Westbury needs jobs
HI, my name is Will.
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I'm from the small community of Westbury and have lived here for 19 years.
I'm 24 years old and a lot of my generation have left the community to pursue jobs within the cities or moved to the mainland to get work. There are no jobs for unskilled people like myself in the area and the average age of people living in the town is 55 years old.
That would mean that the majority of the protesters would be in their mid 40s to 50s. These people have already worked their whole life and have everything they need.
What absolutely disgusts me is there is no thought about the next generation growing up there and how a noisy minority can have such a loud impact on the community and views of the public.
I am all for the prison, I would like to see Westbury grow. I see all these "Save Westbury" signs and t-shirts but what are they actually saving? Themselves?
The amount of media coverage on the anti-prison is ridiculous. There is a majority of people supporting the prison and want it built. Why aren't we hearing about that?
William Badcock, Westbury.
Spend more money?
I REFER to the letter written by Mr Chris Donaldson (The Examiner, February 14) regarding additional projects proposed by the supporters of Northern Regional Prison development.
Nobody ever said "spend more money". You can build a lot of things with $270 million. All you have to do is manage the money efficiently.
Unlike Mr Donaldson I have long experience from private FMCG sector and I know that all goals must be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time framed).
At this stage they are only not time framed as we don't know if the main project itself will go ahead.
However, anyone is free to start protesting against them already.
To do so I would strongly recommend to officially change the name from WRAP to WARP (Westbury Against Real Progress) as called in a previous Letter to the Editor (The Examiner, January 12).
Grace Rock, Westbury.
Metro constraints
I COMPLETELY agree with you Carol Hill (The Examiner, February 10), our community is not currently being best served by Metro, however I have been far from inactive and quiet on this issue.
Just this week a trial service commenced connecting Waverley, Ravenswood and Mowbray as a result of the strategic advice and support I gave to community leaders.
Last week I assisted the council in our meeting to respond to community concerns.
Many people who have sat in meetings with me will attest; I continually raise and continue to work on this issue.
Whether it be at the Launceston Safer Communities partnership, our own council meetings and workshops, discussions about our City Heart, the UTAS move, population growth, traffic congestion or community wellbeing, including how critically important it is for our more isolated members of the community who desperately need access to local medical and other essential services.
Real and meaningful change in public transport delivery (and removing the stigma associated with catching a bus) is something I am super passionate about and remain committed to work on for as long as it takes.
Our collective efforts must focus on engaging with stakeholder ministers and department heads. Metro simply delivers the service within constraints of their contract.
Real change needs to happen at the policy level. This is possible.
I may not be loud but I am actively working where I can and will not let up until we have the service we deserve.
Janie Finlay, candidate for Rosevears.
Child Protection
IN response to the report critical of response to Aboriginal child protection (The Examiner, February 12).
It is no surprise that the report highlights that Tasmania has a significant way to go to fully implement all elements of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle, when the Tasmanian government funds the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre (TAC) a mere $245,000 per annum to deliver family support services across the state.
The Tasmanian government continues to underfund and devalue the contribution of the Tasmanian Aboriginal community to the future of this state, through failure to protect Aboriginal heritage as well as failing to provide adequate funding for essential services to close the gap.
The Tasmanian government needs to fund the TAC as the peak body to deliver child protection services to the level required, if we are to ever see a reduction in the rates of Aboriginal children being removed from their families and communities.
Lisa Coulson, Northern Regional Manager, Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre.
Euthanasia support
FULL marks to MLC Mike Gaffney for once again opening the discussion for a voluntary assisted dying bill.
Recently, the present government passed this legislation and it looked hopeful. The Legislative Council, in its infinite wisdom, knocked it back and here we are again. Good luck Mike, but make sure we don't get some half-baked pollie-fiddle. This has been operating overseas for some 20 years so there are good models already tried and true to adopt.
Marilyn Quirk, Heybridge.