You can’t put a price on a child’s life, but some consistency would be nice.

IN REPLY to “Tourist disgust at roadkill” (The Examiner, December 1), short of introducing foxes to lower the roadkill to levels seen on the mainland.

No thanks, foxes would decimate any Tasmanian fauna less than four kilograms and impact negatively on the agricultural sector, the study findings mentioned in the article will make interesting reading.

Perhaps, an increase roadside wildlife alerts for dusk to dawn travel may be a recommened outcome?

Or through a dedicated (and funded) program, wildlife rangers daily remove roadkill (in the mornings) from popular tourist routes?

That said, short of banning night time driving, regrettably, most of our dark-furred native animals are very hard to detect, so problem cannot be eliminated.

I HAVE noticed over the past two months or so, there have been three fatalities on our roads that involved small front wheel drive vehicles, two of these were on wet roads.

I was wondering if these accidents could have been the result of the drivers having the cruise controls turned on.

The cruise controls are definitely dangerous in some circumstances, but I have never heard any references to how dangerous by any Road Safety Authority or the RACT.

Do police road accident investigators put this situation down as a statistic, and does the coroner ever record the cruise control as the possible cause of a road fatality?

I also saw on the news last night the result of a motorcyclist’s fatal coming together with a wire rope barrier.

Another life not saved by these killers.

IN THE “leafy suburbs” of Melbourne, petrol prices range from $1.19 to $1.28 per litre, dependent upon the day of purchase.

The ubiquitous question of why do petrol prices remain in the low $1.60’s per litre in Hobart and Launceston? Retail profiteering at the customer’s expense is seemingly commensurate to banker’s self-interest regarding customer’s trust and loyalty?

THE Apex Club of Tamar is to be congratulated for the resounding success of the Launceston Christmas Parade.

The diverse mix of schools, community groups and local clubs on show is a reminder of our vibrant community.  

The support from businesses was particularly evident as the CBD joined to celebrate what is a highlight of the Launceston calendar. 

I’m sure that those who participated or were able to watch the parade go by will join me in thanking the dedicated volunteers who make this event happen.

SUE Hickey has undermined the office of Speaker and misled voters in Denison and Tasmania generally as to her true political intentions.

Under Westminster systems of government, the Speaker’s prime role is to ensure even-handed application of the rules of parliamentary debate and voting.

They have a casting vote where numbers are even.

But it is customary, unless there are exceptional circumstances, for the Speaker to vote with the government of the day.

It is virtually unknown for Speakers to promote their own activist agendas in open liaison with opposition parties, yet remain a member of the governing party caucus.

Ms Hickey’s claims to be both a small “L” Liberal and a “colour blind independent” are equally confusing.

Nothing in her election material gave voters any indication as to her personal policy priorities and ’independent’ intentions.

As a result, the people of Tasmania have ended up with exactly what they voted against by a significant majority – governance by a de facto Labor/Green alliance on an unpredictable range of issues of her choosing.

Tasmania’s Hare-Clark system of voting does not provide for byelections.

Ms Hickey should stand down and enable a count back of votes.

She could then take a leaf out of Andrew Wilkie’s book and present herself at the next state election as a genuine independent.

PREMIER Will Hodgman must sack Adam Brooks know he has protected for too long and proves that Hodgman has a weak response to troubles in his party like most Liberal leaders in Australia.

BOTH major federal political parties seem blind to the most urgent issues facing Australia.

The coalition is particularly blinkered.

Every second sentence they utter talks about a “stronger economy”.

If we are doing so well, how is it that (for example) homelessness is at record levels as inequality increases.

They seem to think we actually live in an economy; we don’t. We live in a society. And that society exists at the pleasure of a very, very fragile environment.

The priorities seem so simple, but sadly not to everyone.