Monday 19 July 2010

What’s the price of a recreational fishing licence in NSW?


A man appeared in Maclean local court last week seeking an annulment of his conviction for not holding a valid fishing licence.

Earlier this year the man was convicted in absentia and required to pay a fine and professional costs totalling approximately $4000.

Last week the man told the court that he did not attend the court on the day of his conviction because he suffered an illness that caused him confusion about the date on which he was due to appear and answer the charge of fishing without a licence.

The State, represented by a local solicitor, told the court it was opposed to the granting of an annulment.

The court refused the man's application for the annulment and to make matters worse for the man the State sought a further $880 in professional costs for its appearance before the court.

The magistrate was seen to shake his head with what seemed to be disbelief as he announced his decision to refuse the annulment and award costs to the State. The magistrate's hands were tied - he was in no position to deny the State its claim against the annulment.

The matter lasted all of about 5 to 10 minutes and resulted in the fishing licence eventually costing the man about $5000.

So, how much is a recreational fishing licence in NSW?

The NSW recreational fishing fee is:
3 Days $ 6.00
1 Month $12.00
1 Year $30.00
3 Years $75.00

For details about persons who are exempt from paying for a licence in NSW read this.

Nationals Hartsuyker overreaches and gets a caning from one P & C


The Nationals Luke Hartsuyker (incumbent in the marginal seat of Cowper on the NSW North Coast) has been relentless in his pursuit of column inches in the local print media as he prepares to defend his seat at this year's federal election.

Recently he turned his eye to schools with this press release on 11 July 2010; Government must address broken promises at North Coast schools and apologise to students, parents and teachers.
Which The Daily Examiner published almost verbatim as Schools left out of pocket with the unverifiable teaser: The Daily Examiner knows of one such case in the Clarence Valley but has withheld publishing at the request of teachers after an 11th hour reprieve from the Department of Education.

The Nambucca Heads school community reared up in the face of all this shameless politicking and bit back via The Coffs Coast Advocate in Nambucca school takes aim at MP on 13 July 2010:

The president of the Nambucca Heads Primary School's P & C has accused Cowper MP Luke Hartsuyker of using the issue to make 'sweeping statements with very obvious political bias in order to gain political gain'.......
"We the parents, staff and P & C body of Nambucca Heads Public School are extremely happy with the acquisition of a wonderful, sturdy and well built and well finished brand new school hall. We are very grateful to the Govt for making it possible for our school to own such a valuable asset.
"Prior to having a new hall our school community gathered for assemblies, performances and significant events in an undercover area with no walls. Special assemblies and occasions were regularly disrupted by inclement weather. To have a brand new hall, so beautifully built and finished off is an invaluable asset and one which has been out of our reach for many years, that is, until the Building the Education Revolution Project.".

2010 Election Campaign Day 3 - Case of the battling Facebooks


Not hard to guess which is the legit Julia Gillard Facebook site out of 691 results....


















Tony Abbott also gets three top entries which span the political spectrum........

















A case of one Facebook entry is not enough for a local pollie or extra pages booked by enthusiastic local supporters?




















With at least 410 Facebook entries for "Kevin Hogan" the Nats Kevin Hogan only pops to the front using a location filter. But Kevvie's out there at http://www.facebook.com/kevinhogan.com.au?v=wall&ref=search

OMG, we're all Michael Moore!


A few friends, a few beers an' a group try at a quiz.
Nuff said!

Sunday 18 July 2010

WorkChoices dead says Nats Kevin Hogan. Oh yeah?


This is what Leader of the Opposition and aspirant to the office of Australian prime minister,Tony Abbott, said in his Address in Reply to the 2010 Budget:

We'll seek to take the unfair dismissal monkey off the back of small businesses which are more like families than institutions.

We'll make Labor's transitional employment agreements less transitional and Labor's individual flexibility agreements more flexible. We have faith in Australian workers who are not as easily pushed around and exploited as the ACTU's dishonest ad campaign is already making out.

If elected, we will be faithful to the liberal conservative tradition......

This is Tony Abbott in 2009 on the 27 July ABC TV 7.30 Report:

Well, if we are going to have productive workplaces, we can never ring down the curtain on workplace reform.

Tony Abbott on 17 July 2010 in a speech at a Queensland Liberal Party gathering:

"Yesterday the Shadow Cabinet backed my recommendation that an incoming Coalition government would not seek to change the Fair Work Act at least for the three years of the next term of Parliament."

A senior Liberal Party MP Eric Abetz fleshes this odd promise out:

"We will not be revolutionising, or indeed reforming, we would only be tweaking and that is what our policy will confirm...
An incoming coalition government will seek to make Labor's individual flexibility agreements more flexible and seek to reduce the burdens on small business...

Nationals candidate in the Page electorate on the NSW North Coast Kevin Hogan, reported on ABC North Coast NSW last Tuesday, thinks that:

....it's silly to suggest Workchoices is back on the Coalition's agenda. "A lot of the things in Workchoices people didn't like - we realise that, we lost an election over that so there is certainly no way that we would bring back things that the Australian public and the Australian workers don't want"....

The unions and many local workers are understandably nervous about the Coalition's industrial relations intentions and Hogan does not inspire confidence given his own political inexperience and Abbott's track record on key elements of WorkChoices.

2010 Election Campaign Day 2 - let's get the parodies over with early


Julia Gillard by Anthony Pascoe


Tony Abbott encompassed

Boozing away...


Did you know that 1.8 million Aussies (11% of the adult population) account for 51% of all alcohol consumed in this country?
That's a hellva lot of booze over a lifetime!