Mark Pownall

THE resources industry should do more to prepare for its own staffing needs, according to a national taskforce that is the latest to forecast a big shortfall in skilled labour as a result of the mining boom.

The sedate world of Perth's taxi service has been jolted by a $38.8 million takeover bid for Swan Taxis by global transport giant ComfortDelGro.

Entrepreneurs suffer the slings and arrows of government policy mistakes.

ACCOUNTING firm Ernst & Young has cemented its lead as Western Australia’s biggest professional services firm, boosting the number of Perth-based partners to 45.

JUST how much Western Australia’s entrepreneurial talent punches above its weight is exhibited in the state’s track record for sending its business leaders to Monaco for the equivalent of industry’s Academy Awards.

RESTRICTIONS on commercial fishing off the state’s South West beaches are the latest in a range of sweeping changes to the local fishing industry.

Andrew Forrest has all the credentials needed to make a fine political leader.

THE corporate advisory sector is expecting a rise in mergers and acquisitions activity now that the resources tax base has been narrowed, however buyers remain nervous about the detail and wary of global markets that have worsened since the tax debate sta

Most in business acknowledge the need for more women on boards and in senior management.

Uncertainty has clouded the M&A market in recent months, putting a lot of work on hold.

IT is not often that a move by one person can shake up a marketplace but the defection earlier this year of Michael Ashforth to Macquarie Capital from Gresham has had a big impact.

A new prime minister presents miners with a final chance to control their destiny when it comes to tax.

The mining boom has accentuated a new kind of fiscal discipline on governments, with electorates seemingly demanding a link between windfall gains and concrete objects.

THE Chamber of Minerals and Energy has called for an informed and equitable development policy for the vast Kimberley as both the state and federal governments position themselves for potentially divisive debate on the region’s future.

Sensible debate seems to be missing with regard to the proposed resources tax.

Former senator Andrew Murray’s appointment is more than just good politics.

SPECULATION is mounting that Julia Gillard could be brought in to replace Kevin Rudd as prime minister if federal Labor’s electoral standing continues to plummet.

After years of crying poor the regions are now flush with government largesse, none more so than Pilbara.

A little confidence goes a long way when it comes to business.

THE first stages of the state government’s Pilbara Cities program might look like little more than an attempt to make up for lost time with basic infrastructure and some tarting up of town centres, but the vision underpinning the Royalties for Regions spe

As the debate rages about the contribution of mining to government coffers, the industry has revealed that its members paid nearly $500 million in payroll tax last financial year, over one fifth of the money received by the state via that source.

IN a quiet announcement last Tuesday, Public Sector Commi-ssioner Mal Wauchope revealed that Tim Marney had been reappointed as under-treasurer for another five years.

AS the battle over the resources industry’s contribution to Canberra’s coffers continues into its fifth week, Rio Tinto has revealed it spent $53.5 million on the Western Australia community in calendar 2009.

The labour movement doesn’t like growth, people get too comfortable.

THE managed investment scheme market has become an even smaller world with the receivership of ARK Fund, the listed associate of failed private MIS marketer Rewards Group.

A new report on philanthropy in Western Australia will shed some light on why the state’s wealthy are conspicuously absent when it comes to individual generosity.

THE state government expects an almost 70 per cent increase in nominal income from the various public corporations it owns – making them a very important part of balancing the budget in the years approaching the state election.

THE power players in Western Australia remain largely unchanged, though the impact of the federal government’s resource super profits tax could change the future dynamics of this mix.

IT ought to be a horror story for the state government.

The hierarchy of influence in WA has received two unsettling shocks.

The federal government is looking to drive a hard bargain on the resource super profits tax.

THE West Coast Eagles might be having a dreadful season on the field but its success off the field may well lie with the long-term strength of the boardroom, which has not been handicapped by salary caps, draft restrictions or drug scandals.