Pollies missed chance
Dear Echo News,

I attended the Kalamunda High School Year 12 valedictory on Friday evening alongside about 600 or more others, celebrating the passing-out of another cohort of young adults into the next stage of their lives.

The night was full of speeches and a palpable sense of pride and of course, there were prizes awarded by a raft of politicians of all stripes, but not one attended in person, despite it being a wonderful opportunity to show the students and their families that they gave a fig.

But no, all were busy elsewhere and sent a representative in their stead.

Their prizes were probably paid for by us and were given to the students by someone even less well known than them.

If you wanted to say “we don’t care enough to turn up, but we do want our names bandied about”, then I guess you succeeded.

Did you all jointly agree not to show each other up by attending?

Was there some sort of ‘pair’ agreement, so as not to embarrass each other?

Hang your heads in shame Mr Hughes, Ms Lawrence, Ms Faragher and Mr Price.

You weren’t missed, but your absence was noted.

Was it any wonder not one student, when asked what they were going on in life to do, expressed any desire to serve in politics?

And about 80 per cent of them will vote for the first time next year at both state and federal elections.

What a wasted opportunity.

P Carman
Hovea

Reduce speed limits
Dear Echo News,

Congratulations to the Echo News for highlighting the concerns raised by the community through Voices of Bullwinkel.

It seems the issue of speed limits goes much further than just Greenmount Hill.

At a recent meeting of the Darlington Ratepayers, members raised the lack of enforcement of speed limits down Darlington Road and Glen Road putting school children at risk.

Others talked about the entry of new 17-year-old drivers from Helena College trying to enter GEH at Bilgoman Road where big trucks are doing just 40km/h, while motorists are pulling out to overtake at 80km/h.

No wonder we have so many accidents.

We are calling on our local politicians to demand that the Road Safety Minister attends an-in-person meeting along with Main Roads at the shire offices to discuss the immediate lowering of speed limits on GEH.

C Hughes
Midland

Firebreak confusion
Dear Echo News,

The City of Swan’s annual fire hazard inspection letter, dated October 15 to residents, some who reside on 500sqm blocks, states 90 per cent of properties are deemed compliant on first inspection.

This may be the case in residential Ellenbrook, but doubtful when travelling throughout the rural Swan Valley, as a result of this city’s ambiguous rulings and ad hoc attention to compliancy.

The letter refers to the fire break notice and mentions clause 7 and clause 8, but gives no explanation to any of the clauses.

Seeking a copy of the city’s fire season guide proved disappointing as it only offered the same wording as in the letter regarding firebreaks.

An illustration used by the city in the Echo News advertising of a fire truck on a road (hardstand) showing a 3m wide and 4m high clearance with no adjacent firebreak on the other side of the fence created further uncertainty.

At a council meeting on September 4 under item 14.1.4 community safety manager Heath Stenton stated firebreak specification was passed to include maintained to mineral earth, reticulated lawn, or bitumen driveway but none of this appears in any of the city’s instructions.

Mr Stenton said the current ruling doesn’t actually state the length of grass, it just says it has to be reticulated.

For those of us deemed non-compliant and receiving a follow up letter, that again only states “upgrade a 3m wide firebreak inside external property boundaries” are left confused.

So, what is a firebreak?

Is it clear access for an emergency vehicle?

Is it bare earth?

Is it mowed lawn?

What are the key requirements constructing a firebreak?

Firebreaks ain’t firebreaks!

Confused Resident
Swan Valley