Bob Carr wasn't responsible for the rapid population growth in Sydney that created all the traffic chaos. Indeed, he had the courage to say Sydney was "full up". The Federal Government, for much of the time a Coalition one, held the levers on population growth and was responsible for the blow-out in immigration. And don't discount the value of those national parks. They will be appreciated for generations to come, not only by our own descendants but by countless other species, especially as climate zones move with climate change. We will need the contiguity of national parks to allow migration of species, either to higher altitudes or southwards.

But I hope the lesson we are all learning is that, if population growth is to occur, there must be adequate funds to supply infrastructure. That includes housing, schools, hospitals, parks and not just transport. The other lesson is that there are limits to growth. As we read today, few ordinary couples can afford to buy land on the outskirts of Melbourne now. Come the oil crisis, those couples that do will not be able to afford to drive to work. There had better be electric trains (fueled by renewable energy) to get them there, otherwise society might just grind to a halt.

Asleep at the wheel?

You mean, he actually knew there was a wheel?

Bob Carr was undoubtedly the laziest politician I have ever come across. While cultivating his "I'm an intellectual" image - which quite possibly was well earned - he failed to act on any core State issue.

He may even be the most cynical, given the nature of his departure. No succession planning, no thought of the condition of his Party. Just a quick "Goodbye, I'm out of here", giving the strong impression that he was bored by the whole thing, and a mere ten weeks later, a "Hello Macquarie Bank" half-a-million consultancy.

It could hardly have been a more blatant move by a Premier who had only recently gifted the Bank and its investors a massive return with the Eastern Distributor franchise. A two-finger salute to anyone who might at one time have thought him better than the run-of-the-mill money-grubbing hacks that populate our parliaments.

The bloke was an utter disgrace to his Party, and to politics at large.

Thankfully I live in Victoria --- except --- the issue of National Parks is quickly glossed over.
All land owned by the public deserves good management. Many of NSW National Parks have had their 4WD track access blocked and revegetated.
A 21st Century forest without access for management will deteriorate. Without regular cool fire, well contained, fuel builds up and becomes an excessively hot fire in summer. Soil burned in 1000C heat is blown and washed away and native animal habitat no longer exists. (We've made that mistake in Victoria. I can show you the bare rocks)
I just don't care what the Greens policy is at this moment, for too long it has been anti cool burning. For the sake of native animal habitat, get rid of the Greens and institute good forestry.

True for the most part.

Labor has been running down for decades. Car said he would be the Education Premier. What did he do for education? Not much- just whatever was easy.
Carr and co. have given us the creaky, bureaucratic Dept of Education and Training, which the enquiries have found made the biggest mess of the Building the Education Revolution disaster. At least, a disaster for the State schools.
Wasnt it Carr who said we need more good women as MPs- and gave us Karyn Paluzzano who was forced to resign amid a scandal of lies and corruption?
Carr gave in to the lefties in the teacher unions. Appeased radical feminists. Wouldn't do anything to improve things in boys' education.
And on his watch the State's rail network was allowed to steadily get worse. No new work was done. Just announcements. Clever announcements timed for the Sunday news bulletins.
That's in sum why O Farrell has said- No more spin, no more big announcements; we'll just do the job.
Let's hope he does it. In NSW we're sick of having the worst-managed State in the country.

Good article, Patrick, a refresher on why I felt sick when this pseudo intellectual dunce became premier of this State.

I did not realise that I have been feeling sick for the last 16 years, until I woke up on Sunday, feeling terrific, with this disease to our State political system cleaned out.

You are obviously not a farmer, or you would not approve this clown proclaiming national parks, in which to grow noxious weeds and feral animals, to infest farmlands State wide, where tha farmers will be served with notices to eradicate the national park bred feral fauna and noxious flora.

He invested in real estate in NZ, where they have no stamp duty. He would not subject himself to the inquitous duties inflicted on us by his rotten government in NSW. Nice to see his investment devalued in a country unfortunate enough to have a carbon tax inflicted on it, which is rapidly making things worse.

No doubt the perpetrators of this iniquitous tax will attempt to blame the Christchurch earthquake for the economic disaster now in train. I hope the citizens of NZ do not fall for that lie. Falling for the AGW fraud is bad enough.

Patrick you are 100% correct in all aspects of your assessment.

As many pundits, and some key Labor figures have stated, the self destruction of this pathetic Labor state government (oxymoron?!!) really accelerated when Robertson and the trogs in Sussex St rolled Iemma over the privatisation of the power industry. The scandals, incompetence and mendacity of the remaining members of this appalling government are too well known to bear repeating.

But in my mind, 16 years ago, the rot set in the day Bob Carr was elected. He did not drive, was obsessed with smooching the media, and made endless promises regarding roads and rail, which never materialised. I recall telling my wife, the day this bastard was elected, that NSW was making a terrible mistake, one for which we would pay dearly.

And so it came to be. Carr had a reputation for disdaining any form of “Strategic Plan”, similar to the “don’t give me any document more than one page” Paul Keating. And while the electorate smashed Keating after a relatively short time in office, the moronic element of the NSW electorate, aided by some pathetic Liberal ‘leadership’, continued to elect Labor governments.

The decay of government in NSW during these years of incompetence and inactivity, has progressively confirmed my forecasts that it would be, and in fact was, Bob Carr who set in place the style of government which has reduced NSW to its state of near terminal decay.

As one who gleefully put the boot into NSW Labour on Saturday, I’m not exactly a Carr fan. Still, I wonder if the rot really started at the top.

Carr was a strong leader. Was he effective? He brought the NSW budget under control, and did a good job managing Fahey’s triumph in scoring the Olympics. Carr actually did address transport/infrastructure issues, making good use of public/private partnerships to keep expenditure down. In principle, it looked like a good idea. We got much-needed facilities, and didn’t go into debt to pay for them.

So Iemma was very surprised when, on his ascendency, the Public Service modelling and usage projections for PPP projects proved to be inept at best, more likely criminally negligent. Investors lost a packet, government lost respect, voters got screwed. Our new world-class ticketing system costing megabucks proved to be the product of clowns in Public Service clothing. The legacy of the Olympics rotted in the bureaucracy’s dirty fridge. Bugger the Regions.

Iemma wasn’t stupid. He noticed the rot in energy infrastructure, and tried to act. With the PPP option closed, bills rising, and income dropping, privatisation was his only choice. But by this time Public Service & Unions saw disaster looming, and circled the wagons. They knew that what REALLY needed reform was the NSW bureaucracy. Regicide was much the easier option.

Rees and Kenneally were like child monarchs: all title, no power, easily replaced. The BER and related spendathons financed a nice party for the Faceless Men and their mates. Gillard knows it ... and that they’ll hit her up for more — if they go down, they’ll take her with ‘em. Kenneally lost the election, but so what? John Robinson will inherit Labour’s Light on the Hill because he’s got the most blood on his hands, an endless stream of Union Dues with which to buy influence, and an army of heavies to address complaints. And he commands loyalty, because no one else can stop reform of the NSW Public Service.

I hope Barry’s armed and ready for war.

Oh dear Patrick, I think you are fundamentally off-track.

You wrote;

<< …the biggest reason for this result can be brought back to one word – transport. >>

Which is intimately connected with population – the size of it and the rate of growth, yes?

And who has been the arch advocate, or the ONLY advocate amongst top-ranking politicians in this country, for stopping continuous population growth in growth-stressed, transport-clogged cities?

Yes, one Robert John Carr!

Unfortunately, he couldn’t do much about Sydney’s continuing stifling population growth from within a manically pro-growth Labor party and with a manically pro-growth Federal government there to override any growth-mitigation measures that he might have tried to implement!

No Patrick, Bob Carr was NOT the cause of Labor’s undoing in NSW. The cause was their manic addiction to rapid growth regardless of the consequences for the average quality of life of current residents.

Labor has yet to learn that a stable population that can be brought into balance with infrastructure, services, resources and environment, is ESSENTIAL. When we are on track to a stable population, THEN and only then can we hope to bring infrastructure and services up to speed, rather than having these things forever chasing the tail of growth.

What we have had for decades is ever-more infrastructure and services for ever more people, without any average net gain for the ordinary person, and indeed an average loss in many places, not least Sydney!

Unfortunately under O’Farrell, we are not likely to see any change whatsoever away from never-ending rapid growth and towards this essential balance. Yep, the Libs are just the same!

Patrick Baum has the auro of an old buck Rabbit overviewing shrinking pasture around his warren, declaring “poor seasons, poor soil, those cattle, --,” as ever more rabbit kittens, increasingly malnourished, hobble around an overworn landscape.

Bob Carr was on the money regarding awareness of the basic problem - ever-more people. He was outspoken against an ever-continuing rate of increase - determined, predominantly, by the Federal Department responsible for an excessive net migration intake.

As Jane O’Sullivan pointed out (OLO 8 March 2010 - The downward spiral of hasty population growth), two percent of existing infrastructure, overall, needs replacement and updating each year; and added to that are the extra needs for increasing numbers. Two per cent is a hefty burden, and the extra numbers bring it up to near four per cent.

How long before Barry O’Farrell is transported into the above reality, or is he too obtuse?

during the building of the Olympics money was striped from the state.

when it came back all of it was used to subsidize the " white elephant" Venus because nobody would hire them

could not run a chook raffle

ben