When the Prime Minister was asked how he'd respond to the many Australians who fear billions of dollars are being poured into "a dud" he breezily replied that it's "the most advanced fighter in the world".

At the end of the airshow the F35s couldn't fly away because there was a danger of lightning storms at their destination and they can't fly through lightning.

Ironically the F35 is aka The Lightning. Let's hope those Taliban Tiger Moths don't attack us in stormy weather.

David H. Lewis, Hervey Bay, Qld

Geoff Parker, Australian Beverages Council CEO (opinion, February 24) says a tax on sugar in drinks doesn't tackle obesity. But sugared drink consumption must have declined in Mexico and Denmark to cause the job losses he notes.

If he is correct that drinking less sugar has no effect on obesity then one of two things must be happening, either the people reduced exercising or, more likely, got the same kilojoules elsewhere.

Sugar produces pleasure by dopamine stimulation, can have addictive effects and habituation can result in increasing consumption to satisfy the want.

A taste for sugar makes biological sense. With scarce food picking ripe sweet fruits was good given their higher energy value. Now high energy food is easily accessible even for the less well off. A preference for sweetness is maladaptive.

A person habituated to high sugar consumption, finding one of their usual sources more expensive, is just going to seek it elsewhere.

To be effective we will have to tax all sugar.

No one likes job losses, but what most dislike more is jobs dependent on exploiting human frailty. We accepted job losses in the tobacco industry.

The proposal to use sugar tax revenue to subsidise fresh fruit and vegetables is smart. The resulting increase in jobs involved in fruit and vegetables could help offset job loss caused by a sugar tax.

Surely it would be easy for Barnaby Joyce to favour those in his constituency producing healthy food.

Robin M G Brown, Yarralumla

I do not agree with Jenna Price ("How Hanson rose again", March 7, p.16) or Bruce Paine's supporting comments (letters, March 9) that voters are responsible for the composition of Australian Parliaments.

Polling suggests that voters want governments to act on climate change and other moral issues such as marriage equality.

Kevin Rudd once stated that the "the greatest moral, economic and social challenge of our time" is climate change and he had strong approval ratings, but under pressure he backed off.

Malcolm Turnbull's approval ratings were high when he believed in climate change and now he has moved to the dark side as shown by the appointment of a mining industry representative to the ABC.

The Labor Party is ahead on climate change but it fails miserably when it comes to taking a moral stand.

In Queensland the Labor Party is supporting the Adani mine and the national ALP does a Pontius Pilate by stating it is up to investors. This is a position far from the days of Bob Hawke who fought the Tasmanian government on the Franklin Dam.

No wonder there is disillusionment among Australian voters who are left to choose between the lesser of two evils. This combined with party politics, and compromising deals on leadership changes and party donors that has further added to voters' dilemma.

Don't blame voters, but the lobbyists and power politics which have left us in a moral vacuum.

Robyn Vincent, McKellar

Michael McCarthy (letters, March 7) quotes Pauline Hanson as saying "Islam is not a religion, but a political ideology motivated by a hatred of Western society".

Senator Hanson is half right but Islam is both a religion and a political ideology. It is a whole-of-life deal and it intends to be the only religion and the only ideology.

A great number of Muslims do not hate Western society. Islam does. I do not fear or hate Muslims and probably neither does Senator Hanson face to face but it is necessary to be realistic. Do more research.

And yes, Dennis Hale, same page, I do agree wholeheartedly with President Trump re his predecessor.

J. Halgren, Latham

I was rather bemused with an interview on radio with a passionate advocate for higher pay for childcare workers, 97per cent of whom are women.

In an ideal world, having owned and run childcare centres in the past myself, her argument has strong validity as childcare workers wear many different "hats" from counsellor, teacher, paramedic to mention a few.

However, the conundrum in the real world is that higher wages ultimately will lead to higher fees. I would suggest that the parents who supported this advocacy today would not be so supportive if this meant fees would undoubtedly rise.

The only other avenue available to avoid this happening would be the taxpayer pouring more of their tax into the industry.

Brendan Ryan, Mawson

Since when has a law been enacted requiring everyone to have a mobile phone?

I have been unable to complete several internet transactions because I cannot supply a mobile number for a reply or supply of a code, my landline number being rejected.

Admittedly I am, as with I suppose a relatively small number, mostly oldies, quite satisfied with landline, and little use of a mobile.

We should continue to be catered for.

Michael Adler, Gungahlin

No gas means cold pies. They (the powers that be) have finally proved it. They couldn't run a pie-cart.

Roy Bray, Flynn

Kirsten Lawson in her report in The Canberra Times of March 8, p.1 ("Newborn Northbourne") says of me that I have accused the LDA "of taking advantage of its monopoly position to manipulate prices, maximise profits and price many Canberrans out of the market".

That is a fair summary of my opinion of how the LDA has operated over the last five years.

What I have also been at pains to say is that the LDA has operated in that way because that is what the government has demanded of it.

It is the cabinet, advised by the responsible minister, that decides how much land, where and of what description, to release.

It is a travesty to blame the LDA for the gross undersupply of green fields land for detached housing.

Jon Stanhope, Bruce

In his letter about the current Sydney-Canberra rail link (Letters, March 10) Dr Mike Freelander, MHR for Macarthur, states that reducing the existing rail travel time from Canberra to Sydney is "doable and at a moderate cost". Pointedly, Dr Freelander does not define "moderate'['.

His letter suggests to me that Dr Freelander has not travelled the Canberra-Sydney rail link much and is not familiar with the history of theline.

The branch line from the main line at Goulbourn was built southwards, by the NSW government, to service the Monaro district — through Tarago, Bungendore, Queanbeyan, Cooma and Nimmitabel down to Bombala.

A further branch was built from Bungendore to the mines at Captains Flat and another branch was built from Queanbeyan to Kingston and Ainslie to assist in the building of Canberra. This was financed by the Commonwealth, notNSW.

The whole system was single track, with passing loops at and between stations. It was also built with minimum gradients, to suit the limited power of the steam locomotives of the day, thus the meandering sections between Queanbeyan, Bungendore and Tarago, which require a timetabled one hour to traverse.

Perhaps Dr Freelander could expand on what is "doable" and at what "moderate cost" to reduce this time from one hour to, say, 30 minutes.

Paul E. Bowler, Holder

The National Capital Authority has issued a Draft Development Control Plan for Manuka Circle and Canberra Avenue updating its 2013 DCP by including the Services Club site, cricket nets and the area on east Manuka Circle between the Oxley Street intersection and Manuka Pool.

Independently of the Manuka Green proposal this Australian Government authority has identified the area subject to the DCP exactly matching Grocon's final proposal but allowing an even greater building footprint.

The authority claims support from Walter Griffin for this "nodal" point to have 22-metre-high development for the oval and adjacent blocks.

Its January 2017 document proposed an 18-metre building height to match St Christopher's, but the March draft prefers the seven-storey height.

NCA is holding a lunchtime public information session on March 15.

Jeremy McGrane, Kingston

I welcome the advent of meals delivered by cyclists, but hope that Deliveroo riders will not be using the bicycles shown in the photo, which have no rear or front lights. ("Deliveroo pedalling to suburbs near you", March 8, p.3).

I see bicycles without lights almost every single time I use my car at night. Although cyclists may feel perfectly visible without lights they are putting themselves in serious danger.

If cyclists compared the visibility from a bike and a car they would realise that there is a big change in what they can see with real clarity.

I hope that Deliveroo riders' bikes will be fitted with the latest technology in bike lights so they don't put themselves and others at risk.

Chris Kain, O'Connor

The Australian Airline Pilots Association contradicted Canberra Airport's managing director, Stephen Byron ("Airport hits out at slurs over safety", March 9, p3).

Mr Byron dismissed criticism of safety problems caused by building(s) around the airport as a "grubby" campaign by a former pilot.

Despite his claims strong turbulence across the main runway in some wind conditions has been a complaint reported in this paper for over a decade.

At the Australian Safety Bureau website one can find the report of a 2010 incident involving a Grumman Traveller AA-5.

At "an altitude of about 150 feet above ground level, the aircraft experienced severe turbulence that resulted in a brief loss of control".

The investigation determined the severe turbulence was probably generated by a combination of wind conditions on the day and the position of the two buildings about 220 metres and 290 metres upwind from runway 12.

At the Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development site one can find the National Airports Safeguarding Framework.

It states: "At Canberra Airport, there is a permanent notice in aviation publications advising pilots about the potential adverse wind effects that can be encountered because of a hangar."

Considering the increase of extreme weather events in the ACT over the last couple of years it would seem prudent to rectify this before a tragedy occurs.

Gary J. Wilson, Macgregor

Never let it be said that the ACT government does not have a sense of humour.

Transactions with government should bring a smile to the faces of Canberrans. For example, the current "Tree Damaging Activity", for arboreal care (applications) in the ACT, is brilliant.

Why not expand this approach? We could have "Road damaging activity" for motor vehicle registrations, "brain damaging activity" for liquor licences, "historic fabric damaging activity" for development applications, "yapping annoyance activity" for dog licences and "bank balance damaging activity" for rates notices.

Penleigh Boyd, Reid

HECKLING UNFAIR

Those people involved in heckling John Howard as he went about his private business in Sydney on Thursday should be ashamed of themselves. While concerns over the cuts to Sunday penalties are genuine, the body that lowered them was set up by Labor, not the Coalition.

M. Moore, Bonython

SHOW US THE REPORTS

Re: "Airport hits out at slurs over safety", March 9, p.3).

Canberra Airport management assert wind expert reports show the airport complies with national safeguarding guideline requirements even with buildings immediately adjacent to the touchdown zone, Runway 35.

Make those reports public, or at least available to those who have previously requested access.

B. Bramah, Hawker

LEADING THE WAY

Darryl Powell (Letters, March 9) is quite right when he writes that, as well as the high standard of sex education in Canberra's schools, our low rate of teenage births is because of the ease with which people can get abortions. I suspect the former is much more significant than the latter but, regardless, how fortunate we are to live in a relatively enlightened polity.

Fred Pilcher, Kaleen

IT PAYS TO SHOP AROUND

I have been reading with concern people are going without prescribed medications because of cost. After many years with one pharmacy I shopped around and now save over $20 on each of my two essential medications and a smaller amount on others. A total saving of around $50 a month. I suggest those without a Health Care Card do likewise.

Mary Robbie, Aranda

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