More fines boost Barr’s ‘miraculous’ budget
JON STANHOPE & KHALID AHMED
KEEPING UP THE ACT
SEPTEMBER 28, 2023
THE VOICE
Why so many have changed their view
JEREMY HANSON
‘Yes’ vote sunk by leadership
ROBERT MACKLIN
A matter of respect and human rights
LETTERS
Maria,
Say it loud and there’s music playing...
Yes, ‘West Side Story’s’ back
IMPROVEMENTS 10 BIG PAGES
By Lily PASS
SUNITA Kotnala came to Canberra from Sydney in early 2020, just as COVID-19 isolation was beginning to impact her.
“I was just feeling very alone, I’m sure many people were,” she says.
“I had been part of a women’s shed in Sydney, and I remember thinking I wished there was one here in Can berra.
“I mentioned it to my friend, Robby McGreevy, and she was all for it, and that’s how the Womens Shed Canberra was founded on September 25.”
Their first step was finding a place to set up and store tools, and Sunita knew they had shared values with Thor’s Hammer in Griffith.
“I had visited the business to buy recycled timber and was aware of the commitment to reducing their environmental footprint,” she says.
“There is an alignment of values with us in terms of working towards sustainability, recycling and upcycling.”
Sunita and Robby suggested weekday evenings, but settled on Saturday mornings.
“Thor gives us this space free of cost, yeah, and he gives us two work
is always talking and laughing with each other, you can just hear the community bonding.”
tables to work on,” says Sunita.
“Then, a new shed and facility was opening in Hughes under COTA, and we got invited to rent the space once a week.
“It was a great opportunity to run the service from a new location, and we are at the Hughes Community Shed every Tuesday from 9.30am to 1pm.”
Now, three years after the shed began, they have launched a third initiative.
“We now have a mobile shed,” she says.
“We acquired funding through a grant and were given $14,000, so we bought a van and filled it with tools and put signage on it, and we soft
sues.
“So we’ll take the van somewhere, just for three or four hours one day, and people can bring their projects to work on and use the tools in the van.”
Sunita says the Womens Shed Canberra members work on a variety of projects, but most require some woodwork.
“We’ve had members come in to build a whole table, reupholster a dining chair, to just fixing their insect
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power equipment.
“We are a women’s shed, but sometimes our qualified guides are men, because there are just so many of them, and women are the minority.
“We call these skills ‘handy person’ skills, because we have to rely on a male friend or relative to come and fix things for us.
“But, by actually having these basic skills, we don’t have to rely on anyone to fix it just because now we know
She says often if someone has never used power tools before they can be a bit wary, so she’s glad she’s created a space that teaches people and helps them feel confident and comfortable.
And, the Womens Shed Canberra has become quite the welcoming community.
“Everyone is always talking and laughing with each other, you can just hear the community bonding,” she
“People have definitely found friendships, people have found support with each other and it’s cohesive. We are non-discriminatory, a space where women of all ethnicities, backgrounds, sexual orientation can come to be included.”
With a regular 50 members attending the Womens Shed Canberra, Sunita has big plans for the future, too.
“For the future, it’d be great to get a permanent place of our own, to store our members’ projects so they don’t have to transport them back and forth to every session,” she says.
“Having said that, not having a permanent place yet has actually allowed us to explore different places and get an understanding of what people might like and require.
“I’m so immensely proud, it has just grown beyond my dreams.”
womensshedcanberra.com.au
WHAT does Deputy Opposition Leader Jeremy Hanson hope to achieve with his petition to “stop the tram”? He does not have the numbers in the ACT Assembly.
Even if he gains a huge number of signatories, he knows the Greens and Labor parties will combine to ignore the petition.
Hanson is not ignorant. He is play ing a multi-faceted political game that he knows will appeal to the residents of Canberra. The costs and inconven ience associated with the development of stage two of the tram from Civic to Woden are causing significant disquiet in the community.
He already has more than 3000 signatories on this petition. As part of the process of reaching out to the electorate he has the petition on his personal website and has widely distributed it through letterboxes. More recently, he has paid for a targeted Facebook advertisement.
Jeremy Hanson told “CityNews” that it is part of his responsibility, as an elected member, to inform his electorate about where he stands on issues.
In this case, it is an opportunity to explain why the Liberals have taken this stance on such an important policy issue.
The first thing Hanson can achieve
by circulating a petition of this kind is to exacerbate the already strong feelings of many Canberrans who oppose building stage two of the tram. He is also able to tap into those who are uncertain, but are very concerned about the infrastructure project.
Those who are uncertain will often be swinging voters. Tapping into their concerns a little over a year out from the October 19, 2024 election encourages them to think about making a vote for the Canberra Liberals.
As part of the process, Hanson has used the opportunity to identify
serious failings on the part of the Labor-Greens government. He hopes to reinforce these failures and embed them in the consciousness of Canberrans before the election.
The letterbox version has a QR code to the petition. It highlights the costs of “over $3 billion” and “a decade of traffic chaos”. It also draws attention to “failing city services” to “teacher shortages”, the “housing crisis”, “hospital waiting times” and to “police shortages”.
The downgrading of the AAA credit rating drew attention to the financial failures of the Barr government. This is not enough for Mr Hanson. In the preamble to the petition, he has drawn to the “attention of the Assembly” (and anyone who reads the petition) the fact that “the tram caused over $400 million to be ripped out of hospitals, and nearly $90 million from road funding”.
Of course, Canberrans are worried about the deterioration of the health
system in the ACT. This petition puts the Liberals’ perspective that government failures are not just things slowly deteriorating. Failures are due to specific actions of the government in prioritising the construction of the tram over fundamental responsibilities such as health and education.
As its second point, the petition states “rates have increased at record levels”. He does not have to provide evidence. Any ratepayer will know that this has been the case and adds to the dissatisfaction with the government.
The third point in the petition is deliberately repetitive. It draws together the reasons for dissatisfaction with the government. “The ACT has a critical teacher shortage, longest hospital waiting times in Australia, lowest number of police per capita and massive debt”.
The petition then turns to the alternatives, taking on a positive spin about how the money could be spent with a more sensible decision on priorities. First, there is a better alternative than the tram. Electric buses. As the petition points out, “trams are much slower than existing buses”. Secondly, electric buses are
“more affordable and environmentally friendly”.
Secondly, the Liberals’ position identifies “the funding could be better spent on better hospitals, better roads, more police and better schools”
It is the role of oppositions to draw attention to the failings of governments. The use of this style of petition, along with the advertising and supporting material is simply one of the techniques that is used.
In this case, the material invites voters to sign. Then the preamble to the petition is hard-hitting and effective politics. We will have to wait until the next election to determine the effectiveness of this sort of approach.
The first thing Hanson’s petition can achieve is to exacerbate the already strong feelings of many Canberrans who oppose building stage two of the tram.Jeremy Hanson… knows he hasn’t got the numbers, but…
FIVE months, 10,069 kilometres, obnoxious noise, nights in a police station and days spent modelling for a painter are some of the many ways Ian Wallis spent his solo bike ride from Canberra to Singapore.
In May, the 65-year-old academic and long-distance cyclist took off on his trusty, yellow bike to raise money for the Indigo Foundation.
“The money I have raised is being put towards funding school resources in Afghanistan, helping to confront sexual harassment in public spaces, and funding bursaries to enable girls to attend university,” he says.
So far, Ian has raised more than $22,000, but says he’s expecting more.
“Another group has just reached out to ask how many kilometres I travelled, and they’re putting in another 10 cents for every kilometre,” he says.
When he reached Dili, Ian met with some of the members of the Indigo Foundation.
“They told me of the work they were doing, and who they were supporting, and it was just simply amaz -
ing,” he says.
“They cooked up a feed and all this for me. They had come with Juventude ba Dezenvolvimentu (JDN – Youth for National Development) and they explained, in Dili, there’s a real problem with sexual harassment.
“I went on a tour with one of them, and she took me to a hotel, like a mansion that someone lived in, and she told me what happened to someone there, and it was just horrific.
“Women had been stripped naked and trapped in a swimming pool with
crocodiles, and it really hit me – the In digo Foundation are just doing amaz ing things helping to support these vic tims and stop the sexual harassment.”
While there was a lot to take in, Ian says it was a highlight of his trip, as were quite a few other situations.
“I felt a sense of achievement in get ting to Singapore, and doing it when I’m 65,” he says.
“I also cycled from home to the equator, and I was painted by famous artist Kartika Affandi.
“I went to an art gallery in Yog
rised his least favourite aspects of his 139-day ride to be the noise, garbage, smoke and finding accommodation.
“I stayed in a police station for three nights, there was nothing else
“Other than accommodation, the noise was just insane. Then there’s garbage piled up on the edges of the road and the beach I visited was cov-
“I caught a ferry that should have left at 2pm but left at 5pm, and I didn’t go inside because everyone was smoking, even in some food spaces every-
Ian says he found himself to be a bit focused and stressed and that was before he even left Canberra.
“It was the fact that I was raising money for charity, and I suddenly had this weird pressure on me,” he says.
“I’ve just, in the past, slunk off on some bike ride across the country and back and just let people know that I’m
“This one was a bit different. I’m not a phone person, I don’t usually keep blogs, and it just took away my freedom, which is what I love.
“But, I am very pleased to have supported the Indigo Foundation. I feel I helped raise money and gained publicity for an excellent organisation.”
Donate to Ian’s ride at: great-indigo-bike-ride.raisely.com
An elderly woman with hearing loss came to my clinic for a second opinion, after she had recently been to a hearing aid sales person. I found the cause of her hearing loss was simply the fact that she had build-up of wax in her ears, the salesperson had failed to inspect them. You might be surprised how often this happens!
Here are some things to do to avoid getting ripped off:
1. A visit to the GP may save you from being ‘sold’ something when your only problem is wax in your ears.
2. Look for someone who is independent and can offer you unbiased advice, not just give you a sales pitch.
3. There are a range of hearing aid prices. Finding the right hearing aid might save you money and it will also give you the best chance of success.
4. Hearing aids can be expensive.
Recently I was told by two different patients that they were quoted $16,000 for a pair of hearing aids. This seems a ridiculous amount of money to pay and is most likely not appropriate for the majority of people (or possibly anyone).
5. If you are a pensioner or partpensioner, or a DVA gold or white card holder, you should carefully consider if you want to use the free-to-client government hearing aids or if you’d like to top-up to a different hearing aid.
The free-to-client hearing aids are appropriate for many people, however if you have great difficulty hearing background noise (for example in restaurants) then you might trial the top-up hearing aids, but only if you can afford them. There are a range of top up options and prices, if you are disappointed after a trial, you should return them and trial the free-toclient hearing aids.
If you get the feeling the person you’re dealing with is just trying to sell you something, then take a step back and get a second opinion.
“In an unregulated market there is a lot of opportunity to take advantage of people. Yes you have read correctly, there is no licensing of people who sell hearing aids.”
– Dr Vass
– you need professional advice, not a sales pitch
and $100 million respectively. This measure, along with “increased compliance”, that is, presumably, from medical practices, will raise an additional $71.2 million over four years.
THE significant increase in revenue forecast in the 2023-24 budget contributes to an apparently miraculous turnaround in the ACT’s budget position.
However, the media release issued by Treasurer Andrew Barr upon release of the budget is essentially silent on the amount and source of the anticipated increase in revenue. The anticipated growth in revenue can be measured by comparison with the original budget for the previous year. In this instance it reveals that about 92 per cent of the revenue increase relates to three sources – Own Source Taxation, Commonwealth payments (comprising GST and Commonwealth Grants under various agreements) and Other Revenue.
Table 1 incorporates the
2022-23 and 2023-24 budgets’ estimates and the budget-tobudget changes in these three revenue sources. The table also includes the actual outcomes for 2021-22.
Payments from the Com monwealth will deliver an additional $813 million over the three years 2023-24 to 2025-26. This largely relates to GST revenue due to an increase in the ACT’s relativity as assessed by the Grants Commission.
Averaging just under $300 million annually, this is clearly not enough to cover the operating deficit.
Treasurer Andrew Barr intends, therefore, to raise a further $789 million over the period from Own Source Taxation ($383 million) and Other Revenue ($406 million).
Taxation revenue growth in this Budget has jumped to 5.2 per cent a year from 3.6 per cent
in last year’s Budget, which is well above the forecast growth rate of the economy. The budget also includes new revenue measures, not mentioned in the treasurer’s media release, nor in reporting by the mainstream media. The first hint of these new imposts is on Page 43 of Budget Paper No. 3: “This budget includes a package of carefully sequenced measures to raise revenue to meet our growing needs. This includes changes to Payroll Tax, the Fire and Emergency Services
The rate of the Utility Network Facilities Tax (UNFT) will also increase by 2.5 per cent above the WPI, again, a departure from long standing policy, delivering an additional $4.9 million over four years. Changes to the Lease Variation Charge schedules, which have remained unchanged since 2017, will deliver $22.4 million over four years.
always been funded from general revenue.
In relation to payroll tax, it is erroneous to assert that the surcharge will have no effect on households. The economic incidence of this tax is, depending on the circumstances of the economy, on consumption (ie, household budgets) or employment.
The revenue source
Levy, the Utilities Network Facilities Tax and the Lease Variation Charge.”
For additional information one is referred to the quaintly titled Chapter 3.2: “Investing in the Wellbeing of Canberrans”. There appears, unfortunately, to be no separate section on new revenue measures, rather, they are strewn across the more than 140 pages of this chapter. Notably these “carefully sequenced” measures kick in after the next ACT election, and their timing is purportedly premised on cost-of-living pressures easing by that time.
The Fire and Emergency Services Levy has been renamed the Police, Fire and Emergency Services Levy (PFSEL), and is increased by 4.3 percentage points above the Wage Price Index (WPI), a departure from long standing policy to index taxation by WPI. The increase will deliver an additional $12.9 million over the last two forward years.
The Budget also introduces a payroll tax surcharge for large businesses from 2025-26 at the rates of an additional 0.25 per cent and 0.5 per cent on ACT wages above the payroll tax threshold for businesses with Australiawide wages above $50 million
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However, the government’s professed concern about costof-living pressures have not been reflected in its decision making.
Land tax (imposed on rental dwellings), which the government promised, a decade ago, to abolish, under its tax reform program, is forecast to increase by 13.3 per cent in 2023-24, delivering an additional $25.4 million.
The proposed increase in the Lifetime Care Levy, and PFESL will also directly impact households, while the increase in the rate of UNFT will assuredly be accounted for in future price determinations for utilities.
Businesses, in particular, face uncertain costs, likely to be revealed after the next election, with respect to PFESL as the budget papers do not provide any indication of the marginal tax rates applicable to commercial properties once the increase is instituted.
The increase in the Fire and Emergency Services Levy is in effect a new tax rather than an increase in the rate of an existing tax. The genesis of the levy was to replace a tax on insurance policies for emergency response through a charge on general rates.
However, the government is now seeking to recover costs of policing services through this base – a service that has
“Other Revenue” rakes in $406 million over three years from a base of just $191 million in 2021-22, increasing at a compounding annual rate of 20 per cent. Within this aggregate, fines are forecast to more than double from $48.8 million in 2022-23 to $104.1 million in 2025-26.
While no explanation has been provided for such a dramatic increase in fines, one assumes it will involve a doubling in the number of traffic and other cameras and/or a dramatic increase in speed vans.
There is extraordinary opacity about several other revenue items under this source, for example, Big Canberra Battery ($47 million over two years) and increase in Other Grants reaching $188 million from a base of a mere $5 million in 2021-22.
In summary, the revenue measures in the budget are both opportunistic and incoherent, and not reflective of a fair and efficient tax system.
In addition to justifiable concern about the social and economic impacts of the new revenue measures, there is, considering Treasurer Barr’s unmatched Australian record of 12 consecutive budget deficits, a massive question mark over whether the forecast improvement in the operating budget will eventuate.
Jon Stanhope is a former chief minister of the ACT and Dr Khalid Ahmed a former senior ACT Treasury official.
Here’s something you might have missed: Treasurer Barr is budgeting to more than double the revenue from fines. JON STANHOPE & KHALID AHMED assume that means double the number of traffic and other cameras. But there’s more…More speed vans, more fines to meet Barr’s budget line? Photo: Ana Stuart
ALL creatures – from guinea pigs and rabbits to cats and dogs – are invited to take part in a special Blessing of the Animals service, 9.30am, at Tuggeranong Uniting Church, Erindale, on Sunday, October 1. Minister Sharon Jacobs says the blessing celebrates St Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals.
THE Hall Heritage Centre’s free, annual “Brass on the Grass” band concert will be held from 1.30pm on October 15. This year it will feature Canberra Brass. There will be a raffle for the Hall Heritage Centre, which will be open noon – 4pm.
THE Canberra Men’s Choir wants new members to be ready for the Christmas singing season. The choir says it always welcomes new members. There’s an open night at the Harmonie German Club, Narrabundah, 7.30pm-9pm, October 19. No experience or audition is needed.
CANBERRA Qwire, a proudly LGBTIQ+ choir, is celebrating its 30th anniversary with a concert – “Singing Out with Pride” – at Llewellyn Hall, 3pm, on November 11. The choir promises “an unforgettable afternoon of uplifting music, heartwarming stories, and joyous performances”. The concert features a special guest, folk singer Judy Small. Tickets at canberraqwire.org.au
AS you may be aware from my Sicily trip, I am an inveterate traveller. Sometimes things don’t go according to plan.
My latest trip to Lebanon was no exception. I wanted to go to Lebanon because earlier this year I had two excellent Lebanese tradesmen doing jobs for me, and they encouraged me to go there.
I travelled to Lebanon via Antalya Airport in Turkey. On arrival at Antalya the 16 transit passengers to Beirut were directed to wait in a holding area. Thirty minutes later we were told we had missed the connecting flight to Beirut because there was not enough time to transfer our checked-in baggage between flights.
The next flight to Beirut was 24 hours later. Frustrating for me because I only travel with carry-on baggage.
Anyway, we were put up at a modern Turkish hotel an hour from the airport at the “world famous” Konyaalti Beach and holiday resort. I was glad it was only 24 hours because the outside temperature in the shade was 45C, with high humidity. Why anyone would choose to go there for a holiday beats me.
I duly arrived in Beirut the following night and, after the usual airport delay of one to two hours while bored officials scrutinised passengers’
passports, I was able to join the melee for a taxi. I would have been met the previous night but the person who had come to meet me assumed I had cancelled my visit.
I never like taking a taxi when not familiar with the local scene. I had visions of ending up as a kidnapfor-ransom victim, like my former colleague Terry Waite, who was held hostage in Beirut for five years by the Islamic Jihad Organisation. However, all went well, and I was considerably more relaxed after consuming two bottles of Lebanese Almaza beer at my hotel.
I subsequently travelled south to Sidon and Tyre, an area controlled by Hezbollah, then to the Bekaa Valley, also controlled by Hezbollah, then
through the mountains and along the coast south from Tripoli through areas controlled by the Druze and Maronite Christians.
It was overall a very enjoyable and hassle-free experience. There is probably more Lebanese violence in Sydney than there is in Lebanon!
I was told the road from the Bekaa Valley to Damascus in Syria is safer (and better surfaced) than the road between Canberra and the coast.
The governance and economy in Lebanon are however in a parlous state. There is no functioning government or public service at the moment, so there is no garbage collection, no public transport, no road repairing, and no control of vehicles.
You can buy a vehicle then drive it
unregistered. I suspect a lot of drivers had no driver’s licence as well. Any Canberran who visits Lebanon is unlikely to complain again about the ACT government’s failure to cut grass, fix potholes, or collect garbage.
The official money exchange rate in Lebanon was one US dollar to 1500 Lebanese pounds. The unofficial exchange rate was 100,000. I regularly had the experience of spending a million pounds on dinner.
Everyone accepts US dollars as the preferred alternative to the local currency. Residents are restricted in how much they can withdraw from banks. The local joke is that ATM stands for Afish Tes’hab Massari (You can’t withdraw money).
There are large refugee populations in Lebanon, mainly Palestinians and Syrians – probably as many as half a million Palestinians and 1.5 million Syrians.
Lebanon’s population, excluding the refugees, is around six million. Many Palestinian refugees have been there since 1948 when Israel displaced them from Palestine. Lebanese are not permitted to enter the Palestinian refugee camps which have competing violent factions. The Syrians are
refugees from the ongoing civil war in Syria.
It was a bit on the hot side on the coast being the middle of summer – around 35C, but a very pleasant mid-20s in the mountains. From a temperature point of view, the best time to visit is autumn and spring.
I would certainly recommend a visit. The people are friendly and helpful. The food is excellent and inexpensive. It is interesting archeologically with Crusader castles and Roman and Phoenician ruins. The mineral museum in Beirut was the best I have ever visited.
The hop-on hop-off bus in Beirut was typical of Lebanon. Instead of the driver dropping passengers off and leaving them at the various stops, he waited for them to enjoy the sights, then bought them Lebanese coffee at his expense, before driving on to the next stop.
Lots to appreciate, and well worth a visit.
Clive Williams is a Canberra columnist.
AUSTRALIANS are changing their mind on the Voice. The more they see from the “Yes” campaign the more likely they are saying “no”. What has happened?
The starting point for many Australians was to say “yes” to the Voice. This was because we all want to see better outcomes for indigenous people and the Voice was initially presented as a moderate proposal that would make a positive difference.
Earlier this year support for the “yes” vote was sitting at 71 per cent and the “no” case had only 29 per cent. A series of recent polls now show that more than 60 per cent of Australians say that they will be voting “no”, to the Voice. This includes a poll showing almost half of all Canberrans will vote “no”.
People are rightly cautious about any change to our constitution and want to see the detail of the proposed Voice to parliament to justify any change.
Advocates for the Voice have failed to provide adequate explanation about how the Voice would be structured, what issues it would address, who would be on it and how it would work.
Simple inconsistencies; such as the prime minister telling one audience the Voice is a “modest request”, then telling another audience that we should not “content ourselves with
modest change” has sowed confusion and doubt. The mixed messaging has left many feeling they do not trust this federal government and question its real intention.
Questions about the scope of the Voice and whether it will be engaging on issues such as Australia Day, have not been answered coherently. The Voice having direct access to executive government will stifle and slow bureaucratic decision making and its
independent advice to the government. The number of pages that comprise the “Uluru Statement from the Heart” is another example of confused messaging from advocates. The same people who insist it is one page recently published an official history of the Voice saying it is 15 pages. What Australians have also discovered about the Voice is its very divisive nature. Australians are quite naturally hesitant to give rights and privileges to one group of citizens based only on their race. It creates an inequality of citizenship that goes against the spirit of what it means to be Australian.
Many former “yes” supporters have also come to realise that the Voice is creating division across Australia, including amongst indigenous people. We have seen and heard from many
indigenous people saying this change does nothing to help them and their communities, but only serves to split the country permanently on racial lines.
Indigenous Australians in remote Australia have also disputed the idea that their very diverse communities can be represented by a group of appointed people as a single Voice, as Warren Mundine said: “A national Voice cannot speak for country.”
The fact that several prominent Voice campaigners have made it clear the Voice is a stepping stone to treaty and reparations has created legitimate doubt and concern among voters.
The aggressive attitude of advocates has been a turn off for many Australians. Some “Yes” campaigners have used incredibly dismissive and derogatory terms against anyone who questioned the proposal, even when those questions are totally reasonable.
Against this background, the “No”
campaign has presented a clear and consistent message that the Voice is divisive and lacks detail. It has been led by authentic grassroots leaders like Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, who has said “This Voice will not unite us, it will divide us by race.”
If the Voice referendum is defeated it will not be because Australians lack goodwill towards indigenous people but because we want to remain united as a nation.
What could have been a unifying moment of almost universal agreement on indigenous recognition in the constitution, has been squandered by a prime minister who has failed to respect millions of ordinary Australians by a proposal that institutionalises racial division in our founding document and effectively takes Australia backwards.
Jeremy Hanson MLA is the deputy leader of the Canberra Liberals.
If the Voice referendum is defeated it will not be because Australians lack goodwill towards indigenous people but because we want to remain united as a nation.divide us by race,” says Senator Price.
THE referendum date has been announced. I hope that the future rains down health, success, love and happiness to indigenous Australians, all of them.
And to non-indigenous Australians, all of them, and to Australians yet to be born or arrive here, and that we all spend less and less time talking about our differences, and more and more taking on each other’s tasks and duties.
The coolest thing as a kid watching Macksville play footy was hearing the Great Matriarchs of our town cheering on their respective grandsons and great nephews in the matches, often on opposing teams.
“Don’t hit Kenny too hard, Reggie”, was exhorted, among a thousand phrases. The best was “Pick ‘im up Reggie”, when a young man had whacked another in battle, but was then chided to go and lift him back up. God, I loved that.
Today it’s very normal in league or soccer to watch people decapitate each other, then laugh and hug after the game.
In those days, a quiet handshake was it.
So what I loved was those indigenous boys, whacking each other in willing competition, then picking each other up and laughing straight after. Showed the rest of us what the whole point was, really.
Funny thing, but international cricket could do with a bit of that. Hearing the Test stars at the end of the Ashes this year not being able to organise a drink after the final test in a two-month campaign seemed a bit off to me. Surely many of them must be buddies. Why not show it? The undefeated 1948 Ashes team that toured England featured many players who spent the rest of their long lives staying at each other’s homes when travelling to each
other’s country. Sounds kind of like what sport is meant to achieve, right?
If sport is a metaphor for life, then Vince Lombardi’s “winning is the only thing” quote has not established a particularly helpful blueprint for living.
I still love it when a footy player in mid-game whacks another, and then afterwards lifts his opponent up from the ground.
That’s respecting your adversary as a person, that’s respecting the process, that’s expressing your humanity despite the adversarial nature of the contest, and that the expression of that humanity not only trumps whatever is being argued, but must never be lost in the dispute.
If you play dirty to win, or abuse your opponent, you haven’t won a damn thing, and you’ve certainly lost something precious.
Decades ago, one of my friends was trying to buy something he shouldn’t have, from a local indigenous boy who shouldn’t have been selling it.
They were down by the creek and the vendor said: “You don’t want this stuff, mate, let’s do something else”. They lived near to me and each other, and had spent
years yabbying and mucking around and in each other’s pockets.
The buyer was cross and said: ”doesn’t our friendship mean anything?” The vendor, all of 15 but more worldly than I’ll ever be, said yes. And that’s why he was bothering to explain. Don’t do this thing. Bugger off and never seek this again.
I have never stopped admiring that indigenous kid. It would have been so much easier for him to sell or not sell it. But he sat his friend down and explained and cajoled and debated why he was not going to sell him this thing. Because he cared.
Debating a position is no different to telling your kids why they should eat a vegetable or brush teeth – it’s no fun. It’s easier to do nothing. But you have to present your position for the benefit of those you care for.
When you debate the referendum issues, I hope you find discussing the issues to be safe and heartfelt. I hope you do a lot of listening and get listened to as well. And I hope that, like a thousand debates I’ve had over the years, the person who disagrees with me may actually love and care for me.
Whatever your view, whatever the outcome, I hope for an Australia that promotes respectful dialogue over important issues, one in which the future rains down gentleness on our media, wisdom on our leaders, comfort to those who escape their shores to ours, and – oh yes – an avalanche of joy, dignity and respect to those of us who have been here a very, very long time.
Antonio Di Dio is a local GP, medical leader, and nerd. There is more of his “Kindness” on citynews.com.au
The Voice has moved columnist HUGH SELBY to write in rhyme. Here he channels Lewis Carroll, but with no apologies to Alice.
“You are old, wrinkly Selby,” some young-uns said, “And your hair has become very white; And yet you incessantly stand on your head –Do you think, at your age, it is right?”
“In my youth,” said old Selby, trying to jest, “I feared it might injure the brain; But, now that I’m sure I am long past my best, Why, I do it again and again.”
“A change of position brings new points of view, And insights that I really must share; How else can I focus upon anything new, When many pollies seem not to care?”
There’s a voice in the air that will not shut up, It’s demanding a much bigger share; It shouts down my queries, and even my ‘buts’, It says that it’s me that’s not fair.
Democracy lives by our having a voice, But quite equal those voices must be; To give four per cent an additional choice, Is to cast aside equality.
Too many among us live lives that are tough, Each day an assault on their pride; But giving voice to a few is hardly enough, To solve the equality divide.
Let First Nations people excel in all fields, May their cultures and talents shine bright; But not by a way that wills all others yield, To a race based pursuit of the light.
Our destinies are wrought on the forge of choice, Yet shaped by the world that’s around us; Respecting that range will create a clear voice, One deserving a broad ranging trust.
Housing, schooling, health, still all underfunded, Many children’s futures left to chance; AUKUS and light rail evidence the plunder; As pollies lead us a merry dance.
They tell us their Voice is a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ choice, But it’s rather more complex than that; The search is for an inclusive, public voice, Not some historical tit for tat.
All the wrongs that were done cannot be denied, Our past so full of shame and sorrow; But the future we share can have fewer lies, If, as equals, we plan tomorrow.
When you debate the referendum issues, I hope you find discussing the issues to be safe and heartfelt. I hope you do a lot of listening and get listened to as well.The all conquering, 1948 Australian Ashes team... featured many players who spent the rest of their long lives staying at each other’s homes when travelling to each other’s country.
The loss of the Voice referendum – now in serious prospect – is very sad, but not the existential tragedy that some well-meaning commentators of the left have labelled it.
It will not mean, for example, that Peter Dutton will be successful in importing the raging hatred from the hoi polloi that occurred in the UK Brexit disaster or the election of Donald Trump in the US. The genius of our electoral system with its compulsory voting will protect us from that particular horror story. Instead, it is the conduct and the personnel of the “Yes” case that did us in. And it will be a spur to the eventual engagement of the Aboriginal people in the true essence of “closing the gap” – that is, their involvement at every level of government – and the negotiation of a treaty (or treaties) with the First Nations.
But it’s important to analyse the reasons for the failure before we can move forward with confidence; so in all humility, here’s my view after a dedication to the cause since I initiated Canberra’s “reconciliation march” across Canberra’s Commonwealth Bridge in 2000.
1. From the beginning, the three elements of the campaign were in the wrong order – it should have
been hearts first, heads second: that is, truth-telling that revealed the attempted colonial genocide, the massacres, the dispossession and virtual slavery – the secret history revealed – before the treaty, of which the Voice is part.
2. The leaders were the wrong people – Noel Pearson is not a victim and he has a wicked tongue; Prof Mar cia Langton is a leading academic who attracts enemies, but never wins them over. Megan Davis is not a victim, nor is she a persuasive performer in the media. Instead, Tom Calma presents the gentle face and friendly demeanor so neces
53 FLORENCE
PM Albanese’s soft “democratic” view re the “No” case. He’s tough
destroy her credibility through the environment ministry permitting new coal mines; so why not tell Dutto raise their own funding if they want to mount a “No” case. against the false equivalence of the
“Yes” and “No” cases. The Murdoch gang will do it anyway, but it truly is a false equivalence.
7. Should the referendum be lost, the government should indicate that the work will continue – at a greater pace – through the parliament to “close the gap”.
8. They will work through states and will mandate Aboriginal participation at federal, state and council level; and immediately set a schedule to assist the Aboriginal people to begin a legal and UN case against the British government for reparations.
9. So, if Dutton thinks he has effectively ended Aboriginal advancement and participation in closing the gap by importing Trumpian politics, he’s not only just failed. By his foolish, racist politics, he has opened the way for the great attainment of making Australia whole… after 235 years of colonial occupation.
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campaign were in the wrong order –it should have been hearts first, heads second: that is, truthtelling that revealed colonial genocide the treaty,From left, Megan Davis…not a victim; Noel Pearson… wicked tongue; Marcia Langton… attracts enemies.
AT the Canberra Walk for Yes, as a visitor from Melbourne, I was impressed by the positivity and tolerance.
One “No” voter with a placard bravely walked through the assembled gathering and was not jeered but greeted with the good-natured chant, “Yes! Yes! Yes!”
One speaker reminded the crowd not to confuse the hesitation of undecided voters with not caring.
But most memorable were the words of Ngunnawal Elder Aunty Violet Sheridan, who said: “This isn’t a political matter, it’s a matter of respect, equity and human rights.” Well may we heed these messages.
I NOTE that Eric Hunter seems to have increased his promotion of a “yes” vote in various media of late.
We all know what his view is, but his constant reiterations, like Albanese and many yes campaigners, are probably counter productive. People, in general, do not like being lectured to and are now either tuning off or going to ground. They just want the whole business behind them and for the government to get on to cost of living and other important issues.
I fear that people like Mr Hunter are
actually fuelling a “no” vote.
In one of the first letters I wrote on this subject I said that a “yes” vote should be a fait accompli. It appears that Albanese and his fellow travellers, including Qantas, have now turned it into a disaster with a little help from Dutton.
After making his view plain for all to see, Albanese should have then turned the issue over to people like Noel Pearson and other indigenous leaders to lead, along with government assistance.
Now it looks very much like we are promoting a Canberra Voice. Certainly, Mr Hunter has turned my own yes vote into a maybe.
Ric Hingee, DuffyRE the article “Senator’s colonisation comments and betrayal” (citynews.com.au, August 17), where a historian was quoted as saying that British colonisation was “one of the greatest land grabs in history and the beginning of a catastrophe”.
If some people get a perverse pleasure out of wallowing in a theory of inherited racial guilt over what has happened in Australia since 1788, and if they are determined to ignore the colossal attempts that have been made for years to assist indigenous people, then why are they still living here?
Why haven’t they long ago gone and sold everything they have, given the proceeds
to their indigenous friends, and emigrated from the country of which they think they are such unworthy inhabitants?
At least their consciences would be clear; at least they would have set the example for others to follow; at least they could spend the rest of their lives weeping their hearts out in repentance and shame on some distant shore, such as Antarctica. How is it that their supposed contrition never interferes with their own comfortable lifestyles?
Malcolm Brandon, via email
ARTICLE 1 of the “International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination”, which came into force in 1969 and which Australia ratified and subsequently folded into the still-current Racial Discrimination Act 1975, states that: “Special measures taken for the sole purpose of securing adequate advancement of certain racial groups… shall not be deemed racial discrimination… provided, however, that such measures do not, as a consequence, lead to the maintenance of separate rights for different racial groups and they shall not be continued after the objectives for which they were taken have been achieved.”
This was pointed out by me in letters to a number of newspapers in April (“The Canberra Times” elected not to publish) and subsequently in a published article by Peter Baldwin, the former Labor left-wing MP.
I am yet to see any argument from a “Yes” proponent as to why this long-established and universally-recognised principle should be abrogated.
How does supporting a principle that is enshrined in an Act of parliament and designed to avoid perpetual racial discrimination infringe upon concepts of “honour, civility, and a responsibility to others”?
William Reid, Crace
CAROLE Ford (Letters, CN September 14) says the object of the Voice is to unite the nation and that the “No” campaign employs threats of land grabs and radical activism.
Let’s just have a look at what people on the “Yes” campaign have stated: Thomas Mayo, who sits on the PM’s Referendum Working Group only two years ago said the Voice would strip away land rights from ordinary Australians and force them to pay reparation to indigenous people. He also describes the Voice as a campaign tool to “punish politicians, abolish colonial institutions”, as well as saying, “there is nothing that we can do that is more powerful than building a First Nations’ voice, a black institution, a black political force to be reckoned with.”
“Yes” campaigner Marcia Langton has labelled Senator Jacinta Price and her mother, a former cabinet minister in NT, “coloured help” and stated “Australia is a horrible,
racist country”. Noel Pearson has virtually called Price a right-wing redneck. Pearson and others like him have tuned down their hate speech as they know the “Yes” vote is struggling and opting now for a softly, softly approach. Australians are not dumb and will not fall for this sudden change of attitude. Compare the indigenous “No” campaigners, who are articulate, calm and measured, such as Price and Mundine to the “Yes” campaigners Mayo, Pearson and Langton.
Ian Pilsner, Weston
AGAINST the deserved widespread empathy for indigenous people, may I use an analogy? I take my car to be fixed because there are serious problems with the chassis/ undercarriage only – requiring urgent attention/repair.
I’d therefore be very disappointed if the mechanic told me he would concentrate on changes to the engine. Chassis/undercarriage examples are well known deficiencies that can be fixed (and arguably should have been fixed by now) by all right-minded governments. The engine, of course, is the constitution.
Colliss Parrett, BartonI’VE just returned from an extensive holiday in Europe and North America. In Europe, I visited 16 countries including 14 on the continent. The quality of the public transport services provided varied from good to excellent. This is great for tourists.
The standout was Switzerland where buses and trains arrived and left on time; furthermore they were regular and very reliable. These services were well patronised, in a country with a high standard of living and car ownership.
It was a rude shock to return home to Canberra and find the interval on all off-peak services, apart from the inter-city R routes was 60 minutes! No wonder so many residents use cars almost exclusively.
Of course, high patronage was aided by sound urban planning and future urban development policies designed to limit sprawl. High rise was conspicuous by its absence.
Cities in the Balkans, Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary also had impressive public transport services that were very well supported by the public.
In nearly all cases the drivers accepted cash (unlike Canberra) and inspectors were active and fines stiff. Furthermore, in many cities, passengers had to enter buses through front doors next to the driver, to prevent fare evasion.
Given the massive and growing debt
of the ACT as highlighted by Jon Stanhope and Khalid Ahmed in “CityNews” (“Debt downgrade: Barr is asleep at the wheel”, CN August 14), you would think Transport Canberra would be keen to avoid policies that enable widespread fare evasion on the buses.
But debt clearly is of little concern to this government, otherwise they would not be squandering millions on this outdated and exorbitant tram fiasco that has caused so much disruption to the inner city.
Colin Lyons, WeetangeraI FIND it deeply ironic that, in 2023, the Greens and the Public Transport Association are arguing for bus rapid transit to Belconnen.
The ACT Labor-Greens government’s August 2012 submission to Infrastructure Australia concluded that a $249 million busway to Gungahlin would replace 4800 car journeys a day while light rail, despite costing more than twice as much, would replace only 200 more car journeys.
The government kept that submission secret until nine months after the 2012 election. In the meantime, Labor and the Greens
JON Stanhope and Kalid Ahmed have been drawing attention to the increasingly precarious ACT financial situation. When they draw attention to the $13.2 billion of ACT debt in 2025 most people no doubt go, “ho hum”. The tram itself is actually financed “off balance sheet” through a PPP (Public Private Partnership) agreement with the contractor which has now, according to accounts, reached about $13 billion in liabilities.
What does this mean?
What is relevant is the ratio of interest payments to tax revenue. If interest payments exceed a critical amount that prevents other necessary government expenditure, on say police, hospitals, schools, things rapidly fall apart. This is called a revolutionary situation.
So what is the ACT interest/revenue ratio? Currently it is around 14 per cent, rising fast, (roughly $4.24 billion revenue and about $600 million in interest payments), not counting the interest payments on the tram construction. How the latter is being financed is clouded in mystery. Whether or not the interest is being accumulated and paid at the end, it must be paid.
When do these nasties happen? Looking back at history, the French Revolution occurred when interest payments reached 60 per cent of revenue. So, we may be half way there.
Will the Federal Government come to the rescue?
Maybe, if it is capable. Will the Reserve Bank print the necessary money? From overseas experience, Germany and Zimbabwe, there is a limit on the amount of money they can print. Don’t bet on a rescue.
To use a frequently used analogy, the decks on the “Titanic” may be level now, but people should be seriously thinking of looking for a lifeboat.
Tim Walshaw, WatsonMANY thanks to columnist Clive Williams for reviving memories of the wonderful “Lili Marlene”(CN September 14).
I was only a schoolboy during World War II, but this
beautifully haunting song captured me then and has remained with me ever since. I was equally enraptured by both Vera Lynn and Marlene Dietrich’s versions, with a slight edge to Marlene for her husky and very sexy accent (even at my prepubescent age).
It also made the ordinary German soldier seem just that little bit more human than the propaganda was insisting. Unfortunately, Hitler and his megalomaniac associates were not impressed either.
Eric Hunter, Cook
IT’S amusing to see the Greater Canberra group now say the ACT government’s new dual-occupancy policy, which was a response to fierce lobbying by that group, is “ineffective and insufficient”.
It will be very costly and is not likely to result in many additional dwellings. It is totally unrealistic to expect the housing “crisis” to be resolved through individual house block redevelopment for two dwellings, with the loss of open space and mature trees.
What is required is more and better planning, rather than less, to facilitate redevelopments in appropriate locations with smart controls allowing substantial increases in dwelling numbers in moderate-height buildings with generous communal open space.
The recently approved housing project for 403 new dwellings at 1 Dairy Road, Fyshwick, shows the way, and should be a model for the East Lake Urban Renewal Area as well as the completion of the Kingston Foreshore, which together should yield several thousand new dwellings without touching established residential areas.
Richard Johnston, president, Kingston & Barton Residents Groupcommitted to build light rail.
The government now plans to spend billions of dollars to build a light rail extension that will add 10 minutes to the time public transport takes to travel between Civic and Woden.
If Labor had published its August 2012 submission, we could by now have had a fast busway from Gungahlin to Woden. A busway to Belconnen would be nearing completion, and we would be discussing when to extend the busway network to Tuggeranong, Molonglo, Fyshwick and Queanbeyan.
Leon Arundell, DownerTHANKS to Mike Quirk for his marvellous article “Thank you, Canberra – the regions are booming” (CN August 14), which highlighted the parlous state of cross-border co-operation between the ACT and NSW.
Another illustration of this is the new suburb of South Jerrabomberra (formerly Tralee or Environa). Through lack of co-operation and planning there is no immediate plan to have any direct road link between it and the adjacent ACT suburb of Hume.
It is 100 metres as the crow flies to the industrial precinct of Hume, yet a 10.2-kilometre road trip. What stops you from currently even walking between the two is a 5-kilometre chainlink fence that follows the old Cooma railway line.
When the developers of the future Hume section upgrade of the Monaro Highway gave a public presentation to the Jerrabomberra
Residents Association they admitted that no plans were under consideration to join South Jerra with Hume for the purpose of connection to a new Isabella Drive intersection or new Mugga Lane bridge.
This is ridiculous and demonstrates the failed “local council” mentality of the ACT government.
Mike Quirk mentions the housing situation, yet a co-operative approach not only in the north-west but also around Beard and Oaks Estate near Queanbeyan could see sensitive residential in-fill and development of the Molonglo River precinct for ACT/NSW public amenity.
Mike also mentions an upgrade of the heavy rail line from Kingston Station. There are many jurisdictions worldwide that have combined heavy and light rail on the one corridor. Alas, a future light rail from Kingston to Fyshwick to Queanbeyan and to Bungendore may be a project beyond the capacity of this partisan, parochial territory government.
Robert Curtis, via email
SUE Dyer’s letter (CN September 14) sincerely thanking columnist Paul Costigan for his important contributions to Canberra’s community is echoed.
There must be a legion of his followers to whom we can confidently hand the baton to continue to keep the conversations going, and give Paul the honour of valuing his achievements. We wish him well.
Ilona Crabb, via email
WINSTON Churchill
once famously said that “no hour of life is wasted that is spent in the saddle”. That quote would ring true for many in Canberra, where there’s plenty of activities, businesses and charities that all celebrate the bond between people and horses. This week “CityNews” spoke with some local horse lovers to find out about the equine experiences on offer in and around the capital.
HORSE-riding enthusiast
Sarah Michelle says she’s had multiple riding stints over the years, and Gooromon Park helped her in more ways than she could possibly explain.
“My first time on a horse was as an 11-year-old on school holiday camp and I was well and truly bitten by the riding bug,” she says.
“I first came to Gooromon Park as a teenager where my riding really flourished with the quality of horses and instruction. I had a few years off then returned as a young adult, then had another big break and came back at 28.
“Horses were always in the back of my mind, as something I dearly missed and longed to return to.”
Sarah says from turning up as a rusty adult rider, with eight years out of the saddle, to helping her learn to care for her first horse, coaching her through her first competitions, and having the hard conversations when she needed them, “the coaches at Gooromon have been there for me the whole way, sharing their knowledge.”
Chief instructor Danielle French says Gooromon takes riders from beginner to
advanced, as well as running school and school holiday programs, and birthday parties.
“A life with horses for me is about constant learning, always improving yourself to do better,” she says.
“Sarah truly embodies this; it’s always such a privilege to play a role in watching someone transform – not just in their horse riding.”
Gooromon Park, 214 Gooromon Ponds Road, Wallaroo. Call 6230 2230, or visit gooromonpark.com.au
WILLINGA Park is one of Australia’s leading equestrian centres, and an events and conferences destination set on more than 2300 acres on the NSW south coast, says marketing and sales manager Nadine Young.
“Combining award-winning architecture, public art sculptures and stunning botanical gardens, it offers luxury accommodation, restaurant, custom dining and tailored experiences,” she says.
“Willinga Park is the vision of owner and founder Terry Snow. Terry’s vision was to create a world-class equestrian park to provide a platform to train, and to compete, and caters for many equestrian disciplines, including show jumping, dressage, eventing and campdraft.”
Nadine says Willinga Park’s key events during 2024 include Dressage by the Sea CDI in February, Gold Buckle Campdraft in May,
Our professional equestrian trainers provide a safe & fun riding experience!
• Horse riding lessons – beginner to advanced
• School holiday programs
• Birthday parties
• Boutique agistment services
• Regular events
214 Gooromon Ponds Rd, Hall NSW Call on (02) 6230 2230
Or visit gooromonpark.com.au
Approved Centre
Our experienced veterinary team are dedicated to offering extensive reproductive, medical and surgical services to Thoroughbreds and Sport Horses.
Our services currently include:
Reproduction
• Artificial Insemination (AI) using Fresh, Chilled and Frozen semen
• Embryo Transfer (ET)
• Intensive mare specific treatments and therapies including surgical intervention if required for mares with a
Sport Horse Medicine
• Lameness evaluation and treatment
• Endoscopy of the upper airways
• Dental Care
Jumping@Willinga in September and Eventing@Willinga in October.
“The newly completed world class, purpose built Willinga Park Vet Hospital provides seven days a week equine emergency and after care services for clients and referring veterinarians,” she says.
“The team of highly qualified staff, headed by Dr Eric Klaui are dedicated to offering personalised veterinary services, utilising state-of-the-art diagnostic, medical and surgical equipment.
“Willinga Park is a private property, and is open to the public during our open and event days. We welcome you to visit on these days and we update our website regularly to let you know when these days are held.”
Willinga Park, 134 Forster Drive, Bawley Point. Call 4405 5666, or visit willingapark.com.au
difficult fertility history
• Semen Collection and Transportation
• Semen Freezing
• Semen Freezing stallions while participating in the reproduction programs are available at WP
• Podiatry
• Rehabilitation facilities including a Hydro Treadmill, Pool, shaker board, dedicated gallops
Survey and Pre-Sale Radiographs and Endoscopy
• Weanlings
• Yearlings
• “Ready To Run”
For more information contact 02 4405 5658 vetcentre@willing.com.au
PEGASUS Riding School is getting ready to host their seventh annual race day on December 1, says CEO Matt Watson.
“It is one of our three major public fundraising events each year, and it’s just a day at the races,” he says.
“So December 1, from noon to 6pm, come on down to the St Covet Row Marquee at Thoroughbred Park to have fun and raise money for a good cause.
“We are delighted to have Corkhill Bros once again this year as our inaugural sponsor. More than 50 per cent of our money comes from donations and fundraising, and 100 per cent of the money we raise stays in Canberra.
“A table of 10 on the day will include a three-course luncheon, generous drinks package, lucky door prizes and so much more.”
Matt says Pegasus facilitates horse therapy services for people living with disabilities.
“It is 50 years this year since the idea came about, but 48 years since we became a corporation,” he says.
“We’re located in Holt on 100 acres of property, conveniently located only 10 minutes from the Belconnen town centre, and we have 18 horses in our herd.”
Pegasus Riding School, 119 Drake Brockman Drive, Holt. Call 6254 9190, or visit pegasusact.com.au
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2023 – 12noon to 6pm
• A three-course luncheon
• Generous drinks package
Event will be held track side in the St Covet Row Marquee with:
• Auctions • Raffles
• Wine Wall • Fashion on the Field competition
• Lucky Door Prizes
BOOK HERE!
100% of profits go to supporting the amazing work that Pegasus does delivering our unique equine and farm-based programs to people in the Canberra and surrounding region with disability
Bookings: trybooking.com/events/landing/1119333 1 Randwick
COCHRAN Horse Treks, established by Peter Cochran, has been operating for 26 years, says general manager Bec Atkinson.
“We offer multiple days (mostly three or five days) horse trekking in the Snowy Mountains of NSW for experienced riders through the warmer months from October to May,” she says.
“There is a resident group of brumbies near our camp as well as kangaroos and a group of alpine emus. Our camp is on the NSW side banks of the Murray River and is a beautiful area to explore on horseback.
“Each year in April we offer a special seven-day ride of 150 kilometres across the mountains to attend the Man from Snowy River Festival in Corryong, and after the festival we saddle up again and head south to explore the Geehi area and the Tom Groggin
region near the Victorian border.”
Bec says Cochran is the premier tour operator in the area for horse trekking with unparalleled location offerings.
“Our rides are expertly led by experienced and qualified guides. We offer quality camping facilities, we pride ourselves on great food and, of course, great horses,” she says.
“It’s a lifelong passion for us and we have been bush riders all our lives.
“Our horses are carefully selected for their temperaments and their desire to please their rider. Peter selects only the best and this gives our guests the opportunity to ride the finest mountain horses.”
Cochran Horse Treks. Call 0417 370490, or visit cochranhorsetreks.com.au
THE 2023 Master Builders and Asset Construction Hire Excellence Awards celebrate the innovative, functional and beautiful projects of Master Builders ACT members, said MBA CEO Michael Hopkins.
“A big congratulations to the superb winners, finalists and entrants of 2023, whose technical skill, competence and intelligent planning continu ously deliver dream homes and the amenities that support our community,” he said.
“The team at Construction Control performed outstandingly well at the awards, every aspect of the planning and delivery of Project of the Year was of an industry-leading standard of excellence. The resulting spaces will benefit the Canberra com munity for many years to come. Congratulations, Construction Control.
“The esteemed House of the Year award was presented to Manteena, Architects Ring & Associ ates and Archertec Interiors. The five-bedroom home showcases incredible attention to detail from every member of the project team. The handcrafted quality of the home is outstanding, particularly the staircase, which was accurately delivered to the millimetre.
“The Construction Woman of the Year award recognises a leading female in our industry, Lauren
IN a testament to its unwavering commitment to excel lence, craftsmanship and collaboration, Manteena Residen tial, in conjunction with ARAA and Archertec Interiors, has been awarded House of the Year at the Master Builders ACT Building Excellence Awards, says director Danny Agnello.
“This honour is complemented by me being recognised as the Young Builder of the Year,” he says.
“The winning Deakin project is a paragon of architectural magnificence and design elegance. Set on a picturesque corner block in Deakin, the project’s genesis was inspired by the client’s rich Italian heritage, with its deep-seated roots in art, architecture and design.
“Aided by the collaborative efforts of Architects Ring and Associates, the dream of constructing a French Chateaustyled sanctuary for a young family was realised.”
Danny says client engagement and teamwork were pivotal in realising this dream.
“Visitors often describe the ambiance as having soul and a feeling of ease, encapsulating the essence of a truly special space,” he says.
“Being acknowledged by the MBA is not just a personal honour but a testament to the relentless efforts of the entire Manteena team, in particular Scott Press and Anthony Aloe; plus, ARAA and Archertec Interiors. We’re driven by the shared ambition of elevating the standards of the building industry.”
Manteena, 84 Barrier Street, Fyshwick. Call 6280 7033, or visit manteena.com.au
The Deakin project stands as a beacon of architectural brilliance and cultural homage, earning Manteena Residential, Architects Ring and Associates and Archertec Interiors the prestigious ‘House of the Year’ accolade at the Master Builders ACT Building Excellence Awards. Nestled on a charming corner block, the residence is a testament to the client’s profound Italian heritage, weaving art, architecture, and design into its very fabric. Guided by Architects Ring and Associates, the vision of a French Chateau-inspired haven for a young family came to life. Every inch of the house, from its external grace to its opulent interiors, exudes a blend of luxury and comfort.
A grand spiral staircase beckons exploration, leading to spaces drenched in northern sunlight. Formal lounges transition seamlessly into modern living areas, while the heart of the home lies in an open-plan kitchen, meals, and living space that converges with a serene alfresco retreat. The design philosophy embraces proportion, balance, and a seamless flow, anchored by a courtyard ensuring a continuous breath of fresh air. The result of unwavering client collaboration and teamwork is an abode that resonates with meticulous attention to detail, creating an ambiance described by visitors as possessing a unique “soul and ease.”
The Theodore House in ACT stands as a beacon of sustainable excellence, a testament to the power of innovative design and conscientious construction.
This project, a collaboration between Light House Architecture and Science and 360 Building Solutions, has rightfully earned its accolades, winning both the Sustainable Residential Property at the Master Builders Association Awards ACT and a National GreenSmart award.
The transformation of this once weary 1960s duplex into a super energy-efficient abode is nothing short of remarkable. Through the meticulous application of solar passive design principles and NatHERS energy modelling, the home now boasts an impressive EER of 7.2 stars, a testament to its outstanding energy efficiency. This achievement, all the more noteworthy for being accomplished with standard residential materials and methods, highlights the project’s commitment to sustainability without extravagant costs.
Beyond energy efficiency, water and resource management were integral components of the project. A 5000L rainwater tank serves as a testament to water efficiency, supplying the laundry, toilets, and gardens. The retention of the original framing, along with extensive recycling efforts, showcases a dedication to resource efficiency.
Moreover, the Theodore House doesn’t merely meet environmental standards; it surpasses them. The application of Low VOC paints and finishes, the elimination of gas, and airtight construction contribute to a healthier indoor environment. This home is a living testament to the potential for sustainability without compromising comfort.
The true brilliance of this project, however, lies in its seamless integration of building science with architecture. From concept to completion, every step was meticulously
examined to ensure optimal energy performance. This approach not only elevated the EER from 3.4 to 7.2 stars but also exemplifies true innovation in sustainable construction. Furthermore, the homeowner states the tangible impact of this renovation on their daily lives, illustrating the transformative power of thoughtful design and construction. With a total construction cost well below that of a new build the Theodore House stands as a model of cost-effective sustainability.
In every aspect, the Theodore House sets a new standard for sustainable residential properties. It not only exemplifies what is possible with readily available technologies but also demonstrates the profound positive impact such projects can have on the lives of their inhabitants. The Theodore House stands as a beacon of hope, proving that with vision, collaboration, and dedication, we can build a more sustainable future, one home at a time. www.360building.com.au
THE Canberra Grammar School’s Music Centre and Auditorium delivered by Construction Control won the 2023 MBA Project of the year, says director Matthew Adam.
“It also won Commercial Construction $20-$50 million, Project Displaying Technical Difficulty of Innovation, Special Purpose/Adaptable Commercial Construction, and WHS Commercial,” he says.
“It was quite a unique project, it was all about a world-class facility in design, a 1400 seat concert hall with state-of-the-art music facilities.
“I think the key part that really stood out in the construction was the fact that it was excavated 14 metres down underground, and the fact that it sits between two heritagelisted buildings, we had to be very sympathetic and careful.”
Matthew says undertaking construction in and around a fully operational school was challenging too, but the Construction Control team overcame all the challenges very well.
“I think the team’s favourite part was the roof of the concert hall, we had some technical difficulties because it’s a column free space, but we did it well and that’s what makes it very special,” he says.
“The project and the wins are a testament to our teamwork, and our relationship with the client being the school, and the designers and sub-contractors.”
NICK Barnier won Project Manager of the Year at the 2023 MBA Awards, for his role in managing the Canberra Grammar School’s Music Centre and Auditorium project, says Construction Control director Matthew Adam.
“Nick managed the project from conception to completion,” says Matthew.
“He’s been with Construction Control since 2011, where he started as a cadet, but he has progressed quickly to become a very considered and driven project manager.
“His attention to detail is second to none, which really helped him in this Grammar School project, it was very technically difficult, and so it’s good for him to be able to utilise this strength of paying very close attention to all of the details.”
Matthew says Construction Control is very proud of Nick.
“At the moment he’s moved on to his next project, managing an aged-care living development project for LDK Yarralumla,” says Matthew.
“He commenced the LDK project in August, and will thrive in once again seeing the project through its various stages.”
CIVIC Quarter 2 (CQ2) is a site along Northbourne Avenue with 13 floors above ground, premium office spaces and a five star National Australian Built Environment Rating System (NABERS) energy rating, says Construction Control director Matthew Adam.
“It also offers two levels of basement car parking, with endof-trip facilities,” he says.
“A real stand-out feature of the building is the full-height atrium, which I think helped us to win Commercial Construction over $100m in the MBA awards.
“But, it also houses ground floor conference and retail tenancies, and the Department of Agriculture, Forestries and Fisheries.”
Matthew says the project took 28 months to complete, from demolition to occupancy.
“The quality of materials and the construction outcome I also think were key factors in the win,” he says.
“Building on a restricted city site, obviously there were challenges that arose, but we overcame them through effective planning and consultation with stakeholders and sub-contractors.
“It was also delivered in front of time, which was a great outcome for us, and was a very important win.”
LAUREN Couter has been with Construction Control since 2006, and took out Construction Woman of the Year at the 2023 MBA awards, says director Matthew Adam.
“She is also a director of Construction Control, but prior to her time with us she spent time with various other contractors,” he says.
“She is also a previous National Association of Women in Construction award winner, taking out the Women in Construction ACT Crystal Vision Award in 2019.
“She has delivered a number of projects with us over the past 17 years including commercial office buildings at Canberra Airport, as well as a number of refurbishment projects and new builds at the Australian National University.”
Matthew says Lauren is currently a project director at the ANU site working on hail remediation projects.
“Lauren is responsible for a team of more than 35 Construction Control staff,” he says.
“She is responsible for managing multiple, concurrent remediation works across the university campus, where they face the challenge of working around the fully operational university, amidst staff and students.
“Lauren is a real champion for women in construction, and she’s a very experienced manager who creates good working relationships in order to get the best possible outcomes for clients.”
REP Building started in 2008, and specialises in residential home knockdown rebuilds and multi-unit townhouse sites, says owner and director Robert Paragalli.
“That’s what we won our MBA award for this year, a townhouse in Kaleen – Medium Density Dual Occupancy/Habitable Suite,” he says.
“I think the difficulty stood out to our judges, the site was especially hard to build on because it was a steep block, but the level of finish we were able to achieve with Maria’s design skills from Studio Black Interiors made it a strong contender, and a winner.
“It took us 18 months to complete, and we worked through COVID-19 restrictions, the wettest winter in years, so it was a significant achievement to finish the project within our timeline and budget, and keep such a high-quality relationship with the client.”
Robert has been working in the industry since 2005, and says he strives to be a high achiever.
“My company has been a success because I have built confidence and trust with my clients, and we pay a high level of attention to detail,” he says.
“I enjoy bringing young people in and guiding them through builds like this, knowing that we are building a family, forever home. It’s good quality, you don’t have to renovate it or fix it before selling it, after you’ve raised your family in it, so it’s very special to know we’re making a difference.”
REP Building. Call 0411 119195, or visit repbuilding.com.au
Studio Black Interiors, 41 Gledden Street, Chifley. Call 0410 501 729, or visit studioblack.com.au
WHAT was once a tired, uncomfortable and inefficient ‘60s duplex, poorly orientated on an east/ west axis and extended to the rear in the ‘70s, has been transformed into a super energy-efficient, comfortable and climate-resilient home, says Light House Architecture & Science director and scientist, Jenny Edwards.
“We worked on the house with help from 360 Building Solutions, and together we won the 2023 MBA ACT Excellence Award – Sustainable Residential Project,” she says.
“Our Theodore House project, in Curtin, is an example of true environmental sustainability. Our unique approach of combining building science, with our philosophy of designing space and energy efficient homes, guarantees a home that is practical, space, energy and
resource efficient and thermally comfortable.
“The integration of science with architecture is what makes us unique.”
The clients themselves say the Light House design for their house has been a real game changer.
“When we first lived in the house, it was small and pokey, draughty and freezing inside in Canberra winters, and usually baking hot in summer,” they say.
“The new design is a massive improvement to how we live and work, at a comfort and environmental level.”
Light House Architecture & Science. Call 6239 4899, or visit lighthouseteam.com.au
360 Building Solutions. Call 0415 495912 or 0406 218273, visit 360building.com.au
www.repbuilding.com.au
robert@repbuilding.com.au
0411 119 195
PICHELMANN Custom Building took out two wins at this year’s Master Builders Awards, says Parry Pichelmann.
“The first is for a home on Dugan Street, Deakin. This build won us the Best Use of Material in a Residential Project,” he says.
“It’s a very unique house with a heck of a lot of concrete, which is what helped us win I think.
“The main roof is a concrete slab and it looks like it’s floating on nothing.
“The project required exceptional collaboration between my team, the engineers and the architects.”
Parry says their client had a dream, but was “nicely naive”, so gave them all her trust.
In a letter, the client wrote of the finished “Floating Pavilion” home: “The Pichelmann team, with Parry and Eugene at the helm, have built my home as if it were their own… with meticulous attention to detail, and with integrity and honesty. I was particularly impressed with the respect and dedication shown to me.”
Parry says he feels very good about both the letter and the win.
“The letter really encompasses what we are trying to do through Pichelmann Custom Building; it has strengthened our client relationship and our reputation,” he says.
“We are not a quantity builder, because we’re passionate about interacting hands-on heavily with our clients.
“The house absolutely deserves the award for its complexity, and it’s a good recognition of our hard work.”
PICHELMANN Custom Building owner Parry Pichelmann says their second win came from a renovation on Tennyson Crescent, Forrest.
“We won the Kitchen Project $60,000 to $100,000, Renovation/Extension over $1 million and Bathroom Project more than $50,000,” he says.
“We put an ultra-modern extension with a lot of structural steel on the back of an existing, old property, and parts of it were heritage listed.
“The planning and site co-ordination was seriously immense, the photos don’t do justice to the work put in.
“It was a very difficult project that required a lot of ongoing, positive interactions with the client and the architects.”
Parry says his philosophy is that this is probably some of the most money the client will spend in their life, so he and his team work heavily on client-positive, people-first focused approaches.
“This renovation won in most of the categories it was in for, which is always a good feeling,” he says.
“It also won People’s Choice for the landscaping package, which was also very satisfying.
“We had to overcome some challenges in building the extension of this house, which isn’t unusual, but this included adjusting the levels of the house and hiding most of the structural steel in curved elements in the house.”
THEY say home is where the heart is, so why not make the most of your beloved property?
While improving the home can be incredibly exciting, it can also become expensive, tiring and time consuming.
This week “CityNews” talks with some of Canberra’s businesses with a passion for making your home better. Whether it’s new furniture, a total renovation or just some help with moving to your new place, here are the people who love to lend a hand with home improvement.
WHAT the team at C&C Painting Group love most about their work is transforming their clients’ homes and spaces into something they love and can really enjoy for years to come, says co-owner Tanya Chamberlain.
“Having years of local industry experience, C&C Painting’s four owners saw an opportunity in 2018 to bring their vast range of skills and experience together to provide a top-quality painting and decorating service,” she says.
“Every member of our team is extremely passionate about what we do and all work together to create the very best experience for our clients.”
Tanya says C&C Painting specialises in full interior and exterior home repaints and can also manage some roofing, render and plaster repairs “for your convenience”.
“Our aim is to make the entire process seamless so that you can continue on with your usual daily activities, and enjoy the benefits of your newly painted home,” she says.
“We have the perfect mix of experience and knowledge combined with modern flair, which means we are up to date with current trends and best practices.
“We employ local staff including apprentices, and we are invested in their continuous growth
SHAW Surveys provides professional survey services to not only the general public, but also to government authorities, engineers, develop ers, solicitors, architects, builders and real estate agents, says director Jim Shaw.
“Part of getting approval from the govern ment to build or extend the home requires an accurate measuring and position of things on the block and that’s where we come in,” says Jim.
“We offer comprehensive surveying services and have expertise in all facets of land and property surveying to make sure you’re not building too high or big.”
Shaw Surveys was first started in 1982 by Jim’s father, Peter, with the business originally called PJ Shaw & Associates.
Over the decades since, Jim says the company has surveyed the subdivisions that created Gordon, Conder, Amaroo, Nicholls, Forde, Palmerston and Jerrabomberra to name a few.
“We’ve seen Canberra grow massively in the last 40 years and I’m really proud to be a part of that,” says Jim.
“To know that I am continuing my father’s legacy makes me even more proud.
“We work as far as Goulburn, Braidwood, Cooma, Yass and even down the coast on occasions.”
C&C Painting Group, 1b/GF 118 Lysaght Street, Mitchell. Call 6221 3466, or visit ccpaintinggroup.com.au
Shaw Surveys, 2/22 Strangways Street, Curtin. Call 6130 1640, or visit shawsurveys.com.au
out the design process – without compromising on the aesthetic.
“We offer a complete interior and building design service for home improvements and new construction, with a team blend of experienced designers and graduates who bring fresh perspectives to the thinking and visualisation of our projects.
“This combination of experience and unbridled design thinking creates enviable results for our clients.”
Michael says his research showed the number one driver to increase energy efficiency was the quality.
cess to triple-glazed windows at around the same price of even the better double glazed units. An example recently was a client whose windows were eight per cent more costly through us, but reduced their heating and cooling costs by half. An unbelievable outcome.”
Michael says he found huge interest since he’s been able to supply such amazing windows at such good prices.
Reimagined Habitat and Net Zero Plus, 18 Creswell Street, Campbell. Call 0419 391282, or visit reimaginedhabitat.com.au
Canberra based, we have a team of five Certified Passive House Designers and Consultants to help you realise a more energy efficient, comfortable, healthy and well built home, without compromising on design. We work with new home builders and renovators either directly or with their builders or designer. We can do the whole design, or assist your team in helping optimise current designs.
0419 391 282
reimaginedhabitat.com.au
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Our research showed that windows were the key to comfort and energy efficiency for homes, so we sourced the best we could to bring to the market in Canberra.
Triple glazed windows are surprisingly affordable, and can halve the energy used for heating and cooling the home.
For new builds, renovations or just upgrading your existing home, the change these windows bring to how your home will feel and work is transformational.
Call us for a quote – you might be surprised at the price for this quality.
AFTER 29 years of salvaging and recycling timber, Thor Diesendorf, founder and owner of Thor’s Hammer, says he has seen a surge in demand for high-quality, recycled, Australian hardwood timber that doesn’t cost the planet.
“We’ve seen people’s approach to home improvement and renovation shift dramati cally as people become more aware of the creative possibilities of recycled timbers and wanting to source sustainable materials for their homes.” Thor says. “It’s great for us because that’s exactly what we live and breathe!
“Our customers love that we source our timber from old buildings, factories, bridges and warehouses, because each piece has a unique history and story to tell.
“At Thor’s Hammer, we value the history and provenance of the timber and we build to last a lifetime – the longer a piece of timber’s life, the longer it stays out of landfill.”
Thor says the business has an experienced team of designers, recyclers and joiners, skilled in working with recycled, Australian timber and passionate about their mission to divert demolition timber from landfill.
“We provide personalised solutions for DIY home improvement and renovation projects, whether that’s supplying recycled floorboards, cladding or posts, helping to match and patch existing floorboards with similar species, or custom-milling timber to your desired profile and finish,” says Thor.
Thor’s Hammer, 10 Mildura Street, Griffith. Call 6282 9900, or visit thors.com.au
LEADING second-hand furniture store, Ex-Government Furniture, sees home improvements as a recent necessity “now that people spend a lot more time at home”, says co-owner James Fullerton.
He says the business, which has been operating for more than three decades, has become a well recognised part of Fyshwick, offering a wide range of storage, dining and comfort options for any home
“We currently have a wide variety of storage options in stock for spring organisation,”
“Some of the pieces are quite nice and presentable, they don’t have to be hidden in
“We have storage options from some very prestigious government departments, but we also have some benchheight drawers for garage
James says Ex-Government Furniture also has a large range of “unique, cool and super colourful” designer furniture.
“The designer furniture is really something special, we have some dining chairs and lounges that you don’t often see,” he says.
“With ongoing shipments, we are inundated with new items every week, and they are one-off, unique pieces of high-end furniture.”
James says Ex-Government Furniture is a staple of Fyshwick, with interesting items and objects spanning a wide variety of time periods, budgets and designer styles.
“We provide furniture and accessories to help personalise any space. There’s a huge range and we can work with customers to their budget.”
Ex-Government Furniture, 6 Yallourn Street, Fyshwick. Call 6280 6490 or visit exgovfurniture.com
ACORN Stairlifts has just launched a revolutionary new product into the Australian market called StairSafe, says general manager Australia and NZ Simon Hughes.
“This is a system that uses a small electronic module installed inside the stairlift,” she says.
“It constantly monitors the operation and usage of the stairlift and communicates information back to StairSafe HQ. It can also be monitored by the stairlift user, or by a loved one or carer, using a free app on a smartphone or tablet.
“For example, if your stairlift is not parked correctly on its charge point, StairSafe will alert the monitoring centre, which can then contact you so the problem can be quickly and easily rectified.”
Simon says StairSafe can also detect when the stairlift is experiencing an error as soon as it happens, so it can be put right before you need to use the lift.
“In this way, StairSafe deals with minor problems before they become emergencies, and avoids the need for unnecessary callouts,” he says.
“Another example is if a loved one is using the stairlift on a daily basis, then StairSafe will let you know remotely that everything is operating correctly, or that the stairlift is being used at the usual times, indicating all is well.
“StairSafe can send messages to a family member or designated carer. It’s simple, flexible and customisable.” Acorn Stairlifts. Call 1800 561546, or visit acornstairlifts.com.au
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.
“I can help people who are thinking of downsizing, or renovate to add in shower rails or seats,” she says.
“Or we can renovate a family home to get people money when moving into the next chapter of their lives.”
Kim says she’s noticed a change in the current market.
“A lot more houses are coming up for sale, so it’s good to have yours renovated, to give your house an uplift. Making sure the home is well presented will make it stand out,” she says.
“And, a lot of people are looking to buy a house that’s already renovated so they don’t have to worry about getting a loan and doing it all themselves.”
Renovation Matters offers a “fix up, profit and pay later” process in which they can cover upfront renovation costs before settlement.
“If you’re struggling with tough times, or finding it harder to pay the mortgage, we can fund improvements until settlement,” she says.
“If we are needed to help a client, there’s nothing we can’t do to help make the renova tion a stress-free experience.”
Renovation Matters, visit renovationmatters. com.au or call Kim on 0427 696662.
“It is also time to plant all frost-hardy plants now, but wait until later in the season to plant any frost-sensitive plants.
“Not only is it peak time for planting, it’s also peak time for availability.”
Karen says she’s had more than 10 trolleys of new, seasonal plants come in just this week.
“Kangaroo paws are especially popular. There are lots of daisies available now, we’re also starting to get more
“We have a strong and dynamic team who are dedicated to the promotion and use of Australian native plants. Each team member has their own interest stream within the native plant field, and together they form a well rounded knowledge of plants and their growth.”
Cool Country Natives, 5A Beltana Road, Pialligo. Call 6257 6666, or visit coolcountrynatives.com.au
MEGASEALED has been servicing the Canberra region for 20 years, says director Graham Evans.
“Megasealed was first developed in 1988, opened its first franchise store in 2014, with a constant emphasis on connecting specialised leak-repair services to local communities,” he says.
“Now we are a nationwide service that offers local support.
“Megasealed repairs leaks in showers without removing tiles, we do all waterproofing jobs big and small, we repair leaking balconies, and we can do bathroom renewals or complete retiling.”
Graham says Canberra’s Megasealed has recently moved to Queanbeyan.
“It was three months ago we moved, just because we had completely outgrown our previous premises,” he says.
“I worked in real estate for five years and I used Megasealed as a customer, and I just loved the service, and then last year we purchased the Canberra branch, and we employ 12 Canberra locals.”
Graham says he’s got big plans for the near future, too.
“We are wanting to expand into more regional areas, which we have already started doing a little bit,” he says.
“We’ve got you covered for quick, convenient and cost effective results.”
Megasealed, 1/134 Gilmore Road, Quean beyan. Call 6182 4753, or visit megasealed.com.au
We specialise in local species as well as hardy, cold and frost tolerant natives, carrying a large range of native plant varieties, ranging in size from tubestock to 200mm, plus a growing range of advanced stock.
Come out and see us at Pialligo and we will show you a range of plants that will be suitable for your garden soil type, to grow and enjoy an abundance of Australian Native plants!
ENDEAVOUR Carpets is offering a “great savings” sale on three manufacturers, says co-owner Taylor O’Brien.
“Endeavour offers the largest range of top-quality floor coverings in Canberra and Queanbeyan, with options that will help keep the home looking its best,” she says.
“The sale is on selected ranges from Hycraft, Victoria Carpet and Feltex.”
Established in 1970, Endeavour is a family-run business and is proud of its personalised service.
Taylor says carpet is the cheapest floor covering option for a home, and the business has exceptional choices of carpet from the top brands in the industry.
Taylor describes Endeavour’s Fyshwick showroom as Canberra’s “greatest floor show” with thousands of samples
on display, and an experienced team of specialists to make the customer experience as easy as possible.
“Endeavour Carpets maintains an objective to offer the best service and products available and for the best possible price,” she says.
When customers visit Endeavour Carpets, Taylor says they experience a good, old-fashioned service from a longstanding, local family business.
“This is what really sets Endeavour Carpets apart from any regular carpet store,” she says.
“At Endeavour Carpets, we don’t just endeavour, we do.”
Endeavour Carpets, 33 Isa Street, Fyshwick. Call 6280 6132, or visit endeavourcarpets.com.au
SOLACE Creations’ renovated showroom displays a huge range of double-glazing products that can keep homes cool in summer and warm in winter, says owner Karen Porter.
“We are not just focused on double glazing and all the benefits it provides, we are also focused on how to make your home more beautiful,” she says.
“A lot of our clients report they’re saving about 60 per cent of their energy bill and they draw on our expertise to custom-design windows to look great with their home.”
The longest running uPVC double-glazing company in the ACT, Solace Creations has been helping
Canberrans for more than 17 years, says Karen.
“Our dedicated installation team manages the professional installation of the new windows that are all Australian made and meet Australian standards,” she says.
“We’ve got the full service. We visit homes, do a measure and quote, take the old windows out and put the new ones in.
“If you get in now you can have new windows before summer.”
Solace Creations, 17 Townsville Street, Fyshwick. Call 6260 1621 or visit solacecreations.com.au
“Our in-house cafe, Salters, offers delicious coffee, lunches and homemade cakes too, and our two sprawling warehouses are a treasure trove of unique finds that will add charm and character to your home.”
Jane says some of her expert stallholders now offer
a unique piece, but you can also feel good about your contribution towards sustainability.”
Dirty Janes Canberra, 80b Collie Street, Fyshwick. Call 0411 827488, or visit dirtyjanes.com
CAPITAL Green Energy offers solar system and battery installation for residential and commercial properties, says owner Sukhpal Singh.
“We opened in January 2020, and offer our services to Canberra and the surrounding NSW areas,” he says.
“We have done a lot of installations in three and a half years, so we’ve gained plenty of experience.
“We are Clean Energy Council approved installers and New Energy Tech approved sellers.”
Sukhpal says he and his team love the industry and business.
“We love helping people to lower their bills, but we also love contributing to
helping the environment,” he says.
“Our customers always give us positive reviews and are always happy with our work, and our turnaround is very quick as well which really helps us to stand out.
“It’s also a very good time to get solar installed now with summer coming, especially before December 31, because there’s a federal grant running until then, but the funding will go down in the new year.”
Sukhpal says everyone is welcome to drop in to discuss any questions they may have.
Capital Green Energy, 2/9, 11 Baillieu Court, Mitchell. Call 1300 001527, or visit capitalgreenenergy.com.au
THE local team at House to Home are experienced packers who have been helping Canberrans get their property ready for sales, renovations, insurance work, downsizing and relocating for over 10 years, says co-owner Renee Le Grande.
“Our expert team will save you hours of time and stress by packing all your personal belongings, household items, right through to packing up the shed,” she says.
“The team offers a personalised service and recognises every client is unique and has different needs and expectations.
“Some people want the kitchen, bathroom and wardrobes packed, others want absolutely everything including the garden pots at the front door.”
Renee says they also offer a full walk-in walk-out service, where clients hand over their keys and the staff completely clear the property, remove the furniture, take necessary items to a charity store, get the old property cleaned, and set everything up again in the new home. House to Home. Call 0457 456767 or visit house-to-home.com.au
BISONHOME was established in Canberra in 1997 by Brian Tunks, a former ancient historian and archaeologist, who worked in Syria with ANU.
“We started as a ceramics company; both designing and producing beautiful quality stoneware and decorative pieces in Queanbeyan and later, Pialligo,” says Brian.
“Fast forward to now and we produce globally, and I teach and share my glazing techniques with other studios.
“Our glassware – added 2013 – is hand-blown and uses a lot of recycled materials in a multitude of rich colours. We are sold nationally through design stores, providores and institutions, as well as stockists in Europe and NZ.”
Brian says leading hotels such as Crown Barangaroo, Park Hyatt Sydney, and Southern Ocean Lodge on Kangaroo Island and venues have Bison vessels in their foyers and rooms.
“We celebrate good design which is both utilitarian and practical, and we are known for our use of colour over decoration,” he says.
“Local restaurants such as 86 Braddon/Woden and The Boathouse have used our ceramics and glass for years.
“Our team all share a love of design and support me in trying to make our company even more sustainable in our approach to materials and packaging, leaving our legacy as beautiful pieces that can be handed down for generations.
“We are located on a beautiful site (former Pialligo Plant Farm Nursery) and our friends (ex Le Bon Melange) will be opening the Pialligo Bakesmith early October as well.”
Bisonhome, 6/12 Beltana Road, Pialligo. Call 6257 7255, or visit bisonhome.com
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Capital Green Energy specialises in home solar energy systems designed to reduce your energy costs and produce electricity in the most sustainable way possible.
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For most businesses, regardless of size or sector, energy costs are one of the biggest overheads, and can be a significant bar to investment growth and a sustainable future.
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CHAPMAN Floor Coverings (CFC) has been operating since 1985 by David Chapman, who says he has been passionate about the flooring industry since completing his apprenticeship.
“CFC is a family-based business with a strong reputation that is continuously growing,” he says.
“We cater to residential, commercial and hospitality industries, and we aim to maintain our commitment to providing excellent customer service.
“No job is too big or too small, or too far.”
David says Chapman Floor Coverings’ showroom and shop opened seven years ago in Queanbeyan, offering customers a variety of different flooring options, with friendly staff to give advice.
“We offer hybrid cork, cork tiles and planks, hybrid vinyl, engineered timber, a variety of different carpets,
sheet vinyl and many more,” he says.
“My extensive training and background in cork products gives me the passion and expertise in CFC, as a leader in the world’s most eco-friendly product.
“CFC specialises in all cork ranges, including tiles, planks and a new hybrid cork.
“The hybrid cork is a very exciting and new, niche option that sets us apart from other companies.”
David says CFC is one of only two flooring shops in Queanbeyan.
“Our location allows our building signage to be seen from a great distance, and we’re in a great location, residents know where we are,” he says.
Chapman Floor Coverings, 5 Gregory Street, Queanbeyan. Call 1300 711351, or visit chapmanfloorcoverings.com.au
The ultimate flooring technology - Solid Cork Core consists of an engineered, highly compressed cork core, offering extremely high stability allowing the product to be installed in any residential or commercial project.
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Whether you are preparing for sale, renovations, or making your home safe our expert packing specialists can pack and clear rooms or whole houses quickly and efficiently.
We can organise and provide all packing materials to complete these clearing tasks for those who are busy and unable to complete these tasks in a short time frame. house-to-home.com.au info@house-to-home.com.au 0457
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WALLFLOWERS are a popular short-lived perennial to have in the garden as a small evergreen shrub.
It is drought tolerant when established and a great, tough plant that grows up to 60cm. It lives up to about five years or so and can be grown as a biannual and replaced in the garden every few years.
It comes into flower in late winter and flowers through to summer, when the weather warms. To extend its longevity, keep it compact to protect the inside of the plant and water through the warmer months.
The most common flower colour is purple, but it also comes in colours such as yellow, orange, pink and red and is slightly fragrant. It’s terrific for pots and is a low maintenance shrub for a pop of colour in the garden this time of year.
It’s not fussy what soil it grows in and all it needs is good drainage and full sun to flower well. Wallflowers can self-seed but an easier and more successful propagation method is from green-tip cuttings in summer, using current season’s growth.
Choose stems that have not flowered and cut to a length of about 10cm. Remove the bottom leaves of the cutting to prevent rot and water loss and dip into
hormone gel or liquid. Place in a propagation mix of 50 per cent sand and 50 per cent coir peat and keep moist.
Once the cuttings have taken root, they can be potted into larger pots to grow a little stronger before planting out in autumn. Wallflowers are also from the brassica family and can be used as a decoy plant around cabbages, broccoli or cauliflowers to attract cabbage moth butterflies away from growing edibles.
NOW the frosts have just about finished for this season and the soil is beginning to warm, it’s a terrific time to plant evergreens before the summer heat arrives.
A long-lived, slow-growing shrub that grows well in our climate (and flowers in spring) is Michelia yunnanensis. A relative of the magnolia, with dark green shiny foliage and covered on the undersides with contrasting brown, velvety hairs.
Its distinctive black, brown velvet flower buds open up to creamy-white, scented flowers that cover the entire shrub.
Michella’s are evergreen and grow to about three metres. They’re suitable for planting close to an entertaining space where the fragrant flowers are stronger in the afternoon and evenings. It can be grown as an informal hedge or clipped to keep shape and does best in acid soils. It grows best with azaleas, rhododendrons and conifers.
IN the vegetable patch, it’s time to get seedlings into the (weed free) ground as the soil warms.
Most vegetables will need at least five to six hours of full sun to grow quickly and strong, but there will still be a little frost around so cover overnight if needed.
Planting choices will depend on what was growing in that space last year. Plants such as tomatoes, eggplants and capsicums should not be planted in the same spot to prevent fungal diseases that might still be in the soil. Plant legumes such as beans and peas, sprinkle a little gardener’s lime over the area, dig in and plant out in a few weeks’ time.
jackwar@home.netspeed.com.au
• Sow summer vegetables such as tomatoes, pumpkins, capsicums.
• Repot citrus, if needed, in a good quality citrus potting mix.
• Keep aphids off rosebuds with a blast of water.
• Spray apples with Diapel for codling moth if netting is not possible.
WHEN Dramatic Productions’ revival of “West Side Story” takes the stage at Gungahlin College Theatre in early October, it will be up-to-date and authentic, with a focus on Latino actor-singers.
Mind you, there’ll be familiar faces on stage, too, such as Dick Goldberg as Doc, Zach Raffan as Shrank and Colombian artists Yamile and Carlos Tafur, who recently exhibited at Tuggeranong Arts Centre.
There’s no question of its relevance today, producer Richard Block tells me when we gather behind the Hotel Queanbeyan for a photo shoot. The way it deals with racism, immigration and community violence is as hard-hitting now as it was in 1957 when it first hit the stage – that’s why they’re placing it in the here and now.
As well, the “Romeo and Juliet” theme, book by Arthur Laurents, lyrics of Stephen Sondheim, choreography of Jerome Robbins and above all, the fiendishly complex music by Leonard Bernstein still ring true and clear.
Proof of “West Side Story’s” evergreen status can be seen in the 2021 movie by
She decided to stay on and now conducts
Dramatic Productions.
She won’t be conducting “West Side Story”, that will fall to the ubiquitous Leonard Weiss, but she’s been busy because of the producing company’s mission to cast Canberra Latino actors as members of the “Sharks” gang and their cohort.
They’ve hit gold with their Puerto Rican characters, Valeria Arciniega as Maria, Eudes Balandrott as Bernardo and Andrea Garcia as Anita, but as well, Wojcik says with pride, they’ve been able to cast every Latino character from the community.
Singing and dancing run deep in most Latin American cultures, she says. That doesn’t necessarily mean they know about musical theatre basics – such as having to turn up to rehearsals three nights a week for three months.
She says there have been “some wonderful surprises”, including a brilliant auditionee who’d only sung in the shower before, but many of them don’t read sheet music, so she’s had to work closely with them on the Bernstein numbers.
“America” may have intricate rhythms, she says, but along with the Mambo and cha-cha in the “Dance at the Gym”, these come naturally to people of Latino background.
Surprisingly, the hardest number of all is the seemingly melodic song “Tonight”, first performed by Tony and Maria but then, just before the gangland “Rumble”, reprised in five parts, where, for instance, Jets leader
Riff sings: “The Jets are gonna have their day tonight” and Anita sings: “Anita’s gonna get her kicks tonight.”
Fortunately, Wojcik has plenty of tricks up her sleeve and tells me: “I work on the different harmonies in their parts, then get them to record their line so they can practice and get really familiar with it, then play a record that’s got everyone in it and see if they can hear their part.”
But for Arciniega, the bachelor of nursing student who is playing Maria, the toughest number is “A Boy Like That”, sung immediately after Tony has killed Shark’s leader Bernardo. Luckily, she has had musical training, although she heard about the audition from a friend at dance class.
Her romantic counterpart, Tony, is played by William “Wally” Allington (obviously not Latino), who is also a trained vocalist and the son of a well-known Sydney music teacher. After completing a PhD thesis, Allington is now free to devote more time to his love of singing. He performed in the CSO’s “Messiah” last year and aspires to sing both bass and counter-tenor.
So, after the drama of the story does it all end on a smashing big number? Not a bit of it, Wojcik says.
“It ends quietly, with a bit of ‘Somewhere’, and then, nothing.”
“West Side Story,” Gungahlin College Theatre, October 6 to 21.
Well, almost.
The popular Amazon Prime Video series about superheroes gone bad hasn’t returned just yet, but its highly anticipated new spin-off series has just landed.
“Gen V” follows an all-new generation of young people who find themselves with a sweeping set of superpowers.
These powers come from “Compound V”, a drug concocted in the lab of evil corporation “Vought” and which is tested on this coterie of college-age students.
But unlike the caped crusaders splattered throughout Disney Plus and Netflix, many of the so-called heroes of “Gen V” don’t use their abilities for good.
These hormonal, hyper-competitive bad samaritans run amok with their new-found powers, quickly discovering the line between good and evil isn’t as clear cut as their younger selves might have thought.
Like “The Boys” that inspired it, “Gen V” holds nothing back in its satirical takedown of pop culture and the modern obsession with superheroes.
The show has an ardent disinterest in the idea of people using super abilities for good. Instead, it wants to examine what people would really do if granted power beyond their wildest imaginings.
Most of those things just so happen to be way too explicit to put in print. This franchise wants to shock its audience, with showrunner Eric Kripke (the man also behind noughties TV hit “Supernatural”) telling his
writers to hold nothing back. goal is more illuminated.
world. My mom, who doesn’t watch super hero movies, completely understands that superheroes are the top of every box office list, and they’re all over television and have completely hijacked pop culture,” he said.
“Our show is the real world in every single way, with the one difference that the superheroes that everyone is worshipping happened to be real.”
The show certainly has a lot of shocks but they also have a lot of value. It wants
its new spin-off “Gen V” offer a refreshingly unrestrained and unhinged take down of the popular sub-genre that inspired it. No pulled punches here.
TURNING to some homegrown content, streaming service Stan has just dropped its new series “Caught” (stylised as “C*A*U*G*H*T) which aims to find the funny side of geopolitical conflict.
Australian soldiers who are sent on a mission
tag quartet hatch a plan to make a hostage
bring them home.
The first season has just started streaming and is filled with acting talent, including an appearance from Sean Penn.
Fingers crossed this satire taking aim at the age of social media can hit its target.
STAYING on Aussie productions, Delta Goodrem has returned to movie acting for the first time in almost 20 years this week with the arrival of Netflix’s original film “Love Is In The Air”.
In it Delta plays Dana, a fiercely independent seaplane pilot who lives out her dream job of flying over the tropics.
But things get turbulent when she’s visited by and subsequently falls for William (Joshua Sasse), a man sent from corporate to ground her operation as the company she flies for looks to sell.
A corny and sentimental affair, the film contains its occasional moments of charm but they are certainly few and far between in this 88-minute romp.
Personally, “Love Is In The Air” had me constantly wondering about when it was time to disembark.
Austen will continue when eight actors from Salt House Creative take to the stage using just a door as a prop, to present “Sense & Sensibility”, as written by playwright, film director and Jane Austen Literacy Foundation ambassador, Daniel Widdowson. At Canberra Pulp Book Cafe, Nicholls, October 9, before travelling to the Melbourne Fringe.
STATE Opera SA has announced Brisbane-born conductor Dane
Lam already has an international career behind him but also strong connections with Canberra, having conducted “Fire & Shadow” this year with the CSO and in 2021 held the baton for National Opera’s “La Clemenza di Tito”.
“THE hot-blooded guys from the Vision String Quartet”, Florian Willeitner, Daniel Stoll, Leonard Disselhorst and Sander Stuart, from Berlin, will play Bartók’s “String Quartet No.4”, “Dvořák ‘s String Quartet No.13” and Bloch’s “Prelude”. Llewellyn Hall, October 5.
THE new “What The Film” Festival has been founded by a group of Canberra independent filmmakers
profit, fair and transparent film festival”. Films have been entered in the categories. At the Film & Sound Archive, October 7.
SUZIE Miller will discuss her career and the themes of her debut novel, “Prima Facie”, drawn from her already famous one-woman play of the same name, at The Street Theatre, October 4.
“TRAVELLING with Clouds – Yun You” is the theme of this year’s annual concert by the ANU’s Chinese Classical Music Ensemble. At Cook Community Hub, October 1. Inquiries to 0417 041148.
REBUS Theatre is bringing back its hilarious original theatre show about the mental health system, “Systems and Sanity”, for an online streaming season for Mental Health Month. At rebustheatre.com October 3-31.
WHEN violinist Daniel Röhn and pianist-poet-essayist Simon Tedeschi appear at Snow Concert Hall next month, it’ll be far more than a tribute to “The Roaring Twenties”.
For the German-Swedish Röhn virtuoso and scion of a famous German musical family whose project “The Golden Violin – Music of the ‘20s” premiered with the London Philharmonic Orchestra in 2019, wants to pay homage to the fertile artistic period between the two world wars.
Tedeschi, the Australian virtuoso pianist known for straddling classical and jazz traditions, is a George Gershwin tragic whose 2012 album, “Gershwin and Me” raced to the top of the ARIA Classical list.
Both are now in their 40s, both were child prodigies in their time and both have the gift of the gab, so the promise of being “ushered into the salons of bygone times”, as the promo goes, seems very likely to become a reality.
When I caught up with Röhn by phone
to Kiama, NSW, where’s he’s been spending time with his young daughter, he tells me he met Tedeschi a few months ago.
“Simon is with me all the way; he is fantastic with words and we’ll both be speaking in this concert. I’m very happy that we have found each other,” he says.
Röhn suspects Canberra audiences may be surprised by some of the choices in the coming concert, which he says contains mostly, though not only, short pieces – not so common in classical concerts these days, but something very often done 100 years ago. That time, he reminds me, was when the
recording business was new and you couldn’t record anything longer than a few minutes, so it took real genius to make new works.
“It started out with Caruso and then Fritz Kreisler [one of his favourite composers, whose works he has recorded], who composed like there was no tomorrow.”
“It was very normal to set up a recital with shorter pieces, but the habit has almost totally died out, and these days ‘normal’ recitals consist of sonatas and major works.”
It was while doing a “normal” classical concert that Röhn had his Damascus Road moment.
“A moment occurred when I decided where I wanted to go with this,” he says.
“When I came to the end and the encore, I noticed that the feeling in the audience almost completely changed. There was something in the air. There was a sense that the artist was finally saying something.
“The public was obviously a bit relieved, and I thought it would be nice to create this atmosphere a bit earlier than just before the audience goes home.”
That’s when he decided to present short pieces and from being restrictive, he found that there were so many compositions to choose from – “this repertoire is gold, musically.”
The decision led to the concept of having stories to tell people – not to lecture – a few personal stories about the music.”
But when I ask Röhn to give me a sample anecdote, he is momentarily flummoxed, saying: “But they’re just stories that pop into my head.”
Happily, when we start talking about his inclusion of Debussy’s music, an example does pop into his mind when he reflects that the work he’ll be playing, “Sonata for Violin and Piano in G minor”, a very short work of only 12 or 13 minutes composed in 1917, was in fact his last completed composition.
“He was going crazy and he saw a world falling apart in the war… Every time I play this Debussy, I find new things… I picture vampires emerging from their graves, hobbling towards him, all kinds of images go through my head.”
Röhn believes there is a special talent involved in telling the musical story quickly.
“You have to do everything within three minutes, you don’t have much time, but audiences won’t be shortchanged… the music we’ve chosen is not cheesy, it’s fantastic, proper music and that is our point.”
hospital surrounded by family after suffering a haemorrhagic stroke. He was 76.
Few people have influenced Canberra’s cultural life as Mico has.
Named by “The Canberra Times” in 2001 as one of 75 people who had shaped the national capital, he was later honoured for his transformational work with an Italian knighthood (Cavalieri Order of Merit) in 2005 and a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in 2018.
Mico was the very first recipient in 1982 of the Australia Council’s Ros Bower Award for Community Arts and travelled to his native Italy to explore the roots of the celebratory instinct that he believed lay at the heart of all art.
Born in Reggio Calabria in 1946, he migrated to Australia with his parents in the mid-1950s.
As a young man, he trained at the old Canberra School of Art and taught there before turning to the performing and community arts in the early 1970s.
During his long career, he founded the Canberra Day celebrations which became the Canberra Festival, Blue Folk Community Arts Association at Strathnairn, Tuggeranong Arts Centre, TAU Community Theatre, the Backstage Performing Arts Café and notably, the National Multicultural Festival.
He established a community arts colony at Strathnairn and wrote 28 plays, including more serious
stood unsuccessfully for political office and contributed
Alternative in Civic, Mico took up his art practice again and threw himself into painting landscapes and the solar system with the same passionate commitment he had given to all his endeavours, exhibiting his work at Form Studio and Gallery in Queanbeyan, M16 Artspace in Griffith, and Kyeema Gallery in Hall.
A towering personality in the Canberra art scene and a true believer in the arts with a near-childlike delight in performances, he staged pirate plays and operas around Lake Burley Griffin and founded countless public arts events.
He was especially proud of having caused an unprecedented “arts traffic jam” when he presented Mahler’s “Symphony of a Thousand” at Bruce Stadium.
Mico’s unquenchable drive and talent for creating a “fun” aspect to art – belly-dancers to embellish a performance of Omar Khayyam’s poetry at Albert Hall, for instance – earnt him both fans and detractors, but when he turned 60, at a party at St John’s Hall, Reid, I saw a huge crowd of well-wishers pack in to express their appreciation of a life well-lived.
On August 24 this year he was awarded the inaugural Multicultural Community Lifetime Achievement Award.
He is survived by his wife Vicki, his children Rocco, Kama, Sophie and Nicholas, siblings Anna, Johanna, Rina and Tony and his large extended family.
The Wharf Revue is back for another year of hilarious political satire!
FONDA Mexican in the city has a colourful fit out, vibrant food and bloody good margaritas.
In Mexico, a fonda is a relaxed unofficial restaurant, operated when a family chooses to open their home to the local community. It’s all about good times, great stories and food with full-bodied flavours and Canberra’s fonda lives up to the reputation.
New in the city, Fonda Mexican’s margarita paddle is a must-try ($32). Out of the four we picked the makrut lime and chilli as the winner, followed by the coconut, chilli mango and then the watermelon and lime.
We shared the nachos ($21 or $26 if you want to add more black beans or meat). The tastes were there but the cheese wasn’t entirely melted, which took the fun away. The dish was loaded with ingredients but in a deconstructed kind of way. We expected a mixed guac, but got a chunk of avo in one spot, a pile of tomatoes in another and so on, making sharing a slight challenge.
One of our party loves “bowls” and decided
on the burrito version. It was a huge serve, and a festive celebration of the flavours and textures Mexico is so famous for – Adobo black beans, roasted corn salsa, smoky chipotle dressing, guac, shredded cabbage, crumbly, salty feta and, of course, crunchy tortilla chips. Other choices include chargrilled chick, Barbacoa beef, roasted sweet potato, smoky fable or shitake mushrooms.
I’m a burrito lover so I opted for the Mexico City pulled pork ($20) which is a fluffy soft flour tortilla. The slow-cooked pork shoulder was juicy, and the lime rice and basil-jalapeno aioli were fantastic. The pineapple in the salsa could have been sweeter, but all up the combo of flavours worked a treat.
Another friend had a burrito with slowcooked Barbacoa beef, super juicy and smoky ($20). This version featured sweet caramelised onion, crushed tortilla chips, chipotle aioli and chimichurri. All burritos are stuffed with
ingredients – and I mean stuffed.
Also available are Quesadillas with the 11-inch flour tortillas grilled. I thought both the smoky shitake ($19) and roasted sweet potato ($19) looked super interesting.
We had no room but bet the churros for dessert ($14 for two) would be excellent – crispy, fried pastries coated in cinnamon sugar and served with dulce de leche and chocolate dipping sauce. A very tactile dessert, indeed. Fonda’s food line-up takes excellent care of vegetarians, vegans and those mindful of gluten. It’s order at the bar and then service to your seat. The colour scheme inside is bright, light and fun. Two outdoor areas are available. We agreed the service was very attentive and friendly.
in Kingston was accompanied with bull, “Bull’s Blood” and reminiscence.
Both my lunch companion, Alex, and I had travelled to Hungary. I recalled a wonderful but short time in Budapest in the early ‘90s where the memories were of cheap and plentiful drinks and a wonderful boat ride on the Danube.
But he had lived and worked there and had an intimate knowledge of the country and a good knowledge of its wines, so I spent a lot of time listening to his fascinating stories of life and wine memories from that country.
Plus, he generously provided a tangible kicker to memory: a 2011 Thummerer Egri Bikavér Superior, to go with the kebabs. It’s a blend described by the Hungarians as “Bull’s Blood”.
There are three grades of this wine – classicus, superior and grand superior – and distinct rules that govern its production with up to 13 grape varieties permitted so long as three of them are part of the blend, with other state-based requirements for getting this name.
It was a wine of good ruby colour, no browning, with an aroma of some familiar grape varietals, such as cabernet franc, but also blended with varietals that are locally grown such as Kadarka and Kékfrankos about which my knowledge is absent.
But part of the rules appear to be that no one varietal can dominate. It had a characteristic cabernet nose with black fruits and violet predominating. Surprisingly, there was some astringency in the finish for a wine of 12 years. But this ameliorated as the lunch progressed and was dampened by food. The wine was better with food than as a quaffer.
Alex told the story of the origin of its name: “In the 16th century Eger castle was under siege by the Turks. The Turkish soldiers came across the red wine grown in the region.
“But to drink it within the rules of their religion, they called it bull’s blood, ascribing the valour of the local Hungarian defenders to its strength, so it was a permissible drink and that’s how the legend began.”
On the internet, one version of the story is slightly different with the Turks giving up the castle siege because it was rumoured that bull’s blood was mixed into the red wine, as otherwise the strength and firm resistance of the people of the town and castle of Eger could not be explained. No matter the story, the nomenclature that was applied is memorable and lives on.
Alex had also brought to lunch a Grof Degenfeld 1999 Tokaji Aszú. This is a wine of exquisite
sweetness that went well with coffee. Alex was very knowledgeable about this product: “These are botrytis-affected grapes that are intensely sweet.
“They harvest the noble rot affected aszú grapes, and crush them separately from the base wine. The proportion of aszú grapes added to a standard size barrel of base wine varies from three to six hods (or “puttonyos” in Hungarian), which determines the final wine’s level of sweetness and intensity.
“The one today has had five added. It gives it a silky texture and is delicious. Let’s have one glass each because I’ve promised the rest to dinner guests tonight.”
The tokay was indeed spun-sugar delicious, with no claggy aftertaste. I watched as Alex put away the remainder of the bottle ready to take home. But the friendship remained intact as I reminded myself of his generosity.
“One good reason to only maintain a small circle of friends is that three out of four murders are committed by people who know the victim.” – George Carlin
ARIES (Mar 21 – Apr 20)
This week the Sun, Mars and Mercury are all revving up your relationship and joint ventures zones. So harmonious partnerships and creative projects are highlighted. If you combine diplomacy with dynamism (and Ram charm with a sense of adventure) then you’ll sail through any challenges. Balance is the key. Your motto is from actress Claire Danes (who has the Sun in Aries and the Moon in Libra): “Relationships are a constant negotiation and balance.”
TAURUS (Apr 21 – May 21)
Remember that Jupiter (planet of expansion) and Uranus (planet of change) are both transiting through your sign. Between now and May 25 (when Jupiter moves into Gemini) it will be easier to initiate changes than at other times. So make the most of the opportunities that are around! Your mantra for the moment is from peace activist (and birthday great) Mahatma Gandhi: “Our greatest ability as humans is not to change the world, but to change ourselves.”
GEMINI (May 22 – June 21)
Expect your home-life to be busy and bamboozling, as Pluto and Neptune link up with your patron planet, Mercury. Aim to be very clear in the way you communicate on Monday and Tuesday, otherwise misunderstandings are likely. Wednesday is wonderful for looking beneath the surface gloss and gaining some deeper insights. Then Mercury moves into peaceful and harmonious Libra on Thursday, which will calm your nerves and rebalance your brain.
CANCER (June 22 – July 23)
Calling all Crabs – are you making the most of your clever mind? This week Pluto and Mercury activate your communication and education zones. So conversation, passionate debate, informal study, detailed research and strategic thinking will take you far. But – in order to avoid misunderstandings – do your best to convey your ideas in a clear and precise way. It’s also a good time to dig deeper into a relationship problem – the answer is waiting for you to find it.
LEO (July 24 – Aug 23)
Languid Lions love to be pampered and preened but it’s time to jump out of your comfort zone and shake up your usual routine! Jupiter and Uranus are both jumping through your public reputation zone, which encourages you to do things differently, as you banish boredom and initiate positive changes. So your motto for the moment is from birthday great, political and peace activist Mahatma Gandhi: “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”
VIRGO (Aug 24 – Sept 23)
The buzz words this week are confusion and obsession. On Monday, nebulous Neptune opposes Mercury (your boss planet) and life becomes confusing as a family member, work colleague or close friend stuffs up your perfectly planned schedule. Then – on Tuesday and Wednesday – you could become totally fixated on answering a question or solving a problem. With the help of passionate and persistent Pluto, there’s a good chance you’ll be successful!
LIBRA (Sept 24 – Oct 23)
Courtesy of your patron planet, Venus, a situation involving a class, club or friendship group should start to improve. With the Sun, Mars and Mercury visiting your sign this week, make sure your thoughts, words, actions and aspirations are all compatible and consistent. Your mantra for the moment is from birthday great, politician and peace activist Mahatma Gandhi: “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.”
SCORPIO (Oct 24 – Nov 22)
Scorpios are drawn to extreme views, black and white thinking, and intense communication. Compulsive thoughts and bossy behaviour are certainly a danger this week, as Pluto links up with Mercury. But there are three planets in Libra, which encourage a more balanced approach as you contemplate the subtle shades of grey in-between. You can also expect flashes of ESP, an insightful dream, or a fateful meeting with someone special.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov 23 – Dec 21)
This week, expect mental confusion and communication problems at home or work. The Sun, Mars and Mercury are moving through peace-loving Libra, in your friendship and networking zones. If you practice the gentle arts of patience and persuasion, then you’ll be surprised how much easier life can be. Draw inspiration from birthday great, peace activist Mahatma Gandhi: “Leadership at one time meant muscles; but today it means getting along with people.”
CAPRICORN (Dec 22 – Jan 20)
The Sun, Mars and Mercury are visiting your career zone, boosting your creativity, confidence and communication skills. So make the most of this celestial gift and show other people what you are truly capable of as you write that report, chair that meeting or clinch that deal. Wednesday is wonderful for doing research about an upcoming trip. Draw inspiration from birthday great, writer Anne Rice: “I’m always looking, and I’m always asking questions.”
AQUARIUS (Jan 21 – Feb 19)
Flirt alert! With Venus in your partnership zone (and three planets powering through Libra) you’re at your flirtatious best as you charm the cynics and dazzle the doubters. (When amorous Aquarians are in full-on charm mode, you’re hard to resist.) Already attached? It’s time to reboot a tired relationship with some good old-fashioned romance. Singles – are you searching for your soulmate? Be on the lookout for a gregarious Gemini or a lusty Leo.
PISCES (Feb 20 – Mar 20)
It’s a good time to expand your world via new local friendships and peer group connections. If you link up with like-minded people, it will open doors of opportunity, professionally and personally. But Neptune (your ruler) opposes Mercury on Monday and Tuesday. So be careful what you say in person and post online, as a casual comment could lead to confusion and controversy. Commitments you make this week may not look so appealing next week!
Copyright Joanne Madeline Moore 2023Across
1 Who was a German field marshal in WWII, Erwin ...? (6)
8 Name a mythical island in the Atlantic Ocean, said to have sunk into the sea. (8)
9 Name the 28th President of the US, Woodrow ... (6)
10 Which fine downy wool is from the hair roots of some goats of India? (8)
11 Name a renowned dog of the early movies. (6)
13 What serves as a guide by sailors? (8)
16 The echidna is known as the spiny what? (8)
19 Ankara is the capital of which republic? (6)
22 What is the practice of seeking the welfare of others? (8)
24 Name a seaport in Ukraine, on the Black Sea. (6)
25 What is a lookout at a two up game called? (8)
26 To steal cattle, is to do what? (6)
Solution next edition Down
2 Which board is used to communicate with the dead? (5)
3 What, in classical mythology, are the nine sister goddesses called? (5)
4 Who was the greatest of Arthur’s knights, and the lover of Queen Guinevere? (8)
5 What does a beggar seek? (4)
6 Name an alternative term for trolls. (6)
7 What is a chain of hills or mountains, the peaks of which suggest the teeth of a saw? (6)
12 Which earthy matter is carried by running water and deposited as a sediment? (4)
14 Name a renowned English prison. (8)
15 What is a receptacle for holding water or other liquids? (4)
17 Name a US country and rock singer, composer and musician, Willie ... (6)
18 What was the reputed exclamation of Archimedes? (6)
20 Which narrow ridges of rock are near the surface of water? (5)
21 What is a frame in the form of a tripod, for supporting a blackboard or the like? (5)
23 What is a tittle, or a jot? (4)
My client, Deepika, wants to pay some savings into her superannuation fund, but wants to do it as tax effectively as possible.
She went online, but couldn't work out what was needed, so she came to see me for some guidance.
“Deepika, there are a few things you need to understand, which I will explain to you, and then you can claim the deduction in next year’s tax return," I said.
"Firstly, the maximum concessional amount that can be paid in one year into your superannuation fund is $27,500, including all contributions paid by your employer.
"In addition, you can make catch up concessional contributions provided that your total superannuation balance at July 1 2023 is less than $500,000.
"For the last five years, starting July 1 2019, if you did not claim the maximum amount you are eligible to claim, then you can carry this amount forward for up to five years, but it expires at the end of five years. Therefore, 2024 is the last year you can claim based on the contributions made in 2020.
“It appears you have available about $17,000 from the 2020 financial year and $3000 from 2021. In the following years, you’ve maximised your claims accordingly, you can make a deduction of $20,000 as catch-up contributions and you will receive a tax deduction when you lodge your tax return next year.
"It also appears you'll have about $5000 in the current year. So the total amount that you can pay this financial year is $25,000. This will all be available to use as a tax deduction.
"If you don’t pay the $17,000 that's available to you from 2020, it will lapse. So it's important, if you want to get the most benefit out of your superannuation, that you pay this amount this year."
Deepika said she had no idea about the catch-up contributions. "That is very helpful for me as my superannuation balance is not as high as I would like it to be, and I do have sufficient savings at the moment," she said.
I told her the mechanics of claiming the tax deduction was the hard bit.
"When you log on to your super fund to make the payment, you need to make sure you're making a personal superannuation contribution," I said.
"It is not an after-tax super contribution. You complete the form and you also have to complete a form called ‘notice of intent to claim a superannuation deduction’, which you will find on the superannuation fund website or at the ATO.
"If you do not have a ‘notice of intent to claim a superannuation deduction’ completed and acknowledged by the fund you cannot claim that tax deduction.
"It is critical that you have the form and the acknowledgement by the fund of receiving that concessional contribution so that you can claim your tax deduction. Once you have the acknowledgement of your contribution you can provide it to me and we can claim it in your next year’s tax return.
Deepika was pleased. "That has simplified something that was very confusing when I looked at my super fund website,” she said.
If you need advice on superannuation deductions or any other superannuation or tax related matter, contact the expert team at Gail Freeman and Co on 02 6295 2844.
Disclaimer
This column contains general advice, please do not rely on it. If you require specific advice on this topic please contact Gail Freeman or your professional adviser. Authorised Representative of Lifespan Financial Planning Pty Ltd AFS Lic No. 229892.
