Breakaway was the host boat and on board was the retired Independent MP for the South Coast, John Hatton. Some of the planned developments that didn’t happen in JB were the Nuclear Power Plant (true!!), the steel works (!), the major Naval Base, sewage outfall, high-rise development - instead what happened was the Marine Park, so the Bay is now preserved. John had a hand in all this, and also instigated the Lady Denman Maritime Museum. He is not a Johnny-come-lately as he has resided in Huskisson since 1959. John gave us some history and anecdotes of the Marine Park and is probably remembered most for his campaign against police corruption which ended in a Royal Commission. John crewed on Breakaway on the return voyage to Sydney with his compatriot and old mate Arthur King.
Resident Hatton ...
Can we change the heart of politics? John Hatton: Old crusader fights tide of high-rise
Old crusader fights tide of high-rise
John Hatton at his home in Huskisson where the council wants to lift height restrictions from three storeys to six.
Catharine Munro Urban Affairs Editor
May 22, 2007
NEW rules allowing multi-storey development on Jervis Bay have pushed the retired anti-police corruption MP John Hatton back into crusading mode.
In the early 1990s he was instrumental in setting up a royal commission into the NSW police. This time it is state and council representatives and their relationship with developers that concerns him.
The last straw was a decision by Shoalhaven City Council to lift height restrictions from three storeys to six in his beloved home town of Huskisson on Jervis Bay.
"It's an open door to developers and a door slammed shut in the face of residents," Mr Hatton said.
In 1994, as the independent MP for the South Coast, Mr Hatton gained the numbers in State Parliament to establish the Wood royal commission. He classed the NSW police as "out of control" and alleged they were spying on government ministers.
When Justice James Wood vindicated his allegations in 1997, Mr Hatton had been out of office for two years, steering well clear of politics.
His sense of outrage has again been aroused. Reports last week in the Herald that Crown land was being leased off and developed to fund the upkeep of public facilities throughout the state stoked his anger.
He fears the rise of eco-resort developments on caravan park land, such as one proposed for Ulladulla, will mean working class families can no longer take cheap holidays.
"Where are the middle- to low-income families going to enjoy coastal facilities in NSW if this trend continues?" Planning controls Mr Hatton helped defend as Shoalhaven Shire president in the 1970s were now being thrown out, he said.
Late last month the council voted to change height restrictions in Huskisson. At the same time it resolved not to consult community groups if "in the council's opinion they become involved in any political activities against the federal, state and local government of the day".
Mr Hatton was furious. "I never thought in public life - and I have seen it all - I never thought I would have an elected body that uses a Stalinist approach."
One of the independents, Cr Gary Kearney, said councillors were unaware of the individuals who donated to their group because the money had not been personally targeted.
He said the new height restrictions were necessary to encourage development in the Shoalhaven, where unemployment is higher than in many parts of the state.
Cr Kearney accused some groups of trying to misrepresent themselves as being from the council and said the resolution on consultation was aimed at them. One group that expects to have its status with the council axed is Huskisson Woollamia Community Voice, run by Margaret Piper . "There are council elections 18 months away. We will keep going for as long as it takes."
• Sad Developments Down South; [Slideshow: Huskisson building row ; The man who instigated the Wood Royal ommission into the NSW Police force has cast doubt over the ability of future corruption inquiries to attract key witnesses. Whistleblowers at risk, says ex-crime crusader ]
• · Arthur King Against Crime, or Police in a Community?; Larger than life ... the crime reporter Morgan Ogg was one of the key background figures in the establishment of the Wood royal commission into the NSW Police Service. Dedicated foe of corrupt police
• · · There is a lighter side to John Hatton the poet, musician and the student of native light Meeting the Artists Kim Hatton and John Hatton Elsewhere: James Lockhart writes in Management (New Zealand), March 2007, The ‘agency problem’, ie. the opportunistic or self serving manager/employee, has shaped our understanding of governance. But have the resulting prescriptive constraints enhanced performance or merely added an additional burden? What happened to trust