Auction Clearance Rates and Buyer Pools
Tom Danby from Campbells Creek critiques how auctions limit the pool of potential buyers. He argues that auctions require buyers to research the market extensively, effectively becoming experts on par with local estate agents, which drastically reduces the number of interested parties. By contrast, fixed-price advertising, especially in the internet age, broadens the pool to all those who can afford the price range, rather than just a few temporary “auction experts”.
Immigration and Land Carrying Capacity
Sandra Sewell from Tamborine Mountain questions the emphasis on economics, race, and multiculturalism in immigration debates, while little attention is paid to what the land can carry, especially as climate changes start to bite. She urges a focus on environmental limits rather than purely economic or social factors.
Voluntary Assisted Dying in Regional Victoria
Ros Kuhlmann, an 82-year-old from regional Victoria, shares her personal experience with chronic conditions and the loss of loved ones. She would welcome voluntary assisted dying in the future, noting that her mother died at nearly 96 with diabetes and breathing difficulties after many years of suffering. Kuhlmann laments that no system is in place for her to access this option in regional Victoria, calling the wait cruel.
