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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2012-03-27 Daily Xml
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Grievance Debate

GM HOLDEN

Mr MARSHALL (Norwood) (16:04): Today we have heard much talk in this house about Holden. We have heard many words on Holden, but we have still got very, very little detail from the government. The government has been at pains to ask themselves Dorothy Dixer questions and put many things on the public record—their support for the Holden motor company, for their automotive supply chain and, indeed, for all of manufacturing in South Australia.

Of course, we are a little bit bemused on this side of the house because we are wondering to ourselves why they are going to such an extent to talk about the importance of Holden, the importance of the automotive sector, and the importance of manufacturing in South Australia when that has been the long held position of the Liberal Party. On this issue we are in furious agreement, and we are glad that the Labor Party has finally come around to this point of view.

They, of course, have been latecomers to the idea of the importance of the automotive sector in South Australia. Do not forget that this is the government which, when they came to power, one of their first acts was to close down the South Australian centre for manufacturing based down at the old Holden site in Woodville. This was the government which actually closed down the Centre for Innovation, Business and Manufacturing, and then they closed down the body which came after that, Innovate SA. They closed down the BECs and they closed down the business centre on South Terrace.

This government has been no friend whatsoever to the manufacturing sector in South Australia since they came to power. If we look at the statistics, we can see that 10,000 fewer people are employed in the manufacturing sector in South Australia since this government tore away the support that the Liberal Party, the Liberal government, was offering to the manufacturing sector in South Australia.

I speak with some authority on this issue, having my entire working life operated in the South Australian manufacturing sector. In fact, I served for five years on the state government's Manufacturing Industry Advisory Board under both Liberal and Labor governments. In fact, it was my pleasure to serve under the former minister for industry and trade, the Hon. Kevin Foley, when he was the minister for this important sector here in South Australia.

I understand the challenges which are faced by the manufacturing sector. Unfortunately, those opposite do not. But they have finally come around to this point of view and we are very grateful for this. Of all their failures to the manufacturing sector the most heinous of these has been unequivocally their support for the toxic federal government carbon tax, a tax on productivity, a tax on exports and, of course, a tax on South Australian jobs.

This tax will come into effect in less than 100 days. This government here in South Australia remains the only mainland government in Australia which is in support of the federal government's tax on jobs, their tax on exports, their tax on productivity. My question to the government is: what work have they done to determine what the cost of the carbon tax will be to Holden? It would be a very interesting question to determine how many years' subsidy the $50 million that the taxpayers are going to be paying to the Holden motor company will provide for Holden? How many years of carbon tax subsidy will our $50 million actually provide?

The answer is: very few, probably one or two years at best, and thereafter this industry will be suffering at the hands of this federal government's carbon tax. Personally, I am delighted that Holden have made a commitment to the ongoing manufacture of vehicles here in South Australia. As somebody who grew up in the western suburbs I understand unequivocally the importance of manufacturing and the importance of the automotive sector.

In fact, my father was apprenticed at Holden at Woodville. He was a fitter and turner and became a tradesman there, and it was a great start to his career. It has been a great company in South Australia, but make no mistake, it is under attack by this government and their support of carbon tax. As said, I am very pleased that we are going to make sure that one of our firms in South Australia is going to survive the carbon tax impost. Now my question to the Premier is: what is he going to do for the 200,000 other companies in South Australia where no subsidy is going to be provided?

The simple fact of the matter is this will attack Holden's supply chain, it will attack every manufacturer; in fact, it will attack every single individual in South Australia. It is a toxic federal government policy, and it is one the Premier should hanging head in shame for supporting. It is completely un-South Australian. If he wanted to do something to ensure the future of Holden he should move away from it with great alacrity.

Time expired.

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