Anger with plans for the former Toyota site

For a long time, the Sutherland Shire Council has promoted the area as a great place to live, work and play. However, after the council voting to support the rezoning of the former Toyota site, the ShireBiz board cannot help but feel that the Council have forgotten about providing a great place to work. Over recent years the Shire has seen a continuous retraction of the manufacturing and industrial base, which has traditionally provided jobs for the area. This retraction has seen a scaling back and loss of our large scale employers at Toyota, Caltex and numerous multinational pharmaceutical companies that have occupied the former Cawarra Road manufacturing site at Taren Point. We are at the stage now where one in four jobs in the Shire is in retail and over 70,000 residents leave the Shire for work every day.

The site at Toyota park must remain a zone for industrial use to provide employment opportunities for small and medium-sized businesses. With such strong growth in the residential vertical housing sector, we must ensure that we have local jobs for our growing population if the Shire is to prosper.

Dr Tim Boyle

Co-Chair ShireBiz

I want to highlight the blatant double standards our government articulates on our behalf.

Marise Payne's public high dudgeon pronouncements over Dr Yang Hengjun's 'arbitrary detention' trial in China flies in the face of our own government's secret trials and jailing of Witness J and witness K.

We are further trashing our export trading prospects.

The Chinese must be musing over 'The pot calling the kettle black

Axel Tennie

Caringbah South

I refer to the letter in "Your Say: Leader Reader Letters' of the Leader titled "New Mural depicts Culture' on May 19. I want to believe that the writer is writing with good intentions; unfortunately, however, some misunderstandings are evident in what the writer has said.

They wrote that 'if we see the good in both cultures, we will have a more harmonious society.' It is also important to be respectful of all cultures, so to start, one should refer to 'Aboriginal heritage' with a capital A like any other culture. In addition, to refer to an Aboriginal person or First Nation's person, being the more preferred, as "obviously not full aborigine" is the most distasteful and patronising way to refer to our First Nations people's, especially to question the student's authenticity and cultural identity.

The writer's concern about their 'hope is that they are also being taught about their other culture'? Don't you think that it's about time First Nation's Peoples cultures' got to shine and take centre stage since for over 200 years colonization destroyed First Nation's people's right to their way of life, sense of belonging, their land and culture!

On a positive note, thank you to the Hazelhurst Regional Gallery for supporting the Aboriginal mural developed by Endeavour Sports High Aboriginal students, as it is so essential and vital to all people who live within the Shire and to visitors to increase awareness and understanding of the local Dharawal culture.

Gay Curtis

Caringbah South

I refer to your letters on Wed, April 28, 2021,indicating disagreement regarding how the vaccination program is being handled. I cannot understand this attitude, as our prime minister was the toast of the town after he successfully managed the spread of the pandemic in Australia and kept the death rate so low compared to other countries.

He promising vaccinations for all as soon as they became available. There is no guidebook to get us through this pandemic, and the government tried to prevent hysteria by planning an ordered way through. As issues developed, we had to change tack and plan differently as more medical information and options became available. What is this talk about broken promises when the government is charged with the onerous duty of providing the best way forward? And yes, plans have to sometimes change to forge a better way ahead. No guidebook, remember. Why is there a stampede to be first when the risk of catching the virus is relatively small in this country by following recommended precautions? When did we lose the ability to share? At the time of writing, I have not been vaccinated but am on a list. I am happy for someone in India to have my dose while I wait my turn. So, could we take a step back and exercise patience. Support for the medical people would not go amiss either.

Clare Birnie,

Caringbah

I hear a lot in the Shire the refrain 'Scott Morrison has kept us safe from COVID.' What blind and utter nonsense that is.

The State Premiers and the health departments are why we don't have COVID death numbers like the US and UK.

Morrison abrogated responsibility to the states for everything because he doesn't hold a hose mate. Wake up, Shire people. Morrison is NOT the messiah. He is just a very lazy boy.

F Lewis,

Cronulla

I am old enough to remember milk being delivered by horse and cart. The children from Cronulla and Oyster Bay Public Schools are likely to remember their first ride on an electric school bus ("Our first electric bus", 16/5). It was pleasing to read that 8000 diesel and gas buses in NSW will be replaced with electric ones. Urban air pollution has been linked with learning difficulties in children, so improved learning for some children at school is likely to be another benefit of electrifying transport.

Ray Peck

Write to the editor at craig.thomson@austcommunitymedia.com.au