Residents and holidaymakers come to Mollymook to enjoy the natural beauty of the surroundings. Its two golf courses were part of the attraction. Unfortunately that is no longer the case now Mollymook Golf Club has butchered the first fairway to install a parking lot. People will stop coming. Tourism will suffer.

The new carpark is an eyesore and the decision to build it was short sighted. Providing convenience to a handful of staff to park their vehicles is one thing but the impact on tourism and the environment by the decision will be long lasting.

I strongly encourage Mollymook Golf Club to reverse its decision and remove the car park. Reinstate the first fairway to its former glory. And the ninth fairway while they're at it.

MGC are merely custodians of this important natural asset. Future generations will not enjoy Mollymook's beauty the way others have for years. People come for nature, not car parks. MGC has a responsibility to maintain this important natural asset - not build car parks.

The Mollymook Golf Club has survived without a car park on the first fairway for decades. I'm sure it can survive a few more.

Cr Guile made some telling observations re the Greens opposing needy ratepayers receiving some financial relief from council including;

"If, like Cr Gash, you are on a fully taxpayer funded parliamentary pension for life, then maybe you can't relate to what the rest of us are going through."

I watched the webcast of the council meeting where the issue was debated and was appalled at the arrogance displayed by both the Mayor and Cr Gash. Neither seem to appreciate that in their respective roles they are servants of the people, and not our lords and masters.

That meeting also dealt with the matter of the construction of a boatshed at Barker Reserve. Here I was much taken aback by the Greens' enthusiastic support for a development that is clearly anti-environment, strongly opposed by the local community and does not meet council's own plan of management for the park.

Then they object to the construction of the hotel at the northern end of the Burrill Lake bridge, citing environmental concerns. Regardless of your views on the hotel, where is the consistency?

For those of us who applauded Bob Brown's formation of the Greens as a force for reason and commonsense how can our Greens souncillors continue to follow their ad hoc approach that appears to be based on flexing their majority (with the Mayor's casting vote) rather than working for the good of the people they serve.

Last Thursday (June 4) members of Unions Shoalhaven were joined by staff, academics and students at the Shoalhaven Campus of the University of Wollongong. We were there to stand up to protect jobs at the Shoalhaven campus. Some long-term staff have already been advised their jobs will end in one month. We need jobs in the Shoalhaven. We need good education and we need students to be supported so their uni studies are successful. Once you lose courses and staff there is potential to cut back the campuses. There are small UOW campuses in Batemans Bay, Bega, Southern Highlands and Shoalhaven. Unions Shoalhaven wants vice chancellors and the government to adequately fund teaching positions and have more tertiary staff who are permanent employees as opposed to casuals.