What will Hapless Gulaptis do?

The Federal Government and COAG committed to a course of action in February 2011 which resulted in the National Health Reform Agreement. The NSW Government at the time was led by Labor’s K-K- Keneally.

This agreement sees NSW receive federal health funding under the National Partnership Agreement on Improving Public Hospital Services. Specifically this state will get $526 million in New Subacute Beds Guarantee Funding from 2010-11 to 2013-4.

Because there is a byelection in the Clarence electorate and the Nats candidate Chris Gulaptis got caught out telling funding pork pies, the O’Farrell Government’s Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Health Melinda Pavey fronted the media instead to announce that the new subacute beds planned for Maclean District Hospital were part of the Nats grand plan for the Clarence Valley.

I wait in breathless anticipation for Chris to break loose from his minders, tunnel under the media fence and announce to the world that in fact those extra 14 hospital beds planned for Maclean were due to his good offices – after all he’s already claimed credit on behalf of the Nats for a private bequest to Maclean Hospital!

Clarence Valley Council - matured or over ripe?

The Daily Examiner letter to the editor 3 November 2011:

A mature council

THE Clarence Valley Council's recently appointed GM, Scott Greensill, reportedly claimed "the council was now maturing past amalgamation" (DEX, October 27). Well, just how much has our forced amalgamated council matured?
At the council's general meeting on September 13, the staff's recommendation to councillors seeking federal funding for a $7m extension to the Grafton Gallery was prepared (in part) by none other than the Grafton Gallery's director, Jude McBean (item 12.167/11). That privilege included "waiving development assessment and construction fees" of $40,692 as well as "identifying a potential $4.13m which could accrue from developer (contributions) over the next 20 years". But no mention was made that the developer's contributions plan showed Grafton's projected population growth to 2021 was only 494 and zero to 2031, thereby contributing little S94 revenues.
In contrast, at the same meeting, council staff recommended to councillors the "waiving of hire fees of $150 for the cost of council's events trailer" for Iluka's Family Festival to raise money to build a sports shed for Iluka (item 12-168/11). Yet the developer's contributions plan shows Iluka's projected population growth of 642 to 2021 and 627 to 2031, thereby generating far more S94 funds than Grafton, as well as experiencing significant pressures on its existing infrastructures.
It must be a niggle in the guts for Iluka's volunteers to work their butts off to raise community funds, but not be given the privileged opportunity to prepare their own recommendations to a mature forced amalgamated Clarence Valley Council.

RAY HUNT
Yamba.

Meandering through the mauves

Top:
Peregrine's Journey 1990 by Patrycia Buckland of Alstonville NSW
Centre:
Floral Festivals stamp by Australia Post 2011
Bottom:
Fly Away 2002 by Deborah Cocks of Bray's Creek NSW

Quote of the Week

Here was a man who wanted to get rid of the possums in his roof, so called in a napalm strike.

{Heathen Scripture writing about Qantas Airlines CEO Alan Joyce on 1^st November 2011}

Forest NSW illegal logging

Local environmentalists are disappointed with the small fines Forests NSW has received for illegally logging 15 hectares of endangered lowland rainforest in Grange SF near Jackadgery.

Lowland Rainforest is an Endangered Ecological Environment (EEC) that is excluded from Forests NSW harvesting operations.

EEC’s are protected by the National Parks and Wildlife Act. Under sections 118A and 118D of the Act it is an offence to pick or harm endangered ecological communities; currently the maximum penalty is $220,000 and up to 2 years jail, with an additional $11,000 for each plant illegally logged, picked, bulldozed out of the ground, trampled or squashed.

Environmentalists are concerned that the forest regulator, the Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH) may not have found the 15ha area of rainforest that was trashed because the two small fines issued were for offences in other forest compartments. Forestry regulation staff at OEH do not have  the requisite skills to identify EEC’s. The Clarence Environment Centre offered to show OEH the forest compartment in question but OEH declined the offer.

The value of the illegally harvested trees far outweigh the fines imposed to FNSW.

OEH minister Robyn Parker and OEH CEO Lisa Corbyn owe the people of NSW an explanation. Why is Forests NSW not subject to the full force of the law?

Does Chris Gulaptis the National party candidate for the seat of Clarence support Robyn Parker's lazy approach to regulating Forests NSW harvesting operations?

Chris Gulaptis brags about he had 10,000 bats tipped out of their home near Maclean.

Parker claims the government is working hard to save koalas but has approved logging in core koala habitat in Boambee State forest near Coffs.

Robyn Parker is proving to be a liability for the NSW government with a bad case of foot in mouth disease.  Luke Foley at the recent standing committee - " So you are an environment minister that just does what Forests NSW ask?"

In the last 2 years Forest NSW have been found to have breached the Integrated Forestry Operations Approval (IFOA) at Yabbra SF, Girard SF, Doubleduke SF, Grange SF and Wedding Bells SF.

In June 2011 Justice Pepper of the NSW Land and Environment Court commented that FNSW operations -  ‘suggests either a pattern of continuing disobedience in respect of environmental laws generally or, at the very least, a cavalier attitude to compliance with such laws’.

Chris Green

Guest Speak is a North Coast Voices segment allowing serious or satirical comment from NSW Northern Rivers residents. Email ncvguestpeak at gmail dot com to submit comment for consideration.

2011 Clarence By-election Scorecard. Part Three - dumb show

NSW Nationals candidate Chris Gulaptis is having his hand held by party minders and has made no major statements in the mainstream media this week. He is finding the going tough on social media, where his presence can be best be described as inane with entries such as this:

Strange what issues you can find whilst out door knocking. I am going to see a person who is experiencing difficulties with truck drivers relieving themselves on their footpath.

NSW Country Labor candidate Peter Ellem in the local media this week:

Country Labor candidate for the Clarence by-election Peter Ellem described the announcement as bungled, saying they should get "fair dinkum about this important project". "There wasn't one single cent allocated for this multi-million-dollar project in the budget which was released only one month ago," Mr Ellem said.

Mr Ellem said the government needed to show budgeted funding for the health centre to ensure it is delivered for local residents. 

And with this yesterday:

Country Labor candidate for Clarence Peter Ellem said he was alarmed at NSW Attorney-General Greg Smith's response to questioning in budget estimates meetings.

"(He) refused to rule out closing further prisons across NSW and Grafton is one of the oldest in NSW," he said.

The department announced 13 redundancies at Grafton jail in August and it confirmed that 12 redundancies had been accepted.

Peter Ellem has demanded that the O'Farrell government guarantee the future of Campbell Hospital at Coraki and urgently fund repairs so the hospital can be re-opened.

The hospital was closed after storm damage on September 25 and residents fear that the 14-bed facility will be closed down.

NSW Greens candidate Janet Cavanaugh continues her social media presence at Janet4Clarence and she has more campaign information posted than all the other candidates combined. She has also seen her policy positions placed in local mainstream media through her use of Greens MLC Jeremy Buckingham to call for a fast-tracking of a Strategic Regional Landuse Policy for the North Coast and lines like this:

IN Grafton on Tuesday to support the Greens candidate for Clarence Janet Cavanaugh, MLC Jeremy Buckingham warned the National Party to ignore farmers' concerns at its own peril. "The National Party has got a choice to make, are they the National Party or are they the Multi-National Mining Company Party?" he asked.

Independent Wade Walker has made no public statement for the third week in a row week.

Christian Democratic Party candidate Bethany Camac made only one major public statement in the media this week in which she gave unsolicited and misleading ‘advice’ to sacked workers:

"If they don't want to take up the job offer at Casino and sit around and whinge they can sit around and whinge, if they want to get off their bums and get a new job they can do that," she said.

Outdoor Recreation Party candidate Clinton Mead has had little to say so far – although as a serial election candidate his March 2011 less is more argument when it comes to government funding does not bode well.

Australian Democrat candidate David Robinson is another hopeful serial candidate, who appears to live in the Ballina state electorate and has business interest in Alstonville and Lismore areas. He was/is President of the Alstonville and District Citizens and Ratepayers Association. As Robinson left it to the last minute to nominate, this is all he has said so far:

Robinson is a small business operator, being born into his family’s farm on the North Coast. Robinson’s activity in small business saw him being involved with bringing local dial-up Internet assess to Grafton, through Big River Internet, now Linear G, in the 1990’s, and now operating his free-range poultry and cattle farm. His interests include the breeding of poultry, Simmental cattle, goats, ducks and pigs plus, broadband Internet, web hosting, amateur theatre and community politics. Robinson stood as an Australian Democrats candidate at the 2010 Federal and 2011 N.S.W. State Elections, and has recently been involved in re-establishing the party’s Grafton-Maclean Branch. [Media release 2 November 2011]

Independent Stewart Scott-Irving from Old Bar is another candidate who is a serial nominee of longstanding, having stood as a Queensland Federal Labor candidate in 1990, as an Independent in the North Coast federal seat of Lyne in 2007 and 2008, for the Senate in 2010. Although he is yet to make any form of  policy statement, there is an intriguing glimpse into past history:

What a shame our Senator John Faulkner didn't take some of the blame for the demise of the ALP himself. When I informed him personally on Old Bar Beach of my being sacked along with my School Council when we attempting in 2005 to enrol an Aboriginal family's 3 children, he just wished me luck in my seeking justice through the IR Commission and the Supreme Court. Did I hear anything from him or the ALP subsequently? Not bloody likely!!!
Stewart Scott-Irving | Wallabi Point / Old Bar / Taree - June 10, 2011, 1:40PM

Assessment:

1. Chris Gulaptis remains a policy free zone. He appears to be avoiding the media this week and is relying on meet and greets which involve little critical appraisal of his utterances. Being towed along by party heavies like an errant toddler is not a good look.  He goes deeper into minus territory on the scoreboard.

2. Peter Ellem falters this week after getting off to such a promising start with so many Gulaptis gaffes to bounce off. There is no clear policy vision emerging. His silence on the risks of mining in the Upper Nymboida area of the Clarence River catchment can only be described as deafening. This sees little movement in his score.

3. Janet Cavanaugh is the only candidate who shows any passion with regard to the issues she canvasses in her campaign and deserves brownie points for not just going through the motions like most of the other candidates.

4. Wade Walker is still playing dumb and presenting as a zero.

5. Bethany Camac had become very quiet by the end of the working week as the noise from her day job reverberates across the electorate. She is another deep in minus territory.

6. Clinton Mead last stood for election in the foothills of the Southern Highlands and, currently lives in Bradbury near Campbelltown which is many hundreds of miles away from the Clarence electorate – making one wonder just how serious this candidate is about his own chances.

7. David Robinson fails to establish that he has genuine contemporary links with the Clarence electorate. As he could not turn membership numbers around for his ailing ratepayers association, one wonders how well he would do steering the good ship Clarence.

8. Stewart Scott-Irving as a latecomer to the scorecard does not rate yet. However, as an unsuccessful candidate he has been known to spit the dummy and demand an inquiry with this predictable result.

Rolling Scorecard

Gulaptis -2

Ellem 2.3

Cavanaugh 2.5
Wade Walker 0
Bethany Camac -3

Clinton Mead -1

David Robinson 0

Stewart Scott-Irving 0

I'm the 75,260,954,420th* person ever born on Earth and I'm peeved because.....

Garden weeds don’t respond to verbal threats but require a show of strength

My bank balance refuses to grow during the night

The Tooth Fairy doesn’t pay out on broken fillings

Aussie kids are into professional begging on All Hallows Eve

Cardinal George Pell thinks religion trumps science

Australian Leader of the Opposition Tony Abbott won’t shut his mouth for even a nanosecond

Journalist Andrew Bolt hasn’t migrated yet

NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell is

NSW Environment Minster Robyn Parker refuses to resign

NSW Police still haven’t charged admitted law breaker Steve Cansdell

Every time some silly bugger doesn't like what the Gillard Government is doing they yell "Tax!"

Too many pollies resign after an election because they don't want to do the hard slog in Opposition

There are people who'll vote for the NSW Shooters and Fishers Party

Australian multinational corporations still haven’t learned that foreign CEOs like Alan Joyce have no understanding of the national psyche

North Coast Nats’ Chris Gulaptis doesn’t know where to find a definition of “truth in advertising” or “political honesty”

NSW Country Labor’s Peter Ellem is dancing around the subject of antimony mining on the NSW North Coast

NSW Christian Democratic Party’s Bethany Camac thinks it’s fine to insult some of the very people she supposedly wants to represent

AND

The ute won’t start

* What’s Your Number?

Clarence By-Election 2011: Nominated candidates in ballot paper order

http://www.elections.nsw.gov.au/elections/clarence_state_by-election_19_november_2011/candidates

 Click on image to enlarge

When even your fearless leader can't get your name right.....

barryofarrell Barry O'Farrell

off to catch a flight to Grafton to support The Nationals' Chris Galuptis in this Clarence month's by-election

Oi Bazza! It’s Gulaptis. G*U*L*A*P*T*I*S

Or as many locals like to fondly call him; Halpless Gulaptis, Galapagos, Gulapticus, Gulapaduck, Gall-aptis, Batman or Chris Corruptus.

# A chapeau lift to Clarencegirl for sending me this tweet.

U.K. High Court appeal judgment in Assange and Swedish Prosecution Authority - transcript

Assange High Court Judgement 2 November 2011

The Greens issue Clarence By-election challenge in defence of water security

The Greens threw down a political gauntlet in support of their candidate, Janet Cavanaugh, on 1 November 2011 and it would be foolish if any other candidate in the Clarence by-election continued to ignore these issues.

The Daily Examiner 2 November 2011:

THE GREENS have issued a challenge to all contenders for the upcoming Clarence by-election - state your position on mining at the headwaters of the Clarence River.

NSW Greens MLC Jeremy Buckingham was in Grafton yesterday in support of Greens candidate for Clarence, Janet Cavanaugh.

The pair raised grave concerns for the Clarence River if a 1.5km x 0.5km open cut antimony mine was approved at Wild Cattle Creek - a tributary of the Nymboida River.

Readings near the proposed mine site, which is being explored by Anchor Resources, have already shown dangerously high levels of antimony and arsenic.

"We are calling on voters to send a message to Barry O'Farrell, letting him know that they want him to rule out mining in the headwaters of the Clarence," Mr Buckingham said. "We're not against all mining but it's got to be responsible mining.

"The risks associated with mining - especially for antimony and gold in the headwaters of the Clarence are too great.

"The experience in the Macleay should be a cautionary tale - you've got an entire river system that's been polluted that's going to be impacted for a millennia to come. "…….

"You would not want to see that happen in the Clarence and put at risk the tourism, the agriculture, the fisheries……..

Mr Buckingham called for a fast-tracking of a Strategic Regional Landuse Policy for the North Coast.

He said the Upper Hunter, New England North West, Central West and Southern Highlands would have SRLPs done out of this year's budget of $2.1 million but he was unsure when the North Coast's policy would be done.

"With the amount of mining and coal seam gas proposed in the Dorrigo Plateau, the Macleay, Clarence Richmond and Tweed Valleys - a SRLP should fast-tracked for the region."

Full article here.

Photograph of Nymboida River from Google Images

A election is a job interview

Would you hire this man?

Mr. Smith holds forth on bloggers

Granny Herald reports on the attitude of NSW Attorney-General Greg Smith to all us crims and ratbags hanging out here on the internetz:

“Mr Smith said bloggers weren't subject to the same sanctions and responsibilities as journalists, who could be sacked for publishing "something that is inappropriate".

Bloggers, or those "who just want to have an opinion" didn't deserve the same protections, he said.

"I'm not going to cover bloggers who may represent terrorist organisations, or criminal organisation, or just be ratbags," Mr Smith said.

"It's not right that a fair publication of the news should be inhibited by fears of being sent to jail.

"But people that don't have that responsibility, who just want to have an opinion out there, to attract 200 or 300, or even two or three others, who'd like to read their blogs, I don't see why they're entitled to that sort of protection."

Ramsey finds closing South Grafton Abattoir may not fix his financial woes

Arguably one of the most disliked blokes in the Clarence Valley, Stuart Ramsey, will have to think again after his dummy spit following adverse Fair Work Australia and Land & Environment Court decisions.

In The Daily Examiner on 2^nd November 2011:

“SOUTH Grafton abattoir owner, the Ramsey group of companies, may have to put up close to $1 million to ensure soon-to-be-displaced workers get their full severance pay and entitlements.

Yesterday, the Fair Work Ombudsman applied to the Federal Court asking that the Ramsey group be required to make the payments, citing concern permanent abattoir employees will not be paid their accrued annual leave entitlements or redundancy pay……….

The ombudsman also asked that the respondents, who were listed as; Stuart Bruce Ramsey, Brugold, Ramsey Food Processing, Ramsey Meats, Ramsey Developments, Coastal Employment Services, Explin, Ramsey Holdings, Ramsey Pastoral Company, Rawhide, Ramsey Pastoral, Ramsey Wholesale Meats, Mortimer Administration Service and Abattoir Contracting Service, pay $988,480 to cover what is estimated to be owed to workers.

The amount was calculated on the assumption that each of an estimated 200 employees would be owed an average of $4942.40.”

Well done, fair Work Australia!

NSW North Coast editor comments on plans to mine antimony

From A Clarence Valley Protest.

Comment by David Bancroft, Editor, The Daily Examiner, Page 10, 27 October 2011:

Digging up mining dirt

MANY readers will be tempted to look at who is issuing the warning about antimony mining in our page three story today and not at what they are saying. That would be a mistake because what is being said has real substance.
Greens upper house member Jeremy Buckingham is clearly deeply concerned about the risks posed to Wild Cattle Creek and the Nymboida and Clarence rivers from proposed antimony and gold mining in the Wild Cattle Creek and Dorrigo plateau areas.
As we have said in this space previously, the consequences of a pollution spill during mining operations would have dire consequences for the Clarence and Coffs Harbour water supplies as well as the beef, dairy, fishing, horticulture and tourism industries of the Clarence Valley.
The ABC's 7.30 Report last Friday illustrated what can happen when the holding ponds of an antimony mine overflow.
It showed the Hillgrove mine, near Armidale, more than 100km from the coast. It has leaked contaminants into the Macleay River system and there are now exaggerated levels of pollutants from Hillgrove to the sea. Environment Minister Robyn Parker has already told parliament that pollution will be evident for "millennia".
Authorities are giving conflicting advice on the impact, on one hand saying there is no health threat to humans and on the other advising residents the water is unfit to drink.
Can you imagine what the impact on the tourism industry alone would be from the publicity that would surround pollution of the Clarence?
And it is just one of the industries that face potentially disastrous consequences from heavy metal mining.
We should not dismiss the prospect of mining out of hand because of the environmental risks - mining is essential.
But before we consider an application with such risks we should be absolutely certain we are not going to put long-term industries at risk for a relatively short-term gain.

Also Green's contamination fears by David Bancroft,  27 October 2011.

Where will this coal seam mining water come from and where will this waste water go?

The Greens Jeremy Buckingham (in the media release below) begins to touch on the problem of waste water disposal, but on the NSW North Coast with its highly variable river flows perhaps the first question should be – Which river systems will these mining companies raid to get all this water?

Particularly since Metgasco has commenced its operations in the Casino district, with  Red Sky Energy not be far behind and the gold and antimony miners tagging along behind them.

Minister Hartcher dodges questions on coal seam gas

28 October 2011

Greens mining spokesperson Jeremy Buckingham, criticised the Minister for Resources and Energy, Chris Hartcher for dodging legitimate questions on coal seam gas at today’s Estimates Committee hearing.
Rather than answer a question about how coal seam gas operations would deal with millions of litres of saline waste water, the Minister chose to dispute whether the industry would really produce such a volume of waste water.
The National Water Commission position paper on coal seam gas (Dec 2010) says 7.5 trillion litres could be produced:
“Current projections indicate the Australian CSG industry could extract in the order of 7,500 gigalitres of co-produced water from groundwater systems over the next 25 years, equivalent to around 300 gigalitres per year.” (http://www.nwc.gov.au/resources/documents/Coal_Seam_Gas.pdf)
“Rather than deal with a serious question about coal seam gas waste water, the Minister chose to dodge the question,” said Greens MP Jeremy Buckingham.
“Minister Hartcher characterised many legitimate concerns about coal seam gas as ‘wildly speculative statements’ rather than tell the hearing what the government policy was in terms of dealing with coal seam gas related waste water or waste salt.
“Clearly the campaign against coal seam gas has got under the skin of Mr Hartcher, and he decided to play the man and not the ball, which is unfortunate given that the issue of coal seam gas is of serious concern in the community.
“Given the government has announced a ban on evaporation ponds, Minister Hartcher should stop playing politics and tell the public what policies the government will put in place to deal with the millions of litres of waste water that would result from the development of a coal seam gas industry in NSW.
(Jeremy Buckingham MLC, media release, October 28, 2011)

What one local thinks of the O'Farrell Government health centre funding offer

One local responding to this article:

By EmmaB from Yamba on 25/10/2011

This meager funding offer by the O'Farrell Government is little more than a confidence trick. If the Yamba community were to cast its mind back to not so long ago, it would recall that the Area Health Service CEO stated that if the building were to be established it would only be staffed when money from within the health service's existing budget could be identified and that full staffing of a community health centre would take a number of years at least.
All Yamba would ever see for probably a decade is the few existing health services operating out of Treelands Drive Community Centre transferred to the new building.
Skinner is offering to partly fund a white elephant and it is no accident that she makes this statement in the lead up to the Clarence by-election.
What a hollow sham!

151st Melbourne Cup - 3pm 1st November 2011 - radio & tv links

Archer - winnner of the 1861 and 1862 Melbourne Cup

Emirates Melbourne Cup Day - official website

The $6.175 million Melbourne Cup is a 3200m race run at 3pm on the first Tuesday of November and is the richest prize in Australian sport.

Quick links

Details

Fields and form  

ABC Radio live streaming Melbourne Cup Coverage - 8.30am (AEDT)

Channel 7 TV live cover from Flemington Race Course

Yahoo ful coverage here

Melbourne Cup Field at a glance here

YouTube - Flemington Race Course Channel for a recap

O'Farrell Government exposes itself as a ship of fools

The Hon Robyn Parker, Minister for the Environment, and Minister for Heritage, exposes the level of her incompetence concerning matters affecting the NSW North Coast.NSW Parliament Legislative Council Environment and Heritage Committee - Estimates Hearing, 27 October 2011

A little more of Stuart Ramsey's business history gets an airing

In a letter to the editor in The Daily Examiner on 26th October 2011, a little more of Stuart Ramsey’s business history gets an airing:
Grafton will lose a part of its history
AS A 13-year-old, my father uprooted our family and we moved to Grafton so that he could run and manage the Grafton abattoir under the company name of the Victorian-based Gilbert & Sons. He managed the Grafton Meatworks for the next 25 years, which made fantastic profits and provided lucrative wages for the hard work endured.
It started to go south when Gilbert & Sons' companies were struggling financially with their Victorian plants and unfortunately the Grafton abattoir was under the same umbrella. However, it was still operating at a substantial profit.
Approximately 15 years ago it was dragged under with the other Gilbert & Sons' companies. Around 300 workers were out of jobs and at this stage Stuart Ramsey put up his hand to purchase the abattoir and run it as a going concern.
With huge input from the Meatworkers Union, Harry Woods and Terry Flanagan (local politicians), I accompanied another three workers and we convinced Bob Carr (the then premier) to give Ramsey approximately $500,000 in set-up grants to keep the jobs of the people affected within our community. The whole town, including the council, all offered to help Stuart Ramsey to get the abattoir up and running. All workers took pay cuts and became the lowest paid abattoir workers in Australia.
I don't think much has changed in that regard. I joined the consultative committee when we tried, for a whole year, to negotiate a better agreement, after working on the present one for three years. When negotiations went sour I and the 11 or so other members of the consultative committee were terminated. We took the case to the Federal Court of Australia and after four years we won all and every aspect of the case. To this day, approximately 10 years after my termination, I still have not received my entitlements awarded by the outcome of the court proceedings. I know what it is like to be out of a job and not knowing whether you will receive your entitlements or not and I feel for these workers.
If the doors finally close at the Grafton Meatworks I will probably shed a tear. The tear won't be for the concerns of an upstanding citizen such as Ramsey, but for all those people that such a radical decision is going to affect. It will also be for the fact that Grafton will lose a part of its history as it has been part of our community for such a long time. And the fact that the Grafton abattoir has been a huge part of the McKenzie family.
PAUL McKENZIE

Have former MP Ian Causley and would-be-if-he-could-be-MP Chris Gulaptis agreed to bury the hatchet?

             ... or is it just a PR exercise?

Facebook reveals:

When Ian Causley retired from federal parliament in 2007 National Party loyalists believed they were gifting the seat of Page to the up-and-coming, slay-'em-in-the-aisles, pretty boy Chris Gulaptis. 

However, Labor's Janelle Saffin had different ideas about that.

Gulaptis lost the election, leaving local Nationals shell-shocked. Word had it that the retired MP was not at all amused - he was gutted!.

After all, Gulaptis who had been given the official nod when he comfortably defeated Dr Sue Page for Nationals' preselection, said he felt honoured by the confidence party members had shown in him and he would work to meet their expectations. 

Boy-oh-boy, he let them down in a big way!

So, the $64 question is:  

Can Gulaptis do it all again and lose the Nationals family jewels in Clarence?

Clarence Greens begin campaigning this week

Jeremy Buckingham MLC visits Clarence to highlight dangers posed by coal seam gas and antimony mining

Greens MP, Jeremy Buckingham will visit Clarence with Greens by-election candidate Janet Cavanaugh to highlight the threat mining poses to the region.

Tuesday 1st November

WHAT: Jeremy and Janet highlight the threat the antimony mine at Wild Cattle Creek poses to the Nymboida and Clarence Rivers and communities and industries that rely on these rivers. They will urge voters to use the Clarence by-election to send Barry O'Farrell a message on this issue.

WHEN: 10.30am Tuesday 1st November 2011

WHERE: Clarence River Bank near to the Prince St Wharf.

As the Greens mining spokesperson, Jeremy Buckingham has visited the Wild Cattle Creek antimony mine site, the current gold and antimony mine at Hillgrove, and the toxic antimony processing site at Urunga.

Wednesday 2nd November

WHAT: Launch of the Greens' by-election headquarters at Casino - highlights the issue of coal seam gas for the by-election.

WHEN: 9.30am, Wednesday 2nd November 2011

WHERE: Shop 2, Casino Centre Arcade, Walker St (opposite former Civic Centre)

Jeremy Buckingham is the Deputy Chair of the NSW Parliamentary Inquiry into coal seam gas and has been prominent opponent of the coal seam gas industry’s plans for expansion. He has introduced a bill into parliament calling for a moratorium on coal seam gas activities.

[CLARENCE GREENS media release, 31 October 2011]

Photo of Janet Cavanaugh from Clarence Greens website

Clarence By-election: Ms Camac show her true colours

The Daily Examiner 31 October 2011 on the subject of the Christian Democratic Party candidate:

SHE represents the Christian Democratic Party in the upcoming Clarence by-election and happens to be the personnel officer who signed a letter to abattoir workers telling them they no longer had jobs in Grafton.

Asked what she could do for displaced meat workers as a Clarence representative, Bethany Camac admitted she wouldn't be able to do much except encourage investment in the area.

"If they don't want to take up the job offer at Casino and sit around and whinge they can sit around and whinge, if they want to get off their bums and get a new job they can do that," she said.

Ms Camac said all workers, including herself, at the South Grafton site had been "offered" jobs at the Northern Co-operative Meat Company in Casino and "there should be enough jobs for everyone".

"Stuart Ramsey has not taken his business outside the electorate of Clarence, he's moved it from Grafton to Casino."

But reports on ABC North Coast yesterday quoted Northern Co-operative Meat Company management as saying there was no transfer of business between Ramsey Food Processing and the Co-operative.

Workers told The Examiner earlier this week they had been informed by Ramsey that they're entitlements would be transferred if they took up jobs at Casino but subsequent inquiries had proven this to be false……

Ms. Camac obviously doesn’t understand the business history of the man who employs her as well as one local writing in the same newspaper issue.

Who else is to blame?

WELL done, Paul McKenzie, for your factual account of what occurred approximately 10 years ago. My husband was also one of the 11 and he still hasn't received his entitlements despite the court ruling. How this man has been able to get away with ignoring the laws and court rulings amazes me.

Regarding the letter from Lyn Ridge, yes he put food on the table - bread and dripping while he dined on caviar. We used up all our savings in the five years my husband worked for Mr Ramsey. You state that it will be a terrible loss for Grafton, but you can't blame one man alone. Pray tell, who else is to blame?

One man has spit the dummy because he can no longer ignore his commitments. Hay for his horses, it seems, is more important than food on the table for employees.

I congratulate The Daily Examiner for the forthright reporting and please continue to do so. There is nothing nice about this man's business practices and the public is entitled to know.

Regarding the letter from Teddy Bowles, I don't recall any negative media reports when the abattoirs reopened, only how good it was for Grafton.

As far as being given financial assistance, $500,000 from public purses isn't bad, then the assistance given by the city council as regards water rates, etc. How much has to be given to one man? He had employees work for less than award wages for three years to help get the place up and running, then wouldn't come to the table to arrange a new agreement up to two years after the expiration of their agreement. In the meantime, the horse stud prospered.

Mr Ramsey is no pauper. Nor would a dinky-di Aussie treat people the way this man does with his "my way or the highway" attitude.

KERRI BROOKS

South Grafton.

Photograph of Ms. Camac from Chrisitian Democratic Party website

UPDATE

The Daily Examiner on 2 November 2011:

Get a job jibe draws angry retort

COMMENTS from the Christian Democratic candidate for Clarence Beth Camac have been described as a disgrace by the president of the union representing displaced South Grafton meatworkers.

Australasian Meat Industry Employees Union president Grant Courtney said Ms Camac's comments, published in Monday's Daily Examiner, had raised "a fair bit of anger from workers at the South Grafton abattoir".

"Ms Camac's comments in relation to pending displaced workers at the abattoir are nothing short of cheap political opportunism and a disgrace," he said. "Any candidate that stands for good Christian values surely would feel for the 200 workers whose futures are now up in the air thanks to a company pulling its operations at Grafton.

"Calling workers whingers is clearly uncalled for and will not assist her in her political aspirations.

"Social justice, support for the community and regional employment should be the principle policy this woman stands for, instead of blurting out misleading statements that reflect mistruths in relation to future employment at Casino.

"Workers at South Grafton do not appreciate commentary from ill-informed industrial relation consultants that have no idea or concern of workers' rights nor their legal entitlements."

 

Happy Birthday to The Dish

One of Australia's most iconic scientific structures, the CSIRO's Parkes Telescope is celebrating 50 years of achievement today - having opened on October 31, 1961 right in the middle of a paddock.

History of achievements 1961-2011

Photographs from Google Images