“The only way to stop surrendering our jobs and businesses to foreign competitors is to axe the carbon tax,” concluded Mr Tehan.
The Labor Party simply doesn’t care about the dramatic impact of a carbon tax on businesses in Ararat, according to Shadow Industry Minister, Sophie Mirabella, and Dan Tehan, Member for Wannon.
Mrs Mirabella and Mr Tehan met with AME Systems and Gason Industries today and heard repeated concerns over rising costs and the ramifications on the entire supply chain.
“In addition to manufacturing businesses, the carbon tax will have a devastating impact on local transport companies, retailers, workshops, upstream suppliers, downstream businesses, hotels, hospitals, nursing homes, schools and child care centres just to name a few,” said Mrs Mirabella.
“The electorate of Wannon is a manufacturing intensive region with over 400 manufacturing businesses employing more than 6,300 people,” said Mr Tehan.
Chairman and Managing Director of AME Systems, Mr Peter Carthew said that this was just the latest in a string of costs and charges which makes doing business increasingly difficult. "The Carbon Tax is the sort of charge against our business which we cannot recover from in an already highly price competitive market place, and in an already tight margin business, we are squeezed just that much more. Our advisers have calculated that the cost of the carbon tax to our business in the first year will be upwards of the equivalent cost of employing one additional person in the business."
Mr Les Gason, Chairman of Gason Industries, said that they are expecting an increase of up to nine percent in expenses. “This imposes a cost on us which I don’t believe is necessary or fair, because it is not imposed on the imports we compete against. These additional costs will make it a lot harder.”
“The message we keep hearing is that life is proving very tough for these businesses. They tell us that they are already operating on wafer-thin margins, and the carbon tax may force them over the edge”, Mrs Mirabella said today.
“The Prime Minister talks about compensation, but there is no compensation for a region which loses local industry and capital investment. The Prime Minister’s carbon tax will close local businesses and export local jobs”, said Mrs Mirabella.
“The only way to stop surrendering our jobs and businesses to foreign competitors is to axe the carbon tax,” concluded Mr Tehan.
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