Letters to
the editor

Prickly topic

It may be awkward to debate migration, but avoiding the topic is worse (Mike Seccombe, “The dangerous debate”, May 11-17). Mass immigration is fuelling a population boom and thus aggravating the housing crisis, road congestion, hospital queues and infrastructure backlog. Our growing number is stretching every single government service. And as scientists know, and every “State of the Environment” report confirms, it is a major driver of Australia’s declining natural environment and is hampering efforts to reduce our carbon emissions. Alas, many people shy away from suggesting we stabilise our population, because it attracts, often unfairly, accusations of racism or economic naivety. But that doesn’t excuse the government. It is fixated on perpetual growth, driven by an ideology (now rightly being challenged) that this will improve our wellbeing and the world around us. Talking about Australia’s population (and thus our ideal immigration intake) is far from dangerous. It is critical.

– Ian Penrose, Kew, Vic

Housing greed

Mike Seccombe’s story on migration and housing is somewhat empty without mentioning the price-gouging of property owners and developers. I would suggest this has a bigger effect on the so-called housing crisis than does feeding the tinderbox of prejudice against migration. Collecting properties is now a hobby of the well-off. Ridiculous profits are being made in the housing market and, with it, a farewell to the majority who can’t afford to pay the extortionate costs. I posit it’s profits/greed, not solely migration, that is driving this. Simply laying it at the foot of migration, while not considering the political economy and ecological damage of building more treeless suburbs that make fabulous profits for developers and from which one has to commute to work, is not the answer.

– Melody Kemp, Balmoral, Qld

Deny access

Jason Koutsoukis (“How lobbyists shape the budget”, May 11-17) describes how our political lobbying system makes a mockery of democracy. With the free flow of employment from government and the senior public service to the ranks of lobbyists, vested interests use this access to exercise disproportionate influence over government policy, while lobbyists’ meetings remain off the public record. Teal independent Monique Ryan has introduced a private member’s bill to reform political lobbying. This bill is currently before the House of Representatives. Should this bill not produce genuine reform in the life of this parliament, we must hope the next election brings far more community-based independents into the parliament, such that they have a voice strong enough to carry through necessary legislation to reform our tainted political processes.

– Chris Young, Surrey Hills, Vic

Cultural content

As a lifelong Australian creative industry practitioner, our cultural identity remains predictably stalled between “not a real job” and “we’re not on the same level” as the cultures we admire and crave to mimic (Karen Barlow, “Exclusive: Budget to promise $115.2 million arts bailout”, May 1-17). Our local consumption habits are the inarguable source of our steady collapse since digital arrived. Labor’s Revive policy frames our required ambition with aching clarity. But no amount of government funding will fix Australia’s low cultural self-esteem that regularly defaults to “leaving ourselves out” citing our dilapidated egalitarian mythology. If Australia wants a real global arts and culture identity, it begins at home with compulsory cultural citizenship that insists the voices of our own creative kin, and their local patrons, be a permanent fixture of our currently non-Australian media mainstream.

– Andrew Barnum, Meroo Meadow, NSW

Solid foundations

Jane Caro is a great advocate for public education (“Free education is possible”, May 11-17). Being a social worker with in-depth knowledge of poverty and disadvantage, I can attest to the differences inherent in the lottery system that is birth and upbringing. Jane alluded to the need for preschool education for all, especially the most disadvantaged in our society. Offering better circumstances for pursuing higher education is key, but most important is good parenting and preparation for school that begins in infancy. Putting money into services in these areas would not engender the battle with the privileged class (a battle that needs to be fought, I believe) that reducing funding for private schools would entail. So let’s put some real money and effort towards supporting parents of young children, providing preschool for all, no matter how remote their community, and preparing preschoolers to enjoy and succeed in education from their very first day.

– Marilyn Lebeter, Smiths Creek, NSW