Councillor Chris Harris

The court case to save Chippendale from an extra 2,300 polluting cars, the unsustainable use of water, the disposal of sewage to the ocean and the massive long term construction impacts of the proposed CUB development is set for 25 July. The Environmental Defender’s Office, the community’s legal advisors for the case, estimates that a further $30,000 will be needed on top of the Legal Aid already granted.

That’s why I am working with members of the local community to launch a public fundraising appeal.

The concept plan approved for the site pays only lip-service to the environment while Frank Sartor’s autocratic planning powers ensure that community concerns will also be sacrificed on the altar of developer profits.

This court case is our last chance to force the big end of town to re-think and re-design this massive new development into something Sydney and future generations can be proud of.

Anyone who travels along Broadway, Abercrombie Street or Regent Street which bound the huge site knows how bad the delays already are. Imagine three more sets of traffic lights and 2,300 more vehicles moving in and out of the site – because that’s how many parking spots are planned for the development! Read the rest of this entry »

Congratulations to Clover Moore on her convincing win in Sydney. While the win was expected, Ms Moore increased her vote compared to the previous figures for Bligh by 2.5% with 12,785 votes.

Edward Mandla for the Liberals came second with 6,395 votes followed by Labor’s Linda Scott with 6,187 and The Greens with 4,740. Absentee and postal votes have yet to be counted and this will alter these numbers slightly.

This pattern is atypical of the result statewide and for nearby inner Sydney seats. The difference can be attributed to Clover Moore drawing more votes from Greens and Labor than from the Liberals.

The Upper House vote in Sydney, however, was a different story. The Greens won nine out of 24 booths and came second in another seven. Read the rest of this entry »

The NSW Opposition cannot hope to win any credibility on the environment as long as the National Party continues to call for windbacks of land management practices, said Greens MLC Ian Cohen.

“The Labor government has let down the conservation movement in key areas of land management, leading to massive amounts of land clearing and destruction of threatened species. The Greens are the only viable opposition on this issue, as the Liberal/National Coalition would make the situation far worse.” Mr Cohen said.

“While the Greens work towards improving the government’s land management, the National Party threatens to take us back 50 years.

The Nationals have promised to:

• Reverse National parks in western NSW
• End sanctuaries zones in Marine Parks
• Send coastal rivers westwards with no consideration of environmental impacts
• Allow cattle to graze in National parks
• Allow commercial logging to be considered a routine agricultural management activity and not be subject to environmental regulation Read the rest of this entry »

Chris Harris has called on Clover Moore to return all the political donations she has received from developers.

The Australian newspaper today substantiated a previous story claiming that Ms Moore’s Lord Mayoral election campaign was largely funded by developers.

Ms Moore has been making political capital from a recent Lower House Bill proposing a ban on developer donations to political parties, triggering accusations of hypocrisy.

“In the light of this report, the only honourable course now open to Ms Moore is to identify and return all developer donations she has received either directly or indirectly,” said Cr Harris.

“Accepting large donations from developers is the principal failing of the major parties in NSW, and the state is not going to move ahead until this unethical era of politics is relegated to history. Read the rest of this entry »

Dr Alex Wodak, Director of Drug and Alcohol Services at St Vincent’s Hospital, on ABC 702:

VIRGINIA TRIOLI (ABC 702 presenter): Do you think the Greens are on the right track here with their [drug] policy?
DR WODAK: Yes, I do. Yes I do… the plain fact is that, whether we like it or not, the war on drugs has failed, and failed miserably… [ABC 702 Mornings 15 March 2007]

Dr Fares Samara, MD, FAChAM (Fellow of the Australasian Chapter of Addictions Medicine): “As a specialist in this field, I wholeheartedly support the Green Party’s policy on drugs and congratulate them for their courage and honesty… And also urge the other parties to have the same courage and adopt harm minimisation policies without hesitation.” Read the rest of this entry »