Clean energy
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ACCORDING to the Climate Council, last year clean energy investment grew in China (32 per cent), the US (8 per cent), Japan (12 per cent), Germany (3 per cent) and the UK (3 per cent); but fell 35 per cent in Australia (with investment in large-scale renewable energy falling an incredible 88 per cent), due to policy uncertainty.
This is an appalling indictment on the federal government and is making us a laughing stock worldwide.
Why can they not see that investment in renewable energy creates thousands of new jobs and an economic boost especially in remote and regional areas, all without polluting the environment?
— ESTELLE ROSS, Riverside.
NBN
IN REPLY to Jean Crosier - though you may be happy with your existing service, it comes at a steep cost.
Under the Coalition's new plans for the NBN the maintenance of the copper network has been contracted to Telstra for $100 billion over the next 30 years.
Even at the most inflated estimate, the entire original NBN model was only estimated at $90 billion.
So we will now be paying more, for much longer, for just a part of a lesser system.
I think it's not just businesses who would be against that.
— ANDERS RUSSELL, Launceston.
Nikolic
ROSS Hart (The Examiner, March 27) joins a growing list of Labor identities supporting the Coalition's higher education reforms.
I particularly endorse Mr Hart's view that these reforms are an "opportunity for the University of Tasmania".
But we continue to be let down by Tasmania’s Labor-Green-Independent senators who have twice voted against the reforms.
By playing politics with this issue, they deny UTAS the potential to attract thousands more students to its campuses.
I am working hard in support of the UTAS campus in Launceston and strongly support the university's vision to attract many more young Tasmanians towards a university pathway.
This is essential to building the research and innovation capacity Tasmania needs for a more prosperous future.
Having less than 7 per cent of our young people attend university, against a national average of 40 per cent, reinforces that doing nothing is not an option.
— ANDREW NIKOLIC, Bass Liberal MHR.
University right to speak
I THANK Bass Liberal MHR Andrew Nikolic for his complaint about me to the university.
The effect has been to clarify and give certainty to the right of academics to speak openly while indicating their association with the institution.
The university has responded with considerable maturity to this issue and the joint letter by myself and the Dean, Professor Sue Dodds makes clear the university’s affirmation of my right to speak publically.
That and the extraordinary support of more than 120 academics against Mr Nikolic’s actions have emphasised that the meddling and mischief of politicians is not acceptable.
As a democratically elected member of a democratic system, Mr Nikolic has an obligation to uphold the democratic process.
Mr Nikolic claims he is in favour of open debate yet he has continually evaded my invitation for him to engage publicly.
It is time Mr Nikolic indicated he is prepared to have the public discussion of issues and ideas the public craves.
— DR MICHAEL POWELL, History and Classics, School of Humanities University of Tasmania.