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Selling off the farm? : Comments
By Mike Pope, published 23/6/2011China has been buying-up Australian farming land and mines. Does this represent a national problem?
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Today China can take the produce of the land for itself without having to pay for more than the cost of labour, fertilizers and machinery without sharing the advantage over other Australians that this land ownership confers. It also needs to cover the transportation costs of bringing the product to its own people.
But when tax moiney is spent in improving the roads and communications to the Chinese-owned land, it becomes more useful and productive (since the transport costs of the produce are lowered) yet China will not compensate the Australian government nor its people for this investment in infrastructure.
The same principle applies not only to China but to any land owning monopolist. Land ownership consumes some of the rights that should go to everyone who lives around the region, yet they are taken by the land lord. By taxing land values, this benefit is restored. Australia has some experience in taxing land values and these procedures should be applied to the Chinese held land in common with the rest.
Of course farmers object, but the advantages that their land give them and the limited access that their ownership allows the rest of the community are detrimental to the country at large.
TAX LAND NOT PEOPLE; TAX TAKINGS MOT MAKINGS!