A massive organisation that has far exceeded its charter should have a management team capable of the simple task of reducing its budget by 5 per cent without deleting programs like the 7.30 regional editions.

The agenda of chief executive Mark Scott is plain for all to see: Mr Scott wants us gullible folk to think that it is not his fault that programs are being abolished.

He could have taken recommendations from a review already undertaken, or have focused on delivering broadcast radio and television services to rural and urban audiences.

Instead, he ploughs ahead competing with commercial enterprises in the digital world.

Meanwhile, 5 per cent reductions in budgets are faced by commercial organisations and we hear little of that.

The ABC's large property portfolio could be partly sold off. There is also the matter of the huge administrative back office costs and the grossly inflated salaries of individuals who seem to do little more than front left-biased chat shows such as Q&A, Insiders, and Lateline, without looking at ABC Radio.

Being an ACT resident, I can happily say good riddance to the Friday magazine edition of the 7.30 program, too. I would rather watch and learn from a harder focused edition that does not discuss the problems of wandering cats or the alleged magnificence of the Arboretum. I want to hear important follow-up stories after the news, as is the case on the other days of the week.

Peter Baxter, Symonston

Parents refusing a NAPLAN test ("Parents boycotting NAPLAN tests", December10, p3) is more to do with the snobbery of not wanting to be told what to do (similar to those who refuse to vaccinate), rather than any philosophical argument.

If parents think a child is going to be harmed by a test, they had better go buy a bulk order of cotton wool because life is full of challenges. Any parent who has no interest in knowing if their child is coping with the core subjects of the curriculum is questionable at best, putting their own preciousness before any potential benefit to the child.

Carolyn Hogan, Queanbeyan, NSW

Surely no one is naive enough to believe that the disclosures in the US Senate as to the history of the approved behaviour of interrogation by the criminal CIA, will cease from this day on.

US senator Dianne Feinstein said that history would judge the nation by its "commitment to a just society governed by law and the willingness to face an ugly truth and say, 'Never again'." How many "never agains" can one country have? Too late, America. It has always been your habit to disregard the Geneva Convention, except this time you were found out. We have Habib and Hicks to prove it. They are Howard's legacy of shame.

Rex Williams, Ainslie

I suggest Peter Marshall (Letters, December10) check his facts. There has never been 500,000immigrants arrive in Australia in any year. The 15,000refugees we accept annually is about an eighth of our annual immigrant intake. It is growing against our decreasing annual intake of immigrants.

He should also understand that the large number of "illegals" in our country have arrived by air in possession of visas. By electing to overstay their welcome their entry permits expire, thus, their illegal status. Those who arrive uninvited by boat, having paid people smugglers to do so, have no prior approval in the form of a visa to travel here.

P.M.Button, Cook

If Christopher Pyne succeeds in reducing the federal funding of universities and increasing the financial burden on students and their parents, there may be some unintended consequences not to the government's liking.

Parents of primary and secondary school children may make the rational decision to save for their children's tertiary education by sending them to public schools. In doing so, they will, through their involvement, raise the standards of the public system but what will be the impact of lower enrolments on the government's much-loved and beneficently funded private schools?

Alan Robertson, Canberra City

Congratulations to Graham Downie on his excellent article describing the many failings of the ACTION bus service and the folly of the government's proposal to spend close to $1billion on its planned Gungahlin tramway ("Where is the proof light rail will be better?", Times2, December10, p5). It should be required reading for ACT politicians.

I had occasion three months ago to write to ACTION complaining about the adverse effect of major changes to our bus route to Fraser East. Up to that time our buses ran all the way to Civic via Belconnen, and then on to Woden and Tuggeranong. The same in the reverse direction. But with no warning that we were aware of, this was abruptly altered to a system whereby all of our buses outside peak hours terminated at Belconnen. In order to get to Civic one had now to change to a second bus. And, of course, the same in reverse. I believe a similar situation now exists in other suburbs.

To compound the confusion in our region, ACTION buses at the same time ceased differentiating between two completely different routes; ours to Fraser East and the other to Fraser West, whose terminus is some four kilometres away.

My wife, who is unable to drive a car, unwittingly got on the wrong "Fraser" bus at Belconnen on her way back from Civic the day after these changes were implemented. She had to walk for nearly two hours in bad weather to get home.

I complained to ACTION management about their changes, first through their official website, and then – receiving no reply – by letter.

I pointed out that radically changing our bus system was a completely retrograde step.

I have still received no written response to my complaint as I requested, but I did get phone call from a manager who, to my astonishment, adamantly maintained the fiction that both Fraser routes ended up at the same terminus.

What can one say about an organisation which apparently does not even know where some of its own buses go?

Our government should be putting our money into improving the existing ACTION bus service, not on a tramway which hardly anyone really wants.

Peter Trickett, Fraser

Your headlines and those of other media around Australia, to the effect that Tony Abbott has "dumped" or "buried" his GP tax (euphemistically called a "co-payment") are, of course, utterly misleading.

The government has not done anything of the sort. It has simply decided to reduce the payment by $2, to exempt some people and to adopt another typically mean and tricky way of imposing it by the back door, that is by reducing the Medicare payment to general practitioners by $5 and leaving it to them to decide whether to pass it on to patients.

Of course, most GPs will simply increase their fee by that amount, and who can blame them? Why should hard-working GPs reduce their incomes to help out a lazy, dishonest government?

Surely the media have some responsibility to be honest in their headlines and to avoid untruths. If so, then much of the media, including The Canberra Times, has failed to live up to that responsibility on this occasion – not for the first time when reporting on the worst federal government in living memory.

Richard Moss, Chisholm

Along with many other people, I am absolutely exasperated by the federal government attempting to argue that we should contribute to the cost of avisit to the GP. I already pay $43 when I see my GP. Everyone, except the federal government, seems to understand that there is a gap between the cost of the visit and theMedicare rebate.

People who are happy to pay $43 tosee a doctor when there is no need either have too much money or a psychological disorder, and these people will not be influenced by the Abbott government's attempts to further gouge our money.

As for the desirability of people being proactive with their health, Iassume people will not go to the doctor unless their condition is serious, and we can expect a rise inpreventable illness.

Gordon Fyfe, Kambah

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has always intended to reduce the Medicare refund for all doctors' visits by $5 apparently, including those not bulk billed. The co-payment, whether doctorscan opt out or opt in, isasmokescreen to blind the media and the public.

My family and many other Australians already pay $28 per doctor's visit ($65 minus $37 Medicare refund). If the Medicare refund is reduced by $5, we will be paying $33 for a doctor's visit at a cost of $32 to Medicare.

This may be the last straw for some people. They could move to abulk-billing doctor, where, for $30 they could make six $5 visits at a cost of $192 to Medicare.

So this policy in its current form may have the opposite effect to its stated intention of reducing Medicare servicing and costs.

Bruce Porter, Palmerston

Not only are hundreds of rich Australians coming forward to declare billions of dollars in untaxed assets and income stashed in accounts in Switzerland and other countries ("Hundreds disclose hidden wealth as ATO tax amnesty draws to an end", December 10, p4), but Cardinal Pell, the Vatican's economic minister, has shone a light on millions of euros hidden through a Byzantine system of secret accounts.

The good cardinal noted in relation to his discoveries that "very few were tempted to tell the outside world what was happening".

What a shame that, when Cardinal Pell had the ecclesiastically attuned ear of Minister Kevin Andrews, refrained from turning him against the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission, an organisation not only supported by four out of five charities, but whose express purpose is to shine a light on where charitable funds go and how they are managed.

Ann Darbyshire, Gunning, NSW

Having had his idea of an independent Scotland rejected bythe majority of his people, Alex Salmond is now planning to return toWestminster as an MP ("Salmond preparing to take his fight for Scotland to parliament", December9, p 7).

He claims that, if he is elected, he will ensure that the financial help and greater power promised to Scotland by the Prime Minister, David Cameron, before the independence referendum will be honoured.

I cannot help feeling that many people would view his move differently. Indeed, having suffered ahuge setback at home, which split Scotland into two camps, Salmond is merely making amends by returning to Westminster, cap in hand.

Sam Nona, Burradoo, NSW

Bill Shorten has peaked very early in the day, it is true ("Does Bill Shorten really deserve to become PM?" canberratimes.com.au, December 9), but this is not only because of what he is. This is also because of what Tony Abbott is.

I beg to differ with Mark Kenny's remark that Abbott is "straight-talking". I look at him rather differently.

Wise people think before they speak, comparatively less fortunate people think after they speak, and absolute morons don't think even after they have spoken. Abbott belongs somewhere between the second and third categories.

I really wonder at the wisdom of bringing such a disaster to the helm. Seniority alone isn't enough of a criterion for promotion to high offices.

Labor's fears about Shorten are misplaced. It is forgetting that he is areal politician and a manipulator par excellence. He backstabbed both Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard and even then became an Labor Party hero. He is a cunning politician to his fingertips and a shrewd politician for his admirers!

As for his "core values" and "detailed policies" – "no worries", touse the Australian catchword. This would be taken care of by the Labor manifesto and the professionals in respective fields.

As such, Shorten would most probably be a better PM than Abbott.

K.H.K. Niazi, McKellar

Several times now I've looked at the advertisement for David Pope's "rare artistic look at the waters" of Lake Burley Griffin and suffered vague feelings of disquiet. Today I realised why.

The map is upside down. It has been drawn contrary to conventional mapping practice, which dictates that north should be at the top and east to the right.

Having spent a large part of my working life using maps and charts, Pope's version of the world discombobulated me.

I concede that the design works quite well the way Pope has rendered it and that he has taken some artistic licence, but if one of his aims is to define "our city ... geographically" then it would have been better for him to do so in the conventional way.

After all, conventions serve a useful purpose: they help us make sense of the world, even in cartoons.

Dick Parker, Page

ANZ likes to present itself as a good corporate citizen – one willing to display compassion, and even generosity, in the face of tragedy. But it seems that Mr Fluffy victims are an exception to this.

Despite the wonderful crisis response by the Commonwealth Bank, ANZ is unwilling to step up to the plate. After calling the "dedicated" Fluffy hotline, a curt and unhelpful staff member told me that the only support available would be a "repayment holiday".

In other words, repayments can be "postponed" but the interest will still accrue, leaving victims with little benefit. What of CommBank's $10,000 special assistance grant? According to ANZ, they couldn't care less, and as the ACT government is providing assistance, the bank will not be doing anything further.

Merry Christmas, ANZ.

Michael Romei, Yarralumla

COSTLY HEALTHCARE

First there was the $7 GP co-payment. And now, instead, there is to be a $5 doctor fee by way of a cut in the Medicare rebate.

Prime Minister Abbott, I already make a substantial co-payment thank you very much. My GP doesn't bulk bill and I don't have a concession card, so he charges me $75 for a standard consultation. The Medicare rebate is just $37.05. That means I already pay a substantial co-payment of $37.95. A further impost – whether $7 or $5 – is not wanted.

Don Sephton, Greenway

CASH FOR ADVERTISING

Despite cries of "budget crisis", there seems to be taxpayers' money available for advertising campaigns now to sell health and education policies which should have been announced and paid for by Coalition parties before the 2013 election.

Bea Evans, Kambah

TALENTED OPPOSITION

Tony Abbott has been described as being the most effective Leader of the Opposition ever. It seems he would like his old job back.

Peter Baskett, Murrumbateman, NSW

CATHOLIC CHARITY

Could George Pell send some of the hidden Vatican millions to help his budget stricken mate Abbott?

Linus Cole, Palmerston

CARBON TAX, PERHAPS?

Can the federal government's confidence in coal be on the wane? Julie Bishop said we need strong greenhouse emission cuts; perhaps she should consider the benefits of introducing a carbon tax. A rose by another name?

Dale Baker, O'Connor

CLIMATE NEGLECT

Treasurer Joe Hockey constantly uses the term "intergenerational theft" to justify his budget. However, the term would be more appropriately applied to his own government's repeal of the Carbon Tax and its replacement by an ineffective policy of rewarding our worst polluters. Future generations will pay dearly to clean up our neglected climate debt.

Tony Judge, Belconnen

BALLOT DISPLAY

Doug Rankin (Letters, December 6) asserts that the national service ballot marbles were fictitious. He needs to visit the National Archives to see the boxes of numbered balls which are on prominent display in the main gallery, together with a description of the way in which the ballot worked. This, coupled with the photo of the first ballot (which appeared on December 3 with Tim Fischer's letter) should dispel any such illusions.

Sue Morton, Weston

Email: letters.editor@canberratimes.com.au

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