How Best to Increase Australia’s Unemployment #1.
One of Australia’s enduring legacies is crumbling infrastructure, following decades of underinvestment, and in some cases a century of impaired foresight.
Shackled by the curse of short electoral cycles, and the ever-present threat of a populist opposition plying the electorate with sweeteners designed only to secure their election, it is hard for any Government, State or Federal to make the crucial hard decisions to Build Australia’s long term future, and not pander to noisy, entitlement fueled voters.
Little surprise then, with our su
pply chains strained, we risk becoming globally uncompetitive, and face rising industry failures and unemployment.
To combat this challenge we must place long term infrastructure development ahead of short-term, feel- good, populist spending.
Notably, and perhaps especially, If we de-rail Australia, we derail Australia.
This will take Statesman-like decisions and strategy, and a disregard for those menacing electoral cycles to create the efficient supply chains we need; supply chains that foster and support domestic and export industries; and job creation, not elimination.
One of the first cabs (well, trains) off the rank must be Inland Rail, linking Melbourne to the Port of Brisbane, followed by and supported by critical road infrastructure upgrades, especially bridge upgrades to allow high productivity road freight vehicles improved access to supporting networks.
The time to act is now, while we are still a strong economy with comparatively low debt; before we become a debt ridden, social welfare dependent economy where our greatest ‘claim to fame’ is ever increasing unemployment, like so many other nations, who find themselves with no easy way (or perhaps even NO way) forward.
Author Neil Findlay
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