Leigh Clifford: "I think regulations in Australia in business are probably over the top.  I think we’ve got one area that I think needs addressing, it’s the duplication between states and federal regulations.  And I think that’s something which both sides of government and opposition talk about but when it comes to the crunch most have been pretty unsuccessful in addressing it.  I think the momentum is there for a change.  So I think that’s important.  We’ve also got to recognise that the minerals industry is, a risky industry.  I mean the prices of commodity has changed quite dramatically and therefore we need to have an environment which encourages risk capital, which encourages exploration.  And I think that people further realise that at times when you’re doing very, very well it’s returning to the shareholders something for their investment which sometimes has taken place over many decades beforehand.  I think the important thing here is that we explain our contribution, we the industry, explain our contribution to the state and the federal government through our taxation royalty system."

Categories: Economy, Government
Author: Leigh Clifford AO