Canberra CityNews May 5-12, 2011

Brave NZ family’s break from hell

Their daily lives may have been shattered by the Auckland earthquakes but, eight months on, the resolve of this NZ family, brought to Canberra for respite by Rotary, is undimmed, reports ELERI HARRIS

IT’S been eight months since a 7.1 magnitude earthquake shook the city of Christchurch on NZ’s south island and two months since February’s 6.3 encore, but tens of thousands of displaced and traumatised Kiwis have yet to return home in the aftermath with houses red taped and insurance companies not yet forthcoming.

For Vivienne and Michael Fitzgerald, the earthquakes didn’t just destroy their home and places of work, the natural disasters are having serious emotional consequences for their nine year-old daughter, Sophia, who was undergoing trauma counselling.

But, thanks to the Rotary Club of Canberra South, their family, including six year-old Isabelle, have enjoyed a week’s R&R in Canberra.

Club president Gail Freeman says the Fitzgeralds clearly needed a break.

“We’re hoping, particularly for the girls, the trip here will be sufficient to help them,” Freeman told “CityNews”.

The first earthquake came at 4.35am on September 4, 2010.

“We literally thought it was a jet engine coming down on us, it was that loud and the next thing our house is shaking,” Vivienne said.

Taking Sophia and Isabelle out on to their driveway in the minus-two-degree

dark of pre-dawn, Vivienne grabbed a dirty laundry basket, bean bags and blankets from her home beauty business to keep the children warm.

“We were totally unprepared,” Vivienne said. “Neither of our cars had petrol in them and both our cellphones were going flat. In the pitch black we had no idea what the damage was.

“We just hunkered down, got the kids on the beanbags. They were in shock; there was no hysterics or anything like that, we had a lot of adrenaline going through us.

“In the meantime, the aftershocks kept coming and the car was rocking.”

The day didn’t shine much positive light: Michael’s software company office was rendered useless and their house unlivable.

“The corner of the house looks like a Japanese pagoda, the weight of the second story is just perched there,”

Michael said.

“We’ve been battling with our insurance company since that day,” Vivienne said. “We were very, very quick to ring them and put in our claim for our house that morning and still to this day, nothing.”

The Fitzgeralds spent months living at Vivienne’s parents house, before moving into a caravan in their

driveway just weeks before the second quake saw their property wrapped in red tape.

“It felt like someone was using a jackhammer right under your feet,” Michael said.

“There was devastation like you wouldn’t believe, I thought I was going to die in that earthquake,” Vivienne, who fractured her back on the floor of a friend’s house, said.

“It threw us against the wall and I’ve never seen a house move like that. Everything in the room had turned into torpedoes and everything had fallen over.

Top radio duo calls it a day

RADIO duo Cam and Lisa are no more. The top-rating MIX106.3 team has been abandoned after Cam Sullings decided to resign from the highly successful breakfast show.

“Cam has resigned from the position for personal reasons,” says Eoghan O’Byrne, general manager of Canberra FM Radio.

“We are retaining his services in our afternoon show, which is great, and we have an offer in front of Lisa at the moment and she’s weighing up some options, but she hasn’t made any firm decisions yet.

“However, I can say that the Cam and Lisa show has ended as such, based on Cam’s decision to resign.”

“Our house was red-stickered, so we couldn’t be there and there’s still no sewerage, the power is intermittent, it cuts off all the time, the water – you couldn’t drink it and it cuts off all the time.”

With only the clothes on their backs and no access to what remains of their belongings, Vivienne says the stress has bitten hard and Sophia is still not sleeping at night.

“It’s been eight months, but the first night in Canberra we all had a good snooze.” Vivienne smiles, “I just don’t trust the ground anymore.”

The duo was to have returned from leave as expected this week and the MIX106.3 website, usually flowing to excess with the breakfast duo’s doings and photos, has no mention of them on the home page and offers only a constrained reference to their former shift as “MIX106.3 in the Morning”.

Lisa Ridgley has not returned our call. She has been the queen of Canberra breakfast radio for many years and was partnered with Mark Parton, now with 2CC, until he left the FM station in July 2008, to be replaced by Sullings.

An announcement about the future personalities for the breakfast show is expected next month.

Royal republicans sit, wait

DON AITKIN

says the hoo-haa about the royal wedding seemed uncharacteristic of a country waiting, more or less patiently, for the day when the tie with the monarch will be broken.

EVERY month I sit down to lunch with a group of friends, and we discuss the world and its problems, solving most of them. I’ve been a member of the group for more than 10 years, but can’t remember our ever talking much about the need for a republic.

That’s not because we are all dyed-inthe-wool monarchists. In fact, I have no idea what my friends’ views on the subject are – if only because it simply doesn’t come up. If I had to guess, I would say that most of them, along with other friends of mine of the same age-group, don’t think the issue is especially important.

I’d put it this way: One day Australia will be a republic, but there are more important issues on the agenda right now. If pressed, I would say that that day might come when the present Queen leaves the throne, or if some major issue involving the Crown were to occur in Britain.

Why (if I’m right) isn’t the issue important to us? Well, apart from a few forms, titles and ceremonies, the Crown is almost completely symbolic here. We Australians

INDEX

get along with our lives, and the needs of our country, without having to think much or at all, about what the monarch thinks. And we don’t have to support the Queen and her rellies in the style of life to which they are accustomed. But every now and then I wonder. The immense hoo-haa about the royal wedding last week didn’t seem characteristic of a

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country waiting, more or less patiently, for the day when the tie with the monarch will be broken. I can’t deny that the royal wedding was a Big Deal. And how could I forget “our Princess Mary”? (Though she didn’t get an invitation, I’ve been reminded.) Newspapers, TV stations and radio, not to mention the blogosphere, were full of it, to the point where I desperately wanted to

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Practice makes Greta a winner

THIS photo of toddler Greta Alice Barmin, of Narrabundah, was one of 25 finalists of a national “Search for Australia’s Best Baby and Toddler Moment” competition which attracted more than 30,000 entries. The photo was titled “Practice Makes Perfect...” The competition, run by Harvey Norman Photo Centre, called for parents across Australia to send in photos that captured the best moments of their 0-3-year-old children. Greta’s parents won a cookbook for feeding babies and an enlarged, canvas art version of their daughter’s photograph.

and cheer briefly

learn of something else: Who really cared where the royal couple were to spend their honeymoon? Who really cared about which dress designer got the job? Why was it important, for that matter, that we needed to know what dress our Prime Minister was to wear to the wedding?

A word or two with members of younger generations restored my sense of equanimity. I had to realise that Wills and Kate were stars, and not just the usual stars, famous for being famous. Like Diana before her, she would go into the wedding as plain “Ms” and come out as her Royal Highness, and a potential Queen.

Well, I would have to agree; that doesn’t happen in every wedding, certainly in this country. And, I learned further, there was a real soap opera quality about it all. Would William move past Charles in the succession stakes? What did the Queen think? Who would want Camilla as Queen? And so on. Again, I had to agree: The wedding was a moment in a great story.

And if that was the case, then all the interest in the wedding said nothing at all about a reversion to monarchy in Australia. I thought I’d check by seeing what was happening in the US.

Apparently it was the same, perhaps only worse – and in the US they really do know about stars. On one of the US blogs I found some cheerful news. There is apparently a social media measurement (don’t ask me how it’s done) and where Australia scored 0.1, the Brits were twice as excited, at 0.2 – but the Yanks were at 0.3, outdoing us all.

And the Americans got rid of the Royals two hundred and more years ago!

Don Aitkin, political scientist and historian, served as vice-chancellor of the University of Canberra from 1991 to 2002.

Friends, Romans...

FRIENDS of the ANU Classics Museum are presenting an illustrated talk by Dr Paul Roche, senior lecturer in classics and ancient history at the University of Sydney, about the architectural legacy of the Roman emperor Domitian (ruled 81–96 AD) and the problems it created for his successors. Titled “Remembering Flavian Rome: Pliny the Younger, Trajan, and the Monuments of Domitian’s City”, the talk will be held at The Tank (Haydon Allen Lecture Theatre), ANU Campus, 8pm, Tuesday, May 17 with a supper in the Classics Museum to follow.

Orienteering anniversary

ACT orienteering is celebrating its 40th anniversary with a “Give Orienteering a Go” theme during Orienteering Week. The public is invited to attend the anniversary event on Saturday, May 7 at Weston Park (10.30am to midday). There are more events on Sunday at Black Mountain (10am to midday), Wednesday, May 11, Bruce Ridge (midday to 1pm) and Saturday, May 14, Farrer Ridge (10.30am to midday), More information from www.act. orienteering.asn.au or call Orienteering ACT on 6162 3422

Scholarship to Wales

PLUMBING apprentice Gerard Allen, of Symonston, will join 15 other top Australian apprentices for a two-week corporate leadership program in North Wales in September. Gerard has been awarded a BBM Ltd Scholarship following his gold-medal win in the plumbing category at the WorldSkills Australian National Competition in Brisbane. The scholarship enables high-achieving competitors from the WorldSkills competition to travel to the UK for the course followed by work experience.

World champ on wheels

By Eleri Harris

AT , CJ Wellsmore is a homegrown world champion, with his own professional European merchandise line, who spends his time touring internationally, teaching in Sydney and competing everywhere.

But most Canberrans wouldn’t be familiar with the nuggety blonde from Kambah, goldglobe necklace dangling from his neck, because his is an unconventional sport spiralling downward in popularity since it’s heyday 20 years ago.

CJ Wellsmore is a rollerblader and he’s the best there is.

“I’ve been pro for about a year, number one in the world for 2010,” CJ told “CityNews”. “I got myself two different styles of pro-wheel, which is cool, it’s a European company [Undercover].

“I started roller blading when I moved to Canberra. When Tuggeranong skate park opened, that was my local skate park because I lived in Kambah. I grew up skating there every single morning, every day.”

In the crazy, electric-lit, Friday-night skate madness of Woden, CJ perches on a park bench slowly breaking down the chronology of his life as a roller hero.

“I moved from the Snowy Mountains when I was seven, my dad used to own a ski shop,” CJ says.

“I got into rollerblading because it was like skiing on rollerblades. I went to Belconnen skate park and I saw people doing tricks on

rollerblades and I thought: ‘That’s cool, that’s for me’. That was about 1996.

“Now I live in Sydney, where I’ve been since 2007, and I’m professional rollerblader, but I also work in an environment where I teach people how to rollerblade at Skater HQ, a shop in Sydney.”

CJ Wellsmore was the 2011 Australian Rolling Open Champion, taking home $1500 in prize money and the Golden Hammer from the event at Woden Skatepark.

Locals get a big taste of biting hunger

COULD you live on $ a day?

Bombarded with poverty porn and suffering pity fatigue, many Canberrans find it a little too much to care for those living below the line overseas, let alone in our own country.

Empathising gets tough when the gap is so wide, but a crew of youngsters are giving it their best shot with the “Live Below the Line” campaign, spending five days from May 16-20 living on $2 a day to raise money for education projects in poverty stricken parts of the world.

Canberra’s “Live Below the Line” campaign manager Regan Byrnes, 21, says the Oaktree Foundation event, now in its second year, raised half a million dollars nationwide last year.

“Basically it’s $2 because that’s the extreme poverty line,” Regan told “CityNews”.

“People sponsor you online to live on $2 worth of food and drink for five days.

“The campaign isn’t 40 hours like the 40-hour famine, it’s five days, you have that experience of being immersed in a situation where your body is going through these changes, where you’re having to deal with making decisions about what you’re going to eat and how you’re going to spend your money. It gives people a better idea of what it’s like to live in poverty.”

The 200 or so Canberran participants hope to raise $40,000 for teacher training and quality education courses for the Third World on our doorstep in Papua New Guinea and Cambodia.

Steph Wright, also 21, says the Oaktree Foundation works with organisations already in the countries they operate in to achieve better local outcomes.

“It’s tailored to the areas these people are living in, it’s not just giving them a regular educa-

By Eleri Harris

tion,” Steph says.

ACT co-ordinator Keyta Slattery, 20, says the Oaktree Foundation aims to provide extreme poverty relief in the Third World through education, as well as lobbying the Federal Government to increase Australia’s foreign aid spending and to educate other young people about poverty.

“It’s entirely about providing an education as a way out of extreme poverty,” Keyta says.

ANU student Jia Yan, 20, says participating last year made him more conscious of the plight of those experiencing poverty beyond our borders.

“By the third day I was exhausted,” Jia, who survived on 10 packets of Mee Goreng two-minute noodles, a loaf of bread and six eggs, said.

“I could feel my stomach begging for more food, it was all I could think about. But the fifth day it got better, maybe because I realised it was the last day!”

“People do it in different ways,” Keyta said.

“Some people get their $10 and go buy groceries from the supermarket for the week, other people try to live on that $2 a day, day by day. That’s a lot harder. The majority of people do it $10 for the week. Then if you form a group you can also pool all your money together and share that money to get more purchasing power. So it’s a case of both learning to use that money effectively, but also having that experience of living in extreme poverty as well. “

To donate to the Live Below the Line Campaign visit www.livebelowtheline.com.au

Why ratings won’t work

I HAVE never been to war. However, I have shot a man and not just one, but thousands.

I’ve also set bombs, used knives, crossbows, bats, golf clubs, cars, flamethrowers and even my bare hands.

No, I’m not a psychopathic killer: I’m a gamer, and have been for most of my childhood and definitely all of my adult life.

I am, therefore, no different from the majority of young males in Australia who spend many an hour in glorified and savage versions of virtual tag and hide-and-seek.

However, there is one area where I differ with many of my gaming colleagues, and that is regarding the introduction of an R18+ rating for video games.

Many of those I play online with see it as a clear injustice and travesty that there is not an adult rating for games, especially considering the large proportion of gamers who are now adults.

My disagreement with the introduction stems from working with children. These days kids are able to get their hands

The ACT Government will go it alone and introduce an R18+ classification for violent video games, even if the other States do not reach an agreement before the Federal Government’s July deadline. Attorney General Simon Corbell says even if a stalemate eventuates, the ACT will support the Commonwealth’s push to change the classification system for adult games.

But here NICK JENSEN thinks game ratings are fatally flawed...

on just about any game available. My biggest shock was discovering an eight-year-old playing “Grand Theft Auto”, one of the most violent games to slip into the MA15+ rating.

Some have argued that an R18+ rating on games would protect children by helping parents become more educated, but in truth it will simply make it easier for kids to access these violent and sexual games that go too far (examples being games that enable rape and missions where you have to mow down civilians and police in airports).

In the US, where they have a comparable R18+ rating, sta-

tistics from a 2010 study show that 70 per cent of 12-year-olds have played games from that rating.

The other argument is usually that films have an R18+ rating, so why not games. As an experienced gamer, I can attest that games have a much stronger effect than movies.

Let us put the best interests of the child at the forefront of this issue (as every single child commissioner round Australia has done by rejecting an R18+ game rating), and not just the rights of the adult.

Nick Jensen is the ACT director of the Australian Christian Lobby

Argie Bargie heads west

By Kathryn Vukovljak

IT’S not every day you see four people on one bike, but Shane O’Brien and Helen Jeffs’ 5mlong, quad tandem can often be seen around Canberra’s bike tracks, they say.

“It’s a bit of a spectacle and we get a fair few double takes,” says Shane of their bike, known as Argie Bargie.

Shane and Helen, along with five of their friends, their children Rosie, eight, and Tom, six, and their young friend Cooper, 10, will be taking the bike on a charity ride along the Gibb River Road in the Kimberley on May 8-12, as part of the Gibb Challenge run by WA Police.

“We’re raising money for Cure Cancer Australia Foundation, as well as the event-associated charity WA Police Legacy,” says Denise Collins, who will be part of the team (known as “Argie Bargie and the Stokers”).

“It’s a real giggle, riding Argie Bargie. You’re quite close to the person in front!

“And you have to communicate a bit when it comes to things like gear changes and when you need to stop and start.”

“Having the bike is a lovely focus, and gives us a reason to train,” says Shane.

To donate, visit www.8legs800km.blogspot.com

Sick of ‘walking on eggshells’

I AM becoming increasingly annoyed that as a society we are being forced to “walk on eggshells” so not to offend anyone (Is there a place for religion in schools? CN, April 14).

Like it or not our society is built on JudeoChristian heritage. Our constitution was founded upon Christian principles and then even our Education Department made room for Christian education classes once a week in all government schools while ever there were willing volunteers.

These were people who would come and bring a message of love and respect for all people, while also teaching children the value of their life, enforcing their self worth in their developing and formative years, which would enable them to make right and just decisions in their future.

Tell me again, please, what is wrong with such a teaching and what can be so bad about this?

sue Miller, Mitchell

New laws, old habits

IT is a bit strange to read an ACT Government media release that was issued by Chief Minister Jon Stanhope on February 25 saying new legislation will require retailers and individuals to do more to reduce the number of shopping trolleys abandoned in the ACT. Particularly after I took some photos around Lake Ginninderra recently showing shopping trolleys dumped in the lake.

According to Mr Stanhope’s media release: “Abandoned shopping trolleys are an annoyance to us all... They clutter our urban areas, parks, lakes and waterways, cause safety issues on pathways and can be difficult and costly to the Government to retrieve.” It is truth obviously!

I am happy that the new laws will make it an offence to remove a trolley from a shopping cen-

tre or to use a trolley outside a shopping-centre precinct and that retailers face fines for failing to collect dumped trolleys within 24 hours of being made aware of them.

I will go back the lake soon to double-check whether someone has collected those poor trolleys. Even I am an optimist!

Lixin sui, n gunnawal

Recycle only full bins

I WOULD like to ask people, through your magazine, not to put out recycle bins that are only up to a quarter full. There is no need for that to be happening if containers are rinsed out before placing in bins, thereby eliminating any unpleasant odours.

In my own case, my bin only goes out every four to six weeks.To do otherwise results in a complete waste of time and resources emptying them.

Ivan Hoy, Kambah

budget 2011

Budgets are not for the

Greg cornwell

Borrower Katy fears the Feds

TREASURER Katy Gallagher

continues to promise that the Territory will be balancing its Budget books by 01 -1 despite the lingering effects of the GFC, suppressed consumer demand from diminishing GST receipts and a looming threat from the impending Federal Budget.

And the Government will borrow $650 million to fund the capital investment in the health system and the upgrade to Majura Parkway, Ms Gallagher said.

In revealing the 2011-12 Budget, titled “Working smarter. Delivering more”, Treasurer Katy Gallagher said it was “disciplined”, but warned that it was delivered against a backdrop of changing economic conditions, including the continual loss of GST revenue and increasing cost pressures.

“The Territory’s economy is significantly influenced by the decisions and actions of the Commonwealth Government. There is no doubt the austerity of the upcoming Federal Budget will impact on our economy,” she said in her Budget speech to the ACT Assembly.

“The global financial uncertainty continues. Natural disasters around the country will impact markedly on the Commonwealth Budget and bring risks to the ACT economy. However, our strong labour market, relative job security and population growth will continue to support the economy. The prospects for the ACT economy remain positive.

“The fiscal position of the Territory was significantly impacted by the effects of the global financial crisis.

“To make matters worse, we have also seen a drop in our GST revenue due to a reduction in our Commonwealth Grants Commission relativities. This is in part because our needs have been assessed as relatively lower. Our economy has performed relatively better than the other States. But our Budget has suffered as a result.”

The Budget is estimated to have a deficit of $36.9 million, a further shortfall of $23.9 million next year before a modest surplus of $1.6 million in Canberra’s centenary year.

Ms Gallagher said the Government had con-

sistently rejected a “slash-and-burn” approach to the Budget recovery.

“We are systematically and sustainably working to return to surplus, improving our own efficiency without slashing service delivery,” she said.

“Targeted, recurrent expenditure with a net impact of $266.5 million over four years is made in this Budget for sensible and needed investments in healthcare, schools, community safety, and municipal and community services.

“Positioning Canberra for our coming of age, the Budget supports our preparations for the celebration of Canberra’s Centenary, the need for public transport expansion and continued urban renewal to meet the demands of our growing city.”

This year the Government plans to spend $825 million on infrastructure, that is new works and works in progress, Ms Gallagher said.

“New policy initiatives, necessary to meet the needs of the community, are largely offset by savings,” she said.

The Government will be looking to extract savings within the public service, over four years, of $217 million.

“An efficiency dividend commenced in 201011 and continues in this Budget. Applied only to non-frontline services, the dividend delivers $66.6 million in savings over four years,” the Treasurer said.

“The Budget incorporates further savings initiatives to reduce administrative costs by $150.7 million over four years. Agencies are being asked to reduce expenditure in areas such as travel and accommodation, stationery, consultants and contractors, recruitment and training, electricity and fleet leasing.

“This Budget continues our efforts to manage the size of the ACT Public Service. With wages and staffing costs consuming around 47 per cent of the Budget in 2010-11, managing the growth in staff is essential to managing the Budget overall.”

Canberra families will feel the Budget pressure

There are no ‘tough calls’, just more financial pain for families, says Opposition Leader ZED SESELJA

THE ACT Labor Treasurer, Katy Gallagher, has unveiled the biggest-taxing, biggest-borrowing and biggest-spending budget in the history of ACT self-government, but practically none of the benefits go to relieving cost-of-living pressures for ACT families.

Rates are going up, rego is going up, and there’ll be a big new tax on units and apartments.

With electricity costs going up, water going up, and a carbon tax coming, many families are really feeling the pressure.

According to Budget papers, Katy Gallagher and ACT Labor will collect $400 million more revenue than expected at the last Budget in just two years.

But what does ACT Labor spend it on? Building a $430 million new office block for Jon Stanhope! This is a disgrace.

Times are good. That is when good governments, responsible governments, should be in a position to give something back to their communities, to take the pressures off the cost of living. Instead, ACT Labor have borrowed more than ever, spent more than ever, and sent the bill to ACT families.

The so called recovery plan gives us a “Wayne Swan” surplus of just over $1 million in two years’ time. There are no “tough calls”. It’s like a billionaire claiming to be frugal by buying three Rolls Royces instead of four.

Pleasing, but still a long way to go, say Greens

Meredith Hunter, act Greens

THE Greens were pleased to see that many of the initiatives included in the 2011-12 ACT Budget will ease pressure on families and help Canberra become a more sustainable and socially just city.

We were particularly pleased that the Government has continued to implement the

Parliamentary Agreement through increased funding of mental health to $19 million, a $9.5 million boost to public housing stock and $21.4 million of improvements to transport services.

While the Government still hasn’t released their climate change strategy, it was heartening to see them start to tackle those who are most vulnerable in the face of rising electricity costs by doubling the funding for energy efficiency measures in public housing and significantly increasing support to offset the cost of rising

ACT teachers have consistently advised the Government of the investment needed in public education for schools and TAFE in order to ensure the best possible outcomes for students.

The Government has listened to some of that advice by removing the cost-cutting efficiency dividend for the Education and Training Directorate for 2011-2012 and Providing an extra $5M a year for disability education.

•

However the Budget fails dismally to: Fund competitive salaries for ACT

John Hibberd, act conservation council.

THE ACT Budget signals uncertain times for the ACT environment and its biodiversity.

teachers, counsellors, educational leaders and support staff.

Establish a professional learning fund for education support staff.

Increase staffing and resources in every school to properly provide for and manage IT.

Provide sufficient funding to implement an effective professional pay scheme based on professional standards.

Adequately increase the level of recurrent funding for the delivery of courses at CIT.

Fund measures to reduce unsustainable workload levels in schools and CIT.

While there are some clear and commendable commitments to weed and feral animal control, and to the restoration of the ACT’s endangered

Emma Robertson, act Youth coalition

utility charges – all measures the Greens have advocated for strongly.

Still, the ACT has a long way to go on big-picture sustainability thinking.

While the Budget funds some good transport initiatives, such as public transport infrastructure on important corridors such as Belconnen Way and Northbourne Avenue, building major new roads is not the way to delivering efficient transport in the long term. The real solutions for the future lie in investment in sustainable transport.

chris Peters, chamber of commerce & Industry

THIS Budget allows business in the ACT to get on with our job of growing the economy and employing people. This flows-on to providing benefits for all Canberrans.

There are additional funds to encourage small business innovation and commercialisation. There is some additional funding for the Live in Canberra Campaign and for skilled and business migration support. There are funds to assist with housing affordability, housing land releases and the infrastructure required. There is funding to ensure the ACT continues to have one of the best education systems in Australia.

There is funding for tourism. This includes additional funds for Australian Capital Tourism, and the establishment of a fund of $2 million for block-busters such as the National Gallery of Australia’s great success with “Masterpieces from Paris”.

woodlands, the lack of detail provided in the Budget papers leaves conservationists worried.

The council is concerned about the Budget’s lack of commitment to the Canberra Nature Park.

It would have been nice if the ACT Government had shown the same level of commitment to Canberra Nature Park – the bush that we all love and enjoy – and to the conservation of biodiversity across the ACT landscape, as it does to its iconic development of the arboretum.

Despite this, the Conservation Council commended the ACT Government for allocating

F URTHER investment in the areas of support for young people transitioning from out of home care, as well as new monies to support diverting young people from detention and engagement with the criminal justice system, are timely and responsive to calls from the community.

However, the Youth Coalition is disappointed that overall the Budget has not addressed some of the biggest issues facing young people in the ACT community, such as affordable housing, mental health services, and engagement with education, training, and employment.

funds for geospatial amalgamation across agencies, as this will ensure that there is a common database for all environmental and planning decision-making.

With falling GST revenues and the ongoing financial challenges, I was not expecting any good news in this Budget and possibility some bad news. However, whilst we didn’t receive everything that we asked for, I am happy with the ACT Budget. It is a responsible Budget and it will allow our economy to continue to grow.

ACTCOSS is pleased to see some targeted initiatives for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, in the areas of employment justice and youth – this focus is long overdue, and will hopefully go towards closing the gap for indigenous communities in the ACT.

ACTCOSS also welcomes the $1.4million

allocated towards the delivery of the Affordable Housing Action Plan. Concessions have also been increased, by $131 a year, for low-income households to help meet the costs of utilities. This increase is substantial; however, the costs of electricity and water in the longer term are likely to increase even more.

So what we are seeing overall is that the Budget provides some short-term solutions to what are long-term problems.

c atherine c arter, act Property council

THE ACT Government has moved to introduce a new tax on residential housing in the Territory.

The entire community should be extremely concerned about the dramatic increase in the cost of redevelopment in Canberra, which has come about because of significant new charges to lease variations.

The change-of-lease tax, which is to apply from July 1, will devalue existing properties with redevelopment potential by as much as $100,000 each and the cost of residential unit development in Canberra is set to significantly increase by up to $50-60,000 per unit in some areas.

The uncertainty and distortion this will create in the market will be unprecedented.

And while Government appears to believe these new measures will result in more revenue, this will not be the case as there will be significantly fewer transactions, leading to less stamp duty.

Property owners and investors recognise the importance of contributing to the community’s economic well-being through taxes. But this new tax increase will be between 300 and 10,000 per cent – and that is unreasonable.

chris Faulks, c anberra Business council

IT’S great to see tourism investment on the ACT Government’s budgetary agenda for 2011-2012.

The Government has had to make some tough decisions in this Budget, but I commend them for having the foresight to continue supporting our local tourism industry, particularly in the lead up to the centenary.

CBC is pleased tourism initiatives it was calling for in its pre-Budget submission have been funded.

The tourism spending announced includes $1.8m to promote Canberra’s Centenary; $2m to support blockbuster exhibitions; $1m to market Canberra as a business event destination; and more than $11m to upgrade sporting and event venues.

This investment is on top of the $1m already committed for the next stage of the Australia Forum, which will give Canberra a world-class conference venue.

Each of these projects helps make the ACT region an even more attractive place for people to visit, encourages them to stay longer, and strengthens the Territory’s tourism industry.

Budgets are not for the faint hearted

Commentator GREG

CORNWELL is not convinced the ACT Budget will be in surplus any time soon, but agrees with the Treasurer that this year’s effort is one of ‘moderation’

GOVERNMENT Budgets are not for ordinary people and the ACT Budget delivered on Tuesday was no exception.

Four books, blue in colour, plus a reader’s guide and totalling 1120 pages offer a bewildering collection of lists of statistics, qualifications and confusing data that those in the Government’s media “lock-up” are expected to absorb in three and a half hours.

There are attendant problems with this quick scan, principle among them what is found somewhere in these tightly printed pages if not noted immediately is lost forever.

Further, nobody to my knowledge ever goes back to the previous Budget and even the leaks preceding the current effort often receive cursory attention when the final product is brought down.

This inattention can allow for all sorts of broken promises, but I am pleased to say it is not the case with Katy Gallagher’s 2011-2012 Budget – her third. Thus funding for Majura Parkway upgrade, $2.5 million for the forward design of a transit-way along Northbourne Avenue, child-care facilities and, remember the previous Budget, tree management is back after being deferred in 2010-11.

The bottomless pit that is health has been properly further funded with much-needed attention to mental health (an additional $19.8 million over four years) and $21.1 million to deliver 30 new ambulance officers and five ambulances over the same period.

Whether these increases will be sufficient to cover the expected increase in population of 1.5 per cent in the next year or if they were calculated upon our existing population is unknown, but the Government has sensibly recognised the need to allow for a GST fall in revenue from the Commonwealth Budget, unfortunately scheduled for next Tuesday. Some $15 million has been allowed for this possibility.

The change-of-use charge, which has caused so much angst among developers, is forecast to increase to $22.4 million from $14.2 in 2010-2011 an amount we were assured would have been $45 million over four years if a benevolent government had not allowed a 75 per cent remission.

I am not convinced the ACT Budget will be in surplus in 2013-14. Not because of any incompe -

tence or malfeasance, but rather because of human nature: 2013 is Canberra’s centenary and I cannot see Scrooge in the celebrations. Secondly, we face an Assembly election in 2012, why on earth seek a Budget surplus the year after?

Similarly, the request for agencies to reduce

Oddities...

• •

Airline Development Access Program

($100,000) – survey to determine where we wish to travel by air from Canberra (conducted in conjunction with the airport)

Bringing 250 bus stops up to disabled standards ($1 million). Apparently the oldies have been complaining about the seats without arms at bus stops presumably because they can’t get up fast enough when the bus comes!

expenditure in travel and accommodation, consultants and contractors, recruitment and training even fleet leasing I can, at a stretch, see being grudgingly accepted but stationery and electricity is too big an ask. On a more serious note, the release of another 100,000 square metres of commercial building space is worrying, given the vacancies around town now.

Perhaps I am quibbling over words but “no new taxes” I found somewhat questionable with parking revenue forecast to rise by $2.2 million in 2011-2012 even if the increase is explained as reflecting increases announced in the 2010-11 Budget.

Of more concern was the allocation of $500,000 to “upgrade old traffic cameras”. Then there is the scheduled water rate increase from July 1, but that is ACTEW, of course.

On a happier note, at least for some, there is

no funding in the Budget for public art – it’s run out, apparently – and the $20 million Commonwealth Government gift to the arboretum has been incorporated into the 2011-2012 expenditure on the development. Of course, we don’t know if this amount has been added to whatever the ACT Government planned to spend this year. The Treasurer used the word “moderation” in respect of her Budget and I think it is a fair comment. Naturally, there will be much dispute over the contents, but I would hope there is unanimity upon the words in the heading of the Treasurer’s Budget Speech paper. “Working Smarter” it said, reminding me of another slogan last year about moving somewhere ...

Guest commentator Greg Cornwall is a former Liberal MLA (1992-2004) and Speaker of the Assembly from 1995 to 2001.

Here comes the ‘streamlined’ public service

“THE initiatives in this Budget will be delivered by a streamlined public service,” said Treasurer

Katy Gallagher.

“Adoption of the ACT Public Service Review’s recommendations and undertaking significant structural changes to the ACT Public Service are required to ensure this occurs. A single structure will facilitate greater integration of services and foster more innovative and holistic

Jobs go up – and down

UNDER this Budget, Treasurer Katy Gallagher said, the size of the ACT Public Service would grow.

“The initiatives in this Budget increase the size of the public service by around 320 full-time equivalent staff, with many for front-line services,” she said.

“However, the Government intends to limit the growth in the public service overall, and will be seeking staffing reductions in the order of 210 full time equivalent staff.

“These will be managed through normal staff turnover and targeted redundancies, through voluntary processes. There will be no involuntary redundancies.”

Selling the Budget, it’s all in the name

This year: “Working smarter. Delivering more”

Last year: “Growing our city” 2009-2010: “Investing in our community”

2008-2009 “Ready for the future”

2007-2008“Taking the Territory Forward”

2006-2007 “For the Future” 2005-2006: “A Budget for the Community”

approaches. It will deliver a public service designed to work smarter and deliver more.

“A new Government office block will bring together ACT public servants and increase integration of services and effort. Work will commence on the office block in 2013-14, with funding of $124.9 million commencing over the last two years in this Budget. The total investment in the office block will be around $432 million, offset by $114 million in asset sales. This is a large project, a significant civic building with a strong commitment from this government to

prepare our city for the future.”

In the media Budget lock-up, Gallagher – in a burst of well-rehearsed logic – said the bureaucratic centre was “something the city should be proud of” that would allow one public service and, if we needed any other persuasion, it would be carbon neutral, a far cry from the current situation of public servants housed in scattered offices.

The Budget also had $150,000 for a study into the cost and design of a new office block in Gungahlin, she said.

Money, money, money

$266.5 million in programs over four years.

$217 million in savings over four years.

$413 million investment in new Government office block.

$500,000 to upgrade old traffic cameras.

$7.7 million over the next four years for women and children’s services

$10.9 million over four years for cancer care

$19.8 million for mental health services

$8.3 million over four years to recruit more doctors and nurses.

$4 million for preliminary work for the new northside hospital.

$1.8 million for Centenary of Canberra marketing.

$3.3 million for construction of the Centenary Trail.

$3.2 million to extend The Street Theatre and establish an arts hub in City West.

$2 million over two years to assist Canberra’s major cultural institutions acquire large-scale exhibitions.

$4.3 million over four years to host seven 2015 Asian Cup games.

$2.2 million to the Canberra Stadium for the design of improvements to facilities.

$26.3 million is allocated for a 50-metre swimming pool complex in Gungahlin.

$44.5 million over two years to support infrastructure for Stage Two of Molonglo.

$9.5 million for 32 dwellings to address housing affordability.

$7.7 million for the Narrabundah Long Stay Caravan Park.

$41 million for Canberra Hospital.

$11.8 million for teachers’ pay.

$147 million to build new schools and to improve existing facilities.

$4.4 million for IT in public schools.

$4.3 million improvements to Civic.

$7.5 million for urban trees.

$21.4 million over four years for ACTION buses.

$3.7 million to upgrade the Woden bus depot.

$2.5 million for the forward design of the Northbourne Avenue Transitway.

$4.4 million for fuel depots.

$1 million for bus stop upgrades.

$1.5 million provided for construction of new cycle ways and shared paths.

$144 million over three years for the Majura Parkway.

$5.5 million for intersections in North Weston and West Belconnen.

$4.6 million over four years for additional sheriff and correctional officers and upgrades to facilities.

$21.1 million for an additional 30 ambulance paramedics and five ambulances.

$5.1 million over four years to support offender programs at the prison.

$1.4 million for security upgrades at AMC.

all about the Canberra Wedding Fair

All the world loves a good wedding

All the world loves a good wedding, just look at Kate and Wills’. And if it’s your turn anytime soon, you’ll want to know what choices you have and what’s ahead for the happiest of happy days. That’s why you shouldn’t miss the upcoming Canberra Wedding Fair. On the following pages, “CityNews” will give you a preview of some of the providers you’ll need to target.

Fair promises a big selection

THE 2011 Canberra Wedding Fair will be the largest gathering of exhibitors seen under one roof at the Australian Institute of Sport, Bruce, on Sunday, May 15.

Featuring more than 95 of Canberra’s leading wedding providers, the expo provides one-stop shopping for today’s bride.

Offering aisle after aisle of informative displays, brides can see wedding cakes, floral displays, hair and make-over demonstrations, photography specialists, honeymoon ideas, jewellery displays and, of course, bridal gowns and cutting-edge design not only for the bride and groom, but the entire wedding party – bridesmaids, mother of the bride, and little attendants.

A wide range of reception venues and all types of wedding transport will be on display including horse-drawn carriages, Rolls Royce, convertibles and limousines. Fashion parades will take place at 11.30am and 2.30pm.

Admission is $15, concession $7 and free for accompanied children under 10.

The 2011 Canberra Wedding Fair

Take the stress out of planning

PLANNING a wedding can be stressful, but you can relax knowing that all is taken care of at the Belconnen Premier Inn, including a bridal suite within the hotel, says sales and events manager Kelly Hilder.

“The Belconnen Premier Inn is the perfect venue for your wedding reception, offering affordable packages, which can be adjusted and fine-tuned to fit your budget,” she says. With the ability to cater for 10-110 people, the Belconnen Premier Inn has a selection of packages that will ensure the success of your special day, according to Kelly.

“Whether you are unsure about your music, decorations or even the timing of your day, you can rest assured our experienced team is more than happy to assist.”

Contact the functions co-ordinator at the hotel for a copy of the Belconnen Premier Inn wedding package, says Kelly. Belconnen Premier Inn, 110 Benjamin Way, Belconnen. Call 6256 9284.

Passionate Latin dancing

WITH the colder months looming, it can be hard to stay motivated to exercise, according to Raquel Paez, owner of Salsabor Dance Studio.

“It’s a good idea to sign up with a friend, to make sure you both stick with it, and to choose a class that’s near your home,” she says. “We have classes situated in 10 different locations around Canberra, so there is always one close by!”

Salsabor is more than just a Latin dance school, says Raquel – as well as salsa, hip hop and many other dance styles, they also hold Zumba classes for any age and any fitness level, and have new BodyArt yoga classes.

“The yoga class will give you time to treat your body and to centre your energies,” says Raquel. “It covers basic yoga movements, Chinese qigong breathing along with some strength and conditioning work including Pilates based exercises for body conditioning.”

“We are all passionate and love what we do,” she says. “We’re a really friendly school, and all our instructors will make you feel at home and that you’re part of the family.”

Register online at www.salsabor. com.au.

Just relax and smile

UNDER new management since September, Red Photography has a bright, fresh, modern new look, according to new owners Tanya Fitzgerald and Eric Piris.

“We’ve been photographers for many years, myself for more than 12 years and Eric for 15 years,” says Tanya. “We love wedding photography; getting to know the couple beforehand, helping them feel relaxed about the big day and making it fun for them.

“It’s great to have the chance to be creative with wedding photography, and it’s definitely a rush to be involved so closely in the whole day.

“We appreciate that some people don’t enjoy having their picture taken so we aim to make it as relaxed as possible.”

Red Photography offers three different wedding packages, but can also arrange a custom packages.

Call 6295 9369 or email info@redphotography.com.au for more information.

The award-winning and top-rating ABC television series, “Doc Martin” has been released as a beautifully packaged nine-disc set. The “Doc Martin Comedy Cure” includes series one to four and “On The Edge”. And “CityNews” has four boxed sets, valued at $99.95 each, to give away. Win a ‘Doc Martin’ boxset Entry details at citynews.com.au/win

all about Mother’s Day

Ideas and inspiration to spoil mum

AS Mother’s Day on May  draws near, now’s the time to be ready to show your mum you care. We’ve got some good ideas and creative inspiration in this week’s guide...

Ticket to a big night out

“BREAST Wishes” is an uplifting Australian musical about life, love, family and silicon, and it’s showing at the Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre from May 17 to May 21, according to The Q’s program manager Stephen Pike.

Premiering in 2008 with a gala concert in Sydney, followed by a 2009 capital-city tour, “Breast Wishes” now travels to all States and Territories as part of a 46-venue tour – making it the largest tour of a home-grown musical.

“It is a sophisticated and hilarious glimpse of cleavage and beyond which promises to make your heart sing!” he says.

“This uplifting musical strongly supports the National Breast Cancer Foundation. It promises to do more for grassroots education, in that respect, than practically any initiative to date, so, aside from its very considerable entertainment value, it’s worth the price of admission, and then some, purely on that basis.”

The Q, 253 Crawford Street, Queanbeyan. Call 6285 6290.

An appealing concert

INTERNATIONALLY recognised blues musician Fiona Boyes is set to play at a special Mother’s Day concert as part of Anglicare’s Winter Appeal on Sunday, May 8, according to Peter Sandeman, chief executive of Anglicare. THE concert at Jeir Creek winery, Murrumbateman, will include a Rotary sponsored sausage sizzle and jumping castle for the kids.

Tickets are $10 or $25 for a family of four, with all proceeds going to help Anglicare’s work to address homelessness in Canberra, Queanbeyan, Yass and the wider region.

Mr Sandeman says the concert will be a chance to have some fun and show concern for a major social issue for our community. Anglicare’s recent housing survey proved that Canberra is the only major city in Australia without any affordable housing in the private rental market.

“This is a major reason homelessness is on the rise in our region,” Mr Sandeman says. “Front-line workers report that for the first time they are seeing an increasing number of families with children without a place to live. It’s frightening to think how they will cope as temperatures drop as winter arrives.”

Guest musician Fiona Boyes is the only Australian ever to be nominated in the Memphis-based Blues Music Awards, widely recognised as the Grammies of the Blues.

If you cannot attend the concert but would like to make a donation please phone Anglicare’s donation hotline on 1800 187768.

Relax with a softening soak

EVERY mum deserves luxury, so spoil her this Mother’s Day and give her the attention she deserves, says Elissa Michel, from Sibu Beauty.

“The Sibu Spa Pedicure is the ultimate luxury for feet and is one of Sibu Beauty’s signature treatments,” she says. “Your mum can enjoy a relaxing and softening soak in Pure Fiji coconut milk followed by nail filing and buffing. Feet and legs are then exfoliated using invigorating Pure Fiji Sugar Rub followed by a nourishing foot masque.

“Next comes a luxurious foot and leg massage followed by mum’s choice of nail varnish, all the while enjoying a glass of champagne!”

Elissa says that Sibu can pamper your mum from head to toe with a special Mother’s Day offer – during May when you or your mum book in for a Sibu Spa Pedicure, you’ll receive a free back and shoulder massage valued at $50. Call now to book in.

Sibu Beauty, Unit 27, Nicholls Shops Kelleway Ave Nicholls. Call 6241 4115

briefly

Afternoon in the park

THE annual Mother’s Day event will return to Glebe Park, Civic, 11am-3pm, on Sunday, May 8. Organised by the ACT Government, the “Mother’s Day Party in the Park” will feature live music and dancing, a range of market and food stalls, special giveaways and massages. More information at www.events. act.gov.au or call 132281.

Lunch and a garden walk

THE Friends of Old Parliament House Rose Gardens are holding a fund-raising Mother’s Day lunch at the Lobby Restaurant, midday, May 8. The set lunch includes three courses with drinks and is priced at $80 a ticket. A guided walk through the gardens will follow lunch. More information from 6254 6186 or email friendsOPHRoseGardens@gmail.com

New bags and more

A GORGEOUS, new bag is a wonderful gift for the mum in your life, according to Andrew Keogh, owner of Bags to Go, and in store is new, winter stock.

“We have some beautiful abstract multicoloured, hand-painted bags in a range of styles and colours,” he says. “There are even matching wallets.”

Andrew says that there are some classic styles in the sale at the moment, and it’s a great time to grab some bargains.

“We have Jag and Diana Ferrari styles up to 60 per cent off, and some stylish leather duffel bags and overnight bags, too,” he says.

“There is classy luggage from Antler which has been proving very popular, too.”

Open Monday-Thursday, 9am-5.30pm, Friday 9am-7pm, and weekends 9am5pm.

Bags to Go, 76 Gladstone Street Fyshwick. Call 6228 1084.

A hand with healing

A LUXURIOUS treatment to “dissolve impurities and heal your body” can soothe away the stress of life, that’s the message from Thai Bliss Therapeutic Massage, Civic.

Thai Bliss Therapeutic Massage offers a wide variety of treatments including traditional Thai, aromatherapy, remedial massage and foot reflexology.

It also offers signature massages for those who are seeking more in their search for indulgence.

“Our stone massage treatment is a popular choice. The warm, healing stones combine all the benefits of thermotherapy. With gliding massage strokes and a facial scalp massage as

a finishing touch, this treatment is perfect for those looking to relieve anxiety and emotional exhaustion of modern life,” a spokesperson says.

“We also have hot herbal compress, which can be used with a massage of your choice. The compress houses traditional herbs and medicines from Thailand that help reduce inflammation and remove any built-up toxins. It’s a traditional Thai therapy that soothes muscle tension, stiffness and energises the body with a massage of your choice.”

Thai Bliss also offers gift certificates.

Thai Bliss, Shop 2, Childers Square, 14 Childers Street (University Avenue side), Civic. Call 6262 9297

At Solitaire’s royal wedding event

At Bink Cement Products’

all about the arts

Much ado about Tony’s third try at ‘Nothing’

arts in the city

THIS is Tony Llewellyn-Jones’s third go at “Much Ado about Nothing” and he reckons this time he’s just about got it right.

In 1974 in Melbourne, he paid the gullible young lover Claudio. In 1975, he played the villain Don John in John Bell’s seminal spaghetti Italian production at Nimrod Theatre, of which the great Australian novelist Xavier Herbert declared: “This is true Australian Shakespeare”. Now in 2011, in a Sicilian setting, he plays Leonato, the righteously angry father of the bride Hero, whose honour is impugned.

A well-known figure in the Canberra Theatre scene, Llewellyn-Jones been seen here in recent years directing plays for Canberra Rep, and as an ANU graduate, he can safely be considered “one of our own”.

His accounts of the production are naturally glowing. The bookings are good. As the witty male lead Benedick, Toby Schmitz (who also, coincidentally, wrote a play being staged at the Q) is “fantastic”. They’re all looking forward to being in the Playhouse, a favourite with the company. Stephen Curtis has designed a fabulous set in which they will perform comfortably on a flat floor. It’s warmly lit by Matt Scott.

Some of his old actor friends are having a good time being hilarious. Max Gillies plays the police chief Dogberry, “all the funnier playing it straight”, he reports, bringing the house down with “the lunacy of his malapropisms”. Another old friend, Robert Alexander, playing Dogberry’s 2IC Verges, is also straight-faced.

And yet there’s a dark side to “Much Ado”. True, says Llewellyn-Jones, it has a preposterous plot and it can quite literally be said to be “much ado about nothing” in that it all hangs on a lie.

“It’s about the manipulation of people of good will by people of bad will,” he says. But when he

thinks about it, it’s also a play about loneliness, and that does not exclude the wicked Don John.

He believes that the young people that he expects to see bussed in for this production will really enjoy the play, which hinges on mishearing and malevolence. But there’s no need to get too

worried about it. As he says: “All is well that ends well.”

“Much Ado about Nothing”, directed by John Bell, The Playhouse, May 19-June 4. Bookings to 6275 2700.

By Helen Musa

MELBOURNE Opera is bringing Frank Lehar’s “The Merry Widow” to the Canberra Theatre on May 14 a production directed by Hugh Halliday and conducted by David Kram.

Versatile soprano Ali McGregor stars as the immensely rich Hanna Glawari, along with a whole swag of brilliant singers, including David Rogers Smith as the debonair Count Danilo and Sun Aria winner Lee Abrahmsen as a young lover. There’ll be a full orchestra and full chorus on stage. It seems that the peripatetic McGregor can’t get enough of Canberra. She’ll be back again with her own cabaret show “Jazz Cigarette” at The Street Theatre on May 20, singing jazz ballads, blues and even a bit of Britney Spears.

As the wealthy widow, McGregor, who can sing everything from grand opera to Kurt Weill, will be turning to the witty milieu of operetta, sung in a recent English translation that gives new life to the familiar operetta.

Ali McGregor as merry widow Hanna Glawari.

The glamorous “Belle Époque” sets by Andrew Bellchambers and costumes by Zohie Castellano signal a developing focus on visuals from this relatively new company, which began as South East Regional Touring Opera and which now boasts that it is “second only to the national company as the most active opera company in the country”.

“The Merry Widow”, Canberra Theatre, May 14 at 7.30 pm. Bookings to 6275 2700. Ali McGregor’s “Jazz Cigarette”, The Street Theatre, May 20. Bookings to 6247 1223.

Tales of Kimberley drive a compassionate drama

“MAD BASTARDS” (M)

IN Brendan Fletcher’s compassionate, credible observation of Aboriginal life in the Kimberley region, a simple entertaining plot combines perceptive observation with palpable concern for social and lifestyle issues confronting its indigenous characters.

Fletcher and co-producers the Pigram Brothers, who also perform most of the film’s musical numbers, asked Kimberley people to tell their stories for incorporation into the screenplay.

TJ (Dean Daley-Jones) hitch-hikes from Perth to the Kimberley to visit the 13-year-old son Bullet (Lucas Yeeda) whom TJ has not seen since his birth to Nella (Ngaire Pigram, the only trained actor in the cast) the daughter of police sergeant Texas (Greg Tait).

The narrative revolves around those four and two marvellous Aboriginal elders (John Watson as a bush camp leader and Douglas Macale as the delightful Uncle Black).

“Mad Bastards” is a polemic about being Aboriginal in a community with little white-fella participation yet deeply influenced by white-fella practices, expectations and paraphernalia.

Straddling Aboriginal and white societies, Texas is working to promote reconciliation through an unresponsive men’s group but the potential of TJ’s return to harm his family disturbs him.

I suspect that the film’s lack of gloss reflects not creative inadequacies but rather a commitment to veracity. That’s a plus in my book.

At Dendy

“WAITING FOR ‘SuPERMAN” (G)

WHAT’S the measure of a school’s worth? Davis Guggenheim’s angry documentary attacks that question and finds that in the US, the public education system labours beneath the burden of too many schools and teachers not doing their job.

As guinea pigs for his uncompromising enquiry into drop-out factories and academic sink-holes, Guggenheim follows a small cohort of children and their families. Several are black, many come from broken low-income homes. All want the best-possible education. But the system is loaded against their prospects.

The US federal government shares public education funding with the States, which make

cinema

Dougal Macdonald

education policy. Two unions represent teachers. Michelle Rhee, chancellor of the DC education system, created a plan to weed out incompetent teachers employed under contracts giving them life tenure, but union officials refused to allow members to vote on it. Politicians’ promises to reform the system die after the election.

The film explores those and other educational phenomena in depth. Its coverage of lotteries to allocate too few vacancies in next year’s intake at well-performing schools to too many children seeking them is a heartbreaking coda demonstrating that children are the helpless victims of adult iniquity.

At Greater Union

AFTER 10 years, Bob Connolly returns to the screen with another bottler of a documentary, telling how Sydney’s MLC School prepared for its tenth biennial concert managed by music department head Karen Carey in the Opera House. It’s a musical gustation for which master documentarist Connolly and his sound-person partner Sophie Raymond went every Wednesday morning for 18 months to the department to shoot 263 hours of image and sound which Ms Raymond spent 18 months as lead editor fashioning into a polished, involving film. Not participating in the concert was not an option for any of the 1200 students.

Chinese violinist Emily Sun stands out as much for her candour at interview as for her performance of a movement from the Bruch concerto. Iris Shi’s refusal to get involved in the concert confronts Mrs Carey with difficulties. Unmarried, middle-aged teacher Louise Keller confesses that she has known love. A piccolo player pleads a family commitment that would stop her playing at the dress rehearsal.

Over it all strides Karen Carey, solving a myriad of problems, less a colossus than a woman driven by a commitment to music’s role not only in education but also in life.

The result delivers a joyous experience that I found deeply satisfying.

At Greater Union

Club may be gone, but never forgotten

Devastated MARK

PARTON grieves for the Canberra Services Club

I’M still devastated by the loss of the Canberra Services Club; a huge part of our history has gone up in smoke and, as a young city, we don’t have enough history to lose.

My relationship with the club is not a long one. I joined a few years ago because the Services Club was unlike any other licensed premise I’d ever visited.

The place was always chockfull of characters who were happy to have a yarn about pretty much anything. When you walked inside the front door, it was like taking a trip back in time. You were instantly back in the ‘70s (or even the ‘60s), and this really was a place where you could just leave all of your troubles at the door and relax.

It’s ironic that my memories of the club are punctuated by smell of the wood burning in that magnificent heritage fireplace at the front.

I had the pleasure of hosting a number of official functions at the Canberra Services Club including the dedications of the Lady Gowrie Hall and the Captain Saunders Room in 2009. I’ve spent Anzac Days within those walls and had chicken schnitzels out on the front deck.

I can’t believe it’s gone. Callers to my radio program the morning it burnt down gave me a blow-by-blow description of the fire as it engulfed the building. And then the memories came flooding in.

As the flames raged, I spoke to Marie who reminisced about the heady days of 1945/46. She was at HMAS Harman back then. That’s where she met her husband to be and they’d go dancing at the club.

“He’d play football at Manuka and we’d go in and have tea at the club before wandering across to the cinema,” she said. Marie told me that when she and her husband came back to live in Canberra 50 years later the Canberra Services Club was one of the first places that they re-acquainted themselves with.

Dianne remembered scurrying along to the club once a week from Griffith Primary School for her ballet lesson. “I would ride there on my rickety old green Speedwell bicycle and head home to Narrabundah afterwards,” she said. Dianne recalled being taught by Johanna

fundraising for Japan

1. Snapping for Japan

THIRTEEN professional commercial and artist photographers associated with PhotoAccess, at the Manuka arts centre, have volunteered to conduct family portrait sittings with proceeds going to the Australian Red Cross Japan and Pacific Disaster Appeal 2011. The cost is $150. This includes a photographic sitting of about half an hour, an A3+ print on fine art paper made by Stephen Best of Macquarie Editions and a digital file of the selected image. Sittings will be held on May 7 and 8 from noon to 4pm. Bookings (essential) can be made at photoaccess.org.au/tide

2. Lunching for Japan

THE Lyneham Buddhist Centre, in Archibald Street, will hold a vegetarian lunch to raise funds for Japanese earthquake victims at a

Bowers, that Esme Perry played the piano and that Alan Elder and Elphine Allen were the “older students we all tried to emulate”.

ACT Treasurer Katy Gallagher was in disbelief when I spoke to her on the morning of the fire. She’s spent many an hour in ALP sub-branch meetings over the years at the Canberra Services Club.

“It’s very sad,” she told me, “particularly for older Canberrans and veterans who’ve enjoyed the place over many years.”

That building can never be replaced, but I pray that a new club emerges from the ashes and not another multi-storey block of apartments with an accompanying plaque noting: “This was once the site of…”

Mark Parton is the breakfast announcer on 2CC

temple open day, 10am-2pm, Sunday, May 8.

A delegation of Australian Buddhists will visit Japan to distribute these funds on behalf of all Australian donors. Pre-booked tables of 10 diners cost only $135, which includes a two-course lunch plus drinks, and can be booked on 0412 224553. All proceeds will be donated to the appeal.

3. Evening for Japan

THERE is a fundraising tapas and wine evening planned for the Tongue and Groove bar in Civic on Wednesday, from 6.30pm on May 11. With a target of more than $10,000, all proceeds will go to the Australian Red Cross Japan & Pacific Disaster Appeal. Entry is $60 and includes a ticket to the door prize draw and two hours of tapas, wine and standard drinks. Tickets from Olivia on 0423 959180.

Win a ‘Doc Martin’ boxset

The award-winning and top-rating ABC television series, “Doc Martin” has been released as a beautifully packaged nine-disc set. The “Doc Martin Comedy Cure” includes series one to four and “On The Edge”. And “CityNews” has four boxed sets, valued at $99.95 each, to give away.

Entry details at citynews.com.au/win

arts in the city School takes to Chopin New work honours dance star

By Helen Musa

SO you think maybe we don’t have enough music festivals and competitions? Never fear, the ANU School of Music has inaugurated the Australian International Chopin Piano Competition, with Vladimir Ashkenazy as patron. It runs until May 8 around the school. www.music.anu. edu.au/chopincompetition

THE Queanbeyan Performing Arts Centre’s theme for 2011 “Oh What a Night!” has hit home with too many openings at once – “Capture the Flag” at the Q until May 8 (bookings to 6285 6290), Centrepiece Theatre’s “The Imaginary Invalid” at the Courtyard Studio until May 14 (bookings to 6275 2700) and “Humble Boy” at Theatre 3 until May 21, (bookings to 6257 1950).

CANBERRA painter Val Johnson has been traveling and painting in England and Ireland. The results are now on show at Yarralumla Gallery and Oaks Brasserie in Weston Park Road.

JULIE Scheer, director of Canberra’s Dance Central School, is over the moon that its group DC Crew has taken out top place in the Varsity division at the Sydney qualifiers to compete at the World Hip Hop Championship in Las Vegas in July.

AFTER spending six months as a studio resident at Canberra Contemporary Art Space, Dan Vukovljak is really taking off. His newest show is called “Waatt?” and runs until May 28 at Canberra Grammar School’s Gallery.

THE 2011 Epson ACT Australian Institute of Professional Photography Professional Photographer of the Year is Scott Leggo, while James Thompson has been named the Emerging Member of the Year. Their works and many others are on show at The Artworks, 52 Wollongong Street, Fyshwick, until May 15.

ART Song Canberra’s “Season of Song” is presenting beautiful French melodies, Elizabethan songs and songs by Schubert, Britten and Michael Head on May 8 at 3pm in Wesley Music Centre, Forrest. Tickets available only at the door.

CHIEF Minister Jon Stanhope wants us all to participate in a community consultation process to help determine the future plan of management for Albert Hall. Land and Property Services is hosting a forum on its website (www.laps.act.gov. au) and the results will be summarised in a report that will form the basis of a draft plan.

By Helen Musa

IN a singular piece of good news for dance in Canberra, Mirramu Dance Theatre has announced a new work to be staged at The Street Theatre on May 13-15.

“Sapling to Silver” honours the life of the company’s director Elizabeth Cameron Dalman, who also founded the Australian Dance Theatre in 1965 and is one of this country’s most senior dance exponents still working. The title is selfexplanatory, and revolves around her six-decade career. The Sunday show will be preceded by a celebrity debate on the relevant topic

“After the Sixties, it’s all Downhill”, which stars Canberra music guru David Kilby.

Mirramu’s core dancers will all appear with Dalman in the show – Vivienne Rogis, Miranda Wheen, Jade Dewi Tyas Tunggal, Albert David and Mark Lavery. While it’s predicted to touch a chord with dance enthusiasts and creative souls, baby boomers are particularly welcome. Bookings to 6247 1223.

Cameron Dalman... one of this country’s most senior dance exponents still working.

Manuka’s mecca, bar none

A COSY Moroccan eating house sits in the heart of Manuka – a feast for the senses.

Fragrant spices, such as cumin, cardamom and cinnamon, waft from the open kitchen of the Mecca Bah, as does the delicious aroma of freshly-baked Turkish pizzas.

And the décor is as rich as the cultural heritage of the Middle East – superb patterns, rich colours, sensuous fabrics, hand-crafted ceramic dishes.

When the Mecca Bah first opened in Canberra several years ago, the then-managers (long gone) told me, when I called to ask some questions, that they would “not allow” a review until they had been trading for long enough to iron out the wrinkles. Ouch.

I loved the food then, but have found the service over the years sporadic. However, on my last visit, I was pleased with the lot. New management is in place and there were smiles all round and friendly, efficient, attentive service.

Sharing dishes will give you the ultimate Mecca Bah experience, so we started with

reviews

two mezze dishes. The chickpea battered mussels, served with almond skordalia ($15), are salty and addicting, although the skordalia wasn’t quite as velvety smooth as on my last visit. Then we enjoyed, for the first time, the lamb and pinenut boureks ($13) – stunning little numbers. The pastry was light and the filling a distinctive spicy taste.

Tagines are a specialty and, of the five on the menu, we selected the lamb with preserved lemon, green olives and harissa ($24). Cooked in special Moroccan clay pots, guaranteed to create rich flavours, tagines are a real treat, and this one, with tender lamb that fell off the fork, was no exception.

The Turkish pizzas are unique: Sardine, caramelised onion, roast tomato and olive ($20)? Roast pumpkin, chilli, pomegranate jam and feta ($21)? For us it was the

Rich and compelling

“GEESE” has a depth and polish that belies its brief gestation. The story takes place in the mind of its protagonist Simon Weigl as imagined or remembered by a young woman, Anais, who witnessed the last moments of his life at a train station in 2003.

“Geese” is a new, one-act play that draws on theatrical traditions from Europe and Asia and owes is existence to Canberra’s intergenerational culture of independent theatre-making. “Geese” was written and directed by Joe Wooward with movement design by Hannah Cormick, costumes and styling by Jessica Fairbairn and an original score by Damien Foley. The text is dense and sometimes formidable, but its meaning is conveyed through seamless integration of movement, music and stylistic elements.

Woodward is a renowned authority on early 20th century French author and actor Antonin Artaud who coined the term “Theatre of Cruelty” and who was profoundly influenced by Balinese dance. Hannah Cormick is mentored by acclaimed Balinese

THEATRE

“Geese”

Shadowhouse Pits, Canberra Theatre Courtyard Studio, season ended.

Reviewed by Simone Penkethman

mask maker and performer Ida Bagas Anom. Other cast members have expertise in a range of theatrical traditions as well as in psychology, anthropology and languages.

“Geese’s” greatest strength is that it creates a rich and compelling experience for its audience regardless of their knowledge of the traditions it incorporates. The audience can easily connect to its cast of archetypal characters and to the unfolding of its disjointed plot that can be pieced together retrospectively. “Geese” is a vibrant and impressive piece of contemporary theatre that deserves to reach new audiences across Australia and the world.

Playwright Joe Woodward is a drama reviewer for “CityNews”.

spit-roasted lamb, rocket, yoghurt and sumac ($22). We knew it was “more lamb”, but we didn’t care. The topping was tasty and the Mecca Bah doesn’t skimp on the ingredients.

Canberra’s operation (the same group runs the Mecca Bah in Brisbane, Cairns and the Gold Coast) is large. The outdoor area features a fountain and has strong heaters in winter.

When the Mecca Bah first opened the wine by the glass (listed on the specials chalk board above the bar) was a tad expensive, but this has been adjusted and the prices, we agreed, now sit well in the marketplace.

The Mecca Bah – a real mecca.

Open seven days, lunch and dinner. 20 Flinders Way, Manuka, call 6260 6700. Fully licensed.

Top of the ‘Hill’

MuSICAL THEATRE

“Sanger Hill”

Tuggeranong Arts Centre, until April 30. Reviewed by Bill Stephens.

IT is rare to be able to welcome a locally written musical, and even rarer to welcome one as confidently staged and performed as “Sanger Hill” proved to be in its premiere season at the Tuggeranong Arts Centre.

Andrew Hackwill is a dab-hand at writing catchy melodies. His songs are enhanced by clever musical arrangements and witty lyrics. In “Sanger Hill” they are sung to an excellent pre-recorded soundtrack and provided in abundance to tell an engaging story, set in the multicultural milieu of the colonial Australian goldfields, about the efforts of three best friends struggling to stave off the bankruptcy of their respective businesses resulting from their unsuccessful trip to the Melbourne Cup.

The stage setting is simple, the costumes colourful, and the comedy is broad. In fact, the script by the Allen Key Collective contains enough cheeky innuendo and double entendre for half a dozen pantomimes, but under Lainie Hart’s resourceful, inventive direction, performed with gusto and panache by the uniformly strong ensemble cast, this light-hearted show proves to be a thoroughly entertaining, even irresistible experience.

“Sanger Hill” is an impressive inaugural production for Mad Ferret Productions and, providing they can maintain this standard, Dominic Mico is on a winner with his latest initiative to provide the Tuggeranong Arts Centre with a creditable basis to create fresh new Aussie works. Meanwhile “Sanger Hill” deserves an encore season.

Winners of the five boxed-sets of the TV comedy “Outnumbered” are: Joseph Pedler, of Kambah; Julie Nolan, Giralang; Daryl Backwell, Breamlea, Victoria; Angela Rhoades, Fisher and Claire Corby, Harrison.

all about home&garden

The groovy house made for dreams

HOuSE TOuR

Wo RDs: Kathryn Vukovljak PH otos: s ilas Brown

“IT’S a low-maintenance house, easy to live in but different and groovy, too,” says Tina Hobill of the sculptural, modern Narrabundah home she shares with architect husband Adam and their two young daughters Ella and Ruby, and Chilli the dog (“our first child!”).

“The house absolutely meets our style requirements… although Adam says I’m the hardest client he’s ever had!”

Adam and Tina designed and built their “dream” home a couple of years ago, and since then the project has won Adam, of Adam Hobill Design, the 2011 National Building Designers Australia award.

“It’s a good feeling to win an award that’s judged by your peers,” he says.

“We wanted plenty of natural light, cross ventilation and strong visual links from the interior spaces to outdoor living and recreational areas.”

The house is large but with plenty of “cosy nooks” and bright shots of bold colour, like the Kelly-green kitchen splash-backs, accents of red and pops of yellow to keep the space playful. High, horizontal windows upstairs control the outlook and create views of treetops, sky and clouds, “like being in a tree-house”, says Adam.

Tina says they spend all their time

outside in the summer, and with their home’s L-shaped design and walls of windows, can always see what the kids are up to. “They can play in the garden or in the toy room, watch DVDs or whatever, and I can see them, but they’re not under my feet,” she says.

“It’s an easy place to live in; it’s big but it pretty much looks after itself.”

Adam says he used natural, raw materials and left them exposed to age and develop, like the warm timber used throughout the home and the practical concrete floors that “don’t show the dirt!”

“The budget didn’t allow for complex detailing or expensive finishes, so the success of the design needed to rely on the unique detailing of common materials and finishes,” he says.

While Adam admits his favourite spot in the house is his concealed wine cellar, Tina says she adores the living area.

“My favourite Friday night is sitting on the couch, fire on, glass of red wine in my hand!” she says.

“It’s our dream house.”

Adam and Tina Hobill with Chilli the dog... “It’s an easy place to live in; it’s big but it pretty much looks after itself,” says Tina.

Designs on clever gardens

gardening

cedric Bryant

THE Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show is reputedly the largest such event in the southern hemisphere.

Some of its gardens have won prizes at the prestigious Chelsea Flower Show in the UK.

In the rather formal garden illustrated here the main feature is the use of recycled timber for the freestanding pergola. This structure has an air of strength as a feature in its own right in a small space. It is a common mistake in small gardens to think small from statues to other elements – although I am not sure about the stone seat! But remember this is a display garden.

The clever design of the timber board walk leads one’s eye through the rocks and shrubs to the pergola. The whole effect could easily be appropriate for a townhouse or courtyard garden. The only change would be to have a larger timber deck the total size of the pergola to accommodate a table and chairs.

The second garden is fun with colourful loops leading to a timber deck. Admittedly, the large, paver, stepping stones would be a challenge for many folk but they can easily be altered to be more practical.

This prompts the idea that all of the gardens on show could easily be adapted to not only a small garden, but as a feature in a corner of a larger garden. Good screening in the rear provides privacy so important as gardens in general shrink in size with the current trend of “McMansions” (do folk really want to spend all their time in a huge house and no outdoor areas for adults and children alike to enjoy?).

Win a book for kids

I AM all for encouraging children into gardening and the new Yates book “Young Gardener – Get Your Hands Dirty” by Janice Marriott (Harper Collins rrp $19.99) is the perfect answer. Marriott is a NZ-based writer of children’s books and children’s television. A great book for grandparents to give to the littlies.

I have three copies to giveaway. To be in the running to win this beautiful book, simply write your name and contact details on the back of an envelope, with a favourite child’s name that’s also the name of a flower and post it to Cedric Bryant Young Gardener Competition, “CityNews”, GPO Box 2448, Canberra City 2601 by Thursday, May 19. I will announce the winner in my column on May 26.

A prize-winner’s effective design.

Here comes Jack Frost

NOW to some garden practicalities: May has arrived with no frosts and relatively warm nights. I mean 5-7C-plus is not really that cold, but be warned Jack Frost will almost certainly arrive with a vengeance. Citrus tree in containers should be moved into a frost-free area. Move against the home under the eaves or perhaps in part of an open carport? If citrus trees growing in the garden are not too large, cover them with hessian or shade cloth. For small trees, simply place four tomato stakes around the tree to hold the hessian in place. It is preferable to have the top lose so that on warm sunny days this can be pulled back. If you are going out for the evening to

pull the cover over before you leave. While on the subject of frost, disconnect hoses, sprinklers and tap timers now before frost blows them apart.

A final reminder to plant bulbs without delay, look for clearance specials at garden centres

Check the new Oasis Spreading Pansy in a variety of colours that spreads up to 60cm. Perfect for hanging gardens. Weeping cherries should be pruned now rather than in spring when the sap is rising and they are more prone to fungal disease. This applies equally to all stone fruit. Spray with Bordeaux or Kocide to combat fungal problems.

The calm, cool home office

KEEP your home office space tranquil with a backdrop of white and seafoam accessories.

your week in the stars

With Joanne Madeline Moore May

9 – 15

ARIES (Mar 21 – Apr 20)

If you are too impulsive, you’ll miss vital information – especially involving financial matters. As Mars shifts into Taurus, slow and steady wins the financial race. And don’t be too hasty when it comes to love! Rams are notorious for sudden elopements and shotgun weddings. “I shall marry in haste and repent at leisure.” (James Branch Cabell)

TAURUS (Apr 21 – May 20)

Don’t accept things at face value – there’s plenty going on beneath the surface. If you are too black and white, you’ll miss the subtle undercurrents at play. Mighty Mars marches into your sign on Thursday (until June 21) so it’s time to be a bold and beautiful Bull. Confidence is in and complacency is out; as you approach life with passion and pizazz.

GEMINI (May 21 – June 21)

With five planets in your hopes and wishes zone, it’s important to have a goal that you’re working towards. Then focus on bringing your dreams down to earth via practical plans. If you are reckless with relationships, you could find yourself with a fractious friend (or a livid lover) on your hands. Saturn is asking you to be less careless and more considerate.

CANCER

(June 22 – July 22)

Jupiter and Uranus are broadening your career options, but Saturn is making sure there are plenty of domestic responsibilities to keep you busy. Focus on getting the balance right between your professional and personal lives. Be inspired by Cate Blanchett (born on May 14) “I live my life parallel with my work, and they are both equally important.”

LEO (July 23 – Aug 22)

With proactive Mars moving into your career zone, take the lead at work. If you’re looking for employment, stay one step ahead of the pack (which means finding jobs before they are advertised). Thursday is a fabulous day for business transactions and professional projects as the Grand Trine in earth links your money, career and work zones.

VIRGO (Aug 23 – Sept 22)

Versatile Virgos are keen to test new information and beliefs as you study, teach, learn, lecture, read, write or research. With gung-ho Mars moving into your aspirations/adventure zone, are you dreaming of a lifestyle that gives you more independence? Hop on your horse and follow your heart – wherever that may lead.

LIBRA (Sept 23 – Oct 23)

Mercury, Venus and Jupiter join up in your relationship zone so companionship, conversation and joint ventures are highlighted. Female friendships are favored, as you combine talents and make beautiful music together. Sick of being single? Cast your net wide – sparks are set to fly with an amorous Aries, a gregarious Gemini or a sexy Sagittarian.

SCORPIO (Oct 24 – Nov 21)

Don’t even try to second-guess the behavior of others this week Scorpio. They will continually surprise (and flummox) you with their unpredictable antics, so don’t lose sleep trying to work out where they’re coming from. If you expect the unexpected – and are flexible – then you’ll manage just fine. Money and mates are a misguided mix.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov 22 – Dec 21)

Promises are cheap! You’re fired up to assist someone in need but don’t promise more help (or money) than you can actually deliver. Venusian vibes are strong on Thursday so plan a divine indulgence whether it’s a beautiful meal, relaxing massage or romantic rendezvous. Keep your international connections going – who knows where they may lead?

CAPRICORN (Dec 22 – Jan 19)

Don’t spoil your romantic chances by being too business-like. As Mars moves into your romance/entertainment zone, it’s time to be proactive in love, focus on friendships, and have some serious fun! Thursday’s Grand Trine favors artistic, educational and sporting pursuits. Creative Capricorns will enjoy turning abstract ideas into practical projects.

AQUARIUS (Jan 20 – Feb 18)

Communicating, contributing and connecting are the buzz words for the week. You’ll feel super idealistic, as you strive to make the world a better place in your own adventurous Aquarian way. Don’t get so carried away that you forget your nearest and dearest though. Sometimes it’s best to start your charitable work in your own backyard!

PISCES (Feb 19 – Mar 20)

Your finances are currently being influenced by serious Saturn and jovial Jupiter. Wise up Pisces because being broke is no laughing matter! More careful budgeting (and less spontaneous spending) will help life run more smoothly. Keep your feet on the ground, even though your head’s in the stars. You’ll win in love if you have realistic expectations.

Copyright Joanne Madeline Moore 2011

What are companies of lions called? 8 One confined in jail is known as a what? 9 What is the incarnation of a god? 10 What is the sum paid for the use of money borrowed?

Name a petty officer in the RAN.

What is worn as an amulet or charm? 16 One who walks past another could be called a what (6,2)? 19 Which skin disease is attended with itching and exudation of serous matter?

Which island is separated from south east China?

What is the smallest particle of a substance capable of independent existence?

A midday nap is called a what? Down

What is a group of skits, dances and songs? 3 What is a fact assumed to be a matter of direct observation? 4 Which kind of horse races at full speed for short distances?

5 Name an imperial liquid measure. 6 Which venomous snakes assume a hoodlike form? 7 What was the former name (until 1935), of Iran? 12 Name the units of electrical resistance.

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