Crikey’s readers have comfortably voted Gina Rinehart Arsehat of the Year for 2024. For the first time, we decided to give the recipient a chance to express their gratitude. Rinehart, to her eternal credit, took us up on that. Sort of. What follows is a statement from a spokesperson for Rinehart:
“As you know, the selling of public servants’ pot plants (and artworks in their buildings, buildings which increasingly the public service don’t even turn up to work in) is a harmless little item, was not an item by itself, and not the issue, the record debt of government and need to cut government costs is the issue, an important one that your publication should at the very least understand.
If you want readers to consider you a publication of any merit, you should be noting that the government’s excess expenditure means it is in record debt, a record debt that is helping to cause inflation, the cost of living crisis (something many Australians including possibly some of your readers are suffering from), and makes it difficult to lower taxes, such as the excise tax on fuel, which if cut would help all Australians whether they own a car or not, given [it] would lower the cost of all goods and services transported or that use fuels in their production process.
Your publication should be pointing out that the excess government expenditure which makes it difficult to cut taxes, such as fringe benefits tax, is directly hurting people living in the north and elsewhere, struggling with the housing crisis, a crisis helped if more houses became available, yet mining companies and their related industries no longer supply their staff and contractors with homes since the application of FBT for so doing. Another example of reducing government expenditure would be the opportunity to cut the tax on tips.
And the record number of business closures, and businesses struggling not able to invest and grow (raising job opportunities and salaries), including many struggling on farms and stations across the country, affecting many Australians, all of which would be helped if the burden of big government could be lowered, and hence its taxes lowered.
As you should recall, payroll tax, licence fees and stamp duty were to be eliminated when GST came in decades ago, yet excess government spending has meant those taxes are still there. Cutting payroll tax is the top item published by small and medium businesses, that they need to help them.
And you should not be ignoring the reality of which way investment is flowing, you need to understand and truthfully report that investment in Australia is critical to maintain living standards, but that companies and investors are chosing [sic] to invest overseas, one of the principal reasons being Australia’s uncompetitive, internationally high tax regime adding costs. I repeat the reality which you should not ignore or trivialise, big spending government in record debt, makes it very difficult to lower taxes.
Frankly if you gave a damn about Australians and their future, especially the many struggling, the pensioners, plus students and others who will have difficulty in a high tax future saving for a home, and veterans, people on low incomes, those on the land and many struggling small and medium businesses, you should be pointing these truths out, instead of propaganda to mislead. Plus making silly comments against people who positively invest and contribute to our country and who are concerned and actually trying to help. Surely you can and should do better, instead of wasting your time and agenda proving you are the ones who should be the recipients of your own childish award?”
