Canberra Times Letters to the Editor: Denser and denser

These areas are already identified in the Territory Plan for higher-density development.

Some adjustment of the planning controls, especially close to group and local centres, is necessary to encourage townhouse and dual occupancy development.

Residential intensification policies cannot be considered in isolation from housing, employment location and transport policies.

While housing preferences are changing, there remains an ongoing need for greenfields development to meet the housing aspirations of many Canberrans.

Low-density development is not sprawl if it is accompanied by the provision of employment, schools, shops, community, recreation facilities and efficient transport including frequent, high-quality public transport services providing good access to employment opportunities.

The public transport services by necessity will need to be bus-based given the prohibitive cost of light rail.

Given increasing congestion, housing unaffordability,the reduced ability of the government to influence employment location, increasing rates, uncertainty over the location of future greenfields settlement and the government's somewhat reckless desire to extend light rail to Woden, there is an urgent need to review the ACT planning strategy to ensure the future development of the city is more socially, environmentally, financially and economically sustainable.

It is puzzling that the Barr government is not undertaking the review as urban development has been its Achilles heel.

The review would increase community confidence as it would place urban development decisions on a firm foundation.

Mike Quirk, Wanniassa

The ideal city plan would essentially have no limits if we follow an overseas model, according to at least one professional.

For instance, in Ottawa apparently, "They propose minimum density targets for both housing and employment" ("Design matters", allhomes, August 6).

The sky, it would seem, is the limit.

Gary J. Wilson, Macgregor

It appears Australia, a slave to all things US of A, including invading other people's countries, seems to be on a similar trajectory of "rampant" opioid availability and abuse ("Another drug epidemic is on the way", Sunday CT, August 6, p14).

Australia, in the 1930s, was perhaps a bit dull so, as always, eager to help (themselves to profits) drug companies came to the "rescue" with assistance in the form of a "cup of tea, a Bex and a good lie down".

There's no such thing as a free lunch! The phenacetin surreptitiously did its dirty work and spawned a growing demand for renal dialysis and transplants, before it was banned in 1977.

Decades ago, the Rolling Stones sang of "Mother's Little Helper", i.e. any of the benzodiazepine family, of which Librium (1960) was the forerunner, followed (1963) by its more widely known twin, Diazepam (Valium).

Benzodiazepines were regarded as the silver bullet for "curing" anxiety states, until a smart cookie, Malcolm Lader of London's King's College, pointed out their addictive potential, even at prescribed doses, potentially spoiling drug manufacturers' spiel as to their benign nature.

These drug "epidemics" were, legal, prescription and over-the-counter induced.

Why are narcotics – opioids and their synthetic equivalents – so freely prescribed as to be "rampant"?

Is it a case of medical negligence or, surely not, unawareness of their addictive potential?

Slick advertorial marketing and doctor inducements contribute.

There's potentially abject failure to explore medical/therapeutic alternatives.

Albert M. White, Queanbeyan

Last Sunday's editorial (CT, August 6) was well meaning but perhaps a little unrealistic.

Accepting that in a population of 400,000 a goodly proportion would average perhaps five trips a week, it makes the given figure of around 1000 offences in three months, or perhaps 4000 offences in 12 months, look very good.

From observation, the average motorist would see very few flagrant breaches of speed limits.

In 2015-16 we had 15 deaths. Most of the 15 were in a certain age group and a big proportion after the normal workday hours.

Alcohol and drugs were a common cause.

All in all I think we are basically a safety conscious society in the ACT.

However, there will always be a proportion who are irresponsible and drive cars that can be lethal in the wrong hands.

Howard Carew, Isaacs

"Govt urged to spend $32m on AIDS prevention" (Canberra Times, August 7) is a great title, but the elephant in the room is where does AIDS come from?

In Australia, not from primates and certainly not from those who practise monogamy.

Surely there is an easier way. Precautions, safe sex – even better: only sex between committed, exclusive sexual partners.

While only a small amount, those funds could be directed to assist the 105,000 homeless people living on the streets of Australia.

Let's get our priorities straight for a change. There's another word for prevention – it's called responsibility.

Russ Morison, Theodore

Further to the discussion about why women don't seem to want to take up all the advances – limited as they are – that have been made by feminism (Letters, August 8).

I have been puzzling for some time about why women who take their husband's name on marriage also want to be titled "Ms".

Surely the point of taking your husband's name is to show that you are a married woman so to title yourself "Ms" is rather self-defeating.

I remember when the Australian Women's Weekly, in the not-so-distant past, called all women by their husband's names in their social pages.

So, Ros Packer became Mrs Kerry Packer and so on.

I'm all for women having choices, but this is just silly.

Jennifer Saunders, Civic

Like many Australians, I was gobsmacked when Malcolm Turnbull beat the British government over Peter Wright's book Spy Catcher. And his calls for an Australian republic. And no doubt there are many other cases signposting his march towards greatness.

But any respect for this exceptional man evaporated when he became Prime Minister.

His latest effort is surely going to be his downfall.

Malcolm Turnbull won't be remembered for the things that made him exceptional; he will be remembered for how he sold his soul to hold the position of PM.

Mediocrity will now be his lasting legacy to the nation.

D.J. Fraser, Currumbin, Qld