Dr. Jim Saleam.
The "Antifa Australia" group has failed to stop the Ninth Sydney Forum held on September 18-19. After threatening to demonstrate against the Forum's Sunday session and to generally expose and oppose "fascism" ( sic )- they simply failed to show.
Or rather, three "spies" did. One was arrested by some police for an offence ( weapon ? drugs ? ). Another slunk away with a few snapshots of a small group of police detailed to "watch" the event and the last one took a few photos at a safe distance from the Forum across the busy Princes Highway at Tempe. What startling intelligence did he get ? Simply a few pikkies of the Australia First building where the Sunday session was held!
For Antifa, it was a bad knock, a serious miscalculation, a political defeat. Not to make good on their promise to demonstrate even when sympathetic journalists at the ABC or SBS could have given them a camera opportunity, has shown even a lack of enterprise.
On Sunday, when they should have been demonstrating against the Forum to prove whatever anti free speech credentials they have, Antifa opted to hold a "rally" at the Hub Theatre In Newtown, with some forty or fifty persons in attendance. They later tried to occupy Newtown Square with banners and bongos and they threw a few insults at duty police.
There was still the opportunity to march from Newtown to Tempe, but there was no attempt to encourage others to join them, nothing at all. After adjourning from their rally, the Antifa wandered off to a few hotels and others perhaps-to some private homes to enjoy their recreational drugs.
Acting as the "fascists" they would proclaim the Forum to be, they still failed to stifle freedom of speech.
In recent months, Australia First has noted increasingly strident rhetoric from Antifa to deny freedom of speech and assembly to those who they deem to be "fascists". In the past they have damaged property and tried to assault people. They did not confront the Forum. Why ?
Last year Antifa demonstrated ( with property damage ) in inner city Chippendale, protesting against a group they called "extreme right" or "fascist". In July, they joined with others to protest a small group of persons in Newtown who objected to Islamic migration. However, Australia First and Sydney Forum have been reserved for special abuse and occasional violent rhetoric.
Antifa is a group fuelled by anarchists and inner city "lifestyle dregs" ( same sex marriage couples, perverts of various sorts, drug abusers, refugee "advocates" and what not ). They do not represent the Australian people although they might be considered "chic" in parts of inner-suburbs Sydney. They proclaim themselves arbiters of freedom. Yet, this group does not see ( if it cares at all ) that its slogans ( No borders!; No nations! Refugee rights! ) are the very slogans of the corrupt, globalist, Australian political establishment. Australia First has often decried the "rabble above and the rabble below", that funny working coalition of the rich in expensive suits and the greenhairs in dirty drag, who together share a common globalist perspective-and via the media can mobilise against patriotic Australians. At best, this curious Antifa street gang serves in practice those very elites they criticise elsewhere as the uncaring rich. The irony is absolute and the deception complete. Ultimately, it may be that the Antifa have simply recognized the fact that we cannot be deterred and that it is easier to abuse the long suffering average cop.
The Sydney Forum was a success and reports that have reached us say that the 2011 Forum will be the largest. Next year marks the tenth anniversary of the Forum's foundation and in fact-its tenth presentation. Freedom of speech and genuine democracy is not dead in Australia. Australia First Party will continue to proudly support the Sydney Forum and we look forward to reading its full report for 2010.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Foreign Buyouts.
Today Tonight 16.9.10
Reporter Helen Wellings.
It's the great disappearing act. Our skills, machinery, companies, products, homes and significant parts of our land are being sold off at a rapid rate.
Most people prefer to buy Australian, but it's often impossible to tell dinky-di goods from imported ones because our government allows confusing labelling.
"Product of Australia" means the food was grown here, while "Made in Australia" means the produce can come from overseas, but just be processed or transformed here.
Lynne Wilkinson of Ausbuy, which supports Australian owned companies and products says of the top 100 food brands, only 20 are controlled by Australian interests.
"Foreign companies use koalas, Australian flags, maps even the word Australian to infer they are Australian," Lynne said.
Tracking down an Aussie product can be like finding a needle in a haystack.
"Frozen vegies, there is not much from Australia, this is from China, and these onions are from Poland. They are made in NZ and the peas are from the UK and sold for $2 a pack," Lynne said.
"You have a major brand like Dairy Farmers which represents 54 per cent of our dairy industry, it's been taken over by the Japanese. Golden Circle, that was taken over by Heinz. CSR sugar is being taken over by a Singaporean company".
90 per cent of products on supermarket shelves are imported or owned by foreign companies. Australia's now importing more than $1.5 billion worth of fruit and vegetables per year, increasing 5 per cent every year. Bonds has moved production overseas and Arnotts is now owned by the big American, Campbells.
"Uncle Tobys is owned by Nestle the Swiss company, Just Juice is the Berri company which is owned by Kirren, the Japanese. It says "Made in Australia" and its got fully imported ingredients," Lynne said.
And the latest shock? The historical Gunnedah property, Kurrumbede, Dorothea Mackellar's homestead, which inspired her to write our most famous Australian poem, My country, has just been sold to a Japanese company for $14 million. That's right, 2600 hectares of our precious heritage is about to be turned into a coalmine.
Jo Kellock, CEO of the Council of Textile & Fashion Industries of Australia says our skills and jobs are rapidly disappearing offshore.
"It is very serious, we are very concerned about what's happened to the Australian-made content in the fashion market, it is hard to find those clothes," Jo said.
"The majority of our clothes are coming from China, then Vietnam, Bangladesh and Cambodia, and in the Third World countries they are entitled to bring those goods in duty-free, and that drives the price down in the Australian market."
We're now importing one billion articles of clothing a year.
Cue, a great Australian fashion success story, was founded 42 years ago by the same family that still owns it. CEO David Kesby says they'll never be tempted to sell out.
"One of the great reasons they love Cue is because we are still predominantly Australian made. We've got suppliers that have worked with us over 30 years. By making here in Australia we get to deliver in store, much quicker than all our contemporaries, the latest international fashions trends," David said.
"Basically all our pants, dresses and jackets are made in Australia. There is a booming backlash against imports in many quarters.
Back to basics is the concept of Aussie Farmers Direct. It takes orders online and delivers fresh food, including meat, straight from the farm to your table. Chief Executive Braedon Lord says you buy local produce and cut out the middle man and save a packet.
Reporter Helen Wellings.
It's the great disappearing act. Our skills, machinery, companies, products, homes and significant parts of our land are being sold off at a rapid rate.
Most people prefer to buy Australian, but it's often impossible to tell dinky-di goods from imported ones because our government allows confusing labelling.
"Product of Australia" means the food was grown here, while "Made in Australia" means the produce can come from overseas, but just be processed or transformed here.
Lynne Wilkinson of Ausbuy, which supports Australian owned companies and products says of the top 100 food brands, only 20 are controlled by Australian interests.
"Foreign companies use koalas, Australian flags, maps even the word Australian to infer they are Australian," Lynne said.
Tracking down an Aussie product can be like finding a needle in a haystack.
"Frozen vegies, there is not much from Australia, this is from China, and these onions are from Poland. They are made in NZ and the peas are from the UK and sold for $2 a pack," Lynne said.
"You have a major brand like Dairy Farmers which represents 54 per cent of our dairy industry, it's been taken over by the Japanese. Golden Circle, that was taken over by Heinz. CSR sugar is being taken over by a Singaporean company".
90 per cent of products on supermarket shelves are imported or owned by foreign companies. Australia's now importing more than $1.5 billion worth of fruit and vegetables per year, increasing 5 per cent every year. Bonds has moved production overseas and Arnotts is now owned by the big American, Campbells.
"Uncle Tobys is owned by Nestle the Swiss company, Just Juice is the Berri company which is owned by Kirren, the Japanese. It says "Made in Australia" and its got fully imported ingredients," Lynne said.
And the latest shock? The historical Gunnedah property, Kurrumbede, Dorothea Mackellar's homestead, which inspired her to write our most famous Australian poem, My country, has just been sold to a Japanese company for $14 million. That's right, 2600 hectares of our precious heritage is about to be turned into a coalmine.
Jo Kellock, CEO of the Council of Textile & Fashion Industries of Australia says our skills and jobs are rapidly disappearing offshore.
"It is very serious, we are very concerned about what's happened to the Australian-made content in the fashion market, it is hard to find those clothes," Jo said.
"The majority of our clothes are coming from China, then Vietnam, Bangladesh and Cambodia, and in the Third World countries they are entitled to bring those goods in duty-free, and that drives the price down in the Australian market."
We're now importing one billion articles of clothing a year.
Cue, a great Australian fashion success story, was founded 42 years ago by the same family that still owns it. CEO David Kesby says they'll never be tempted to sell out.
"One of the great reasons they love Cue is because we are still predominantly Australian made. We've got suppliers that have worked with us over 30 years. By making here in Australia we get to deliver in store, much quicker than all our contemporaries, the latest international fashions trends," David said.
"Basically all our pants, dresses and jackets are made in Australia. There is a booming backlash against imports in many quarters.
Back to basics is the concept of Aussie Farmers Direct. It takes orders online and delivers fresh food, including meat, straight from the farm to your table. Chief Executive Braedon Lord says you buy local produce and cut out the middle man and save a packet.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Cr Goodlass Needs To Realise That Population Increase Means Immigration.
Wagga Wagga Councillor Ray Goodlass has called on the City Council not to run headlong into population growth without knowing the limits of sustainability.
That sounds fair on the surface. We note that Goodlass brought a motion to council's infrastructure services standing committee this week that called on council to initiate talks with Charles Sturt University, water utilities, businesses and other councils to develop research projects to produce sustainable population in Wagga.
However, the Councillor, like the Greens party in general, finds it very hard to get its head around the fact that population growth in the Riverina essentially means growth arising from the bloated Australian immigration policy. It means too looking critically at the on-going refugee invasion of our country.
The Advertiser quoted Mr Goodlass: "We don't know what the sustainable growth of Wagga can be, and I think we need to find out." The paper said he claimed to be motivated to lodge the motion to council by a concern about rapid growth's demands on infrastructure, including roads, and the impact on agricultural production from new residential areas eating into prime farming land.
We find it unlikely the Greens are overly concerned about the crisis of Australian agriculture. That is a new one.
There is one sure way to save Australian agriculture, keep Australia's population levels "sustainable" and restore Australia's natural balance. That is to overturn the blind growth ideology of the globalists which demands a larger construction market and a surging labour force. That can only mean an end to immigration.
If Cr Goodlass can get to that we will praise the fellow. Yet we fear that all he will get his head around is his favourite Greens` policy-same-sex-marraige and same-sex-couple-adoption. These are much more desirable propositions than standing up for the Australian biosphere and the Australian people!
That sounds fair on the surface. We note that Goodlass brought a motion to council's infrastructure services standing committee this week that called on council to initiate talks with Charles Sturt University, water utilities, businesses and other councils to develop research projects to produce sustainable population in Wagga.
However, the Councillor, like the Greens party in general, finds it very hard to get its head around the fact that population growth in the Riverina essentially means growth arising from the bloated Australian immigration policy. It means too looking critically at the on-going refugee invasion of our country.
The Advertiser quoted Mr Goodlass: "We don't know what the sustainable growth of Wagga can be, and I think we need to find out." The paper said he claimed to be motivated to lodge the motion to council by a concern about rapid growth's demands on infrastructure, including roads, and the impact on agricultural production from new residential areas eating into prime farming land.
We find it unlikely the Greens are overly concerned about the crisis of Australian agriculture. That is a new one.
There is one sure way to save Australian agriculture, keep Australia's population levels "sustainable" and restore Australia's natural balance. That is to overturn the blind growth ideology of the globalists which demands a larger construction market and a surging labour force. That can only mean an end to immigration.
If Cr Goodlass can get to that we will praise the fellow. Yet we fear that all he will get his head around is his favourite Greens` policy-same-sex-marraige and same-sex-couple-adoption. These are much more desirable propositions than standing up for the Australian biosphere and the Australian people!
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
BIG BROTHERS.
In the current economic climate, with increasing registration costs, dysfunctional and over regulation, intensive fines-regime, road tolls and so on, a sector of Australia's working population ( owner/drivers ) are being bled dry.
All this benefits the large corporations with their economies of scale, their links to government and their cheap contract labour.
Big Brothers....
Owner/Driver ( September 2010 ).
Brad Gardner.
Three of the industry's biggest players want government to force truck owners to install monitoring technology for speed and fatigue, but the Transport Workers Union believes transport clients should wear the cost, not owner-drivers.
Long Distance truck drivers should be forced to install monitoring technology in their rigs to crack down on speeding and fatigue offences, according to the nation's largest transport carriers.
Toll, Linfox and Asciano have joined forces to pressure governments to mandate GPS technology. The three companies claim speed and fatigue are the major causes of truck accidents and that tracking drivers will improve compliance and road safety.
Under the Road Transport ( Long Distance Operations ) Award, a long distance operation is defined as interstate work or a return journey exceeding 500km.
"We believe it should be mandatory for companies to monitor fatigue and speed using telematics technology," Toll, Linfox and Asciano write in their proposal to the National Transport Commission ( NTC ).
The NTC is currently looking at developing a national strategy for in-vehicle telematics to encourage the industry to adopt the technology. But the Transport Workers Union ( TWU ) has raised concerns over how owner-drivers will be able to afford to install the technology.
TWU National Secretary Tony Sheldon says transport clients that set the delivery schedules should be required to pay for the GPS devices. "An owner-driver should not have to pay thousands of dollars for a unit. If this cost is going to rest with anyone it must be the clients," Sheldon says.
He says it is easy to blame drivers if work hours are exceeded, but pressure must be put on those who set delivery times. "If we are going to see this rolled out in any capacity then the end result must not see drivers solely targeted-the clients schedule must come into the equation," Sheldon says. "This can't be used as another hit against drivers-this needs to go up the supply chain."
Sheldon has also questioned why short-haul operators should be left out of a monitoring scheme. "There are many accidents that happen on local work. The pressures there are the same and that needs to be acknowledged," he says.
Under the scheme proposed by Toll, Linfox and Asciano, the GPS devices will be capable of e-mailing messages to notify the vehicle owner of a breech, warn drivers when they are speeding and count driving hours to inform drivers when they are reaching a limit.
The monitoring tools will also be equipped with anti-tampering systems, traceable records, driver identification such as smart cards and measures to log accident data. However, the three companies want all information to remain under the control of a company instead of a system similar to the Intelligent Access Program ( IAP ) which transmits information to road authorities.
Companies will be subjected to external audits and accreditation such as an industry code of conduct and will provide the information in the event of a major incident or investigation. If their proposal is accepted, the transport companies want a single national standard to govern the scheme and believe the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator is the ideal candidate to develop guidelines. The Regulator will be running in 2013.
According to Toll, Linfox and Asciano, businesses should be free to use any device as long as it meets a national standard. The proposal has won the support of the Australian Logistics Council ( ALC ), which claims mandatory telematics systems will reduce the number of lives lost from heavy vehicle accidents.
But it says any compulsory scheme should be phased in over a period of time so trucking operators can gradually fit the technology. The ALC also recommends a subsidy scheme to encourage the use of telematics.
The push for mandatory monitoring contradicts the Australian Trucking Association's ( ATA ) position that the scheme must be voluntary. ATA Chairman David Simon says governments should encourage the use of monitoring tools to improve compliance and aid businesses.
"However, the ATA supports the use of supervised intervention orders specifying the use of telematics, applied by a court, for serious or persistant offenders with a proven history of non-compliance," he says. The NSW branch of the Transport Workers Union ( TWU ) has also opposed the mandatory use of GPS.
Twu Secretary Wayne Forno says governments should focus on introducing "safe rates" first to ensure drivers are paid enough to make ends meet. He claims GPS tracking will only treat the symptoms of speed and fatigue rather than stop it. "At the end of the day if the drivers out there aren't earning enough money quite frankly that still leads to those temptations to take shortcuts," Forno says.
"I certainly wouldn't endorse it ( as ) mandatory just at this stage as until such time as those other problems are fixed up such as safe rates." Toll, Linfox and Asciano also want government to amend the inconsistent fatigue management counting rules, which are catching unsuspecting drivers and companies. A queensland truck was recently accused of breaching his obligations in Victoria despite being compliant in Queensland and NSW.
All this benefits the large corporations with their economies of scale, their links to government and their cheap contract labour.
Big Brothers....
Owner/Driver ( September 2010 ).
Brad Gardner.
Three of the industry's biggest players want government to force truck owners to install monitoring technology for speed and fatigue, but the Transport Workers Union believes transport clients should wear the cost, not owner-drivers.
Long Distance truck drivers should be forced to install monitoring technology in their rigs to crack down on speeding and fatigue offences, according to the nation's largest transport carriers.
Toll, Linfox and Asciano have joined forces to pressure governments to mandate GPS technology. The three companies claim speed and fatigue are the major causes of truck accidents and that tracking drivers will improve compliance and road safety.
Under the Road Transport ( Long Distance Operations ) Award, a long distance operation is defined as interstate work or a return journey exceeding 500km.
"We believe it should be mandatory for companies to monitor fatigue and speed using telematics technology," Toll, Linfox and Asciano write in their proposal to the National Transport Commission ( NTC ).
The NTC is currently looking at developing a national strategy for in-vehicle telematics to encourage the industry to adopt the technology. But the Transport Workers Union ( TWU ) has raised concerns over how owner-drivers will be able to afford to install the technology.
TWU National Secretary Tony Sheldon says transport clients that set the delivery schedules should be required to pay for the GPS devices. "An owner-driver should not have to pay thousands of dollars for a unit. If this cost is going to rest with anyone it must be the clients," Sheldon says.
He says it is easy to blame drivers if work hours are exceeded, but pressure must be put on those who set delivery times. "If we are going to see this rolled out in any capacity then the end result must not see drivers solely targeted-the clients schedule must come into the equation," Sheldon says. "This can't be used as another hit against drivers-this needs to go up the supply chain."
Sheldon has also questioned why short-haul operators should be left out of a monitoring scheme. "There are many accidents that happen on local work. The pressures there are the same and that needs to be acknowledged," he says.
Under the scheme proposed by Toll, Linfox and Asciano, the GPS devices will be capable of e-mailing messages to notify the vehicle owner of a breech, warn drivers when they are speeding and count driving hours to inform drivers when they are reaching a limit.
The monitoring tools will also be equipped with anti-tampering systems, traceable records, driver identification such as smart cards and measures to log accident data. However, the three companies want all information to remain under the control of a company instead of a system similar to the Intelligent Access Program ( IAP ) which transmits information to road authorities.
Companies will be subjected to external audits and accreditation such as an industry code of conduct and will provide the information in the event of a major incident or investigation. If their proposal is accepted, the transport companies want a single national standard to govern the scheme and believe the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator is the ideal candidate to develop guidelines. The Regulator will be running in 2013.
According to Toll, Linfox and Asciano, businesses should be free to use any device as long as it meets a national standard. The proposal has won the support of the Australian Logistics Council ( ALC ), which claims mandatory telematics systems will reduce the number of lives lost from heavy vehicle accidents.
But it says any compulsory scheme should be phased in over a period of time so trucking operators can gradually fit the technology. The ALC also recommends a subsidy scheme to encourage the use of telematics.
The push for mandatory monitoring contradicts the Australian Trucking Association's ( ATA ) position that the scheme must be voluntary. ATA Chairman David Simon says governments should encourage the use of monitoring tools to improve compliance and aid businesses.
"However, the ATA supports the use of supervised intervention orders specifying the use of telematics, applied by a court, for serious or persistant offenders with a proven history of non-compliance," he says. The NSW branch of the Transport Workers Union ( TWU ) has also opposed the mandatory use of GPS.
Twu Secretary Wayne Forno says governments should focus on introducing "safe rates" first to ensure drivers are paid enough to make ends meet. He claims GPS tracking will only treat the symptoms of speed and fatigue rather than stop it. "At the end of the day if the drivers out there aren't earning enough money quite frankly that still leads to those temptations to take shortcuts," Forno says.
"I certainly wouldn't endorse it ( as ) mandatory just at this stage as until such time as those other problems are fixed up such as safe rates." Toll, Linfox and Asciano also want government to amend the inconsistent fatigue management counting rules, which are catching unsuspecting drivers and companies. A queensland truck was recently accused of breaching his obligations in Victoria despite being compliant in Queensland and NSW.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Thirsty Foreigners Soak Up Scarce Water Rights.
Sydney Morning Herald ( 4.9.10 )
Acknowledgment to One Nation Riverina,
and Bob Vinnicombe who sourced the story.
International investors are circling Australia's water market, looking to snap up hundreds of millions of dollars worth of our most precious national resource, with almost no government limit on how much they can buy.
Foreign investors have already bought millions of litres of water rights in our most strategic food-producing areas and are poised to buy more after the massive shake-out tipped to occur when the long-awaited Murray-Darling Basin plan is released.
The head of an Australian fund designed to cash in on our future water scarcity leaves tomorrow on a trip through Asia, North America and Europe aimed at raising $100 million from investors to buy water in the Murray Darling Basin.
"There is a chronic supply/demand imbalance for Australian water which will result in higher water prices," says the website of the Causeway Water Fund, whose managing director Richard Lourey will scour the world for investors.
Water has become a hot-button topic for the federal rural independents locked in talks over who will form government.
Overseas stakes in our $30 billion market already include:
$20 million worth of entitlements bought by the US-owned Summit Global Management through an Australian subsidiary;
An estimated $130 million worth of water bought by Olam International of Singapore in a deal involving the purchase of almond groves in northern Victoria;
More than $30 milion worth of rights in western NSW held by Tandou which has substantial overseas ownership.
Meanwhile, the chief executive of the NSW Irrigators Council, Andrew Gregson, has revealed that merchant banks have approached the organisation for advice on how European investors can pour hundreds of millions of dollars more into Australian water.
In some financial circles water is dubbed "blue gold". The online investment journal Investment U recently had the headline, "The oil of the 21st century ... how "blue gold" can make you rich.
Australia has spawned the most advanced water market in the world, with more than $3 billion worth of rights changing hands last year.
More than $2 billion of that trade took place in NSW, making this state's water market equal to the entire value of the country's wool exports.
The federal Labor government helped inflate the price by buying more than $1 billion worth of water as drought bit last year, accelerating its $3.1 billion buyback of water in the Murray-Darling-Basin.
After good rains and a change to the government's tender system, prices have dropped by as much as 40 per cent this year, hurting irrigators who need to sell their water rights, but making buying into the market more attractive to investors.
"We know that water is a scarce resource in a resource starved world," said Guy Kingwill, the chief executive of the agricultural company Tandou, which has substancial US and British investors.
"We are long-term investors in secure water entitlements and Australia is one of the few countries in the world where you can own those," he said.
Yet there is virtually no oversight from the Foreign Investment Review Board.
The federal Treasury says it never looks specifically at foreign acquisition of water licences, and takes an interest only if a foreign player is buying an agribusiness worth more than $231 million.
Mr Lourey rejects fears about "water barons", claiming his investment fund will allow "water to be used in the most productive way possible. We would argue that's in Australia's strategic best interests".
But farmers` groups are worried that big players could corner areas of the market by buying up permanent rights in whole valleys, or being able to dictate what food is grown where by controlling water.
"We don't have a problem with investment, or indeed, speculation in the water market," said Mr Gregson of the Irrigators Council. "We are concerned about market dominance. It's a recently developed, relatively fragile market."
FOREIGN OWNERSHIP
Only a tiny handful of water bureaucrats in each state has full knowledge of who owns the country's permanent water rights, as water registries cannot be openly searched. Some foreign acquisitions of water that have emerged include:
Summit Global Management, founded by John Dickerson, of San Diego, owns $20 million worth of water through its Australian subsidiary Summit Water Holdings. The company wants to buy more.
The Singapore company Olam International acquired nearly 90,000 megalitres of permanent water along the Murray when it picked up the almond operations of the failed managed investment scheme Timbercorp last year. The land and water were valued at $228 million.
The British investment fund Ecofin owns 20 per cent of Eastern Australian Irrigation, a company with extensive land and water holdings in south-eastern Queensland.
Tandou Limited owns Tandou Farm, near Menindee Lakes, in far western NSW. A fierce takeover battle this year has left the company dominated by the New Zealand corporate raider Sir Ron Brierley's Guinness Peat Group ( 28 per cent ), battling it out with Ecofin ( 19.9.per cent ) and the US company Water Asset Management ( 13 per cent ). Tandou's most valuable asset is $30 million worth of water rights.
A Japanese consortium led by Mitsubishi Corporation acquired the Australian water business of the British company United Utilities in May.
Causeway Asset Management, of Melbourne, wants to attract $100 million from foreign investors to a "diversified portfolio of permanent water entitlements" in Australia.
Acknowledgment to One Nation Riverina,
and Bob Vinnicombe who sourced the story.
International investors are circling Australia's water market, looking to snap up hundreds of millions of dollars worth of our most precious national resource, with almost no government limit on how much they can buy.
Foreign investors have already bought millions of litres of water rights in our most strategic food-producing areas and are poised to buy more after the massive shake-out tipped to occur when the long-awaited Murray-Darling Basin plan is released.
The head of an Australian fund designed to cash in on our future water scarcity leaves tomorrow on a trip through Asia, North America and Europe aimed at raising $100 million from investors to buy water in the Murray Darling Basin.
"There is a chronic supply/demand imbalance for Australian water which will result in higher water prices," says the website of the Causeway Water Fund, whose managing director Richard Lourey will scour the world for investors.
Water has become a hot-button topic for the federal rural independents locked in talks over who will form government.
Overseas stakes in our $30 billion market already include:
$20 million worth of entitlements bought by the US-owned Summit Global Management through an Australian subsidiary;
An estimated $130 million worth of water bought by Olam International of Singapore in a deal involving the purchase of almond groves in northern Victoria;
More than $30 milion worth of rights in western NSW held by Tandou which has substantial overseas ownership.
Meanwhile, the chief executive of the NSW Irrigators Council, Andrew Gregson, has revealed that merchant banks have approached the organisation for advice on how European investors can pour hundreds of millions of dollars more into Australian water.
In some financial circles water is dubbed "blue gold". The online investment journal Investment U recently had the headline, "The oil of the 21st century ... how "blue gold" can make you rich.
Australia has spawned the most advanced water market in the world, with more than $3 billion worth of rights changing hands last year.
More than $2 billion of that trade took place in NSW, making this state's water market equal to the entire value of the country's wool exports.
The federal Labor government helped inflate the price by buying more than $1 billion worth of water as drought bit last year, accelerating its $3.1 billion buyback of water in the Murray-Darling-Basin.
After good rains and a change to the government's tender system, prices have dropped by as much as 40 per cent this year, hurting irrigators who need to sell their water rights, but making buying into the market more attractive to investors.
"We know that water is a scarce resource in a resource starved world," said Guy Kingwill, the chief executive of the agricultural company Tandou, which has substancial US and British investors.
"We are long-term investors in secure water entitlements and Australia is one of the few countries in the world where you can own those," he said.
Yet there is virtually no oversight from the Foreign Investment Review Board.
The federal Treasury says it never looks specifically at foreign acquisition of water licences, and takes an interest only if a foreign player is buying an agribusiness worth more than $231 million.
Mr Lourey rejects fears about "water barons", claiming his investment fund will allow "water to be used in the most productive way possible. We would argue that's in Australia's strategic best interests".
But farmers` groups are worried that big players could corner areas of the market by buying up permanent rights in whole valleys, or being able to dictate what food is grown where by controlling water.
"We don't have a problem with investment, or indeed, speculation in the water market," said Mr Gregson of the Irrigators Council. "We are concerned about market dominance. It's a recently developed, relatively fragile market."
FOREIGN OWNERSHIP
Only a tiny handful of water bureaucrats in each state has full knowledge of who owns the country's permanent water rights, as water registries cannot be openly searched. Some foreign acquisitions of water that have emerged include:
Summit Global Management, founded by John Dickerson, of San Diego, owns $20 million worth of water through its Australian subsidiary Summit Water Holdings. The company wants to buy more.
The Singapore company Olam International acquired nearly 90,000 megalitres of permanent water along the Murray when it picked up the almond operations of the failed managed investment scheme Timbercorp last year. The land and water were valued at $228 million.
The British investment fund Ecofin owns 20 per cent of Eastern Australian Irrigation, a company with extensive land and water holdings in south-eastern Queensland.
Tandou Limited owns Tandou Farm, near Menindee Lakes, in far western NSW. A fierce takeover battle this year has left the company dominated by the New Zealand corporate raider Sir Ron Brierley's Guinness Peat Group ( 28 per cent ), battling it out with Ecofin ( 19.9.per cent ) and the US company Water Asset Management ( 13 per cent ). Tandou's most valuable asset is $30 million worth of water rights.
A Japanese consortium led by Mitsubishi Corporation acquired the Australian water business of the British company United Utilities in May.
Causeway Asset Management, of Melbourne, wants to attract $100 million from foreign investors to a "diversified portfolio of permanent water entitlements" in Australia.
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