This decision flies in the face of submissions to the National Capital Authority's Draft Amendment 86 (Revised National Plan) that was tabled by the Minister in Parliament on May 5 this year ("Sweeping changes to ACT planning", May 5, p1.) A review of NCA's Consultation Report shows that the number of submissions against the rezoning (including one submission with a petition of almost 380 signatures) is twice that of those which supported the rezoning.

The fact that the NCA's Consultation Report was tabled on the last day of the parliamentary sitting of the current Federal Government, after an extended delay of more than four months, and that funds have been directed by CSIRO for the last couple of years to a large team of their scientists and external contractors to analyse the potential of the GFS site for urbanisation, indicates a prearranged agreement at federal ministerial level to approve CSIRO's proposal to rezone and thence develop its underutilised GFS-leased crown land.

This is to presumably allow CSIRO to recoup funds for their research programs that had been decimated by previous government cuts. This sets a dangerous precedent for allowing CSIRO to rezone and develop underutilised parts of its many other leased lands across Australia.

The associated issue of "affordable housing", which has arisen due to both ACT and Federal Governments' budgetary policies, is just a guise for CSIRO and their joint partner to cash in on the current debate in order to maximise their profits.

Roslyn Chan, Spence

While it would have been nice for Community Services #1 to inform parents earlier that the Fyshwick Childcare Centre was closing ("Parents lament lost chance to save childcare centre", May 16, p1), I doubt the parents could have done anything to make up the under-occupancy. It takes a lot of fundraising to make up for an enrolment rate of 25 per cent as the number of people who work in Fyshwick continues to drop as manufacturing is replaced by retail.

Perhaps another operator can make the centre financially solvent through lower wages or staffing ratios, but I prefer to stick with the quality care and professionalism of the current staff by moving to another centre.

As a parent of a two-year-old at Fyshwick since he was a baby, I have nothing but praise for the way the provider and staff are handling the transition.

We have a choice of sending our child to any of the other six centres run by Community Services #1 within 7km of Fyshwick. Children are likely to be accompanied to their new centres by some members of staff they know well from Fyshwick. With eight weeks to make the transition, we have lots of time to discuss the changes with him.

When else would we have so many options for childcare or such a thorough transition plan?

Hilary Jones, Narrabundah

The Barr government has spent $800,000 to assist the Westside container village. That is a complete waste of money as it is an eye-sore and should be taken away as soon as possible. Those funds could have been much better spent cleaning up some of the suburbs of Canberra.

Canberra now has the look of a Third World country town. That's a disgrace considering this is the capital city of Australia.

All parties competing in the next local election should take this on board as a major policy initiative for the sake of their constituents.

I have had visitors who have been shocked at the decline in Canberra's appearance over the last couple of years. The amount of graffiti around Canberra is similar to Middle Eastern war zones and it is disgusting.

I believe the grass mowing work has been contracted out, but I am not sure who inspects the work that has been, or not been, done. In addition, the local authorities say they are not responsible for graffiti removal on private or business residences. They only erase graffiti appearing on recognised city-financed artworks.

However, a drive down Hindmarsh Drive, for example, reveals ridiculous amounts of graffiti and dopey tags on fences and walls down either side of the road, particularly in Lyons.

The graffiti should be deleted as soon and as often as possible. The perpetrators should also be punished, but that is another issue.

Come on, people in power, get your act together and put this city back into the attractive welcoming place it used to be.

Trevor Willis, Hughes

Robyn Soxsmith ("Activists vow to fight annual kangaroo cull", May 14, p1) correctly states that "when you take one animal out [of an ecosystem], it's going to cause problems". Humans have already caused problems by taking the top predators out of the local ecosystem. The kangaroo cull replaces natural predation, and it doesn't eliminate kangaroos, it just reduces their numbers.

Plants and animals normally reproduce at a rate much greater than that required to maintain their populations. Therefore, most organisms must die from starvation, disease, or predation before reproducing.

When predation is removed, it may have catastrophic consequences for the ecosystem, as happened, for example, in Yellowstone Park when wolves were eliminated.

The reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone was a success, but a similar reintroduction of dingoes to control kangaroos in Canberra is clearly not practical. Nor is artificial fertility control currently practical.

Soxsmith considers the cull "inhumane and cruel", but hasn't explained why starvation and disease are more humane than shooting. She implies that kangaroos need special consideration because they are "beautiful and peaceful", but kangaroos are certainly capable of aggression, and, in any case, ugly and aggressive animals can be just as important in ecosystems as beautiful and peaceful ones.

Mike Dallwitz, Giralang

The best way to protect biodiversity of the ACT's grass and woodland areas is to stabilise the population growth of humans. In Australia, the population has been growing faster than ever – in 2014, 313,000 more people were added. Focus on that and you will have solved the problem.

Alexandra Paul, Pacific Palisades, California, USA

Out on a limb while others left stumped

Lying awake in bed most nights this past few days listening anxiously to the wind howl though the swaying branches of the 20-odd ton gum tree situated three metres from our son's bedroom and towering menacingly over half of our house, my thoughts were consumed by the absolute contempt in which the territory government holds its citizens.

Eight hundred trees on Northbourne Avenue (now conveniently showing signs of disease) will be removed to accommodate Chief Minister Andrew Barr and Minister Shane Rattenbury's toy trains. Out in the suburbs, it's becoming apparent our only options are to remove a dangerous tree illegally and face up to a $200,000 fine or wait for the tree to catastrophically remove itself.

Brent J. Woodward, Richardson

Ross Gittens' comment on the company tax cuts ("Company tax cut is at workers' cost", BusinessDay, May 16, p12) was very interesting. It was just a pity he didn't include the information revealed in Monday morning's ABC news by Ben Oquist of the Australia Institute that under a tax treaty between Australia and the US designed to ensure that companies are not double-taxed, US companies pay the IRS the difference between the two countries' company taxes.

Not only will a cut in Australian company taxes not benefit Australian workers, as Gittens points out, AND the cumulative cost over the next 10 years will be $48.2 billion (again, revealed by Gittens), because the US company tax rate is 35 per cent and Australia's 30 per cent. US companies with investments in Australia (the largest foreign investors in Australia), will continue to pay the full amount. Only the amount the ATO doesn't collect will go as a gift to the American IRS from the taxpayers of Australia.

Margaret Lee, Hawker

Last week in Sydney, I asked my taxi driver what his passengers were saying about the Federal Election. He told me that few wanted to discuss it. Sport and food were their main topics of conversation. He himself had worked in banking. He said that Federal Labor has a lot to live down.

When Howard left office nearly 10 years ago the national budget was in surplus. In the Gillard and Rudd era that surplus was replaced by a massive deficit. The world-wide economic downturn was the excuse to waste vast sums of money in an orgy of reckless spending. He asked me if we really want to entrust the finances to Labor again so soon after that fiasco.

Robert Willson, Deakin

Having listened to Malcolm Turnbull and his colleagues struggling to speak the name Tony Abbott despite their whole campaign being underpinned by the achievements of this unmentionable person, I offer this advice. When next asked about Tony Abbott and his future in the party simple say: "Tony Abbott did a wonderful job taking us from opposition to government in such a short time and we are indebted to him for his achievements, particularly his success in stopping the boats and repealing the carbon tax, Tony is one of our best performers and of course he deserves a place in any future coalition government front bench".

How hard is that?

H. Ronald, Jerrabomberra, NSW

I can understand and sympathise with Nancy Miller (Letters, May 14) who says that she cannot vote for either major party because of their policies on 'boat people'.

She should be careful how she does vote, particularly in the House of Representative, since all candidates need to be numbered. Even if she numbers the major parties last and second last, her second last preference will be used to elect that candidate since it is highly unlikely that any other candidate will receive enough votes directly or through preferences. The only solution I can come up with is to not number all squares. Unfortunately, this means the vote becomes informal and is not counted at all.

While the government has had the good sense, in my view, not to force electors to number all squares on the Senate ballot paper, it has not done so for the House of Representatives. For those in the community who do not wish their vote to go to either major party because of mis-treatment of refugees or any other reason, there is little choice but to vote informally. And don't hold your breath waiting for either major party to change this. I believe either would be satisfied to receive a vote even if it is the second last preference on a ballot paper as the primary objective is to gain power and control and everything else comes second.

Glenn Pure, Kambah

In her article "ACT has most 'intentionally informal' votes" (May 10, p1) Alexandra Back stated "The ACT had the highest proportion of informal ballot papers with scribbles, slogans and other 'protest marks"'.

At a talk I attended early last year on the Australian electoral system it was stated that a ballot paper is considered a formal vote so long as the voter's preferences are clear and that writing a slogan or protest comment on the ballot paper does not render the vote informal so long as the comment doesn't identify the voter or obliterate the numbered preferences.

Perhaps the Australian Electoral Commission could clarify the situation regarding the writing of protest comments on ballot papers.

Dick Roe, Cook

Thank you, R.S. Gilbert (Letters, May 10) for pointing out that the current 50 per cent capital gains tax concession benefits those investors whose properties gain value at more than double the rate of inflation.

This is exactly what happened over the 10 years to December 2015, as reflected in average prices measured by the Australian Bureau of Statistics capital cities residential property price index — not only over the whole period, but within seven of the individual calendar years.

This reality is not lost on the many financial advisors and investment marketers with links to the property industry. Thus, combined with the attraction of cheap borrowing enabled via negative gearing, the current capital gains tax concession continues to influence the behaviour of investors, more of whom now borrow to speculate for short-term capital growth.

Paul Feldman , Macquarie

Over the years of reading R.S. Gilbert's missives he has educated me about economic matters. However, his explanations of why the current arrangements for negative gearing and capital gains tax on residential property should remain as is leaves me puzzled. It seems to be a very poor investment so I hope he will write again and explain the advantages of investing in residential property. Among other things, is there an income or tax level at which it changes from being a good investment to a bad investment?

John F. Simmons, Kambah

Aldo Giurgola's impact on Canberra was profound and his death is a great loss to Australia. Given Lake Burley Griffin honours the architect that shaped Canberra I've often thought it would be fitting that the Lake's two basins be named after the two architects that did more than any other to shape Canberra since Burley Griffin, John Smith Murdoch, who designed Old Parliament, and Aldo Guirgola.

Joseph Johnson, Drummoyne, NSW

I would have thought that being disendorsed by Rupert Murdoch and the entire Bush family – in particular its most unethical progeny – would be a definitive character reference in favour of nominee Donald Trump, who uniquely has held them in due contempt. Not to mention ratbags like the last couple of Republican presidential nominees are also not on speaking terms with him.

Or are our amateur and pretend-professional political commentators claiming that Trump is the worst and most outrageous thing that has happened to the US political firmament in the last few decades?

Alex Mattea, Kingston

ADDED TO HER BEAUTY

The article about Marina McDonald and her portrait and subsequent photography career was inspiring ("Breast cancer survivor puts new life in the frame", May 13, p1). I too have had a double mastectomy after breast cancer and it was so normalising to see a beautiful woman in the portrait who has no breasts but this didn't take away from her beauty at all. It added to it. Thank you so much for putting it on the front page of your paper.

Joanne Burch, Deakin

LEARN FROM CHINESE

A recent study shows that Chinese students outscore Aussie students in English tests. I believe that this partly reflects a difference in cultural parenting. Chinese parents have a reputation for pushing their children academically.

Australian parents need to do more proactive parenting in nurturing positive attitudes to learning.

Michele Quirk, Wanniassa

MORE SCHOOL LESSONS

Barrie Smillie (Letters, May 16) writes about schools and wants to regulate standards and restore quality control.

I'd encourage Barrie to submit a sustained, evidenced argument to a newspaper or educational journal in support of his campaign for a school inspectorate.

Having worked in the declining UK education system (where inspections are rife), I caution Barrie to be careful what he wishes for.

Glenn Fowler, secretary, Australian Education Union, ACT Branch

VOTE FOR THE POWER

Just to get away from the boredom of the federal election for a minute. At the next ACT election will we be looking for the footy clubs, unions and developers above the line OR below the line on the ballot paper?

I think it would be for the best if we had an opportunity to cast our vote where the real power lies!

Thomas White, Evatt

MIGHT BE WORTH A BET

If government is not prepared to adequately finance hospitals and science, particularly the CSIRO, what about a lottery to raise funds?

Dot Dickson, Belconnen

COUPE TAKES THE CAKE

Having read Harry Wallop's interesting article "How the bowl has killed off the plate" (Times2, May 16, p5) I would say bring on the coupe (part bowl, part plate).

Sounds so much easier to scoop from, and better than chasing peas over a conventional plate. A boon to the disabled or the elderly, of which I am one.

Evelyn Bean, Ainslie

Email: letters.editor@canberratimes.com.au. Send from the message field, not as an attached file. Fax: 6280 2282. Mail: Letters to the Editor, The Canberra Times, PO Box 7155, Canberra Mail Centre, ACT 2610.

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