What a mess: it should never have come to this JON STANHOPE Revealed: My life among the paedophiles WITNESS J Singer’s
Walking this year’s Mother’s Day Classic will be a first for DEB WHITFIELD… she’ll be doing it at home
By Danielle NOHRA
CANBERRANS are some of the best reporters to Crime Stoppers nationally and, recently, police have been busy with more than 600 calls about COVID-19 breaches, which raises the question: “What is it that makes people dob someone in?”
A behavioural science lecturer at the University of Canberra, assistant professor Dr John Hawkins, says it essentially comes down to people feeling like they’ve been treated unfairly.
“Behavioural science experiments have shown that people resent unfairness and are willing to incur costs to punish those they regard as behaving unfairly,” Dr Hawkins says.
“So a family that has been staying at home on their own, ‘playing by the rules’, who sees a neighbour holding a party may well be motivated to dob them in.”
Since the COVID-19 restrictions were implemented, ACT police say they’ve received more than 600 reports of virus-related incidents. And, more recently, in early April, police attended 164 call-outs for reported virus breaches.
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“If the people next door aren’t play ing by the rules of the game, they probably will dob them in, even at risk of the neighbour finding out,” Dr Hawkins says.
“Even though Australians are supposed to be opposed to authority and rebellion, being treated unfairly outweighs that.
“Australians like to think of them selves as larrikins and rebels, but in practice they tend to follow rules more than you might think.”
There seems to be a strong social norm about following the physicaldistancing rules, says Dr Hawkins, which is something he was surprised about.
“I was a little surprised at how meekly people have accepted the restrictions. The restrictions are seemingly like a nanny state and yet people play along with it,” he says.
“People have accepted them even if they’re not at great risk, they see it as a way of stopping the spread of the disease. Also, once they see most people obeying the rules, there’s a strong pressure for them to also obey.
“It’s the idea that people want to conform and if they think everyone else is obeying the rules, they want to obey them, too.”
And, when it comes to Canberrans doing the right thing, it’s not only in regards to COVID-19.
According to Crime Stoppers, there
Politics 11
Cover: Deb Whitfield takes to the treadmill for this year’s Mother’s Day Classic.
Photo: Holly Treadaway. Story Page 9.
was a 75 per cent increase in calls to Crime Stoppers in the ACT in 2019, compared to 2017.
Last year, Crime Stoppers ACT received 14,266 contacts from the public, whether via a phone call or online, which resulted in 3052 information reports, 32 arrests and 193 charges. This was 2030 more calls than 2018.
Diana Forrester, the chair of Crime Stoppers Australia and the ACT, says she likes to think that Canberrans report because there’s a chance the criminal will be apprehended and it’s helping everyone be safe and secure.
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capita reporting,” she says. More people in Canberra are also willing to leave their contact details and are less likely to report for a reward, Diana says.
“Mostly Canberrans are disinterested in the connection between giving information and receiving a reward compared to other states and territories,” she says.
“They’re doing it because they care.”
Nationally, Diana says someone contacted Crime Stoppers every two minutes to share information about unsolved crimes and suspicious activity, leading to an average of 100 apprehensions by police every week.
“We ask the public to report every single piece of information that they think is suspicious or a criminal act,” she says.
If it’s a crime-in-progress that needs police assistance, Diana says people should call 131444, but if no one is in danger, she says it can be more helpful to get all the details and provide them to police through Crime Stoppers.
For example, she says if someone was suspiciously taking a television out of a house, it would be more helpful to take down details.
“What make and model of the car they got into, were they tall, short, what colour was their hair?” she says.
“If they’re not in danger and there’s no way the police will get there in time, with that information, chances are the person will be caught in the end.
“It’s the smallest pieces of information that help, and without the eyes and ears of the community, we really can’t keep the community safe.”
By Robert MACKLIN
WITNESS J, the prisoner held secretly in Canberra’s Alexander Maconochie Centre for more than seven months, is soon to publish a book on his incarceration with some of Australia’s most odious paedophiles.
Titled “Here, There are Dragons”, it will be published online via Amazon and Lulu. Both paperback and e-book will be available on demand. While it is self-published, it has been professionally designed and edited at a cost of some $2500.
All profits will go to Beyond Blue, partly because of proceeds of crime legislation but also to acknowledge the work of the charity that assists those like himself who have suffered mental health issues in times of stress.
Witness J told “CityNews”: “I’ve spent a bit bringing it to market. I accept this cost as I want my humble story to be told. Due to an unfortunate combination of my literary inexperience and ongoing anonymity, I’m rather restricted from promoting the book outside of Twitter.”
The official publication date is June 1.
Witness J’s secret trial and incarceration was first revealed by “CityNews” late last year when he brought a civil action against the AMC authorities after his cell and his brother’s home were raided by the AFP. This followed an attempt to seek literary and publishing advice from myself as the author of some 29 books.
The action was unsuccessful, but the revelations of his imprisonment made national headlines.
The book is an extraordinary and compelling story of a Canberran from a well-respected family who graduated from Duntroon, served with great distinction for 10 years in battlefields from East Timor to Afghanistan and later with DFAT in sensitive civilian posts. The
circumstances that led to his trial and imprisonment took place during his posting to Indonesia.
However, while the story of his career – and the actions that led to his imprisonment – have yet to be told, the saga of his time confined with sexual offenders at AMC is itself a fascinating account of the moral conflicts and outrages when forced to deal at close range with the human “monsters” of the title.
Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of the book is the fact that he was able to write the story while actually serving his time in the same “Pod” as the characters he was forensically delineating. (Disclosure: I have written a foreword to the book).
Since his release, Witness J has been living in Victoria seeking employment while pursuing some redress from his former employer.
Kumon has become a mainstay for the 1800 school children already enrolled in the Kumon Maths and English programs in the ACT. They would normally attend their Kumon Centre twice a week, but now they are fully home-based for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic. Students are doing their daily worksheets at home under the supervision of parents and guidance of their trained Kumon Instructors.
THANK you for arts editor Helen Musa’s review on the troubles surrounding ArtSound radio (“Change is a challenge as ArtSound FM struggles”, CN, April 16). On the whole, I think it to be a fairly accurate statement of the situation there.
It was, I think, public knowledge that the ACT “powers that be” had not been happy about grant expenditure. For that and other reasons things had to change.
But I have to take issue with ArtSound president Amalijah Thompson about her and the board’s dealings with volunteer presenters.
After 21 years of presenting on ArtSound FM, my program partner and I were told just before Easter last year, our program did not fit the “new” schedule. That’s fair enough, broad and telecasting are ephemeral media, and we considered that 21 years was a pretty good run. But, to be dismissed with four days’ notice and by email just showed a lack of guts from those who made the decision.
To a large extent, methods of management like the above, have much to do with the unrest Ms Musa reports on. Bruce Bowman, via email
“At least, I can rely on Kumon to see my two sons through this stressful and uncertain period,” says Jenny, a long-term Kumon parent in Canberra. “The structure that Kumon provides is brilliant.” Gavin enrolled his daughter in the Maths program last year and says he would recommend it to anyone who is worried about their child not thriving. “She has surpassed her grade level since enrolling 12 months ago, so I know she’ll be alright,” says Gavin.
Kumon Maths and English programs cater for children from preschool to year 12 with a daily approach to developing excellent academic skills. The Kumon Instructor will tailor your child’s study program based on their specific needs.
Students would normally attend Kumon classes twice each week and receive homework to do every other day.
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1021 Gungahlin Drive, Nicholls ACT 2913
IN September, when I wrote about the regulatory disaster that was taking place in Paperbark Street in Banks, many people responded with like stories from across Canberra.
The site in question was a mess with the basic construction having been abandoned 16 years ago. Since then it has become a rubbish dump. The ACT politicians and the bureaucracy did what they are famous for – they deflected, ignored letters and when they did bother to respond, they blamed someone else and, in the end, did nothing.
Then in late 2019, to everyone’s surprise, the site was suddenly put up for sale and was sold. Good news at last.
To everyone’s surprise, one of the sites has already been cleared ready for resale.
Meanwhile, in Wright another couple of sites have been gathering rubbish since they were sold several years ago. Again, the same bureaucratic responses were frustrating
Planning messes are not unusual and are being allowed to linger within the bureaucratic too-hard basket – marked as ‘no action required’ until nearby residents make an enormous effort to complain.
nearby residents who thought they should not have to view these growing tips in their newly developed suburb.
Alas, just after “CityNews” was made aware of this situation, along came a Suburban Land Agency representative. He spoke to residents and agreed that there was a problem and that the sites would be cleaned up and that sales were to be arranged.
This could be a good news story about local residents getting some action. They now wait to see if the bureaucratic responses will deliver – sooner rather than later. However, the question lingers – why were these properties allowed to reach such a neglected state?
Not all this lack of action takes place in the newer or outer suburbs.
On the corner of Bentham and Hutchins Streets in Yarralumla, adjacent to the shops, sits a block that has become a local talking point.
It sits there in all its glory with
weeds taking over a partially demolished building and loads of rubbish that lands in there regularly. The owners have been approached. The bureaucracy has had the usual letters. But still it sits there. Some think it may have to be listed for heritage as an amazing example of how the planning bureaucracy in this city is so incompetent.
But if you wanted to see a prime example of how much the bureaucracy has become corrupted (meaning it is no longer capable of functioning), there’s a site on Lowanna Street, Braddon, that beggars belief. This is not your usual slack property developer, this is the ACT government in the form of Minister Yvette’s Berry’s ACT Housing.
The government’s banners are proudly displayed on the site, being a partially built set of apartments. The construction is possibly eight years old and is now derelict with thieves having made off with anything detachable and the understorey car park filling with water each time it rains heavily.
I am sure there will be a bureaucratic reason why all these abandoned
properties are left to become rubbish dumps. I am sure that several of the Labor/Greens coalition politicians have been approached and that they have dutifully passed the problems on to someone else and at best have sent back the usual bureaucratic rubbish as a response. What stands out is that these planning messes are not unusual and are being allowed to linger within the bureaucratic too-hard basket –marked as “no action required” until nearby residents make an enormous effort to complain.
Put the examples above in together with some other acts of neglect and incompetence, such as the long saga over the Coombs shops, and what do
we have? A government no longer capable of ensuring that very simple requirements are followed through with developers – or in the case of ACT Housing’s Braddon debacle, no longer capable of cleaning up its own mess; this while people queue for such social housing.
Is this Labor/Greens government now past its use by date? And still the ACT Liberals remain very quiet about these and so many other planning and development issues.
Paul Costigan is an independent commentator and consultant on the visual arts, photography, urban design, environmental issues and everyday matters.
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Our arts editor HELEN MUSA has been living with a special kind of anxiety. Not caused by the coronavirus, but her much-loved missing Burmese cat. It’s quite a story.
IN this year of smoke, fire, hail and pestilence, you’d think we would have enough to worry about but in our household one event has dominated all others – our cat ran away.
During mid-February I was visiting a 94-year-old friend, one of my former writers when I worked at “Muse” arts magazine. I knew from stories of her girlhood involving her favourite cat Ginger that she loved felines, so on a suggestion from my son, I took my two beautiful Burmese cats, Sinbad and Aladdin, to visit her.
All was well until unexpectedly, her son arrived, opening the front door and Aladdin immediately bolted into the shrubbery in Dickson – he was always wary of strangers.
Despite searches day and night, sticking posters up and down the street, calling all the vets in the region and the RSPCA and posting on the Canberra Lost Pet Database Facebook page, there was no sign of him.
I checked his cat “passport” and found to my horror that his microchip number was attached to a very old mobile phone that I haven’t used in a decade, so I quickly worked out how to change that.
The outpouring of sympathy was
extraordinary, as for some reason, stories about lost, hurt or distressed animals bring out unexpectedly hu mane responses in people.
Friends and even busy colleagues at “CityNews” wanted to help search, and our graphic designer Janet of fered to make a fancy new poster.
A month and a half of heartbreak ing daily searches followed.
A pair of astrologists cast Aladdin’s star charts and concluded that he was high up, near water and in good health.
A resourceful journo friend of mine put me on to a noted ecologist, who gen erously set up a surveillance camera for a week or so. We learnt a great deal about the nocturnal life in Dickson and the voracious appetite of magpies who were wolfing down the cat food the RSPCA had suggested I leave, but there was no sign of Aladdin.
Queanbeyan Council pound opined that he would walk home and this was our favourite consoling fantasy, but by April, hopes were fading.
Then on Saturday, April 4, I received a call: “Brian from ACT Domestic Animal Services here… I have a cat called Aladdin.”
Brian had received a call-out from one of the big office buildings at Rus -
sell Hill and eventually caught Aladdin in a basement car park, emaciated and three kilograms lighter but well and truly alive. Queanbeyan Pound may have been right – he was well on the way home to Queanbeyan.
To say that we are over the moon is an understatement. When I went to the Mugga Lane facility I was full of emotion and even more so when I saw I was the only person there on a happy errand – there was a line of people surrendering animals because they couldn’t look after them during
the virus.
Our vet Emma, in an impressive half-hour phone consultation where she went through a health checklist, told us to feed him little and often. He’s been happy to oblige.
Aladdin is home, where, after 36 hours or so of growls and hisses from his older brother Sinbad, it’s all brotherly love again and he’s working hard at putting back on the lost weight.
His return has brought muchneeded joy into the hearts of our many friends and my son has received more
than 700 expressions of happiness on Facebook.
Members of the Canberra Critics Circle suggested I retell the story from Aladdin’s point of view and another thought a Jack London “Call of the Wild”-style adventure story would be good. Yet another suggested I focus on his adventures in the Department of Defence.
This story has had a happy ending, although for seven weeks it didn’t look so – and we are very happy we had him microchipped.
By Bina Brown
WALKING this year’s Mother’s Day Classic will be a first for Deb Whitfield, even if it is in the comfort of her own home.
The mother of four would usually be spending the often crisp May morning paddling with Dragons Abreast on Lake Burley Griffin, alongside thousands of runners and walkers participating in the annual fundraiser for breast cancer research.
With COVID-19 putting a temporary halt to group events such as the iconic Women in Super Mother’s Day Classic, the family-focused run and walk has transformed into the Mother’s Day Classic Virtual 2020, an on-line community of virtual participants.
The challenge for participants is to register to walk, skip or run four kilometres anytime, anywhere – in their living room, at the local park or their backyard – on or before May 10.
Keen to maintain her fitness as the world went into self-isolation mode, Deb set herself a target to run or walk 250 kilometres in the lead up to the Mother’s Day event and maintain a connection to the event that is so close to her heart.
Fifteen years ago, at age 47, Deb was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer. Had it not been for an older sister being diagnosed six months
earlier, she may never have gone for a check-up.
She had no signs or symptoms of breast cancer, but she was pushed by her sister, who was relentless in asking if she had been for a scan. Her three daughters get regular checks.
“The fact that I am here means I was lucky; but I also did the things that I was told to do by the professionals and just stayed positive,” says Deb.
Part of that process was a commit ment to exercise and staying fit, which research has shown is good for the body and the mind.
Deb also drew on the myriad sup port groups for breast cancer survi vors, such as Breast Cancer Network Australia, Dragons Abreast and Bosom Buddies.
“I’m not usually a runner, but I do a lot of walking and I’m finding the time on the treadmill helps in so many ways. If I can help with finding out more about breast cancer and that helps other cancers then everybody wins,” she says.
Mother’s Day Classic Foundation chief executive Zara Lawless says supporter response to the virtual event had been extremely positive.
“We understand the current crisis has created significant challenges for the wider community and these unprecedented times call for innovative solutions,” she says.
“We know that so many of our dedi-
Deb Whitfield… “The fact that I am here means I was lucky; but I also did the things that I was told to do by the professionals and just stayed positive.”
cated supporters – those impacted by breast cancer, new mums, participants who have run or walked at every Mother’s Day Classic event, still want a way to be connected with the cause and stay connected with each other on Mother’s Day.”
People who register join an online community offering fitness programs, fun photo competitions, wellness tips and tutorials, Pilates and yoga classes, sponsor prizes and giveaways and fun kids’ activities.
Local sponsor, the Commonwealth
Superannuation Corporation, has initiated its own government challenge, with a trophy going to the department or agency with the most registered
“For over 22 years the Mother’s Day Classic has brought the community together to raise funds for vital breast cancer research and to celebrate and remember those touched by breast
“This can still be achieved and nothing will stand in our way to walk all over breast cancer. This is a great opportunity for the community to show how they will make their Mother’s
The Mother’s Day Classic Foundation (MDCF) is the single largest donor to the National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF). Established in 1998 by the networking and advocacy body Women in Super, the MDCF has funded 70 research programs and more than 250 Australian scientists, all focused on improving the survival outcomes of those diagnosed with breast cancer.
Since 1994, the five-year survival rate for breast cancer has improved from 76 per cent to 91 per cent.
Register at mothersdayclassic.gov.au
Journalist Bina Brown is a volunteer on the Canberra MDC organising committee.
HERE’S another first for the most progressive government (selfdeclared) in Australia… a young Canberra man facing a range of serious criminal charges has been denied by the ACT Supreme Court, against his serious objections, a right to a trial by jury.
While I am a lawyer by training, I admit I have no great knowledge of legal history but I would not be surprised if this is the first time in Australia, at least since federation, that an Australian citizen charged with an indictable offence has been denied this basic right.
The joint architects of this dubious policy, presumably at the direction of the Chief Minister, Andrew Barr, namely Attorney-General Gordon Ramsay and Minister for Justice and ACT Greens leader Shane Rattenbury have cemented a place in history. A place all the more remarkable in light of the ACT’s status as the first Aus tralian jurisdiction to incorporate a bill of rights into law in the form of the Human Rights Act. What is equally remarkable is that the decision to abandon this fundamental tenet of the rule of law, even if only temporarily, is that not only did no other state or territory feel the need to go so far as to deny the right to a jury trial against the wishes of a defendant but that it was also vehemently opposed by the Canberra Liberals.
Not only has the High Court not been particularly sympathetic to the ACT government’s law making in recent times, it is quite likely that this matter will not be heard by it before the COVID-19 menace has either passed or abated, thus rendering the fate of this right-wing adventurism academic.
Indeed, in a speech in the Legislative Assembly in opposition to the Labor and Greens proposal to abandon jury trials the Liberal shadow Attorney-General Jeremy Hanson gave a fine speech, which I felt perfectly reflected what have traditionally been regarded as core values of the ALP and I had
WHILE on the subject of the Supreme Court, I have recently had occasion to attend the newly opened court on a number of occasions (voluntarily, I hasten to add).
It really is very grand, in fact almost sumptuous. It has a touch of the Palace of Versailles about it – and not just because of the wigs and gowns.
I can’t help wondering every time I visit the new Supreme Court how much it cost and if the cost was rather more that was really necessary.
the just departed director-general of Health, all the best following his decision to resign from the position apparently in order to return to Melbourne to be with his family at this stressful time.
Mr De’Ath, however, is the latest in a number of senior members of ACT Health, including the immediate past Minister for Health, and I believe his two predecessors as director-general, and sundry other senior officers who have chosen in recent years to retire, to spend more time with their families or to otherwise explore new opportunities.
The coronavirusinduced, panic-driven decision to build a $25 million shed on the Garran Primary School oval would not have been necessary had the rigorous planning undertaken and commitments made more than 10 years ago not been trashed.
we respond to the greatest health crisis in a century, that we acknowledge and address, with urgency, the largest of the elephants in the room.
ACT Health has for a number of years been chronically underfunded.
bish or replace by 2020, the entirety of the Canberra Hospital precinct, including the main tower and to increase the number of beds commensurate with the increase in population and demand, namely by up to 450 beds. We are currently in the order of 150 short of the promised target.
One of his predecessors famously left within a day or so of her appointment. I recall wondering at the time, perhaps
The facts are irrefutable. For at least the past five years if not more, ACT Health has not been funded to account for growth in population, the ageing of the community, the advent of new medical technologies and medicines or, in other words, health inflation generally. The compounding effect has been a cut, in real terms, of at least $100 million a year over that time in funding
To be blunt, the coronavirus-induced, panic-driven decision to build a $25 million shed on the Garran Primary School oval would not have been necessary had the rigorous planning undertaken and commitments made more than 10 years ago not been trashed. In the circumstances, the shed probably needed to be built even though we all dearly hope it will not need to be used, but it should never have come to this.
Jon Stanhope was chief minister from 2001 to 2011 and represented Ginninderra for the Labor Party from 1998. He is the only chief minister to have governed with a majority in the Assembly.
By Kathryn VUKOVLJAK
ALISON Harrington says it’s “wonderful” to hear aged-care residents happily sing like nobody’s watching.
The CEO of social enterprise and technical innovators Move & Groove, Alison says her company’s silent disco therapy is being adopted in several aged-care facilities across the ACT and NSW – and the benefits during lockdown have been huge.
“There is so much the technology can do, such as playing bingo, with residents in their rooms and the caller in the hall,” she says.
“Now is a time when we really need to be able to bring moments of connection, as well as calm and happiness to our elderly citizens.”
“We’ve found that it helps to keep spirits up for those experiencing loneliness or dementia and can help access long-lost memories.”
this time of infection control, is quick and easy to set up and uses remote wireless technology.
“It’s completely turnkey. We want to get it to people so we can make an impact.”
Alison says the technology allows isolated residents to listen alone or in groups to personally curated music, podcasts, videos, yoga and meditation courses, as well as other languages and church services.
“While we have found that personalised audio is wonderful for taking people back in time and unlocking memories, such as a podcast about the Apollo 13 event, or playing ballroom music to people who used to love dancing, there’s as much joy in dancing to Taylor Swift,” she says.
“Our therapy is helpful because we can deliver it in a kit, contact-free and fully train aged-care workers how to use it remotely.”
Alison says Moove & Groove has a focus on training aged-care staff in a bid to make their jobs easier.
“Aged-care staff are now so stressed, having to be the entertainment on top of other tasks, and the last thing they need is the burden of another thing to learn so we made sure our six-week training was supportive and compre
Each kit has 10 sets of headphones, a tablet and a transmitter, with the ability to configure it to suit each facility. Residents listen on wire less headphones with aged-care workers able to change the programming from one tablet.
Alison started working with the immersive technology for a hens’ party business but quick ly saw the benefits it could bring in aged-care
THE United States of America is a “failed state” according to George Packer in the latest edition of “The Atlantic”. The handling of COVID-19 is not the cause, “the virus simply exploited its weaknesses”.
But is the same true in Australia? The issues cited by Packer include: “a corrupt political class”, a “sclerotic bureaucracy”, “a heartless economy” and “a divided and distracted public”. These issues are not new. “Americans”, he argues, “learnt to live, uncomfortably, with the symptoms” of a “dysfunctional government” with a leadership “too corrupt or stupid to head off mass suffering”.
By comparison, Australia is doing very well.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison along with leaders from the states and territories have taken decisive action to head off mass ill-health, death and suffering. Political parties have, by and large, put aside their political differences and shown they are not heartless but have worked in the interests of all Australians.
Thanks to the virus “Americans woke up to find themselves citizens of a failed state. With no national plan – no coherent instructions at all”. In marked contrast, albeit after a relatively short delay, Australians were given clear instructions. Stay at home. Do not attend the rugby, do not attend church, do not gather in groups. Social distancing and closing down of “non-essential” businesses followed.
Premiers and chief ministers co-ordinated with the federal government to manage the limited supplies of personal protective equipment (PPE). Governments at all levels in the US failed as they bid against each other for limited supplies of PPE. There was price gouging and those in greatest need were not given priority.
The embarrassment of Americans was highlighted by Packer who pointed out that “Russia, Taiwan, and the UN sent humanitarian aid to the world’s richest power – a beggar nation in utter chaos”.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine how useful it would be during the restrictions
Alison says the Moove & Groove kit also features a new “Virtual Visitor” program that allows families to easily book in for a “visit”
“All families have to do is book in for an online video call, which makes it easy for the aged care workers to facilitate,” she says.
In the ACT, Alison says the technology is available at Uniting Mirinjani in Weston, Uniting Amala in Gordon and will soon be implemented at Uniting Eabrai Weston, a new specialist dementia-specific site.
The program is part of a one-year research program with Australian Catholic University.
The “corrupt political class” has for years been fuelled through ever increasing demands by donors to political parties. Donald Trump’s “back-to-work” taskforce, for example, included
Micky Arison, chairman of Carnival Cruises. Its fleet includes the “Ruby Princess”. The taskforce also includes other billionaires. While Australia is at risk of the corrupting influence of political donations, the Prime Minister has been very clear that the back-towork approach will give priority to the best health advice available.
In fact, the hallmark of the response of the Prime Minister and the National Cabinet has been to follow the advice of the Commonwealth’s chief medical officer and the jurisdictions’ chief health officers.
The bureaucracy in Australia has been flexible and responsive. This is also in marked contrast to the “sclerotic bureaucracy” described by Packer.
The 2008 financial crisis in the US “drove a profound wedge between Americans: between the upper and lower classes, Republicans and Democrats, metropolitan and rural people, the native-born and immigrants, ordinary Americans and their leaders”.
In Australia there is a growing divide between the wealthy and the rest of Australians. The warning is clear. It is time to reject divisiveness such as “trickle-down policies” and to discard, on a permanent basis, inequitable policies such as the “New Start”.
Although we are in danger of divisiveness, the coronavirus seems to have largely united Australians against a common threat. This is in marked contrast to the way George Packer describes the actions of President Trump who “pitted us against one another along lines of race, sex, religion, citizenship, education, region and – every day of his presidency – political party. His main tool of governance was to lie”. There are also some important lessons that may be learnt from other countries. Denmark and Poland have declined to bail out companies that have been registered in off-shore tax havens. Although COVID-19 provides an opportunity for the international community to send a clear, unambiguous message to such companies, it is difficult to imagine that any US government would support such a move.
Reflect on the combined Australian governments’ responses to COVID-19. They may not have been perfect – but today we really are the “Lucky Country”.
Arts editor HELEN MUSA talks to a ceramicist who, with some nudging from a doctor friend, has put together a cost-effective medical shield for health workers battling COVID-19
THE ANU School of Art and Design has good reason to be proud of its newest senior lecturer in ceramics, Rod Bamford, as he puts his peculiarly practical talents in 3D printing to prototype and manufacture a facial shield for medical practitioners battling the COVID-19 crisis.
He is a distinguished exponent of his art form, former chair of Craft NSW and head of the Ceramics and Future Making studios at UNSW and of the ceramics and glass master’s program at the Royal College of Art in London.
The project to devise a shield came about after a phone call from a doctor friend, who told him she’d seen an internet image of a face shield, saying: “You’ve got a 3D printer, look into it.” He did, finding that much medical equipment had strict protocols around quality.
“I realised I couldn’t do masks, but face shields, yes,” he told me by phone from isolation.
“So I talked to people in the chat group thingiverse.com, which deals with playful
but also serious stuff and is dedicated to the sharing of user-created digital design
“I worked on the face shield, printed one out on my home 3D printer, and sent it to my doctor friend to try and see.
“She wrote back with a list of things that needed to be improved and we’re on version three at the moment.”
That included slits for ventilation to prevent the shields fogging up, adjusted visor fitting and comfort lining, as well as the need to flat-pack it and make it cleanable with disinfectant.
“I got a text this morning from a second doctor with a glowing report,” he said, “but it’s quite early, it’s only just out there.
“If it takes off I’d like to try and get in contact with other companies with 3D printers to help them print it.
It’s cheap, too, less than $1.50 a shield.
“I went to Officeworks and bought acetate binding covers for the clear visor and rubber bands to connect the backstop with the body… the third component is the 3D printing
filament I use with the 3D printer, PLA (long term biodegradable plastic) and purchased from a different supplier,” he said.
Right now two doctors are using the shields and Bamford has emailed others, saying: “If you’ve got a colleague, let them know this link to the design.”
“It would be impossible to copyright the shield because it’s out there in the public domain, but using thingiverse.com I was able to evolve the idea for share and use,” he said.
But ceramics and 3D printing?
“Ceramics is an area where you don’t just work with ideas and aesthetics but with practical outcomes, they sit together well,” said Bamford, who started work at the ANU in February.
“In ceramics you need a good technical foundation, and that’s common to most ceramicists.”
He first became interested in the computer as a tool for drawing designs, not just drawing things in 2D and 3D but then putting them through 3D machinery and finding, to his surprise, that printing in plastic was useful in making moulds.
One of the things he focused on while working at the UNSW and production business, Cone9 Studios, was creating a 3D printer that will print using clay, which is still an ongoing project.
“I’ve been amazed as to how quickly the virus has moved to change our lives, so if I can make a contribution, that would be great,” he said.
Inquiries about the face shield to roderick.bamford@anu.edu.au
By Helen MUSA
CANBERRA singer-songwriter Kim Yang was one of many ACT residents trapped in a campsite near Eden on New Year’s Eve and she’s written about the experience in a new song, “Garden of Eden”.
A well-known performer of cover songs at markets, pubs, cafes and weddings who studied jazz and blues standards at CIT, she is adamant that she’s not a pop singer, saying: “I still have my standards” and has made a name writing about her own life story through original songs, seen in her debut EP “Ocean of Mind”, which was promoted at the National Folk Festival last year.
Nice to have the exposure, but the Taiwan-born contemporary folk vocalist was well aware that her musical idols, Sarah Ann McLachlan, Joni Mitchell, Regina Spektor and Joan Baez, had always been driven by the flames of passion.
Her moment came when, holidaying with her Australian husband and some old friends near Eden, she found herself forced to search fruitlessly for places to hide or shelter when the fires swept through.
“Once it was the Garden of Eden. Now it is a living hell,” the chorus runs in her song as she describes the difficulty of trying to stay calm while some idiots were still observing the New Year’s Eve countdown.
“I was definitely not in the mood,” Yang reports and even now, the thought of the relentless partying makes her hopping mad.
“I was quite angry with people who wanted to party, drink and smoke – with the fires so close by.”
Reckless youth this night drags on and on waiting for midnight how do they still smile?
… her song continues, echoing the nightmare the evening had become.
Looking back, Yang says: “It was chaos. Everyone was trying to go to pharmacies and the IGA to get food and people were pleading to get the last loaf of bread – similar to the way things are right now.”
It got her drawing parallels to other terrible experiences that assail modern Australia, shown in the words: Asylum seekers
Drifting in a haze
Eyeing the last bread.
Eventually she did get to sleep in the tent back at the campsite. First thing the next morning, the road home via Brown Mountain was opened so they packed quickly and drove back to Canberra.
The moment she got home, Yang started composing a song far different from the sweet, melodious songs about love, hope, homesickness and loss for which she had become known. This time she was really fired up.
“I had bits and pieces that I hadn’t used from other songs, so I put them into the new work… I wanted to create a vivid picture of my experience with the fires, an image of the panic and the empty shelves,” she says.
Starting with her own guitar and vocals, the song gradually layered on cello by Tabitha Hart and piano by Guy Lilleyman, the producer and sound engineer who recorded and produced the song.
The impact of the bushfires on the mental health of Australians was truly horrific but the way she sees the panic reactions to the COVID-19 crisis, “it’s all happening again”.
“Because of that, I was hesitant about sharing the song, but I thought talking about the problem was a good idea because we are all in the same boat,” she says.
She’d been expecting to front up to the Folk Festival again this year but its cancellation has left her and other artists high and dry.
“I used to be a shy person. I buried my feelings and refused to open up to others. But music and songwriting have helped me express myself,” Yang says.
Kim Yang’s single, “Garden of Eden”, is available at kimyangmusic.bandcamp.com/releases
A mushroom walks into a bar...
By Helen Musa
THE CAT judges and board members went all out last week in their best attire (from the waist up, at least) for a Zoom presentation to founder of the 25-year-old awards, Coralie Wood, of a “Diamond CAT” award. Real-life “CityNews” music writer, Ian McLean was poised outside her front door to hand over the trophy, on which was inscribed praise for Wood’s “vision, tenacity and generosity, [which had] enabled the awards to grow and develop into Australia’s largest regional coverage of all areas of theatrical endeavour”.
CANBERRA Contemporary Art Space’s AGM joined the list of COVID-19 casualties, so they’ve put that on hold. Justine van Mourik, director, art collection and exhibitions at Parliament House, has stepped down as chair to take up a position at the South Australian Museum, so secretary Amanda Biggs has become interim chair until a live AGM is possible.
BEN Lawrence’s new film “Hearts and Bones” starring Hugo Weaving and Andrew Luri is being fast-tracked from cinema to home. The drama about a war photographer, a survivor and a photo that threatens to destroy them both, screened last year at the Toronto, Sydney and Melbourne film festivals. It will be released digitally on May 6 via iTunes, Google Play, YouTube, Sony PlayStation, Telstra and Fetch TV.
EVEN as London’s Globe and National Theatres were strutting their stuff online, Goulburn’s venerable Lieder Theatre Company was performing Dylan Thomas’ “Under Milk Wood” via Zoom after three read-through rehearsals with 24 actors in 19 locations. Then under the direction of Jock McLean they embarked on a night of 12-15 pieces of Shakespeare. To follow the company’s Zoom ventures, visit “Lieder Theatre Online” on Facebook.
GUNNING’S inaugural Picture House art prize will be awarded by People’s Choice, and the winning artist will receive a Derivan Matisse prize pack valued at $500, plus an offer to stage a solo exhibition at the Picture House Gallery in 2021. The exhibition of finalists’ works can be seen at gunningartsfestival.com, where viewers can vote for their favourites. The winner will be announced on May 16.
FROM Gunning to Paris, where the Musée du Louvre is closed until further notice. But not to worry: artworks by Delacroix, Rembrandt and Tintoretto, as well as Egyptian antiquities from the Pharaonic period, can be seen at louvre.fr/en/visites-en-ligne
SOMETIMES it feels like a new streaming service is pumped out every week, eager to compete for our hard-earned bucks and each trying to differentiate with a tacked-on brand buzzword. Think Foxtel NOW, Amazon PRIME, Disney PLUS, you know the drill.
Makes you wonder which company is next going to pop up to interfere with our attention span. My prediction: Google GO will be out before you know it (I’ll await my royalty cheque).
While we wait, trending on the pay-towatch juggernaut Netflix this week: “Too Hot to Handle”, a new “reality” series kind of about sex, but, well, not about sex. Cashing in on “Instagram influencers”, a bunch of them are thrown together in a tropical resort, aka “Love Island” or “The Bachelor/ Bachelorette”. No doubt aiming to stir up the tempest of tweets that follow those shows – who needs to pay for advertising when your viewers will do it for no charge – the twist with this one is that these contenders can only win by not touching each other in any way. Go figure.
always remains such a ratings puller.
I won’t say it’s my go to genre, but I also won’t deny I’m a fanboy for “Australian Survivor”. It is interesting to see that even with our overload of content these days reality TV
WHILE your wallet’s out, currently on Stan is 2019’s break-out Best Picture from South Korea, “Parasite”, rightly deserving of the top Academy gong, sub-titles and all. Normally at this point you’d get a
run-down, but this is a film where if you don’t know, don’t find out. Like the 1992 shock offering in “The Crying Game” –confronting for much more than just the IRA dealings – or seeing dead people in “The Sixth Sense”, jump on this latest rollercoaster story blind for the best ride.
AWAY from the streaming giants, what’s better than getting original, captivating TV for free? And I’m not talking about “MacGyver”, but home-grown drama that more than rates alongside its commercial counterparts.
So, down “Mystery Road”. Take the stark darkness of a film such as “No Country for Old Men”, add a bloke who could teach even Clint Eastwood a thing or two about the stand-off stare, and a landscape as brutal as that in the Australian 1971 classic “Wake In Fright” – directorial master Scorsese said it left him “speechless” (you can see this one too, but on Stan) – and you’ve got our own “western”, declared “tropic gothic outback noir”.
Aaron Pedersen is back for Season 2 as the indigenous “cowboy” detective, Jay Swan. Also returned is Judy Davis as a police sergeant out in a remote community choked by crime. While Davis may initially have been seen as the bigger wheel, Pedersen has ably contributed to its international success.
“Mystery Road” draws from so many iconic sources, transposed into our own sunburnt country in a way that undoubtedly excites the Australian imagination. This is figurehead work for what’s coming up locally – at least, once production is back in full swing out the
other side of this coronavirus stuff. Credit where credit’s due to the ABC for this stylish product that’s streaming on their iView platform (a Steve Jobs buzzword rip-off by any chance?) .
In a quirk, while the series is a spin-off from the captivating 2013 film of the same name, courtesy of all this platform chestthumping, it’s also only to be found on Stan. “Mystery Road” isn’t “bingeable” either, but it’s certainly worth the weekly wait.
IF you’re looking to “binge”, there’s the first three seasons of the brilliant, dystopian, “The Handmaid’s Tale”, on SBS On Demand. Probably never a better time to get into it with season four on the horizon. Just remember, though free, unlike “our ABC”, there will be ads. It’s exciting to see Australian platforms and original productions giving the “big boys” of the ever-growing streaming playground a run for their lunch money.
By Helen Musa PLAYWRIGHT, director
and producer Julian Hobba has, by and large, led a charmed life in the theatre and now he’s been announced as the next executive director of SA’s State Theatre Company.
He comes directly from the executive directorship of The Blue Room Theatre in Perth, a company dedicated to the development of new Australian plays which has just lost its Australia Council four-year funding after 20 years of support.
“It broke my heart,” Hobba lamented, but not so much as to interfere with his new job. Hobba is very well-known in Canberra. He came to the ACT from Malthouse Theatre in Melbourne when he was appointed by Robyn Archer as a program manager for the Centenary of Canberra in 2013 and was recently described by Archer as “pragmatic and efficient, but highly creative at the same time… His sensibilities are at the heart of theatre”.
Hobba quickly established himself here with The Street Theatre’s staging of his adaptation of Herman Melville’s story “Bartleby” in 2014 and he worked with the Tuggeranong Arts Centre on its silver anniversary Moon Festival project.
He also established and became artistic director of Aspen Island Theatre Company
to stage contemporary Australian theatre in Canberra and was behind the establishment of a pop-up classical Greek theatre designed by Ronan Moss, of Cox Architecture, during late November 2015.
In 2016 he wrote and directed a play set in Gungahlin, “The Slip Lane” and even wrote a short play called “The Skywhale – A Play
for Ten Children”, staged as a reading at a Canberra Youth Theatre festival.
Hobba phoned us last week from the outskirts of Perth where, having had several flights cancelled, he was about to embark on a three-day, 2695-kilometre road journey from Perth to Adelaide.
There he would be expected to contact
the local police, show them his letter of contract and go into immediate 14-day isolation before his new job in Adelaide starts on May 11.
“I’ll spend a bit of time getting introduced to the new staff at the State Theatre Company by Zoom, I guess… Then I’ll have to meet all the people, all the donors, the ArtsSA people and various others, but I hope it won’t be long before we’ll be meeting physically, too.”
Born in Bendigo while his mum was making her way home to Adelaide, 43-year-old Hobba grew up in SA’s Riverland region, then studied both at the University of Adelaide and as a journalism student at the UniSA.
He’d written his first play by age 21 and began production at age 25 encouraged by friends from Flinders University, before working in Melbourne and Canberra.
Keen to get back to his hometown, he says that one thing The Blue Room and the State Theatre Company have in common is a reputation for punching above their weight.
“And Adelaide is a real arts-loving kind of a city, so it gives you a bit of licence to do interesting stuff.”
Luckily, funding for the company is secure, as it is a statutory authority, although one, he stresses, which is very much dependent upon a casualised workforce when it comes to the creative people.
It’s an odd time to be taking up a new job.
The COVID-19 crisis, he suspects, may offer staff the chance to reflect and reorganise things that needed developing.
“Either way, we are going to be impacted and there will be a dramatic social shift,” Hobba says.
“How far ahead would we be expected to re-program shows that were scheduled and which might have resulted in good box office? It might be that in six months [restrictions] may not be lifted, so it will be impossible to present larger shows… it may be that in 2021 we’ll see a lot of local programming and that’s not such a bad thing.”
Hobba’s new job is not an artistic one. An executive director used to be called a general manager, and the job crosses over into areas of long-term strategy linked in with creative visions and questions of philanthropy.
He’ll be joining artistic director of the year, Mitchell Butel, whom he met while working at the Malthouse and who says: “I’m thrilled to have by my side someone who I know will help navigate the waters ahead with skill and grace”.
For his part, Hobba describes Butel as “a generous actor with a great sense of comedy [and] a unique handle on organisational skills”.
He’s looking forward to going home (his mum still lives in the Riverland) where he’ll pick up on former friends from high school and he hopes to be involved in bringing theatre to the communities there.
“I really love Adelaide… most places I’ve lived in have great qualities, like Canberra and Perth, but Adelaide has come a long way – it’s a kind-of cool town.”
CHEF Clement Chauvin is adamant his finished food doesn’t belong in delivery plastic containers. Enter COVID-19. Now what?
Clement, who runs fine-dining restaurant
Les Bistronomes, declares, in his French accent, “Pas de problème. People can cook with me, but from home.”
The concept behind “Cooking with Clem” is refreshingly different during these crazy times. A three-course meal, partially prepped at Les Bistronomes, is delivered in a basket with a recipe card and a link to a YouTube cooking video. Unpack the basket, read the card, grab un verre de vin (just one –remember, you have to head to the kitchen), and watch Clem explain how to execute the remaining steps for finishing off the dishes. Plate and dine on restaurant quality food at home, staying safe and saving lives.
All sound too much? It’s not. Indeed, it’s a fabulous way to break the monotony, a delightful idea if you’re celebrating a special occasion, and a great way to learn new cooking techniques.
Here’s the deal. Each dinner package for two ($120) includes l’amuse bouche (freshly baked baguette and smoked tomato butter), l’entrée, le plat principal and
easily feed more.
The charcuterie entrée was wonderful and includes Clem’s signature house pork rillette, duck liver, pickled cherry compote
Stay in touch with the names making news on Sundays from 10am as 2CC and “CityNews” present Canberra’s only local weekend news and current affairs program.
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Be part of the conversation call 6255 1206 between 10am and noon
Unpack the basket, read the card, grab un verre de vin (just one – remember, you have to head to the kitchen), and watch Clem explain how to execute the remaining steps for finishing off the dishes.”
prosciutto, Wagyu bresaola, French sausage and Sopresso salami. We plated, pretending we’d been on MasterChef, and got stuck in.
The three available mains are duck à l’orange, beef Wellington and Chateaubriand.
The duck dish comes with two breasts and two legs in a vacuum-sealed bag, pickled red
Okay,
cabbage, orange and duck jus and citrus segments. Place the bag in simmering water, remove, coat with cornflour and place in a frypan with foaming butter to colour and crisp. Follow instructions to finish the sauce and cabbage and dine away.
For the Beef Wellington, create a yolk mixture, brushing the pastry twice and scoring (the video provides tips). Cook in the oven and enjoy with witlof salad, roasted potatoes and red wine jus, all provided.
Each package comes with two desserts – French cheeses with dried fruit and crackers, port-poached pear and shortcrust biscuit, or white chocolate mousse. It was the cheese and pear for us and, as with the mains, all of the food was amazing with the dessert a perfect ending to “Cooking with Clem”.
Call 0416 922043 or 6248 8119. Details, including delivery areas, at lesbistronomes.net
A MUSHROOM walks into a bar and sees algae on a bar stool. He approaches the stool and says: “You’re looking all gal to me”. She looks him over and says: “And you look like a fun guy.” Obviously, they took a lichen to each other.
In isolation, we have taken to eating more mushrooms, not the magic ones that my groaner joke might have inspired but lovely brown mushrooms that are full of flavour.
It seems the season for fungi is here, expressed both in store and in the wider world. For example, there are signs posted around Lake Burley Griffin warning people not to pick the mushrooms as there have been death cap mushrooms detected on the surrounding lawns and, well, the risk is that the freshly picked product would shrivel your liver and they would live up to the name.
The ABC website tells me: “The deadly death cap mushroom grows across the country, but is most prevalent in Canberra, where it grows under oak trees imported from Europe.”
So, no shrooming for us but instead purchases of the product from the supermarket. In the last few weeks, I have made mushroom risotto where a light chardonnay was added to the arborio rice as a flavour boost.
This was only partially successful: the wine was a 2015 Tarrawarra Estate chardonnay from the Yarra Valley. It was subdued, very light in colour and with a finish more reflective of riesling than of traditional chardonnay buttery or oaky depth. While pleasant, by being anodyne, it was not a wine I’d stock up on; this bottle having been provided by a wine club that I no
longer subscribe to and I prefer fuller-flavoured chardonnays.
I have also made brown mushrooms cooked in red wine with a small amount of chilli. This was an accompaniment to steak. To this mix, I added a splash of Circe Mornington Peninsula Pinot Noir 2018, which I had purchased from the Qantas Wine Club following a telephone pitch from one of their sales people. It is $27.50 a bottle and is light but expressive with a splendid raspberry flavour and a hint of spice. It is drinking well now and is a truly autumnal wine with enough depth to satisfy but light and clean.
The focus on this fungal food also meant I could tell my son, who has been sheltered from
my dad jokes while overseas, my extended mushroom joke on the suitably clockwise walk, bridge-to-bridge at Lake Burley Griffin: nothing like a captive audience.
A police detective is interviewing Mrs Smith about the death of her third husband. The officer asks Mrs Smith: “Is it true, Mrs Smith, that your first husband died of mushroom poisoning?”
“Yes, it was tragic.”
“And Mrs Smith, is it also true that he left you this house on his passing?”
“Yes, that’s true.”
“Mrs Smith, did your second husband also die of mushroom poisoning?”
“Yes, another tragedy, we were mushrooming together and we must have picked some death caps amongst the forest harvest.
“And Mrs Smith is it also true that your second husband left you his vintage Rolls Royce that is now parked in your driveway?”
“Yes, that’s true.”
“So, Mrs Smith could you please explain to me, remembering you are under caution, how your third husband came to die from a head injury.”
“Well, detective, it’s quite simple. He wouldn’t eat his mushrooms.”
Anyone who takes himself too seriously always runs the risk of looking ridiculous; anyone who can consist ently laugh at himself does not.
– Vaclav Havel
RECORD Store Day is normally the busiest of the year for Brian “Frog” Harris and his Weston Creek store – Songland – when long lines of vinyl lovers snake through Cooleman Court Shopping Centre, from as early as 5am, eager to snag something special.
But this year, like most everything else in the world today, it’s going to take a little longer to get your hands on those rare, vinyl treasures because the April event has been postponed until at least June 20.
Harris, who has successfully navigated his bricksand-mortar record store through the ups and downs of independent retailing, remains positive about the future of the one-day sale, from which he devotes the proceeds to the RSPCA Canberra.
Like a walking encyclopedia of all things music, Harris has successfully turned his passion for music into a 40-year long career, 25 of those running his record store.
Some big names have stepped foot inside such as Lee Kernaghan, Suzi Quatro, Wendy Matthews, Normie Rowe, Leo Sayer, Jon English and Jimmy Barnes.
“We do more than sell music; we introduce people to music and in more normal times we sell music tickets, we host concerts, we host in-store appearances… it’s an all-encompassing experience that you get when you step inside a physical store, so I want to thank everyone for their support over the years,” Harris said.
For someone who’s worked with everyone from Alice Cooper to André Rieu, Harris says there’s something magical about small, locally owned record stores and they hold an important role in the community.
“Record stores bring people together, there are many bands that have formed by meeting in record stores, I met my wife “Moose” in a record store, and we have been very happily married for 26 years,” he grinned.
As we enter a second decade of everything-digital-ondemand, Harris is brave to maintain his own traditional record shop.
Like an Aladdin’s Cave of all things music, it’s undeniably obvious why this upstairs gem is standing the test of time.
“People think that dealing online is fast and easy, sometimes its neither,” he said.
“When you walk into a record store you might go to the A section for ABBA but as you flick through you go past the Alessi Brothers, Christina Aguilera, Vanessa Amorosi, ABC, the Allman Brothers, all of these acts you might be a fan of but never thought of looking at unless you went to A for ABBA, and that doesn’t happen online.
“But now, for whatever reason, they were reintro duced to vinyl and their listening habit changed dramatically because when you put a record on you have a tangibility, you get a different experience when you are holding the record, you are looking at art work on the cover, you are reading the words and lyrics so you are getting a piece of art that the artist intended, and an experience you don’t get when listening on random on an MP3 player.”
Being in store means you are exposed to different styles of music and importantly the communication you have with the person behind the counter, and that’s the beauty of record retailing.
“Being in store means you are exposed to different styles of music and importantly the communication you have with the person behind the counter, and that’s the beauty of record retailing.”
In a world of digital sameness, Harris says, many music fans have rediscovered the joy of owning and playing vinyl records.
“There’s been a huge revival in vinyl particularly among the MP3 generation,” he said.
“These people may have had 2000 songs on their MP3 player that they’d listen to on ‘random’ and when they get bored with a song, they flick to
In our fast-paced society, it’s humbling to know that people like Harris are still giving music lovers the opportunity to experience what a good old-fashioned music store is all about.
“For people who are interested and committed to music in a physical form, we are here and happy to be here, and will be here for a very long time,” he said.
So as he waits to have the Record Store Day confirmed, Harris is asking for donations of unwanted vinyl, DVDs, cassettes, VHS tapes or DVDs, which will be sold to raise money for the RSPCA.
The self-confessed animal lover (and owner of Griffin the cat), “Frog” has been supporting the RSPCA for a decade through sales from the donated music goods.
“Last December, for example, we donated $10,000. I got a list of all the things the RSPCA needs and we bought $10,000 worth of equipment for them, so every single cent goes to the animals.”
Songland Records, Cooleman Court, Weston Creek, call 6293 4677.
In these unforeseen times, I am dealing with many financial questions from clients seeking clarity around issues arising from government programs aimed at helping to get us through this pandemic. If readers, especially business owners and employers, need information or have financial questions, please send them to info@gailfreeman.com.au and my accounting team will provide answers.
For example, I've had a lot of questions around the JobKeeper program, which provides a payment of $1500 a fortnight for "eligible employees" subject to certain conditions being met. Only an "eligible employer" can receive this. An eligible employer needs to meet the decline-in-turnover test. If annual turnover is less than $1 billion, there needs to have been a drop of at least 30 per cent.
In addition, a business has to have held an ABN on or before March 12 and employed at least one eligible employee on March 1. Businesses can trade as a sole trader, partnership, company or trust. There are special rules that apply to new or changed businesses and tax professionals are best placed to provide advice. There are also special rules for not-for-profits.
Turnover drop is self-assessed, so it's important to get it right and not run foul of the anti-avoidance provisions. There are three test periods that can be used to calculate the 30 per cent turnover drop: March, 2020, against March, 2019; projected income April, 2020, against actual income in April, 2019, and projected income April to June, 2020, against actual income April to June, 2019. Turnover is the GST turnover of a business, even if it's not registered for GST.
Eligible employees must have been employed by the business on March 1 on a permanent basis, either full time or part time, or a casual over the age of 16 employed on a regular or systematic basis for at least 12 months and not have a permanent job elsewhere.
In addition, eligible employees must be either an Australian citizen, the holder of a permanent visa or a Protected Special Category visa. An eligible employee can only receive JobKeeper from one eligible employer. Eligible employees must not be receiving governmentfunded parental leave.
An employer needs to have paid all eligible employees at least $1500 a fortnight from March 30. Anyone stood down needs to have been re-engaged effective March 30 in order to receive JobKeeper. The payment is a reimbursement of wages that have been paid by the employer. As JobKeeper is a wage payment, it will need to be included on the income statement issued at the end of the year, tax will be deducted each fortnight and superannuation needs to be paid for hours worked. The subsidy must be paid to employees. Each eligible employee has to provide a signed form that is kept on file. Employers need to register with the ATO (a tax professional can do this) stating the number of employees and sign a declaration. The ATO needs to be advised of the amount a company pays each fortnight, through single touch payroll. The ATO also needs to be advised of turnover, it will not matter if this goes up; you only need to satisfy the decline in turnover test at the relevant time.
For advice on JobKeeper and other subsidies, contact the friendly team at Gail Freeman & Co Pty Ltd on 6295 2844.
Disclaimer
This column contains general advice, please do not rely on it. If you require specific advice on this topic please contact Gail Freeman or your professional adviser.
Your week in the stars – May 4-10, 2020
ARIES (Mar 21 – Apr 20)
The Full Supermoon increases your magnetism and boosts your ability to inspire others and transform your own life. So do your best to find appropriate ways to let off steam, and choose challenging projects to channel your fiery energy into. A major relationship (whether of the romantic or platonic variety) could also go through a metamorphosis, as you voice your concerns in a respectful way and work through a problem that’s been holding you back.
TAURUS (Apr 21 – May 21)
This week you’ll be given the chance to heal an old emotional wound or patch up a relationship problem. So don’t let stubbornness and false pride stop you from taking a giant leap forward when it comes to love, forgiveness, family and friendship. Accept the opportunity gratefully, with outstretched hands and an open heart. As birthday great Audrey Hepburn said: “People have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed and redeemed; never throw out anyone.”
GEMINI (May 22 – June 21)
Avoid being a superficial and garrulous Gemini. This week there’s a lot more going on beneath the surface than meets the eye. The planets (especially the Supermoon in Scorpio) encourage you to slow down, strip back the layers of polite conversation, dive deep, listen and learn. Plus Neptune and Pluto also boost creativity, compassion, perception and intuition. So you’ll find thoughtful observation and insightful soul-searching will take you far.
CANCER (June 22 – July 23)
In the lead-up to Thursday’s Full Supermoon (in fellow water sign Scorpio) expect an emotionally intense week when unresolved issues with a partner, family member or close friend could rise to the surface and demand to be addressed. Jealousy, possessiveness or power games could also be cause for concern. Do your best to keep things in perspective as you deal with any drama in a straightforward and honest way… definitely no side-stepping Crabs!
LEO (July 24 – Aug 23)
Watch out for domestic dramas this week, as the Full Supermoon shines a harsh spotlight on a brewing and stewing family problem. Being housebound, boredom, quarantine rules or lockdowns laws could contribute to you feeling like a cat on a hot tin roof… restless and rather reckless! Clever Cats will cool down, calm down and observe from the sidelines. The Sun, Mercury and Pluto encourage a creative idea that could transform your work experience.
VIRGO (Aug 24 – Sept 23)
You’re in a curious state of mind. Plus Mercury and the Full Supermoon could generate a promising opportunity involving international connections, education, children or social media. So get your ideas out there on the world wide web, as you inform and entertain others with your mercurial thoughts. Your motto for the moment is from writer (and fellow Virgo) Samuel Johnson: “Curiosity is one of the permanent and certain characteristics of a vigorous mind.”
LIBRA (Sept 24 – Oct 23)
This week is all about formulating smart strategies and finding practical solutions. Focus on business and/or work, as the planets help you tap into the extra energy, discipline and resilience needed to boost your finances and/or career during this difficult time. You’ve got the power, so make sure you use it positively! The Supermoon stirs up your self-esteem zone, as you take a deeper look at your core values and transform an outdated belief about yourself.
SCORPIO (Oct 24 – Nov 22)
Transformation is the name of the game, as the Full Supermoon in Scorpio pushes you to rise Phoenix-like from the ashes of a difficult situation. A challenging relationship has the potential to be reborn into a much more positive partnership. But you must be prepared to release old grudges; let go of the past; forgive and forget. So your motto for the moment is from birthday great, actress and humanitarian Audrey Hepburn: “The best thing to hold onto in life is each other.”
SAGITTARIUS (Nov 23 – Dec 21)
The Full Supermoon shines a spotlight on formal volunteer work or providing practical assistance to someone who is sad, sick or in isolation. So your mantra for the moment is from birthday great, Audrey Hepburn: “As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands; one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.” And there’s no room for negative self-talk! The Mercury/Pluto link encourages you to be kind and generous towards yourself.
CAPRICORN (Dec 22 – Jan 20)
Can you keep your control-freak tendencies under control this week? If you can, then you’ll astound and amaze others with your can-do Capricorn attitude, your natural personal authority and your talent for leadership. You’re ready, willing and able to work hard and help others. Just make sure you are generous and inclusive as you encourage family, friends, colleagues and community members to pull together during the Coronavirus crisis challenge.
AQUARIUS (Jan 21 – Feb 19)
The Full Supermoon stimulates your career and reputation zone, which brings the opportunity for recognition via paid or volunteer work. Through your daily words and actions, you have the power to influence people in positive and productive ways. Aquarius is the sign linked with community spirit, humanitarianism and altruism. So don’t miss the chance to make a real difference, as you formulate inspiring ideas and facilitate meaningful connections.
PISCES (Feb 20 – Mar 20)
You need to be clear and straightforward in the way you communicate with other people this week. Don’t waste precious time pussyfooting around or being ‘creatively elastic’ with the truth. With three planets in earthy Taurus, it’s time to be a more practical Pisces and stick to the facts, especially when it comes to personal projects and family matters. By all means escape into a fabulous fantasy world –but make sure you can step back into reality when it’s required!
Copyright Joanne Madeline Moore 2020
1 Name a long-bodied, short-legged dog. (6)
8 Which English king was known as “the Unready”? (8)
9 Name a term that implies a relationship to the backbone. (6)
10 Which AFL team won the Grand Final in 2000? (8)
11 The notorious Australian bushranger Daniel Morgan was known as what? (3,3)
13 Which term describes the killing of a monarch? (8)
16 What is an error in designating a person or thing? (8)
19 Which chemical compound is present as a contaminant in certain herbicides? (6)
22 What is a conversation between two or more persons? (8)
24 Name an extremely powerful acid. (6)
25 To protrude through an abnormal bodily opening is to do what? (8)
26 What does it mean to have as one’s abode for a time? (6)
2 Which word is often used to designate the first in a series? (5)
3 What is an assembly of ecclesiastics or other church delegates? (5)
4 Which communication is being overtaken by the email, or its like? (8)
5 Name the units of electrical resistance. (4)
6 What is a hospital for private patients? (6)
7 What is a very short period of time? (6)
12 Which morse components are smaller than dashes? (4)
14 Name another term for a horticulturist. (8)
15 What is an Old World wild goat? (4)
17 Which wading birds are allied to the herons and storks? (6)
18 Which term is descriptive of stockings? (6)
20 What are irreverent or blasphemous words? (5)
21 Name the Greek epic poem, describing the siege of Troy, ascribed to Homer. (5)
23 Ms Moncrieff was known as “Our” who? (4)
AT this time of the year, gardens are a great delight. Looking out of windows to see plants in flower or spending time in the garden, enjoying the fragrance, lifts the spirits. Garden centres at this time must be considered an essential service!
Even if you live in an apartment, balcony gardens provide a safety valve to help our sanity when confined to home. Plus a little weeding every day gives exercise and vitamin D from the sun. The range of autumn flowers vie for attention with the brilliant leaf colours of deciduous trees and shrubs. Flowers, from perennial plants to trees, are setting seed and particularly after our recent soaking rain, the conditions are perfect. Just look at the delicacy of the winged seed pods of maples, pictured here on acer Trompenburg. The wings guarantee the wind will disperse them. Some are already shooting in our garden, with the first new leaves appearing. Many will fall in the wrong place, but what an opportunity to pot them up for plant stalls at spring fetes.
AS deciduous trees and shrubs shed their leaves, other shrubs come into flower. Autumn is the time for camellia sasanqua, the nectar providing a wonderful feast for honeyeaters.
When we had our nursery in Yass, we’d often hear: “I’m surprised you don’t have such-and-such camellia”. To put this into perspective, there are more than 38,000 named varieties of camellia!
However, now is the perfect time to choose camellia sasanqua. These are the hardy
drought and frost-tolerant, as opposed to the larger-leafed camellia japonicas, which require filtered shade and flower in mid to late spring.
BEING confined to home has allowed me to catch up on jobs I’ve intended to do for years, for example we have one of the most beautiful, small, pure-white flowers of camellia sasanqua “Mine No Yuki” growing; perfect for training on a trellis. It has been growing all over the place for years but no longer, with some judicious pruning and tying on to a lattice using reusable Velcro plant tape, they are now happy.
remarkably
AMERICAN garden centres always promote “Autumn Time is Planting Time”. Here we hang on to the idea that spring is the perfect time, and I went against the grain when we had our nursery and promoted autumn to plant
the Americans were right. The timing is perfect now, especially with the present moist ground. The extreme heat and blasting winds have gone, and yet the ground will remain warm for some time. Even now the first frosts have arrived, they only affect a few
By planting now, roots will develop rapidly until spring for evergreen shrubs ready to do battle with the elements in summer.
A QUICK hint for this week: deciduous climbers should be pruned in winter, such as clematis and evergreen climbing plants, such as Trachelospermum or Chinese star jasmine in early spring.
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