Just make voting optional. Otherwise you'll call in all the dropkicks and we've got plenty of older dropkicks already.

Ned Ovolny, Duffy

The government's campaign to combat modern slavery, potentially pits it against schoolyard bullies who refuse to pay tax – in any form – and is, judging by the submission of one of the world's largest food and drink companies, likely to meet with the same level of obdurate, recalcitrant non-compliance ("Nestle warns of added costs", Sunday CT, August 19, p10).

With 2017 revenue earnings of $US90.8 billion, hitting "consumers' hip pockets" for water at $3/bottle or pushing unaffordable infant formula in developing countries to pauperised populations, one might anticipate some "irregularities" in its supply chain would be of minimal concern!

Why might trivial matters of workplace ethics concern organisations which have, for decades, peddled formula, and, at May's 71st World Health Assembly, "encouraged" the Trump administration's threat to impose dire military consequences on Ecuador, should it not withdraw its resolution supporting breast milk?

Pray tell politicians are really serious about removing slavery, and should they be, can demonstrate their resolve by commencing on their own doorstep, ie Parliament House, by paying decent wages to those who make their palace habitable, but are, in the process of doing so, expected to subsist on the smell of an oily rag, while representatives strut around like obscenely overpaid rajahs.

When politicians use their iPhones or computers, they might hear the anguished cries of employees of China's Hon Hai/Foxconn (2017 revenue, $US158.15 billion), where employees, literally slave away producing all this fancy consumer technology.

Albert M. White, Queanbeyan

The article, "In-loan savings? Now is the time to get them out" (Canberra Times, August 19) is, at best, extremely misleading. It is unclear and full of innuendo. It conflates several matters and is certainly panic scare-mongering.

For the majority of those who have extra money in a principal and interest home loan account with a redraw facility, it seems like very bad advice. After reading the article, I phoned a major bank and asked some pointed questions.

The clear advice was that the agent had no knowledge of any planned changes to mortgage accounts like those the article suggested, certainly nothing impending, but account holders would be told of any intended changes beforehand. He also said that there is currently nothing that would affect the ability to use the redraw facility or take an agreed repayment holiday against additional funds. The bank would not take precipitous arbitrary action, in any case. On the question of shifting the additional funds to an offset savings account, he advised that such accounts are available only with certain types of mortgages and their annual fees can be more than 10 times the small cost of redrawing funds from the mortgage account.

The best advice is not "redraw what you can NOW", but talk to your bank to confirm your situation and any plans the bank may have to change the terms of your account. Don't fall for the provocative, general advice of someone who may have a self-serving agenda in providing it.

John M Schmidt, Monash

Well done to The Canberra Times for reporting stories on whistleblower victimisation and bullying in the workplace.

It is unfortunate that these stories are the tip of the iceberg, and are all too regular. Taxpayers' money is being spent on maintaining bullying and victimisation in the public service and it needs to stop. We need to take stopping workplace bullying seriously.

There are too many lives impacted, too many suicides, too many unnecessary battles. The public service in Australia is acting like churches in historical child abuse cases by covering up bullying, moving victims, pretending to enforce policies and procedures, having false inquiries, and victim blaming.

All taxpayer-funded organisations including the department that holds itself up as the bastion of mental health, the Australian Department of Health, need to be held accountable.

As a social worker, I have seen too many victims suffer to "protect" the organisation, it is about time the public service took the lead on bullying and HR departments started doing their job.

Scott Milne, Tuggeranong

I have visited Edmonton, Canada, in the autumn and admired the rich reds and golds of the deciduous trees.

Could we plant more deciduous trees in Canberra and be known as the Canada of the Great South Land? Not only could this be a great tourist attraction, but the fire-deflecting properties of these trees is widely known.

On a farm in Victoria, a young heifer having her first calf had to be abandoned during the fires.

The next morning the hotel, which was surrounded by deciduous trees, was unburnt and the young heifer and her calf were safe.

She had been among some willows that protected her from the fires. Need I say more?

It is time to be more proactive instead of fatalistic about the fire threat each summer.

If more deciduous trees are allowed to grow, especially within farm and town areas, there is a high chance of saving these areas from the ravages of fire.

Margot Sirr, Gowrie

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