On November 20 , Townsville sock it to 'em journalist , Malcolm Weatherup , broke a story in The Magpie which was strangely not followed up by local and national media . A former Townsville Bulletin reporter , Weatherup wrote :
A week ago, a concerned citizen wrote a very polite and informed letter to the editor of the Townsville Bulletin. The paper, without explanation, has declined to run it. Not unique, certainly, but the writer was one John Baulch. Perhaps the name wasn’t familiar to whichever office boy is in charge of letters these days (maybe they run them through Mumbai) , despite the fact that his name has appeared dozens of times in the paper’s pages.
Clue: Try District Court Judge John Baulch QC, (recently retired), one of the pre-eminent jurists in this community. His views surely deserve an airing in the on-going Adani airstrip debate.
But his well reasoned opinion and questions were deemed by the Townsville Bulletin to not be worthy of inclusion, presumably because it would put their honorary associate editor, Mayor Mullet, Weatherup's nickname for Mayor Jenny Hill , in a difficult position. Here is the letter.
I begin by saying that I support coal mining. It is in the interest of our whole nation that our resources are used to the benefit of all. Having said that, I enquire whether anyone shares my view that local government goes beyond its power when it becomes involved in airport construction outside it’s own area which can only, at best, benefit a few in our community.(This was a reference to the proposal by the TCC to give Adani $18.5million).
The Local Government Act specifies what a council may do. A quick reading would cause thinking people to question whether it lawful for a council to spend ratepayers funds on the construction and/or funding of an airport in another council’s local government area. Did our council take legal advice on this topic?
Even if one takes the view that it is somehow lawful to do this, would not a prudent council take legal and/or financial advice as to how the proposed investment of ratepayers funds will be protected, secured and/or recovered?Did the TCC take such advice?
Aren’t ratepayers entitled to have answers to these and similar questions?I think ratepayers should know whether advice was taken and be aware of the content of that advice, particularly in view of the amount of money involved...John Baulch.
NB: Judge Baulch did not take it upon himself to give his title and honorifics. Why should he, it was a self-explanatory letter?
