Industry Minister holds on new plan for Holden
Australia’s Minister for Industry has visited the site at the centre of a beloved Australian industry.
Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane was at the Holden manufacturing plant in Adelaide today. He said he wants to create a secure future for local car production by weaning it off government subsidies.
Mr MacFarlane said he hoped the Detroit-based company that owns Holden will wait patiently for the next round of federal assistance, which will be the last. The current taxpayer support for Holden extends only to 2016.
Holden managing director Mike Devereux, South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill and Opposition Leader Steven Marshall led Mr MacFarlane on a tour of the factory. One of the few agreements reached between the four was that funding for the industry should not be politicised.
“I'm certainly not going to spray taxpayers' money around today. What happens in the future, as I say, I have to work with the Premier and come up with a solution and get it through my Cabinet,” Mr MacFarlane said, adding that he would await the outcome of a Productivity Commission review before committing any long-term support.
Independent Senator Nick Xenophon says he believes MacFarlane does want to back Holden in some capacity.
“From the language that I've gathered from Ian Macfarlane he wants to get a practical solution here to secure the jobs not just of the 16,000 South Australians that rely on Holden surviving in South Australia, but the tens of thousands more jobs that would inevitably go if Holden leaves,” Xenophon said.
Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young says funds should be linked to long-term future of cars as a mode of transport when they can no longer be run on petroleum: “Government support should be tied to two things - cars that are going to be the cars of the future so that this is sustainable. That means electric cars, that means low-emission cars. The second and really crucial point is that Government support must be tied to retaining jobs and keeping those jobs here in South Australia,” she said.