Time to give Tim Crakanthorp another crack at the Hunter portfolio

The way is clear now for the premier to reinstate back him into his original role as a minister after the ICAC report clearance.

NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley, who also doubles as the Hunter minister, appears to be very busy herself in that police role, so Mr Crakanthorp's reappointment would free her of that extra work load.

Mr Crakanthorp deserves to be reinstated. He was popularly elected by the locals in Newcastle.

Come on, Premier, please give him a go and show your confidence in him today.

You dropped him from your cabinet, which was appropriate, but now it's time to reinstate him as Minister for the Hunter.

I WRITE to express my deep concern regarding the proposal to move the Newcastle basketball stadium to the New Lambton/Lambton Wallarah and Blackley ovals. While I understand the desire for urban development and the promotion of sports activities, sacrificing other sports and our green spaces for such projects is a decision we must not take lightly.

These ovals are well used by the community. Other sports play there as well as them being used by Lambton High School. Introducing a towering structure (I hear it may be six storeys in height) amidst this green space would be an abomination.

Moreover, the construction of a multi-storey stadium could have detrimental effects on the environment. Increased traffic congestion, noise pollution, and increase in flood risk are just some of the potential consequences we must consider. We cannot prioritise short-term gains at the expense of long-term sustainability.

Please consider alternative locations for the basketball stadium that don't compromise the integrity of our green spaces. Re-use the old basketball stadium together with the PCYC. Build it in the other areas that have been earmarked for development, like Hunter Park. Surely Newcastle council/NSW government can achieve their development goals without sacrificing the invaluable assets that these ovals provide.

ON Tuesday, Telstra announced it will axe 2800 employees and on Wednesday they sent me an email stating they are increasing my internet charges. Talk about having your cake and eating it too.

PORT Stephens Coaches, you do a fantastic job transporting us early morning workers to Newcastle from the Bay. The drivers are the utmost professionals, however, like last winter, why is the air conditioning on cold at 5am and 7pm on the way home? I believe I contacted the company about this last cold season.

Doctors were concerned that two lymph nodes, one on the left and one on the right of my neck, were extremely swollen. Scans later showed that it was my testicles, which had retreated after travelling to Newcastle on the freezing bus.

Please, could someone at the base check the aircon before I board wearing wolf and bear skin? Thanks to the drivers on behalf of the workers who use this service.

MANY newspapers have succeeded with investigative journalism to expose wrongdoing. Donna Page walks in the footsteps of Joanne McCarthy, whose wonderful writing and investigating led to a royal commission, and we miss her.

Look to the work of Bob Woodard and Carl Bernstein, who brought down a president with Watergate while writing for the Washington Post.

The letters to the editor page is indeed a barometer of public opinion in my opinion, including criticisms of the current investigation process outlined by Donna Page regarding Jeremy Bath and Scott Neylon.

To suggest that the Newcastle Herald is in any way just stirring the public against Jeremy Bath is just an attempt to shoot the messenger if you ask me ("'No' to your right to know", Herald 11/5).

I was one of several targets of Bath/Neylon letters and that has made me more determined to find the truth and see it published. Bravo, Donna Page.

ANDREW Whitbread-Brown ("Sink your teeth into finding our national dish", Letters, 20/5), pies are good footy food, however you can do better to promote Australian cuisine. After the little holiday in Poland, you could do worse than support Australian Hunter and Newcastle chefs. Josh Niland (an East Maitland lad) is now a world famous chef who owns, runs and cooks at his restaurant St Peter in Alexandria Sydney. Maybe take your next little holiday in a closer locale.

STEVE Barnett ("Budget offers bizarro look at top priorities", Letters, 20/5), suggests that the government is giving money to the wrong people in the budget. You also seem to have a change of heart when it comes to who should be the ones to benefit from that money. Previously you have referred to the people not working as bludgers, and now that you want the government to give them more money you call them the unemployed.

IT'S always disturbing when the referee becomes the focus of the game. It was an intense A-League contest in Gosford. I'm glad that the best team got through, but Sydney wasn't giving them an easy path. Numerous comments about the referee, none of which were favourable. If you let fouls go recklessly then the players become frustrated and angry. As do the staff on the sideline. Best find someone else to manage the grand final.

OBSERVED on the Hunter Link Road on Tuesday (21/5) in rainy, low visibility weather: an e-scooter hurtling along the road shoulder. The rider was dressed in black and interacting with a telephone. No licence, no insurance, no registration; until these motorised vehicles require these things they should be banned.