Australia Day 2000
Echo 3 February 00
Australia Day 2000
Participating in the Australia Day activities with many differing
communities is truly a remarkable experience. My activities started on Tuesday
evening with the Casino Citizen of the Year Award dinner, then enjoying
breakfast in the morning in Casino, Lismore festivities at Heritage Park, then
off to the West of the Range celebrations at Bonalbo Showground and to conclude
the day I appreciated a good old Aussie BBQ with Kyogle Quota in the evening. It
is only with the benefit of this timely annual reflection on our day of
nationalism, that we can appreciate the true meaning of Aussie citizenship. What
a great country Australia is especially when we have so many ambassadors to make
proud statements about our nationhood.
Country Roads: Less Talk More Action
Roads in country NSW need more money and urgent upgrade rather than $1
million advertising campaigns. A recent Auditor-General report of the Roads and
Traffic Authority stated that road maintenance is of obvious benefit to road
safety and therefore reducing the road toll. While speed and fatigue are known
factors in many fatal accidents on city and country roads, clearly the state of
the road is also a major contributing factor in motor accidents. I believe $1
million would have been better spent on upgrading the many country roads that
are in a deplorable state. The REPAIR program of regional roads is under funded
with only $20 million allocated this year for all the regional roads. The Carr
Government must realise that road conditions are a major contributor to
accidents in country NSW.
Olympic Torchbearers
Congratulations to our local representatives who have been honoured,
together with 10,000 others statewide, to share in this once in a lifetime
experience. All will savour the privilege of carrying the Olympic Torch during
its 27,000 km epic journey to Sydney for the Olympics. I am sure there are many
surprised and proud people who are thrilled to be involved.
Greenslip Saving?
A number of constituents have contacted me regarding the so-called $100
saving on greenslips which was widely publicised by the Carr Government. In fact
the average saving is much less, around $60 with many people not able to claim
even that. Many pensioners are actually paying more with the rates being agreed
to by the Motoring Accidents Authority (MAA). The MAA supported this as
statistics indicated pensioners aged between thirty and fifty-nine were more
likely to claim on their insurance. Furthermore, the new greenslip legislation
only guarantees that insurance companies show an average reduction in premiums
for the next twelve months. I am concerned that after this period, the loophole
allowed by the Carr Government will be taken full advantage of and that prices
will increase dramatically after October 2000, as companies budget to make up
for lost revenue.
International Women's Day Week
On 8 March every year celebrations are held for International Women's Day (IWD).
The Department of Women coordinates specific events for the week, which
commences 6 to 12 March, with the theme "Women for Peace". The Department of
Women wants to support and become aware of local organisations and their planned
activities. Please do not hesitate to provide details of local events to my
staff.
Healthy Rivers Commission
The final report of the Healthy Rivers Commission's inquiry into the
Clarence River system is available for viewing at my office.
