I was saddened to hear that at a recent major junior sporting carnival, many people parking harmlessly on nature strips and off‑road areas near the sporting ovals were booked for illegal parking. This was similar to a recent major junior netball carnival in Campbelltown, where 3,000 out‑of‑area visitors (mainly parents of children playing in the carnival) were booked. Many of them said they would not return to the event next year for this reason.
Canberra is not only blessed with good sporting facilities, but many kids here play a variety of sports, making the city a great destination for events like the Kanga Cup and other mass‑participation carnivals. Our parking fines also tend to be higher than in NSW. In my view, if a car is not legally parked but is causing no harm at a kids’ sporting event, why book it?
I know we’re short of a quid thanks to poor local government management, but that’s no reason to book otherwise law‑abiding citizens at sporting venues around town. We want to encourage visitors — especially mums and dads bringing their kids to sporting carnivals — to come to Canberra and feel welcome here.
Our traffic management people need to exercise some discretion here. I’d suggest the minister needs to instruct the department officials accordingly.
Anyone parking in an area that disrupts other traffic, blocks a driveway, or is positioned where the vehicle could cause damage (for example, to newly sown grass) should be booked — but not vehicles that are parked without causing any harm. A bit of common sense needs to be used in these situations.
On another note, I’m glad Albo had a good time in China. Chengdu looks like a nice place, and I’ll be adding it to my bucket list. However, he didn’t seem to achieve much. I know he doesn’t like conflict, but it’s his job to speak up on behalf of Australia and raise issues of concern with his hosts.
For example, there are innocent Australian citizens held in Chinese jails, provocative actions against Australian sailors, and aggressive live‑firing exercises by the Chinese navy in our own backyard. He is wrong to say we do the same ourselves — we don’t. China wouldn’t stand for it (and rightly so). To my knowledge, the last time the RAN conducted any live firing near China was during the Korean War — over 70 years ago.
Further afield, I see UK PM Keir Starmer has indicated his government will lower the voting age to 16. This seems to be a desperate bid to gerrymander the system, as most 16‑ and 17‑year‑olds will vote Labor or Greens, having been influenced by schools and peer pressure. It’s all part of the vibe, yet many of them have no real clue, understanding or indeed interest in politics. I’ve written before about this in an Australian context, so I won’t say much more — except to note that it seems we are safe from this “initiative” here, as Albo knows most 16‑ and 17‑year‑olds would lean Green, and that would not help the ALP, so he is unlikely to bring it in.
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