Stop selfish car parking
It’s great that we have tourists come to the Mornington Peninsula and support our local shops. However, the attitude and selfish behaviour when shopping at the local supermarkets is appalling.
How many times do they drive into the car park lanes the wrong way then, when challenged, just laugh it off or tell us to mind our own business?
I wish someone in authority would book these selfish people.
When backing out or driving in these lanes the correct way, we do not expect to be collected by another car coming the wrong way. Would they also drive up a one way street the wrong way?
Rye Woolworths car park is a nightmare and it’s time something was done about this illegal practice.
It takes no time at all to do the right thing, and then everyone is happy.
Common courtesy goes a long way.
Gail McMillan, Rye
‘Believable’ joke
Well done to those involved in the clever April Fools article (“New M-plate to set peninsula residents apart” April 1). The trick to a good April 1st joke is to make it sound plausible.
Responding to the local irritations caused by tourists was a good choice. I hear plenty of comments about crowded roads and beaches, dodgy parking and not being able to get a coffee at your favourite shop.
It wasn’t until half-way through the piece that I went “hang on this is a bit extreme” and then noticed the date. A good laugh.
Dr Ross Hudson, Mount Martha
Editor: Although Cameron McCullough’s New M-Plate to set peninsula residents apart, was published on mpnews.com.au on 1 April (April Fools’ Day), many of the 600,000 plus readers of the online-only article thought it was a factual news report. Complaints were made to Mornington Peninsula Shire (and The News), by those readers who failed to notice the date, or get the joke.
Kangaroo harvest is cruel
The Mornington Peninsula is still included in the kangaroo harvest program. This program allows the slaughter of about 236,350 kangaroos across Victoria for the purpose of providing pet meat and leather for leather products.
Gippsland district, which includes the peninsula, is allocated 17,650 kangaroos to be killed. The figures are developed based on aerial counts across non-forested areas. The difference between Gippsland’s open and farming country and the peninsula’s small, confined areas is significant.
The Department of Environment, Energy and Climate Action recommends the following for shooters who have shot a kangaroo with a joey:
The joeys are “Decapitated, bludgeoned or shot depending on their size, according to the National Code of Practice for the Humane Killing of Kangaroos: australiansocietyforkangaroos.com/silent_victims.html
Otherwise, they are orphaned and left to starve to death. These people are the protectors of our native wildlife.
Kangaroos being harvested are shot at night, not always killed outright yet still have their tails cut off. They are hung up in trucks for as long as it takes to get them to processing plants, maybe for several hours. Their meat carries salmonella.
Nike, Adidas and Puma have already agreed to stop using kangaroo leather in their products. Many dog feed products do not even name kangaroo meat as an ingredient.
Pet owners stop feeding kangaroos to their dogs.
The harvest of kangaroos is the largest commercial slaughter of land based wildlife year in year out. The European Union and some US states have banned the import of kangaroo products due to the cruelty of this slaughter.
Australians would be horrified if they were fully aware of how cruelly kangaroos are treated in the culling and harvest programs. I do believe that if they knew, they would stop purchasing any kangaroo products.
Jo Hansen, Rye
Giving and taking
It is wonderful to see Australian governments combining to help citizens with financial ongoings. In April, the federal government gave an increase to the aged pension of $ 37 a fortnight. In the light of current inflation, not enormous, but certainly of assistance. So, thank you for that.
Within two weeks I received a letter from the Victorian government’s housing department, advising me of my state housing rental increase of $25 a fortnight. This leaves an annual increase of $863, reduced by $ 650, leaving $213.
Perhaps some thought should be shown to the many thousands affected by this thoughtless and harmful result.
Edmund Burke, Mornington
Preserve Western Port
It was pleasing to read that Victorian National Parks Association has stated that Western Port would become “an industrial wasteland”, that it was “neglected and under threat” and “… it’s not to stop a specific threat, but many” (“Power struggle over port use” The News 28/3/23).
There are many threats to Western Port from industrialisation, like importation of foreign marine pests and diseases on ship’s hulls for decades to come, which is unstoppable. Loss of recreation opportunities for local residents and a growing Melbourne. Reduction of tourism which is an economic generator for businesses around the bay.
The article continues: “Permanent protection was needed to keep the bay ‘safe, healthy … and remove the temptation for industry, developers and governments to exploit this world-class wetland’.” This is all absolutely true. Western Port is the only urban biosphere in UNESCO’s global biospheres.
The only mistake ever made was in 1960 when Henry Bolte declared that Western Port would become “The Ruhr of Australia”. It was wrong then as it is wrong now. Enough is enough.
What is now “strategically important” is the preservation of Western Port for everyone forever.
Richard Cuming, Bittern
Proverb for today
I read with interest and some sadness about the removal of a large eucalyptus tree at Balnarring (“Police hold back traffic as tree gets the chop” The News 4/4/23).
I was reminded of an old proverb that, sadly, is still true today: “The tree which moves some to tears of joy is, in the eyes of others, only a green thing that stands in the way.”
Greg Holding, Red Hill South
Support base ignored
The federal Liberal Party is typically considered the party of big business and yet I have seen it reported that business/finance giants such as the NAB, the Commonwealth Bank, ANZ, BHP, Rio Tinto, Wesfarmers, Woolworths and Coles are all supporting the Yes campaign for a First Nations Voice to Parliament. Is the Liberal Party not even listening to its traditional support base in its dreary determination to oppose this enlightened change of a constitutionally enshrined Indigenous Voice?
Maureen Donelly, Mornington
Liberals self-exile
It’s finally official, the NLP in Australia has chosen to stay out of government for the foreseeable future. [Liberal leader] Peter Dutton has confirmed this after the [Aston] byelection. No change in our approach to the devastation at recent elections across Australia in our policies. Then he and his brethren confirmed it by telling the majority of Australians, you’re all wrong on the Voice to Parliament, we know better and will oppose the Voice.
It was not a great surprise really; he and the Nationals were working on this ever since Labor actually dared to put the Voice up for a referendum. Even the previous holder of the Indigenous portfolio in the LNP government has come to see the insincerity of the present irrelevant opposition and spoke out.
Rupert Steiner, Balnarring
Voice was debated
This week I received a newsletter from [Flinders MP] Zoe Mackenzie, proud of her response to the prime minister’s [Anthony Albanese] introduction of the referendum legislation to allow us to vote on an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.
Ms McKenzie talked about the lack of broad public debate about the referendum. Yet, under the [previous] Coalition government there had been thousands and thousands of people consulted in the lead up to the Uluru Statement and, since then, in the development of the process for recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in our constitution.
Zoe accuses the PM of making the referendum process political, yet it is those on her side of politics who have been politicising it.
The Nationals announcing they would vote no before they even knew what the question was and [Liberal leader] Peter Dutton saying he needs more detail.
Ms McKenzie might want to start talking to the many groups in her electorate who are working to support a yes vote in the referendum. If she did that she might want to start acting as our representative rather than just repeating the words of her leader Peter Dutton.
Surely the rejection of the Coalition parties across Australia shows the electorate wants a united Australia working towards an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voice so that real and positive change can happen.
Marg D’Arcy, Rye
Embarrassing exit
Embarrassing that our “elected representative” MP for Flinders Zoe McKenzie, to avoid a division vote and, to again, avoid participating in democracy, was one of several COALition politicians who pushed past and hurt an attendant as she tried to lock a door (“MPs’ rush for the exit was a headline act” The News 4/4/23). You can bet this will not show up in her newsletter. Well, it actually did, and she fell on her sword for the good of the party. Forced to apologise to parliament, she should apologise to those she is supposedly representing.
In February, [Liberal leader Peter] Dutton apologised publicly for skipping another significant Indigenous milestone – then-PM Kevin Rudd’s apology to the stolen generations 10 years ago. So, guessing another apology in the making in about 10 years? Anyone see a trend here?
Zoe considers, in her latest newsletter, that these actions are “holding the Albanese government to account”.
We have the return of Dr No – Peter Dutton and his minions, reflexively opposing any government legislation. This is democracy in action by the quickly becoming irrelevant COALition.
The Greens are the real opposition negotiating with the government, the Liberal Party’s position basically a waste of space.
Maybe Liberals need a rethink about which issues voters want bipartisanship on (climate change, for example) and which are the fights truly worth having.
The issue they were trying to avoid for some reason was the Social Security (Administration) Amendment (Income Management Reform) Bill 2023.
We elect these people to represent us and to vote on issues, not stampede out to avoid putting their vote into the record. The last thing they want is their vote recorded.
Joe Lenzo, Safety Beach
Multi-storey effects
The building of the 500 car parking spaces development which is due to commence in July at Frankston station, funded by the state and federal governments, will no doubt be a multi-storey building.
It is not clear if this project was part of the failed Morrison government car park policy as was the funding for the double tracking of the rail line to Baxter.
It will be good for train travellers who own cars but as a multi-storey building this leaves the way open to multi-storey buildings around Frankston station.
It seems that Frankston Council doesn’t seem to grasp the pressures on businesses that will have to pay further rents when the increase their rates by at least 14 per cent.
Real estate companies are now for the first time putting up promotional boards in parks which will benefit public entities and charities and promote themselves, which could mean that there will be property sales activity in the Frankston area.
This will mean creating sales and possible increases in property values, which could mean more revenue for Frankston Council.
Russell Morse, Karingal
Preventing heart disease
Heart disease is Australia’s leading cause of death and tragically takes the life of one Australian every 30 minutes.
The good news is, heart disease is largely preventable.
The bad news? Our best tool for heart disease prevention – the Medicare heart health check – is about to expire.
We are seeking a guarantee from the Australian Government that funding will continue beyond 30 June this year.
Nearly 440,000 Australians have seen their GP for a Medicare subsidised heart health check since they were introduced.
The Heart Foundation is asking the government to invest $11.5 million a year to continue subsidising heart health checks into the future.
This is a relatively small investment compared to the $1 billion in health care costs that could be saved with broad uptake of heart health checks in high-risk Australians and, more importantly, the 67,000 heart attacks, strokes and heart disease related deaths that could be prevented over five years.
It’s not too late for your readers to act: I urge you to please help us save Medicare heart health checks by signing our petition, writing to local MPs and sharing the petition with friends and family.
Details: heartfoundation.org.au/save-heart-checks
David Lloyd, CEO National Heart Foundation of Australia
Letters – 300 words maximum and including full name, address and contact number – can be sent to The News, PO Box 588, Hastings 3915 or emailed to: team@mpnews.com.au
First published in the Mornington News – 11 April 2023
