House of Assembly Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2) 52 2 Parliament of South Australia House of Assembly published Question Time Holden Coinvestment HOLDEN COINVESTMENT Mr MARSHALL House of Assembly Norwood Leader of the Opposition HOLDEN COINVESTMENT Mr MARSHALL (Norwood—Leader of the Opposition) (14:22): That's quite a list there, sir. My supplementary is to the Premier. Why didn't he stand up for manufacturing and Holden and oppose the federal Labor government's introduction of a carbon tax and a mining tax here in South Australia? The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL House of Assembly Cheltenham Premier Minister for State Development Minister for the Public Sector Minister for the Arts HOLDEN COINVESTMENT The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Treasurer, Minister for State Development, Minister for the Public Sector, Minister for the Arts) (14:23): This is the— The Hon. A. Koutsantonis House of Assembly The Hon. A. Koutsantonis: Last refuge of a scoundrel. The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL House of Assembly The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: That's right. This is the conservative equivalent of the last refuge of the scoundrel: when they can't think of anything else they return to the mining tax and the carbon tax. The small matter of the mining tax is that it has virtually little incidence in South Australia and, in relation to the carbon tax, can I say this: the arrangements that were entered into in relation to Holden's before and after they shifted their position—so, in relation to the agreement they would have struck with the previous federal government—were made in the context of the existing taxation regime. So, that demonstrates the complete— Mr Marshall House of Assembly Mr Marshall: The FBT tax. The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL House of Assembly The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: The whole taxation regime of the previous federal government, as late as this year, certainly just before the federal election. They were prepared to reach an agreement with the federal government having regard to what they had put on the table with the existing regime in place. Mr Marshall House of Assembly Mr Marshall: What did they say about an FBT tax? The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL House of Assembly The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: FBT, GST, payroll, whatever you like. The whole taxation regime was not a barrier to them saying they would have made the coinvestment in Australia. Members interjecting: The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: I warn the Minister for Transport for the first time, the leader for the second and final time, the member for Morialta for the second and final time, and the member for Adelaide.