PASSING THE BUCK
In response to Gareth Ward MP, his letter on the delay in constructing the Albion Park Rail Bypass (Illawarra Mercury, 16 January) is deliberately misleading and requires a response.
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Firstly, he claims that while planning has been delayed, this will not affect the construction timetable is not credible. The longer the delay in approval, the longer the delay in construction.
Secondly , Mr Ward claims that IIlawarra State Labor MPs voted against the project in Parliament. This claim is false. The Albion Park Rail Bypass project has never been before the Parliament for a vote.
Thirdly, in its infrastructure plan at the 2015 election, NSW Labor allocated $2 billion towards rural and regional road infrastructure.
Once planning work was completed for the Albion Park Rail Bypass, the project would have been a candidate for a share of this funding, just as it was under the Coalition's poles and wires fire sale.
Labor and the Coalition had different means of funding road projects in regional NSW
Once again, Mr Ward should stop the buck passing and just focus on getting the Albion Park Rail Bypass project underway because by the time it starts, the Coalition will have been in Government for nearly a decade.
Anna Watson MP, Member for Shellharbour
PLAINLY IRRESPONSIBLE
The management of Channel 7 should be condemned for seeking out Pauline Hanson to comment on the mayhem which occurred near Federation Square in Melbourne last Friday.
Within hours of the act of madness occurring, one which resulted in the loss of life for five innocent victims Channel 7 asked Pauline Hanson, her view of what had occurred.
A question which enabled M.s Hanson whom at the time, was in Western Australia on the campaign trail a nation-wide media platform to peddle her vicious anti Islam snake oil.
Unfortunately, this failure to treat news with the deference and diligence it warrants is not an isolated occurrence at Channel 7.
This can be seen with its giving a voice to the likes of Pauline Hanson, Alan Jones, Mark Latham and Jeff Kennett, solely at times, for the purposes of filling the void whenever the UK Royals have failed to perform an antic considered by Channel 7 to be newsworthy.
However, on this occasion, I believe Channel 7 has truly overstepped the mark, and done so intentionally in order to be seen as “making” rather than responsibly reporting the news.
Barry Swan Balgownie
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE
I am at a loss to understand why politicians who are invited to attend private social functions by virtue of their office, charge expenses to the taxpayer. When our rugby club invites a VIP to one of our functions, we pick up the tab. What’s different?
John Martin, Woonona
ANOTHER SOLUTION
Instead of parliamentarians accepting invitations from the corporate sector to sporting events and expecting the taxpayer to pay their fares, why not invite these people to Canberra to discuss their proposals? That way they or their companies can pay any expenses involved and free politicians from claims of “snouts in the trough”?
Jennie Morris, Wollongong
THE KITCHEN SINK
In order to complement a number of recent quality signings the Dragons must now toss a veritable “kitchen sink”' at key off-contract international players Gareth Widdop and Josh Duggan to particularly thwart potential “suitors”.
DJ Preece, Balgownie
