Half-Measures

Just a short BlogPost today - it's been a big week for me and there hasn't been a huge amount going on that I consider blogworthy.

I spotted this tweet from the Premier's media guy late this week:

It's a great idea. It's such a good idea it is difficult to understand why it has taken so long to make it happen.

There has been a recurring discussion over the years about how to reward drivers who keep a clean record. One of the dumber suggestions I remember hearing was that the good drivers get rewarded by having their points limit increased. Exactly why a safe, responsible driver would benefit in any way from such an increase was never made clear.

A licence renewal is not cheap, and there is no doubt that people are going to notice the difference:

Moreover, cars and drivers licences seem to have a never ending list of costs - besides the day to day running, there are services, repairs, Green Slips, Pink Slips, car registration and heaven knows what else.

The licence renewal is often one of those fees we pay with some resentment, because there doesn't seem any good reason why we should be paying $150 for a new card with a dodgy photo on it. This dispension will make a lot of people feel very different about getting their licence renewed.

Often it seems that politicians get so distracted bickering over all manner of things that they never have time for good, sensible policy. And that is exactly what this is.