Bulk billing? Between the two, and a total of about 20 doctors, only one good fellow routinely offers this – and he's sometimes booked up days in advance. At this extraordinary rate, these heroes of community service are charging about $400 per hour.

While it is true that Medicare rebates about half of that – protecting the unwell from the full nerve of these "family doctors" – even the unexpected $70 I recently paid out-of-pocket is a genuine blow to the weekly budget of mere mortal working families in service industries such as retail, hospitality and cleaning.

Worse, it's a real disincentive to look after yourself at all. By charging the government and consumers, Australian doctors are double-dipping with relative impunity.

It is worth noting that there are many international jurisdictions where this ugly genie was never allowed out of its bottle. And just a final note to practitioners: the community standing and goodwill that has traditionally attached itself to your profession is at a tipping point.

Ross Kelly, Monash

In 2017, when we face complex global problems, we need the best and brightest minds working together.

This can't happen while we as a society continue to perpetuate stereotypes and close-minded thinking that sees the segregation of our workforce by race, gender, and age.

I take issue with the cartoon depiction of scientists as old white males by Pat Campbell (Canberra Times, August 28, p13). We need to tackle the entrenched unconscious bias that rears its ugly head when we perpetuate stereotypes as is the case by Pat. If we don't, we have no hope of being a vibrant, connected, and advanced society as purported by the ACT government.

Canberra Times, I challenge you to produce images that accurately reflect the diversity of our community and promote the inclusion of this diversity.

Michael Salt, Griffith

Last Thursday the Legislative assembly received a motion moved by Shane Rattenbury (Greens) that the assembly (I abbreviate a little):

The motion was warmly seconded by Deputy Chief Minister Yvette Berry (Labor) and supported by all Labor members. It received a standing ovation from the public gallery.

The leader of the opposition gave a speech about some problems in Canberra's jails.

Of the state or territory governments, that of the ACT is the only one to protest as a government at the tragic cruelty of our treatment of these detainees.

It is disappointing that there was no mention of it that evening on the ABC, nor next day in The Canberra Times, both of which reported other things in the day's sitting.

John Cashman, Yarralumla

The August 26 editorial, "Safe Schools can often be scary too", partly takes seriously the concerns of Canberrans who signed a petition asking for "Safe School"-type programs to be stopped in ACT schools. However, the editorial fails to see that normalising diverse sexualities through these programs means that children suffering gender dysphoria, a mental condition, are provided with only one path out of their distress, not necessarily the most compassionate path.

Normalising diverse sexualities also means setting in concrete queer attraction in pre-pubescent children, limiting their future choices. It should be everyone's concern that schools may be conspiring with delusion, and determining whole-of-life decisions for children.

The "safe" schools script is bad enough, but it is even more serious when teachers depart from the script and introduce their own take on gender and sexuality. Teachers have a duty of care and are in a privileged position of influence over children. Parents should never relinquish their role as primary educators of their children, particularly regarding relationships.

The unfortunate effect of shouting that these programs must be good because they affirm a bullied minority, is that the very real concerns of many Canberrans with the negative consequences, intended or otherwise, are not given due attention. Progress should always be upward, not downward.

Arthur Connor, Weston

A number of writers to this newspaper have highlighted the steepness of the rates increases introduced in the ACT government's 2017-18 budget, without warning and sufficient or satisfactory justification.

The impact of the increases on townhouse owners discriminates against them unfairly, is excessive and seriously disadvantages them.

Many townhouse owners, like myself, are retired, have reduced and limited incomes and seek to decrease our cost of living and continue to rely on our own resources. The government's budget measure is inequitable and unfair.

The rates increases add to the costs of living of townhouse owners, as well as unit and house owners.

Housing affordability is not just an issue for younger citizens and first-home buyers; it is also an issue for older citizens who manage on reduced incomes and wish to rely only on their own resources. For renters, the issue becomes one of the increased cost of rent.

I protest this matter in the strongest terms. I request the ACT government immediately review the rates increases with a view to reducing rates costs. I note that the $100million savings made on management of the Mr Fluffy home buyback scheme could be applied to this matter without negative impact on the overall budget.

Dianne Peacock, Isaacs

Eric Hunter, ("Catholic irony", Letters, August 27), gives a lucid analysis of the inconsistencies of what he chooses to call "outdated religious views" in the staffing of church schools. These church schools, Roman Catholic and Anglican and other denominations, educate nearly half the children of Australia. He and other correspondents are experts in the faults of such schools.

But that is not the whole story. Eric Hunter does not ask why such schools exist or why so many parents, Christian believers and unbelievers alike, freely choose to send their children to them, at considerable expense.

Roman Catholic and Anglican schools were founded in Australia long before the colonial governments accepted any responsibility for the education of children. Without the heroic exertions of people like Mary MacKillop, now Australia's first saint, and countless others, many Australian children would have had no education at all in the 19th century.

The present system of education gives parents a choice. The tragic story of abuse by a small minority of the staff of such schools should not blind us to the contribution such schools make to the nation.

Many of those reading this letter are in debt to inspiring teachers in both Christian and state schools, as I am.

Fr Robert Willson, Deakin

Your editorial "ACT needs consultation, not abdication" (August 25, p18), Kevin Cox's reply to it (August 28, p13), and Kent Fitch's letter on light rail (August 28, p12) raise an underlying issue of trust and credibility.

The editorial seems to say that Ms Le Couteur's proposed "citizens' panels" should not have much, if any, control of infrastructure spending. It ends: "The voice of the people, as expressed by their representatives, is as the voice of a god" – a strange, ironical idea.

Most Canberrans know that ACT Labor pays even less attention to them than any god, and ministers routinely distort public opinion soundings to suit their own and developers' agendas. This is vividly seen again from the tiny number surveyed, three per 1000 population, and questions of route rather than yes/no, on the Woden tram.

Kent Fitch backs this up regarding why Northbourne Avenue is really being transformed, and asks "Woden – what's the benefit for anyone from a tram?". Especially one that doesn't go to the hospital, he could have added.

So Canberrans might feel they could do a better job of allocating priorities and funds, on any scale, than their "representatives" in the Assembly.

A glowing eulogy of the citizens' panels (as amended by Mr Barr) is found in Kevin Cox's letter. Kevin forgets a lesson he and I watched many times when we were colleagues: s/he who amends and signs the meeting minutes controls the future. Past pretences of consulting citizens have usually been written up by ACT public servants or consultants, ready to be dismissed in the Assembly by "representatives" who want something different.

The credibility of the citizens' panels is more important than budget limits on their powers. Let them write, approve, and sign their own minutes, and send their chosen leader into the Assembly to take the floor and put the panel's unfiltered views on record.

That would actually be a step towards democracy, wouldn't it?

Brian Stone, Weetangera

Thank you Canberra Times for publishing my letter (Letters, August 25), saying how and why the light rail network is not financially sustainable. However, it omitted another important point that I had made, namely that the tram network, as currently planned, would cost a conservative estimate of about $10billion.

With a population of even 500,000, spread over an area of some 45 by 35 kilometres, with negligible help from the federal government, it is simply not affordable, given other pressing priorities.

In the government's own words, "We need an accessible, integrated and smarter transport network that will grow with our city", but for many analysts, trams are not part of a smart solution.

M. Flint, Smart Canberra Transport coordinator

As no patronage modelling or economic estimates have yet been made available for the proposed second stage light rail project to Woden, I thought your readers may be interested in the results of previous work provided to the ACT government as there have been at least four studies conducted over the past 30 years.

One recent study showed that, although the costs of the Civic to Woden service was estimated to be comparable, being only slightly higher, with that for the Civic to Gungahlin service, the benefit-to-cost ratio of the Woden service was only 0.47 compared with the Gungahlin service of 0.57.

The combined Gungahlin-Civic-Woden route has a benefit-to-cost ratio of only 0.41 as there was insufficient forecast through patronage to improve the economic result.

R J (Bob) Nairn, Hawker

FOREIGN CONCEPT

One of the absurdities involved in the dual nationality fiasco is this: in some cases the laws of foreign countries can determine who is allowed to sit in Australia's Parliament. This is crazy. Which other laws of other nations are we supposed to accept?

Steve Ellis, Hackett

DUTTON'S NEW LOW

Just when you think Peter Dutton couldn't sink any lower he always goes out of his way to prove there is no limit to his human rights abuses. And what is even more gross is Malcolm Turnbull is right behind the sheer abuse of human rights being handed out by Dutton. However his latest effort surely must be close to the bottom, even for Dutton.

D.J. Fraser, Currumbin Qld

PROCREATION POINTS

Many negative attitudes to same-sex marriage shows an adherence to archaic principals, where the foremost role of marriage is reproduction. This ignores perils the Earth is facing from human overpopulation and the likelihood that in this environment, procreation will lose its shine.

Matt Ford, Crookwell, NSW

It is clear the Liberal Party is firmly under the control of the atheist left "moderates", when it's president renounces the teachings of his Jesuit mentors on gay marriage. The term marriage is traditionally a religious one, and covers the union of a man and woman with the intent of procreating children. Legislating gay marriage is an attack on Christian beliefs. It is misleading to say that religious freedom will be protected.

Johann Sheller, Forrest

RANCID LAKE

I was truly surprised to read of the Jardin lakeside residential development in Tuggeranong ("Lakeside expansion set to expand", August26, p17). The last I recall reading of Lake Tuggeranong was of the rancid state of its waters.

Gary J. Wilson, Macgregor

BIG FOUR STRATEGY

The "big four" tax-evading strategisers are supping generously from cornucopia provided by unfortunate ratepayers, courtesy preferencing, with politicians, in process, ingratiating themselves to corporates, who, down the track might well have a sinecure, or two, on offer ("Consultants' bills to heal ACT Health's data problems reach $1.2m", August25, p8).

Albert M. White, Queanbeyan

PLANT LOCATION

While the proposed incineration plant appears to offer an effective solution to waste, its proposed location is of great concern from a traffic perspective. Given that there is a rail line to Hume, couldn't it be put there?

Chris Mobbs, Torrens

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