Hey folks, Newcastle will be just fine without the pines: Herald readers have their say

It alerts us to town planners and desktop landscape designers who can lose a clear view of the benefits in bringing back endemic flora species and returning our shared areas to a circular eco-system in harmony with our harbour, beaches and ocean.

Otherwise we cannot tell whether we are standing in a host of other coastal urban areas from Manly to Terrigal, all homogenised by the endless Norfolk Pines casting long shadows all the while blocking our awareness of the unique and open Newcastle coastal living spaces we so enjoy.

THE City of Newcastle has decided to release the conduct reviewer's findings into the behaviour of Cr Allan Robinson, pictured, ("Robbo could walk away from ticket", Herald, 29/7).

The decision to release the report was not carried unanimously.

The online version of the report is grey-printed with the words "proactively released in accordance with the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009".

For a council which is known for its reticence when it comes to releasing information about the likes of Supercars, it seems to have no qualms about releasing information which may tend to show an independent councillor in a bad light.

There must be an election coming up.

IT'S great news a rescission motion was lodged for the renaming of Coon Island.

If the council just ignores public survey results, why bother having surveys?

The fact that 56 per cent of respondents didn't want a name change should have ended the debate.

Apparently the majority of councillors went against the survey results (as stated in the Herald 30/7).

Shame on them. Councillors are elected to represent their constituents, so do what you were elected to do.

As stated, this has nothing to do with Aboriginal people, it's about what the community wants.

PARLIAMENT is accountable for the penalty incurred by the government for changing policy on container facility development.

The penalty is payable to the lessee of Port Botany and Port Kembla, NSW Ports Pty Ltd, until 2063.

Announced in 2012, the policy is that a container terminal will not be developed at the Port of Newcastle before Port Botany and Port Kembla become fully developed.

In 2012, the (then) Treasurer, Mike Baird, decided that the government of the day would be penalised for changing the policy.

Changing the policy does not involve Parliament because the policy was not legislated.

The Treasurer did not disclose the penalty to Parliament because Parliament cannot penalise the government for changing a policy.

Parliament is accountable for the legality of the penalty.

Did Parliament legislate the penalty?

Only Parliament can answer this question.

IT is about time we opened ourselves to a "non emotional discussion" on nuclear electricity generation.

A few facts we should know is that currently nuclear power is the only proven generation technology that offers 24/7 reliability, affordability, and environmental sustainability for Australia's National Electricity grid.

Today over 447 nuclear reactors supply 10.6 per cent of the world's electricity in 30 countries and this percentage is increasing.

Australia is the only G20 country where nuclear power is banned by federal law, which in itself, is bewildering given that Australia is the world's third largest supplier of uranium oxide for the world's reactors.

If we want reliable electricity and to keep our jobs, incomes and lifestyles into the future, then nuclear must be in the discussion of our energy mix.

I AGREE with Graeme Kime, ("Let down by booking system", Letters, 29/7).

I am absolutely fed up with being told to get vaccinated in announcements by Gladys Berejiklian or Scott Morrison or both.

"Please come forward and get vaccinated."

"Everyone should be getting vaccinated."

"It is everyone's responsibility to get vaccinated."

Well I'll happily invite Ms Berejiklian and Mr Morrison to make an appointment for me.

I had to put it off until two weeks ago because of severe illness and two months in hospital earlier in the year.

I'm wiser to get the Pfizer vaccine because I have clotting risks.

And I have two life-threatening chronic illnesses, plus disability.

And I've been trying to get an appointment for two weeks with zero success.

Like Mr Kime, the Belmont online booking form won't let me submit my request unless I have two appointments selected, but it says there are no available second appointments, so I can't book.

Everywhere else I've tried either doesn't do Pfizer at all or has run out.

Come on, Gladys and ScoMo.

Get me an appointment if you're going to harass me every day to get vaccinated.

We all have enough stress at the moment without politicians hassling us to do things that the systems they're responsible for will not let us do.

STEVE Barnett (Short Takes, 30/7), yes, according to the SMH (18/7) your beat up of the ABC is wrong. Their report says: "Senior Australian Business figures took matters into their own hands regarding the leisurely vaccine rollout in Australia".

They "met with senior Pfizer executives who made it known they were dismayed and offended that Scott Morrison had not made personal overtures" to Pfizer, something Benjamin Netanyahu had done about 30 times".

Israel has had one of the fastest vaccine rollouts in the world.

It was a Pfizer executive that apparently said if Morrison was too busy to meet them, perhaps Rudd could do it on behalf of Australia.

Apparently Rudd did help the Morrison government as an Australian citizen.

And to minimise any political damage, Rudd and Pfizer and the Australian government looked to keep the proceedings in confidence, a common behaviour in the business world, in particular when it involves politically sensitive information and commercial arrangements and when a firm does not want to damage its relationship with the government which may affect the sale of their product.

I DON'T know why the council is making a cycleway down Hunter Street. It will only push cyclists to the middle of the road as they hate being told where to ride.

SO Albo ditches his negative gearing policy. How many investment properties does he or all of the ratbags in Canberra own? This should be made public before an election. I'm sick of the lot of them. Perhaps all Australians should refuse to vote at the next federal election, that may be our only way to show the bastards how we actually feel about them.

IT'S time for a new design Australian flag. I find it humorous that our Olympic gold winner swimmers, very prominent in the green and gold, but then appear in front of the Union Jack (the butcher's apron) on the Australian flag. Why do we continue to bow our knee to a monarchy from the other side of the planet earth? Is it not time to remove that symbol of misery, the Union Jack from our flag.

I'M sad to admit that every four years (or five), I think of Norman May more than mother.

IT appears to me the hard lessons of the past have been totally ignored by our inept federal government. With us now living in the third decade of the 21st century and supposedly smarter, instead we rely on an unsatisfactory quarantine system that is situated right in the centre of our crowded major cities. In our second year of this shocking COVID outbreak we deserve better from our leaders. It is becoming an extremely expensive mistake.

NOW that NSW Police have called in the ADF, will they set up a checkpoint at Berowra stopping them from coming out of Sydney spreading the plague north?

WHY do all the lefty journos want the PM to say "Sorry"? Sorry for what? He organised over 50 million AstraZeneca doses which we received. We now have millions of Pfizer coming in weekly. So ScoMo, just tell this lot to suck it up and everyone get the needle.

THIS is the worst health issue Australians have had to face and keeps changing regardless of the best efforts of our state government and their experts. Together we can overcome this crisis following the rules set by our health experts to keep up our cleanliness when we are in public respecting our fellow citizens as Novocastrians. We will overcome this virus and the rest of NSW will become free of this virus. Better times ahead.