Spruiking EOI

INTERESTING piece about regional tourism from federal minister Jonathon Duniam (Talking Point, August 7). Pity about the accolade for the Hodgman Expressions of Interest policy, which was sneaked into the last-minute Liberal blurb days before the election. Does Minister Duniam know about the incredible incompetence surrounding the application of this policy where the Hodgman Government has alienated, at one go, half the local population, a large proportion of the indigenous voters and the World Heritage Committee? Or, heaven preserve us, does the Federal Liberal Party support the sacrifice of our Tasmanian wilderness reputation for the benefit of very few?

Kids need practical acts

PETER Boyer gave Greta Thunberg top marks for her climate change effort (Talking Point, August 6) and yet missed the main issue — no advice for our kids. Get with it kids, try walking to school. Use a bus, turn down the heating and air conditioning at school and home and cancel holidays that involve air travel. Make this the start on your journey through life with many more sacrifices to come in saving the world from climate change

Nuclear treaty moves

WELL done to Hobart City Council in becoming an ICAN Appeal City promoting nuclear disarmament. Regarding whether this is appropriate for our council, I draw attention to the fact that 17 other councils in Australia have endorsed the campaign, including Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra, Newcastle and Fremantle. It has been signed by cities including Paris, Berlin, Washington, Los Angeles, Manchester and Geneva. They support the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, and are asking their governments to ratify it so it can become international law and start the process of disarmament.

Put decisions to citizens

THANK you for reminding us how lax the political donation laws are ( Mercury, August 6), the least transparent in the nation. It will take more than simple reforms to “boost the public’s confidence in election results and ensure that policy decisions are being made in the public interest.” This complex problem cannot be resolved by demanding transparency and real-time disclosure of donations. Though, as Dr Jay points out, that would be a good start. We have seen how vested interests can sway outcomes without direct donations. Think of the campaign the “hospitality industry” (pokies interests) ran in the lead-up to the last state election. Clive Palmer spent more than $65 million on a campaign that almost certainly helped the Coalition win government. Then there are “grassroots” campaigners like GetUp that exert influence. Perhaps it’s time to restructure how government operates to avoid these distortions of what we like to call democracy.

Perhaps we should look seriously at participatory democracy where issues are put to “citizens’ juries” to provide direction to our elected representatives, who would either enact them or be obliged to provide good reasons for not doing so. A new democracy.

Mortgage hump help

IT is my understanding homelessness has passed crisis proportions. A reader suggested those having difficulty meeting mortgage requirements sell their home before asking for charity (Letters, August 6). And even be prepared to take a loss. Where do these people live? Affordable rentals are, from all accounts, almost impossible to find and if a mortgage is difficult, taking another one is hardly likely to be possible. Surely some help over a “hump”, coupled with financial advice, is not too much to ask. At least there would be no increase in homeless numbers because of this. A little compassion doesn’t ever go astray.