TAMWORTH Regional Council (TRC) can hardly be accused of subterfuge in its courting of Chinese investment.
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As he plunged the shovel into the ground at the sod-turning of the Chinese-owned Woolworths/Dan Murphy’s block last week, TRC mayor Col Murray boldly proclaimed it was a “stepping stone into what may well be the most significant development in the future of our city”.
Hardly the words of a politician with something to hide.
Whether you agree with council’s Chinese charm offensive or you think it’s opportunistic and naive, there’s no question over its transparency.
Council has openly built a relationship with Shenhua and Everich, supported the establishment of a Chinese business chamber in Tamworth and this week its two most senior figures – mayor Col Murray and general manager Paul Bennett – flew out to China on a sister city mission.
Such effusive support is a bold tactical gamble from a council of a conservative city, where the mere mention of Chinese investment is often cloaked in xenophobia.
But cashed-up Aussie investors aren’t exactly beating a path to our door.
And Cr Murray has rightly said council is approaching Chinese investment with its “eyes wide open”.
While questions over the level of eventual Chinese ownership of Tamworth are legitimate, public hysteria at this stage is uncalled for.
Foreign investment in Australia is in all our interests, funding nation-building infrastructure projects that we could not possibly fund on our own.
However, the issue of overseas interest in our farmland is a little more fraught.
Like vultures on a rotting carcase, overseas investors – many from tiger economies like China – are snapping up prime land from financially wounded farmers.
In the past two years, more than $10 billion worth of our best agricultural assets have fallen into foreign hands, with about 10 per cent of our farmland now owned offshore.
If the land grab continues at its current rate, it is conceivable Australia could become a net importer of food by 2050.
For so long, Australia has ridden on the sheep’s back.
But by allowing this foreign farm buy-up, we are selling the sheep instead of selling the wool.
And that could never be in the national interest.