THE usual controversy about Australia Day being celebrated on January 26 had a slightly sharper edge this week as the rights of our Aboriginal predecessors on the continent gain greater public recognition.

The British occupiers claimed terra nullius – that no one owned the place. But since our own courts have thrown that out, Australia Day is eminently debatable. However, it’s such a delicate issue that PM Tony Abbott has even postponed a constitutional vote on Aboriginal recognition until 2017. Perhaps we need a Truth and Reconciliation Commission to pave the way.

SPEAKING of Mr Abbott, this week’s leadership speculation was a foretaste of a terrible year ahead. Once it starts it develops a life of its own. Everything he and his colleagues say and do is seen through the leadership prism. The media loves it because it requires hardly any serious work; everyone can get into the act.

AND what about unlucky Bronwyn Calvert, the sporting cyclist whacked off her bike by a kangaroo this week as she passed The Lodge? Poor Tony – even the native fauna are deserting him. (See what I mean – the leadership virus is more contagious than ebola!)

THE ACT Government reshuffle turned out to be a bit of a yawn – newcomer Yvette Berry might well bring a brief sparkle to the ministry, but that’s about the best you could say of it. All six ministers have a grab-bag of portfolios, but it does seem a pity that the Chief, Andrew Barr has kept separate his own Events and Tourism from the Arts, still headed by Joy Burch. After all, most of our visitors come to the cultural precincts, not to play the pokies.

LIKE most Canberrans, we entertained visitors over the holidays and it was a pleasure to show off the city. Isn’t the Arboretum flourishing – helped along, no doubt, by all that extra climate change heat and CO2 in the atmosphere. However, all our other trees are also growing apace and at Mt Ainslie, for example, they are ruining the much loved panoramic vista.

NEWS that private school fees in Canberra can now cost parents half a million dollars per child will give many second thoughts, especially as our state high schools are among the best in the land. And, of course, they’d be even better if the parents now spending all that money on private education were involved in the public schools.

THE sporting marathon continued unabated on our TV screens this week. The tennis was fascinating as the new breed of youngsters – Tomic, Kokkinakis and our own Nick Kyrgios – took centre court as the old guard of Hewitt and Stosur faded from the scene. The Asian Cup drew the crowds and the good old ABC gave it excellent coverage (despite the awful panellists). In the cricket, Manuka again excelled itself with a terrific roll-up, and there’s still the ODI World Cup to come.

HAPPILY, there was still time to catch up on some reading and I really must recommend a ripper local political thriller: “Dead Cat Bounce”, by Peter Cotton. Kept me glued to the page.

robert@robertmacklin.com