As a City of Sydney Councillor, I see daily how the city is a melting pot of people who live locally, travel in from outer suburbs and those who visit from the bush. The Green/Clover view is that the majority of people live in the Western Sydney because of a lack of affordable housing in the inner city.

These people are the “serving class” that serve inner city people in cafes, restaurants, hotels, taxis, police stations and schools. It would be better for the planet if “those people” could live closer to their work and take the advantages of cycling or walking to work.

On many occasions in the chamber when the council has cut off more parking I have said they are confining parks and business to locals and strangling commerce. The ­answers have been simply stunning: “Cr Mandla, surely they have parks out there. They can support their own local businesses. They should stay in their own areas. We don’t need their oversized cars.”

Western Sydney road link or West Disconnex?