Senate Estimates.
28 May 2009 : Consultation does not equate to agreement and, while all views will be seriously considered and taken into account, at the end of the day CASA, as the regulator, is responsible for making, and will make, the final decisions.
Oct 20.2009: We are committed to full and frank consultation and discussion with all and every comer, but in the end the regulator must make a decision. That decision must be legal, in the interests of the Australian public, and must be a decision made with the thought in mind that CASA and the associated processes decide, not the industry.
28 May 2009 : So let me be clear: I have absolutely no interest in discouraging or dissuading our critics from drawing CASA’s actual or assumed shortcomings to my attention, to the government’s attention, or to the attention of the Australian public. As I said, I welcome and embrace this. At the same time, however, let me be equally clear in highlighting the very significant difference between candid, robust criticism of CASA’s actions as an organisation and what cannot fairly be characterised as other than mean-spirited, tendentiously self-serving and frequently false accusations about, and the vindictive public disparagement of, individual CASA officers by name and by station.
Oct 20.2009: I have delivered the message to our staff that CASA is a regulator, that ‘regulator’ starts with the letter R and that, in my opinion, it is a capital R. That means neither that we bully all until they submit, nor that we abandon consultation with the industry. Indeed, consultation is specifically required by the act. But it does mean consultation, and not endless attempts to reach consensus.
28 May 2009: CASA is and I, as the Director of Aviation Safety, am, and all our employees are fully accountable for our words and actions, including our regular appearances before this committee, Chair. Clearly, these critics have no intention of exposing themselves to anything like the kind of scrutiny to which we are, and should be, subject. Frankly, I seriously doubt whether many of them could withstand it if they were. To those who constantly challenge CASA to lift its game I say, ‘Thank you and keep it coming.’ To those whose intent is merely to insult, denigrate, vilify and, in some instances I suspect, to defame individual CASA officers, unless and until they might be held accountable for their words and actions, I can only say, ‘Shame’. Thank you, Chair.
Oct 20.2009: I will stress: this is no criticism of anyone past or present. To further these aims, we are in the process of writing a governance manual for all parts of CASA. Beneath this manual will live all our policy and procedure manuals, going a long way to ensuring consistency. To facilitate this, some rearranging of our structure will be necessary.
Oct 20.2009: As a regulator, we should be able to be approached and all our activities should stand the test of scrupulous probity.
Oct 20.2009: It will allow the industry to receive more consistent interpretation of legislation and directives.
Oct 20.2009: These changes, such as the increased emphasis on governance, will directly address some concerns raised by the Senate inquiry in the aviation green paper.
Oct 20.2009: CASA is required to carry out surveillance which, on one level—that is the level that is best generally understood—involves physical presence on an aerodrome and the actual inspection of aviation activities that are being undertaken. Given this fact, and viewing all information at arm’s length, I am unable to reconcile a decision to close Townsville with the superior desire to increase surveillance.
Oct 20.2009: The future of aviation in Australia relies on the success of general aviation. To be blunt, if we kill GA, we kill aviation and many other activities that rely on it. In summary, I look forward to contributing to the ongoing success of aviation in Australia. I cannot do anything about the past, but I can do a lot about the future, and that is what I intend to do. Thank you for your polite indulgence.
No bolding, no highlighting, just a comparison between Senate speak and the stark realities of life. Like six people dog paddling for their lives in a dark dangerous ocean after surviving a ditching impact; an industry living in fear, the Regulator living off the fat of the land and GA on it's knees. Perhaps we should all just shut up now, lest we delusional, dysfunctional, bullying hypocrites be accused of upsetting the rosy garden. Can't have morale affected, can we now; perhaps, a consultation with the truth then? - No. Then what about with Quadrio and others?– Nah - why am I not surprised?