Baird out': protesters in Sydney rally against NSW premier's policies

The Guardian
Sunday 29 May 2016


Waving placards saying “Baird Out” and “Save Sydney from Baird’s butchery”, thousands rallied on Sunday outside Sydney’s town hall to protest a swathe of policies introduced by the NSW premier, Mike Baird.   

The vocal crowd included opponents of the NSW council amalgamations, light rail development, nightspot lockout laws, anti-protest legislation and the WestConnex motorway project.

The ousted mayor of Leichhardt, Darcy Byrne, told the rally that Baird was “completely out of control”.
Luke Foley: Mike Baird’s forced council mergers are a disgraceful rort


“It’s time to send him a message, take a stand and say that we will resist his rule,” Byrne said, to cheers and applause.

March Australia organiser in Sydney Sonia Zadro said the introduction this year of tougher anti-protest laws – including greater police powers and a tenfold increase in fines – was “the last straw”.   

“It just keeps getting worse and worse and it just seemed like the time has come for some serious dissent,” Zadro said.

Anti-CSG activist Dane Pratzy also addressed the crowd before ralliers marched on state parliament.

Conservation groups were incensed that fig trees planted along Anzac Parade to commemorate the Anzacs 100 years ago were felled to make way for the extension of the light rail network to the city’s eastern suburbs.

I said before the last State Election that Mike Baird was first and foremost a businessman willing to sell off a cash cow like the Electricity Grid for short term gain.

Not only has that prophecy come true, Electricity prices are about to go up and they will keep going up.

But now he has revealed his big hidden agenda and is  going through the Council system like a dose of salts.

Funnily enough I have thought for some time that the local council system needs 'reaming' it is totally outdated and frankly there are too many local bloody councils with 'executives' pulling down big dollars, to manage what in many cases are quite small concerns.

I couldn't care less if he got rid of the Blue Mountains Council and appointed an Administrator, they are everything that is bad in a council.

Unluckily we are not on the axe list.

But I think that there is a lot more to come from Baird and it's not going to please the average person. Baird is all about the bottom line and he doesn't care who he treads on to get it.

And, as usual, those of us who saw it coming were howled-down and abused by those who wouldn't.