Google Inc. cries poor in Australia

Posted on Slashdot 3 May 2012:

daria42 writes "Looks like Apple isn't the only company with interesting offshore taxation practices. The financial statements for Google's Australian subsidiary show the company told the Australian Government it made just $200 million in revenue in 2011 in Australia, despite local industry estimating it actually brought in closer to $1 billion. The rest was funnelled through Google's Irish subsidiary and not disclosed in Australia. Consequently the company only disclosed taxation costs in Australia of $74,000. Not bad work if you can get it — which Google apparently can. About that 'don't be evil' motto? Yeah. Not so much."

The Sydney Morning Herald 2 May 2012:

Search engine and advertising giant Google Australia has posted a wider full-year loss of almost $4 million, despite a sharp lift in revenue.

In a special purpose annual report for the year ended December 31, Google Australia posted a $3.93 million loss after income tax, down from a loss of $3.08 million in 2010.

Revenue from continuous operations was $201.1 million, up from $151.4 million the previous year.

Gross assets for the wholly owned local arm were $116 million and income tax expenses slumped, from $1.128 million to $74,176.

Google Australia, which is based in Sydney and has 568 employees, listed its principal activities as ‘‘to provide services, assistance and advice in connection with marketing and sales support for web search engine service and advertising services.

"Google Australia Pty Ltd additionally performs certain research and development services with respect to products, utilising Google RD Technology and other appropriate technology from Google."

It took on two new directors last year in Matthew Scott Sucherman and James Anthony Marocco, replacing John Kent Walker and Lloyd Martin in November.

Under the recently released Convergence Review’s recommendations to the federal government, Google would not be defined as a major media company, thereby escaping greater content regulations.

No dividends were paid.

LOL found at Fail Nation

Australia's unemployment hits 4.9% low. Something the Federal Coalition has to suck up before Abbott's Budget Reply Speech 10 May 2012

ABS MEDIA RELEASE
10 May 2012		67/2012
Australia's unemployment rate decreased 0.2 percentage points to 4.9 per cent in April 2012

Australia's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased 0.2 percentage points to 4.9 per cent in April, as announced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today. There was also a decrease in the labour force participation rate of 0.1 percentage points in April to 65.2 per cent.
The ABS reported the number of people employed increased by 15,500 to 11,501,000 in April. The increase in employment was driven by increased part-time employment, up 26,000 people to 3,438,200, and was offset by decrease in full-time employment, down 10,500 people to 8,062,800. The increase in employment was mainly driven by an increase in male part-time employment.
The number of people unemployed decreased by 28,800 people to 598,200 in April, the ABS reported.
The ABS monthly aggregate hours worked series showed an increase in April, up 6.6 million hours to 1,633.9 million hours.
There has been some interest recently in how changes in the Australian population impact on the estimates of employment from the Labour Force Survey. The responses collected from the sample of people in the survey are weighted to projections of the Australian population for the current quarter. These population projections are based on the most up-to-date information available, but are different to the official estimates of resident population that are calculated at a later date. In order to explain these issues, the ABS has produced a special feature article "Population Benchmarks and the Labour Force Survey" in this month's publication.
More details are in the April 2012 issue of Labour Force, Australia (cat. no. 6202.0), as well as the upcoming April 2012 issue of Labour Force, Australia, Detailed (cat. no. 6291.0.55.001) due for release next week on May 17. Both publications are available for free download (after release) from the ABS website - www.abs.gov.au.

Playing the politics of envy with a fixed smile.........

Left to Right: Clive Palmer, Gina Rinehart and Andrew Twiggy Forrest

Last week one North Coast Voices reader sent me a link to the Fair Go For Billionaires’ Wealth Calculator. Unfortunately my annual income just wouldn’t register, so I went to the mainstream media for some examples.

The Central Telegraph reported on 3 May 2012:

It would take a person earning $70,000 a year - which is roughly the average salary in Australia - 56,000 years to earn Mr Palmer's net worth.

No, that's not a misprint - 56,000 years.

Conversely, it takes Mr Palmer, the man who plans to bring you Titanic 2, just 70.8 minutes to earn $70,000…..

Ms Rinehart? Well, it takes her just 28.8 minutes to rake in $70,000.

And if you've got a spare 67,857 years you too could earn her net wealth…….

Mr Forrest needs only 20 minutes to make a measly $70k, but the average Australian worker earning the same amount would need 6,057 decades to match his net worth.

Of course the lower your annual salary, the more depressing it gets.

Australian Opposition Leader Tony Abbott and Gina Rinehart

Photos from the ABC website and Google Images

A selection of NSW environmental damage/water pollution convictions February 2011-April 2012

According to Nine News on 5 May 2012:

Fourteen serious "code red" environmental breaches have been discovered at facilities across NSW, during a state-wide audit of high-risk industries.

The audit, which covered 40 facilities across NSW, discovered 62 instances of non-compliance, of which 14 were considered "code red" or "high risk", the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) said.

On the same day The Sydney Morning Herald reported that:

The sites guilty of code red breaches include the Huntsman Surfactants Plant in Matraville, which the audit found was storing and handling hazardous chemicals without appropriate safeguards to capture any leaks or spills, ''thereby increasing the likelihood of polluting waters''.
The plant was also found not to be monitoring underground pipes, which transported effluent, for leaks. It was fined and a follow-up visit after the audit found all problems had been addressed.
The chemical manufacturer Pax, in Ingleburn, was also served with a penalty notice for its code red violation; a valve on part of the plant which was supposed to prevent the uncontrolled release of contaminated water was found not to be working. The valve was fixed immediately after the audit and the company was fined.
The most common serious breach was companies not having complete or up-to-date emergency response plans, including the Origin Energy plants in Port Botany and Kooragang Island...

This is a selection of convictions recorded by the NSW Environmental Protection Authority on its POEO Public Register over the last twelve months:

3/04/2012 BMG ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP PTY LTD Negligently dispose of waste in a manner that harms the environment, $100,000 fine. Ordered to pay investigation costs of $15,684.50

6/03/2012 COFFS HARBOUR HARDWOODS SALES PTY LTD Damage reserved land, $40,000 fine and, Pick plant that is part of a threatened species, $45,000 fine. Both counts - Ordered to undertake remediation works and to publicise details of the offence in the Coffs Harbour Advocate and Bellinger Star.

12/12/2011 AUSTAR COAL MINE PTY LTD Pollute waters. Ordered to pay $75,000 to the Hunter-Central Rivers Catchment Management Authority for the Mount View Corridor Threatened Species Habitat Rehabilitation Project. Also ordered to pay investigation costs of $17,269.13.

24/11/2011 BIO TORQUE FUELS PTY LTD Pollute waters, $500 fine. Ordered to pay investigation costs of $12,000 – plus two breaches licence conditions with fines totalling $1,500

11/05/2011 BIG RIVER GROUP PTY LTD Pollute waters, $67,000 fine. Ordered to pay investigation costs of $24,644.80

8/2/2011 XSTRATA MANGOOLA PTY LTD Pollute waters. Enforceable Undertaking

Orica Limited is yet to be prosecuted for a 1kg hexavalent chromium spill at its Kooragang Island plant in Newcastle or the arsenic, sulphuric acid and liquid ammonium nitrate spills at Newcastle and Port Kembla in 2011.

Thought of the Week for Climate Change Sceptics

Common sense is what tells you the world is flat

[Gingers Meggs cartoon strip wall grafitti]

Sometimes I wonder into which alternate universe I have wandered

Australia successfully survived the Global Financial Crisis under the stewardship of a federal Labor Government which did not panic and, with the cooperation of states and territories, acted swiftly to support weak points in the national economy.

So well did the nation weather this financial tsunami that a year on from the initial rolling economic destruction it was being openly stated by northern hemisphere economic commentators that Australia was the envy of the rest of the developed world and, in 2012 in comparison with that same developed world we still have low unemployment, low levels of government debt, low interest rates, an economy which is holding its own despite an historically weak manufacturing sector and good international credit ratings.

Which begs the question of why this Essential Report survey question elicited negative attitudes in these responses below - from 42 per cent of the very people who barely felt any effect of this global crisis.

Trust to deal with GFC

May 7, 2012

Q. If there was another Global Financial Crisis, which party would you trust most to deal with it?

	15 Aug 11	Total	Vote Labor	Vote Lib/Nat	Vote Greens
The Labor Party	31%	25%	68%	2%	42%
The Liberal Party	40%	42%	5%	83%	5%
No difference	20%	23%	19%	11%	39%
Don’t know	9%	10%	8%	4%	14%

If there was another GFC, 42% would trust the Liberal Party more to handle it and 25% would trust the Labor Party more. This represents a shift to the Liberal Party from net +9% to net +17%

The Liberal Party was rated higher than Labor with all demographic groups. Those most likely to trust the Liberal Party more were men (47%), aged 55+ (48%), full-time workers (50%) and income over $1,600 pw (50%).

Commonwealth Budget Papers 2012-13

Over at www.budget.gov.au the 2012-13 federal budget papers are available for those interested in delving deeper than tomorrow's tabloid newspaper headlines.

• Budget Speech
• Budget at a Glance
• Budget Overview
• Budget Paper No.1  Strategy and Outlook
• Budget Paper No.2  Budget Measures
• Budget Paper No.3  Australia's Federal Relations
• Budget Paper No.4  Agency Resources
• Appropriation Bills

• Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook
• Final Budget Outcome

• Portfolio Budget Statements
• Portfolio Additional Estimates Statements
• Portfolio Supplementary Additional Estimates Statements

• Ministerial Statements

Past Budgets