Ayers Rock Resort loan not from the public purse

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p2327-Ayers-Rock-Resort-1By ERWIN CHLANDA
 
A $65m loan for the Ayers Rock Resort did not come out of the taxpayers’ pocket, says Indigenous Affairs Minister Nigel Scullion.
 
Instead, the government has arranged for a loan facility from its lenders to be extended to the resort’s owners, the Indigenous Land Corporation (ILC).
 
“The transaction costs the taxpayer not a cent,” he says.
 
“It is between the ILC and the lenders. This means instead of paying 9% on $63m of vendor’s finance it will be a much lower interest rate.”
 
He said the new rate was confidential.
 
The resort was sold to the ILC for a controversial $350m.
 
Senator Scullion says the resort “is doing very well” having boosted occupancy rate from 50% during the GFC to 82%. Some 280 Indigenous people are working there now.
 
Meanwhile law and order are eclipsing all other issues in Alice Springs this election, says Senator Scullion, who is re-contesting his seat on July 2.
 
He says solutions must be found for the all-important tourism industry to recover and continue to grow, but Canberra’s role in reducing crime is limited, although much of the cost for the public CCTV system has come from the Feds.
 
The Turnbull Government is preparing strategies to reduce the deleterious effects of “unconditional welfare,” including fine-tuning already existing provisions to withhold the dole for people refusing to accept work offered, says Senator Scullion.
 
Weekly instead instead of fortnightly payments are part of the proposals, and for the scheme to be administered by local providers or organisations, instead of Centrelink.
 
But he side-stepped the issue when asked to comment about local Aboriginal people refusing to accept jobs offered by the Ayers Rock Resort, which they own.
 
Senator Scullion told the Alice Springs News Online that further reform of the jobs-for-the-dole programs, in town and the bush, are intended to target people displaying anti-social behaviour which puts off tourists.
 
However, he says it’s likely that Labor and the Greens will block this policy.
 
 

6 COMMENTS

  1. If the government and the tourism industry was able to respect aboriginal culture and people that would be the start of a whole raft of good outcomes.
    But sadly that seems impossible for them.
    I think in the next week or so Giles or one of his gang will be making an announcement about several million dollars of funding for an indigenous cultural event on Arrernte land that was thought up and planned before any Arrernte people were spoken to.
    They have caused a lot of anguish and concern amongst the community but are continuing to drive their bulldozers through our unique living cultural heritage.

  2. Hey Erwin, next time you see the incoming Member for Braitling, can you ask him what his plans are for the future?
    I fear there is potential for you poor mongrels in the Alice to be electioned out.
    It’s well known that we have a Federal poll on July 2, a Territory tick-a-box on August 27 then council elections early next year (unless they change their minds again).
    What happens in the incoming Member retains Braitling but the CLP loses power? Will he return from Darwin and become a hard-working local member from the Opposition back bench or simply pull the pin?
    So potentially, there may be a by-election for that seat later in the year.
    How about Wozza, you saw him last week so reports he had been replaced by a Captain Pugwash-like cardboard cut-out were apparently exaggerated.
    If he holds Lingiari – and let’s face it, nobody is doing terribly much to take it off him – but if Labor loses will he saddle up for another three years in the wilderness or sit back for some more easy money?
    Say he goes. That’s another by-election later in the year.
    How about if Councillor Brown wins Araluen? Will there be a by-election for the council job?
    If those things happened, the only thing I am reasonably confident of is there wouldn’t be a snowball’s chance the three by-elections would be held on the same day to save everybody some trouble.
    Good luck with all of that.

  3. Will this loan eve be repaid, I don’t think so.
    I don’t think this was a very well thought out plan. $65m on top of the $350m total $415m, and that is without the interest payment.
    This does not make good economic sense. $65m to help create more jobs. How may more jobs are we looking at?
    One wonders how long it will be before this goes bankrupt.
    Why can’t the Anglo Saxon receive the same interest rates? Discrimination, I cry.

  4. Ayers Rock Resort loan not from the public purse?
    Well, governments don’t actually have any money. It’s all taxpayers’ money.
    I’m unsure where the pollies actually obtain their accounting skills from, if at all. You can’t get nothing from nothing.
    I guess with an election looming, the pollies try to hoodwink the taxpayers a little more than usual.
    It’s taxpayers’ money, without a doubt. So loans like this border on negligence.

  5. As a taxpayer I would like some of my money back, as this is just going down a black endless hole.

  6. Has anyone worked out how much income this business in $ actually generates? If the occupancy of these hotels have increased, why do they need more money?

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