A 50-year veteran of the Liberal Party wants the federal government to rethink its changes to the shipping industry, warning it is sacrificing "jobs and growth".
In his submission to an inquiry into proposed legislation no longer requiring foreign ships to pay Australian wages between domestic ports, the chairman of the Intercontinental Shipping Group urges the coalition to scrap the bill.
"As a long-time member of the Liberal Party (nearly 50 years), I am aware that the focus of coalition policy is jobs and growth," Peter Cadwallader says.
"Both of these objectives will be sacrificed by this bill in direct contradiction of coalition policy."
Labor seized on the submission on Tuesday, with opposition transport spokesman Anthony Albanese saying that if the government will not listen to Australian shippers, they should at least listen to someone with a long association with the Liberal Party.
"It will be impossible for the Australian-flagged ships to compete with the foreign ships," Mr Albanese told reporters in Sydney.
"This is unilateral economic disarmament."
These concerns are echoed by the Maritime Union of Australia, which says the changes will destroy the local shipping industry.
"It will result in close to 100 per cent of employment in the domestic shipping industry being replaced by non-national (foreign) labour," it says in its submission to the Senate committee conducting the inquiry.
The union claims the jobs of 2000 highly qualified local seafarers will be lost and more than 10,000 related maritime jobs will go.
The legislation will replace a three-tier licensing system with a single permit for Australian and overseas vessels.
Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss told the parliament in June that companies wanting to move goods or passengers by sea have for too long had to deal with a complex licensing system.
The reforms are part of the federal government's declaration that Australia is open for business, Mr Truss said.
In its submission, the Department of Infrastructure insists "operators of foreign ships that engage in more than 183 days of coastal trading in a permit year will be required to pay the Australian wages".
Specifically, they will have to employ an Australian master or chief mate and a chief engineer.
The Australian Industry Group recommends the bill be passed.
The proposals go some way to addressing concerns of Australian business that shipping between Australian ports has become too costly, it says.
"The bill, by increasing flexibility in the coastal shipping trade, will provide important economic benefits to the Australian economy and allow for greater movement of Australian domestic cargo," the group states in its submission.
The peak body representing Australian ports, Ports Australia, also supports the bill.
"The coast should be liberalised at least for a finite period to ensure coastal shipping services are more accessible and price competitive," the organisation says.
A public hearing on the legislation will take place in Canberra on September 7.
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