Clive Palmer's attack on Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) as 'outstandingly racist' is not only wrong it is a stupid, offensive slur against Australia's foreign investment laws and potentially damaging to our relationships with other countries and international businesses, Assistant Treasurer Bill Shorten said today.
"The Liberal Party, who last year received $650,000 in donations from Clive Palmer, should immediately repudiate his nasty little attack, as should other mining company CEOs. This Government welcomes foreign investment and the FIRB do an excellent job in balancing the demand for investment with Australia's national interest."
"The FIRB's role is to advise the Government on potential national interest concerns relating to foreign investment proposals, regardless of the country of origin of the application. Like most countries, Australia's foreign investment regime balances the need to ensure Australia can benefit from foreign investment with the need to ensure it is in the national interest. In making its recommendations, FIRB takes into account the national security concerns of Australia, competition, the character of the investor and impacts on the economy and community."
"This attack is classic, right-wing Tea Party rubbish - attack government bodies who can't defend themselves as a way to promote his own commercial interests. What I can't understand is why any Australian who claims to have our national interest at heart would trash-talk his own country."
As well as being offensive, Palmer's attack is plain wrong. Since 1 July 2010, the Australian Government has received approximately 500 business proposals with over $150 billion of proposed investment. Of these 500 applications only one proposal, the application by the Singapore Stock Exchange to take over the Australian Stock Exchange, has been rejected on national interest grounds and only four subject to conditions.
Over the same period, the Australian Government has approved around 80 Chinese business proposals with around $15 billion of proposed investment. None have been rejected and three subject to conditions.
"It's OK for the Liberal party and their rent-seeker mates to attack Cate Blanchett and Michael Caton, but at least they're standing up for the benefit of the country without insulting people. But do we hear anything from Abbott when one the Liberal Party's biggest donors makes these types of scurrilous attacks in an effort to get publicity for his own business? No, of course not."
"I'm not surprised the Liberal Party is refusing to condemn these cowardly attacks - they've failed to support plain packaging of cigarettes because they receive donations from tobacco companies, now they won't condemn these attacks because of the size of Palmer's donation."
"If Mr Palmer really has concerns that FIRB is racist, and he's not just using it as a way to talk up his own business interests, he should call my office and arrange a meeting so we can go through his concerns in detail," Mr Shorten said.