He claims that a "climate expert" has said that there has been more rain this century than ever before. Now this may be true however it may have been taken out of context. Where and when has this rain fallen? It certainly is not the steady rain I remember as a young lad where it could have drizzled lightly for two weeks or so.

Perhaps this rain came in the massive storms which have flooded so many towns and cities in this sweltering country, which I may add is a supposed sign of climate change.

So I say it is no good quoting facts and figures unless you have the hard cold facts to back your claims up. Where and when did this rain fall, was it steady or a result of what I have mentioned above, massive storms etc?

This journalist also claims that a warmer climate will result in a greener planet and of course that is true if you are living in Greenland or other countries where the winter ice packs are melting due to increased temperatures.

However bad luck if you happen to live in areas where the temperature already reaches the high 40s or low 50s, they certainly will not be greener.

I did not bother to research his claims that crops worldwide are on the increase as, no matter what, this journalist is a sceptic who has a dislike for any political party that is not aligned to the Coalition and that is one undeniable hard cold fact. I rest my case.

SCOTT Hillard (Short Takes, 30/1), the $140 billion you talk about will not be there in a few years, contrary to the propaganda fed to Australians by our coal-dependant government and our pro-coal media outlets.

The demand will drop, better to prepare now don't you think?

No one is talking about iron ore, it's the burning of coal for power that is the issue, not steel making.

As far as investors lining up, the Italian company Eni just built a massive solar farm outside of Katherine providing hundreds of jobs.

Sorry Scott, renewables are a booming industry, governments are being left in the dust by investors seeing the opportunities.

And Scott, Australia is attractive to investors due to us having so much sunlight. Look past the propaganda, the rest of the world is embracing the facts, we need change. I hope I have answered some of your questions.

THE report that the runway at Williamtown may still be extended after the government said it would not go ahead with the project came as no real surprise ('Up in the air', Newcastle Herald, 22/1).

I think I've heard this sort of talk before.

The idea would have been to take the heat off after a promise was broken.

I think it would be fair to say an extension to the runway to allow more international flights would not only benefit people from the Hunter Region but also those from the north of the state.

Such an extension would also take pressure off the airport in Sydney.

However, I do believe that to gain the real benefit of this extension a railway would need to be built to the airport.

From experiences in Melbourne and the Gold Coast it's clear to me that heavy rail would be better than light rail. A train would be faster, more comfortable and carry more people than a tram.

Such a railway would be of considerable benefit to commuters from Port Stephens and Medowie.

For this reason I can't help but wonder if the railway should have priority over the extended runway. It could relieve traffic congestion.

I hope we see some good sense for a change.

REGARDING the Newcastle councillors' Port Stephens workshop ('Council meeting split', Newcastle Herald, 28/1). Well done to the independent councillors for trying to save ratepayers' money by not supporting the workshop at Port Stephens.

If only they would call out the outrageous waste of ratepayers' money (millions of dollars), secret agreements, business closures, I believe falsified attendance figures, road closures, limited beach access and the destruction of our parks and heritage that the Supercars fiasco inflicts every year on our once beautiful city.

This year the fiasco will be over the Christmas period.

We've been sold out to a private company and we hear nothing but spin from our councillors.

DO people really need to hate? I don't know whether it's my imagination, but I and others have noticed with interest that many letters published with political bias tend to hate the other side of politics with a passion and hate those with different views regarding climate change.

Rather than name this brand of hate, I would leave it to readers to decide for themselves whether the same people are responsible for both issues and whether hate can cloud the mind from sensible decision making.

I was brought up to respect those in positions of trust and government regardless of who is in power because they are the will of the majority, too often not only here, but around the world, minority rabble not only make a lot of noise, but do it with hate.

I believe that until minorities learn to stop hating and be more constructive, they will always remain a minority.

NOW Bridget McKenzie has gone, then so should Scott Morrison. I think the most recent revelations show that Mr Morrison must have been involved in the McKenzie sports rorts himself.

I think Mr Morrison must have tacitly approved of the allocations.

At the very least he must have known about them. But, as a leader responsible for enforcing his much-vaunted 'ministerial code of conduct', Mr Morrison took no action to stop them.

It will therefore be hard for Mr Morrison, despite his in-house investigations, to distance himself from Ms McKenzie's behaviour.

The electorate won't forget. Now Ms McKenzie has gone, then so should our PM, if he wants the Coalition to be re-elected in 2022.

Mr Morrison's God-given 'miracle' election in 2019 is starting to look more like grubby politicking. No self-respecting God would want to be associated with this aspect of the Coalition's election victory.

IT is disgraceful that the Prime Minister and his Minister Bridget McKenzie appear to believe it is perfectly OK to use taxpayer dollars as a piggy bank to fund their party's election prospects via the sports grants scheme. This doesn't pass the pub test. The PM, being a former treasurer, should know better. In times gone by, government ministers have been sacked or resigned for much less. I see his Minister has gone. If the PM had a shred of integrity he would too.

REGARDING the letter writer's call to deny climate deniers space (Letters, 25/1): I believe the Sydney Morning Herald is far more left wing than the Newcastle Herald (which I would call close to centre). They will have less right wing readers to contribute and may censor many right wing readers who try to. It will shame your teachers that I have to be the one that points this out, but as they apparently failed miserably ... with smoking, asbestos, DDT, and thalidomide Australia is the only jurisdiction that matters to the welfare of Australians. With climate change, I believe nothing Australia does will make a perceptible difference to future temperatures in Australia. I believe in climate change. I don't believe the world (as a whole) is trying to stop it. My preferred policy for Australia is per capita emissions below the USA's.

I BELIEVE ex-detective inspector Peter Fox should have been named Australian of the Year for his tireless dedication for exposing the paedophile priests within the Catholic Church which cost him his career and ill health, but hopefully has saved more children from being abused.

I AGREE that we are experiencing climate change, the planet has been warming since the ice age, no doubt about that, but to deny those who do not believe to have their say in letters as suggested by one of the writers, smacks of suppression (Letters, 25/1). Normal way for those who can not put up with others views, my way is the only correct way, all others shut up.

MR Keith Parsons (Letters, 28/1): Forgive me if I have misinterpreted your repeated negative reviews of Newcastle, you have to remember that I'm from far away distant Singleton (the town that more than likely paves the streets that you walk on). Your response is very contradictory to your previous ramblings; however I am glad that you read my options. Did you know Keith; there is a train that doesn't carry coal that actually goes to and from Singleton? The Cob and Co coach has long since gone; you should bite the bullet and visit our lovely town one day. Who knows you may find a vibrant town that has scant regard for whingers and whiners.

I FIND it amazing that the government is pushing ahead with the union integrity bill at a time with all the investigations going on into rorts and possible corruption, they want to bring on this bill. I think it is about time the government is reminded that integrity is a two way street.