Australian CEO Delivers Scathing Critique of Economic Roundtable
Tech entrepreneur Matt Barrie has launched a blistering attack on the Australian government’s economic roundtable, labelling it a “meaningless” exercise in spin.
According to Barrie, businesses are being strangled by soaring land, labour, and energy costs, which he claims are fuelled by government policies that have created a housing crisis and driven real inflation significantly higher than official figures suggest.
Soaring Costs a Major Concern
Barrie, the CEO of Freelancer.com, argues that the government’s mass immigration programme has thrown “kerosene on the mother of all housing bubbles”, resulting in a conflagration that is consuming the entire economy.
He asserts that labour costs are through the roof, with everyone “drowning in rent and mortgages”, despite having the highest casual wages in the world.
Furthermore, energy prices are skyrocketing, with the government pretending that windmills and solar power can sustain a G20 economy.
Critique of Immigration Programme
Barrie is highly critical of the government’s immigration programme, which he claims is importing welfare recipients rather than workers.
He states that thirty per cent of immigrants do not pay tax, and the majority are a net negative in costs to the taxpayer for services and infrastructure.
Additionally, he notes that the country’s education system is now regarded as subpar, and the non-government sector created only 53,000 jobs in 2024, while bringing in approximately the same number of immigrants per month.
Fears for the Future
In a scathing assessment of the current economic situation, Barrie believes that the country is “utterly cooked”.
He predicts that the housing market will eventually pop, which will bring down the banks and the Australian dollar.
He questions what multinational company would want to invest in Australia and what viable business could be created in the current environment.
Barrie’s comments come as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese opens his government’s three-day economic roundtable in Canberra, promising to deliver “long-lasting change through consensus” with the help of 30 participants, including economists, business leaders, union figures, and community representatives.