Webber Tries to Repair "Nanny State Victoria" Comments

After slamming the state of Victoria as being a “Nanny State”, Red Bull racer Mark Webber tried a different approach on the Australian governors in recent days. According to his manager/partner Ann Neal, Webber wrote an official letter to the government in which he offers his services to head a road safety campaign Down Under.

“It's something Mark is passionate about. It's not a knee-jerk reaction to the press he's had, it's something he has always done,” said Neal, according to local Herald Sun newspaper.

This year, during the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, Webber was critic of the “local overregulation such as the prevalence of speeding and parking fines” in the wake of Lewis Hamilton's controversial speeding ticket on the streets of Melbourne.

Back then, the Australian media made a big case out of Hamilton's wrongdoing, with the Victoria Roads Minister Tim Pallas calling the British champion a “d**khead” and asking the FIA even to suspend his F1 superlicense. Amid such criticism, Webber burst out to defend his fellow racer.

“It's a great country, but we've got to be responsible for our actions and it's certainly a bloody nanny state when it comes to what we can do. Lewis has found out very quickly,” said Webber at the time.

And if that weren't enough, the Australian's father Alan and manager Ann Neal “posed with a group of fans wearing T-shirts bearing the words 'Victoria The Nanny State!” during the next grand prix in F1, in Malaysia, as noted by the GMM news agency.

Needless to say, the majority of the locals hit back at the Webbers for their actions, posting messages such as “Don't come back Webbers. You are not welcome in my state” or “So this is the message from Mark Webber to the families who have lost loved ones on the roads this Easter. What a bloody disgrace.”