Just a couple doing a bit of renovating? Not quite, as Mike Carleton points out in his piece in the SMH on how the PM Howard and "the little woman" have had their hands deep - very deep - in the taxpayer's pockets spending on their living quarters.
"As anyone who has ever done it knows only too well, working to a tight budget can be a renovator's nightmare. But one Sydney-based professional couple has shown just what magical results can be achieved with a bold sense of style while, at the same time, keeping a tight rein on costs.
John, a prime minister, and his wife Janette, a former schoolteacher turned political guru, make their home in a splendid sandstone colonial mansion on Kirribilli Point overlooking a sparkling panorama of sails and sunshine on Sydney Harbour. They also share a graceful country residence in leafy Canberra, not much more than a stone's throw from Parliament House where busy John has his office."
Howard may be a good politician, but Carleton's piece is an interesting background on a boring, colourless and pedestrian couple - except that it is your and my money being spent. As Carleton points out, his figures are taken from those publicly available.
"As anyone who has ever done it knows only too well, working to a tight budget can be a renovator's nightmare. But one Sydney-based professional couple has shown just what magical results can be achieved with a bold sense of style while, at the same time, keeping a tight rein on costs.
John, a prime minister, and his wife Janette, a former schoolteacher turned political guru, make their home in a splendid sandstone colonial mansion on Kirribilli Point overlooking a sparkling panorama of sails and sunshine on Sydney Harbour. They also share a graceful country residence in leafy Canberra, not much more than a stone's throw from Parliament House where busy John has his office."
Howard may be a good politician, but Carleton's piece is an interesting background on a boring, colourless and pedestrian couple - except that it is your and my money being spent. As Carleton points out, his figures are taken from those publicly available.
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