Auckland University, Prof Bellwood has always been fascinated by migration.

“What happened with humans, of course, is that some areas develop interesting ways of life, then when they migrate they spread it – their languages, genes and biological characteristics,” he says.

“It’s very interesting to try to work out how it happened. It goes back mil-

Prof Peter Bellwood… “I’ve always had this feeling that if you’re an archaeologist or a scientist, or discovering something, it has to be for the public good.”

Photo: Jamie Kidston lions of years.”

Prof Bellwood, who completed his BA in archaeology at King’s College, Cambridge University in 1966, travelled on the “Achille Lauro” liner the following year from Southampton to Auckland.

While in Auckland, Prof Bellwood focused his research on the Polynesian Islands, specifically the Marquesas Islands and the Cook Islands, and in 1973 he was invited to join the ANU by John Mulvaney, then professor of prehistory, where he moved his research into Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines.

Prof Bellwood has been in Canberra ever since, having bought a “monocrete house” in the inner north in 1981, close to the ANU, and settling there with his wife Claudia to raise three children.

His research has contributed in two main areas: in understanding how south-east Asia and the Pacific Islands became populated, including the formation of Polynesian culture and human adaptation to island environments, and the history of farming on a worldwide scale.

“I’ve had to look beyond archaeology and read a lot of genetic and lin-

guistic material. My work is in putting it together to understand how farming spread,” he says.

“And it did – from several homelands in the world, probably the most important in terms of the present-day population distribution was the Middle East, the Fertile Crescent as it’s known…

Turkey, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Iraq.

“Another is in Central China, the Yellow and Yangtze rivers, such a huge population.

“When animals and plants are domesticated, they produce more food, which, of course, leads to population growth.”

Nowadays Prof Bellwood, 78, who retired in 2013, says he sits and writes books at home. He shows no signs of slowing down, with two more books in the pipeline after “The Five Million Year Odyssey”.

“I hope to keep on writing. I’ve always had this feeling that if you’re an archaeologist or a scientist, or discovering something, it has to be for the public good,” he says.

“Finding out about someone who lived 10,000 years ago is of no interest unless you relate it to something.

Where did this person fit in the great scheme of things?

“I’d have to say that now, after all my career, I’m much more interested in the people than their archaeology… why are they there, who are there, and where did they come from?”

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CityNews September 9-15, 2021 11

FOSTER AND KINSHIP CARE WEEK / September 13-19 Iulian… “If it wasn’t for them I would have gone downhill again.”

‘Foster carers make life-long impacts on childr

Special week honours fos FOSTER and Kinship Week acknowledges the impact that carers make to the community and a chance for us to recognise the work they do, often as “unsung heroes”, says Katie Martin, regional manager carers & contact at ACT Together.

During Foster and Kinship Care Week, which runs from September 13-19, ACT Together, a Barnardos Australia-led consortium of agencies created to provide services for children and young people in out-of-home care in the ACT, is calling on more people to consider “stepping up” and becoming a foster carer.

“Foster carers make life-long impacts on children and young people who need our support,” Katie says.

There is always a need for more foster carers, with more than 700 children presently in care in the ACT. “A recent report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare reveals

that one in 32 Australian children aged 0-17 received child protection services in 2019-20. That’s one child in every classroom,” says Katie.

There are different types of care that people can provide, from weekend respite care once a month to becoming a long-term “forever” family.

“The most common question people ask me is: ‘Where is the need?’

We need all types of carers,” she says.

“Last year 35 care families registered with us. We were able to place children with all of them, except for two of them, who were unavailable for personal reasons.”

Katie says that foster carers can often become the “village” that children and their families need to get back on track.

Ideally, they want to be able to safely return every child back with their birth parents or family and foster carers play a very important role in becoming a safe haven for children to enable restoration to happen.

“This can be bittersweet for foster carers, but also it’s amazing that they can make such a positive impact even for a short time,” says Katie.

“In other instances, the courts

may determine that restoration is not possible, and foster carers become that ‘forever family’.”

Treena Balmain has been foster caring for 35 years. She and her late husband, Andrew, have cared for more than 200 children in numerous types of care arrangements.

With three children (and now grandchildren) of their own, Treena says they decided to register to provide weekend respite care when her eldest son had gone to boarding school.

“I also agreed to help with crisis care. The next day, I received a call asking us to have four small children from one family who needed immediate care for six weeks. They were sadly very neglected,” she says.

“At the end of the time with us, the children were starting to smile, laugh and give us hugs. I could see the healing starting for them and so I decided to keep going on with fostering more children.”

Treena says that many of the children she cared for were able to go back to their birth families, but others became part of hers.

One member of Treena’s family is Iulian. Now, aged in his twenties,

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ren and young people who need our support’

stering’s ‘unsung heroes’

Katie Martin, of ACT Together... “Foster carers make life-long impacts on children and young people who need our support.”

Iulian went into foster care at 14 years old. He came to live with Treena and Andrew firstly for weekend respite care, which became long-term care when he was 16 years old and lasted into his adulthood.

“Iulian had a lot of issues and came from a challenging background,” Treena recalls. She says it took a lot of patience but every weekend they had Iulian, they saw a tiny glimmer that he was changing.

Treena Balmain… foster caring for 35 years.

“Iulian blossomed over time. He worked hard to develop closeness and he is the most loyal, loving, giving and positive young man today,” she says.

“I used to worry he would end up in jail, but he is now working full time and has the most beautiful qualities.”

Iulian says: “The kindness that they showed me was shocking to me because nothing had happened like that before, and if that didn’t happen, I wouldn’t be here, really.

“I was in a car crash… but Andrew put his hand up to look after me even though they knew how I was. Andrew said: ‘Let’s give it a go’. Treena and Andrew are godsends. If it wasn’t for them I would have gone downhill again.”

Treena says of her long journey as a foster carer: “I learnt that no matter how long you have the children under your care, you are showing them a different path – one of kindness, care and love. They can pick up on your traits and you can make that difference in their future,” she says.

If you want to step up to foster care, call 1300 WEFOSTER or visit acttogether.org.au

It only takes

Children in care in the ACT.

caring adult to make a difference.

OSTER or visit acttogether.org.au

ACT Together is a consortium of: •Barnardos Australia •Australian Childhood Foundation •Oz Child •Premier Youthworks

A Step Up for Our Kids Out of Home Care Strategy 2015-2020 is an ACT Government funded initiative

CityNews September 9-15, 2021 13

POLITICS / mental health

Mental health demand rises as funding is sliced IT was challenging to read, in “The Weekend Australian”, details of the impact which the extended covid lockdown in Victoria has had on the mental health of young people.

The paper referenced a report it says was prepared for the information of the Victorian government, which reveals that more than 340 teenagers a week

have been admitted to hospital suffering mental health emergencies in Victoria.

The six-week average to May 30 this year represents a 57 per cent increase on the corresponding period last year.

Even more concerning, it reported that, in the same period, an average of 156 teenagers a week were admitted to hospital after self-harming and/or suffering suicidal thoughts, an 88 per cent increase on last year.

While acknowledging that

Victoria has a much larger population than the ACT and has been in lockdown for a vastly greater period, the issues raised by the Victorian experience surely demand an immediate and serious response here in Canberra and across Australia.

The threshold issue is, of course, our state of preparedness and capacity to respond to a surge in mental health issues of not just the order experienced in Victoria but an increase in

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demand of any magnitude.

A first step in understanding the capacity of mental health services in the ACT to be able to respond to a covid-related surge in mental health problems, including but not restricted just to young people, would be to have a look at the funding dedicated to mental health in the last (say) four ACT Budgets.

A quick look reveals, as illustrated in the chart at right, a decrease in mental health funding of just on $5 million between 2017-18 and 2018-19 followed by an increase of $14 million in 2019-20 (which notes in the annual report indicate was covid related) but then a reduction in the 2020-21 Budget of $300,000.

It is also notable that the output or activity target across the four years, for each of the mental health subcategories, has remained the same despite the changes in the annual appropriation for mental health.

The ACT Health annual reports reveal, as illustrated for example in the top charts, that despite the number of actual community service contacts in 2019-20 under the Adult Mental Health Program being 212,794, an increase of 13 per cent on 2018-19 and 14,794 more than the target of 198,000, which presumably was the number against which funding was calculated. The target of 198,000 was nevertheless retained for 2020-21.

In similar vein, the actual number of community service contacts under the Children and Youth Mental Health Program in 2019-20 was 89,788, an increase of 11 per cent and 17,788 more than the target of 72,000 which, once again, was presumably the number relevant to which funding was calculated but which was also retained in respect of the

assumptions underpinning the 2020-21 Budget.

Worryingly, this increase in presentations reflects demand over only the period from February to June 2020 and so the full-year effect of COVID-19 on demand for mental health services will almost certainly be double this magnitude.

In other words, in relation to just these two categories of the mental health programs there were, in 2019-20, a total of 32,582 more contacts or occasions of service with mental-health clients than anticipated in the targets that underpinned the Budget.

As remarkable as this may seem, what is even more surprising is that in the 2020-21 Budget, prepared with knowledge of the increase in demand for services and delivered at the height of the covid pandemic, the mental health budget suffered an actual cut in funding of $300,000 and the targets set for adults as well as children and youth mental health services are 7 per cent and 20 per cent lower, respectively, than the 2019-20 actual activity levels.

It remains to be seen how many actual mental health contacts or occasions of service there were in the 202021 financial year and whether the targets or expectation of mental health case numbers were exceeded to the same

degree as they were in 2019-20.

This is obviously, not just because of the alarming data recently reported by “The Weekend Australian” about the experience of young people in Victoria, an issue of fundamental importance.

In addition to the insight which the Canberra data gives us about the mental health of Canberrans, at this most stressful of times, it also raises potentially concerning questions about the capacity of our health services, and especially those dedicated to the care of people with mental-health issues to appropriately meet, including in a timely manner, the needs of their clients.

It would be interesting to know, for example, whether ACT Health has expanded the number of psychiatrists, psychologists and other professionals working in the mental health sphere and whether, for instance, waiting times for people requiring care are within accepted benchmarks.

THE GADFLY

A glimpse of the Australia we used to be THERE was a moment recently when dear old Aunty ABC gave us a national insight so profound that it keeps returning in those silent watches of the night when the busy mind delays that last surrender to sleep.

It was one of those rare conjunctions – part coincidence, part mischievous programming from Aunty herself.

First came the shocking images on the nightly news – Scott Morrison in a blizzard of words defending his government’s tardy response to the rescue of Australia’s Afghan employees from the maelstrom that was Kabul airport; and his refusal to offer the hundreds already in Australia permanent residency.

Then came “Australian Story”, little sister to “Four Corners”, with its most heart-warming story of the RAN and the MG99 Vietnamese refugees – a reunion 40 years after their rescue by the flagship HMAS Melbourne in the South China Sea. The motivations behind each

As the former refugees told of their lives and their gratitude to the country that gave them the opportunity, someone at our place said: ‘That’s the Australia we used to be.’ were like night and day.

For those who missed it, the 99 Vietnamese men, women, children and babies had escaped the persecution by the Communist government of those South Vietnamese on America’s and Australia’s losing side of that 30-year war.

By 1981 they had felt the crushing hand of the Communist regime. In desperation, they piled into a timber boat designed for less than a third of that number and headed out under a full moon – in a double-bluff to fool the waiting government ships.

Their destination was Singapore, but by the fourth day at sea, through stormy weather, a huge whirlpool, and total engine collapse, their drinking water had become contaminated, all food was gone, and the boat was leaking so badly those in the hold were knee deep in diesel floating on the bilge water.

That’s when Tracker plane 851

on its last surveillance mission spotted thick, black smoke from a hasty fire on the wheelhouse roof and signalled HMAS Melbourne Rescued Vietnamese refugees scramble on to HMAS steaming 10 nautical miles Melbourne in 1981.

Photo: ABC away. Half an hour later our place, someone said: “That’s the the great ship reached them and began the perilous task of somehow transfer- Australia we used to be.”

Next day we followed the news ring 99 emaciated, weakened people again, only to hear that Defence in darkness the five metres up to the Minister Dutton was arguing that all lowest decking on the carrier.

Australia’s Afghan employees swelterCommander John Ingram, in charge of the rescue, said: “We knew there were ing at the Kabul airport should be checked again in case they’d swapped sharks in the water [and] there was a lot sides and become “terrorists”; they of wash between the boats. could be a danger to the country and “We were extremely concerned [they] “Australia’s values” that his prime would be crushed against the ship.” minister so cherishes.

Navy photographer Rob Patterson Funnily enough, those values were made a brilliant record of the event about to be demonstrated once again as the sailors joined in willingly. That the next day when a private coalition night was etched on their memories. of Aussies took the initiative to rescue And when Ingram and one of the leading refugees, Stephen Nguyen, decided more than 50 female Afghan athletes and their families. One of the organisto organise a 2021 reunion they were ers, Craig Foster said: “This is what overwhelmed by the response.

Australia should be every day.”

So were “Australian Story” viewers Hard to argue with that. as the former refugees told of their lives and their gratitude to the country robert@robertmacklin.com that gave them the opportunity. At

NEWS ‘Come From’ hit has gone away until February THE Canberra season of the Broadway musical, “Come From Away” has been rescheduled to February 3 because of uncertainty created by covid.

Still running on Broadway, producer Rodney Rigby says the show is a timely reminder of the triumph of humanity.

The Canadian musical is set in the small town of Gander in Newfoundland, Canada, which nearly doubled its population rapidly when after September 11, 2001, 38 aircraft carrying 6579 passengers from 92 countries were diverted to the town’s airport.

The visitors are the “from away” part of the title and they became known as “the plane people”, welcomed by the townspeople in an extraordinary demonstration of sheer humanity that forms the core of the musical.

When it was announced in June as a significant coup for the Canberra Theatre and its director Alex Budd, it broke box office sales records during the first week.

Existing ticket holders will be contacted by the theatre.

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LETTERS

Government hurts people it’s supposed to help THE letter by Stephen James (CN August 19), poses questions about housing affordability in Canberra and how attractive it is for investors to own property here.

I believe the ACT government is by far the most hostile jurisdiction to investors in the country and by a very long way.

How could this not affect supply when there are so many other attractive markets across Australia and with a much friendlier jurisdiction for investors in NSW on our doorstep?

Whether it is an ideological loathing of investors, seeing them as a cash cow to be milked or a misguided assumption that by being overly biased in favour of renters will result in more favourable outcomes for them, the outcome is that rental property stock is reduced and rents increase – supply and demand in action.

Land tax impositions (and units/apartments now treated similarly to detached housing for valuation purposes for rates) already make owning a rental property in the ACT a dubious proposition, but when you add into the equation the blatant bias in favour of renters and a seemingly never ending quest to water down landlords’ rights (ie the ACT already has the longest notice to vacate period in the country at six months – but the ACT government wants to increase this to a staggering 12 months) then

no wonder the resulting lack of rental stock.

I have owned an ACT rental property for several years and it has been one of the most unpleasant, stressful experiences of my life.

Renters know they are a sacred cow in this jurisdiction and the ever increasing rates/land tax costs of almost $2000 every three months only adds insult to injury.

The ACT government appears to view property investors as a charity to provide rental stock to supplement their failed policies with public housing.

Buying an investment property two years ago in regional NSW has been a surprisingly pleasant and rewarding experience – I would never even consider buying in the ACT again.

I would be far from the only investor with this view and this results in less rental stock and higher rents – the extraordinarily low vacancy rates in the ACT (0.08 per cent with Tuggeranong at just 0.02 per cent) show the ACT government and its Tenancy Tribunal need to rethink their adversarial approach to property investors.

Recent rampant property price growth means more and more Canberrans will never be able to afford to own their own home, such a dire rental situation reduces quality of life and the financial situation for a great number of people – the ACT government is only hurting the people they are supposedly trying to help.

Jimmy Savitsky, Richardson

Save the city, stop the lockdown I AM writing on behalf of all Canberrans. I urge you to petition the Chief Minister to end these draconian lockdowns before our city is destroyed. They don’t help and the economic, social and mental consequences will be immense. You can’t vaccinate away the effects of the lockdowns.

Pete Locke, via email

Lucinda’s ‘harsh and uninformed’ WHO would have thought that in 2021 in Canberra I’d read such a harsh and uninformed letter (CN September 2) such as that from Lucinda Spier, of Campbell. It is clear that Lucinda has little knowledge of public-housing tenants beyond the stereotype of “welfare-cheating low lifes”.

She has passed judgement and assumption onto the new residents of her street based on the fact it’s public housing.

The writer makes the claim that “the vast majority of public housing tenants are on Commonwealth benefits”.

Ignoring the lack of substance to this claim, I’d be interested if Lucinda knows the current rates of any Commonwealth benefits? The current rate of JobSeeker is about $620 a fortnight for a single person.

Rent assistance for a single person is in the

vicinity of $130 a fortnight. The current averaged rent for a one-bedroom property in the ACT rental market is $425 a week.

This means that someone would spend 117 per cent of their gross weekly income on a private rental in Canberra. I’m sure Lucinda can see the issue here.

What she clearly shows no empathy for is the array of complexities and issues that are over-represented in public-housing tenants.

Public-housing tenants are more likely to have a long-term disability. Are more likely to have a lived experience of trauma and mental illness. They are often being housed after an extended period of homelessness.

Add in low income and Lucinda wishes for them to pay for rates (on property already owned by the government?) and for garbage collection.

Public Housing tenants pay indirect taxes through car registration and GST. They pay for their energy utilities. Many hold down a part time or casual job, and some work full time – paying direct taxes as they go.

Lucinda shows her true prejudice when she doesn’t consider that those who rent privately don’t pay a cent towards rates or garbage collection either.

Her final remark that “once a person gets public housing they cease to be needy and should make a contribution to Canberra” is based on a completely false premise.

Housing is not the solution to everyone’s problems, but it is an essential need that can provide the avenue for a solution to other presented needs.

RENOVATIONS & EXTENSIONS

The “vast majority” of public housing tenants contribute to their communities in various ways – they volunteer, they check in on neighbours, they send their children to local schools, and are often at the forefront of community activities such as free pantries.

I challenge Lucinda to get out there and meet some public housing tenants instead of living her life by a series of stereotypes and generalisations.

James Ellis, Spence

Conflicted by a tobacco connection MY past is catching up to me! I can’t remember walking out of the advisory Assembly in the ‘80’s, as Alan Shroot claims (Letters, CN September 2) on banning tobacco advertising, however I hope I did as there was a conflict of interest with my connection to a tobacco industry client.

The difference then (and still now) is that tobacco was/is a legal product whereas illicit drugs are not, which I regard as another inconsistency shared with Dr. Shroot.

Greg Cornwell, Yarralumla

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MORE LETTERS Packing more sardines into the tin CONGRATULATIONS Michael Moore on an excellent article (“Pandemic reveals the price of packing people in”, CN September 2).

I do hope our Chief Minister, who as per his “Statement of Ambition” of 2016 is attempting to turn Canberra into a “compact and vibrant city”, reads it.

One means of “city building” is the light rail and large sums of our taxes and rates are spent on getting the extension from Civic to Woden underway.

The light rail will take 30 minutes to cover the distance for which buses (very soon similarly operating CO2-free) take 15 minutes normally and 16 minutes during rush hour.

However, the light rail has the great advantage for developers that the area around stops will provide the ideal environment for high-rise as it has along Northbourne Avenue.

Or, to put it pictorially, more sardines can be packed into the tin. More rates from the many in the high-rise, plus a steep climb in land prices for the government to profit.

Why worry that compact housing provides the ideal breeding ground for covid? Why be concerned that Canberra has declared a climate emergency in May 2019 and the infrastructure for the light rail extension will produce massive amounts of greenhouse gases? Why bother to point out that compact housing creates heat islands raising summer temperatures up to five degrees?

This development of unspecified cost might well be leaving insufficient funds for health, education and housing, but it is, after all, in the interest of progress!

BM Bodart-Bailey, via citynews.com.au

Jono needs to do his homework I AM pleased to see young Greens MLA Johnathan Davis taking an interest in sport (“Davis drives government to look at fair funding”, CN August 26), but he really needs to do his homework first.

Indeed, he’s scored an own goal by calling for the establishment of “a sport and recreational industry peak body to support the (sport and rec) sector.”

Err Jono, mate, sorry to disappoint you but we had one from 1990 – ACTSport, which I founded on behalf of the then Alliance government and local sporting legends, the late Harry Marr and Jim

Roberts, of Sports House Hackett fame.

It did a great job representing the ACT Sport and Recreation industry from 1990 to 2015.

Unfortunately, it was Jono’s boss Shane Rattenbury who abolished ACTSport in 2015 when he was Minister for Sport.

When I was Minister for Sport, we also used to give triennial grants to sporting bodies so that there was certainty of funding and to ensure it would not just be given on an ad hoc basis.

There were three categories; the first for the larger mass participation bodies such as basketball, softball, football, rugby, cricket, swimming etcetera, the second category for less popular sports and a third category for smaller sports still. We also had specific one-off grants for a variety of things such as projects and equipment.

Are you telling me, Jono, your Greens/ Labor predecessors have got rid of these triennial grants, too?

Despite several own goals here (I like your U10 story, too, Jono), I am happy to give Mr Davis the benefit of the doubt in assuming that he genuinely wants to help sport in the ACT. To that end, I’d urge him to get his own government to reinstate ACTSport and triennial funding for all ACT sporting bodies. While he’s at it, he could also get his government to save Kippax Oval from development, or if he can’t do that, at least bring back the three or four old playing fields lying fallow at the Higgins end of the current ovals.

Bill Stefaniak, Minister for Sport, 1989-1991 and 1995-2001

Robyn is right about mynas JOHN Franza (Letters, CN August 26) admits that he has personally killed many Indian mynas. It is understandable that he feels the need to justify himself.

However, Robyn Soxsmith (Letters, CN August 12) is right. Indian mynas are a symptom, not a cause of the crisis facing our native wildlife. Hundreds of millions of native animals have been killed, and are still being killed, by both direct slaughter and habitat destruction, to make way for settlement and agriculture.

In any case, myna numbers are not controlled by killing programs, but by fluctuations in environmental conditions.

As Ms Soxsmith mentioned, mynas are fast-breeding animals. They cannot be eradicated. Every bird killed merely leaves space for at least one of four new ones to grow up and take its place.

As for kangaroos, assertions about kangaroos overpopulating and starving are just pleasant little fairy tales people tell themselves so they can sleep at night while their local kangaroos are being gunned down. The government’s claim that the kangaroo killing is to protect either the environment or the kangaroos was debunked in 2014 when the CSIRO found that kangaroos enhanced the ecological health of the ACT reserves, and were not present on them in numbers that harmed the environment in any way.

Frankie Seymour, Queanbeyan

Stay away from me, too, Mario!

CHEER up, Mario (“Stay away from me!”, Letters, CN September 2). Mr Stivala, I can only presume that you are unvaccinated yourself, otherwise why give consideration to the status of others? Have your jab, be comfortable in your assumed protection and, please, with such a woebegone attitude like yours, stay away from me, too.

Michael Stachow, Giralang

History lost to a house THE destruction of the house at 22 Brockman Street, Narrabundah is, as columnist Paul Costigan notes (CN August 26), a sad event.

The house was built for Heather and Val Paral. Heather owned Studio 12 at Manuka while her husband Val was the photographer who took the “Faceless Men” photographs in 1963.

I found out about Val’s previously hidden role when researching a biography of the journalist Alan Reid.

Stephen Holt, Macquarie

What wine with what fish?

IN his column, wine writer Richard Calver asks the rhetorical question “What wine goes best with fish and meat?” (CN August 26).

That’s a tough one, especially without the type (or types) of “meat” not being specified. Since there are so many types and forms of meat, ranging from sausages to grilled rump steak, I’ll stick with discussing fish: otherwise this letter could go on (almost) indefinitely.

Having been a professional wine taster and writer for about 12 years, I have

experienced a huge range of wines, mostly from Australia, France, Italy and the US, and have tried many of them with a wide range of food.

My favourite pairing with full-flavoured fish, such as snapper or salmon, is a semillon-sauvignon blanc from Margaret River (WA), a rich, oaked chardonnay, or a dry – preferably Provence (French) – rosé, which is a marvellous match with salmon.

A more delicately flavoured fish, such as whiting, is a great pairing with lighterbodied white wine, such as riesling. Finding a food match for fuller-bodied sauvignon blanc (again from Margaret River) is not easy – but smoked trout would come close.

Douglas Mackenzie, Deakin

Time for a National War Museum ANZAC Hall at the National War Memorial has gone, and the proposed southern extensions of the complex, shown in the current Works Approval Application to the National Capital Authority, are destructive of the Memorial’s fine architectural design and heritage.

The problematic and confusing duality with regard to the main southern entrance, described below, is perpetuated and accentuated in the current design proposal.

The physical functional arrangement of the existing National War Memorial, as a combined cenotaph and war museum, has never really been satisfactory.

The central dominant section is a very fine cenotaph, with towering twinned portals, colonnaded galleries, reflecting pool and magnificent elevated central dome; and the cenotaph’s arrangement complies with the architectural principle of “form follows function”.

However, the side display components are not so successful in that regard, and their functions are somewhat forced into their architectural forms.

Public access to them is not clearly identifiable, and the internal circulation arrangement is less than satisfactory.

Nevertheless, those side, or “saddlebag” components contribute to the overall symmetrical architectural arrangement.

The profligate demolition of the fine new Anzac Hall, and the proposed installation of a massive “theme-park” component, at the rear of the complex, was and remains architectural vandalism and will not improve the existing circulation problems.

That scheme should be scrapped, and its funds allocated to a new purposebuilt National War Museum, including

indigenous elements.

It could be built at an evocative place elsewhere in the Central National Area, such as at Yarramundi Reach opposite the popular National Arboretum. The new NWM would reveal many important military and related items, currently rarely seen by the public.

Jack Kershaw FRAIA (retired), Kambah

Statues aren’t the answer INDEPENDENT ACT Senate candidate Kim Rubenstein has started a campaign to push for more statues of women in Canberra.

Seeing that the PM recently announced that bronze sculptures of the first two women elected to federal parliament, Dame Edith Lyons and Dame Dorothy Tangney, have been ordered, hasn’t Ms Rubenstein got anything more important to say?

If she’s serious about standing as an ACT Senate candidate at the upcoming federal election, she would be well advised to indulge in something more substantial than mere tokenism in her quest.

Mario Stivala, Belconnen

Protecting our homeland I THINK it’s time Australians realised that COVID-19 is like a large lava flow. No country has been able to stop such a flow in the desired time. Both bring morbidity and mortality virtually at will, as they seem to have a mind of their own. Lava-affected countries have had to learn to live with this natural enemy.

As for attempted human remedies, opening the borders too soon seems illogical. India, seven south-east Asian countries and China have more than three billion people, many of their nationals having a history of entry as visitors and temporary or permanent residence.

Just as the vaccines available in Australia had to pass the most stringent tests before use, how can Australia hope to have countries meet the strictest Australian criteria pre-departure for those who will seek entry to this land – including all the COVID-19 health-support structures in those countries?

COVID-19 aside, one only has to watch the TV border control series to know the huge difficulties facing protection of our homeland.

Colliss Parrett, Barton

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OPINION

Why Liberal Party doesn’t need gender quotas FOLLOWING the shenanigans in parliament, there’s been a lot of talk about the federal Liberal Party introducing gender quotas.

In my view, Parliament House is a workplace, not a bordello, and I think they need to change the rules so that anyone having intercourse in the building will automatically lose their job or, if a member, be forced to resign.

The only exception should be where there is an allegation of sexual assault without consent, in which case the matter must be referred immediately to the AFP. If a sexual assault is proven then obviously the victim would be exempt and the guilty party dealt with in accordance with criminal law.

While I have, generally, been impressed with Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s handling of COVID-19 and other issues, such as China and the appointments to his new cabinet, I was unimpressed with his knee-jerk reaction to the

I count 13 women and 12 men elected. The ACT Liberals have five women, including the leader and deputy leader, and four men.

Who needs a quota system! question of quotas.

If I ever had a political hero, it was the late Margaret Thatcher. Not so much because of her economic rationalist views (although a lot of that was simply common sense) but more so because I respected and admired her no-nonsense approach.

She was the last UK prime minister not to cut defence spending and had the strength of character to stand up to bullies of all kinds, be they Soviet, Argentinian or the bullies from the UK Miners Union.

It was because of her, and her dear friend President Ronald Reagan and the Polish Pope (John-Paul II) that the West was able to stare down the Soviet Union and win the cold war.

We sorely need the likes of her and Reagan now.

She detested quotas. She got to

Kate Carnell… the best chief minister.

Margaret Thatcher… no nonsense.

the top by being the best and by outshining all the “Hooray Henrys” and upper-class twits in the British Conservative Party.

Now Bronwyn Bishop and my wife are hardly Margaret Thatchers – although they are both very strong women and I know they both admire Maggie greatly.

They have both said to me at different times: “I would never want to get a job as a result of a quota system.

I would always think I only got it because I was a woman. I would want to get it on my own merit.”

I know this is a view shared by many women including many in politics I know or have known.

Quotas have rarely worked in practice. Reserving a number of places in very good private schools for indigenous kids is one area perhaps

Anna Bligh… a good operator.

similar to a quota that has paid dividends, but the converse is that quotas have often been used to ensure minorities such as Jews in Europe in the 19th and early 20th century, were excluded from institutions such as universities because if the selection had been on merit alone, a lot of nonJews would have missed out because the Jews were better scholars.

In the ACT, in terms of party preselection, there may well be quotas in some parties, but it’s a Hare Clark system where voters decide who they vote for in their order of choice.

Lots of men and women stood for election in October. Voters in Molonglo, Yerrabi, Kurrajong and Brindabella elected three men and two women per electorate and in Ginninderra it was four women and one man.

I count 13 women and 12 men

elected. The ACT Liberals have five women, including the leader and deputy leader, and four men. Who needs a quota system!

In my view the best chief minister in the ACT’s short history of self government was Liberal Kate Carnell closely followed by Jon Stanhope (ALP). So far there have been seven chief ministers, three women and four men.

If I had to pick who was the best state minister I worked with during my time as a minister at ministerial conferences (1990, 1995-2001) it would have to be the late Sue Napier, Deputy Premier of Tasmania. Premier Anna Bligh, from Queensland, was a good operator as well.

We don’t need quotas for good women to get ahead. In 2021, Australians are now used to seeing women in all the top jobs.

So far as our politicians are concerned we need the best people for the job and what sex, race or colour they are is irrelevant.

The working environment just needs to be fixed up and bad behaviour discouraged and punished.

Quotas will do nothing to help this one way or another.

Bill Stefaniak is the convenor of the Belco Party, and a former Liberal opposition leader, attorney-general, police minister and minister for children, youth and family services.

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

INSIDE

Streaming gems that don’t tiddle the credit card

NICK OVERALL

Francisco gets a wiggle on for multiculturalism COVER STORY

By Helen Musa

TO Spanish-speaking kids around the world, Canberra’s Frank Madrid Irazabal is “Francisco, the Red Wiggle” in the Latino franchise of the children’s program.

To the arts community in Canberra, he’s the enabler behind exciting gigs and arts events over the years, and now he’s been appointed as producer for the 25th anniversary National Multicultural Festival in 2022.

It’s been a big year for the Venezuelanborn Madrid on both counts.

To begin with, the Latino Wiggles, “Los Wiggles” – created around 2006 and now made up of Madrid as the Red Wiggle; Katty Villafuerte from Goulburn, the Purple Wiggle; Zoe Velez, the Blue Wiggle and Fernando Moguel, the Yellow Wiggle – have undergone a revival this year with Latino and Taiwanese shows underway.

In June, the first episode of the fortnightly “Latin American Wiggles Show” was released on the official Wiggles YouTube channel, with songs such as Spanish versions of “Henry’s Dance”, “Shaky Shaky” and “D.O.R.O.T.H.Y. (My Favourite Dinosaur)”.

“It’s so much fun,” Madrid says, “you’ll see me dancing and jumping.”

With two million viewers tuning in

Frank Madrid as Francisco, the Latino Red Wiggle… “you’ll see me dancing and jumping.”

Photo: Guadalupe de Zavalia through the Wiggles channel, he believes the likely impact of the show will be “massive… it’s a very intimate connection with the viewer, allowing us to relate to the children”.

Meantime, he applied for and got the plum job of producer for the National Multicultural Festival, working with the festival’s senior director, Azra Khan, to celebrate diversity and representation, and to promote social cohesion.

When I catch up with Madrid, he’s been reflecting on how the word “multiculturalism”

was effectively banned from public discourse during the Howard era and says: “We need to reclaim and be happy and be proud of multiculturalism… I am delighted to be part of a team given the task of putting an event on, an event so loved by Canberrans.”

Madrid says he will be working on the curatorial side bringing together all those things that come to mind when you think of a festival, designing that “sweet spot” between community representation and the best input possible.

The Multicultural Festival means a lot to Madrid, who first came across the event when its founder Domenic Mico was in charge.

He feels totally at home in his adopted city. Serendipitously, when he arrived in Canberra during 2004, he was fresh from having been a “handbag” while his partner worked at the Australian embassy in Brasília, so had “learnt Portuguese and how to live in a planned city”.

“What happened there was magical, there was a rich artistic community that you couldn’t see easily, you had to find it.”

Once he’d worked out how to drive around the Canberra roundabouts – these days he drives the Big Red Boat for The Wiggles – he reached out to Mico, who was very welcoming, as was then-multicultural boss Nic Manikis.

Now almost 20 years later, he’s happily settled in Canberra with his partner Andy and their poodle and believes that producing in Canberra is easier, “because people here are thirsty to explore new things”.

He was momentarily seduced by the bright lights of Sydney when he did a masters in arts administration through the Australian Institute of Music and I, for one, can testify that his after-show party for the opening of Baz Luhrmann’s “Strictly Ballroom The Musical” was the sassiest and most extravagant on record.

While in The Big Smoke he also worked for Parramatta City Council producing a Thai water festival, New Year and Lo Krathong.

Back in Canberra, Madrid’s been a presenter for Artstound, marketing officer for the Canberra Symphony Orchestra and producer of the PuraVida Roadshow, but it is for his large-scale arts initiatives that he is best known.

One of his personal highlights was taking Canberra to Brasília in 2013 as part of Robyn Archer’s international outreach during the Centenary of Canberra. That saw a local poet, rapper and DJ performing in front of Brazil’s National Library.

Another highlight was producing the inaugural Australia Day at Summerstage in Central Park New York in 2010, where he brought an array of indigenous art from the ACT, Victoria, NSW, Tasmania and indigenous Australia.

As for “Los Wiggles”, that was first directed by Anthony Field’s brother Paul in 2006, filmed around Sydney, at the zoo and on the Gold Coast. This time around, the problem was trying to get to Sydney to film during lockdown, but so far, so good.

Madrid sees the Latino Wiggles as part of a commitment to diversity and says: “It’s a way of ensuring that we celebrate difference – it makes sense that Spanish speakers have The Wiggles, too – it’s very multicultural.”

Frank’s happy to take suggestions regarding artists for the National Multicultural Festival at Frank.Madrid@act.gov.au Los Wiggles are at YouTube.com/user/ TheWigglesPtyLtd

CityNews September 9-15, 2021 19

TAKEAWAY / Wild Duck, Kingston Foreshore

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Eggplant… finished off with a rich chilli, garlic and vinegar sauce.

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Lockdown service is in full swing and it’s easy to order from Wild Duck’s website. Delivery was prompt and with big smiles.

Sure, we would prefer dining while settled into Wild Duck’s elegant cosy booth seating, but that wasn’t meant to be. Instead, we enjoyed upscale Chinese dishes at home, impressed at how well the food travelled.

The Balmain bug dumplings were to die for.

Delicate but full of flavour and the pickled ginger and rice vinegar was heavenly ($16.90). With entrees we also indulged in the traditional Peking duck that Wild Duck is so well known for ($15.90).

The duck was roasted, crispy and succulent and gently encased in a crepe so beautifully thin you could see through it.

A fun entrée is the lotus root and pork parcels

that we’d never tried before but will again ($15.90). The sliced young lotus root was packed with flavourful pork mince and fried so it was crispy and light. This time the dipping sauce was created with vinegar, ginger and edamame.

While we thought the salmon tataki looked beautiful, it had a bit of gristle ($17.90). Still, the flavours were inspiring – the salmon was lemongrass cured with a ginger glaze.

Our veggie hit included a fabulous eggplant.

This dish is designed to present the eggplant as an accordion on crispy noodles, but the realities of takeaway mucked this around a bit ($27.90). However, it was a gorgeous dish and the eggplant was finished off with a rich chilli, garlic and vinegar sauce that added depth of colour.

Mains showcased how bold Wild Duck is with its fine-dining cuisine. The peppercorn Angus cubes were sensational and the beef melt-in-themouth ($34.90). The tenderloin is wok tossed with

snow peas and king oyster mushrooms in a sexy green peppercorn reduction. It looked stunning with bright red squares of cured cherry radish.

Our second main was wild mushroom duck breast (can one ever have too much duck?). It, too, was succulent, and the mix of wild Asian mushrooms was exotic ($34.90).

Wild Duck also offers banquet options, starting with the Chef Signature Banquet at $69 a person, minimum three people, and a degustation menu for $99 a person, minimum two people.

To further support the hospitality and wine industry during these crazy covid times, we ordered a bottle of white from Wild Duck also, a 2019 Clonakilla Viognier Nouveau to be exact. It was crisp and zesty.

ARTS IN THE CITY

First it’s our Halimah, then comes Jessica

By Helen

MUSICACT is getting behind the campaign “Our Soundtrack Our Stories (aria.com.au/our-soundtrackour-stories) hard as homegrown music struggles under the new wave of lockdowns. Noting that Canberra has more than 1000 APRA AMCOS registered songwriters, it recommends playing a MusicACT curated list of tunes via Spotify to generate income for musos.

MUSA CANBERRA Theatre has much to crow about. For one thing, it can claim to have “discovered” the performing talents of Halimah Kyrgios well before she appeared on “The Voice,” when she featured in Episode 7 of “The World From Here” with Chris Endrey (viewable via Facebook) and later performed a guest spot in the online grand finale.

FOR another, they’ve locked in an appearance by Jessica Mauboy on tour with “The Boss Lady”, an anthology of her hits since her first solo album in 2008. At Canberra Theatre, March 30. Book at canberratheatrecentre.com.au HOT on the rare Afghan war rug exhibition at The Drill Hall Gallery, the ANU’s Professor Tim Bonyhady

Halimah Kyrgios… “discovered” at Canberra Theatre.

Jessica Mauboy… Canberra Theatre, March 30.

has released a prescient book, “Two Afternoons in the Kabul Stadium: A History of Afghanistan through Clothes, Carpets and the Camera”. The Kabul Stadium was where, in 1959, women first appeared in western dress at a celebration of Afghanistan’s independence and where in November 1999, the Taliban killed a burqa-clad woman, Zarmeena.

has gone online with a selection of something-for-everyone virtual offerings. Curator Peter Johnson takes a walk through the Sarah Lucas exhibition. There’s a virtual tour of the NGA’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander galleries, a visit to “Know My Name: Australian women artists 1900 to now” and a class in crafting Ned Kelly masks with Tony Albert. All accessible at nga.gov.au

THE National Gallery of Australia

OUR May story about singing poet and scholar Sarah Rice introduced her “Text/ure” project, where she commissioned six mostly local composers to write pieces in response to her poem “If I Could Have Given You A Note”, which were sung by Oriana Chorale alongside Rice’s drawings and images. She has now released a 164-page book in full colour, featuring composers’ statements, interview excerpts, visual art, drawing statements and all six concluding poems at recentworkpress.com

WATCH IT! / streaming and stuff

Streaming gems that don’t tickle the credit card WHILE, yes, viewers will have to put up with ads and, no, they don’t have the calibre of entertainment that industry giants such as Netflix offer, homegrown streaming platforms SBS On Demand and ABC iView do have some gems ready to watch that won’t ask for your credit card details first.

In an answer to today’s selection of outstanding crime dramas found throughout the paid streaming platforms such as “Mare of Easttown”, “The Sinner” or “True Detective”, SBS On Demand has “Mr Mercedes”, a noirish thriller about a detective’s obsessive pursuit of a serial killer years after the case has gone cold.

The psychological drama is an adaptation from the mind of Stephen King, yet another dug up from the author’s seemingly endless list of works that’s been whipped into a popular series.

Refreshingly, however, “Mr Mercedes” stays away from the supernatural bent King is so known for and remains firmly grounded in the “real world”.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a big fan of the author’s creepy works, but it’s interesting to see his creative muscles stretched in a different, yet still effective way with this series.

There’s also a great selection of films to

Brendan Gleeson in “Mr Mercedes”... free to stream on SBS On Demand. be found on SBS On Demand, especially for those searching for something a little off the beaten path.

“Downfall” is a German war film that places Hitler himself at the centre of the plot and follows his final days losing control of both his army and himself as the battle of Berlin rages around him.

There’s the confronting true story of “Spotlight”, about the team of journalists

from “The Boston Globe” who broke the story about the child sex abuse cover-up by the Catholic Church.

Featuring a brilliant ensemble cast that includes Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton and Rachel McAdams, “Spotlight” deservingly took out best picture for 2015.

For those looking for a bit of escapism there’s the Australian made “Predestination” starring Ethan Hawke, a trippy sci-fi

usic, M e r o M un...

More F

thriller about a time traveller attempting to stop a bomb attack in 1975.

Fans of Netflix’s German series “Dark”, arguably one of the platform’s best and most bizarre offerings, will find familiar ground in “Predestination” and get a major kick out of it.

Over on ABC iView, we’ve got “The Trial of Christine Keeler”, a series ported over from the UK about the real-life scandal which almost tore apart the British government.

Keeler became a household name in the ‘60s when it was revealed she had been involved in affairs with both the Soviet Union naval attaché and Britain’s Secretary of State for War at the height of the Cold War. This series follows Keeler’s story from the inside and is held together by some stellar performances, especially from lead Sophie Cookson.

There’s also the Australian-produced series “The Newsreader’’, a drama which examines some of the most contentious events of the 1980s from behind-the-scenes of a break-neck newsroom, including a dive into whether or not the dingo indeed ate the baby.

The platform also has rockstar astrophysicist Brian Cox’s newest doco series “Adventures through Space and Time”

now available.

This series sees the famed scientist take a look back at his work over the past two decades and offer new insights from today on some of humanity’s biggest questions.

How far can we travel beyond Earth? Are we alone in the universe? Where did we come from?

Cox has made a name for himself by condensing the vast complexities of these questions into easily digestible entertainment and he just keeps getting better at it, with this series comprehensively covering mind-blowing topics at lightspeed pace.

It comes ahead of his world tour next year, which will include him landing here in Canberra come March.

One of Cox’s most famous quotes: “The problem with today’s world is that everyone believes they have the right to express their opinion AND have others listen to it.”

Judging by that he’s just bound to love a certain few of us here in the ACT.

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Jackie Warburton… “In my own garden I grow lots of cacti and succulents but also conifers, vegetables, fruit trees, natives and a cottage garden.”

Mother to two adult children, she loves caravanning, cooking, mosaics, and model trains… and gardening!

“I have my own garden in Oxley, in Tuggeranong, and I am a registered horticulturist. Over the past 10 years my husband Bret and I have run our own garden-maintenance business called Terra Solarus,” she says.

“In my own garden I grow lots of cacti and succulents but also conifers, vegetables, fruit trees, natives and a cottage garden – a bit of everything on a standard suburban block and most, if not all, cuttings from other gardens.

“It’s a lovely seasonal garden all year round, a little house on a big block. I

also keep chooks and my number one cat Mindi.

“Over the years I have been the president of the cactus and succulent society and helped co-ordinate the plant fairs at Lanyon Homestead a few years back with Open Gardens Australia.

“I am a member of many garden clubs in Canberra and give talks and presentations to regional garden clubs as well.

“I am currently studying Landscape Design and on the National Council for the Australian Institute of Horticulture and a student member of the Australian Institute of Landscape Designers and Managers.”

She takes over from Cedric Bryant, our much-loved gardening guru for more than a decade who has stood down because of ill health.

Rain’s strong start to spring

By Jackie Warburton

THE cold Canberra winter is gone and, with good rainfall over the last few months, it has given the soil a good start for the growing season.

Although spring begins in September, the blossoms and bulbs are out, the soil is too cold for planting. We still have cold winds and frosts until at least early November and so off a little longer for planting most things into the garden.

Soil preparation can be done now with organic matter and manures dug over in the garden beds where any spring planting will be.

The moist weather has also brought a lot of weeds as well and it is important to get them out before they self-seed. They can be disposed of into the green bin for collection, fed to ducks, chooks or steeped in a bucket of water for a few weeks with a lid to break down. This liquid can be diluted to a weak tea and used on the garden as a fertiliser.

By now all the pome fruit trees – fruit trees that have seeds – that are dormant should have been trimmed (apples, pears, quinces etcetera).

The fruit trees that have stones such as cherries,

apricots and plums get pruned in the warmer months and after fruit has ripened and been picked.

NOW is the time to have a look at what seeds can be started in punnets in the glasshouse or placed on a sunny window sill to be ready for planting out in about four to five weeks.

If there are any old packets of seeds in the garden shed, put the seeds in a glass of water to see if they are viable. If they sink, they should be viable. If they float or don’t feel full, throw them out and start again. Different seeds have varying shelf life and a little research with the seeds that you have will help you decide if they are worth trying to grow. Growing ornamental and edible plants at home from seed is a very cost-effective way of getting lots of plants for very little money and not to mention the satisfaction of growing something from seed to plate.

THERE is a lot of flowering in the garden this month and many scented bulbs such as erlicheer and jonquils are putting on a show. These flowers can be picked and placed in a vase to permeate their scent throughout the house.

Camellias have put on quite a show with the extra rain we’ve had and will need a good prune

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just after flowering has finished and before the buds have formed for next year’s growth.

There are a lot of camellias to choose from at the nursery and there is plenty of stock this time of year with double flowering and single.

The colour range is also vast and there is always a camellia for the right place whether it is full sun, shade, in a pot or grown just for its beauty.

Although camellias are slow growing, they really are a classic addition to any Canberra garden.

Jobs to do this month • Final pruning of roses except for banksia roses.

• S pray all fruit trees with a fungicide to protect them from peach leaf curl, apple scab and quince fleck.

•D on’t prune any frost-damaged leaves until all frosts have gone.

•D ead head and tidy spent perennials in the garden.

• Mulch with any good organic mulch.

• F ertilise with manures in the garden bed. Cow manure is particularly good for roses and if using chicken manure make sure it is old as it can be too rich around some plants.

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22 CityNews September 9-15, 2021

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Your week in the stars

By Joanne Madeline Moore

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General knowledge crossword No. 798

September 13-19, 2021 ARIES (Mar 21 – Apr 20)

CHARTERED ACCOUNTANT

This week Mars (your power planet) marches into Libra, in your relationship zone.

So – when it comes to partnerships – it’s time to be passionately proactive. You’re also feeling creative but make sure you can differentiate between fact and fiction.

Your imagination is firing and you’ll find magic is around you, if you know where to look. Your motto for the moment is from birthday great, writer Roald Dahl: “The greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places.”

THE TAX OFFICE POPS MAISIE'S 'REFUND' BUBBLE

TAURUS (Apr 21 – May 21)

The focus is on firm friendships – how to find them, nurture them and keep them.

It’s also time to distance yourself from a phony friend who doesn’t have your best interests at heart. (There’s definitely no room in your peer group for someone who is jealous or disparaging about your talents and achievements.) So your mantra for the week is from birthday great, writer Roald Dahl: “Good friends are like stars. You can’t always see them twinkle but you know they are always there.”

GEMINI (May 22 – June 21)

It’s a good week to do some research, work out a puzzle, solve a problem or find something that’s been lost. Home life is highlighted, as you get creative around the house, tackle a DIY project or catch up with family members. Fiery Mars gives your fertile imagination a welcome boost so don’t waste the opportunity to put your creativity to productive use. Be inspired by movie legend (and birthday great) Lauren Bacall: “Imagination is the highest kite one can fly."

CANCER (June 22 – July 23)

When it comes to your aspirations for the future, you’re full of fabulous dreams and spectacular schemes but avoid letting blind optimism lead you up the primrose path to trouble. There is the possibility of being deceived so if something (or someone) looks and sounds too good to be true, then walk away. Pluto pushes you to stay on top of facts and leave pure fantasy for the movies. When your dreams are grounded in robust reality, then you’ll really start to fly!

LEO (July 24 – Aug 23)

Tuesday looks rather tricky, when nebulous Neptune scrambles signals and confuses communication (especially involving money). So don’t accept information at face value and believe everything you hear. Take the time to do some solid fact checking before you respond. Then Thursday and Friday look promising, when Pluto trines the Sun (your patron planet). Which will turbo-charge your natural Cat charisma, boost your creative talents and finesse your financial flair.

VIRGO (Aug 24 – Sept 23)

Virgos are analytical creatures. This week the Sun’s in your sign, so you’ll be given the opportunity to impress others with your methodical mind, multi-tasking skills and meticulous attention to detail. So don your detective cap and start solving a problem or getting to the bottom of a mystery. A close relationship looks very confusing though. You think you know what’s going on but maybe you don’t have a clue? Perhaps it’s time to ask for an explanation and some clarification?

Down

4 Which white ductile metallic element has the symbol Ag? (6) 7 What is the quarter of a circle? (8) 8 Which term describes that which is nearly, but not quite? (6) 9 Name a spine-bearing mammal. (8) 11 What is a means of conveyance? (7) 13 Which term expresses the heat, output, or energy value, of a food? (7) 15 Which sea lies between PNG, Indonesia, and the northern coast of Australia? (7) 17 Which term describes an estate agent? (7) 20 What are non-professionals known as? (8) 23 Name an alternative term for fate or destiny. (6) 24 Which word expresses ranges of vision? (8) 25 What is an official enumeration of inhabitants? (6)

1 Name the third book of the New Testament, Saint ... (4) 2 Which musical direction means “in a leisurely manner”? (6) 3 What is an eruption on the skin? (4) 4 Name the platform in a theatre, on which the actors perform. (5) 5 Which term describes that which is clear or transparent? (6) 6 Upon which frame does an artist support the canvas, etc?

(5) 9 Name the legendary Trojan warrior who was slain by Achilles. (6) 10 What is a particular bowling style? (7) 12 Name another term for compositions. (6) 14 What are dirigibles also known as? (6) 16 To harden into ice, is to do what? (6) 18 What might we call persons of the highest class? (5) 19 What are profane expressions? (5) 21 What is a distinctive air or atmosphere known as? (4) 22 Name the smallest in a litter. (4)

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LIBRA (Sept 24 – Oct 23)

Librans can be very gullible – especially this week. Confusion could reign supreme, as Neptune opposes the Sun (in your self-sabotage zone). Personal and professional relationships are in a state of flux. So - when it comes to friends or lovers - it’s definitely time for a reality check. Don’t delude yourself. Just because someone sounds impressive, doesn’t mean they are the real deal. With mighty Mars moving into your sign, it’s time to be brave, bold and proactive!

Solution next edition

Across

Sudoku hard No. 299

SCORPIO (Oct 24 – Nov 22)

Early in the week, you may feel very confused about your future goals. Trust your instincts and don’t let someone persuade you to deviate from your chosen path.

Keep on course Scorpio! Thursday and Friday are fabulous for transforming a perceived negative into a positive, when the Sun trines Pluto (your power planet).

So make sure you approach tasks with maximum enthusiasm and plenty of passion. As birthday great Roald Dahl wrote: “Lukewarm is no good.”

SAGITTARIUS (Nov 23 – Dec 21)

Avoid being a superficial Sagittarius. A confusing domestic situation or an uncertain work issue requires clear thinking and deft diplomacy. So take off your bossy cap and slip on your humility hat instead! On Friday, you may worry about a relationship problem or an educational matter. Remember there are many shades of grey. If you patiently meditate on the numerous possibilities, then you’ll wake up on Sunday morning with renewed motivation and a workable plan.

If you need help with understanding why you have a tax debt contact the friendly team at Gail Freeman & Co on 6295 2844.

CAPRICORN (Dec 22 – Jan 20)

If you’re not careful then an unreliable relative or a questionable acquaintance could lead you astray. So keep your realism radar on high and avoid getting caught up in dubious daydreams. You’re in for a few hard financial lessons over the next 18 months, as Saturn stirs up your money zone. Clever Capricorns will budget wisely, and favour saving over spending. Strive to build your material security – and also your inner emotional security. Both are equally important to future success.

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.

AQUARIUS (Jan 21 – Feb 19)

Copyright Joanne Madeline Moore 2021

Solutions – September 2 edition Sudoku medium No. 299

PISCES (Feb 20 – Mar 20)

The stars favour joint ventures plus group projects, as you enjoy contributing your creative talents. Draw up a to-do list and be flexible enough to tweak it as the week develops. Expect a dramatic dummy-spit from a loved one though, as Neptune confuses communication. And don’t let someone’s flattering remarks blind you to their real intentions. Keep a smart head on your Pisces shoulders. Singles – take off your rose-coloured glasses and view a prospective partner in a more realistic light.

Solution next edition

Crossword No. 797

Avoid taking shortcuts and jumping to dubious conclusions, Aquarius. This week there’s much more to a situation than meets the eye. So look for the facts that are hidden beneath the surface; be uncharacteristically patient; and do all the research that is required before you approach people or proceed with projects. Plus resist the temptation to blow a big hole in your budget, shop up a storm, and use retail therapy as entertainment. Find less expensive ways to amuse yourself!

"I just tried to lodge my first tax return on MyGov and it says I owe about $5000, but I was expecting a refund. Surely, this can’t be right?"

That was unhappy Maisie on a Zoom meeting to discuss her tax return.

I said: “Looking at what you have lodged, it may well be right. I will explain the things that I see which could have created this.

"Firstly, you seem to have two employers and the tax deducted doesn’t seem to be enough. When you have two employers you can only claim the tax-free threshold from one of them, usually the one who pays you the higher salary.

"So you need to tick the ‘yes’ box at question 9 on the tax-file number declaration form for one employer and for the other you tick the ‘no’ box. Is it possible that you answered this question incorrectly?”

Maisie said she hadn't filled in the form. "My employers did it for me as I didn’t know what to do. I just signed it,” she said.

I replied that was probably the reason she was undertaxed.

"I recommend that you complete a new Tax File Declaration Form for each employer now so that this doesn’t also happen in the current year," I said.

"The effect of claiming two tax-free thresholds is that you are not paying tax on the first $36,400 that you earn as opposed to the correct process which is not to pay tax on the first $18,200 that you earn.

“The next thing I note is that you are repaying a HELP debt. You need to tick the ‘yes’ box at question 10 so that your employer knows to take out additional tax to repay your HELP debt.

"However, HELP is a little complex. When you answer ‘yes’ to question 10 your employer takes out additional tax in accordance with the tax tables. There can be an issue when neither job pays you over the HELP threshold which is currently $47,014.

"The best way to ensure that you have paid sufficient tax to cover your HELP debt is to add your two incomes together and work out whether your total income will exceed the HELP threshold.

"Put that total into the HELP calculator on the Australian Taxation Office website and that will tell you how much to pay towards your HELP debt. Then you can work out how much that is per pay period and in writing ask one of your employers to pay that amount in extra tax each pay. When you lodge your tax return the computer calculates how much you actually need to pay based on your taxable income which is your gross income less allowable deductions.”

Maisie wanted to know how to repay her debt once I had calculated it.

“You will have to contact the tax office to make a payment plan," I told her.

"You can do this online and you just have to nominate the amount you can afford to pay. I can help you with this when we have calculated the amount you owe.

"There is a payment plan calculator so that we can confirm that the amount you want to pay is acceptable to the ATO.” Resigned to this outcome, Maisie said she understood now why she had a tax debt.

02 6295 2844 Unit 9, 71 Leichhardt Street, Kingston ABN 57 008 653 683

(Chartered accountant, SMSF specialist advisor and Authorised Representative of Lifespan Financial Planning Pty Ltd AFS Lic No. 229892)

info@gailfreeman.com.au | www.gailfreeman.com.au Follow us on Facebook

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