The former boss of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, Graeme Samuel, has counselled Anthony Albanese and Treasurer Jim Chalmers to tell big business to push off and stop expecting handouts from the taxpayers of Australia.
These are his words of wisdom ahead of the Economic Reform Roundtable in Canberra on August 19.
Samuel is not just a public servant but is someone who has been in the corporate corridors of capitalism and power, so when this professor at Monash University talks about governments being over-generous, people listen.
He pointed to the $2.4 billion bailout by the SA and Federal Governments in trying to save the Whyalla steelworks, which he saw as a political play, not an economic one.
Samuel’s comments come as critics say the Albanese Government is trying to pick winners with its Future Made in Australia initiative, which is trying to give a financial lift to business in the clean energy, green metals, solar energy, quantum computing, AI and critical minerals and rare earths space.
Samuel says Labor’s 94 seats in Parliament means it should be saying to pleading big businesses — “enough is enough” — and effectively add: “Do it yourself!”
The head of the Productivity Commission, Danielle Wood has had a similar view arguing that in trying to pick business winners of the future, effectively it is a bet, and money that should go to other areas, such as infrastructure to help the country’s productivity, might be a better use of taxpayer’s money.
Anyone who loses half of the waking life in a daily traffic jam would support the advice of Ms Wood.
What’s emerging ahead of this productivity-chasing roundtable is a whole pile tax change experts, and business beggars who are going to make a big song and dance in Canberra in the week after next.
But the big worry will be who Treasurer Jim Chalmers decides to side with, because whatever becomes policy preferences out of this talkfest, this Government has the political power to make a lot of controversial changes happen.
Samuel has a point, but some changes need government involvement because without it, big valuable creations like the Sydney Harbour Bridge and major highways would not get built.
This roundtable and what is decided, reminds me of the cold war period when the USA and the USSR had a big arsenal of nuclear weapons, Woody Allen wrote: “More than any other time in history, mankind faces a crossroads. One path leads to despair and utter hopelessness. The other, to total extinction. Let us pray we have the wisdom to choose correctly.”
I could change that to read: “More than any other time in history, our economy faces a crossroads. One path leads to what we have now — a very-resource dependent, low-tech economy. The other, to a totally transformed modern economy. Let us pray our politicians have the wisdom to choose correctly.”
Let’s also hope that this economic roundtable shows that our Government, with all of its seats in Parliament, can come up with decisions that don’t discourage private investors to part with their money to back the future of Australia.
If they don’t achieve this, we will see the usual waste of taxpayers’ money to support those who beg the loudest.