Peter Dutton’s sudden about-turn on two key public-service policies is no surprise (“Panicked Dutton in retreat on key policy”, April 7). It’s clearly poll-driven, but does anyone really believe that this latest flip-flop will be honoured? Over the past three years the Coalition has glaringly floundered over its claim to better economic management and hasn’t presented anything close to a well-defined, costed policy. All we’ve had are slogans, platitudes, negativity and half-baked, simplistic crowd-pleasers. Hardly a sound basis for properly running a national economy. Frankly, on current form I wouldn’t trust them to manage the takings at a Bunnings sausage sizzle. Adrian Connelly, Springwood

While Peter Dutton is furiously backpedalling on his “work from home” and “sacking public servants” policies, he is now proposing to slash overseas student numbers to “solve” the housing crisis (“Foreign students face new visa hit”, April 7). For decades, Coalition governments have cut back on higher education spending, encouraging universities to draw in overseas students to make up the funding gap. This has kept our universities solvent and also provided Australia with one of our largest foreign income earners, helping our trade balance – $47 billion in 2023. But it can’t be dug up out of the ground and shipped overseas, so it is invisible to most people, including Dutton. If he was serious about the impact of these students on housing, how about helping the universities build low-cost student accommodation to take the pressure off the rental market? Neil Ormerod, Kingsgrove

No description fits Dutton and his team better than the phrase “walking back”. It’s been applied to his idea on flexible work, but backwards walking, as in backward thinking, could easily be applied to the approach he has adopted in favouring nuclear power over renewables; the referendum to change the Constitution enabling ministers to deport criminal dual nationals; the temporary fuel excise; banning Gazan refugees; abolition of the Department of Education; then, confused and mixed messaging around divestiture of insurers; his gas policy, whatever it may mean; cutting migration to unfeasibly low levels. Stay tuned for further policy nuggets as this opposition looks to the future as it existed in the past, while walking backwards. Frederick Jansohn, Rose Bay

As an American lucky enough to have lived in your beautiful country for more than 30 years before returning to the US, I watch your coming election fearing Australians may repeat the terrible mistake voters made in America. You see it on your news, but living it is worse. Don’t think it cannot happen in Australia. Billionaire Clive Palmer invited ultra-conservative US commentator Tucker Carlson, an admirer of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who destroyed the country’s democracy, to address parliament. Scott Morrison and Gina Rinehart celebrated Trump’s election victory at Mar-a-Lago. The Liberals promise to lower the cost of living and reduce government spending. We heard that in America too, but prices continue to go up. The market is falling, government programs are being decimated, tens of thousands are losing their jobs, social security and healthcare programs are being dismantled, food banks and cancer research have lost funding … just to name a few government spending reductions to fund tax cuts for the wealthiest 1 per cent of Americans. Even worse is the attack on our freedoms of press, free speech and the right to protest. Vote wisely – there is more at stake than just politics. Candace Parks, Vermont (USA)

It is clear that Dutton’s policies to abolish working from home and purge 41,000 public service jobs are not popular with the electorate, leading to a significant shift (dare I say backflip) for fear of losing votes. This is policy by populism, not by careful and thoughtful planning. It leads me to misquote Groucho Marx: “Those are my policies (on the public service), and if you don’t like them …well, I have others.” Margaret Allen, Bexley

I have spent my life with working dogs, and I have rarely seen a dog with a more doubtful look on its face than the collie pictured with Peter Dutton on page 6 (“Dutton paying for a dog’s dinner on WFH stance”, April 7). That dog is obviously thinking: “What’s this bloke up to?” I learnt a long time ago to trust my dog’s instincts. That picture tells a story. Tom Boorer, Dungog

It’s probably a good thing for the Coalition that dogs don’t vote. Did you notice the look on the face of the border collie, co-opted into the photo-op for Peter Dutton’s visit to rural Tasmania? Alan Keating, Waitara

Give us real reformers

I have to agree with correspondent Bill Young, who asked if we are really in a cost-of-living crisis (Letters, April 5). Rather, I believe we have an inequality crisis. Every week the Herald features homes bought and sold for tens of millions of dollars. Overseas travel is booming and there have been record sales of new cars. At the same time, we have record numbers of homeless people living in poverty. It is dishonest to keep saying “everyone is doing it tough” when that is simply not the case. I think it is a convenient way for politicians and others to avoid acknowledging the inequality in our communities. If we all feel we’re doing it tough, it’s much easier not to think about or care for those who really are struggling. In this election campaign, I’d like to hear politicians talk about the most vulnerable members of our society and promise to raise unemployment benefits and fund social housing projects. Unless we tackle the growing inequality, Australia will follow the path that the United States has chosen – and we all know how well that’s going. Michelle Peile, Brisbane

I agree with your correspondents that we don’t have a cost-of-living crisis. However, not because we have a cost-of-spending crisis as they suggested. Rather, what we have is an inequality crisis. Clearly, many Australians are struggling to pay their bills and put food on the table, but for many this is not a problem at all. Politicians prefer to talk about a cost-of-living crisis because that means they can introduce initiatives that essentially tinker round the edges while ignoring the real crisis, inequality, which will require significant structural reform, for which neither of the major parties seems to have the inclination or the capacity. Martin Mansfield, Baulkham Hills

Minerals minefield

The Coalition’s intention to siphon funds from Labor’s critical minerals development package would provide support for fossil-fuel projects at the expense of its intended target (“Coalition pledge to class gas a ‘critical mineral’ irks miners”, April 7). On the other hand, Albanese is subsidising home battery installation. While his plan needs to extend opportunities to those without their own rooftop solar, it is in stark contrast to Dutton’s backing for additional greenhouse gas-emitting power generation. Not only will the batteries ease pressure on the electricity grid, reducing the need for additional gas plants, but essential ingredients in their manufacture include lithium, cobalt, nickel and manganese. All are critical minerals whose production is threatened by the Coalition.
Roger Epps, Armidale

Real estate lessons

It’s hard to believe someone would consider themselves a “savvy property purchaser” and then go ahead to buy a property with no history of strata meetings or maintenance documentation (“Stuart didn’t think much of a wet patch in his lounge room. Then he came home to a flooded flat”, April 7).
What I learnt after 18 months of searching for an apartment is not to consider a property less than 10 years old, as most leak, always read the strata report (even if it’s 1000 or more pages) and ensure you know the identity of the developer and builder companies and search for any litigation history. These practices saved me from many potentially disastrous purchases. Only after doing the above did I consider further inspection was warranted. Elizabeth Maher, Gordon

Trump’s inhumaity plain to see

With all the adjectives used to describe Donald Trump, I think the one missing is “cruel”. He and his obscenely wealthy cronies will lose a tiny fraction of their wealth in the market meltdown he has caused, but his poorer compatriots and citizens of developing countries will lose their savings and livelihoods. People will die because of the dismantling of USAid, but Donald Trump is happily playing golf. He is a truly inhumane and cruel human being. Annabel Marley, Cootamundra

We are all dismayed by Trump’s presidency as he does his best to destroy America and the world. In doing so, he has achieved in a couple of months what various Islamist groups such as the Al Qaeda, the Taliban and Isis, and maybe even Vladimir Putin failed to achieve over decades. The members of these groups are strangely silent at a time when their aim to bring down the West is closer than ever to being achieved. Tom Loveday, Erskineville

It is obscene that Trump is doing this fundraising event in his own backyard while his country is on the brink of financial collapse (“Trump family’s cash registers ring as financial meltdown plays out”, April 7). It is never about “America First” – it is always about “Trump First” and “Make the Trump Empire Great Again”. The national protests across US on the weekend came six months too late. Vincent Wong, Killara

Is it too early or too optimistic to hope that the nascent opposition to Trump’s multiple “policy” debacles will ultimately result in a second, happier “Liberation Day”? Hugh Malfroy, Mollymook Beach

I wonder if Elon Musk is starting to see himself as a new-age Frankenstein: “What have I done? I’ve created a monster.” Eoin Johnston, Alstonville

Bring back the good

George Brandis recaps the story of my life writ large in geopolitics (“How a predator of allies lost the West”, April 7). The US economic powerhouse was largely built on its proud immigrant history, which is now being erased. In Marco Rubio’s term, the US was “multipolar”; now diversity is a dirty word. We are certainly seeing a different face of America, but in truth it was always there. Isolationist, racist and jingoistic, with Trump simply the latest iteration of the “robber barons”. I’m hoping I live to see the return of the good guys over there, but meanwhile Australia has been kicked out of the nest. We survived the demise of the British Empire, and we will emerge stronger from the decline of American hegemony. That’s what I’m really hoping to see. Margaret Johnston, Paddington

Latham’s legacy

Dare I say it, you deserve a handshake for your editorial detailing Mark Latham’s many vile transgressions (“Latham is a stain that’s hard to remove”, April 7). His egregious attitude to women such as Rosie Batty is especially sickening. Fortunately, by the time Latham became a candidate for PM, the voting public had perceived and rejected his malicious indecency. PM aspirant Dutton might learn from this political thug’s continuing presence in politics that voters find persistent, aggressive divisiveness a turn-off. Ron Sinclair, Windradyne

Having read your editorial about Mark Latham, I reflected upon his journey. As a barrister, I have respect for the legal system and am interested in his defamation case. I can say, however, that as an ex-teacher who taught Mark in high school, I am disappointed but not surprised by his career. Mark was a bright student in a selective school, Hurlstone Agricultural High School, who with others encouraged me to offer a government course in Year 11. While never advocating for a political party, I encouraged my students to follow their views, to engage, and if they wanted to, to join a political party. I have followed Mark because of his public face and still see that political fire in his belly. His engagement with the community has not always been negative. However, since being a potential prime minister, Mark’s journey has been bumpy. No excuses, but with him, it has always been “what you see is what you get”. Jim Jobson, Darlinghurst

Warning ignored

I wholeheartedly agree with correspondent Andrew Cronin’s analysis of how our country has been stripped of its once-extensive manufacturing ability (Letters, April 7). I wrote to John Howard when he was prime minister and said that if the then tariff of 8 per cent on imported vehicles was to be lowered to 5 per cent or dropped, our domestic carmakers, Ford, General Motors Holdens and Toyota would close down local operations and import all vehicles. I said the loss of manufacture of vehicle engines etc would mean losing the capability to turn such manufacturing skill and expertise to critical defence purposes if ever this was needed, and would also prevent depletion of our precious international reserves to pay for imports. I received the usual “she’ll be right, mate” answer, but he ignored my warning – and the rest is history. But all is not lost – we do still make good plastic buckets. Lance Dover, Pretty Beach

Structure works

What a surprise – boys do better with structured learning (“Key rules help boys’ schools flourish”, April 7). In my experience, all kids do better with structured learning. That ghastly method of group reading, in which somehow the bottom kids learn by osmosis, has never worked. Bring back structure for all kids. The wheel in education goes round and round. Let us hope it stops in the right place this time. Rosslyn Jeffery, Castle Hill

XPTs off the pace

The XPT train, travelling at 80km/h, takes more than four hours to reach Canberra from Sydney (“Slow progress for faster XPT services”, April 7). The French TGV, which began running at the same time in the early 1980s, would get you there in less than an hour and a half, travelling at 199km/h. But I guess we should be comforted to learn we’re staying ahead of the curve with “upgraded” XPTs. Peter Farmer, Northbridge

Centre of the world

Speaking of general knowledge standards in America (Letters, April 7), years ago I overheard a young American backpacker, during a mid-morning phone call to his parents back home, apologise for inadvertently ringing so late and then complaining how he didn’t understand why the rest of the world didn’t use “American time”. Andrew Brown, Bowling Alley Point

Travelling in America, I once told a man I was from Canberra, not far from Australia’s snowfields. He retorted angrily: “What do ya mean snow? Australia’s further south than Florida.” Peter Bulkeley, Parrearra (Qld)

As librarians visiting a public library in the US Mid-West some years ago, we were complimented on our command of a foreign language – English. John Flint, St Leonards

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