This week on the pod we ask the question, if Strata doesn’t belong in Fair Trading, then where should it go?As Jimmy explains in this column (which also appeared as an op-ed in the Sydney Morning Herald) our brand-new Fair Trading Minister Eleni Petinos has also been given Small Business on which to attach her training wheels.So now strata isn’t just a part of a huge, rambling and largely unconnected and complex ministry, that department itself is parked in a side street off another ministry, which has been given precedence (if the new minister’s title is anything to go by).That the case for taking strata out of Fair Trading is stronger than ever is inarguable. But if the NSW government did remove it, where should it go?Also in the pod, we look at the failure of the short-term letting code of conduct at its first test with riot police called to a 100-hoon party, exacerbated by Airbnb’s alleged refusal to provide the names of the perpetrators to police due to its “privacy” policy.Then we check out why so many strata blocks are rushing to install electric vehicle charging when there are so few electric vehicles.Finally we look at how we have come together to help each other as omicron runs rampant though our communities.That’s all in this week’s Flat Chat Wrap.TRANSCRIPT IN FULLJimmy 00:00Happy New Year!Sue 00:01And Happy New Year to you too, Jimmy!Jimmy 00:03And Happy New Year if you're listening to us somewhere in Australia, or, in other places. You could listen to us all over the world. I think we've got a couple of listeners in America.Sue 00:13Really?Jimmy 00:14Yeah. I think they are in condo boards and they've decided that however bad it gets there, "listen to what's going on in Australia!" I don't know!Sue 00:24That's not very reassuring, is it?Jimmy 00:26No... Today, we're going to talk about where strata should be, because I don't think either of us think it should be in Fair Trading.Sue 00:34In New South Wales Government?Jimmy 00:36Yes, it should be somewhere else. It's not quite big enough to have its own department, but it's way too big to be in with others. We'll talk about that later. We'll talk about the latest Airbnb scandals, with riot police called to Airbnb parties, and you're going to talk about the electrification of buildings that are supplying power to EV-vehicles...Sue 01:04That's right, yep.Jimmy 01:05In apartment blocks, which is a thing...Sue 01:07That's becoming a bigger and bigger issue for a lot of people.Jimmy 01:09It is, and people kind of want it, but they're not sure if they need it, or...Sue 01:15How to go about it.Jimmy 01:16Or, what level of it, to have. And, as a note, this week, we are recording in mono.Sue 01:23Really? That seems a bit of a backwards step, doesn't it?Jimmy 01:26Not according to The Beatles! The files take up less space and in any case, what happens is we record in stereo, and then the software reduces it to mono, anyway.Sue 01:39Oh, okay. So maybe, listeners wouldn't hear any difference.Jimmy 01:43Well, they might not hear any difference, but they might. If they do hear any difference, maybe they'll tell us.Sue 01:48Yes, let us know.Jimmy 01:49All right. I am Jimmy Thomson, and I write t
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Recorded by Jimmy Thomson & Sue Williams; Transcribed by Otter.ai.
Find out more about Sue Williams and Jimmy Thomson on their websites.
