A little Christmas present from The Boogieman......
All info was taken from the services of:http://www.presscom.com.au/
A little background on Ronald I.Meatchem
This guy doesn't ride in taxis..... ;)
Member......: 1
Publication.: Advertiser
Date........: July 12, 1990
Edition.....: metro
Page........: 37
Headline....: BMW chief slams Government stand on auto industry
Caption.....: Mr Meatchem
Byline......: Jennings, Bob
Type........: FINANCE
Illus.......: photo: ron meatchem
Keywords....: Australia, motor car, john button
Biog........: MEATCHEM RON
Libhead.....: Automobile industry and trade - Australia
Taxation - Australia
Text................................................................:
GOLD COAST: Federal Government policies on the automotive
industry and the manner in which they were implemented were
harshly criticised yesterday by the managing director of BMW
Australia, Mr Ron Meatchem.
He said the latest 50 per cent luxury car tax was the result
of a ''Left-wing, Robin Hood policy'' which had no sense and
no meaning.
''We in this country cannot go on with this. Enough is enough.
We are never given the opportunity to discuss or defend our
position,'' Mr Meatchem said.
''We are totally frustrated and angered by changing Government
scenarios.
''The problem is with the Government system. Nobody is able
to make a decision. Caucus doesn't understand (the automotive
industry), the bureaucrats don't know what to do and suddenly
you have a new tax.''
He said that, while the Government had claimed it would make
an additional $100 million from the luxury car tax, in fact
it would lose $300 million.
''It would have been simpler if the Government had not lost
its direction and attacked the luxury imports,'' he said.
''We told them clearly what would happen but they didn't believe
us.
''Caucus makes a decision and afterwards they find out that
none of the sums add up.''
He said the imposition of the luxury car tax had disrupted
the market by drawing forward a huge number of sales with 2116
sales of cars over the $42,900 luxury car tax limit in March
and only 790 in June.
''The market will be disrupted until the end of the year,''
he said.
Mr Meatchem claimed that, despite the Button plan's overall
objective to reduce car prices by cutting tariffs and pruning
the number of car manufacturers and the models made, this had
not been allowed to happen and local car prices had soared.
In fact, the total proportion of the retail price of imported
cars taken by Government taxes had risen from 37 per cent in
1984 to 56 per cent in 1990.
Mr Meatchem advocated the implementation of a consumption tax
similar to that which was operating in New Zealand, and which
had permitted large reductions in the prices of cars, to replace
the various taxes which now applied to the Australian industry.
He also pleaded for a continuation of the export facilitation
plan which had resulted in importers, including BMW, becoming
exporters of products such as wheels and springs.
However, he feared suggestions that this aspect of the industry
could be dropped under the new guidelines for the industry which were now
under review.
Member......: 46
Publication.: HERALD SUN
Date........: March 13, 1993
Edition.....: 2
Page.......: 32
Headline....: HEADLINERS
Byline......: WILLSON J
******************** EDITED BY BOOGIEMAN ***************************
FORECAST: a third consecutive year of volume growth for BMW Australia
by managing director, Ron Meatchem.
This would push the car maker's sales in Australia to their highest
ever even though Mr Meatchem expects growth in the imported luxury
market to be a modest 3 per cent this year.
And still in the luxury end of the market the British Rolls-Royce
group announced it would wipe 5000 jobs over two years because of weak
demand for the blue-chip marque.
ember......: 13
Publication.: Australian
Date........: June 19, 1993
Headline....: Head of BMW to step down
Byline......: Mike Kable
Page........: 33
Text...............................................................:
A LEADING motor industry figure, Mr Ron Meatchem, announced his
retirement yesterday as managing director of BMW Australia and the
appointment of his successor, Mr Uwe Hartmann.
Mr Meatchem's 15-year stint as chief executive of the Melbourne-based
company, which is on target to be the top importer of luxurious
European cars for the fifth successive year, officially ends on June
30.
But he will help Mr Hartmann, who is scheduled to arrive from Germany
in August, to acclimatise to the Australian market.
BMW Australia's finance and administration director, Mr Horst Kolo,
will head the company until Mr Hartmann takes over,
Mr Hartmann has a marketing background, having been BMW sales and
marketing manager within the "region west" area of the German domestic
market.
The Boogieman
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