I just hope that $1 billion gives Aust a benefit
Now they are all leaving what stops them just pocketing the money and saying thank you very much.
$1 billion could pay for: a lot of retraining of the retranched workers or support for some emerging Australian owned industries
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The Abbott Government will reinstate nearly $1 billion in funding for the car industry, in its latest move to cast aside several contentious policies.
The Coalition had planned to cut the funding, following announcements from Holden, Ford and Toyota that they would wind up car manufacturing in Australia in the next few years.
But the cut prompted fears — including among the Government backbench — that the car makers would bring forward their closure dates.
Mr Macfarlane told ABC Local Radio in Adelaide he had been working on the backdown since October.
"A decision has been made, primarily to ensure that the industry goes the full distance in terms of it's already slated closure at the end of 2017," he said.
"Whilst the decision of people like Holden to cease manufacture was a decision they made separate to anything the Government did — and they are their words not ours — we don't want anything to jeopardise the survival of the industry until Holden finally closes." Key facts: carmakers exit Australia
Car companies had blamed the then-high Australian dollar, high costs of manufacturing and low economies of scale for their decision.
It is estimated tens of thousands of people will lose their jobs as the impact of the closures also hits the component sector.
The funding cut was to have been made to the Automotive Transformation Scheme, which is slated to pump nearly $2 billion into the ailing industry.
But the Government slashed the funding in last year's budget, in accordance with an election commitment, saying the savings would go towards the budget bottom line and "policy priorities".
After Holden's announcement in December 2013, Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced $60 million in federal funding for job creation in the states most affected — South Australia and Victoria.
"We don't want to see corporate welfare, what we want to see is a country which has got the economic fundamentals right," he said.
The policy switch is the latest in a series of changes by the Government, including a decision to boost the pay rates of defence personnel and to dump the idea of a Medicare co-payment.
They have come after Mr Abbott survived a move to spill the leadership in a partyroom meeting in early February.
Mr Macfarlane said it was "pretty cynical" to conclude the decision was also about the survival of Mr Abbott.
