Media Release

The day after the announcement that steel manufacturer Arrium in Whyalla, South Australia has been put in administration threatening 7000 jobs, the Federal Member for Kennedy, Mr Bob Katter has called for more Government action to stop the era of collapse and ruin for Australia’s base metal sector.

“The current fate of the township of Whyalla’s is heartbreaking,” said Mr Katter.

“Today in Australia, we’re looking at thousands upon thousands of potential job losses on top of the threat of 2000 jobs gone at Queensland Nickel.”

“Steelworks and the nickel refinery are base industries. Our economic foundations are being kicked out from under the Australian people.”

“If we can’t produce steel and we can’t produce motor cars and we have no oil, then I’m afraid we don’t have a Western economy.”

Mr Katter warns, “All of our concrete will be imported as well as all of our steel.”

Mr Katter believes the United States has an effective policy in this area:

“Both the Bush and Obama administrations had policies of: ‘if a project contained 1 dollar of American Federal government money, then the project will carry 100 per cent American produced steel’.”

“Once again, Australia is out of step. Why do other modern democracies have policies like this? We don’t. Now we’re faced with shutting down one of our last steel factories.”

Mr Katter believes the government must step in to save what’s left of our base industries and to prevent any future collapses:

“We need to legislate that an economically strategic industry that has ceased operations must stand in the market place to be sold, that such sale be to a buyer on the condition that operations are recommenced, and that where appropriate, Government guarantees on loan monies are provided.”

We’ve already seen somewhat similar requirements exist for mining tenements -- and have existed for most of the last century. These requirements have often been enforced in situations when the public interest requires such action.

Mr Katter and State Member for Dalrymple Shane Knuth and State Member for Mt Isa Robbie Katter will be attending the Queensland Nickel worker’s meeting chaired by Alan Jones in Townsville on Monday 11 April at 1:45pm at The Ville Casino, Townsville.

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