CityNews 230518

HOSPITAL TAKEOVER RAISES

AN ENORMOUS RED FLAG

MICHAEL MOORE

GOVERNMENT PLAYS WITH PEOPLE’S LIVES

CALVARY LETTERS

LET’S HAVE A RED-HOT-GO AT STUFFING UP CALVARY, TOO

KEEPING UP THE ACT

SENIORS

12 PAGES BIG

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POLITICS / Calvary Public Hospital

Hospital takeover raises an enormous red flag

THE decision for the ACT government to be the sole public hospital provider for Canberrans has hardly been received with warmth from Calvary staff and the community.

The need for a unilateral decision after Calvary has provided so many years of public hospital services raises an enormous red flag.

“Outrageous thuggery” is the description used by the Acting Leader of the Opposition, Jeremy Hanson. The Liberals have railed against “secrecy and lack of consultation”, “draconian” measures and “secrecy”.

For a government that prides itself on openness and accountability, the decision is pre-emptive. Previous negotiations with Calvary used the excuse of the need for Vatican approval – and this could take many years.

Most Canberrans would welcome a more efficient health system. Since Labor came to government the rating of the Canberra Hospital by national standards has deteriorated and deteriorated. It has moved from one of the strongest, most effective and efficient public health systems in Australia to amongst the weakest.

Attempts to improve culture and gain efficiencies with restructures, investigations, action on culture and changes to senior management, have

had little impact. The Health Minister regularly announced such actions desperate for improvement.

In the meantime, the culture at Calvary Public Hospital has rarely been questioned and the management of the facility has been very effective.

Why then would the Chief Minister and the Minister for Health consider investing more than a billion dollars of taxpayers’ money to build a new hospital over the next decade? This is a government desperate to be seen to do something that might turn the tide of their own failures in managing the healthcare system effectively.

Effective management, especially in the early stages of the pandemic in Canberra, was demonstrated with global-leading high vaccination rates, and carefully managed campaigns

around social distancing, hand washing, contact tracing and isolation. Our community should expect equivalent management of our hospitals, which should be setting national standards in such areas as waiting times for elective surgery and access to emergency care. The opposite is true!

Despite announcing a 20-year plan to build the current southside Canberra Hospital, which was the subject of last week’s column, Chief Minister Andrew Barr has now changed tune and is talking about a single decade.

He said: “Within the next decade, there will be two new hospitals with bigger emergency departments, more treatment spaces and modern equipment to meet the healthcare needs of Canberrans.”

Health Minister Rachel StephenSmith takes us back-to-the-future for those who remember the consolidation arguments used to close the Royal Canberra Hospital on the Acton Peninsula. The arguments were to deliver a more effective and efficient health system.

The health minister said: “Consolidating our public hospitals to create a single network will allow us to better co-ordinate our health services, distribute resources effectively, strengthen the capacity of our workforce, plan infrastructure on a territory-wide basis, and improve health outcomes for all Canberrans.”

In the meantime, it is the Liberals defending staff working at the hospital. Shadow Health Minister Leanne Castley raises the issue of trust: “The people that are drastically affected by this are the staff at Calvary who have clearly not been consulted before this announcement was made. “The health minister must explain why it has been kept secret from the staff and when Calvary was alerted about this draconian step to force them to sell”.

The stance was verified by the CEO of Cavalry Healthcare, Martin Bowles, who pointed out that the

staff “have not been consulted at all about the potential ramifications of this decision”. He added: “I’m not exaggerating saying these people are absolutely devastated.”

There is simply no denying that the ACT government has launched a hostile takeover. Platitudes and thanks to Calvary for 44 years of service will not change this reality as legislation is introduced to allow the takeover.

Politically, the advantage of this move is that it provides an argument that the ACT government is addressing all the ills of the ACT hospital system. With actions like this, it is no wonder that the Liberals are calling for a Royal Commission to really understand the problems and solutions facing our hospital system.

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.

This is a government desperate to be seen to do something that might turn the tide of their own failures in managing the healthcare system effectively.

been very effective.

Amid it all, Calvary’s auxiliary runs out of puff

By Lily PASS

THE Calvary Hospital Auxiliary will be wound up on June 30, after raising more than $2.6 million over 44 years to buy equipment for Calvary Public Hospital.

It follows the downfall of Canberra Hospital Auxiliary, which folded in February, after raising $4.2 million over its 50 years.

Like Canberra Hospital, the Calvary auxiliary’s membership had dropped significantly.

Public officer Margaret Knock, 76, has been part of Calvary Hospital Auxiliary for 27 years and says, sadly, the membership is ageing.

“Unfortunately, we weren’t able to form a committee this year, so we had to make the hard decision to close down,” she says.

“It’s probably like a lot of things, it has run its course. There’s a time and a reason for everything.

“The reason I joined goes back to when I was young. I worked in a hospital, in the office, and we used to go and buy lunch from the kiosk and the ladies there were always lovely.

“I always sort of thought I would

like to be involved in that, one day, and that is my reason, and it’s also about contributing and giving back to the community.

“It is sad, it’s hard to be closing down, it’s the end of an era, but I think we need to look at the positives and the fact that we have raised $2.6 million for the hospital.

“Both patients and staff have benefit ted from that fundraising. We’ve been able to purchase items for the hospital because we know hospital budgets are stretched and medical equipment is very expensive.

“We’ve been able to do things like give people gifts for Christmas, Moth er’s Day, or for their first baby. It’s a nice feeling and people appreciate it and remember it.”

Its closing-down, clearance stalls, held recently in Zouki Foyer, were a last hurrah of success.

“We’ve sold lots, people have been re ally appreciative, and we’ve been able to clear a lot of stock, which is great,” says Margaret.

The clearance stalls earlier this month raised a further $8375 for Cal vary. with all proceeds going towards buying medical equipment for the care and comfort of Calvary Public Hospital patients and staff.

“It was a good way for us to begin finishing up. We had about 30 members in the group in the end. Our numbers have been gradually dwindling for a

Failed government is playing with people’s lives

COLUMNIST Michael Moore

(Page 5) is right to identify desperation by the ACT Labor/ Greens alliance as the motive to take over Calvary.

He can speak from experience as a former ACT health minister and, like Jon Stanhope, speak with credibility in chronicling the decline in ACT Health performance from one of the strongest nationally to one of the weakest systems under Labor.

In recent times, the rise of the tram and its funding has mirrored the decline in funding for health and other services. Why act now? Might political mortality be a factor?

In October 2024 Labor and its Green enablers will confront the people and no amount of fudging will conceal the obvious health decline. More facilities are needed but why have these not been delivered before (certainly before a tram!)?

The nationalisation is to result in the purchase and in time its replacement of the existing hospital with an entirely new facility (which is neither explained or even justified).

Calvary has been criticised over moral stances, fair enough, but Calvary is the best performing part of the ACT public health system. It has been for as long as I can recall, which is at least since 1993. So why cull it? If anything, it will undercut health performance here by doing so. Launching a hostile takeover, and platitudes of thanks don’t quite go together either.

I did disagree with Michael on the issue

of Labor having been, apparently, open and accountable (they aren’t) – another reason for Labor and the Greens to pay a political price is the mendacity they have sought to remedy their health failures. They are playing with people’s lives.

Martin Gordon, Dunlop

Enough is enough

THE recent decision by the ACT government to nationalise the Calvary Public Hospital has brought many comments from both sides of the argument.

There has been the shock from the Catholic Church about being blindsided with no apparent discussions, the other side from the secular “no religion” parties attacking Catholicism and its “mystic beliefs”.

The elephant in the room is the belief in the sanctity of life.

Catholic and many other Christian religions do not condone or believe in abortion or euthanasia. The taking of life either before birth or for any reason after is abhorrent and in some cultures a crime.

Indeed, if I were to take the life of a person because he/she asked me to, I would be charged with a minimum of manslaughter, and yet laws are already in place in Australia –and soon in the ACT – to do exactly that! Sure, it is called Voluntary Assisted Dying, but it is actually killing a person because they have asked – and the medical world has agreed –to put them out of their misery.

This government wants us to accept that the ACT should be at the forefront of all this

sort of legislation, as if it is a race or they need the bragging rights.

Perhaps it is time for the people of the ACT to be asked directly what we want to happen in our territory. The light rail and its extension to Woden is one that stands high on the list.

I for one have had it. We are a democracy and at no time have we been asked about the hospital nationalisation and ever have we been consulted with the true costs of the light rail.

Enough is enough, Mr Barr!

Dave Jeffrey, via email

Distressed for staff

I AM writing to express my deep concern and protest regarding the recent decision to compulsorily take over Calvary Hospital. This move is not only unfair but also has serious consequences for the patients, staff, and the wider community.

Calvary Hospital has been providing excellent healthcare services for years, and it has earned a reputation for being one of the best healthcare providers in the region.

The staff at Calvary Hospital are highly skilled and dedicated professionals who have worked tirelessly to ensure the highest level of patient care. It is deeply distressing to hear that their hard work and commitment are being disregarded. Furthermore, the compulsory takeover will have a negative impact on patients and their families who rely on Calvary Hospital for their healthcare needs. This takeover could result in a decrease in quality care and

longer waiting times for patients, causing unnecessary stress and anxiety.

I urge the government to reconsider this decision and take into account the long-term consequences of this takeover on the hospital staff and the wider community. It is essential that we prioritise the needs of patients and ensure they have access to quality healthcare services.

Errol Good, Macgregor

Time to go on strike!

I BELIEVE it’s time for a Goulburn-schoolstrike-style protest. Shut down Calvary Public Hospital to all but the most dire of emergencies. Send everyone else to Canberra Hospital.

Maybe shut down Marymead and CatholicCare, too. Tell people to go to the ACT government for their care services!

Neil Dunn, Queanbeyan

What of other religions?

SO the ACT government is going to use its endless source of money (until it defaults) buying up Calvary Hospital and spend hundreds of millions more building another hospital on the site.

This is despite there being a desperate need for a new hospital in Tuggeranong, that can be built on more than sufficient free government owned land by the lake or by the river, within a kilometre of the town centre.

Why? The Labor Party sustains longstanding hatreds. In this case, their long-

standing hatred of religion, all religions, not only Catholics, shows itself.

Since the opposition in the ACT is entirely useless, I suppose they can do nothing about it. But now, since ACT Labor has shown its anti-religious bias, maybe ACT Muslims, Hindus, as well as Christians, will start questioning why they are voting for Labor.

Tim Walshaw, Watson

The worry is who’s next?

THE shock planned takeover of Calvary Hospital by “call-in” powers should be deeply worrying to all diplomatic sites, playing fields and Canberra Girls’ Junior School along Melbourne Avenue in the “yellow bits” of the Draft Canberra Plan for Deakin and Yarralumla. And who is next?

Greg Cornwell, Yarralumla

The Communist state

ONE of the pillars of a free democratic society is that contacts are upheld and enforced by law.

If the ACT government can purchase Calvary Hospital by force, then we no longer live in a free democracy. The government has given three weeks’ notice of this action! Is it pure avarice? Everyone in the ACT should be chilled by the proposed compulsory acquisition of Calvary. What is to stop the ACT government going after your business or your home because it suits them?

Rachael Nano, via email

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KEEPING UP THE ACT / making fun of ACT politics

“Now we have completely rooted Canberra Hospital, what next?” wonders our restless Dear Leader* in one of his infrequent, though exclusive columns.

RUNNING down a public hospital isn’t easy. It takes years of neglect and mismanagement to reach the depths that we have achieved in the ACT.

But now we have completely rooted Canberra Hospital, what next? Well, when I was in the shower the other week, I took the notion of having a red-hot-go at stuffing up Calvary Hospital as well.

Drying myself off with a towel, I got on the phone to my spinners and told them to whip up some semblance of a policy and that I would be there in half an hour to hold a press conference.

So, what’s our cooked-up justification for taking over a comparatively better-run hospital?

Well, Calvary is run by the insidious Catholic Church. These are the men in dresses who hate men in dresses, whereas we, more progressively, represent

the men in dresses who hate those other men in dresses. Our differences couldn’t be clearer.

It’s time to replace the church’s conservative, narrowminded approach with a more intolerant, left-wing approach in keeping with how we rigidly think rather than how they rigidly think.

As everyone in the innernorth knows, you can either think like us or simply be wrong.

So, for example, while Calvary Hospital may draw the line at something like abortion, we draw the line at them not taking the issue of plastic straws more seriously. Don’t they know that a single plastic straw can kill a dolphin or baby seal in Lake Burley Griffin? Their lack of concern for Canberra’s native marine life is shocking.

Anyway, I’ve appointed Nurse Rach and a bevy of Melbourne marketing consultants to sort it all out. Best to have it done by the professionals rather than those whiny doctors and

nurses who just want to moan on about working conditions and outcomes. We don’t need their negativity, thank you very much.

But my reign of error doesn’t stop there. There are still many institutions in the ACT who persist in not thinking like I do.

So, after we buy out Calvary, I will acquire all ACT property developers. Sure, they’ve been doing okay of late wrecking the place, but I need them to gentle the frickin’ urbanism out of everywhere, pronto. Every Canberran, except us MLAs, needs to live in a concrete shoebox and that’s all there is to it.

After that, I plan to buy Bentspoke and Capital Brewing and have them make a single ACT beer named after me. I mean, if Albo and Hawkie can have their names on a hip beer, then I should, too! The names currently in the mix are the Cranky-Shafter and the Andy Fail Ale.

Then I’ll buy the internet from whoever owns that and have it only show things that I like. Likewise with all the TV stations and papers. With us owning all the media, we may at last get some proper diversity of opinion!

With hearing aids on, do you find it difficult

Then on to books. Just as John Cleese insisted that the gannet be expurgated from Olsen’s “Standard Book of British Birds” because he didn’t like the way they wet their nests, I too will embark on a comprehensive revision of all books in Canberra libraries.

My particular disgust at the moment is the body shaming that goes with Eric Carle’s “The Very Hungry Caterpillar”. No wonder fewer and fewer ACT caterpillars are turning into butterflies. Not that they should be compelled to do so, either. #letcaterpillarschoose

But speaking of John Cleese, that reminds me. We need to stop him from performing in Canberra. I thought he had been cancelled years ago but, apparently, he still puts himself out there as a comedian. When will jokers like him realise that comedy has no place in modern life?!

To laugh at life is to accept that things often don’t work in the way we’d like them to. And I would sternly remind everyone, with a fine if necessary, that nothing of the sort occurs in the ACT.

*Sorry, not really him at all.

The tram was a ‘solution’ looking for a problem

OF the “problems” identified in the business case for ACT Light Rail – Stage 1, that the project was designed to address, Problem 1 was specified as “the need to build future alternative transport capacity”.

The discussion of the problem in Section 4.2.2.1 of the business case referred to:

• Traffic congestion and slow travel times, in particular along the Northbourne Avenue and Federal Highway corridor; and

• Reduced accessibility by individuals who do not own a car, which in turn carries with it social equity issues.

Travel time savings are typically the largest component of the economic benefits of a transport infrastructure project. Time saved in travel is available for productive economic activity, or for leisure

activities with quantifiable social and wellbeing benefits.

Transport infrastructure has a long life, and any such project should involve an assessment of evolving needs and an eye on emerging technologies. While it is unclear what is meant by “alternative transport capac ity” in the problem definition included in the business case, reference to future needs may be a reasonable starting point.

However, we have not been able to find in the business case a single reference to electric vehicles, autonomous guidance or trackless trams – technolo gies that were emerging at the time the business case was prepared.

The total exclusion of future alternative technologies in the business case is, we think, best explained by the terms of the Labor/Greens Parliamentary Agreement for the 8th Leg islative Assembly signed on November 2, 2012. Clause 2.2

“problem”.

Early lock-in and exclusion of alternatives is not the only concern with the process employed in advancing this project.

Clause 9 in Appendix 4 of

would be created for the procurement and financing of the project. A commitment such as this to the expenditure of unspecified funds without testing the market for procurement and financing, and without any prior public scrutiny of the delivery mechanisms, raises serious questions about both governance arrangements and the probity of the expenditure of

The extent to which the project has addressed “transport problems”, and in particular reduced car use, can be assessed through the travel mode data published by the Australian Bureau of

The table below is drawn from the Census data for 2016 and 2021, shows that of the approximately 43,000 additional employed people, more than 16,000 used cars as their main

The use of public transport, bus and tram combined, remained unchanged as measured by the number of people (a mere increase of 285), with tram patronage being largely offset by a decrease in bus use.

Measuring by share, public transport use dropped from 6.9 per cent in 2016 to 5.9 per cent in 2021 despite the more than $1.7 billion expenditure commitment on tram infrastructure and services.

Car use declined from 69.6 per cent to 64 per cent largely as a result of an increase in the proportion of people working from home, up from 3.1 per cent in 2016 to 10.9 per cent in 2021. The largest change (increase) in proportionate terms as well as in actual numbers was in people working from home, increasing from 3.1 per cent in 2016 to 10.9 per cent in 2021.

Although the lockdowns during the COVID-19 pan-

has been a trend of flexible working arrangements being offered to workers supported by increasing bandwidth and improvements in technology platforms. Along with this trend, at least in some part the steep increase in the proportion of people working from home, is likely to continue.

The transport benefits of the project, assessed by the auditor-general as returning just 49 cents for every dollar spent, are almost certain to be much less in view of the above patronage figures and the additional costs that were not included in the original business case.

Social equity and access benefits envisaged could hardly have been delivered when public housing households were dislocated to meet the densification and financing objectives.

Although an ex-post costbenefit analysis has not been performed, it is clear that Stage 1 of the project is an economic failure.

Stage 2 is certain to be a greater failure due to (a) the technical complexities of the route, which will significantly increase costs, (b) potentially negative transport benefits due to increase (rather than decrease) in journey times; (c) trend increase in flexible work arrangements; (d) any densification benefits along the route being strongly contested by the community, and in any event, not dependent on the project; and (e) alternative technologies maturing further and being much more cost-effective.

The ACT government is apparently locked into a provider for Stage 2, and indeed for further stages should it continue to pursue the network across the city. This raises serious questions about the efficacy and appropriate -

JON STANHOPE and AHMED explain how Stage 1 of the light rail project is an economic failure and that Stage 2 is certain to be a greater failure, with serious questions about procurement without a competitive process.

Table 1: Changes in Travel Mode – 2016 to 2021

Light rail… public transport use dropped from 6.9 per cent in 2016 to 5.9 per cent in 2021 despite the more than $1.7 billion expenditure commitment on tram infrastructure and services.

Battery breakthrough, tram rattles on

THE ABC has a policy, it seems, that no good news comes from China. So you’ll be forgiven if you missed the report from Shanghai that finally nailed the ACT government’s idiotic insistence on pursuing 19th century tram technology.

The tram is not just some harmless “virtue signalling” by the Labor-Greens team that has governed Canberra for almost a generation; nor is it simply the arrogance of unlimited power in an electorate where the Liberal opposi tion has been at the right-wing fringe dominated by the former Senator Zed Seselja. It is an irresponsible, outlandishly expensive absurdity.

It might have made some sense when Walter Burley Griffin included it in his 1912 plan, for a city of a maximum 10,000 inhabitants. Today, as the population closes in on 500,000 across a vast expanse of countryside, it is laughable… or would be if Canberrans were not wrestling grimly with government charges that have soared in a vain attempt to pay for the folly.

Moreover, the latest revelation from the local press is that the government has sought up to $2 billion from “Middle East” sources to pay for more tram lines and some other infrastructure. In short, the place looks a mess,

local company, CATL, unveiled a battery that could propel electric cars more than 1000 kilometres on a single charge. It could even power an electric aircraft. Their product will not only be used in road transport but all other forms of mobility including civil aviation.”

“Battery design is like a goldrush at the moment,” the report said, “as researchers push the boundaries of materials chemistry and develop lighter, longer lasting, safer, cheaper batteries that charge more quickly.

“CATL plans to go into mass production later this year.”

Of course, the benefits go well beyond Canberra – the EVs could make the trip from Sydney to Melbourne on a single charge; and since most folk don’t

need that range, they’ll buy smaller batteries and cheaper cars. But, like so many other Canberrans, I am outraged that the tram is so expensive when there’s the certain prospect of silent, pollution-free buses with no expensive tracks, cars that cruise quietly and safely over well-tended roads.

And just as important, there would be enough left over to keep the capital, the horticultural showcase and climate change protector created by the great arboreal warriors Charles Weston (between 1913-26) and Lindsay Pryor (1945-58).

As mentioned in an earlier column, I am currently engaged in the research and writing of Charles Weston’s biography – a wonderful

character and a giant in his field.

Much of the work has been in collaboration with the long-time forester and NCDC executive, John Gray, whose doctoral thesis on Weston is a brilliant academic achievement.

John has long been angered by the government’s neglect of Canberra’s protective “green mantle” throughout the city. With clean battery power there would be more than enough funding to retain the capital as the horticultural showcase created by Weston from 1913-26 and the other great arboreal warrior, Lindsay Pryor from 1945-58.

In short, Canberra’s premier example of a city’s arboreal character is suffering. It is an assault on the capital’s heritage.

And as the chief minister plans to extend its reach across the lake to service yet another high-rise apartment cluster, it can only get worse. Who could ever have believed that the bar would be set so low?

Designers named for theatre revamp

ARCHITECTUS, Danish architects Henning Larsen and international theatre designers ARUP have been confirmed as the consortium to design the Canberra Theatre Centre redevelopment.

The government says stakeholders and the community will have an opportunity to influence the project with consultation opportunities being planned for later this year that will continue into 2024.

Charity sale for Ukraine

THE promise is that tables will “overflow with beautiful hand-knitted scarves and beanies of every colour” (many at $5 each) at this year’s Winter Warmers Charity Sale at Kangara Waters Retirement Village, Joy Cummings Place, Belconnen on Saturday, May 27, 8.30am-12.30pm. There will also be gloves, hats, jumpers and cardigans for adults and children. Everything raised will be directed through the Red Cross to help in Ukraine. Cash and credit card payment will be accepted.

The tram is not just some harmless ‘virtue signalling’ by the LaborGreens team that has governed Canberra for almost a generation… It is an irresponsible, outlandishly expensive absurdity.

An early concept design of the Canberra Theatre Centre.

Interior experts get a warm welcome to Weston

IN stunning new premises at Cooleman Court, T & Q Interior Solutions offers the full range of interior design and renovation services, says manager, Kimberley Mallard.

“We are a one-stop-shop for all your interior needs, from beautifully created custom furniture, full residential renovations and commercial fit outs as well as stylish homewares and gifts,” she says. Kimberley says that the business, which started in 2020 and was originally located in Phil lip, is thrilled to have its new store and showroom up and running in Cooleman Court, Weston. It’s had great feedback from locals and clients.

“The convenience of our location appeals to a lot of people. They can come and see us easily and have the opportunity to browse the showroom and get their questions answered by our friendly team,” she says.

“People have thanked us for being here and offering our services to the local community of Weston Creek and beyond.”

Kimberley says she’s added some beautifully curated homewares as part of T & Q’s retail offering and loves working with local artists and hobbyists to display their work in the showroom as part of the company’s commitment to supporting the local community.

“We also stock tapware and furniture and have recently launched our own quality flat-pack wardrobe range that is customisable with lighting options and the choice of different style doors,” she says.

“There are two size options and we can help install or sell directly to tradespeople or those who want to do it themselves.”

She says that the team at T & Q strive to go above and beyond to ensure clients are well looked after.

“We know that, for some, renovating can feel a bit overwhelming and it’s hard to know where to start,” she says.

“We take all the guesswork out of the process and are with our clients from start to finish. As a small business, people know we are here to

help them.”

T & Q has a dedicated, talented team of designers, detailers and customer-service staff and will project manage all aspects of the renovation, using quality local tradespeople.

Lead interior designer Antonio Maldonado has been with T & Q since the beginning and says he loves the diversity of the work and transforming spaces for his clients.

“We offer a free, one-hour consultation to clients to help them understand what they want to achieve,” he says.

“We have a number of options on display as well and colours and texture palettes that people can mix and match to their style.

“We encourage people to play with the different elements and get involved with the process.”

Antonio says that his role is to “manicure” the

clients’ ideas and budget to bring them to life and create innovative and practically designed spaces, adding that : “It’s so rewarding to come to a great design solution for our clients that really suits them and incorporates the aesthetics that they want. We do everything from the interior architecture, designs and layouts, to installations.”

Antonio says that sometimes his clients cannot believe the transformation that has occurred in their home and encourages others who might be contemplating a renovation or upgrade of their interiors to come and discuss their ideas with him and the team at T & Q.

T & Q Interior Solutions, Shop 91C Cooleman Court, 26 Brierley Street, Weston, open seven days. Visit tandq.com.au to make an online booking.

‘We take all the guesswork out of the process and are with our clients from start to finish’

Lead interior designer Antonio Maldonado and T & Q Interior Solutions manager Kimberley Mallard…

“We know that, for some, renovating can feel a bit overwhelming and it’s hard to know where to start,” says Kimberley.

When bargain with a living saint goes to hell

“PRO bono” – for the public good – these are legal services that are provided for no fee. Hence, they are rare, avoided by most lawyers.

They are now to become even rarer. We will all be the poorer.

“Pro bono” is the usual approach in “wrongful conviction” cases –notoriously hard to overturn – often requiring years of work that is done from a sense of wanting to remedy a seeming injustice.

Those lawyers who agree to do it have no idea how much time and effort will be spent, nor how much abuse will be copped in the process. They are innocents abroad who acquire bitter lessons on their journey.

Typically, the work in such cases involves many hundreds of hours –sifting through masses of records, carrying out investigations, writing submissions and being repeatedly rebuffed by people being paid while the pro bono lawyer gets nothing.

Those who take “pro bono” cases can rightly hope to be recompensed if the client acquires the means to pay. The lawyer can say to the client: “At the moment you don’t have any funds. I’ll work on your case for no fee, but if you are released and win the lottery, or you come into funds in any other way, such as by inheritance or a government

payout, then I expect you to pay”.

A prisoner client, serving many years, will welcome this offer.

Keep in mind that the prisoner has no funds, a long sentence and the bare hope that this altruistic lawyer is prepared to take a very long-odds gamble. If you were the prisoner, wouldn’t you agree to this offer? There is no downside. It’s not a bargain with the devil. It’s a bargain with a living saint.

Does it need to be in writing to show how reasonable it is? No.

And if the prisoner was later released and paid a large sum by the government, wouldn’t you think that, since the lawyer had done a lot of work, the bargain should be honoured?

In an ideal world, surely the grateful prisoner would want to pay the lawyer.

In the real world where “grateful” is aspirational, one would still hope, even expect, that the court would step in, using its inherent powers, to set out a means for assessing this “success” fee and ensure that the ungrateful, former incarcerated client paid at least some recompense to the lawyer – sharing the luck, so to speak.

Well, you’d be wrong – at least in SA (and since it is an appellate decision, it applies across the country). Their appeal court decided in late March that a lawyer got nothing for all his efforts over many years (Hegarty v Keogh No. 2 [2023] SASCA 30).

They said that the agreement about the lawyer’s efforts had to be in writing. Spoken wasn’t enough. They said that since it was a later law change (to allow a “new” appeal), and new

lawyers, that got the prisoner out of jail, all the work – which was appropriate when it was done – was irrelevant, didn’t count and so had no value.

The judgement showed no awareness of the conduct of “wrongful conviction” campaigns: how they were initiated; how they developed; the emotional trauma; the amount of effort met by inevitable dead ends, wrong turns, disappointments; and, the need to keep fingers crossed for a bit of luck, if not tomorrow then soon, please, soon.

It gets worse. The decision says that because the prisoner was released and the DPP chose not to have a second trial that the release was not a release. Then it contends that because the payment made by the government was “ex gratia” with no admissions that it was not compensation.

That’s an odd bit of interpretation: the prisoner was freed, is free, and the government gave him a lot of money.

But why does it matter to you and me? It matters because “pro bono” is an essential element – albeit a last-ditch one – in our legal system, a system in which mistakes are inevitable and resistance by police, prosecutors and judiciary to later acknowledging those mistakes is also inevitable.

Without “pro bono” there will be more injustice. “Pro bono” work needs to be encouraged, especially for long-term campaigns. The SA decision kills off such campaigns. A written agreement for a “wrongful conviction” campaign is pie in the sky. It assumes a state of certainty when there is nothing but uncertainty and despair.

This recent SA, three-judge decision needs to be overturned. An application is to be made to the High Court. If successful, then that court may give guidance about not only “pro bono” engagements that are “open ended” as to their duration, but also when and how it is proper to value work that has been done by an altruistic lawyer over many years. Fingers crossed that “no good deed goes unpunished” is not a rule of our lives.

Hugh Selby is the “CityNews” legal affairs commentator. His free podcasts on “Witness Essentials” and “Advocacy in court: preparation and performance” can be heard on the best known podcast sites.

If the prisoner was released and paid a large sum by the government, wouldn’t you think that, since the lawyer had done a lot of work, the bargain should be honoured? Well, you’d be wrong.

Greenslabor denies the city its ‘sense of place’

THERE’S a common theme to the many well-crafted and informed submissions by residents trying desperately to influence the proposals to change the city’s planning.

This theme is rarely articulated clearly, but nevertheless it is there. People care about their homes, their streets, their suburbs and their city. Residents have a “sense of place” and they share this with others within their areas.

To quote from an online journal from May 2016, “The Nature of Cities”: “Sense of place – the way we perceive places such as streets, communities, cities or ecoregions – influences our well-being, how we describe and interact with a place, what we value in a place, our respect for ecosystems and other species, how we perceive the affordances of a place, our desire to build more sustainable and just urban communities, and how we choose to improve cities.

“Our sense of place also reflects our historical and experiential knowledge of a place, and helps us imagine its more sustainable future.”

Residents will identify with this description of a sense of place. They think about it as they move around their streets and it is a key to why they live where they do. They embrace

the ambiance of their area while appreciating that others, likewise, identify with their own suburbs in similar but different ways.

Residents have that sense of place when they come over the hills driving into Canberra and see the city in front of them. They used to have it as they drove down Northbourne (maybe that will return). They have it as they move around their own suburban areas such as in Gungahlin, Belconnen, Weston Creek and Tuggeranong. The inner-south residents definitely know what a sense of place is all about. Residents of Downer have their own sense of place and desperately want to have a say in their suburb’s future. This concept forms the basis of most residents’ day-to-day reality.

Many community groups and individuals are very good at providing detailed reasons for what they do and don’t want done to their neighbourhoods. They talk passionately of streetscapes, trees, solar, gardens, heritage interests, parks, open spaces, bird life, greenery, clean air and places for families to enjoy and be safe.

They respond politely and with best intentions to some new announcement about an aspect of the planning regulations even though most have little chance of understanding what is really going on.

Residents use the concept of a sense of place as the basis for their aspirations and what they want the politicians and planning bureaucrats to acknowledge as being important.

This is where it all comes undone. The ACT Greenslabor politicians along with their planning, housing and urban infrastructure bureaucrats continually negate the importance that residents place on a sense of place. The bureaucrats have rules that define outcomes desired by the government, no matter how silly and destructive, while these same rules treat a sense of place as being an irrelevant issue.

A sense of place does not mean that everything must stay the same. The Canberra communities are intelligent and well-informed enough to know that change is happening especially as there is an urgent need for more affordable housing and that new homes and renovations can be far better designed to meet 21st century standards as well as enhance the greenery and biodiversity. This is not the basis for the chief minister’s deregulation reforms.

The difference being that his changes to urban character are being forced on to neighbourhoods in a form that denies the heritage, the ambiance and the urban character.

What is being proposed as the future of Canberra’s suburban development is completely top down. It is as if

the city has a medieval dictator with unfettered powers to decide how and where his people may live. Decisions are being made whether residents should be moved on to make way for something preferred by those close to government – the investors who make it their business to stay friendly (for now) with Greenslabor politicians. The Greenslabor politicians and their bureaucracies failed to use a sense of place as the basis for proposed changes to our cherished city. Recognising a sense of place has consistently been absent from the planning directorate’s disrespectful attempts at community engagements. The obvious problem could be the nature of ACT political parties and the laissez-faire culture of the government bureaucracies. Surely, it cannot be something so obvious. It must be something deeper and maybe nastier than that.

Paul Costigan is a commentator on cultural and urban matters. There are more of his columns at citynews.com.au

What is being proposed as the future of Canberra’s suburban development is top down – as if the city has a medieval dictator with unfettered powers to decide how and where his people may live.

A suburban sense of place… people care about their homes, their streets, their suburbs and their city.

Pigheaded government won’t listen on density

Current policy is not providing the housing diversity needed to ensure the needs of people of all ages, abilities and lifestyles are met.

THE internationally acknowledged 1969 General Plan Concept (Y-Plan), guided Canberra’s development between the 1960s and the early 2000s.

Canberrans still benefit from its legacy – new towns with town centres with significant employment, higher-order retailing and community facilities; the network of group and local centres, extensive cycle and pedestrian networks, peripheral road parkways, the intertown transport spine and high-quality open space.

The strategy worked with the population’s preferences for low-density living and harnessed decentralising trends to enable short trips to work, schools, community services, shopping and open spaces.

Employment dispersal provided major transport benefits including shorter journeys to work, reduced traffic congestion, opportunities for multi-purpose trips and lower fuel, parking and transport infrastructure requirements.

Employment at the centres supported businesses with those

employed at the centres having the opportunity to walk to shops and services. The framework facilitated the timely and efficient delivery of social and physical infrastructure and avoided the “sprawl” that characterised the development of other Australian cities.

The Y-Plan needed modification to respond to social, demographic and workforce changes, an increased awareness of the environmental impacts of development and a reduced ability to influence the location of Commonwealth employment.

The major revision was to increase the share of growth achieved by redevelopment. The aim was to place additional population close to existing employment to reduce travel and car use and associated greenhouse gas emissions; encourage public transport, walking and cycling; make better use of existing social and physical infrastructure; ease infrastructure demands on the fringe, widen housing choice and contribute to a more vibrant urban environment.

The 2018 Planning Strategy arbitrarily increased the infill share of land releases from around 50 per

cent to 70 per cent. It ignored the results of the 2015 Housing Choices Community Survey undertaken by Winton Sustainable Research Strategies, which found a strong preference for detached dwellings.

Of the 14,900 increase in higherdensity dwellings between 2016 and 2021, more than 75 per cent were flats.

It is not providing sufficient opportunities for those wishing to down-size to a more energy efficient, lowermaintenance dwelling or to families with children by providing sufficient and appropriate medium-density dwellings at an affordable price.

It is, by restricting the release of detached housing blocks unnecessarily limiting choice and contributing to increased housing prices and increased car-dependent, detached housing development in surrounding NSW. The government refuses to acknowledge there is a problem, doubling down on its 70 per cent infill dictate.

Nor does the government’s response to the projected increase in the ACT population generate confidence.

Instead of assessing how and where the additional growth could best be accommodated, the government simply increased the population of several districts.

For example, in the Molonglo District Strategy, released in November 2022, the district’s capacity was identified as 55,000 yet in the population projections, released a few months later, its population in 2060 is

projected to be 86,000. Is this increase feasible and, if so, at what cost? Could some of the population growth be better accommodated in alternative areas such as Kowen?

An evidence-based approach to land release is required with the level of infill determined after considering the relative travel, financial, environmental and infrastructure costs of accommodating additional housing in greenfield and existing areas, housing preferences, regional impacts, the implications of increased working from home on travel and the scope for increased employment dispersal.

The mismanagement is also demonstrated in the failure to construct sufficient social housing, the unjustified extension of light rail and the inability to increase the share of trips made by public transport, contributing to increased congestion and associated greenhouse emissions. For improved city management a comprehensive and independent review of Canberra’s land use and transport strategies and administration is required. The review should consider improving the bureaucratic strength and resourcing of the planning agency, to enable it to be more than a speed-bump and provide competent and frank advice.

Mike Quirk is a retired NCDC and ACT government planner.

Former planner MIKE QUIRK says the ACT government refuses to acknowledge there is a problem with its planning policy, doubling down on its 70 per cent infill dictate.

The National Capital Development Commission’s “Y-Plan” for Canberra, 1970. It takes its name from the shape of its settlement and transportation corridors.

Phenomenal amount of recognition already exists

THE advocates of constitutional recognition (the Voice) seem to be unaware of the phenomenal amount of recognition that already exists.

They seem not to know that in 2013 the federal parliament enacted The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders Recognition Act, which stated: “...The parliament, on behalf of the people of Australia, recognises that the continent and islands now known as Australia were first occupied by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

“The parliament, on behalf of the people of Australia, acknowledges the continuing relationship of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples with their traditional lands and waters.

“The parliament, on behalf of the people of Australia, acknowledges and respects the continuing cultures, languages and heritage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples”.

Another and very long-standing form of recognition is place names. Right from the start, we’ve accepted Aboriginal names for localities instead of replacing them holus-bolus with British ones. In the Sydney area, for example, there are long-standing place names such as Parramatta, Woollahra, Cronulla, Bondi and Coogee.

Also, for years the states and (since 1967) the federal government have had Ministers for Aboriginal Affairs, and many acts have been passed to promote Aboriginal interests in such areas as land rights and heritage protection. An example is the Family Law Act of 1975, which requires the consideration of Aboriginal culture and practices in determining the best interests of an Aboriginal child.

If all this recognition and expenditure hasn’t solved problems like ill-health and imprisonment rates, then why would a constitutional amendment make any difference?

Malcolm H Brandon, via email

No to a body selected by ancestry

ANDREW Leigh (“Why I’m campaigning for ‘Yes’ to the Voice”, CN May 4) betrays a devotion to identity politics when he speaks of Aboriginal “civilisation”.

Agriculture and cities were introduced to Australia very recently despite Bruce Pascoe’s nostrums. Either way, Leigh’s claim that Aboriginal culture is the oldest is mistaken. The African San win that trophy.

He describes in compelling detail the worst effects of swamping Aboriginal society with the tsunami of modernity. The horror and benefits, which visited all indigenous cultures and civilisations, don’t justify a constitutional body selected by ancestry; we must solve these vexing problems as fellow human beings. Constitutional differentiation on the pretext of “breeding” has a ghastly history.

Peter Robinson, Ainslie

Not more abstractions, nor wishful thinking

NEAR the end of his opinion piece (“Why I’m campaigning for ‘Yes’ to the Voice”, CN May 4) Andrew Leigh writes:

(1) “it [will] strengthen Australia’s decision-making process”,

(2) it will “lift people up” and

(3) it will “unite our nation”.

Stirring stuff perhaps, but vague and theoretical claims.

Will he please explain, with real examples, how he thinks:

(1) The Commonwealth’s decisionmaking process in, say, defence and taxation, two of its major responsibilities, will be “strengthened” by what sort of additional input from four per cent of the population?

(2) Disadvantaged Aboriginals – pre -

One race should not be favoured over another

I AGREE with Bill Bowron (Letters, CN May 4), who questions the value of introducing a Voice.

As he states: “There are already Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups dealing with state and local issues”.

He asks whether the taxpayer will be supporting a multitude of voices in the future. Similarly, Vi Evans is against the Voice and listed the 3000 Aboriginal Corporations, 30 Land Councils, and 1300 people employed for the NIAA.

I also support Mario Stivala who wrote that activating the referendum would cost a huge sum of money, close to $82 million of taxpayers’ money.

Cartoon: Paul Dorin

sumably the “people” he refers to – will be “lifted up” in a manner not achievable without the Voice?

(3) How (and this is contradictory, almost Orwellian) providing special additional representation for that four per cent will unite, rather than, as one might think, divide and separate our population?.

I do ask for real examples or illustrations of each, not more abstractions, nor wishful thinking.

Surely, a government assistant minister campaigning for the Voice must be able to illustrate its likely actual and practical operation.

Hugh Dakin, Griffith

Voice has been hijacked by the indigenous elite

THE Voice appears to have been hijacked by the indigenous elite of the ilk of professors Marcia Langton and Tom Calma. Meanwhile the indigenous outback community is left in the dark, among many others, as to how the Voice will actually work, particularly about how it will improve their lifestyle.

As it is up to the parliament and executive to finalise the minutiae of the Voice, it effectively means that the voters will not know beforehand what they will be voting for, which is both unacceptable and undemocratic. The government has, to date, obfuscated, intimidated and indulged in secrecy regarding the Voice, which begs the question, what have they got to hide?

Mario Stivala, Belconnen

As far as I am concerned, I do not agree with the Voice. I think we are one country and one race should not be favoured over another. None of us are responsible for what happened 250 years ago.

Even with the Voice, most Australian Aborigines will continue to feel victimised. Although the wording that “we respectfully acknowledge the traditional owners of the land, etcetera” is plainly explanatory and sufficient, I believe most of us do care for their future.

Myriam Amar via email

Grandstanding at our expense yet again

HAVING just received the May issue of “Our Canberra”, I thought it necessary to ask the question: can we afford to fund the latest Labor/Greens idea and has it been costed?

The ACT is in so much debt (over $6.5 billion) and yet the Labor/Greens alliance feel it appropriate to give the students in years 10 to 12 in five schools, an 18-month trial period of free breakfasts and lunches.

I can understand that there are a lot of poor people in the community, but you cannot tell me that all the students in those schools come from low-income families.

Why should the population of the ACT be expected to feed the students of those select few schools when they may not be disadvantaged?

Do the Labor/Greens alliance feed the homeless? No. If they do get fed it is from charitable organisations, not the government.

Is the Labor/Greens coalition grandstanding at our expense yet again? Yes.

Is the Labor/Greens coalition ignoring those who are really in need? Yes.

Has anything changed? No.

Fir tree doomed by tram project

IN their discussion of Canberra’s light rail project (“How light rail drove ACT economy off the rails”, CN May 11) Jon Stanhope and Khalid Ahmed state: “It is surely drawing a very long bow to expect that below-trend growth in the national economy, federal government job losses and cuts in Commonwealth spending could or would be ameliorated by construction of a12-kilometre tram line”.

In “CityNews” of April 20 I pointed out a potentially very expensive problem at the Adelaide Avenue overpass of Hopetoun Circuit. I subsequently identified a probably very expensive and disruptive (to traffic) problem at the Adelaide Avenue overpass on Kent/Novar Street (CN May 4). There is more.

At the Carruthers Street overpass of Yarra Glen there is a huge, doubtless very old fir tree alive, well, and still growing directly in line with the planned light rail route. Theoretically, the rails could pass either side of the tree. However, in my opinion, the engineers and railway constructors would insist on removing the tree to make their lives a little easier; the ACT government would insist that the task be less costly. I dare say that such an action would bring howls and submissions of protest from both the local residents and many people who travel on Yarra Glen.

There are several further expensive problems closer to Woden.

Vi Evans via email

Dr Douglas Mackenzie, Deakin

Health, knowledge and support… it’s all about seniors

FROM looking after their health to getting their affairs in order, these Canberra businesses know the importance of helping older citizens in the community.

This expertise allows seniors to balance their priorities with ease, making time for both the necessary and the fun.

“CityNews” speaks with the people and services passionate about improving the lives of Canberra’s older community.

Building connections and confidence

HAVING spent more than 30 years in the travel industry and being very frustrated at not being able to offer solo travellers what they wanted – no single supplements and something specific for solo travellers – Denise Falsay opened Solo Connections in 2015.

“Prior to registering the business, I did a lot of research and found there was a large number of solo travellers that were just too afraid to travel on their own,” she says.

“They may have had a partner that no longer wanted to or couldn’t travel, got recently divorced or became a widow and the thought of travelling again on their own was just too daunting.

“With this in mind I made the decision to create tours that would provide everyone with

Capital Nordic Walking needs volunteers

KRISTEN Pratt, founding director of Capital Nordic Walking, says they have taught more than 3000 Canberrans to Nordic walk, and it changes lives every day.

“Nordic walking blends walking with cross-country skiing – it uses the whole body, is low impact, takes strain off your joints, and the poles provide additional stability,” she says.

“For people with painful arthritic joints, ex-runners, people with Parkinson’s Disease or Multiple Sclerosis, and older people who’ve lost their strength and confidence in walking – the poles enable them to move safely and easily, and often

“What keeps people moving is our Nordic walking community outreach program – where Nordic walkers of all ages and fitness levels get together for a supported walking, talking workout –finishing up with a coffee,” says Lynn.

Kristen and Lynn say Capital Nordic Walking needs more volunteers to enable them to expand their free, supported Nordic walking groups across Canberra so that everyone who wants to join can easily make it.

“Importantly – you don’t need to be a Nordic walker to volunteer with us! Volunteers simply need a love of walking

the sanctuary of their own private room, at least two meals each day and all the must-see sightseeing. I also believed that it was very important to have a host travel with the group to make sure that everyone was being looked after and that everything ran smoothly throughout the tour; someone on hand 24/7 if needed.”

Denise says, put quite simply, she cares.

“What drives my passion is the positive feedback that we receive from clients, the friendships that we see forming on tour and hearing that we have given someone back their confidence.”

Solo Connections. Call 1300 044444, or visit soloconnections.com.au

Capital Nordic Walking needs more Volunteers

Capital Nordic Walking Community Outreach Program

As a CNW volunteer, I am able to reach out to people and encourage and support them to improve, regain or keep their mobility, enabling them to stay more socially connected.

- Suzanne

Being a CNW Angel has allowed me to get out of my bubble of young adults and into the community, to meet lovely and fascinating people, and to learn more about the place I live.

low impact - high results - total body fitness

- Riley

Cradle Mountain, Tasmania… one of the discovery tours on September 22.

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Journey with us to Ireland and Scotland where you will be immersed in the culture, the legends and the unique history of these incredibly beautiful countries. Learn more about their magnificent castles, towering mountains, lochs and lakes, stunning scenery, the local dancing and the craic.

Please join us for an informative night about the Cemetery & Funeral Industry.

This will include what we do, how we do it, information about end-of-life challenges and death care, we will talk about things you might not know.

Finishing the night with a tour of our Cremation Facilities with Q & A.

There will be many Funeral Industry professionals on hand to answer all your questions on the night.

Please join us afterwards for light refreshments in our Centenary Room next to the chapel, where you can meet & mingle with local Funeral Directors and other Industry leaders.

Dr Vass offers life-changing hearing help

GETTING help with hearing loss is all about improving communication and gaining clarity, says Dr Vass Hearing Clinic principal Dr William Vass.

Offering professional, independent advice and treatment, Dr Vass says taking the first step with a hearing test can be life-changing.

“We know hearing loss can be linked to anxiety, isolation, anger, relationship issues, work issues and miscommunication in general,” he says.

“After treatment or rehabilitation patients can find it a lot easier to get along with people, don’t have to guess so much and are much more confident in their communication skills, especially with their partner.”

While hearing loss can come with ageing, Dr Vass says it can also often affect young people too.

“Those exposed to loud noises in military and construction fields can experience hearing loss. Some

Limited places available it is essential we receive your RSVP by: Wednesday 24th May, COB

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people might be genetically exposed to hearing loss or there could be viral infections,” he says.

“It’s very important to act early. Waiting too long can start to see a disconnect between the brain and the ear.

“We find that those people who put off getting help with their hearing loss for long periods don’t have as successful outcomes as those who seek help earlier.”

Dr Vass says patients have the certainty that they’ll be seeing him when they visit the clinic and that he will provide one-on-one, tailored care and advice.

“It’s rewarding to help people not be so isolated, and help improve their communication with others, especially their loved ones,” he says.

Dr Vass Hearing Clinic, suite 14, John James Medical Centre, 175 Strickland Crescent, Deakin. Call 6282 2717 or visit drvasshearing.com.au

Principal Dr William Vass… “It’s rewarding to help people not be so isolated, and help improve their communication with others, especially their loved ones,” he says.

In-home care provides happier ageing

NURSE Next Door provides in-home care services so that seniors can continue to live in their own homes as they age, says managing director Kylie Williams.

“Our focus is on happier ageing and making lives better,” says Kylie.

“Some clients may engage us for one visit per week, other clients may be every day. It really depends on them.”

Kylie says Nurse Next Door also asks clients what they like doing and builds their hobbies and interests into their care. provide

“It

ments provided.”

Michael says it’s absolutely essential they receive any RSVPs by the end of the day on May 24.

Individual strategies the ‘forte’ of Greenlight

LOCAL chartered accounting firm Greenlight Super Services is run by owners Vanessa Rae and Danielle Rodda, and senior manager Noelia Pinto.

Specialising in self-managed superannuation funds (SMSF), Vanessa and Danielle have a combined total of 50 years of chartered accounting experience and are accredited specialists by the SMSF Association.

“Being a smaller firm, Greenlight is able to be agile with the changing technology and ever changing legislation to the benefit of its clients,” says Danielle.

“SMSF is an area of accounting that can provide strategies for retirement that greatly minimise tax.

“We provide a personal-service solution, we want to help people get the best out of their superannuation and we care about their futures.”

Noelia says she discovered a passion for SMSFs and providing strategic advice and solutions to assist clients with preparing for retirement.

“It’s very refreshing to work with other like-minded SMSF specialists. There is no other practice in Canberra that has the same breadth of experience as we have combined,” says Noelia.

Together, they say Greenlight takes pride in being able to help others navigate their annual compliance, provide strategic advice for wealth-creation goals and investment structuring.

Located at Marcus Clarke Street in Civic, Greenlight also provides services remotely via its online portal and video calls.

“We understand that no two clients are the same, so individual strategies are our forte. We have the skills, knowledge and process that will make a difference,” says Vanessa.

Greenlight Super Services, visit greenlightsuper.com.au or call 6273 1066.

The importance of getting screened for diabetes

DIABETES Australia operations manager NSW ACT Natalie Smith says that as people get older their risks of diabetes also increase.

“Unfortunately, as we get older the pancreas produces less insulin meaning there’s a higher risk, especially for type 2 diabetes,” she says.

“That’s why it’s so important for us to continue raising awareness, for people to have a conversation with their GP or health-care provider and get screened every year.”

Natalie says that the earlier diabetes is detected, the faster treatment and lifestyle changes can begin to stop or delay complications such as heart disease and amputations.

“There is support out there, and I am seeing more and more stories of people who are diagnosed early that are going into remission,” she says.

“Nationally, 5.6 per cent of people have diabetes,

in the ACT there are more than 20,000 living with it too.”

She says Diabetes Australia has an online calculator where people can measure how much risk they’re at of the chronic illness.

“It calculates cultural, genetic and lifestyle factors that contribute, and we encourage everyone to do it,” says Natalie.

It’s just one of the many services the organisation offers to help people living with the condition, including a membership support package that allows people to learn from others living with diabetes.

“If you’re diagnosed with diabetes, don’t panic, call us. We’re here to help,” says Natalie.

Diabetes Australia, visit diabetesaustralia.com.au or call 1800 177055.

Vanessa Rae, left, Noelia Pinto and Danielle Rodda of Greenlight Super Services.

Diabetes Australia operations manager NSW ACT Natalie Smith.

AS the owner of Renovation Matters, Kim Persson says her love of renovating has seen her take her passion from a hobby to a successful business.

With more than 40 renovations under her belt, she’s got the experience and know-how to transform homes to the best effect.

“If you are finding current times difficult, or struggling with the pressure of cost-of-living or a higher mortgage and you need to sell, we can help you to maximise your sales price,” says Kim.

“Or if you’re looking at moving into the next phase of your life and downsizing, we can help to take the stress away.

“We can also renovate to add in shower rails or seats.

“We can do as much or as little as you like. Some people just hand us the keys and don’t return until the auction.”

Kim says times are changing and it’s important to strategise.

“It’s becoming more important to give your house an uplift, making sure the home is well presented,” she says.

“I’m hearing from some real estate agents that houses that are unrenovated or needing repairs are sitting on the market and not moving.

Renovation Matters offers a “fix up, profit and pay later” process in which they can cover upfront renovation costs before settlement.

“We can fund improvements until settlement,” she says.

“There’s nothing we can’t do to help make the renovation a stress-free experience.”

Renovation Matters, visit renovationmatters.com.au or call Kim on 0427 696662.

Enlightening people on their legal options

TAKING the first step in estate planning is often an enlightening experience, with many people surprised to find out what they’re actually worth, says KJB Law’s estate planning special counsel Kerstin Glomb.

“I have clients who believe they don’t own much, but then when we walk through things like superannuation and life insurance they’re surprised to find out how much they’re actu ally worth and what they have to organise,” she says.

“After that initial meeting I find people feel a lot of relief and peace of mind that they’ve started the process.”

Although it can be an uncomfortable topic to approach, Kerstin says estate planning is something everyone should think about and KJB takes pride in helping ease the burden and making clients feel comfortable.

“We guide people through what options they have and what they should address so that they can take charge in providing protection for themselves and their loved ones,” says Kerstin.

“It’s about working out with a client who are the right people in their family or broader sur roundings and then structuring their document to reflect that.

“There’s nothing better than when people say after signing that they’re happy to have it in place, feel comfortable and most importantly that they understand what they’ve signed.”

KJB Law, ground floor, 10 Corinna Street, Woden. Call 6281 0999 or visit kjblaw.com.au

KJB Law special counsel Kerstin Glomb.

Renovation Matters operation manager Amy Gannon, left, with owner Kim Persson.

aged-care system has launched, and Northside Com munity Service is one of the organisations providing the new Care Finder program in Canberra, says aged-care manager Pema Sherpa.

“Care Finder supports older people who would not be able to arrange aged-care services without intensive support and do not have a family member or friends who can help,” she says.

“We’ve been providing aged-care services in-home for a long time.

“One of the things that we’ve noticed is that Australia’s aged-care system is complicated, and for many older people out there it can be a huge challenge to even know what services they can receive.

“Care Finder is funded by the government through

the Capital Health Network to help. The northside team can help people understand what aged-care services are available, set up an assessment and find and choose services.”

Pema says they also help people with access to other supports in the community, and they can help with both accessing services for the first time and changing or finding new services and supports.

“Having someone to actually meet with you, work with you, and help see what support you can get is so important for many older people,” says registered nurse and Northside’s care coordinator Doris Ekwegwo.

“As Care Finders, we are really here to help.”

Northside Community Service, 2 Rosevear Place, Dickson. Call 6171 8000, or visit northside.asn.au

Northside Community Service patient Linda Kavunenko with carer Laura Beltran.

ALL ABOUT SENIORS

Exercise options to suit all abilities

ARTHRITIS ACT can support people no matter what type of chronic pain condition they have, says CEO, Rebecca Davey.

“We now have a new, full-time physiothera pist, to help give more access to physiotherapy treatment,” she says.

“It’s important to remain active at all ages, to condition muscles that protect against injury”, and Arthritis ACT has solutions for people of varying abilities.

“We have Nordic Walking classes. We’re teaching people how to walk with poles, which is a great, low-impact aerobic activity for everyone.”

Rebecca says it’s also important to build strength in different areas of the body.

“We now run Pilates from both locations, Pearce and Bruce,” and, as an added benefit for Arthritis ACT members, “we have free, online exercise classes every week from Tuesday to Thursday.”

That’s only the start, Rebecca says, with Arthritis ACT also offering services such as exercise physiology, disability support and meal planning to help people in managing their pain.

“People come to us because we know the condition. About 50 per cent of our staff live with chronic pain, so we understand how chronic pain can affect all parts of a person’s life,” she says.

“No task or question is too big or small for us.”

Arthritis ACT, Pain Support & ME/CFS ACT, 170 Haydon Drive, Bruce. Call 1800 011041 or visit arthritisact.org.au

excision and skin checks, men’s health and women’s health issues and mental health issues, says Dr Sharin De Silva.

“We mainly focus on preventing chronic disease and improving community health to minimise unexpected presentations to emergency departments,” he says.

“I have worked in different areas of medicine including anaesthesia, emergency medicine and ICU, and I’ve also worked as a rural general practitioner.

“I decided to provide these services, with my experience, to the local community through Sian Medical Centre.”

Sian Medical has just gained a new female

ence and she has a special interest in women’s health and contraception.

“She is also an accredited contraceptive devices – intra-uterine and subcutaneous –insertion and removal provider.

“She also speaks fluent Mandarin and Sinhalese, and has a basic knowledge of Tamil.”

Sharin says the practice is a private billing practice, but they bulk bill children under 16-years-old, and people older than 65 with a pension card, on most occasions.

Sian Medical Centre, 89/275 Flemington Road, Franklin. Call 6106 9166 or visit sianmedical.com.au

We will be opening every weekend starting from May

University of the Third Age ACT members have access to nearly 300 courses and activities which are delivered by our members using the skills and knowledge acquired over their lifetimes.

You can attend a lecture, discuss a book or current affairs, learn to play an instrument or join a choir, improve your computer skills, work on drawing your first masterpiece, and so much more.

If you can’t see a course that inspires you, you can always start a course yourself.

“Anyone who stops learning is old whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young”

– Henry Ford

Arthritis ACT CEO Rebecca Davey.

Our physiotherapists work closely with our exercise physiologists and excercise scientists so if you need hydrotherapy or other exercise supports, you can keep your care all in the hands of one practice.

Linda Clee – Physiotherapist

Linda is an experienced physiotherapist having worked clinically in private practice for over 20 years, in rehabilitation settings and in community based aged care. Having owned and operated her own clinic for over 10 years, Linda offered a range of different therapy options, and has refined her skills and service offerings to ensure a functional focus to therapy; that is holistic and promotes overall wellness. A dancer in a past life, Linda loves to add a bit of fun in her programs, often throwing in rhythm and co-ordination challenges that are good for the body and the mind.

• Management of Osteoarthritis

• Falls recovery programs

• Mindfulness for chronic pain management

• Sports Injury prevention and treatment

• GLAD Program for Hip and Knee Osteoarthritis

• Strength and balance for Falls Prevention

Jacqui Couldrick – Physiotherapist

Jacqui has a particular interest in hip and knee osteoarthritis.

Jacqui delivers the GLAD program designed to reduce the need for joint replacements, or if a joint replacement is unavoidable, to prepare you thoroughly for surgery and recovery for day to day tasks. Jacqui is studying towards a PhD in the outcomes of the GLAD program.

Emil Terbio - Physiotherapist

Emil has come to Arthritis ACT highly recommended by clients he has worked with previously.

With experience in the hospital system and private practice, Emil has interests in neurology, chronic pain and sports injury management and prevention.

Emil is soccer fan and assists local clubs in his spare time on weekends.

Keeping retired minds stimulated

UNIVERSITY of the 3rd Age (U3A) in Canberra prides itself on the op portunities it provides for engagement and intellectual stimulation for its members, primar ily retirees, says vice president Alex Gosman.

“In addition to a multitude of courses catering to all interests, U3A also runs a number of programs that are open to all members,” he says.

“This includes the very popular ‘walks and tours’ where walks can vary from a few hours to a full day and tours from half a day to a week or more.

“Weekly Tuesday forums (via Zoom) attract a range of leading experts on local events, politics, science, the environment and international events and run for an hour including Q&As.”

Alex says U3A is launching a series of quarterly “topical insights” where members will have the opportunity to hear first hand a range of Australia’s leading commentators and experts

Aged care living with a multicultural focus

A SPOKESPERSON for Villaggio

Sant’ Antonio says the aged-care facility has a focus on multicultural residents, and says “mixing with other cultures is a good thing.”

“It’s good for a lot of the residents to mix, and they are better able to understand each

Villaggio has provided agedcare services and accommodation since 1992, and the spokesperson says the staff focus on promoting and providing activities and entertainment for the residents.

“We have coffee days, we have

to make them happy. It’s a really homely feeling.

The spokesperson says Villaggio treats residents as if they were “our own family.”

“Villaggio tries to give more of a closeness in looking after people and in personal care, and we try to make their stay here very pleasant.

“We also try to cater for as much as we can that helps residents enjoy their lives, even if they’re restricted by age or illness.”

Villaggio Sant’ Antonio, 35 Burkitt Street, Page. Call 6255 1794, or visit

in 1987 as Southside Community Services, but changed to Community Services #1 in 2016, says aged-care services co-ordinator Sarah Marshall.

“It was established to support the Canberra community, and over the past year has provided 1.5 million hours of emotional and practical support to thousands of individuals and families across the ACT and NSW,” she says.

telling us how much they appreciate the high level of care they receive and that the clients feel respected and heard. It makes us realise we’re doing it right,” she says.

“The reality is that we all know someone, whether it’s a family member or a friend, who is ageing.

Ageing can be scary and lonely, and it’s sad to think that there are many Australians going through this alone.

“It will examine how responses to major societal issues (environmental, first nations, equality) have changed and shaped us as a nation.”

U3A Canberra, Hughes Community Centre, Wisdom Street, Hughes. Call 6281 6998, or visit u3acanberra.org.au

“Our ACT programs include aged care services such as home care packages, seniors groups and community transport, and the organisation also offers early education and care, a food pantry, venue hire, social groups and out of hospital care.”

Sarah says it’s their people that make them stand out.

“We consistently receive feed -

“So our team have a passion for supporting vulnerable, elderly clients who are needing assistance to live safely, happily and independently within their home. It’s also really rewarding knowing that you get to support and improve people’s quality of life.”

Community Services #1, 63 Boolimba Crescent, Narrabundah. Call 6126 4700, or visit communityservices1.org

Annette and Sarah sharing a laugh over tea.

U3A president Lindsay Rae, left, with vice president Alex Gosman.

Slow decline of the claret ash

THE claret ash tree has been a popular tree to plant in suburban Canberra gardens over recent decades.

More formally known as Fraxinus oxycarpa “Raywoodii”, it’s a fast-growing, terrific tree grown for its scarlet foliage in autumn. The spe cies originated from SA in the early 1900s when an unusual-looking tree was spotted at a tree nursery. It was noted for the vibrant autumnal colour. From there it was propagated and named after the nursery.

The original tree is no more and, unfortunately, in Canberra its presence has slowly declined over the years due to crown dieback and environmental conditions. It’s now not considered a long-lived tree in our region.

Dieback takes several seasons to slowly kill this species of ash tree. The older the tree, the larger the trunk, the more likely there will be dieback in the tree.

What sets this tree into decline is unknown and the only suggestions so far are that environmental conditions and the presence of fungal diseases are to blame. There appears to be no cure, either.

Anyone with a claret ash tree needs to ensure its roots are not exposed and keep the ground mulched.

The one species of ash tree unaffected by dieback is golden ash (Fraxinus aurea). With butter-yellow leaves in autumn, it’s a great shade tree and shows an unusual yellow bark in winter. Fraxinus angustiis com-

monly used as a rootstock (and an unattractive street tree).

Rootstock of an ash tree can be problematic and outgrow its grafted plant if not cut away when the tree is young.

It’s best spotted when there is different autumn colour on the one tree and, in this case, all the root stock needs to be moved to prevent two different trees growing and creating a messy looking single tree.

IT’S time to get the ground ready for planting deciduous trees by turning over the soil, adding compost and ensuring the area is weed free and kept moist.

There are so many trees to choose from and the best plants to look for will be what grows well in your suburb and what the neighbours are growing.

Most deciduous trees require watering for their first summer to encourage strong and healthy

root systems that are less likely to damage permanent structures such as paving and retaining walls in the future.

My favourite trees for planting at the moment are ornamental apple trees such as Malus ioensis “Plena” or “Rubra”, which is a little more different to grow with amazing orange/copper foliage in the autumn and deep red blossoms in the spring, whereas Plena has soft blush-pink flowers in the spring.

Once the right tree is chosen for the right spot, a terrific understory plant that can be used is oak leaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia)

The large, green, oak-shaped leaves display gorgeous autumnal colour in the winter just before leaf fall and is a medium shrub that grows 1.5 metres tall and the same in width. It also makes a terrific choice for a pot.

This hydrangea doesn’t flower well if it is too shady and likes a bit more sun and, like all hydrangeas,

prefers morning sun and good drainage.

This variety is not as thirsty as its counterpart and doesn’t mind tougher conditions.

In summer it’s covered with clusters of long-lasting, cream flowers that do well as a cut flower for the house.

Once the leaves have fallen, they can be pruned to maintain their shape and to keep them compact. jackwar@home.netspeed.com.au

Jottings…

• Plant bulbs such as tulips and Dutch iris, and all other spring bulbs.

• Water earlier in the day if frosts are expected.

• Plant primula,polyanthus, poppies and pansies for lasting winter colour.

The oak leaf hydrangea… a terrific understory plant for deciduous trees.

Claret ash… declined due to crown dieback and environmental conditions. Photos: Jackie Warburton

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

INSIDE

The famous old Kingo’s still young at heart WENDY

JOHNSON

From afar, finally comes ‘Come From Away’

By Helen MUSA

AFTER several flight cancellations caused by covid, at last the Broadway musical “Come From Away” is landing at Canberra Theatre.

I say Broadway musical, but it’s actually the longest-running Canadian musical in Broadway history and is based by creators Irene Sankoff and David Hein on a famous episode when the small town of Gander in Newfoundland (nicknamed “The Rock”) 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 hit musical, where the actors play multiple parts.

The show has 18 catchy numbers, from “Welcome to the Rock” to “Stop the World” and, in most cases, the characters have the names of actual Gander residents.

One such is Beulah, the down-to-earth mother figure who turns out to be the

linchpin in the show.

I caught up by phone to Adelaide with Emma Powell, who’s been playing Beulah since it opened in Melbourne in 2019. Along with Zoe Gertz, who plays pilot Beverley Bass and Douglas Hansell who plays Kevin T, they are the only three left from the original Australian cast of a production which has had a bumpy ride and, because they stuck to it, yes, they got JobKeeper.

Originally scheduled to be in Canberra

during November 2021, “Come From Away” was rescheduled to February 2022 then postponed, but now a safe landing is all but guaranteed.

It’s been an important part of Powell’s life for the past few years, but they finish up in Canberra after a long haul of “really lovely” responses.

“Beulah is kind of the heartbeat of the show, the maternal figure of Gander,” she says.

“She runs the local school, Gander

Academy, and when they find they have to house and feed 700 people when they can normally only fit 400 kids in the school, what’s needed is the kind of organising skills only Beulah has.

“My character, Beulah Davis, was based on two real local Ganderites, Beulah Cooper and Dianne Davis… I’ve met both of them and they’re both gorgeous human beings. You don’t often get to meet the people you’re playing.”

At the opening preview in Melbourne, both Ganderites and plane people turned up, as they had done in Toronto, New York and London, so were well versed in seeing themselves on stage – “they were very generous, we thought.”

“I’m a school teacher and I play the role in a grey wig as a maternal figurehead,” says Powell.

“I’m very no-nonsense, I get stuff done, I say, ‘you’ll be right’, I keep everything ticking along.”

In the plot, such as it is, Beulah gets close to two of the characters among the “from aways”.

One is Ali, the innocent Muslim on board, feared by the other passengers. Initially she’s as scared as everybody else, but she comes to see him as a real person.

The other poignant relationship she forms is with Hannah, whose son is a firefighter and a first responder at the World Trade Centre. Throughout the show she’s

trying to contact him.

“In our heart of hearts, we know his fate, but we still hope he may be okay and it’s quite a shock when we find out he’s not,” Powell says.

This has been a terrific run for Powell who normally lives in Melbourne but flew the coop when she joined the show. Raised in rural Victoria, she moved to Melbourne with the family aged 16 and fell into theatre.

“Someone saw me play Éponine in ‘Les Miz’ and told me Simon Gallaher and Jon English were auditioning for ‘Pirates’ – the rest is history, and I eked a career out of it.”

After a decade of producing shows and raising a daughter, she returned to the boards in “Kinky Boots”, but says: “There’s not a lot of roles for us older girls,” so she might settle for a bit.

“Touring is great but I’m such a homebody.”

As for the powerful effect of “Come From Away ,” she says, quoting one audience member on Broadway: “We forgot how good we can be,” adding, “this is a universal story and it’s especially relevant here in Australia, where we’ve experienced floods, fires and cyclones, but we know somebody will always come and rescue us.

“I feel it reminds us a bit about what’s missing at the moment… Connection is everything.”

“Come From Away ,” Canberra Theatre, June 8 to July 2.

Australian cast members of the Broadway hit musical “Come From Away”.

Photo: Jeff Busby

In the thick of addictive drama

WHO would have thought a show about geopolitics and statecraft could be considered “fun”?

It’s the first word that comes to mind when describing “The Diplomat”, a new eight part series streaming on Netflix.

In it, star of “The Americans” Keri Russell plays Kate Wyler, a scrappy career diplomat who must juggle her new post as America’s ambassador to the UK and her turbulent marriage to a famous politician.

As if it’s not enough plates to keep spinning already, things get complicated when a British aircraft carrier is blown up in the Persian Gulf, sending international tensions into overdrive. Sounds like heavy viewing, right? Well, yes, but “The Diplomat” pulls off a remarkable feat by managing to sustain its drama while never getting bogged down in it.

Zippy, Aaron Sorkin-like dialogue that bounces between a lively cast makes this political thriller refreshingly entertaining.

There’s something kind of “The West Wing” about it all, something kind of “Homeland” about it and even throws a dash of “007” in there.

The highlight is the finely written conversations between Kate and her husband, Hal. Their musings on international politics and their own shaky relationship makes for addictive drama that operates on both a large and small scale.

This one’s definitely worth checking out.

WHILE we’re on political telly, production powerhouse HBO has a new streaming called “White House Plumbers”.

Woody Harrelson takes the reins in this new series on Binge that puts a comedic spin on the Watergate scandal.

Harrelson plays E Howard Hunt, an intelligence officer and conspirator of the famous plot to wiretap the Democratic National Committee HQ for the Nixon administration.

He’s joined by star of “The Leftovers” Justin Theroux, who plays Gordon Liddy, an FBI agent and lawyer who’s also in on the scandal.

Throughout the years there’s been so many movies and TV shows about Watergate, kicking off with the excellent 1976 film “All the President’s Men”.

Last year subscribers to Stan might have even caught “Gaslit”, a political thriller about the woman who sounded the alarm on her husband

and Nixon’s team of schemers.

What audiences have seen much less of is the funny side of the controversy.

It’s a change of pace compared to films such as “All the President’s Men” where two journalists worked to uncover the intricate plans of the perpetrators.

“White House Plumbers”, on the other hand, tries to illustrate why the perpetrators were stupid enough to leave a trail of breadcrumbs in the first place.

It turns out, despite the highly sensitive nature of the operation, there were actually a lot of mistakes that seem rather ridiculous.

“White House Plumbers” hones in on those screw-ups, turning the whole Watergate escapade into something of a goofball comedy. Does it work? Sort of. The quality of writing wavers as the show goes on but it certainly hits more than it misses. With only five episodes as well, the series certainly doesn’t outstay its welcome.

The time period here is a real highlight and remarkable in its consistency. Costumes, crowds, cars all look like they’re straight out of the ‘70s. Even the HBO intro at the beginning of each episode is made to look like it belongs on a TV set

made 50 years ago – a nice touch.

IF there was an award for most uninspired film title of all time, Gerard Butler’s newest action thriller flick would certainly be in the running.

“Plane” tells the story of commercial pilot Brodie Torrance, who is forced to make a risky landing on a wartorn island after his aircraft is struck by lightning.

Turns out that’s only the beginning. When the passengers are taken hostage by dangerous rebels, Torrance is forced to team up with an accused murderer in order to save them.

Even by B-grade standards, “Plane”, now streaming on Amazon Prime Video, barely manages to hover above competent.

The premise admittedly has some potential, especially for one that asks viewers to leave their brains at the door, but apart from a few somewhat impressive action sequences, this 100-minute flick makes for a rather banal affair.

Drop an “E” and add an “I” to the title and one gets a bit closer to what the movie is really like.

ARTS IN THE CITY Transforming city centre into art

ARTISTIC duo Pablo Latona and Claire Granata, of PeopleLab, are launching the Festival of Everyday Art, transforming Canberra’s city centre into a giant art gallery using the power of the white gallery label. There’ll be an art treasure hunt, treasure trails, an art workshop and an exhibition at Canberra Museum and Gallery, May 20-July 16.

A NEW exhibition, “Haegue Yang: Changing From From To From”, features recent works by the Seoul and Berlin-based artist that explores interconnectivity and movement. On show will be “Sonic Intermediates – Three Differential Equations”, a trio of sculptures that are activated regularly, filling the space with a ritualistic rattling of bells. National Gallery, May 27-September 23.

IN another daring concert, Richard Tognetti and the ACO join Will

Pablo Latona and Claire Granata… Festival of Everyday Art, CMAG. May 20-July 16.

Gregory and his Moog synthesisers as they perform film music in “A Clockwork Orange and Beyond”. Llewellyn Hall, 8pm, Tuesday, May 23.

PROFESSORS Lexi Con and Noel Edge (actually performers David

Lampard and Emma Bargery) are back with another thrilling voyage through the alphabet in “The Alphabet of Awesome Science”, The Q, May 26 -27.

THE Australian National Eisteddfod’s Bands and Orchestras event, encompassing around 2000 people in 87 groups, will return to live performances this month.

Sections for singing, piano, speech and drama will follow in August and September. The bands’ event takes place at Llewellyn Hall and Lyneham High School Performing Arts Centre, May 25-31. Details at nationaleisteddfod.org.au

“WELL-tempered Bach” with

Joanne Arnott on recorders and Diana Weston on harpsichord features some Bach, but also a bittersweet remembrance from Elena Kats-Chernin and a commissioned work, Katia Tiutiunnik’s “Illumunida”. Wesley Music Centre, 3pm, May 27.

ART Song Canberra presents “Women Who Move the Heart”, featuring soprano Sonia Anfiloff and Alan Hicks on piano. The women are poets Mathilde Wesendonck and Emily Dickinson and composer Amy Beach. Wesley Music Centre, 3pm, Sunday, May 21.

Keri Russell as Kate Wyler, a scrappy career diplomat in the new Netflix drama “The Diplomat”.

Film group fights on for big-screen experience

By Helen Musa

IF you believe ANU Film Group sponsorship officer Brett Yeats – and he’s pretty persuasive – you’d be mad not to join the 57-year-old society which started in 1966 and is still going strong.

Yeats, a well-known local businessman, has been using his “retirement” to help boost the profile of the group, which suffered in the wake of the pandemic as film lovers deserted cinemas in droves.

It’s very true, he tells me, that the film group has been through its ups and downs over the years, first because of video rentals and now through home theatre and streaming.

But he’s adamant there’s nothing like viewing a movie on a proper, big screen, saying: “There’s nothing quite like laughing, crying or screaming with a room full of strangers at what’s unfolding on the big screen.”

The organisation, which between February and April screened no fewer than 49 films, aims to show the very newest releases. Over three days in February it screened “The Lost King”, Guillermo del Toro’s “Pinocchio” and “The Night of the 12th”, with the 1933 “King Kong” thrown in for historical light relief.

“As a film society, we don’t sell tickets to our films, we screen for members and their guests,” Yeats says, and bearing in mind its

origins as a campus-based organisation, though these days anyone can join, they like to take on more thought-provoking movies as well.

In late March, for instance, it hosted a screening of Edward Berger’s “All Quiet On The Western Front”, introduced by the German ambassador, days after it won seven BAFTAs.

Then in mid-April, it partnered with the Law Reform and Social Justice School at the ANU to show Larissa Behrendt’s film “You Can Go Now”, about First Nations artistprovocateur Richard Bell.

Keeping up with the times and with Australia’s changing demography, there was

nia, Australia’s entrant in this year’s Best Foreign Film category at the Oscars. According to ANU Film Group president, Adrian Ma, the group wants to “to celebrate/ showcase films that aren’t always easy to find on the big screen, in addition to also screening all of the ‘popular’ films.”

To that end, coming up as part of a Reconciliation Week mini-festival, June 1-3, are “Countryman”, which has never been shown in Canberra, followed by “We Are Still Here” and “Wash My Soul in the River’s Flow”, which have had only very limited screenings.

The coming winter season follows the usual pattern of mixing popular with

III”, another “Rocky” spin-off where Michael B Jordan makes his directorial debut, “Love in the Time of Revolution”, set in the midst of protests in Hong Kong and Sam Mendes’ “Empire of Light”, in which poor Hilary (Olivia Colman) lives in a British seaside town where her only entertainment is having boring sex with her boss (Colin Firth).

While times have been tough, Yeats believes their efforts are paying off, helped by the fact that ANU assigned them a state-of-the-art movie theatre in its Kambri cultural precinct for which they don’t pay.

This is probably why they’re able to offer members of the public exceptional deals,

beginning with a weekly membership at $15 and culminating in their gold standard annual membership, which covers four seasons and around 200 films, for $90.

Yeats and Ma are true believers in the power of film, but they’re not the only ones. Andrew Pike was one of the founders of the group in 1966 and then in 1969 Yeats, then an economics fresher at the ANU, joined, left to go interstate, re-joined in 1997 then got on to the committee in 2010, making this his 13th year.

In its heyday, it had more than 2000 members, who crammed into the Coombs Theatre at the ANU, which was equipped with a good digital projector.

No complaints there, but with the advent of Kambri’s more sophisticated venue, the committee seized the opportunity to draw in a different demographic – Canberra’s diplomats, ever keen to have Australian people watching their nations’ movies.

The ANU Film Group, after first arranging giveaways through some of the embassies, soon saw an increase in memberships and an expansion in the range of movies available to them.

For instance, after the screening of a Belgian film, to which tickets had been given away, the then ambassador asked: “How can we show more Belgian films?”

Other embassies followed and now 61 different embassies have been responsible for the screening of 300 films.

ANU Film Group membership details and the winter program are available at anufg.org.au

Ready to roll… ANU Film Group members gather at Kambri for a movie.

WINE

When the tasting path takes a different fork

start out on a particular path and it leads you in a direction that you didn’t see coming.

DINING / Kingston Hotel Old Kingo’s still young at heart

IF you haven’t been to the famous Kingston Hotel of late, you’re in for a pleasant surprise.

Affectionately known as “The Kingo”, the special spot opened in 1936, impressive indeed.

The outdoor garden area’s major expansion around the corner of the building facing Canberra Avenue is fantastic, the new outdoor Garden Bar delightful, and Maddies Restaurant now pops with bright blue carpet. The Grill area has had a makeover. I’m a bit teary that the “cook-your-own-steak” option is gone, but love the double-sided fireplace. Be prepared for a highly noticeable, red, tartan-style carpet.

Dining al fresco in the Garden Bar area is a treat. The Kingo invests heavily in luscious, healthy plants, giving a calm, cooling effect. You feel like you’re in another world. But what about the food?

Well, steaks are still stars at The Grill, Maddies boasts a bistro approach, and the Garden Bar offers share plates and bar snacks.

The emphasis

isn’t on “posh nosh” but on “great grub” and service is with a smile. You can order from anywhere and dine anywhere, for maximum flexibility.

We shared darling dumplings with pork, eagerly dipping them in a dish of salty soy (super value at $12 for about 12). Still on the pork theme, one of our all-time picks is the soft bao buns. The pork belly is slow cooked with five spices and “fun sticky” as a result. Cutting through with freshness is coriander, eschalots and spring onions. The chilli hit is perfection (four pieces, $22.90).

What would a visit to the Kingo be without a meat pie from the pub favourites part of Maddies’ menu? Flaky pastry, a mountain of golden-coloured mash (no holding back on the butter), mixed seasonal veggies tossed in garlic and a thick gravy ($24).

The Maddies’ specials list is usually inspirational and more than once we’ve ordered tasty, tender, char-grilled lamb cutlets ($35.90) served with a rich lamb jus and celebrating garlic and rosemary.

The Kingo has long been known for its quality cuts of steak although on a couple of recent trips the medium rare hasn’t been at all pink, a tad disappointing given this is a specialty. We’ve sadly had to return our steaks more than once.

A range of steak styles is available, including filet mignon ($39.50), Angus porterhouse ($37) and Angus scotch fillet ($39.50). The burger list is extensive, and kids are well taken care of with options at $12. Wines, cocktails and beers are reasonably priced. The Long Rail Gully Pinot Gris is $11 a glass and only $35 a bottle (pinot noir, $49 a bottle). The Nick O’Leary Riesling, a quality drop, is $12 a glass and $46 a bottle.

I’d invited a mate for dinner to help me assess one of the wines that Brown Brothers sent me to taste as part of the 20th release of its premium Patricia range, the 2018 Patricia Cabernet Sauvignon. While I knew that this wine would soften and integrate its characters over the next six to eight years if properly stored, I felt obliged to report on its qualities as it was a freebie that retails for more than $70 (more of that in subsequent communica -

Plus, I’d recently tasted a top range cabernet sauvignon that was also vintage 2018, a Domaine Naturaliste Morus from the Margaret River, which sells for around $85 and it was outstanding. A good place is the species name for the mulberry tree, with mulberry being the key identifying characteristic of this wine, according to the winemaker. This was true on taste, with the wine having a velvety, fruit-filled bouquet and an earthy tannic finish that rang true of this varietal. The wine opened beautifully

In any event, we didn’t spend the night at the top of the cabernet sauvignon range. My mate insisted on bringing part of the main course, spicy chicken drumsticks, and I cooked red onion and chilli to go with air-fried paprika potatoes. This was heady, very spicy food. In that context my friend had brought to drink a $15 Annie’s Lane 2021 Cabernet Merlot. He rates cabernet merlot as a good

This is a traditional French blend originating in Bordeaux and often designated claret that is historically resonant of stuffed armchairs, cigar smoke and expensive English

gentlemen’s clubs. In that vein this is what British novelist Nick Harkaway said about claret: “It smells of old houses and aged wood and dark secrets, but also of hard, hot sunshine through ancient shutters and long, wicked afternoons in a four-poster bed. It’s not a wine, it’s a life, right there in the glass.”

I’ve nothing really to add save to say that Nick has quite an imagination. At the more prosaic level, the function of the merlot is to soften the tannins in the cabernet sauvignon and to have a more mellow wine than a young cabernet sauvignon would deliver.

I had opened, the day before, a Jim Barry, Barry & Sons 2021 cabernet sauvignon from the Clare Valley. It cost $20 in a two-for-$40 deal at a major supermarket-owned liquor store. We decided to abandon the premium end of the market and try, before eating, a taste comparison of these two more quotidian wines.

The Jim Barry had plenty of time to soften with air and this was evident in the first stage of the comparison, being softer and with a plummy bouquet. It was pleasant but nothing special.

After about 15 minutes or so, the Annie’s Lane settled down from an astringent first taste with an unattractive bouquet to softer, rounded keynotes you’d expect from the blend. It’s still a wine with a punch at 14.5 per cent alcohol by volume and it slowly caught up in delivering a smoother finish and better mouth feel over time, but again without sending any messages that this wine was special. The Jim Barry delivered a soft plum finish with a chalkiness in the tannins at the back of the palate. These were both quaffers that we’d revisit for a weeknight dinner.

Tasting the wines after having such a spicy meal was quite a different sensation, with neither wine being able to resurrect our now ruinous palates that required a glass of milk to completely rid the chilli taste. And I don’t recommend drinking red wine and milk together, although I would recommend drinking good Australian cabernet sauvignon.

OFTEN you

Steak and kidney pie… flaky pastry, golden-coloured mash, mixed veggies tossed in garlic and a thick gravy.

Char-grilled lamb cutlets… served with a rich lamb jus.

Photos: Wendy Johnson

Pork dumplings come with a dish of salty soy.

HOROSCOPE PUZZLES

Your week in the stars

By Joanne Madeline Moore

22-28 May, 2023

ARIES (Mar 21 – Apr 20)

When it comes to managing a financial matter, Uranus encourages you to be creative and have a flexible plan. And Jupiter urges you to look at a current problem in a more philosophical way. The situation is in the process of transforming in an organic fashion, so avoid rushing things and trying to force change. Instead, do your best to be much more pliable and relaxed. As birthday great Bob Dylan wisely observes: “There is nothing so stable as change.”

TAURUS (Apr 21 – May 21)

This week prosperity planet Jupiter is transiting through your sign, plus Mercury and Uranus are visiting Taurus, too! So, it’s time to be confident, creative and innovative, as you dream big dreams for the future. Draw inspiration from birthday great Stevie Nicks (who turns 75 on Friday): “My life is a testament to believing that if you want something, you can make it happen.” However – with taskmaster Saturn squaring the Sun – you’ll have to be patient.

GEMINI (May 22 – June 21)

As the Sun makes its annual transit through doppelganger Gemini (sign of the double-trouble Twins) prepare for a stop-start kind of week! Frantically go-go-go one day (Sun/Mars and Mars/Jupiter links) and frustratingly slow the next (Saturn square the Sun). So, you need to be nimble, adaptable and stoical. Plus – with three planets snoozing in your solitude zone – take the time to slow down and reassess where you are going … and where you’ve been.

CANCER (June 22 – July 23)

You’re keen to retreat into your cosy Crab cave as the Sun transits through your contemplation zone. So solo activities like yoga, meditation, reading and journal writing are favoured this week. But – if you stumble and make a mistake – don’t let negative self-talk drag you down. Be inspired by actress Joan Collins (who turns 90 on Tuesday): “Show me a person who has never made a mistake, and I’ll show you somebody who has never achieved much.”

LEO (July 24 – Aug 23)

Mars is charging through Leo, and Jupiter is visiting your career zone, which increases motivation and confidence. So, make the most of it! The next few weeks is the time to expand, enthuse, encourage and explore. Be inspired by actress Joan Collins (who was born on May 23, 1933): “I’m very lucky; I seldom get depressed. I’m a ‘glass half full’ person. In fact, it’s three-quarters full!” But tread carefully on Sunday when relations with a friend could be difficult.

VIRGO (Aug 24 – Sept 23)

International adventures and interstate escapades are calling as Mercury, Jupiter and Uranus activate your travel zone. Clever Virgos will be patient and make it a priority to plan (and save for) a dream holiday sometime soon. Your motto is from philosopher (and birthday great) Ralph Waldo Emerson: “Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” A chat with a teacher or mentor puts a current problem in perspective.

LIBRA (Sept 24 – Oct 23)

Librans love sweet food and lazing about in the lap of luxury but avoid taking your health for granted. Be more disciplined about making positive lifestyle choices and prioritising time for regular exercise and nutritious home-cooked meals. As writer (and birthday great) Ralph Waldo Emerson observed: “The first wealth is health.” And is a close relationship going through a bumpy patch? Venus and Uranus ensure there’ll be some hiccups along the way.

SCORPIO (Oct 24 – Nov 22)

You currently have five planets (Mercury, Jupiter, Uranus, Saturn and Neptune) transiting through your relationship zones. So other people could perplex you with their confusing behaviour. Avoid being a cynical Scorpio who sabotages partnerships. Nurture and cherish your close connections. If you’re unhappily single, then keep pursuing your dream of finding your soulmate. Be inspired by birthday great Stevie Nicks: “I live in the realm of romantic possibility.”

SAGITTARIUS (Nov 23 – Dec 21)

Have you got stuck in a rut when it comes to unhealthy eating choices and lack of exercise? It’s a good week to revamp your diet and reboot your fitness routine. The more you nurture and repair your body, the better you’ll feel – physically, mentally and emotionally. A close relationship is going through a bumpy patch, but Venus encourages you to swallow your pride, slap on a smile, and hold out the olive branch of peace. Feel the love, Sagittarius!

CAPRICORN (Dec 22 – Jan 20)

On the weekend, the Sun forms a square with Saturn (your power planet) so you’ve certainly got the motivation and determination to get things done. But don’t let your desire to micro-manage everything (and everyone) get out of control! Aim to be disciplined and organised, but not obsessively so. The best way to approach current challenges and difficulties is to tap into your inner reserves of patience, resilience and Capricorn creativity.

AQUARIUS (Jan 21 – Feb 19)

Remember there’s a fine line between making smart decisions at lightning speed and making impulsive moves that land you in hot water. This week will work best if you do something out of character for an Aquarius – think before you speak and act! Plus do your best to get the balance right between maintaining the status quo (with things that are working well) and hatching innovative new ideas. Friday favours bohemian friends and falling in love fast!

PISCES (Feb 20 – Mar 20)

You won’t feel particularly energetic or motivated, as Saturn drains the gas out of your tank. Avoid the temptation to get carried away and make unrealistic promises. It will be very easy to overextend yourself and find you’ve bitten off more than you can actually chew! Use the prevailing astro-winds wisely as you re-calibrate your expectations, especially when it comes to domestic matters and family members. Regular exercise and nutritious meals are a must!

Copyright Joanne Madeline Moore 2023

General knowledge crossword No. 881

HOW TO ‘DRESS’ YOUR HOME FOR WINTER

MICHAEL DRAGE, founder of Reimagined Habitat says: “Thank you to all who contacted me regarding last month’s topic on windows. This one seems to have hit home with so many in this region – it really is amazing what a difference quality windows make to a home. Keep your questions coming in, we love helping people upgrade or build better homes!

Tips, traps and a little science

We all know how to dress ourselves for winter (except young children who seem not to notice anything at all). What if we use this as an analogy for how to “dress” our homes?

Across

1 Name a particular type of hedge. (6)

8 Which portable shade is used for protection from rain, etc? (8)

9 Name a downhill skiing obstacle race. (6)

10 Which horse won the 1958 Melbourne Cup? (8)

11 What is the cavity marking the orifice of a volcano? (6)

13 What are passages taken out of a book, or the like? (8)

16 When a school disbands, it does what? (6,2)

19 In Scandinavian folklore, which supernatural beings inhabit caves, or the like? (6)

22 Name the small bits of coloured paper thrown at weddings. (8)

24 Who was a renowned US markswoman, Annie ...? (6)

25 Which person repairs overhead wires? (8)

26 Name the warmest season of the year. (6)

2 Name another term for a sovereign. (5)

3 Name the open country, thinly forested, characteristic of parts of southern Africa. (5)

4 Which carts were used during the French Revolution to convey victims to the guillotine? (8)

5 To comply with a command, is to do what? (4)

6 What is a wise and trusted counsellor? (6)

7 Which solid body revolves around the sun? (6)

12 Which term describes a poker stake? (4)

14 What are headings or titles of chapters, articles or pages? (8)

15 Which river flows through Tamworth? (4)

17 What, colloquially, is a raw recruit called? (6)

18 Which early king was known as “the Great”? (6)

20 Which loose fibre is obtained by untwisting and picking apart old ropes? (5)

21 Name a lord entitled to allegiance and service. (5)

23 What is a grave or mausoleum? (4)

FREE PUZZLES EVERY DAY AT citynews.com.au

In winter we wrap ourselves up. We wear warm clothes or wrap ourselves in something (think blanket/doona/ oodie). The thicker the clothes or the blanket (think the more insulation in the walls), the warmer we feel. But we also have to look out for the parts of us that poke out. We can wrap ourselves in warm clothes (think external walls), but if we have no shoes and socks on (think underfloor insulation), we feel that through our whole body. Likewise as it gets cold, we put on a scarf and/or a hat (think roof insulation) like we wear a hat in summer (to shade from the heat).

What about those permanent holes at the end of our sleeves (think doors and windows)? We wear gloves or stick our hands in our pockets. We cover the holes (think sealing gaps, drapes).

And what happens if we leave a coat open (think air leaks through your home)? We do it back up (close up the air leaks).

If we can, we want to sit inside in the sun (think quality north/sun-facing windows when you design). And for summer – we can take on the same thinking. When we want to be cooler we stand in the shade, and get a little breeze.

Actually, the children issue is also a good analogy. Young children have “brown fat” which is a better insulator. Think new homes (kids) are built with better insulation than old homes (us), so old homes need more help to keep comfortable.

TIPS

• Go to Bunnings and get some draft seals for doors and windows. A cheap fix.

• Get some good quality heavy drapes (and don’t forget the pelmets) to keep the heat in.

• Manage the house – open the drapes to get the sun in to passively warm you, then shut them as soon as the sun goes to keep the heat in.

TRAPS

• Not really a trap, but for those with “crying” windows, remember to clean them regularly so mould doesn’t become an issue.

As always, if you would like to discuss, please call me on 0419 391 282. For any questions, comments or queries, please email us at: info@reimaginedhabitat.com.au

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