If the Country Women's Association is publicly attacking the NSW Government then you know there's something seriously wrong in this state's governance.
The CWA is not a firebrand organisation by any stretch of the imagination, but debate on major social issues at their conferences is well thought through and often robust.
The CWA's Tumbi Umbi conference took a stance against coal seam gas mining, fearing the threat CSG posed to farm water supplies. The CSG ban has now been overthrown by federal pressure to move towards a gas revival for the pandemic hit economy, and the Pilliga gas field project was recently approved.
CWA NSW has also raised concerns about the lack of consultation over gas exploration. But as the CWA knows, there's a bit more at stake here than just gas - it's to do with process.
There was the decision to release a planning issues assessment for possible gas mining in the far west, with letters to affected Western NSW landholders arriving in many letterboxes on the day public submissions closed.
But wait, there's more. There is a move to restrict horse riding in the state's national parks.
The announcement of changes to the managements of trails for horse riders was done on December 18 last year, seven days before Christmas. That's like asking people to give up wrapping and buying presents and hit the typewriter quicker than Santa's sleigh.
The measly time to get submissions in only led to a horse rider furore and an extension was granted - but only a small one. Government officials have agreed to meet the endurance riders on March 22 - but that's after the date for public submissions. One wonders how this continuing gap between policy and public consultation is meant to represent democracy as we should know it.
Quite often now the public consultation process is weak, and not transparent. It seems politicians now want to avoid town hall gatherings of the old days. There may be other examples of this, including petroleum exploration off the Central Coast, where groups have been ignored.
It's not good enough. Someone in the government has to take the reins from public servants wanting to push through platforms. Perhaps the government should just get back to the serious, not window-dressing type of a proper consultation process.
