Despite what Mark suggests, plans have never been ends in themselves, but the outcome of assessments of how the city should develop given the parameters operating at the time of their preparation.

The Y-plan was prepared within the community's then preference for low density living and cars. It led to the development of town, group and local centres, peripheral freeways, the inter-town public transport route to encourage public transport use, and cycle and pedestrian paths.

Mark's belief that a single-centred city would have produced a better outcome than the development of new towns, each with a major employment centre, is contentious. His single centre strategy would have required extensive infrastructure that was only fully utilised in peak hours.

Over the last 50 years, strategies have been modified in response to environmental, social and housing preference changes, and the Commonwealth's decision to devolve office location decisions to departments.

A major emphasis has been to encourage higher-density residential development.

Further changes will occur as parameters change. Such changes should be evidence-based and informed by community input. A permanent change in home-work relationships, for example, would require a reassessment of the level of office space at major centres, the already marginal light rail extension, and cycling, walking and local centre development strategies.

Sunday, May 24, saw the closure of Magnet Mart on Hindmarsh Drive, Phillip, Woden. It was still affectionately known to many of us as "Pauls".

This means that Woden Valley and Weston Creek no longer have a hardware store or nursery. We will all have to drive further for many basic services.

What do those who don't have a car do? "Pauls" was conveniently located opposite the Woden Centre; the destination for many buses a day.

Monday, May 25, saw the reopening of the ongoing persecution of whistle blower Bernard Collaery in the ACT Courts.

Collaery and Witness K have been falsely accused so as to cover the tracks of the then responsible Minister in the unlawful bugging of the East Timorese Parliamentary offices.

This unlawful action resulted in the theft of many millions of dollars from East Timor, one of the poorest nations on the earth.

Australians should be utterly ashamed of our government's involvement in such theft and the subsequent attempts to persecute and prosecute the whistleblowers.

Oh come on, Sankar (Letters, May 21): "the first time in history the USA has failed to lead world in a major crisis"?

Really? Politically, most Americans and their Congress are, and have always been, inward looking. Many of them are as ignorant about the outside world as North Koreans, but without the excuse for being so.

In World War II the US stood and watched fascism consume Europe. It did little until the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbour. Look at the way George W. Bush led the world in a major crisis post-9/11. He dug his country, and ours, and a whole lot more, into a war in Iraq that further destabilised the region and led to the rise of ISIS.

What about their failure to lead the world on climate change action?

This is by no means a first for the US. It won't be the last either given the calibre of the incumbent President.

John Sandilands (Letters 21) correctly brings up the cost of Plan B, opening the country.

I wonder if the national cabinet discussed what is an "acceptable" death rate "that our medical system can cope with" due to releasing lock-down and rising infections?

Would be good to know.

I'm surprised and disappointed you chose to print the letter from Mr Collins (Letters, May 21) in which he noted that Donald Trump is taking a potentially dangerous drug and then suggested the dose should be "dramatically increased".

If Alan Jones' comment about "shoving a sock down Ms Ardern's throat" was considered distasteful and unacceptable by the Media Authority, then Mr Collin's comment is just as bad. Surely the same standards apply to all; just because Mr Trump doesn't have the popularity of Ms Ardern shouldn't make it okay to propose lethal harm to him.

It appears that social distancing rules for elevators are seriously slowing down access to high rise blocks.

A major reason for this problem is that over the past 30 years or so multi-storey buildings have been erected without public access staircases. The use of fire stairs is prohibited except in emergencies.

Up until some point in the 1980s office staff were encouraged to use the open staircases as much as possible to encourage physical exercise in the workplace.

Isn't it about time to reconsider providing free access to staircases in multi-storey buildings?

I couldn't agree more with John Sandilands (Letters, May 21). The Morrison government, and a couple of State premiers, have moved from the policy of achievable suppression of COVID-19 that most Australians wanted, expected, and supported through their actions, to a policy of an acceptable level of infection, illness and death.

That level is commensurate with the number of ICU beds available. The COVIDSafe App, that so many phones can't access, is part of that regime of monitoring and controlling that acceptable level.

It's a pity Scott Morrison hadn't the guts to admit this so that people being encouraged to return to shopping, therapy, and work know where they stand.

Congratulations to the CFMEU, and the legion of casual workers across the nation. They not only won a landmark case against the business lobby and the government, they exposed the government for the anti-worker outfit that it really is.

I would caution Christian Porter against making dangerous statements in the heat of the moment with threats to change legislation to get his business mates the victory they believe should be their's.

If "casual" workers are paid their just wages and the back pay "stolen" by the conspiring business lobby and government, they'll have enough cash to to be able to put it back into the wider business community.

It's potentially a win win solution that could restore the economy more efficiently than this government could possibly imagine.

John Hewson, a former leader of the Liberal Party who is utterly mainstream on economics, recently wrote "the conservative International Energy Agency (warns) against governments developing COVID-19 recovery plans that back fossil fuels for fear they'd expose nations to "escalating financial, health and social risks". The thinking is sound."

What is our government doing? It is promoting fossil fuels under the guise of COVID-19 recovery plans. Irresponsible pig-headed madness.

Much has been made of Scott Morrison's handling of the COVID-19 crisis; his decisive and collaborative approach, and his heeding the advice of experts, in the context of a clear and immediate danger.

I have no doubt at all that, based on the nature of the man we have seen over the years, things would have been very different, had he had available to him the option of deferring decisions until after the next election.

We need this PM all year round, not just when we are in immediate peril.

British footballer John Bateman, given a chance by the Raiders to escape drab northern England and play here in the NRL, apparently now thinks that $600,000 per season isn't enough for him to stay in glorious Canberra. Shut the gate on the way out of town and don't come back.

Have you noticed something weird about the virus? I am talking about its very first landfalls. All happened close to 40 degrees north latitude. In sequence: Wuhan; South Korea; Iran; Northern Italy; Spain; New York, and California. There could be ordinary explanations of course, but Iran? A hot-spot tourist destination?

The ACT government should not adopt the $40,000 grant for new home buyers proposed by the Master Builders Association. In the past such initiatives have only helped push up the prices for houses and apartments.

Having suffered multiple injuries, including broken bones, and having my own dog injured in a dog attack, I was amazed to discover our uncommunicative government doesn't seem to care. I have repeatedly asked, to no avail, why violent animals are returned to their owners to potentially inflict further pain. Roll on the next election. It is time for a change.

Those involved in the most recent denial of a posthumous VC for Teddy Sheean should read the witness accounts and then quietly contemplate the painting in the AWM depicting his heroism for half an hour. They should then be made to publicly explain why he doesn't deserve the honour. The evidence is clear. It has been for decades.

Aren't there rules about advertisements on the ABC? Dozens are played every hour. Many are repeated continuously throughout the week. I , for one, can't stand the sight or sound of the "We Are One" song clip. It is smug and patronising. I immediately cancel it using my remote.

Professor Peter McEvoy's reasons why people may resist COVID-19 health messages ('Why people disregard COVID-19 health warnings', 23 May) missed one. That is the distrust of governments and "elites", including doctors and scientists. This scepticism, found among Trump's support base, also exists here.

Trump has solved the COVID-19 problem. When hydroxychloroquine is mixed with facial tanning lotion it obviously provides an effective vaccine. Unfortunately it does not protect against foot in mouth disease.

People usually resent being treated as idiots, especially by a fool. The sustained high degree of support for President Trump suggests many American voters are "unusual" in this regard.

It is hard to take Bob Salmond`s argument for zero population growth seriously. In Western Australia, South Australia, and the Northern Territory - about two thirds of the continent - there are not even three million people.

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

Keep your letter to 250 or fewer words. References to The Canberra Times reports should include date and page number. Letters may be edited. Provide phone number and full home address (suburb only published).

To send a letter via the online form, click or touch here.