Government should cover basic aged care, and super the extras

Natassia Chrysanthos notes that “anonymous government sources” say it is a “no-brainer” for super to be “part of the solution” to funding aged care (“Government mulling superannuation as part of aged care solution”, August 4). I suspect opinion might vary according to whose super would be part of the solution. There will be some people who are already partly using their super to pay for a higher quality accommodation and/or services. This may be a basis for fixing the care funding crisis, at least initially: government contributes basic fees (for all aged care) and patient pays for anything extra (probably using their super). This would arguably be reasonably consistent with other medical and hospital arrangements under the health umbrella, and be more acceptable than “ring-fencing” super or levying a tax. Geoff Dunsford, Wahroonga

I am not sure there would be universal agreement with your correspondent’s assertion that “most Australians have worked their entire lives thinking that after years of paying taxes our government would look after us with an automatic pension and, if needed, housing” (Letters, August 5). I paid a substantial amount of tax over the course of my working life. I never regarded that tax as some form of down payment on a tax-free retirement, propped up by the taxes of younger working Australians. Superannuation is intended to help support us in our retirement. The government is not proposing to take super away from retirees, it is suggesting that they should spend some of it to pay for aged care instead of leaving it to their kids. Col Nicholson, Hawks Nest

If the government wants to tax rich people’s super to pay for retirement homes, surely the best way would be to cancel the Stage 3 tax cuts, which were only going to benefit the purported targets – cashed up oldies with good incomes – anyway. It seems counter-intuitive to hand this money out, only to take it away again. Unless, of course, the actual plan was to harvest superannuation from the hard-working middle class who aren’t able to squirrel it away overseas or in family trusts, like the one percenters benefiting from this unfair and unaffordable upper-class welfare.
Allan Kreuiter, Roseville

I note the proposal to use the superannuation system to fund aged care. The historical context is that the national pension scheme fund, which was designed to finance aged pensions, was subsequently acquired by the Howard government to set up the Future Fund, yet subsequently disappeared. Compulsory super was then introduced to finance pensions. Once we start down this line, trillions of dollars in super will be permanently acquired for financing the privatised aged care system, a move which effectively will transfer our super funds to the bank accounts of aged care corporations. This acquisition of super funds for other purposes will lead us to the same crisis we saw caused by the national pension fund disappearing under Howard, and which compulsory Super was created to fix. The crunch will come again with insufficient super liquidity to fund not aged care but retirement generally. Craig Hall, Parramatta

Legislation needed to protect gullible voters

Let’s not forget that Morrison, like Trump, would say “whatever it took” at the time and has been shown to have lied in press conferences and before the cameras (“Why Morrison couldn’t Trump us”, August 5). Like Trump, he also needed enablers within his own party who knew full well that his words and actions were, at the very least, questionable. For these reasons alone, we need legislation to ensure truth from our politicians during election campaigns and accountability for ministerial actions. Alan Marel, North Curl Curl

Not only are vast numbers of US voters ignorant (Letters, August 5), they are gullible. From that election night speech in 2020 when Trump angrily stated, “frankly, we have won the election”, his followers have swallowed the lie, which morphed into the claim the election had been stolen. Now he is trapped in the lie and his ego won’t let him recant, no matter how many indictments there are. How different it all would have been if he had grudgingly admitted defeat – just imagine: no riots, no storming of the Capitol, no rallies to stir up anger. No way! Joan Brown, Orange

Peter Hartcher believes that Trumpism is dead in Australia because Morrison has been discredited and his replacement, Peter Dutton, is an “old school opposition leader”. However, Dutton’s No Campaign has all the hallmarks of Trumpism ... lies, false scare tactics, denigration of opponents as “elites” and wrongly persuading people that they will lose their rights to politicians or to these elites. Unfortunately, Trumpism is still alive and thriving in this country, despite Morrison’s demise. Toni Lorentzen, Fennell Bay

I favour compulsory voting and once, like Hatcher, believed that it reduced the risk of political polarisation. However, as my teenage son recently pointed out to me, most of the countries which have compulsory voting are highly polarised, with the list including Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Thailand and Belgium (which once couldn’t agree on a government for over a year). While there is no compelling reason to ditch compulsory voting, it is unlikely to be the number one explanation for why Australia is less politically polarised than the US. Alan Garrity, North Narrabeen

Hartcher rightly says that Morrison is “discarded and unemployable”. Morrison should heed Oliver Cromwell’s order to the Long Parliament: “In the name of God, Go!” Andrew Macintosh, Cromer

One possible solution to the possible incarceration of Trump would be to lock him in a room of mirrors, which I’m sure he’d love (“How do you jail an ex-president with Secret Service protection?”, August 6). Peter Miniutti, Ashbury

Bring back Stokes’ plans for greener development

The disadvantage known to be associated with living in certain postcode areas is so well known that it is now a component of the newly released Australian Cardiovascular Risk Calculator. The poor urban planning of new estates highlighted by Deborah Snow in her article (“Building up, up and a long way away”, August 5) is something which is certain to result in deleterious effects on both the physical and mental health of those housed there and increased future healthcare costs. Lack of greenery and poorly designed buildings combined with future rising temperatures will result in the increase in morbidity and mortality known to be associated with heat exposure and will also have a negative environmental impact. Rob Stokes’ policy of mandating lighter-coloured roofs in new estates and many other improved design principles proposed by the previous government should not be placed in the dustbin of history. Louise Dolan, Birchgrove

Hear, hear to the proposal of planners, architects and urban designers that the new government reintroduce Rob Stokes’ Design and Place SEPP. In particular, this SEPP provided clear specifications for the provision of EV charging in all new developments. Living in a recently redeveloped precinct in Pyrmont, in which EV charging was not provided in what is now the second-densest urban area in Australia, many apartment-dwellers are scratching their heads about how to retro-fit homes to enable the use of EVs.

Stokes’ SEPP must be at the forefront in planning for further high-rise development. Even now, as the new Sydney Fish Markets is being built at Blackwattle Bay, I have been appalled to be told by Infrastructure NSW that there are no plans to provide EV charging in this new venture. Bring back the SEPP, please Mr Scully. Elizabeth Elenius, Pyrmont

When developers take the money and run, the people most damaged are the apartment buyers who bought property “off the plan”. Buying off the plan is a prerequisite of banks for providing funding to developers and the practice is readily abused, as shown in the Toplace saga.

When the banks insist on a certain percentage of off the plan sales they are placing apartment buyers into a world where they are buying a “promise” with no guarantee that the promise will be delivered on. Now that we have the NSW Building Commissioner we have some certainty that when a building is completed that it is built to the best standards, so to buy a completed building that the commissioner has signed off on gives buyers certainty about its quality.

Maybe it is time that buying off the plan is relegated to the past. This would remove consumers from a contract between the bank and the developer over which the consumer has no control. John Flower, Manly

I look forward to reading an in-depth analysis of how regulators, bureaucrats and politicians failed at every key point to prevent the huge human and financial disaster that Toplace has become. It is too big and diverse to be an accident or the result of any one individual’s wickedness. It is a disgraceful systems failure over many years. Tom Mangan, Woy Woy

Football needs change

Over the years, all the other football codes have changed various rule, but soccer seems to be stuck in the past. It is too hard to score points in soccer, hence the not infrequent nil-all outcomes after 90 minutes. Soccer has been around since the 19th century and the size of the soccer goal was originally too big for the smaller players of the time to cover. The goalkeepers are much larger now and can save most goal attempts. A simple scoring rule change would transform the boring game into a much more exciting game. One point if the ball touches the posts /crossbar but doesn’t go in; two points if it touches and then goes in; and three points if it goes in clean without touching the posts/crossbar. Peter Kamenyitzky, Castle Hill

Clean up the pokies

The latest revelations in the pokies saga provides more evidence of money-laundering and worrying suggestions of warnings to clubs when compliance inspections were due to take place (“Clubs were tipped off to compliance check blitz”, August 5). It reinforces the calls on Labor to stop delaying the cashless gaming card and emphasises once again the importance of transparency to prevent rorting. And once again, it is in an independent who is holding the government to account. Where would we be without the independents both here and in Canberra? Gary Barnes, Mosman

Share the cost

The Canadian province of Alberta has withdrawn from bidding for the Commonwealth Games, following the sensible actions of Victoria. Maybe it is time for a permanent home for the Commonwealth Games and the Olympics– London and Athens. Countries could contribute to the costs in proportion to the number of competitors they send. It is time to share the costs to keep these games viable. Perhaps these games might also return to the traditional sports, especially the Olympics, and leave the other sports to compete in World Cups and World Championships. Ted Hemmens, Cromer

Brexit’s a cautionary tale for Voice

Nick Bryant’s article refers to Britain where it should have referred to England “Britain isn’t stuck in the past, it’s stuck in the present”, August 5). We in Scotland are only stuck because the English will not give us our democratic right to a vote on independence. Robert Allan, Moray (Scotland)

Nick Bryant references the profound feeling of “bregret” that has settled on the UK as the people realise what a foolish decision they made in leaving the European Union. That decision was made following a campaign of lies and misinformation by the proponents of Brexit. Let’s hope sincerely that Australia does not have to undergo a similar hangover of bitter remorse after the Voice referendum. When we wake up on the morning following the referendum, we should do so in the knowledge that we made the right decision for our First Nations people and for Australia. Dennis Metcalf, Drummoyne

Food for thought

Do not underestimate the value of the brain food our Herald’s puzzle page provides. As one who does his level best to achieve 100 per cent completion rates, it is not a case of failing to complete; rather, it is confirmation that it is A1 day and you are learning something new (or again). Col Shephard, Yamba

Out of touch

You have to wonder if there would have been more free-to-air television coverage had this been a men’s football World Cup? Corrado Tavella, Rosslyn Park (SA)

Chicken dinner

Nick O’Malley writes about the Australian Wildlife Conservancy and mentions that quolls disappeared from Vaucluse in 1963 (“Electric Dreams”, August 5). Our family owned a boatyard in Point Piper from 1955 till 1974; one Vaucluse-based client would frequently turn up in a very disgruntled frame of mind, complaining that the quolls had attacked his chooks again. Chooks and quolls in Vaucluse? Rob Venables, Bermagui

Solar solution

Excellent practical and positive information about getting off gas from Angus Holland (“Gas be gone: magnetic appeal of electrifying your home”, August 5). Who doesn’t want a comfortable, well-insulated, healthy home powered by the sun? More on solutions to pollution, please. Amy Hiller, Kew (Vic.)

The digital view

Online comment from one of the stories that attracted the most reader feedback yesterday on smh.com.au

From Barbie to Taylor Swift – why are men so afraid of girls?

From Liz: “The thing I enjoyed most about going to see Barbie was the sheer support in numbers for the whole shebang. The cinema was packed and it’s already been out for weeks. Barbie, like the WWC and Tay-Tay, are events for women. It makes women feel like we are the main characters for once in our lives. Keep this stuff coming, I could get used to it!”

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