TOPIC:

Could this pandemic see the revival of Australian manufacturing?

One would hope so DD. Whenever we come out the other side, everyone should be coming uniting together in an orderly fashion. There will be a lot of questions that will need answering!
It has always mystified me for example of what happens to our iron ore? Why is there not a steel mill built here, at say Port Hedland? Why is a lot of our livestock now shipped overseas. There are some abbatoirs that are now closed, in mothballs and not being used. And they are just 2 basic examples. The unemployment figures would be significantly reduced and more people would join the workforce.

There could also be a silver lining for the WAFL. There won’t be any u/18s championship this year. I’m not sure there will be a draft at the end of this year so could the draft age be raised to 19? That’s what we all want isn’t it so we get at least one season out of these young guns.

DD wrote: Could this pandemic see the revival of Australian manufacturing?

Good things could come of this. The search for alternatives to dependency on Chinese supply chains will be on and hopefully that does revive Australian manufacturing. Hopefully working from home will be normalised and this insane mob rush into the city everyday can be ended. We'll see the true evil of the casualisation of the workforce and the economic insecurity that brings. And hopefully we'll banish forever this moronic obsession with just-in-time production systems which have left us vulnerable to supply disruptions.

Maybe a few more nations might listen to the WHO on pandemic preparedness because most of the developed world who should have been better prepared haven't been for this public health emergency.

A bit like after the GFC though when we all expected a better behaved financial system I doubt anything will change. We'll be back to the rapacious evil of unfettered "free markets" soon enough I suspect.

It always amuses me how capitalists become socialists in times of crisis.

Apparently too many face masks that are commonly used in australia are all imported from o/s.
Fantastic to be hearing that is all about to change
Millions of respirator and surgical masks will be produced at the University of South Australia and tested at Flinders University in Adelaide. The state government is contributing 450 thousand $ and aiming for 20 million masks to be produced each month for local and national markets. Apparently there being a current shortage of masks in Australia. That should not be the case any-more. I hope the company keeps producing masks in the long term and not only for the duration of the current virus cycle. Good to know these things are now being produced locally and less reliance on imports.
Hopefully this kick starts more Australian manufactured goods for the australian market.
Or am I being naive?

Coronavirus fires up production at Australia's only medical mask factory

www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-27/inside-au...ask-factory/12093864

jackspratt wrote:

Coronavirus fires up production at Australia's only medical mask factory

www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-27/inside-au...ask-factory/12093864

And we need legislation written into law that medical suppliers cannot ship more than 10% of supplies overseas.