Amidst the copious news General Motors has made over the last week, one fully-formed and profoundly important story is doggedly evading the notice of the press. Overshadowed by the end of US Treasury ownership and the promotion of GM’s first female CEO, the demise of The General’s Australian unit Holden should not be overlooked. Not because the phenomenon it demonstrates is new… in fact it’s nothing more than the latest example of the GM standard operating procedure that has helped devastate local governments across America. Rather, the tragic turn of events in Australia sends a sharp warning, every bit as poignant as the recent bankruptcy of Detroit, to the American taxpayers about the company they rescued.
The Government Motors endgame is only just beginning…
Though largely uncovered in the US, sequence of events in Australia is easy enough to follow: GM CEO Dan Akerson made the call to kill Holden after Australia’s new conservative government made it clear it wouldn’t promise further tax dollars:
The final word on Holden came coincidentally during Parliamentary Question Time, as the acting Prime Minister Warren Truss and Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey goaded the car maker to make its intentions clear.
Holden President Mike Deveraux delivered the news from Detroit, telling the Australian government
“General Motors has nothing but gratitude and praise for the very strong partnership we’ve had with successive governments over the decades,” said Mr Devereux, adding that the company was proud to “have been a part of the industrialisation of this country”.
To gain approval to develop a new Commodore, General Motors did a top-secret deal with Holden to pair the next generation sedan with a Buick that was originally exclusive to the Chinese market.
Holden won the contract to design the car, which was then due to be built in Australia and China.\
>But now that Holden has decided to shut its Elizabeth car assembly line in 2017, China is poised to become the sole producer of the vehicle.
“There’s no question in my mind though, over the next twenty or thirty years, there will be one or two global Chinese “champions” that come out of the domestic market.”