In the wake of the Australian Governments unexpected attack on the country's largest banks, the peeved chief executives have hit back, well most of them.
The unreserved CEO's from National Australia Bank, Westpac and Commonwealth Bank, were quick to react to a budget which they felt unfairly targetted them. In the wake of recent misdemeanors however it is unlikely that the public will cut them much slack.
Criticise Condemn Complain
First out of the blocks was National Australia Bank CEO Andrew Thorburn who said, «The major bank tax will impact millions of everyday Australians who are employees, customers or shareholders of banks, a tax cannot be absorbed, it is not possible to impose a tax without an impact on people, and therefore the wider community.»
Westpac Group CEO, Brian Hartzer, said, «The Australian banks are already the largest taxpayers, with Westpac the country’s second largest taxpayer. Westpac already pays over 30 percent of its profits in tax and this will now increase even further.»
ANZ Remains Calm
Ian Narev, CEO at Commonwealth Bank added, «As every business owner or employee knows, every extra cost needs to be borne by customers or shareholders, or a combination of both.»
Last to break cover was ANZ, who may have decided to step back from criticising the government and issued a neutral statement saying, «ANZ noted the Australian Government’s proposed tax on bank liabilities announced as part of last night’s Federal Budget. At this stage it is too early to provide a definitive estimate of the financial impact on ANZ and an update will be provided to the market when ANZ’s analysis is complete.»
