LETTERS
Letters - 300 words maximum and including full name, address and contact number - can be sent to The News, PO Box 588, Hastings 3915 or emailed to: team@mpnews.com.au
Past and present reasons for living in Mornington As a longtime advocate for saving our environment l applaud the introduction of food waste in green waste bins (“Food scraps not to be wasted” The News 20/7/21). Along with reducing packaging, home composting and recycling soft plastics l now believe l should only need to have the land fill bin emptied once or twice a year. I do hope all residents will get on board with this council initiative. I am a proud member of Mornington and District Historical Society and applaud The News for its excellent “Celebrating 160 years of Mornington” in last week’s edition. l hope this souvenir promotion will inspire many lovers of Mornington to come and enjoy the Post Office Museum in coming months when we are able to “open up”. The museum has been closed this year as its collections needed to be packed up and stored off site whilst much required painting took place. Reopening has of course been hampered by lockdowns. If you are inspired by the rich history in the souvenir edition l hope readers will visit the museum on Sunday afternoons in coming months when current restrictions ease. Maybe even consider becoming a member of MDHS. Libby Gillingham, Mornington
Rubbish watch The first law of cheating on your neighbours is to ensure that they haven’t got a neighbourhood watch label on the front entrance. Second law is to remove any outstanding bills, cricket achievement certificates, toys and stale packaged foodstuffs. And the third law is not be caught.
Sadly, some wet behind the ears youngish person failed all three and even left poor Teddy bear among all the olives for all to see and forensically identify the lowlife for the police to follow up, the local cricket club to locate and the shire’s environmental protection department hit squad to prosecute. You’ll be glad to know that along with no fines for coveting our ratepayers paid for DVDs, CDs and those funny old fashioned papery things, yes books, Mornington Peninsula Shire has put your case in the too hard basket. You have survived the shame and local law penalties of being awarded the Crap Neighbour Award of the Year for our little backwater unmade road paradise in Woodlands. I am so pleased you got off your lazy butt and swept up your excess crap tout suite and retrieved your little possum’s well deserved team player award certificate because you are surely getting the Dingbat Award. I am personally available to train you in after dark dumping for a fee and ensure you that my wonderfully clean shire bins are being filmed with CCTV on Thursday, so please smile the next time, just for the record. Also be aware, should you make the mistake again of leaving whole shopping bags of unopened croissants, pies and doughnuts, please wrap them securely and add jam and butter. Ian Morrison, Mount Eliza
Stress relief I’d like to express my feelings for the man who, like me, was under stress at lunch time on Friday 18 June. Attending the emergency entrance at Frankston Hospital after leaving family members and being
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THE Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is urging taxpayers to make sure they have a record of any donation they are claiming this tax time. Last year nearly two thirds of the charitable claims adjusted, were because the taxpayer could not prove they had made the donation. Assistant Commissioner Tim Loh said that around 4.2 million Australians claimed deductions for more than $3.9 billion in gifts and donations to charities and not-forprofits in 2018–19. “Australians are a generous bunch, but not all gifts and donations are tax deductible.”
27 July 2021
Changes needed I would like to thank Cr David Gill for instigating Mornington Peninsula Shire Council opposition to Ryman Healthcare’s proposal in Mount Eliza. David ensured that the VCAT position of council was about protecting our green wedge. Broad community support for this must not be overlooked. The state government Planning Minister [Richard Wynne] should now amend the planning scheme so that planning applications no longer allow loopholes that enable unacceptable developments in the green wedge zone. The VCAT decision, although a big win on amenity grounds, still allows inappropriate developments in the green wedge. Steve Karakitsos, president, South Eastern Centre for Sustainability
“The second reason your donation may not be tax deductible is where you receive or expect to receive a monetary or personal benefit or advantage in return. We know Australians love raffles, and fundraising chocolate. Sadly, if you buy chocolate, a raffle ticket or an item from an Op Shop this isn’t considered a tax-deductible gift.” “Thirdly, taxpayers must keep good records. Most organisations will usually issue you with a receipt, but they don't have to. We will accept third-party receipts as evidence of a gift to a DGR if the receipt identifies the DGR and states the fact that the amount is a
donation to the DGR. However, if you made one or more donations of $2 or more to bucket collections conducted by an approved organisation for natural disasters, you can claim a tax deduction of up to $10 for the total of those contributions without a receipt. Finally, some people incorrectly claim tax deductions for donations they intend to make in their will or claim for workplace giving that has already reduced the amount of tax paid in each pay period. “While including a donation in your will is a great legacy to leave, testamentary gifts are generally not tax deductible,” Mr Loh said.
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Terra Australis was a group of colonies in the 19th century. It became a federation in the 20th century. It appears to [have] returned to being a group of colonies in the 21st century Geoffrey Lane, Mornington
LOIS H. DENNINGTON
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“There are four main reasons your donation or gift may not be tax deductible. The first is giving to an organisation that is not endorsed by the ATO as a deductible gift recipient (DGR).” A DGR is an organisation or fund that is endorsed by the ATO to receive tax deductible gifts or donations. Not all charities and not-for-profits are DGRs. Additionally, many crowdfunding campaigns that raise money for charitable causes and individuals in need are not run by DGRs. Taxpayers can confirm an organisation’s DGR status by checking the ABN Lookup on business.gov.au
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The function of a local government authority is to meet the needs of all the citizens within its area of responsibility. However, since the establishment of the Mornington Peninsula Shire in 1994 the Cape Schanck community has received $120,000 of shire budgets. This allocation was for two secondhand bus shelters and a further allocation of $100,000, five years ago, for the development of a Cape Schanck Reserve, which has yet to be designed, let alone implemented. The Cape Schanck community forms part of, but is not currently connected to, a significant number of tourism attractions in the Mornington Peninsula National Park which surrounds the Cape Schanck settlement, benefitting the general Victorian public and the shire. The most recognisable asset of Cape Schanck is the Cape Schanck lighthouse which was the second lighthouse built in Victoria together with the prominent outcrop of Pulpit Rock at the very tip of the
cape as well as the very popular Bushrangers Bay, all of which attract over 350,000 visitors each year. In the past two [shire] budgets we sought an allocation for a feasibility study into the development of a track along Cape Schanck Road on the grounds of safety for local residents and tourists alike by connecting the road track to existing tracks in the national park. However, on both occasions our submissions were rejected. The Cape Schanck community does not need expensive sporting facilities, our needs are simple. We believe our needs are not being met by the shire. We will again submit our request for a feasibility study into a track down Cape Schanck Road in next year’s budget. Maybe on our third attempt we will be successful. Barrie Rimmer, president, Friends of Cape Schanck
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unable to act as an advocate at a time when they needed one, all due to COVID restrictions. He asked if I was OK. I wasn’t. I’d had a previous bad experience at a local hospital in leaving a loved one who was left untreated until the next day when it was realised how serious his condition was, not being able to swallow or talk, with an as yet undiagnosed illness. After that I’d said I’d never again leave one of mine without an advocate. Here I was doing what I’d said I’d never do. The man had a real anguish too, leaving a younger son and I’ve thought of him ever since. I’d like to know if all turned out well for him. My husband is on the mend after two weeks in hospital and had the best of treatment. I’m grateful and thank that man for showing with a word that he cared for another. Philippians, chapter 2 verse 4 in the Bible says we should do that. He did this at a time when he was stressed, a rare thing. Paula Page, Rye
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