So, what else to save Downunder?

I was asked by email to follow up on yesterday's post. My answer is that I have no idea what else the columnist in question might want to deal with but I would hope he might want to investigate a couple of things.

The first of these things is our National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). This is something which started with the best of intentions and is now way out of control. It is costing far too much and it is not meeting the needs of those it was intended to help while others who do not need help are getting it. It is sometimes being spent on items which are not essential to daily living. "Providers" are all too often over charging. 

The second thing to investigate would be the Research Council and the funding of so much politicised research in this country. I am sure the recipients of the indigenous aspects of our space research and the investigation into the potential for changing the date of our national holiday and the failure of the Voice are happy but there are much more important issues which have received no funding.  

I would also ban the payment to anyone for "welcome to country" ceremonies and remove the "acknowledgment" statements from the beginning of meetings. The first are a modern, money making invention. The second have lost any meaning they might have once had through their overuse. It has become a meaningless gabble at the beginning of too many meetings. 

The third thing I would do is remove one tier of government. We do not need local government, state government and federal government for a nation of less than thirty million people.  We could combine local and state government and work towards regional responsibilities while handing back some responsibilities like education completely.  

And the fourth thing I would do in order to ensure all these things could continue to remain in place is change or electoral system so that there was no compulsory preferential voting. We can retain the compulsion to attend the ballot box but please stop the iniquitous "if you don't get your first choice then you must vote for someone else even if you don't want them to represent you". 

It is a start. I can think of more.