Economy dives in resilience ranking
Deteriorating energy infrastructure, lacklustre entrepreneurship and poor competition rules are holding back the Australian economy, with a new report suggesting a drop in competitiveness is putting at risk future prosperity. In a ranking of the most resilient economies, Australia fell to 20th place from first place in 2004, analysis by Institute of Public Affairs senior fellow Kevin You found.
Heritage tick uncertainty
Association of Mining and Exploration Companies chief executive Warren Pearce told The West Australian response times for Section 10 applications had been increasing over recent years. “Industry understands there are a variety of aspects that governments need to consider,” Mr Pearce said. “However, a time deadline would assist companies in their planning and investment strategies, and hold (government) departments more accountable.
“Given the renewed importance of the energy transition globally, the role of critical minerals has never been more apparent.
Opinion | Rome is tempting fate with single SEZ plan
The beautiful but economically stagnant south of Italy has started to show early signs of a long-overdue renaissance. Since opening their doors a year ago, the country’s eight special economic zones (SEZs) — stretching from Abruzzo in the centre, to Calabria in the south, and across to Sicily and Sardinia — have each built project pipelines of up to €1bn and instigated ambitious plans to modernise local infrastructure. On the face of it, this is attributed to their tax and regulatory benefits, plus a generous helping of EU recovery funds. But their early success is in large part down to the local SEZ commissioners and their teams, which have been passionately promoting their regions, building relationships and stoking some friendly competition among themselves.
BHP says proposed labour laws threaten $3.2b Australian investment
The world’s largest mining group, BHP, says the government’s proposed same job, same pay policy could jeopardise $US2 billion ($3.2 billion) worth of investment it has planned for its local copper business. BHP chief executive Mike Henry told shareholders at its annual meeting in Adelaide on Wednesday morning that the bill would also damage the Australian economy. “BHP strongly opposed the Same Job Same Pay Bill not only because of the damage it threatens to do to our business, but also for the hit it will have on Australia’s economy, to Australian jobs and to Australia’s productivity and international competitiveness,” Henry said
Australian mining red tape hurts its global investment case-Hancock
Australia’s slow pace of mining approvals is diminishing its attraction as a global investment destination, Hancock Prospecting, owned by Australia’s richest person Gina Rinehart, said on Tuesday. “The current policy environment, duplication of processes, overreach from all departments and delays to approvals is negatively impacting new investment into the mining industry and is reducing Australia’s competitiveness in the international resource sector,” said Hancock.
IR battle reaches deep into nation’s aspirational heart
Having been caught flat-footed on the reintroduction of industry-wide wage bargaining at the Albanese government’s Jobs and Skills Summit, big business finally is showing it will not repeat the mistake as the government considers further measures to make workplaces less flexible, less productive and ultimately union-controlled. The public entry of mining company BHP is a significant turn of events that demonstrates the stakes at play. Like Master Builders Australia and the Minerals Council of Australia, BHP is belling the cat that changes being proposed as a way to protect vulnerable workers in the gig economy have potential impacts that will be much more widespread.
BIG MINERS DIG IN TO FEND OFF PLANNED IR REFORMS
But Mr Veldsman said that, under the Bill, there was no guarantee those different categories of driver would continue to be paid about the same. “We’re talking about draft legislation where the ‘full rate of pay’ is so unclear, so undefined, so broad and so open to speculation that we can’t say in future if this Bill is to actually pass that we can still do that,” he said. Mr Veldsman added a number of Hancock’s projects had already stalled due to red tape. Another major concern is a proposal to give casual workers the right to ask to convert to permanent employment after six months of regular hours.
