the bushfires - Letter from Melbourne

LETTER FROM MELBOURNE
Saving you time. Since 1994. A monthly newsletter distilling public policy and government decisions which affect business opportunities in Victoria, Australia and beyond.
AUTUMN EDITION
22 FEBRUARY TO 6 APRIL 2009
ISSUE 142
Bushfire toll falls from 210 to 173
Bushfire royal commission starts slowly
Iconic Bracks The Bar to our Gallery
Hospital queues in the news
Collins Street run down
Clearway changes shop friendlier
New Frankston bypass
INSIDE
Melbourne is always a busy City.
About now, the Flower Show, the Melbourne Food
& Wine Festival, the Grand Prix, the Air Show...
3
3
7
11
15
18
18
Just launched: Our new specialist publication, Big Thinkers (think tanks, knowledge brokers, networks & opinion shapers) details inside

21 FEBRUARY TO 6 APRIL 2009
14 Collins Street
Melbourne, 3000
Victoria, Australia
P 03 9654 1300
F 03 9654 1165
info@affairs.com.au
www.letterfrommelbourne.com.au
Editor
Associate Editor
Sub-Editor
Copy-Editor
Subscription Manager
Design
Alistair Urquhart
Rick Brown
Hamish Brooks
Robyn Whiteley
Andrea Hodgkinson
Ray Zhang
Letter From Melbourne is a monthly public affairs
bulletin, a simple précis, distilling and interpreting
public policy and government decisions, which affect
business opportunities in Victoria and Australia.
Written for the regular traveller, or people with
meeting-filled days, you only have to miss reading
the The Age or The Herald Sun twice a week to need
Letter From Melbourne. It’s more about business
opportunities (or lack of them) than politics. It’s not
Crikey.com. We keep the words to a minimum.
Letter From Melbourne is independent. It’s not party
political or any other political. It does not have the
imprimatur of government at any level.
For context. It includes events and people and society,
and the weather if that is important.
Increasingly, Letter From Melbourne is developing a
federal and national coverage and also an increasing
synopsis of national business issues.
The only communications tool of its type, Letter
From Melbourne keeps subscribers abreast of recent
developments in the policy arena on a local, state and
federal level.
You can read it on a flight from Melbourne once a
month or with a good cup of coffee.
ADVERTISE WITH US
The perfect platform to
attract the attention of the
who’s who of Melbourne’s
public and private sector.
for a copy of our media kit or information regarding
advertising with LETTER FROM MELBOURNE
please contact Alistair Urquhart
alistair@affairs.com.au +61 3 9654 1300
Published by A.B Urquhart & Company Pty Ltd trading as Affairs
of State. Disclaimer: Material in this publication is general
comment and not intended as advice on any particular matter.
Professional advice should be sought before action is taken.
Material is complied from various sources including newspaper
articles, press releases, government publications, Hansard, trade
journals, etc. © This newsletter is copyright. No part may be
reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or
transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written
permission from the publisher. Affairs of State respects your
privacy. While we do believe that the information contained in
Letter from Melbourne will be useful to you, please advise us if
you do not wish to receive any further communications from us.
EDITORIAL: OUR CONTINUING CHALLENGES
The leader of the Opposition has been getting a caning from the media as not having the methodology and
clout to convince the people to vote for the Opposition at the next state election, due about November 2010.
Nearby, other news articles suggests that the fuss over the hospitals not declaring the true state of their
waiting lists makes the health system look as bad as the public transport system. Other articles and experts
have been very critical of the need for, or speed of construction of, certain large water infrastructure projects,
which are being planned, or built.
Our Lord Mayor is developing his (mayoral) character with some real sense when he talks about adding some
human and community aspects to the suburb of Docklands, less sensibly suggesting that we have airport
style taxi ranks rather than being able to just hail a cab in the street, and for some mirth, suggesting that
Adelaide has so little going for it that the city should be ‘shut down’. He is speaking a little like London’s mayor
Boris Johnson, who has entered the international GFC debate by frivolously suggesting that protesters at the
G20 summit in London should be trained to learn a chant different from their usual one. Challenging alcoholrelated
violence in the City remains a no-go zone.
The Letter From Melbourne editorial team have, during the month, launched a new book/directory, Big
thinkers (think tanks, knowledge brokers, networks and opinion shapers), www.affairs.com.au/
bigthinkers.html, launched 23 March by historian Geoffrey Blainey. Our contribution to the clear thinking that
will be required for us all to get out of the next few years in good style.
About the Editor
ALISTAIR URQUHART
Alistair Urquhart graduated from the Australian National University in
Canberra, in Law, History and Politics, was admitted as a barrister
and solicitor of the Supreme Court of Victoria, and remains a (nonpracticing)
member of the Law Institute of Victoria. Before that, he
graduated from high school in Bethesda, Maryland, and had many
opportunities to become aware of the workings of Washington DC.
For 30 years, he listened every Sunday evening to the late Alistair
Cooke and his Letter From America.
His early career was mostly in the coal industry, where he became
involved with energy, environmental and water issues, and later in
the SME finance sector.
His public affairs firm works with many engineering and information technology firms, other professional
association and industry groups, on a wide range of issues, in Victoria, Canberra and overseas.
Urquhart visits Canberra regularly. He may hold the record for miles rowed on Canberra’s Lake Burley
Griffin.
INDEX
STATE GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
THE BUSHFIRES
THE ARTS
DOCKLANDS
EDUCATION
ENVIRONMENT
CONSERVATION
ENERGY
WATER
GAMING
HEALTH
INVESTMENT
BUSINESS
ICT
3
3
6
7
7
9
9
9
9
10
11
12
12
12
AGRICULTURE
JUSTICE
MELBOURNE
GEELONG
PLANNING & BUILDING
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
SPORT
TRANSPORT
RAIL
ROAD
AIR
PORTS
COMMUNITY
13
13
13
15
15
17
17
17
17
18
18
19
19
2

LETTER FROM MELBOURNE
State Government & Politics
Lenders your ears
Victoria suffered a decline in new jobs in the
second half of last year and was the only Australian
state to actually lose positions in 2008, according
to Australian Bureau of Statistics labour force
surveys. Treasurer John Lenders last year assured
Victorians that the economy was robust, but new
jobs started to drop away rapidly from July, The Age
reported. Victoria’s unemployment rate rose from
4.8 per cent to 5.6 per cent putting it just behind
New South Wales and South Australia at 5.8 per
cent each, The Age reported.
Brumby’s priorities
The Municipal Association of Victoria weekly
newsletter reports that prior to the February 7
bushfires, Premier John Brumby delivered his
Statement of Intentions, outlining the Government’s
priorities for 2009. Top of the state’s agenda is
jobs creation and building of new infrastructure to
stimulate the economy. Also, a new white paper on
land and biodiversity will be released, and planning
reforms to speed up development, including a
rolling audit of pending projects to identify where
the use of ministerial call-in powers may deliver
‘net community benefit’ through jobs creation, were
announced.
Just tap it in
The Government is believed to be considering
establishing its own special purpose vehicle as
an option to help cover a new funding shortfall
for a range of public-private projects, including
the planned $3.1b plus desalination plant. Such
a vehicle would leverage the government’s AAA
credit rating to help the projects private backers
tap seized up credit markets and raise the billions
of dollars needed. Demand for infrastructure debt
has evaporated in recent months, with projects
such as toll roads on the nose in particular, The Age
reported.
Hooray for triple A
Credit ratings agency Moody’s Investors Service
reaffirmed Victoria’s AAA rating this year, noting
strong points that included sound financial
performance, modest debt and a sizable and diverse
economic base, the Financial Review reported.
In other triple A news
Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s has underlined
the states’ financial vulnerability, warning that three
more are at risk of joining Queensland in losing
their AAA status. Those states are New South
Wales, South Australia and Western Australia, The
Australian reported.
Contention reigns
The federal Attorney-General is under increasing
pressure from within his own party to use his
powers to overturn Victoria’s new abortion laws,
which leading lawyers and Catholic hospitals say
are in breach of international law, The Age reported.
Submit to their submission
The Municipal Association of Victoria completed
its submission for the 2009-10 State Budget. The
priority of the submission is to advocate projects that
improve local employment and economic activity.
The Association has called for the introduction of
a local infrastructure program, funding for projects
under the Victorian Transport Plan, public library
funding, maternal and child health IT platform,
review of funding for children’s crossing supervisors
and funding energy-efficient public lighting. The
submission will be circulated to councils, the MAV
Bulletin reported.
Austin-tatious
The Age’s state political editor, Paul Austin,
wrote that Ted Baillieu, the alternative premier,
should have something more substantial and
sophisticated to say than he has managed so far on
the deteriorating state of the Victorian economy, in
particular with regard to the budget forecast, which
predicted a budget surplus of $828m this financial
year and higher in each of the next three years.
The surplus in the first six months of this year was
just $46m. When trouble hits, you need a credible
alternative voice.
Proprietary rights everywhere
Under changes being considered by Cabinet to
the native title settlement proposed in Victoria,
traditional owners would negotiate directly with
the state government over land claims without
having to pursue native title cases in the Federal
Court. Fifteen years after the introduction of the
Native Title Act, 0.75 percent of the state has been
declared native title. The steering committee for the
development of a Victorian native title settlement
framework said traditional owners had an interest
in all Crown land. There are one million hectares
of public land in Victoria, including national parks,
state forests and beaches, The Age reported.
The Nationals have criticised the Victorian
Government over its ‘secretive’ approach to land
management and called on it to ‘come clean’ on
native title reform plans. Victorian deputy leader
Peter Walsh said it was a disgrace country
Victorians were the last to be consulted on
management of local Crown land.
A native title claim over Port Phillip Bay will proceed
in the Federal Court this year despite the proposed
state revamp of Aboriginal land rights that would
avoid protracted, expensive court battles. The
Bunurong people have spent $300,000 since 2006
pursuing a native title claim over the water and
shoreline of the bay, stretching from Werribee to
Point Nepean, The Age reported.
Task force
The Victorian Government has set up a Ministerial
Taskforce on Aboriginal Affairs to develop policies
and programs across Government that will
ultimately bridge the 17-year life expectancy gap
between indigenous and non-indigenous Victorians,
gina.hanson@dpcd.vic.gov.au.
Safe to serve
A State Services Authority report tabled in Parliament
showed Labor had employed an extra 60,396 people
since 1999. Premier John Brumby’s spokeswoman
Fiona McCrae said: ‘Our government is proud of
significantly boosting front-line services to families
– delivering more than 8800 extra nurses, 2580
doctors, 1100 teachers and support staff and 1400
additional police since 1999.’On 27 March, the State
Government announced it would keep all its public
servants but limit their pay rise to 2 per cent.
Small surplus item
John Brumby said he intended to meet the state’s
revised target of a budget surplus of $100m, The
Age reported.
States’ weakening bonds
The Financial Review reported that the states face
higher costs as investor appetite for their bonds
dwindles, making debt refinancing more difficult.
Up there
Queensland Premier Anna Bligh successfully
defended 11 years of Labor government and the
deterioration of the budget bottom line to the tune
of a $1.6b deficit and the loss of the states AAA
credit rating, on March 21, six months before
the end of the term, The Australian reported. She
became Australia’s first elected female premier.
Nearby, former One Nation leader Pauline Hanson,
54, stood for a Queensland seat, unsuccessfully.
Photos in one paper of her in sexual romp gear were
subsequently found not to be of her.
Up there with a knife
Liberal Senator Bill Heffernan is facing a police
investigation after surrendering an 18 cm pocket
knife at New South Wales Parliament, the Herald
Sun reported.
Grilled
Western Australia’s Corruption and Crime
Commission failed for the third time in less than 12
months to secure a conviction for false evidence
charges, this time after lobbyist Julian Grill was
acquitted, The Australian reported.
Next generation
The Victorian Liberal party invites applications from
members of the party seeking endorsement for the
next Federal Election, in Kooyong, Corangamite and
Deakin, www.vic.liberal.org.au.
The Bushfires
Opening remarks
In his opening remarks chief commissioner
Bernard Teague said the aim of the public
consultations by the royal commission was to help
the commissioners know which areas to prioritise
under their ‘extraordinarily wide’ terms of reference.
A lack of warning, poor mobile phone reception and
little apparent coordination between emergency
services were among the grievances aired at the
3

21 FEBRUARY TO 6 APRIL 2009
first community consultation into the Black Saturday
bushfires, The Age reported. Barrister Jack Rush
QC has been appointed as counsel assisting the
inquiry.
Keeping it quiet
The public and the media will be denied access to
the most personal accounts of the Black Saturday
fires into the Royal Commission after a decision to
hold the first hearings behind closed doors, The
Australian reported.
The decision has been condemned by the Opposition
and by the Australian Press Council, which said that
a public inquiry into public policy ought to have
open hearings. But it was welcomed by former Law
Institute of Victoria president Bill O’Shea, who until
recently lived in Marysville, as a compassionate
gesture towards traumatised victims.
Angry editorial
An editorial in The Australian entitled Red Hot
Arrogance, and with the precede ‘bushfire survivors
have a right to speak for themselves’ said that just
about the first decision from the Royal Commission
into the Victorian bushfires was to ban the media
from covering initial proceedings. The editorial noted
that if people are so shattered by their experiences
they do not want to speak publicly, this should be
respected. But they do not need an official to decide
what is good for them – especially as no one has
asked the Royal Commission to hear evidence in
camera. But the decision demonstrates something
worse than the arrogant assumption of patronising
public servants that they know what is best in
people – it reflects the attitude of officialdom that
restricting what the press can report reduces the
risk of officials being embarrassed.
The Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission held
community consultations for several fire-affected
communities between 18 March 2009 and 8 April
2009. The consultation sessions were open to those
Victorians who live or work in the communities.
Directly-affected individuals contacted the
Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission community
consultation line on 1800 842463 to register. The
commission has called for submissions in coming
weeks, providing individuals and organisations
in Victoria and beyond with an opportunity to
contribute, www.royalcommission.vic.gov.au.
Too soon
Food aid for bushfire survivors in Kinglake was
restored after authorities admitted the support was
stopped to soon, The Age reported.
Too late
Detectives have called on all Marysville town
residents to return to give statements. Up to 500
people were asked to travel to the Marysville
Community Golf and Bowls Club. Access to
Marysville was severely restricted for some five
weeks, while police and the army examined ruins
for leads in the arson case and for human remains,
but the golf club was just outside the closed area,
The Age reported.
An editorial in The Age said only painstaking
investigations can achieve the certainty that both
the bereaved and justice require.
The Disaster Victim Identification sweep of Marysville
was finished by March 20. Police confirmed that
45 people were killed in the bushfire that razed
Marysville, The Age reported.
Some informality, finally
The State Coroner said that the bodies of some
bushfire victims may never be found and identified
due to the force of the inferno in which they died,
the Herald Sun reported.
The Age reported that delays in identifying bodies
were holding up funerals and leaving grieving friends
and relatives in limbo. State Coroner Jennifer Coate
said given the ‘unprecedented circumstances’,
police would use other forms of evidence – such
as items of property – to help identify bodies, even
though the formal ID process usually insisted only
on scientific evidence such as DNA.
Behind the fires
The Country Fire Authority has been accused of
blocking city firefighters from helping fight Victoria’s
fires. Leaked emails accuse the CFA of blocking
Metropolitan Fire Brigade management and
CFA professional firefighters, and incompetently
handling the fires. The United Firefighters Union will
tell the Royal Commission on the fires that the CFA
panicked and was ill-prepared, despite knowing
conditions would be the worst in Victoria’s history,
The Age reported.
Some appreciation of the issue
John Brumby, who owns a farm near Bendigo,
agreed that some rural and semi-rural councils
imposed regulations that made it too difficult for
people to clear their land of potentially hazardous
vegetation, The Age reported.
Well done
The Red Cross will close its Bushfire Appeal on April
17, after raising more than $250m and anticipating a
higher final figure, The Age reported. Those planning
fundraising activities after April 17 should call the
Red Cross on 1800 811 700 before proceeding.
Follow up
John Landy will chair the Victorian Bushfire Appeal
Fund advisory panel, determining how the millions
of dollars donated should be spent after the Black
Saturday fires.
Nothing like the worst to bring out the best
RSPCA Victoria’s bushfire appeal has raised $2.5m,
believed to be the most raised in its 138-year history,
The Age reported.
Support package
Cash grants and low-cost loans will be offered to
businesses caught up in the Victorian bushfires
under a $51m state and federal government support
package, the Financial Review reported.
Right to cry
Fran Bailey, the Liberal member for McEwan broke
down in Parliament as she revealed that a very
large number of her constituents died in the Black
Saturday fires. She called for federal road grants for
state and local governments to be made conditional
on controlled burning being carried out. It was
revealed that Victoria refused to join a nationally
co-ordinated fuel reduction burning program 18
months ago, the Herald Sun reported.
When have weather briefings ever been
confidential?
The Age also reported that the Opposition accused
the Government of failing to do enough to warn
Victorians of the bushfire threat on Black Saturday. A
confidential weather briefing to Victoria’s emergency
services chiefs three days before the February 7
five storms warned of an ‘absolute extreme fire
weather spike day’. Emergency Services Minister
Bob Cameron said the facts did not support ‘this
appalling attack’ and called on the Opposition to
get out of the way of a royal commission, which will
examine all these issues.
Welcome
Rain in early March brought an unofficial end to
the bushfire season, with about 1,000 interstate
firefighters going home, as well as 121 from New
Zealand, Canada and the US, The Age reported.
Too soon?
Premier John Brumby defended the timing of the
National Day of Mourning, saying the ‘beautiful’
ceremony had been important for bushfire survivors.
About 7,000 people attended the service at Rod
Laver Arena. It was televised live on all TV networks
and addressed by Princess Anne, Governor General
Quentin Bryce, State Governor David de Krester,
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, Premier Brumby and
religious and community leaders. Several buses
provided to take people to the ceremony left empty
from bush fire ravaged towns, and some survivors
and volunteers complained that it was ‘too soon’
after Black Saturday for such a service, The Age
reported.
Mandate
Home insurance must be mandatory for those
building or buying in bushfire prone areas, the
Insurance Council of Australia has demanded,
with premiums set to rise in the wake of Victoria’s
devastating fires. The insurance council also
questioned if the uninsured should be compensated
for the loss of their homes from the Victorian bushfire
appeal fund, The Age reported. A Government
spokeswoman said the issue of mandatory house
insurance would be examined by the Bushfire Royal
Commission. Insurance companies have also called
for the scrapping of the fire services levy, which
contributes three quarters of the budgets for the
CFA and Melbourne’s Metropolitan Fire Brigade.
Victoria and New South Wales are the only states
to charge policyholders with the levy, which adds
about $200 to the cost of an average home and
contents policy.
4

LETTER FROM MELBOURNE
big
thinkers
(think tanks, knowledge
brokers, networks &
opinion shapers)
The 2009 edition of Affairs of State’s latest publication
Big Thinkers (thing tanks, knowledge brokers, networks &
opinion shapers) has just been released.
Big Thinkers is the only comprehensive and accurate guide
to think tanks, thinking/ideas organisations and opinion
shapers in Australia.
It assembles a list of more than 300 think tanks,
think/ideas organisations and opinion shapers from a cross
section of disciplines to help you understand the new
financial and policy environment.
With easy-to-read summaries, the briefing on each
organisation and opinion shaper is a vital tool to every
business in search of thinking space.
“This is the essential guide to the people and institutions
that make public policy in Australia.”
John Roskam (Exec. Dir, Inst. of Public Affairs)
“An invaluable relevant reference.”
Bob Fels (fmr Assoc, Aust. Centre Internat. Bus.)
Big Thinkers has a standardised format and is indexed for
quick and easy reference.
Big Thinkers provides up-to-date information including:
• Academic think tanks
• Government think tanks
• Contract research think tanks
• Policy advocacy think tanks
• No-for-profit policy centres
• University public policy & research centres
• Opinion editors, columnists and writers
Mail Order
Please supply Big Thinkers (think tanks, knowledge brokers,
networks & opinion shapers).
Product Quantity Price Total
Paperback ____________________ $440* inc. GST
* $330 for subscribers, negotiable
Paperback
& 1 CDPack (read only) _________ $480^ inc GST
^ $360 for subscribers, negotiable
$_______
$_______
Postage & Handling
1-2 copies free; 3-6 copies $5.00; 7+ copies $10.00 $_______
Pay by cheque/money order
Please find enclosed a cheque/money order to the value of
$_______ made payable to ‘Affairs of State’
Or charge my (please tick):
Visa Mastercard American Express
No. ____________________________________________
Expiry date ____/____ /____
$_______
Cardholders name (please print)
________________________________________________
Signature
________________________________________________
Deliver my copy/ies of Big Thinkers to
Dr/Mr/Mrs/Ms
________________________________________________
Company
________________________________________________
Address
________________________________________________
______________________________ Postcode __________
DX ________________Telephone (B/H) _______________
Send this order to:
Affairs of State
Level 2, 14 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
Telephone: +61 3 9654 1300
Facsimilie: +61 3 9654 1165
Email: info@affairs.com.au
5

21 FEBRUARY TO 6 APRIL 2009
aperium Consulting
-harnessing technology
to serve your organisational goals
Level 27
101 Collins Street
Melbourne VIC 3000
+61 3 9653 9692
11/60 Marcus Clarke St
Canberra ACT 2601
+61 2 6243 3628
www.aperium.com
Nearby
Uninsured bushfire victims who lost their homes to
the black Saturday Blazes will receive funding from
the bushfire appeal of to help rebuild. The head of
the Victorian Bushfire Funds advisory panel, John
Landy, said part of the total of more than $200
million raised would be used to rebuild the homes
of those with and without insurance, The Age
reported.
Rebuilding begins
The building of traditional timber houses will
be banned in areas of extreme fire danger and
property owners may soon be able to clear more
land under measures announced in early March.
Victims of the Black Saturday bushfires were able
to begin rebuilding their homes from March 10 and
can expect some help with the estimated $22,000
additional cost of meeting the toughest level of
new building standards. Under the rules, every
new Victorian home will be categorized within one
of six ‘bushfire attack levels’, from low to extreme.
Bushfire reconstruction authority head Christine
Nixon pledged that the process of people trying to
rebuild would not be complicated by red tape, The
Age reported. Residents of Marysville are growing
angry at new building regulations mandating
fireproof homes, saying they will be brick bunkers
that ruin the ambience of the town.
Brumby and bushfires
The Herald Sun reported that John Brumby hopes
to have bushfire reconstruction almost complete
by June next year. The rebuilding would be of the
biggest project of its kind in Australia since Cyclone
Tracy flattened Darwin on Christmas Eve in 1974.
The Government would not be introducing a one-off
levy to fund the rebuilding. No consideration had
been given to linking family compensation payouts
to restricting people’s right to sue. Compulsory fire
insurance would not be introduced. Brumby said
that with the assistance of the Federal Government
and the publicly funded Bushfire Relief Fund, the
State Budget would be able to pay for the rebuilding
and still retain a small surplus in the next two
financial years.
Tax breaks for employers of volunteers
Businesses that employ emergency services
volunteers should be given tax breaks and other
financial acknowledgement by the Government,
according to the firefighting organisations that
have been battling the state’s blazes. The CFA and
Volunteer Fire Brigades Victoria have held preliminary
talks with state ministers on ways to recognise the
unseen and ongoing contribution of employers –
some of whom have willingly relinquished staff, and
therefore productivity, for the month-long campaign
against the fires, The Age reported.
The waste
Toxic waste including asbestos, chemicals, batteries
and computer equipment and paint will be among
the estimated 80,000 tonnes of waste to be dumped
in specially approved landfills following February’s
bushfires. The cleanup is expected to take about six
months, and the amount of debris and tainted soil
to be removed is almost equal to the total amount
of industrial waste Victoria produces each year, The
Age reported.
Disaster tourism
Kinglake residents are bracing for a steady stream
of ‘disaster tourists’ after roadblocks were lifted
in the bushfire disaster zone in mid-March. Cars
streamed through the Yarra Valley as thousands of
visitors/tourists heeded the call to return to bushfire
affected pockets of Victoria for the Labor Day long
weekend, The Age reported.
Not so merchantable
VicForests, the body that manages timber harvesting
in state forests, estimates 25,000 hectares of
‘merchantable forest’ was burnt, The Age reported.
Thinking ahead
The Age reported that Victorian government agencies
lack enough specialised scientists to manage an
expanding fuel reduction policy, said Kevin Tolhurst,
a senior lecturer at the University of Melbourne’s
department of forest and ecosystem science. He
said a recent government strategy released in
December went ‘a long way’ towards addressing
problems in Victoria’s response to bushfire, but did
not reverse the current emphasis on bureaucracy
over science. He said land management agencies
across the country often employed people ‘who
were better at wordsmithing than knowing the
actual area they are working in’.
Look out!
Extreme weather warnings were issued on March 3
and 4 in Victoria with every mobile phone receiving
a wind and fire warning message. Telstra, Optus
and Hutchison sent warnings from Victoria police to
their mobile customers – more than 3 million phones,
using technology that isolated Victorian numbers,
and sent the text in bulk through a dispatch centre,
The Age reported.
THE Arts
Not so poor boy
The 500-seat Melbourne Theatre Company Theatre
opened with Poor Boy, a play starring Guy Pearce.
The theatre, along with the acoustically advanced
Elizabeth Murdoch Hall, form the $128m Melbourne
Recital Centre building at Southbank, the Herald
Sun reported.
Rebirth
The Australian National Academy of Music has a new
independent board, a new intake of 55 students and
a program for the year prepared by artistic director
Brett Dean. The new board is chaired by Ian McRae
who is also chairman of the Australian Ballet School
and was a director of the Melbourne Recital Centre,
and is a director of Malthouse Theatre and Bangarra
Dance Theatre. The board, which also includes Arts
Victoria director Penny Hutchinson, the chair of
Melbourne University’s steering group for a new
music conservatorium, Professor Barry Sheehan,
and the university’s pro vice-chancellor, Professor
Warren Bebbington. ANAM is a subsidiary
company of Melbourne University managed by the
independent board under new arrangements set
by federal Arts Minister Peter Garrett when he
confirmed last year that the function of the funding
of $2.5m would continue and that it would remain
in the South Melbourne Town Hall building, The Age
reported.
Sharp move
Chrissy Sharp, who has been general manager
of Sadler’s Wells Theatre in London for more than
four years and was previously general manager
of the Sydney Festival has been appointed to run
Melbourne’s new Centre for Books, Writing and
Ideas, following the withdrawal of Caro Llewelyn
from the position due to personal reasons. Sharp
has also been director of policy at SBS and director
of the Australian Writers Guild, The Age reported.
6

LETTER FROM MELBOURNE
Oscar night
Heath Ledger became only the second actor to win
an Academy Award posthumously when he won
Best Supporting Actor for his performance as The
Joker in the Batman movie Dark Night, the Herald
Sun reported. Slum Dog Millionaire won best picture.
Letter from Melbourne recommends it if you have
some spare time.
Go and see it
The National Gallery of Victoria has purchased John
Brack’s iconic Melbourne painting The Bar and it
now sits in its ‘rightful’ place alongside its natural
companion piece, Collins Street, 5 PM, at the NGV in
Federation Square.
Temporary
K Shed at the Queen Victoria market will become
a temporary opera house. The people to perform
include soprano Yvonne Kenny, tenor James
Egglestone, an orchestra of 65 and a 150-voice
choir, conducted by Benjamin Northey. Opera in
the Market is presented by Australian Music Events,
which is giving net proceeds from the two concerts
to St Vincent’s Hospital. AME also organises Opera
in the Alps, near Beechworth, and Opera by the
Loch, in Mildura, which were held earlier this year.
A valuable purpose of these outdoor events is the
involvement of younger singers, The Age reported.
Up there
Sydney artist Guy Maestri, 34, won the $50,000
Archibald Prize for his portrait of Geoffery
Gurrumul Yunupingu, a blind singer from Elcho
Island in northeast Arnhem Land whose self titled
album has received widespread acclaim over the
past 12 months, The Australian reported.
Film opportunity
Camberwell’s heritage listed Rivoli Theatre, a 1940s
art deco building, is for sale and is leased to Village
Roadshow until 2020, The Age reported.
Are you ready to laugh?
Melbourne International Comedy Festival programs
are out, a 90-page colour magazine that fell out of
The Age, from April 1 to 26, www.comedyfestival.
com.au.
Good stint at the helm
National Gallery of Victoria director Gerard
Vaughan was reappointed for five years from July,
the Financial Review reported.
Virtuous recommendation
Letter from Melbourne saw an advanced screening
of Easy Virtue, adapted from the Noel Coward play
of the same name and thoroughly enjoyed it.
En Francais
The French Film Festival, in Melbourne between
March 5 and 20, screened 25 French films.
Docklands
A softer community required
Robert Doyle wants Docklands planning powers
transferred to Melbourne City Council. He said he
was very worried about Docklands, which lacked
the social glue that other suburbs take granted.
But VicUrban, the government agency in charge of
developing Docklands, said it was happy with the
way the area was evolving. Victoria State architect
Professor Geoffrey London said docklands urgently
needed attention, The Age reported.
It needs a soul
Premier John Brumby has conceded the Docklands
is not working as well as it should have and has
backed calls to improve its social infrastructure.
Planning Minister Justin Madden has said he is
open to the idea of a council takeover, The Age
reported.
The human touch
Melbourne City Councillor Ken Ong said a primary
school would keep families in Docklands and
kickstart the social infrastructure that is now
lacking in the infant suburb. The Victorian Education
Department said it was monitoring population
trends in Docklands to inform decisions on new
schools, the Herald Sun reported. Neil Mitchell,
who broadcast from 8:30am weekdays on 3AW,
wrote in the Herald Sun that the Docklands is a
windy, soulless place devoid of excitement and it’s
time to get it right or face a century of mediocrity.
Big shop
Large US supermarket chain Costco has announced
its landmark Australian store at Docklands will
employ 225 staff when it opens in July at Waterfront
City. Nearby, the Southern Star Observation Wheel
will remain motionless for some months.
Education
The drift
The drift from public to private schools could slow
over the next year, according to some educators,
“Installation of the most powerful technology,
without the implementation of the most sound
methodology; leads to mind-boggling apoplexy!”
WordScribe ® /Dataworxs and ELPedium “Auto Updating” Speech Recognition
integrations installed by the soundest methods, produce incredible increases in
productivities.
Clients for our digital voice technologies include the legal and medical professions
as well as government agencies including the Victorian Government Solicitor’s
Office and the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine.
Nearing 50 years of “Supplying Choices; Delivering Solutions!” with practical advice
SPEECH RECOGNITION AUSTRALIA PTY LTD
Inc with:
GRUNDIG DICTATION MACHINES PTY LTD
656 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne Vic 3000 Australia
T +61 3 9347 5555 F: +61 3 9347 7706 divsys@divsys.com.au
with government school principals, in a Australian
Secondary Principals Association survey, reporting
higher enrolments as the financial crisis intensifies,
The Age reported.
Big losses
The higher education sector, which relies on income
from overseas students and investments to cover
federal funding shortfalls research and domestic
students, is facing the prospect of a bad year in
2009-10. Melbourne University last year lost 22 per
cent from its endowment portfolio. The university’s
investment report shows the global turmoil helped
cut $300m from the fund, with the value of the
portfolio shrinking from $1.4b to $1.1b, The Age
reported.
Too many pie warmers
The Herald Sun reported that school tuckshops
have too many pie warmers and require upgrades
to comply with a health food standards, Victorian
School Canteens Association state coordinator
Prue Cerin said.
The kids will be disappointed
Under changes introduced by the Government,
state schools will find it harder to expel and
suspend students, with suspensions to be limited to
a maximum of three successive days instead of 10.
More than 16,000 primary and secondary students
were suspended in Victoria last year, the Herald Sun
reported.
Fees
The Melbourne Times reported that under the
Federal Government student services funding
model, universities will charge students a $250
service and amenities fee to fund health, welfare
and recreation services. Student unions will play no
role in providing the services, as the extra money
would filter through university administrations.
National Union of Students Victoria president Mark
Baker said the services and amenities fees should
be managed by students, especially during times of
economic hardship.
“Invisible Miracle!”
ELPedium
Speech Recognition
1
RECORD
4
PAUSE
7
REWIND
*
CANCEL
2
PLAY
5
SEND FOR
T YPING
8
FF
0
PAUSE
3
REW /
PLAY
6
PRIORITY
9
FF/PL AY
#
END JOB
7

21 FEBRUARY TO 6 APRIL 2009
VIEWPOINT
SYDNEY PAIN, MELBOURNE GAIN!
Tim Riches
Tim Riches, Managing Director
Tim has degrees in law and philosophy, with postgraduate qualifications in marketing and
holds the position of Adjunct Professor to the Faculty of Design at Swinburne University
in Melbourne and has undertaken strategic projects for …. Tourism Australia – Brand
Australia, Austrade, Invest Australia, Cricket Australia, BHP Billiton, Baulderstone
Hornibrook, GPT, Insurance Australia Group, National Australia Bank, Sensis (Yellow
Pages), Coles Group, Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games, Origin Energy and the
Royal Flying Doctor Service.
FutureBrand Australia
FutureBrand Australia is part of the InterPublic Group and is a full-service, global branding
firm with a network of 24 offices in 15 countries. We develop and deliver brand strategy,
brand identity and brand experience to enable our clients to think ahead of their markets
and by doing so to stay ahead.
www.futurebrand.com
www.futurebrand.com.au
FutureBrand’s Country Brand Index is an annual,
comprehensive research study examining the
importance of branding for countries, ranking
them according to important economic and
marketing factors. It provides a comprehensive
assessment of country brand strength and taps
into the continued debate about the relationship
between business, tourism and national brand
identity.
It’s run by FutureBrand New York with input from
offices, including Australia. It involves a global
quantitative survey of 2700+ frequent travellers,
a global expert panel which recruits from diverse
regions and draws a range of statistics from
relevant secondary sources with global reach. The
dedicated website is www.countrybrandindex.
com,
For Australia, the study is especially relevant.
Australia has been placed number 1 country brand
for 3 years running, driven by a superior breadth
and strength of positive associations: we’re
famous for Outdoor Activities & Sports (number
1 globally), Natural Beauty (number 5), Friendly
Locals (5), Family Friendly (4), Perceived Standard
of Living (4)Beaches (5) and Nightlife (6). Amongst
a range of other positive perceptions, these drive
Australia to the top of the ranking in terms of brand
preference. We’re also the place that more people
say they’d like to live, and even extend a business
trip, than any other country.
Whilst this is a great achievement for which
Tourism Australia, some movie stars, the Australian
cricket and soccer teams, Home and Away, and
the late Steve Irwin deserve some gratitude, rather
than the usual criticism and cynicsim, the study
doeshighlight some key issues.
In terms of country marketing, the importance
is in focusing on the right marketing problem to
convert positive sentiment into economic value.
This requires us to put aside our fixation on the
next ad campaign (‘Where the bloody hell is it?’),
because the ad campaigns are mainly about
adding goodwill and positive feeling to an area that
is already demonstrably full of these things. We
need to focus instead on tapping that sentiment
and convertihng it into visitation and dollars. It’s
unreasonable to expect an advert to drive visitation
when people already want to come. It’s just not
really the right tool for the job.
The right tool looks a lot more like www.viator.
com (or similar), a website that blends advice,
itineraries, user reviews and bookings into
solutions to the “getting-to-a-place-that’s-a-longway-away”
problem. We need to make it easier
to come in terms of money, time and effort when
all of these commodities are under pressure in
our lives. On-line is the medium that can do this
best yet no-one cares or comments that Tourism
Australia just launched a new website…
More locally, for Melbourne and Victoria, some
interesting implications arise from the strong
result for Australia in the CBI and the insights it
offers.
The key dynamic for Victorians is that Melbourne
is, in lots of ways, at odds with Brand Australia.
The global perception of the Australian lifestyle
and experience is much closer to Sydney and
Brisbane as cities. And while plenty of people
internationally can identify Queensland as an
entity, Victoria, like NSW, lacks a sense of identity
or experience for mainstream offshore audiences.
Appeal has always been more “targeted” therefore
to international customers. This isn’t a bad thing in
itself, as reaching the relevant market segments
on-line is relatively efficient via a very active
calendar of events and festivals
Victoria and Melbourne’s success in terms of
domestic tourism has, we’d argue, actually been
driven quite specifically by the inconsistencies
with Brand Australia overall. It’s exactly because
Melbourne is a kind of “Europe Lite” that it
competes so effectively for interstate visitors.
Although Tourism Victoria is seen as an effective
organisation of its kind, it’s not a new phenomenon,
with roots traceable back to the gold rush era.
Plus you can’t underestimate the power of being
the second biggest city – it’s a natural destination
for visitors from the biggest! In fact Melbourne and
Victoria are a number of things that Sydney and
most of the other States generally aren’t: culture
oriented (relatively), European feeling, and in the
case of Victoria, compact. And we’re proud of
the “indoors” experience – we’ve even chosen to
identify ourselves with branding based on books
and jigsaws!
The other key thing is that with the NSW
Government currently a bit of a basket case, our
premier city brand, Sydney, is less well placed to
leverage the country brand strength, despite its
natural assets and good fit with the overall country
brand. Where else is there such a compelling mix
of internationally recognised icons (such as the
Harbour Bridge, the Opera House and the Museum
of Contemporary Art) and stunning natural beauty,
managed so badly, as Sydney?
Historically, Sydney has failed to leverage its
appeal on the major events front versus Melbourne,
especially in terms of international profile. Really,
the Grand Prix should be in Sydney – a much
better fit in many ways!
Although there is a Brand Sydney project in place,
it will be interesting to see whether it encompasses
the right scope in terms of establishing
collaboration around planning, infrastructure,
cultural programming and events, the sort of
collaboration that seems to occur informally and
more naturally in Melbourne – or is an exercise in
communications spin… We have our suspiscions!
8

LETTER FROM MELBOURNE
Adieu
Melbourne Grammar Principal Paul Sheahan steps
down on April 3, after fourteen years at one of
Melbourne’s good schools.
Fascinating
The Victorian Auditor-General’s report into Literacy
and Numeracy Achievement was released in
February and provides an assessment of the
trajectory of education in the state.
Fascinating too
The Victorian Parliament’s Public Accounts and
Estimates Committee is conducting a review of
findings and recommendations of a number of
reports by the Victorian Auditor-General in 2007,
including Improving our Schools: Monitoring and
Support; and Funding and Delivery of Two Freeway
Upgrade Projects. The closing date for submissions
is Friday, 24 April, paec@parliament.vic.gov.au.
People director
RMIT University seeks an Executive Director-
People, execsearch@jofisher.com.au.
Swinburne University of Technology seeks a
Director Alumni & Development, cv@sildak.com.
Environment
Conservation
Pass the parcel
Laws governing the clearing of native vegetation are
under review as part of the Government’s response
to the bushfire crisis, The Age reported. Ideas have
included transferring responsibility for managing
native vegetation in areas zoned for housing from
the Department of Sustainability and Environment
to the Department of Planning and Community
Development. The Urban Development Institute of
Australia’s Victorian executive director, Tony de
Domenico, said changes to native vegetation laws
must be considered in conjunction with new building
rules for houses in bushfire prone areas.
Doing nothing, do something
Victoria’s climate policies will make no difference to
achieving Australia’s greenhouse emissions targets
and will simply subsidise big industrial polluters,
according to a State Government assessment. A
high-level ministerial brief advises the Brumby
Government to rethink policies and programs,
including subsidies for solar farms and panels and a
shift to a hybrid car fleet, arguing that they will not
contribute to any additional greenhouse gas cuts
under Kevin Rudd’s proposed Carbon Pollution
Reduction Scheme, The Age reported.
Prominent
Fires in the Wilson’s Promontory National Park have
burnt about 25 per cent of the 50,000 hectare park,
with the park closed until late March for safety
reasons, disrupting people’s camping and holiday
plans.
More fires
Two fire fighters were injured and a house was
destroyed in the blaze that threatened communities
on Melbourne’s eastern fringe and continued to
burn on 24 February. On the same day another large
fire was threatening communities on the outskirts
of the resort town of Daylesford in central Victoria,
The Age reported.
Uplifting
Parks Victoria could soon start looking for a new
company to run the Arthur Seat chair left in an
effort to end the stalemate over safety issues
with its operator. If the lease is terminated, Parks
Victoria can seek expressions of interest from other
operators, The Age reported. Good luck to the next
guy.
Dropping like bats
The Melbourne Times reported that Friends of Bats
Victoria spokeswoman Megan Davidson said more
than 3,500 bats had perished, at least 20 per cent
of the grey headed flying fox colony in Melbourne,
in the heat wave in early February. Wildlife workers
in the Department of sustainability and environment
are planning a summit to discuss how further losses
can be mitigated, www.wildlifevictoria.org.au.
Interesting report
The Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability’s
(Ian McPhail’s) State of the Environment Summary
Victoria 2008, has a 52-page colour summary
publication covering all aspects of the Victorian
environment including rainfall, marine life, pests,
climate change, biodiversity, land use and even the
atmosphere above us. The much longer report was
launched in November: this is a reminder note.
Tender is the environment
Sustainability Victoria is seeking responses from
service providers for the purpose of engaging
with high consuming households who are willing
and capable of acting on climate change. A pilot
greenhouse program aims to reduce household
consumption of energy, water and the production of
waste, and respondents will be required to outline
how they intend recruiting households, and how
they will deliver a large number of tailored home
sustainability assessments, www.tenders.vic.gov.
au.
Partly successful
Earth Hour, an event which encourages people
to turn off electrical appliances and lights for
60 minutes, occurred on March 28 at 8:30pm\,
coinciding with busy Grand Prix people here in
Melbourne and their restaurants.
Good job
The Country Fire Authority seeks a chief
executive officer, www.kathleentownsend.com.
au.
Energy
Riding the wave
The Victorian Government is in talks with Western
Australia’s Carnegie Corporation, to develop a
$300m wave energy plant. The company wants
to build a 50-mega watt demonstration plant—
enough to power about 30,000 homes and looking
at seabed sites near the power grid off western
Victoria and also off Gippsland.
Water
Some good rain
Before Saturday, 14 March, less than 23 millimetres
had been recorded in Melbourne’s rain gauge this
year, but heavy rains in much of southern Victoria
on that day delivered another 20 millimetres (most
of an inch) followed by light showers on Sunday, The
Age reported.
Revised water
A revised water plan is being devised by Victoria’s
senior water officials. Existing plans for the city
to be off water restrictions by mid-2012 following
the introduction of desalinated water are said to be
shelved under the new timetable, which is due for
public release in April. The revised five-year plan
has been devised because of poor spring rainfall
and the Government’s desire to extend the target
155 campaign, which urges each Melburnian to use
less than 155 litres of water a day.
Where fire and water interface
Melbourne’s diminishing water supplies could suffer
from fires as new, thirsty forests will grow in place
of the older burnt out ones, with the young trees
sucking up more water and reducing the run-off into
reservoirs, possibly by up to half by the time trees
are 20-30 years old. This scenario is such a serious
threat to water supplies that the State Government
and Melbourne water have a special fire strategy
to try to protect the catchments including extra
firefighters, air support and hundreds of kilometres
of fire breaks.
Three of Melbourne’s four most important
reservoirs had fires in their catchments, with two
of the catchments suffering significant damage.
Melbourne water officials have warned that water
collection in dams affected by the bushfires could
fall by 30 per cent in the decades ahead, The Age
reported.
Money drought
The Age reported that banking sources say the
Wonthaggi desalination project faces a funding gap
of between $1b and $2b. Some in the infrastructure
industries say there is $300m to $500m available
from banks for all major projects across the
country. The shortfalls confront the Brumby and
Rudd Governments with either finding money to
bail out the controversial plan, along with many
other projects across the country, or shelving
it. Sourcing finance for big-ticket infrastructure
projects is now a major dilemma arising from the
9

21 FEBRUARY TO 6 APRIL 2009
international money malaise of the private and
public sectors. Two consortia, Bass Water (led by
the French company Veolia) and Aquasure (led by
the French company Degremont), are jostling for the
desalination contract. Senior infrastructure finance
experts agree the state or federal governments
would have to step in to save the project.
Media agreement
An editorial in The Age suggested that due to
obstacles confronting the desalination project due
to the global financial crisis, the Government should
look to cheaper, environmentally safer options for
resolving Melbourne’s water shortage instead, such
as water recycling. In the Herald Sun, Andrew
Bolt wrote that wind farms and the planned
desalination plant in Wonthaggi are overpriced and
uncompetitive, and cannot make money without
government support.
Soon, the oceans will be empty
A second desalination plant could be built near
Melbourne to save the Werribee Irrigation District,
which is estimated to supply close to half of
Australia’s vegetables, but is facing a bleak future
under present water arrangements. Crops at
Werribee have been growing in recycled water
from the nearby sewage treatment plant for almost
4 years, but the government failure to ensure the
quality of the water has led to concerns the district
could be destroyed for farming within a decade.
Salinity levels in the recycled water have regularly
been double the maximum promised by the State
Government when it urged market gardeners onto
the recycled water scheme in 2004, The Age
reported.
Move out
Over 1.3 billion litres of drinking water was moved
out of one of the city’s major dams, the Upper Yarra
Reservoir, in a bid to avoid contamination from
bushfires, The Age reported.
22 litres over
Three months after the launch of the Target 155
program to encourage Melburnians to keep their
daily water consumption 155 litres, figures show
personal consumption of water was closer to 177
litres a day in Melbourne throughout summer, The
Age reported.
Murray me
State rivalry over the Murray-Darling River
system could be set to escalate into a high court
showdown between South Australia and Victoria.
In an assertion of states’ rights, South Australia
Premier Mike Rann has flagged a constitutional
challenge to force Victoria and other states to allow
more water to flow to the Murray’s depleted lower
reaches, The Age reported. The Financial Review
reported that the New South Wales government
and the state’s farmers are supporting the South
Australian government’s threat, fearing they would
bear the brunt of extensive Federal government
water buybacks if Victoria continued to restrict
trades.
Young idea
One of the foremost experts on the Murray-Darling
River system, Adelaide University’s Professor Mike
Young, is calling for the Murray-Darling River
system to be disconnected from hundreds of lakes,
wetlands and other environmental assets as part
of a shrinking and reconfiguration of the waterway.
The appeal to downsize the river system included
the possible abandonment of some of Victoria’s
prized river red gums in the Barmah forest, The Age
reported.
Salt interception
Goulburn-Murray Water is Australia’s largest rural
water corporation managing around 70 per cent of
Victorian stored water resources and Australia’s
largest water distribution network. Over the next
decade G-MW’s asset base, workforce capabilities,
technology requirements and customer services
will be transformed by the state and federal
governments $2b investment in modernising
G-MW’s distribution network. They have a position
available for a Salt Interception Co-ordinator or
Officer, www.g-mwater.com.au.
Poo and water assessment
The Essential Services Commission is assessing
the four-year water plans at the suppliers of
metropolitan water and sewerage services. The
current price review applies to: Melbourne Water,
City West Water, South East Water and Yarra Valley
Water, www.esc.vic.gov.au.
A good euphemism
One of Melbourne’s three metropolitan water
retailers, South East Water, seeks interested parties
to provide proposals to reuse biosolids from any of
their eight sewage treatment plants. Biosolids are
rich in nutrients and organic matter so are good
slow-release fertilisers as well as being a soil
additive to enhance the soil structure and stability,
www.southeastwater.com.au.
Good job
Southern Rural Water, a State Government
corporation responsible for managing rural water
resources across the southern half of Victoria, seeks
a managing director, byron.ellis@hays.com.au.
Gaming
Prepared to punt, bet, fix the race
Supreme Court proceedings in which poker machine
vendor Tabcorp was accused of offering a $20m
inducement, has been settled out of court. The
gaming venue group Clubs Victoria will be paid an
undisclosed sum by the newly formed Community
Clubs Association of Victoria, which Tabcorp helped
fund last year after the abolition of its pokies duopoly
with Tattersall’s. The CCAV is headed by former
Olympian and Fitzroy Football Club president Leon
Wiegard, who defected from Clubs Victoria. Clubs
Victoria represents about 200 pokies venues and
wants greater entitlements after the distribution of
new licences beyond 2012. Tabcorp was not a party
to the Supreme Court dispute, but the allegations
triggered a separate investigation by the Australian
Competition and Consumer Commission over
alleged breaches of the Trade Practices Act. The
investigation is continuing, exposing Tabcorp to
possible fines of up to $10m.
Meanwhile, a high-stakes tender will begin later
this year for Tabcorp’s lucrative $750m a year
wagering and sports betting licence, with Tabcorp
set to be challenge by UniTab and overseas raiders
Ladbrokes, Paddy Power, Intralot and the Hong
Kong Jockey club, the Herald Sun reported.
Harvesting their supporters
The Age reported that Victorian AFL clubs earned
$245m from poker machines in the past three
financial years and are increasingly targeting
Melbourne’s most vulnerable communities. Five
suburban venues owned by the Collingwood
Football Club made $62m, with about $20m
going directly into the Magpies’ coffers. Reigning
premiers Hawthorn got about $35m from pokie
players at its Waverley Gardens venue, Vegas,
which was the third most lucrative pokie club in
10

LETTER FROM MELBOURNE
the state. Each machine generated it $157,000 last
year. Richmond’s balance sheet was boosted by
most $10m after pokie players lost about $30m at
its clubs in Wantirna and Richmond. The Western
Bulldogs, Essendon, Carlton and Melbourne each
made more than $2m a year from gaming. The
figures come after the Brumby Government released
details of pokies spending at all Victorian gaming
venues as part of its plan to strip Tatts and Tabcorp
of their duopoly power and allow hotels and clubs to
own and operate machines. Charles Livingstone,
Monash University’s Department of Health Science,
accused AFL clubs of deliberately establishing
gaming venues in economically disadvantaged
areas. ‘This is an obvious strategy to maximise the
returns from each machine and it seems to have the
blessing of the AFL’s administration,’ Dr Livingstone
said.
A thought
The Herald Sun reported industry insiders fear
new legislation under the Brumby Government’s
overhaul of gaming licences will give AFL clubs, and
businesses with more financial clout, the ability to
ride over community-based clubs.
Poked up
The Age reported that a hotel in Melbourne’s northwest
has earned $60m from poker machines in just
three years. Details of poker machine spending for
all of Victoria’s venues were released for the first
time by the State Government in early March. While
spending for local government areas has been
released in the past, this was the first statewide
snapshot of which hotels and clubs were profiting
most from poker machines. Victorians lost $2.6b
on pokies in pubs and clubs last financial year. The
Government plans to collect $4.3b in poker machine
taxes in the next four years, while the total gambling
tax take is almost $7b. Chairman of Inter-Church
Gambling Taskforce Mark Zirntack said the figures
showed some venues only increased their take per
machine as the Government reduced the number of
machines.
Branching out from root vegetables
Monash University research shows that
Woolworths has collected an estimated $1.89b
from Victorian poker machines since 2004, as part
of a joint venture with gaming entrepreneur Bruce
Mathieson, The Age reported. The retail giant
now has a 75 per cent stake in 4176 machines –
almost one third of Victoria’s hotel entitlements
– with a substantial interest in another 1551 hotel
pokies and management rights of 550 nightclub
machines. Woolworths spokesman David Curry
said all its venues complied with responsible
gambling legislation. It also started an education
program, headed by former AFL footballer and
reformed gambling addict David Schwarz, to raise
awareness of problem gambling issues.
Sneaky with its open and accountable style
The Herald Sun reported that Opposition gaming
spokesman Michael O’Brien said the Government
was being sneaky with its open and accountable
style, and released detailed information only when it
suited its purposes. ‘This brings home exactly how
much the Brumby Government’s failure to implement
responsible gaming has cost local communities,’ he
said of data released as the Government prepares
to break up the Tatts/Tabcorp duopoly from 2012 to
allow pubs and clubs to apply for individual 10-year
pokies licences from early next year. Gaming
Minister Tony Robinson’s spokeswoman said pubs
and clubs would get the chance to own and operate
gaming machines, and have greater control over the
industry and security. ‘Currently, Tatts and Tabcorp
determine where machines are located. They can
move from venue to venue in search of the most
profitable location,’ she said.
Re-branded ‘Good-luck Friday’
Punters will be able to bet with a TAB on Good Friday
for the first time, the Herald Sun reported. There are
no races in Victoria on Good Friday, but punters
will be able to get on races in Singapore and South
Africa, two NRL games and international sports that
fall into the timeframe. The TAB move will increase
pressure for AFL games and Victorian racing to be
allowed on Good Friday. Tabcorp managing director
of wagering Robert Nason said the betting giant
would encourage race clubs around Australia to
push the Good Friday meetings. God bless him.
Nasty insiders
The Opposition has accused the State Government of
spying on its gaming spokesman, Michael O’Brien,
and his conversations with a Parliamentary inquiry
witness. A public servant from the Department of
Justice noted a conversation he had with someone
in an official report. O’Brien believes the incident
is concerning because it shows bureaucrats are
increasingly performing partisan acts for the
Government.
Health
Clerical manipulation
The Royal Women’s Hospital’s admission to the
Department of Human Services that it had reported
incorrect waiting lists came days after Health
Minister Daniel Andrews said he was not aware
of any evidence to suggest hospitals had been
manipulating lists. The department said that what
the Royal Women’s had tried to pass off as ‘clerical
data errors’ in February was in fact ‘manipulation of
data’. The opposition accused Andrews of engaging
in a long-running cover-up of the widespread
manipulation of public hospital waiting lists, The
Age reported. The Government has ordered an
audit of all hospital emergency department data.
An opinion piece in The Age by Stephen Rodgers
Wilson, a Melbourne surgeon, observed that
management strategies encourage hospitals to
doctor their figures.
Brain strain
Mental health services are launching a recruitment
drive and asking volunteers to work extra shifts
as they struggle with increasing demand from the
terrors of the Black Saturday bushfires and the
worsening global financial crisis. The number of
callers to Lifeline seeking disaster help rose more
than fivefold to 75 in the week after the February
bushfires. Kids Helpline recorded a 60 per cent rise
in calls, The Age reported.
What’s on the tele?
The Federal Government endorsed a telemedicine
trial by Victorian health authorities, using video
conferencing technology that has already being
used successfully in New South Wales. The 12
month trial, which began last December was
unveiled by Communications Minister Senator
Conroy at Victoria’s Alfred Hospital in mid-March.
It allow Melbourne medical specialists to use
videoconferencing systems to assess patients in
regional trauma and critical care units up to 600
kilometres away. Participants hope the trial will
prove Victoria can save millions of dollars lost
needlessly moving patients to specialist doctors
using costly ground and air ambulance services,
The Australian reported.
Quiet tragedy
The Age reported that according to Monash
University analysis, January’s heatwave may have
killed 100 Melburnians – and more than 200 people
in total across south-eastern Australia. Their deaths
are the subject of investigations by the Department
of Human Services and the Coroner’s Office. Most
of the victims were heat stricken elderly and
chronically sick people who died prematurely, often
alone in their homes or suddenly of heart failure.
Wednesday, January 28, to Friday, January 30,
were the worst days.
Obese with humanity
The Herald Sun reported that the obesity epidemic
has forced Ambulance Victoria to buy new heavyduty
vehicles, as schools and airlines are ordering
wider seats. Even funeral parlours are increasing
crematorium sizes. Victoria has spent $1.4m on four
new ambulances for patients who weigh more than
159 kilograms.
Party of five
Pressure is growing on the Government to end the
practice of housing together four or five teenagers,
in the states care, due to concerns they are in some
cases exposing each other to harmful behaviour.
The Age reported that 11,780 incidents relating to
young people living in these share houses, in what
is known as ‘residential care’, were reported to the
Department of Human Services last financial year.
Good jobs
Ambulance Victoria seeks a chief executive officer,
career@bookerconsulting.com.au.
The Women’s Domestic Violence Crisis
Service seeks a chief executive officer, resume@
sacsconsult.com.au.
Golbourn Valley health seeks a chief executive
officer, carreer@brookerconsulting.com.au.
11

21 FEBRUARY TO 6 APRIL 2009
Investment
Business
Non-bushfire charities struggling
Non-bushfire charities have been hit hard by the
combination of the global financial crisis and the
outpouring of money for the bushfire relief effort.
Vision Australia chief executive Gerard Menses
said it was a ‘double whammy’ he expected would
cut his organisation’s income by 17 per cent, The
Age reported.
Very important person program
Internal government documents show confusion
and patchy applications are hampering the Victorian
Industry Participation Policy, which is designed
to give local suppliers preferential access to
Government work. Some departments even question
the policies merit. Under the VIPP, introduced
in 2001, all bidders for government contracts
over $3m in metropolitan areas and $500,000 in
regional areas must complete a statement as part
of the tender outlining local content and job creation,
to be used by officials to weigh bids that otherwise
offer similar value for money. In correspondence to
the Government, both VicRoads and state-owned
developer VicUrban question the value of applying
VIPP principles to the contracts, saying almost all of
their content was, by necessity, locally provided, the
Financial Review reported.
Specialist clothing in difficulty
One hundred and seventy jobs are under threat
after Victorian textile firm Melba Industries was
placed in voluntary administration in mid-February.
The company makes clothing for the Country Fire
Authority and the Metropolitan Fire Brigade, and
employs 170 people in Geelong and Thomastown.
Textile, Clothing and Footwear Union of Australia
national secretary Michele O’Neil said the Federal
Government needed to urgently provide support for
the industry, The Age reported.
Nearby on a larger scale
Pacific Brands, the company behind some of
Australia’s most famous clothing labels, including
Bonds and Holeproof, said it would cut more than
1800 jobs.
123-133 Thistlethwaite St.
South Melbourne VIC 3000
T. 1300 110 110
F. 03 9696 3324
print@printmode.com.au
www.printmode.com.au
Coming apart
Car parts maker Robert Bosch will cut 170 jobs at its
Clayton plant after being hit by an ‘unprecedented’
40 to 50 per cent drop in overseas demand, as well
as a significant slowdown in Australia. Nearby,
Holden said it would cut production by 10 days in
April.
Holden on by the skin of their teeth
Expectations that Holden might cut hundreds
of research and white-collar jobs in Melbourne
increased after its parent company, the US’ General
Motors, conceded that its auditors had ‘substantial
doubt’ GM could continue as a going concern, the
Financial Review reported.
Sponsorship down
The global financial crisis is hurting corporate
sponsorship of sporting events, with Dutch bank
ING already saying that this year is its last year of
involvement with Melbourne’s Grand Prix, which
means the sport will be looking to a new major
sponsor next year, the Herald Sun reported.
From Hunt to Hirst
Bendigo and Adelaide Bank has appointed 51-yearold
retail banking head Mike Hirst as the successor
to long serving CEO Rob Hunt, the Herald Sun
reported.
All things foul
The HR Nicholls Society’s 29th conference,
advertised in The Australian, www.hrnicholls.com.
au, Fair is Foul and Foul is Fair, held in late March
in Collins Street, discussed with distaste Julia
Gillard’s Fair Work Bill.
Safety awards
Entries are open for the 21st annual WorkSafe
Victoria Awards, which recognise achievement in
workplace safety. Entries close on April 24, www.
worksafe.vic.gov.au/awards.
Fashion festivus
The L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival ran from
March 15 to 22.
Innovate
The 2009 Australian Innovation Festival, Sunday,
April 26 to Saturday, May 30 will be spread over all
states and territories, www.ausinnovation.org.
Good job
The Department of Innovation Industry &
Regional Development is seeking a senior industry
adviser: an experienced industry professional to
identify new business opportunities and leading
coordinate the development of initiatives designed
to encourage manufacturing activity in Victoria.
Exposure to the automotive industry is desirable,
www.diird.vic.gov.au.
IcT
Computer empires
An interesting article in The Age written by Matthew
Murphy provided a detailed and enlightening
roundup of the condition of the Government’s
track record on IT projects, saying that Victoria
is fast losing patience with them. Last October,
Victoria’s Auditor-General, Des Pearson, issued a
how-to guide, Investing Smarter in Public Sector IT,
after noting that the public was concerned about
the performance of a taxpayer funded IT failures.
Signalling an understanding that bureaucrats are
proving incompetent in dealing with IT infrastructure,
the Government last year created a state-owned
entity called the Centre for IT excellence (CenITex).
CenITex is outside the line of control of the 10
Victorian departments and their secretaries, and
its chief executive, Peter Blades, reports to an
independent board under the oversight of Finance
Minister Tim Holding. While the concept in itself
is a step in the right direction, its effectiveness
now has to be questioned given the Government
is still plagued by IT related problems. Projects
in the transport portfolio are proving to be most
common and costly. See, for instance, the $1.3b
myki electronic ticketing system, which is running
three years late and has been shown to increase
travel times. The Government’s Metropolitan Train
Safety Communications System has been criticised
for going over budget by about a third ($50m) and
because it is replacing the existing radio system with
outdated GSM-R technology, rather than moving to
third generation, or 3G technology, favoured by the
broad IT industry. The Government’s HealthSMART
project was found to be $34.8m over budget, and
had failed to meet its 2007 completion date target.
Despite the project being still some time away, the
Government has already embarked on a new health
IT strategy. The other ‘IT bungles’ are there for all
to see: the $60m Ultranet school software system,
which has been revised and resubmitted to tender;
and the criminal justice software system, years
overdue and at least $30m over budget, let alone
the Victoria Police IT systems (see Justice).
Highly innovative
The Government has launched its smart small
to medium-sized enterprises market validation
program to support the commercialisation of the
states’ technology ideas. The $28m program is part
of the state’s $300m innovation initiative that was
announced in August 2008. The program will match
the needs of government agencies with small to
medium-sized enterprises capable of designing and
delivering technological solutions. The Government
12

LETTER FROM MELBOURNE
will begin accepting applications from SMEs around
the middle of the year. The initiative follows the
announcement in August that the state would spend
$145m through Victoria’s science agenda and the
$40m Boosting Highly Innovative SMEs initiative,
the Financial Review reported.
Agriculture
Come again
The Weekly Times reported that as of mid-February
dozens of (mostly northern) Victorian and New
South Wales towns were still yet to receive a drop
of rain this year.
Dry, dry, dry
Victoria has endured its second dry start to the year
on record, with high temperatures and devastating
bushfires testing the rural spirit, the Weekly Times
reported. Average rainfall across the state in
January and February was just 13 millimetres – 1
millimetre less than Victoria’s driest start to the year
in 1965. Elsewhere, Australian agriculture has been
a better contributor to the national interest than for
many years. Especially the wheat states other than
Victoria, ie Western Australia, South Australia and
New South Wales.
Harvest members from the population
Victorian Farmers Federation president Simon
Ramsay wrote in the Weekly Times that too
many farmers are benefiting from the work of
Victoria’s peak farming body without belonging to
it. He notes declining membership of representative
organisations seems to be a feature of modern
society. Political parties, unions and even service
organizations are all experiencing the same – or
similar – problems. Declining Victorian Farmers
Federation membership has been occurring since a
peak of 20,000 members was reached in the mid-
1980s.
Justice
Overjoyed-land
Simon Overland, 46, is Victoria’s new (and
twentieth) police Chief Commissioner, with a fiveyear
contract, The Age reported. Overland wants to
shut down some of the states pubs, clubs and bottle
shops to try to curb alcohol-related violence. He
says it is too easy to sell alcohol, which he believes
is the state’s number one drug and social problem,
the Herald Sun reported.
Ned’s corner
Proposed legal changes giving Chief Commissioner
Simon Overland more power to sack police were
worse than Work Choices’, the police union has told
its 11,000 members, The Age reported. In an opinion
piece in the same paper, Overland wrote that muchneeded
reform has been delayed for years. Now,
it’s time to act. Honest, hard-working police should
have nothing to fear from these changes.
Nixon off to help
Christine Nixon has stayed in town to help with the
bushfire rebuilding effort, as head of the Victorian
Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority.
Scared stiff
Marcus Einfeld has spoken on camera about his
fear of going to jail and begged for forgiveness
for lying about his unpaid speeding fine (he was
sentenced in the New South Wales Supreme Court
to a least two years in prison after pleading guilty to
making a false statement under oath and to making
a false statement with intent to pervert the course
of justice). While admitting his guilt, the former
Federal Court judge tried to defend his integrity as a
basically honest man who made a ‘mistake’ by lying,
The Age reported.
In something that hardly seems newsworthy,
footage screened on the ABC’s four Corners
program showed Einfield not wearing a belt while
traveling to court in the back of the car. Police issued
a statement saying that ‘New South Wales police
traffic services branch will be reviewing footage to
determine what action if any may be taken.’ Give a
dog a bone.
Drat modern technology
The Age reported that Victoria Police’s information
system is served by an IT department that is
overwhelmed by increasing technology demands.
A copy of the Police’s Risk Register, a catalogue
of issues facing the force, reveals a failure of
management to commit to an appropriate standard
of information security controls. The register also
reveals a high risk of police losing information,
including sensitive operations material, because
data stored on servers exceeds the amount that can
be backed up on a single tape.
What does Sue do now?
John Brumby is on a collision course with Victoria
Police command over liquor laws that will give
greater powers to the director of liquor licensing,
the Herald Sun reported. Legislation will give the
director of liquor licensing, Sue Mclellan, greater
powers (what did she have and use before this) than
police to suspend pubs and clubs’ licences. Police
Association secretary designate Greg Davies
questioned the logic behind establishing a liquor
control squad when police could do the job with
more authority.
Tell Stephen tell
Former media director at Victoria Police, Stephen
Linnell, 40, pleaded guilty in the Melbourne
Magistrates’ Court to three counts of perjury and
three of disclosing a confidential hearing, The Age
reported. He avoided jail by agreeing to testify
against a colleague.
Integrity compromised
A senior investigator with the Office of Police Integrity,
accused of serious misconduct after another officer
claimed he had forced him to sign false statutory
declarations to cover up dubious expense claims,
was sacked. He was in charge of the OPI’s integrity
testing unit when the alleged misconduct occurred,
The Age reported.
Up there
A Hells’ Angels bikie was killed in a huge brawl at
Sydney airport with rival club the Comancheros,
in one of the most brazen attacks in outlaw bikie
history, The Age reported. We should all reflect and
form views on the circumstances of this attack
in an airport environment – and the plane trip
beforehand.
Another two men believed to be bikies were shot
dead in Canberra a few days later. Outlaw bikie
gangs have infiltrated security and maritime
industries and represent a ‘real and present’ threat
to Australia, Australian Crime Commission chief
executive John Lawler said.
An editorial in The Australian said that Australian
Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty must
respond to the Airport Outrage.
In the Herald Sun, Andrew Bolt wrote that bikie
gangs are now so contemptuous of our laws that a
man can be bashed to death in broad daylight in an
airport lounge. How has it come to this?
Big time
Ronnie Biggs, the ‘great train robber’, will be freed
from prison in time for his 80th birthday. He was
sentenced to 30 years for his part in the robbery of a
Glasgow-to-London mail train in 1963 when a gang
made off with the equivalent of more than $90m in
today’s money. After only 15 months behind bars,
he escaped prison and was on the run for three
decades in Australia and Brazil, the Herald Sun
reported.
Life moves on
The masters of Victoria’s Supreme Court are now
known as associate judges.
Melbourne
The city cares
City people came together at Federation Square on
February 27 in an event called ‘The City Cares’. City
workers, visitors and residents were encouraged to
pledge time or skills to help those affected by the
bushfires, or record their own personal messages
of support, the Herald Sun reported.
Below the radar
Indian students will be encouraged not to speak
too loudly in their native tongue or display signs
of wealth such as iPods, when travelling on trains
at night, as part of a strategy to crack down on
violent robberies. Robberies in Melbourne’s western
suburbs jumped by 27 per cent last financial year.
Police estimated almost one third of victims were of
Indian appearance, The Age reported.
Wheelly bad news
Melbourne’s $100 million Southern Star Observation
Wheel will be out of action for at least six months
(only seven weeks after it opened) after engineers
discovered damage caused to the structure during
13

21 FEBRUARY TO 6 APRIL 2009
www.kovess.com
p 03 9562 2248
m 0412 317 404
PO Box 1412
Central Park
East Malvern, Vic 3145
‘Charles Kovess is Australia's Passion Provocateur.’
He has helped many large corporations and many
Government Departments to
improve leadership behaviours build better teams
unleash passion and build world-class performance.
Mention this ad when you contact us and we'll send you a FREE one-hour audio CD valued at $25.00"
Victoria’s recent heatwave was worse than expected
and, on closer inspection, is perhaps a flaw of the
original design. Owners and operators of the many
cafes and restaurants in the vicinity have reported
that business has dropped more than 50 per cent
since it stopped, The Age reported.
Starting blocks still a way away
All-night public transport, midnight street-soccer
and cash bonds to force pubs to behave are a
part of Lord Mayor Robert Doyle’s vision for our
city. A report on Melbourne as a 24-hour city went
before council, calling for permanent breathalyser
stations and even self-defence classes for young
people. The report, by council’s community and
culture department, also calls on the Melbourne
City Council to investigate compulsory food service
when alcohol is served, free film nights aimed at
young people and slow zones where classical music
is played. Safety is a priority. The report includes
ideas raised at the council City Safety Summit in
2008, which involved more than 80 people from
government, community groups and business, the
Herald Sun reported. Lets also suggest a looney bin.
We’re starting to like him now
Robert Doyle said South Australia’s capital city,
Adelaide, had so little going for it that the city should
be ‘shut down’. He described greater Brisbane as
‘almost a contradiction in terms’ and Sydney as
a city with a wallet instead of a heart, The Age
reported.
Eponymous address
Former Prime Minister John Howard delivered the
inaugural John Howard Lecture in Melbourne at the
Menzies Research Institute, in early March.
To the rescue
Former Premier Steve Bracks and his wife Terry
helped a man seconds before he was going to jump
from the Westgate Bridge. Bracks and two other
men, after Terry, who arrived on the scene first
to talk him down, dragged the man to safety and
restrained him, the Herald Sun reported. Later in the
month the man revealed that Terry had endangered
her own life to save his, the Herald Sun reported.
Speaking from experience, the man, who suffers
from depression and alcoholism, also said suicide
prevention barriers on the bridge would reduce the
death toll. He thanked Terry for saving his life. The
Government has fast tracked the $20m project to
build suicide prevention barriers the length of the
bridge. Why has it taken so long?
A tremor
The epicentre of an earthquake in Victoria
measuring 4.6 on the Richter scale, was just north
of Korumburra in South Gippsland. It was powerful
enough to shake buildings and shake objects off
shelves. Several homes around Korumburra and
Leongatha lost power for up to 10 minutes. There
were no reports of injuries or property damage.
Phil Cummins, duty seismologist at Geoscience
Australia, confirmed the tremor measured 4.6, the
Herald Sun reported. Another earthquake of the
same magnitude occurred two weeks later, the
epicentre of this earthquake was basically in the
same spot as the last, 5 kilometres north-west of
Korumburra. The two earthquakes are the largest
to have occurred in Melbourne in 36 years, The Age
reported.
On the buses
The City of Melbourne refused an offer from Southern
Cross Station to be the new home to tourist buses.
The deal between the council, the bus industry
and Federation Square will see buses move to the
square from Swanston Street by the end of March.
The City of Melbourne claims Federation Square is
the preferred site of the bus operators, the Herald
Sun reported.
Just in time for our Moomba
The Yarra River was given a clean bill of health for
the Moomba festivities on the Labor Day weekend
in March. The e-coli count in the South Yarra area
fell to about 2000 – down from 9300 the previous
day and 24,000 earlier in the week. Waterskiing
and the Birdman rally went ahead, the Herald Sun
reported.
A glimpse of the future
The Melbourne Motor Show, February 27 to
March 9, featured the Toyota car 1/X, which uses
hybrid powered technology for a fraction of the
environmental footprints of today’s cleanest cars.
Toyota is developing the vehicles potential and
looking at sustainable seaweed as a source of
materials, the Herald Sun reported. About 160,000
people attended the 11-day event, 30 per cent down
on last years figures of 243,089.
Is it a bird?
The Avalon Airshow, a biennial three-day show,
March 13 to 15, attracted more than 600 aerospace
and defence companies, including Boeing, Lockheed
Martin and EADS, and about 40,000 industry, trade,
government and military delegates. Known as the
Australian Aerospace and Defence Exposition and
International Airshow – the attendees were there to
view the latest advances in civil and military aircraft,
land weapons technology, and discuss potential
deals. A further 140,000 attended the show proper
when the venue was opened to the public over
the weekend, with teams from the US, Australia,
Singapore, New Zealand and Russia putting on flying
displays, the Financial Review reported. Exposition
and air show chief executive Ian Honnery said it
was actually a bit larger than the previous one, with
400 aircraft and more land equipment but that they
are about 40 companies down on 2007.
Nude protest
The fourth annual World Naked Bike Ride, saw 29
Melbourne riders strip off and ride around the CBD
to protest against global oil dependency and the
dangers faced by naked cyclists when protesting.
In seriousness, Melbourne organiser Heidi Hill
said the group of environmentalists and naturalists
were highlighting the vulnerability of cyclists on
Melbourne’s roads by exposing themselves on the
bike, the Herald Sun reported.
More nudity nearby
There are four official nude or ‘clothing optional’,
beaches in Victoria: Sunnyside North (Mt Eliza),
Campbell’s Cove (Werribee South), Point Impossible
(Torquay) and South side (Torquay). Unofficial nude
beaches also exist in Hastings in East Gippsland,
The Age reported.
14

LETTER FROM MELBOURNE
Food and wine
Victorian chefs united (in an event called Chefs
Unite, featuring some of Melbourne’s most famous
chefs) for the 2009 Red Cross Victorian Bushfire
Appeal on 3 April at Docklands. Also part of the
Melbourne Food and Wine Festival, the Danes and
guests had dinner on level 89 of Eureka Tower,
hosted by Scandinavian Airlines, Copenhagen
Goodwill Ambassadors and Business Development
Wonderful Copenhagen; eight courses of sublime
ambrosial delights prepared by Danish chef Rene
Redzepi.
Well done
Altogether there were 27 awards given at the
Melbourne Press Club 2008 Quill Awards for
Victorian journalism. The prized Gold Quill winners
were Richard Baker and Nick McKenzie from The
Age for their report ‘Trauma at the Alfred’, The Age
reported.
Sold
The Naval and Military Club, which went into
administration this year after a collapsed property
deal and a decline in membership, auctioned its
non-military wares: the antique furniture, leather
couches, gym equipment, China, ovens, sinks,
beds and kettles. The fate of 500 or so pieces of
memorabilia is yet to be determined, amongst which
are 23 Streeton landscapes which were donated in
the 1920s by the artist, The Age reported.
Geelong
Coming to a head
The Barwon Heads Bridge, made famous by TV
show SeaChange, will be replaced with a twobridge
crossing. Planning Minister Justin Madden
announced he had made an order under the
Planning and Environment Act to exempt the project
from the requirements of the act and the Greater
Geelong Planning Scheme, overriding the Greens
and Liberals who had used an upper house vote to
stop its construction . ‘The project is too important
to allow it to become a political tool for the
Opposition and the Greens’, he said, ignoring most
of the people of Barwon Heads and Ocean Grove
who have for several years been fighting a series
of impractical proposals and lack of candour by
VicRoads ‘The existing bridge will be reconstructed,
and the two-bridge project will feature much of the
heritage character whilst allowing VicRoads to meet
essential safety and load-bearing requirements’
says VicRoads as reported in The Age.
All your shopping needs
Australia’s largest op-shop centre – capable
of being a leading tourist attraction – has been
proposed for the former Ford chassis component
plant in North Geelong. Market operator Ian Ballis
paid $7.1m for the 13.4 hectare former Ford site,
The Age reported.
Planning & Building
Behind the fence
Opposition housing spokeswoman Wendy Lovell
called on the Government to release five key reports
Freely available
that would reveal the true nature of the state’s
The State Library of Victoria released What’s on housing crisis. She said Housing Minister Richard
at the State Library: a 44-page magazine detailing Wynne needed to release the reports, which she
exhibitions, events, tours, workshops and activities suspected were being deliberately delayed to hide
for all ages during the period March to August. the truth. The five outstanding reports include public
housing waiting list figures to December 2008 and
Chivalry FINE is AUSTRALIAN alive! HAND CRAFT the private rental reports for the last three quarters
Ron Barassi was named most chivalrous by of 2008, the Herald Sun reported. ‘This is a serious
Victorians in a national poll of 1,500 people concern given the September 2008 figures reveal
commissioned by whisky brand Chivas Regal, the Victoria’s public housing waiting list had increased
IDEAL PERSONAL AND CORPORATE GIFTS
Herald Sun reported.
by 1000 families in the quarter and ballooned to a
TIMBER BRONZE PEWTER GLASS KOORI ART JEWELLERY
new five-year high,’ Lovell said.
SHOP 13 THE BLOCK ARCADE 282 COLLINS ST MELBOURNE
P 9663 9883 www.australianbydesign.com.au
Dr Vaughan I presume
Dr Gerard Vaughan, who has been reappointed for
another five years as director of the National Gallery
of Victoria, questioned the wisdom of building
a 70-storey commercial tower as part of the
Government’s $200m Jolimont rail yards decking
project and renewed his push for an extension of the
gallery’s Federation Square site over the rail yards
to create three new wings in Asian, indigenous and
oceanic art, The Age reported.
Or else
The rail yards at Jolimont should be built over and
turned into a huge roof garden for the sake of
Melbourne’s collective well-being, says Robert
Prince, chief executive of the Nursery Garden
Industry Association. He expressed the idea
ahead of a national symposium held in Canberra,
discussing the value of trees in urban landscapes
and their relation to the health and livability of cities,
The Age reported.
They vant your blood
Councils could be stripped of their power to value
homes, with the role transferred to the state
government, in a move dubbed a case of ‘Dracula
in charge of the blood bank’. This financial year the
Government now expects to collect $1.176b in land
tax – a 35 per cent increase on last financial year.
Stonnington mayor Claude Ullin said the council
strongly rejected a proposed takeover of valuations.
He said the new system would also mean residents
unhappy with land valuations could no longer appeal
to their local council, instead being forced to appeal
to the Valuer-General. Appeal rights to the Victorian
Civil and Administrative Tribunal would remain. A
discussion paper released by the Department
of Sustainability and Environment in December
proposed transferring valuation function to the
Valuer-General Victoria by 2010, with submissions
on the proposal closing in mid-February, The Age
reported.
Winners
Victoria will get almost $100m of the $400m
national funding pool for public housing maintenance
announced in the Rudd Government’s $42b stimulus
package, for its proposal to fix 5600 dwellings. At
the time, the Federal Government said the money
would repair 2500 properties nationally that were
uninhabited or would be lost to public housing. But
it is now approved proposals to upgrade more than
10,000 properties nationally, which would otherwise
be lost, while a further 37,000 will receive minor
repairs, The Age reported.
Collins Street ugliness
One of Australia’s leading architects, Philip Cox,
believes Melbourne’s Collins Street is run down
FINE AUSTRALIAN HAND CRAFT
IDEAL PERSONAL AND CORPORATE GIFTS
TIMBER BRONZE PEWTER GLASS KOORI ART JEWELLERY
SHOP 13 THE BLOCK ARCADE 282 COLLINS ST MELBOURNE
P 9663 9883 www.australianbydesign.com.au
15

21 FEBRUARY TO 6 APRIL 2009
and in need of a serious makeover. Cox points
to Singapore’s Orchard Road, which he has just
helped redesign with new look lighting, flowers,
improved landscaping and ‘urban rooms’, as an
example of what Melbourne could achieve. A book
on Cox’s 40 years as an architect has just been
released and, in an interview with The Age, he says
Melbourne’s streets remain too focussed on car
traffic. Melbourne’s buildings are also evolving on
commercial rather than aesthetic or environmental
grounds, he says.
The pause button
The economic crisis has caused the Hotel Windsor
to postpone its much-heralded $45m renovation,
The Age reported. It has 185 guest rooms.
A giant souvlaki
Melbourne’s Greek community is planning a
27-storey tower and cultural centre for Lonsdale
Street. Bill Papastergiadis, president of the Greek
Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Victoria,
said the building would be a central site for the
300,000 Greeks in Melbourne, as well as a way
for others to engage with Greek culture, The Age
reported.
Cynical
Under its proposed Duties (Further Amendment) Bill,
the Government would cut the deadline for payment
of stamp duty on property sales from three months
to 14 days after settlement and close a loophole
involving use of long-term leases to avoid tax. The
legal, banking and property industries have said
they are concerned about the law, in particular
that its lease provisions could catch a wide range
of residential and commercial leases, forcing the
tenants to pay stamp duty as though they were
buying property. Experts have estimated that the
shortening of the payment deadline would in effect
give the Government two extra months revenue in
this financial year, amounting to a windfall of several
hundreds of millions of dollars. The government
estimates are much more modest. In a midyear
budget update, it estimated the changes would
bring in just $7m in extra revenue in total over the
next three years, the Financial Review reported.
Tenant tax trouble
Tenants could be forced out of their offices as
landlords pass on the cost of a large rise in land
tax, The Age reported. Commercial agents say
land tax increases of up to 100 per cent in some
city properties come at the worst possible time to
tenants.
Six out of six
Melbourne councillors voted to use the council’s
bid for it’s share of the $550m federal community
infrastructure program to seek $25m for the upgrade
of the 1960s Council House 1 building at 200 Little
Collins Street, to a six-star environmental rating.
The redevelopment would include a new adjoining
commercial building with Bourke Street frontage
to form a precinct of buildings with sustainable
features, including Council House 2, Australia’s first
new six-star commercial office building. The total
project will cost $98m and the council plans to sell
assets to help pay for it, The Age reported.
So many ways to balance the Budget
The Government has sparked a land development
industry protest over surprise moves to charge the
sector with extremely large upfront infrastructure
costs. The Growth Areas Authority, which
administers development policy on Melbourne’s
fast-growing fringe, recently advised developers that
the new Growth Areas Infrastructure Charge would
be triggered for an entire development as soon as
the first block was sold. The tax, announced last
year, is designed to capture windfall profits made
by landbankers and farmers when their land is
bought within Melbourne’s urban growth boundary
and then sold to developers. But the industry fears
that if the developer already owned the land before
a boundary move, it will now face charges of up
to $19,500 per hectare when it subdivides. Urban
Development Institute of Australia Victoria chief
executive Tony De Domenico says that the levy
would mean a 1000 hectare development would be
liable for a $95m payment as soon as the first block
was sold, the Financial Review reported.
Federally speaking
Property prices could fall and first home buyers
could be priced out of the market if the Government
withdrew its boosted first home owners grant
in June. The boost has attracted huge numbers
of buyers, and helped prop up home prices and
construction since it was introduced in October.
But housing and finance industry groups fear first
home buyers could be priced out of the market and
cause prices to fall further. The chief executive of
the Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia,
Phil Naylor, said high first-time buyer numbers
were vital to the construction industry. Australian
Bureau of Statistics figures showed first-home
owners were responsible for 25.4 per cent of all
loans in December, compared with 17 to 18 per
cent before the grant was increased. The Housing
Industry Association is lobbying the Government for
continued stimulus, but acting Victorian executive
director Robert Harding said first-time buyers
should get into the market before the grant ended.
The Real Estate Institute of Victoria said eligibility
for the grant should include first-time buyers who
wanted an investment property, the Herald Sun
reported.
Lax
The Australasian Fire and Emergency Services
Authorities Council, representing every government
fire authority in Australia and New Zealand, is
refusing to sign off on changes to the Building Code
of Australia, to be implemented in March because
the rules for bush fire zones are so lax that they put
lives at risk, The Australian reported.
Should planning have a local focus
Yarra Council’s head of city development has
warned major developments proposed for a large
precinct in Richmond and Abbotsford will put the
area under more stress. Bruce Phillips voiced
his concerns at a meeting to discuss the future
of the Victoria Gardens Shopping Centre. The
future of major development in the Victoria Street
East precinct, which takes in Victoria Gardens, is
being debated after a State Government appointed
panel released its recommendations to the area in
December. One of the panel’s recommendations is
to change the council’s planning controls to allow
the five-storey Victoria Gardens to increase another
two storeys and almost double floor and shop space,
the Melbourne Leader reported.
Sea change tsunami
Opposition has increased to a large residential
development on the Surf Coast that would more
than double the size of Torquay. Approval of the plan
could mean an extra 6400 houses built to the west
of Torquay, in an area known as Spring Creek. Up
to 1000 opponents are expected to attend a public
rally against the proposal. Surf Coast Shire mayor
16

LETTER FROM MELBOURNE
Libby Mears said there was strong interest in the
development plan for the Spring Creek area, The
Age reported.
Another tsunami
Locals have expressed outrage at the approval of a
very large new residential development near point
Lonsdale, which they say will increase the size
of the town by a third and destroy wetlands. The
$330m Stocklands development, on 195-hectare
site west of Point Lonsdale, will comprise more
than 769 dwellings, including a retirement village
and an aged care facility, The Age reported. Point
Lonsdale Coastal Spaces spokesman Barry Capp
called the planned development ‘environmental
vandalism’, but Planning Minister Justin Madden
said the project was environmentally sound. Nearby,
the Swan Bay Environment Association said it was
disappointed with the Government’s decision.
The real, modern, work
The Building Commission and the Plumbing Industry
Commission released their annual reports 2007-
2008 late last year: colour publications each with
over 100 pages full of interesting information and
visions of carbon neutral living over the coming
years. There are 19,000 registered building
practitioners and 21,500 licensed and registered
plumbing practitioners in Victoria.
Another day
The Age reported that a senior Victorian union
official has been accused of assaulting an inspector
of the Australian Building and Construction
Commission as debate intensified over the future
of the controversial body set up by the Howard
government to curb union thuggery.
Make over for the street
The landmark Dimmey’s building in Swan Street,
Richmond is set to be developed into a nine-storey,
89-unit apartment building if a planning application
is approved by Yarra Council, the Melbourne Leader
reported.
Local government
What a beach
Bayside City Council plans to build a least six
bathing boxes at Brighton to raise more than $1m
for local facilities and bolster its coffers. They will
expand the number of boxes on Brighton Beach
from 82 to 88; they can fetch up to $200,000 each,
The Age reported.
Better than a dinner party
The Municipal Association of Victoria seeks
expressions of interest from qualified persons to
hear allegations of misconduct against councillors.
Expressions of interest are sought from legal
practitioners and individuals who have special
knowledge or experience of municipal governments,
www.mav.asn.au/conductpanels.
Good jobs
The City of Stonington seeks a chief executive
officer, resume@sacsconsult.com.au.
The Colac Otway Shire seeks a chief executive
officer, execrec@macarthur.com.au.
Sport
He’ll be missed
Richie Benaud, 79, former Australian cricket
team captain, will not seek a new contract with
the Channel 9 commentary team, the Herald Sun
reported.
Battle in the skies
The AFL has launched a Supreme Court action to
force Etihad Stadium’s operator to reveal how much
money it makes from food, beverage, signage and
the new naming rights deal with the Abu Dhabibased
airline. Clubs which host home matches at
Etihad Stadium, as well as the MCG, say they’re
being shortchanged. AFL officials, now renegotiating
a major sponsorship with Qantas, are refusing to let
the name ‘Etihad’ pass their lips, referring to the
‘Docklands stadium’ for what was known as the
TelstraDome until March 1, the Financial Review
reported.
Well done
Melbourne Victory beat Adelaide United 1-0 in the
A-League soccer grand final.
Fantastic Mr Tiger
Tiger Woods is coming to Melbourne in a $3m deal.
Event owner IMG has signed two major sponsors
to help finance a four-day tournament at Kingston
Heath, in Cheltenham. However, at least half the bill
will be paid by the Victorian Government, the Herald
Sun reported. Andrew Bolt observed the irony of
the outcry over Pacific Brands’ CEO’s wage and the
silence over the amount paid to Tiger Woods for a
couple of days golfing.
Same race, different track
The Age reported that this year Victorian taxpayers
will part with $47m just for the privilege of hosting
Bernie Ecclestone’s formula one Grand Prix.
Formula One is the platform on which Ecclestone
has built his personal fortune, recently estimated
at $5.2b. Repeated questioning of Premier John
Brumby and minister for major events Tim Holding
have elicited only the response that the future is
‘commercial in confidence’. The shroud of secrecy
has long been a criticism of governments of both
stripes in their unstinting support of the race.
Transport
To go off without a bang
Documents obtained under Freedom of Information
show the transport ticketing authority is planning
to roll out its $1.3 billion myki smartcard ticketing
system in stages to avoid a ‘big bang’, the Herald
Sun reported.
The Age reported that train journeys will be slowed
by the smartcard system. A series of user ‘role play’
tests, commissioned by the Government in 2007,
found that a train stopping to pick up 20 passengers
and let off another 20 would be stationary for 38
seconds using the myki card. Under the current
Metcard system, the stopping time averaged 33
seconds. Tram, train and bus travellers using myki,
which is expected to be rolled out in Melbourne later
this year, must scan in at the start of the journey,
and scan out at the end. This enables the smartcard
system to calculate the best possible fare.
Commuters and bus drivers in Geelong, where
the new public transport ticketing system is being
trialled, said the smartcard has been riddled with
problems. Passengers say trips have been made
longer as a result. Buses are stopping for longer
as passengers, under the new smartcard system,
must touch on and off or be charged a higher fare.
Strong opinion
Lynne Kosky has failed commuters so badly that
her position has become untenable, said an Age
editorial.
Rail
They just can’t win
A dispute between train drivers and controllers, all
members of the Rail Tram and Bus union, left a train
stopped at platform one at Richmond station for most
of a weekday in mid-February. The Sandringham
line trains could not run because the only return
path to the city was blocked until the train was
finally moved at 5:30pm. At least 82 services were
cut due to the dispute in the union, whose senior
members are key supporters of transport Minister
Lynne Kosky, The Age reported. The Herald Sun
Systems dynamics
Wind tunnel testing of policies
Providers of consulting services
to commerce & government for
more than 30 years.
Business
Technology
Vision
contact: Saroj Godbole
m. 0425749360
e. saroj.godbole@ponteglobal.com
17

21 FEBRUARY TO 6 APRIL 2009
Account Ability
Lucy MacIntyre
0413 155 115
Bookkeeping for
smaller firms from
wise owl who has
worked for large
accounting practices
reported that the train was not faulty. Sources said
a junior train driver was uncertain about whether
his train had a fault about 9am that day and he had
sought advice from his supervisor. The supervisor,
instead of the driver, reported the matter to train
controllers, but this was contrary to Connex policy
and the controllers refused to accept the report.
And yet they are winning
Despite an average of 20 cancelled trains a day,
Connex earned $175m in payments from the
Government for services provided and in ticket sales
in the last three months of last year. The results
also showed that $6.34m had been deducted from
Connex’s payments, for the operators disappointing
performance in the final three months of the year.
Hmmm
The Herald Sun reported that the typical number of
daily train faults last December was about 155. But
that number rose to 328 when Connex refused to
pay employees a Christmas bonus. Reports of faults
fell back to normal levels as soon as Connex caved
in and said it would pay the bonus.
Off the rails
The faction riven Rail, Tram and Bus Union met rail
operator Connex at the Australian Industrial Relations
Commission in an attempt to stop the wildcat
shutdowns that played havoc with Melbourne’s rail
system in January and February. The disagreement
between drivers and train controllers over who gets
to decide what happens to a train once a fault has
been identified lead to at least three trains in a week
in mid-February being parked at platforms during
rush hour, The Age reported.
Rail against the dying of the light
Melbourne’s existing suburban rail network could
run more than double the present number of trains
if it was operated as designed, Connex’s own
documents show. Public Transport Minister Lynne
Kosky said that few extra trains could be running
to central Melbourne during rush hour. But internal
Connex rail maps, produced in 2006, show that far
more trains were designed to be run on the city’s
railway lines, including through the loop, The Age
reported.
Now autumn is a problem
Connex management has sent a notice to train
drivers warning them that trains should approach
station platforms at 30 kilometres an hour, instead
of the usual 50 kilometres an hour due to the onset
of the autumn climatic conditions that may affect
the normal braking performance of the trains, The
Age reported.
Feeling the squeeze
Connex expects more than 5,000 passengers to
be squeezed out every morning peak by 2011.
The projections were made in confidential Connex
documents submitted to the Government. Connex,
though, may not be around in 2011, with the
Government soon to announce who will be operating
metropolitan trains from the end of this year. Hong
Kong’s MTR is competing against Connex and
another French company Keolis, the Herald Sun
reported.
Connex is testing three new carriages which have
44 seats removed to make way for an extra 79
standing passengers on city lines. Passengers
had a mixed response when the new design was
unveiled, the Herald Sun reported.
Rail rats
All trains on the Melbourne-Ballarat line were
cancelled for about eight hours on the evening of
Sunday, March 16 after rats climbed under the
tracks near Ballan and chewed up fibre-optic
cables in attempt to shelter themselves from rain,
the Herald Sun reported.
Rail renewal
The Essential Services Commission commenced
an approval process for the renewal of VicTrack’s
rail access arrangement within Victoria, and
an approval process for the renewal of Pacific
National’s rail access arrangement in Victoria, www.
esc.vic.gov.au.
Next gen
The Parliament of Victoria Education and Training
Committee is conducting an inquiry into skills
shortages in the rail industry, etc@parliament.vic.
gov.au.
road
Swanston Street caprice
Swanston Street could become a one kilometre
pedestrian mall with footpaths extending to tram
tracks and a ban on all cars – and potentially
bicycles – under plans to be considered by the
Melbourne City Council. The council has released
seven options for the road, ranging from a return to
all cars to the removal of all vehicles except trams,
The Age reported.
Bypass bypassed
The future of the $750m, 25 kilometre Frankston
Bypass from Carrum Downs to Mt Martha, a key
plank of John Brumby’s transport plan in Melbourne,
is in doubt, with funding from the Federal
Government now unlikely. Sir Rod Eddington’s
board finalised its list of priority projects under the
Building Australia Fund, but with the global financial
crisis whittling money from the fund from $20b
to $12.6b, fewer projects than anticipated will get
backing, The Age reported. STOP PRESS. Full speed
ahead, even without federal $$$$$$$$$$$$...
Didn’t really want to listen
New 3pm clearway times will be introduced but
they will apply only within 100 metres of main
intersections. Most other afternoon clearways
in the inner city will be changed to start at 4pm,
rather than earlier. Existing clearways that already
started earlier than 4pm, on arterial roads such as
Punt Road in Richmond or Bell Street in Preston,
will start at 3pm. Morning clearway hours will run
from 6:30am to 10am, as originally envisaged in
the Government’s plan. Roads Minister Tim Pallas
said having listened to the community and concerns
of local traders that the Government had acted
appropriately. But he felt the road network would
work better if the policy had been left unchanged.
The backdown followed a threat from traders and
councils – particularly Stonnington – to sue over
clearway time changes. They argued that reducing
the amount of front street parking would damage
businesses, The Age reported.
Taxi?
A proposal to ban hailing taxis off the street
and increase fares in inner Melbourne has been
dismissed as impractical and potentially dangerous.
Melbourne Lord Mayor Robert Doyle, who proposed
the ban in a bid to improve safety in the city, won
support for his call for four airport style taxi ‘super
stops’ with increased security on weekends, The
Age reported. The Victorian Taxi Association said
while more ranks – and safer ranks – were needed,
preventing the hailing of taxis would require a huge
cultural shift for drivers and passengers.
More than B-double trouble
Freight trucks measuring 30 metres long – 4 metres
longer than standard B-doubles – will be allowed
on major Melbourne roads including the Westgate
Freeway, Westgate Bridge, Metropolitan Ring Road
and around the Port of Melbourne precinct under a
trial later this year. The loads they are allowed to
carry will also be increased from 68 tonnes to 77.5
tonnes during the trial. The trucks are expected to
be given permanent access to routes stretching
from Melbourne to Geelong, Hastings, Mildura,
Wodonga, Bendigo and Shepparton if the trial is
successful, the Herald Sun reported.
Good job
VicRoads seeks an executive director-regional
services, www.vicroads.vic.gov.au.
air
Second coming
Avalon is set to become Melbourne’s second
international airport, with the federal and state
governments to sign off on a $50m terminal.
18

LETTER FROM MELBOURNE
Linfox Aviation, which controls the former military
airport under a 99-year lease, is confident Avalon
International will soon be handling one million
passengers a year, the Herald Sun reported.
Geelong businessman Frank Costa is set to develop
an international fruit and vegetable centre at Avalon.
The proposal is expected to further undermine
government plans to move the wholesale fruit and
vegetable market from Footscray to Epping, as
developer Mirvac backed away from the project
amid global economic turmoil, The Age reported.
Why bother with Sydney?
On the opinion pages of The Age, Sally Capp,
chief executive of the Committee for Melbourne,
a network of leaders of Melbourne’s major
corporations, institutions and organisations, wrote
that our transport system can have a vital impact
on Melbourne’s stability and prosperity. In the
heatwave of late January, attention was on the
public transport system, but the heat should also be
on the national aviation landscape, which presently
limits so many travelling opportunities for Melbourne
and the rest of Australia internationally, as so much
traffic is funnelled through Sydney by Qantas and
the Government in Canberra.
Big birds on the ground
Qantas was forced to ground three of its flagship
A380 super jumbos amid a string of problems in
early March. But the jumbos manufacturer, Airbus,
said there were no safety issues involved, only
teething, the Herald Sun reported.
Like a tiger
The Victorian government helped with the setup
costs of the Singapore-government backed Tiger
Airways Australia in 2007, as part of its efforts to
lure the low-cost carrier to Melbourne’s Tullamarine
Airport. Tiger was awarded $3.9m in Government
grants, The Age reported.
Falling out of the sky
Due to falling demand Virgin Blue will ground up to
five aircraft and may sack up to 400 workers and
Qantas will cut back on international routes, The
Age reported. Elsewhere, there are plenty of reports
of the huge downturn in air travel everywhere.
ports
Jobs, jobs, jobs
The Port of Melbourne Corporation seeks senior
appointments for a major development project,
execrec@kpmg.com.au.
Community
Backflip part of personal training exercise
Yarra Council has turned 180 degrees on a plan to
charge fitness instructors to use its parks. Instead,
the council has decided to issue free permits as part
of a six-month trial. But fitness operators will be
required to apply for a permit, nominating the park,
date, time and group size of proposed sessions, the
Melbourne Leader reported.
Wirth every minute
In mid-March, Dr Hugh Wirth celebrated 40 years
with the RSPCA, in which time he has helped raise
the profile of the RSPCA through his weekly radio
program, which has run for 28 years, the Herald Sun
reported.
The strength of twenty
Youth Worker Les Twentyman was in the Alfred
Hospital following complications from gastric band
surgery, but seems well on the way to recovery,
30-days later, at the end of March.
Vale
Julius Lockington Patching, AO, OBE, Olympic
administrator, aged 92. Ben Bodna, AM, Australia’s
first public advocate, aged 73. William Russell
McKinnon, solicitor, grazier, and breeder of
thoroughbred horses, President of the Victorian Polo
Association, involved with the Moonee Valley Racing
Club and director of Embleton Limited. Doug Jukes,
auditor, humanist, aged 57. Oliver Noel Warin,
geologist who was involved in the discovery of the
Bowen Basin coal deposits and the Cannington zinclead-silver
deposit in Queensland and much else,
aged 76. Pamela Gail Keating, a board member of
Environment Victoria, Business Skills Victoria, the
Metropolitan Waste Management Group, ZeroWaste
SA, and chairwoman of Keep Australia Beautiful
Victoria, aged 54. Captain William Bolitho AM.
Jean Battersby, AO, founding executive officer of the
Australian Council of the Arts, aged 80. Jason Monet,
artist, aged 70. Cliff Mitchell Dohle, pilot, aged 73.
George Limb, businessman, pioneer wine grower
on the Bellarine Peninsula and world champion royal
tennis player. Alfred John Leslie, Australian forestry
professional, aged 87.Terry Wayne Taylor, formerly
with Ferrier Hodgson, aged 62. Darren Tyquin, race
caller, aged 41. Robert Reginald Anderson, DFC,
pilot, chartered accountant, educator, attended
Brighton Grammar, aged 90. Alwyn Ruta Samuel,
lawyer, pilot, president and en route legal counsel to
SPELD, the organisation that battles for people with
specific learning difficulties, aged 92. Pat Wood,
served on the Scotch College Council. Tom Lanyon
Clark, former executive officer of the Old Geelong
Collegians Association. Yvonne Isabel Nichols,
lecturer at Melbourne University, aged 94. William
John Roberts, doctor, social justice advocate, aged
80. Frank Gallacher, Glasgow born Melbournebased
film, television and theatre actor, aged 65.
Peter Wherrett, pioneering motoring journalist,
aged 72. Dr Eric Wigglesworth AM, honorary
research fellow at the Monash University Accident
Research Centre, a passionate advocate of injury
prevention and respected researcher with particular
expertise in rail safety and occupational health and
safety. Laurie Short, anti-communist, union leader,
secretary of the Federated Iron Workers Association
from 1951 to 1982, aged 93.
Horton Foote, American playwright and screenwriter
who won an Oscar for his screen adaptation of To
Kill a Mockingbird, aged 92. Sydney Earle Chaplain,
the second son of Charlie Chaplin and an awardwinning
actor, aged 82. Susan Nyardzo Tsvangirai,
the wife of Zimbabwe’s Prime Minister, Morgan
Tsvangirai, in a car accident, aged 50.
19

Letter From Canberra is a sister publication of Letter From Melbourne, which was established 15 years ago
Letter From Canberra is a sister publication of Letter From Melbourne, which was established 15 years ago
Letter From Canberra is a sister publication of Letter From Melbourne, which was established 15 years ago
Letter From Canberra is a sister publication of Letter From Melbourne, which was established 15 years ago
LETTER FROM CANBERRA
LETTER FROM CANBERRA
Saving you time. A monthly newsletter distilling public policy and government decisions which affect business opportunities in Australia and beyond.
LETTER FROM CANBERRA
CARD NUMBER
CARD HOLDER
PLEASE DEBIT MY VISA AMEX MASTERCARD
I ENCLOSE A CHEQUE (PAYABLE TO LETTER FROM MELBOURNE)
FAX EMAIL
14 COLLINS STREET MELBOURNE VICTORIA 3000
P: 03 9654 1300 F: 03 9654 1165 E: info@affairs.com.au
Please complete your details and return to:
Saving you time. A monthly newsletter distilling public policy and government decisions which affect business opportunities in Australia and beyond.
Letter From Canberra is a new sister publication of Letter
From Melbourne, about which the following was said:
EMAIL VERSION ONE YEAR SUBSCRIPTION $70
EMAIL VERSION ONE YEAR SUBSCRIPTION FOR STUDENTS AND SENIORS $44
CARD EXPIRY
PHONE MOBILE
ADDRESS
SIGNATURE
COMPANY
THIS COMPLETED FORM IS A TAX INVOICE ABN 44 230 891 629
*ALL PRICES INCLUDE GST
COMPLETE SET OF FOUR CHARTS $120
2008 FEDERAL MP FOOTY CHART $22
2008 VICTORIAN MP FOOTY CHART $22
INCLUDES MP’S AND THEIR AFL/NRL/OTHER TEAMS
ADVISERS AND THE DEPARTMENTS AND MAIN AGENCIES
CORFLUTE MOUNTING ADDITIONAL $10
Saving you time. A monthly newsletter distilling public policy and government decisions which affect business opportunities in Australia and beyond.
Saving you time. A monthly newsletter distilling public policy and government decisions which affect business opportunities in Australia and beyond.
2008 FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WALL CHART $44
2008 VIC STATE GOVERNMENT WALL CHART: THE BRUMBY MINISTRY $44
INCLUDES MINISTERS AND THEIR PORTFOLIOS, SENIOR MINISTERIAL
NAME
Leith Doody
Regional Director - Europe, Middle East, Africa
The Australian Trade Commission, Australian Consulate-General,
Frankfurt Germany
‘As an Australian working overseas, I find Letter
From Melbourne’s sharp and succinct briefings
integral to staying informed about business, policy
and cultural news and events in Melbourne and
Victoria. If you’re a frequent traveler or expatriate,
it’s a must-have when keeping tabs on Home.’
Saving you time. A monthly newsletter distilling public policy and government decisions which affect business opportunities in Australia and beyond.
Saving you time. A monthly newsletter distilling public policy and government decisions which affect business opportunities in Australia and beyond.
Geoffrey Blainey in A History of Victoria
Saving you time. A monthly newsletter distilling public policy and government decisions which affect business opportunities in Australia and beyond.
Just launched: Our new specialist publication,
Big Thinkers (think tanks, knowledge brokers,
networks & opinion shapers) details inside
‘A vital contemporary source on Victorian politics
and legislation’
FROM 1 OCTOBER TO 1 NOVEMBER 2008 Issue No. 9 British Politics Edition
INSIDE
Our Globalised World
LETTER FROM CANBERRA ONE YEAR SUBSCRIPTION $275
LETTER FROM CANBERRA TWO YEAR SUBSCRIPTION $495
The Economy The Economy Australia’s Climate Change Broadband Will Just Happen
WHY NOT SUBSCRIBE?
LETTER FROM CANBERRA
Saving you time. A monthly newsletter distilling public policy and government decisions which affect business opportunities in Australia and beyond.
2 NOVEMBER TO 15 DECEMBER 2008 Issue No. 10 Christmas Edition
INSIDE
New IR Laws
New Federalism
On Hold?
G20 Phone
Call Affair
ClimateModeling/
White Paper
Broadband Tender
Still Happening
feder alism
carbon trading
education reform
national broadband
economic slowdown
infrastructure
Car IndustryMoney:
Seems Like A Year Ago
16 DECEMBER 2008 TO 21 FEBRUARY 2009 Issue No. 11
INSIDE
The Global
Downturn
and Australia
Mo n e y,Mo n e y,
Money: The $42b
Stimulus Package
Environment
Debate Hit and
Might Shift
Education (R)
Evolution: Bradley
Review Published
Immigration
EveningOut
Challenging
Federal Health
Plan Floated
Upcoming Issues:
Health Reforms Propositions and The Defence White Paper
22 FEBRUARY TO 29 MARCH 2009 Issue No. 12
INSIDE
Sh*t-storm of
Colourful Language
in Parliament
National Broadband
Network: Decision
Due Soon
Gillard Gets IR
Laws Through
Pop Go the
Alcopops
Peter Back
in Play
Climate Change
Laws Fiercely
Challenged
Next Month:
Smile: Health and Dental Reform Propositions
Outsourcing of Employment Services
Defence White Paper ...
LETTER FROM CANBERRA
Saving you time. A monthly newsletter distilling public policy and government decisions which affect business opportunities in Australia and beyond.
WHY NOT SUBSCRIBE?
TO
LETTER Letter From Canberra is a new sister publication of Letter
FROM is a new sister CANBERRA?
publication of Letter
about which the following was said:
WHY From Melbourne, NOT about which SUBSCRIBE?
the following was said:
Letter ‘A vital From contemporary Canberra source is a new source on sister Victorian on publication Victorian politics of Letter
From politics and legislation’ Melbourne, and legislation’ about which the following was said:
WHY NOT SUBSCRIBE?
Geoffrey Blainey in in A History of of Victoria
‘As vital an Australian contemporary working overseas, source on I find Victorian Letter
‘I find Letter From Melbourne’s sharp
politics From Letter Melbourne’s From and Canberra legislation’ sharp a and new succinct sister publication briefings of Letter
and
Geoffrey integral From
succinct
Melbourne, Blainey to staying briefings
in A History about informed of Victoria which about integral
the following business, to staying
was policy said:
informed and cultural news about and business, events Melbourne policy and cultural
‘I news Victoria.
‘A find vital and Letter If
contemporary
you’re events From a frequent in Melbourne’s source
traveler
on
or and sharp expatriate,
Victorian Victoria. If
and you’re
it’s a succinct must-have
a frequent
when briefings keeping
traveler integral tabs
or
on
expatriate,
Home.’
politics and legislation’ to staying it’s a
informed
Leith Doody
must-have about when business, keeping policy tabs on and Home.’ cultural
Regional Geoffrey Blainey Director in - Europe, A History Middle of Victoria East, Africa
news Leith The Australian Doody and Trade events Commission, in Melbourne Australian Consulate-General, and Victoria. If
Victorian Frankfurt State Germany Director, Austrade
you’re ‘I find Letter a frequent From traveler Melbourne’s or expatriate, sharp it’s a
must-have and succinct
Please complete your
when briefings
details
keeping integral
and return to:
tabs on to Home.’ staying
Leith
informed
Doody
about business, policy and cultural
14 COLLINS STREET MELBOURNE VICTORIA 3000
Victorian news State and Director, events Austrade in Melbourne and Victoria. If
P: 03 9654 1300 F: 03 9654 1165 E: info@affairs.com.au
you’re a frequent traveler or expatriate, it’s a
Please must-have complete your when details keeping and return to: tabs on Home.’
14 Leith COLLINS Doody STREET MELBOURNE VICTORIA 3000
P: Victorian 03 9654 State 1300 Director, F: 03 9654 Austrade 1165 E: info@affairs.com.au
Please complete your details and return to:
14 COLLINS STREET MELBOURNE VICTORIA 3000
P: 03 9654 1300 F: 03 9654 1165 E: info@affairs.com.au
LETTER FROM CANBERRA ONE YEAR SUBSCRIPTION $220
LETTER FROM CANBERRA ONE YEAR SUBSCRIPTION $275
(INCLUDES BOTH FEDERAL CHARTS)
EMAIL LETTER VERSION FROM (ONE CANBERRA YEAR) $70 TWO YEAR SUBSCRIPTION $495
(NEWSLETTER EMAIL VERSION SUPPLIED ONE YEAR AS A SUBSCRIPTION PDF. FILE)
$70
EMAIL
LETTER EMAIL
VERSION
FROM VERSION
(ONE
CANBERRA ONE
YEAR)
YEAR
$44
ONE SUBSCRIPTION YEAR SUBSCRIPTION FOR STUDENTS $220 AND SENIORS $44
(FOR STUDENTS AND SENIORS)
(INCLUDES BOTH FEDERAL CHARTS)
2008 FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WALL CHART $44
EMAIL 2008 FEDERAL VERSION GOVERNMENT (ONE YEAR) $70 WALL CHART $44
2008 VIC STATE GOVERNMENT WALL CHART: THE BRUMBY MINISTRY $44
(NEWSLETTER 2008 STATE GOVERNMENT SUPPLIED AS WALL A PDF. CHART FILE) (VIC): THE BRUMBY MINISTRY $44
INCLUDES MINISTERS AND THEIR PORTFOLIOS, SENIOR MINISTERIAL
EMAIL INCLUDES VERSION MINISTERS (ONE YEAR) AND THEIR $44 PORTFOLIOS, SENIOR MINISTERIAL ADVISERS
(FOR
ADVISERS
STUDENTS
AND
AND
THE
SENIORS) DEPARTMENTS AND MAIN AGENCIES
AND THE DEPARTMENTS AND MAIN AGENCIES
CORFLUTE
LETTER CORFLUTE FROM
MOUNTING
MOUNTING CANBERRA
ADDITIONAL
ADDITIONAL ONE YEAR
$10
SUBSCRIPTION $10 $220
2008 (INCLUDES FEDERAL BOTH GOVERNMENT FEDERAL CHARTS) WALL CHART $44
2008 2008 STATE FEDERAL FEDERAL GOVERNMENT MP MP FOOTY FOOTY CHART WALL CHART CHART $22 $22
EMAIL VERSION (ONE YEAR) $70 (VIC): THE BRUMBY MINISTRY $44
INCLUDES 2008 (NEWSLETTER
2008 VICTORIAN MINISTERS SUPPLIED MP MP FOOTY AND FOOTY
AS THEIR CHART A PDF.
CHART PORTFOLIOS, FILE) $22 $22 SENIOR MINISTERIAL ADVISERS
AND EMAIL INCLUDES THE VERSION DEPARTMENTS MP’S MP’S AND (ONE AND THEIR YEAR) THEIR AND $44 MAIN AFL/NRL/OTHER AGENCIESTEAMS
TEAMS
CORFLUTE (FOR MOUNTING ADDITIONAL $10
COMPLETE STUDENTS
SET SET AND
OF OF FOUR FOUR SENIORS)
CHARTS CHARTS $120 $120
2008 *ALL PRICES FEDERAL INCLUDE MP GOVERNMENT FOOTY GST CHART WALL $22 CHART $44
2008 VICTORIAN STATE GOVERNMENT MP FOOTY WALL CHART CHART $22 (VIC): THE BRUMBY MINISTRY $44
NAME NAME
INCLUDES MP’S MINISTERS AND THEIR AND THEIR AFL/NRL/OTHER PORTFOLIOS, TEAMS SENIOR MINISTERIAL ADVISERS
COMPANY COMPANY
COMPLETE
AND THE DEPARTMENTS
SET OF FOUR
AND
CHARTS
MAIN
$120
AGENCIES
ADDRESS ADDRESS CORFLUTE MOUNTING ADDITIONAL $10
*ALL PRICES INCLUDE GST
2008 FEDERAL MP FOOTY CHART $22
PHONE
NAME PHONE 2008 VICTORIAN MP FOOTY CHART MOBILE MOBILE $22
FAX
COMPANY FAX INCLUDES MP’S AND THEIR AFL/NRL/OTHER EMAIL EMAIL TEAMS
ADDRESS
I COMPLETE I ENCLOSE ENCLOSE A A CHEQUE SET CHEQUE OF (PAYABLE FOUR (PAYABLE CHARTS TO TO LETTER LETTER $120 FROM FROM MELBOURNE)
MELBOURNE)
PLEASE PLEASE *ALL DEBIT DEBIT PRICES MY MY INCLUDE GST VISA VISA AMEX AMEX MASTERCARD
MASTERCARD
PHONE
MOBILE
CARD CARD HOLDER HOLDER
FAX NAME
EMAIL
CARD CARD NUMBER NUMBER
COMPANY
CARD CARD I ENCLOSE
EXPIRY EXPIRY A CHEQUE (PAYABLE TO LETTER FROM MELBOURNE)
ADDRESS
PLEASE DEBIT MY VISA AMEX MASTERCARD
SIGNATURE
SIGNATURE
CARD HOLDER
THIS
THIS
COMPLETED
COMPLETED
FORM
FORM
IS
IS
A
A
TAX
TAX
INVOICE
INVOICE
ABN
ABN
44
44
230
230
891
891
629
629
PHONE
MOBILE
CARD
PLEASE
PLEASE NUMBER
SEND
SEND
A
A
TAX
TAX
INVOICE
INVOICE
RECIPET
RECIPET
FAX
EMAIL
CARD EXPIRY
I ENCLOSE A CHEQUE (PAYABLE TO LETTER FROM MELBOURNE)
SIGNATURE
PLEASE DEBIT MY VISA AMEX MASTERCARD
THIS COMPLETED FORM IS A TAX INVOICE ABN 44 230 891 629
CARD PLEASE HOLDER SEND A TAX INVOICE RECIPET