Former New South Wales Premier Dominic Perrotter announced last week that he’s quitting politics to take up a senior position with mining giant BHP in Washington.
Former Western Australian premier Mark McGowan made a similar move last year.
Politicians and jobs in the mining sector seem to go hand in hand. Over 1.2m people employed in the industry and the top jobs pay well.
Executive Director of the Australia Institute Richard Denniss unpacks why pollies are trading their jobs for the mining sector on The Briefing:
Prominent Australian economist Richard Denniss said the strong ties between former parliamentarians and the mining sector makes him “nervous”.
“We might struggle to get a job working with one of those industries, but somehow people that have been working in Parliament for a long time seem to walk straight into these jobs,” Denniss said.
“I’m saying they should wait three or five years before taking the kind of job that relies on the knowledge, experience, insight and networks they built in their role,”
The Australian mining industry amounts to 75 per cent of the country’s exports, contributes significantly to Australia’s workforce and is a leading influence on Australia’s standard of living, rising incomes and flourishing economy.
“What makes me nervous is when the industries that are most dependent on the decisions of parliamentarians are the industries gobbling up the former parliamentarians when they become available.”
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