There is one part of the Eisteddfod that is set aside for mature-aged performers, but this may not be so well known. This is the Mature Performers Section, a one evening session of acts, which include singing, speech, music and dance. Acts are no longer than 5 minutes and can be from individuals or groups and represent any genre. Speech can include any memorised piece, a speech, poem or story. It can be the performer’s own work or from a published work. Music, either instrumental or vocal, can represent any genre, classical, popular or country, and be presented as a solo performance or as a group. Groups can be anything from duos to choirs. The only stipulation is that performers must be 25 years of age or over.

This is an opportunity for older people to join the Eisteddfod frenzy and strut their stuff in front of a warm and appreciative audience, one of whom will be local and very popular entertainer, Ann Walsh, who will have the task of adjudicating the performances and selecting one overall winner.

The Mature Performers Section will be held on Friday 16th June 2017, in the Heritage Room at the Tamworth Community Centre.  For more information, please ring Jan Morris on 6765 9478 or syllabuses can be obtained from The Tamworth Eisteddfod Society at PO Box 6, Tamworth.

Jan Morris, Tamworth

A core function of government to deliver an effective and reliable land titling service to protect the real property rights of the people of NSW. By its nature, the Torrens title register is a monopoly for the creation, grant and disposal of interests in real property and belongs wholly within government.

The hallmark of the Torrens title system is the guarantee of title. The justifications for the privatisation of public assets usually lie in the need for a large scale injection of capital into an industry or to address significant underperformance by a government agency. Neither rationale appears to apply in this instance, in fact, the NSW land titling system serves as a model, both nationally and internationally, for best practice and innovation, including electronic and digital lodgement systems.

The sole justification for the privatisation of the LPI appears to be a one-off injection of funds into consolidated revenue. The risk for the people and economy of NSW is that a failure by the private operator to maintain the reliability and integrity of the Torrens register could have much wider consequences, including a loss of public confidence in the land titling system.

We are concerned at the lack of public consultation and transparency in relation to the privatisation of the titling and registry functions of LPI. No public consultation has occurred to date and very few details of the proposed model have been made public.

The Land and Property Information NSW (Authorised Transaction) Bill 2016 (The Bill) appears to have been drafted from a minimalist perspective - too much of the detail has been left to the other key documents which are likely not to be scrutinised by the Parliament or the public.

We understand that it is proposed to build a stadium in Parramatta with the funds generated from this sale. On the limited public information that we have access to, we believe the proposed sale price of one to two billion dollars that has been given to the media to be inadequate. There is no reliable, publicly available information to substantiate this belief. The Parliament of NSW is required to act in the public interest in all of its decisions. For the reasons set out above, we assert that the proposed sale of the LPI is not in the public interest.

Tamworth surveyors and solicitors