Imagine having daughters locked up on an island

All we need now is for Scott Morrison to show the same “fatherly concern” for two little girls caught up in a political and legal mess. Or is it better for his “tough guy” image to keep the Biloela family in limbo? Joan Brown, Orange

Perhaps Jenny could ask the PM how he’d feel were his daughters to be detained indefinitely on Christmas Island. Malcolm McCallum, Dulwich Hill

Regarding the Biolela family stuck on Christmas Island, I’d like to put it to you Mr Morrison just as Jenny would: “You have to think about this as a father first. What would you want to happen if it were our girls?” Charmain Brinks, Newcastle

So what advice did Jenny give Scotty when he asked about the indefinite incarceration of the Biloela family on Christmas Island? They have been held in detention since 2018, and isolation on Christmas Island since August 2019. Costing taxpayers over $4.5million, it’s a heartless way to make a point. Alan Marel, North Curl Curl

Maybe Jenny should have a “what if” word in Scott’s ear about the Biloela family’s predicament. Jim Dewar, North Gosford

Perhaps Mrs Morrison should ask her husband how he would feel, and what he would do, if his girls were being treated like criminals and held captive on Christmas Island. Patrick St George, Goulburn

PM, it is high time you had a discussion with your dear wife about the Tamil family incarcerated on Christmas Island. Assuming she shares your Christian beliefs, the outcome might well be beneficial to a family and to the Queensland town so keen to have them resume their lives there. John Hinde, Millers Point

Peter Dutton says that if the Biloela family are allowed to return to their community, the boats will begin again. In other words, his whole border protection strategy is the incarceration of two small children. Diana King, Balmain

Gender parity the only fix for toxic Canberra culture

In 2018, the Liberal Minister for Women, Kelly O’Dywer, told colleagues the Liberals were widely regarded as “homophobic, anti-women, climate-change deniers” (“It should not take a rape to compel cultural change”, February 17). The only hope for the Morrison government is to bring in quotas to achieve equality to both houses of Parliament. Affirmative action is required in many areas for example, free childcare to bring more women into the workforce. Steve Johnson, Elizabeth Beach

The tap dancing responses around the alleged assault of Brittany Higgins has changed the focus of the event from reporting, advising and dealing with the claim, to “change” the culture. This response basically says the event happened. But the most important issue now is not the alleged rape but who did not handle the reported case according to government protocols. One also has to ask, who was serving alcohol (presumably with an RSA) to guests in Parliament House, to a stage where they pass out? Helen Flanagan, Mudgee

Rather than the Sir Humphrey Appleby approach to conduct an “urgent” inquiry/ review, surely an Australian Federal Police investigation into an allegation of sexual assault is what is urgent? David Brender, Woollahra

How is it that the people who are meant to be running the country have been allowed to get away with endemic excess drinking etc and sexual harassment (and worse)? What exactly do they think they are there for? Richard Magee, Collaroy

There is no need for another two drawn-out reviews (by a Liberal MP and the deputy secretary of a government department yet!) to examine the bleeding obvious, and wait it all out until the dust settles. If the government were genuine about an actual culture change, there are independent experts galore who can help it to clean up its house, right here, right now. Anne Ring, Coogee

Invoking his wife to explain his renewed interest in the issue is indicative of Scott Morrison’s transactional nature and style of prime ministership. Only three weeks ago he was proudly handing out the Australian of the Year award to Grace Tame, a woman raped by a person who had authority over her. Last year there were allegations of sexual impropriety among cabinet ministers against female staffers. Any number of conservative women in Parliament have publicly complained about inequality and harassment there. The PM is a manager not a leader. Bernard Stever, Richmond

Coal delivers value to the Hunter

Felicity McCallum writes with both passion and emotion (“Fitzgibbon doesn’t speak for me”, February 16). But I challenge her claim that I sell a “false impression of the Hunter region”. She talks about 11,500 coal jobs as if they hardly matter. They do to the workers and their families and she makes no mention of the 60,000 indirect jobs the industry creates.I ma ke no attempt to speak for Felicity McCallum. I do, though, speak for the many who still live in the region and rely upon the coal mining industry for their income: from those at the coalface, through to the Upper Hunter sandwich shops. The problem with the climate change debate is that the activists never speak about our achievements. They are never satisfied. Emissions are falling and, as Felicity McCallum points out, the diversity of the Hunter’s economy has grown dramatically in recent decades.
Indeed, we are home to a large pipeline of renewable energy and battery projects. We are also pursuing cleaner gas-fired power plants to stabilise the grid and to let more renewable energy into the system as our coal generators age and withdraw. But the lion’s share of Hunter coal goes to export markets where it displaces less efficient coal. I stand with the locals who mine that coal. Joel Fitzgibbon, Member for Hunter

Hunter Valley coal enables Australia to have cheap electricity and foster jobs and industry, not to mention its export value. Can Australia afford to close this door? It will not curtail coal-fired power in China or India or affect global CO2 levels. Back to the Hunter Valley: which pays more? Mining or hospitality? Victoria Gavey, Mulbring

Class warfare

I was a NSW public school teacher for 40 years and I have rarely read anything as offensive as the NSW Education Minister’s comment that opposition to her “reforms” is because the targets might be offensive to educators and principals and bureaucrats would be criticised for consistent underperformance (“Educators must be held accountable, Minister says”, February 17). Ms Mitchell is either ignorant of the realities of teaching in NSW schools or is conducting a cynical campaign to distance herself and the government from any perceived responsibility for what is construed as underperformance. Problems arise in education because not all schools are the same and definitely all are not equal. Ms Mitchell will get the accountability she says she seeks when she can provide all public schools with equal opportunity through comparable facilities and staffing, not forgetting the outside support needed to balance out the differences in socioeconomic background and home support available to differing student cohorts. When there is a level playing field between private and public schools and between affluent city schools and underprivileged suburban and regional areas then she might be entitled to speak of performance in the schools for which she is mainly responsible – and then perhaps not in terms based simply on statistics. Arthur Cooper, Alstonville

Those who can, do; those who can’t, teach; those who can’t teach become Expert Educational Bureaucrats ensuring those who can teach, can’t. Gerard Kirwan, Cremorne

Fortunately, most of the “best” teachers remain in the classroom. They are so busy doing their primary job that they don’t have time to attend all the necessary courses to get the “accreditation” needed to step up to the next level. It takes too much out of their teaching time. Colleen Northam, Taree

Hard work finding jobs

Professor Steven Hamilton is channelling Coalition ideology when he says higher unemployment benefits should drop after six months, as a “sharp cut-off” would act as an “incentive” to get back into the jobs market (“Insurance scheme in the works for jobless”, February 17). How insulting to the many thousands whose mental and physical health suffer as they desperately try to find a job in a market where the number of unemployed is many times greater than the numberof vacancies.
Sandra Pertot, Diamond Beach

Cost of living

Ross Gittins (“Watery report dilutes dangers”, February 17) writes about “the need for an ecological diet”. A focus on environmental challenges written by an economist. Thank you, Mr Gittins! I was already a fan: I am glad that you can connect us to the most basic and real problems that we face. The words of the late, well-remembered Fay Sutton (environmental activist, ACF Councillor) echo in my ears after more than 20 years: “No economy without environment.” Therese Weiss, Maroubra

Courting controversy

I support your correspondent’s contention that Margaret Court has a better tennis record than Serena Williams (Letters, 17 February). I go further and say she always will. Williams has never completed a grand slam (achieving the four major titles in the same calendar year) and is unlikely now to do so. Court is the only Australian woman and one of just three players who have a grand slam to their credit (Rod Laver is the only player to have achieved this great feat twice – Steffi Graf is the other woman). A grand slam is an achievement not a single tournament. We overhype the majors by calling them grand slams. This only demeans the remarkable and rare personal records of Laver, Court and Graf. We should start correcting the record and forget the marketing hype. Eric Hunter, Cook (ACT)

Tennis highs and lows

Another tennis match and another hissy fit, this time Novak Djokovic (“Djokovic unleashes on racquet”, smh.com.au). Perhaps if players who smash their racquets were required to play their next two games with the ruined instrument we will see less of this juvenile behaviour. John Nelson, Mudgee

Enhancing the joy of watching Ash Barty play wonderful tennis is delighting in her post-match interviews. Fresh, happy, appreciative of her team and gracious to opponents. Barry Lamb, Heidelberg West (Vic)

Silent hoons

When all cars are electric, what will become of those poor souls that need to draw attention to themselves by accelerating rapidly in cars with loud exhausts? Will they stick their heads out of the window and shout “Brrrm brrrm”? David Peach, Armidale

All in the pronunciation

Your correspondent (Letters, February 17) would chuckle at the giggles of visitors when I point out one of our trees, a Pinus Strobus Contorta, even though I pronounce the first word pee-noos – somewhere between the “ous” of famous and the “oo” of zoo, or precisely the “us” of “dominus”. Simple Latin masculine singular – lol. Angela Williamson, Exeter

The digital view
Online comment from the story that attracted the most reader feedback yesterday on smh.com.au
Educators not too noble to be questioned, warns NSW Education Minister
From dungerdanny: “iacre funded staffers working in treasurer’s office, shredded documents in premier’s office, a litany of scandal in the deputy premier’s office, shady land deals in the Transport minister’s office, extra funding for private schools over state schools – but yep it’s the teachers who need to be held accountable.”