"Wholly unsatisfactory" is the description being given to a meeting that took place in Brisbane this week between Queensland Opposition Leader Tim Nicholls and Tabcorp CEO David Attenborough as the ramifications of the betting company's $11.3 billion merger with the Sunshine State-based Tatts continue to play out.
At issue is the prickly topic of some 400 Tatts' jobs – and whether the merger of the two wagering giants will see a wholesale removal of the merged entity's operations from Tatts' headquarters in Brisbane to Tabcorp's home state of Victoria.
At a meeting in Brisbane on Tuesday Nicholls sought assurances from Attenborough that operations in his home state would remain – an assurance that, according to sources, was not forthcoming.
It's a topic of special interest to Nicholls whose Brisbane electorate of Clayfield is home to one of Tatts' Brisbane offices.
When contacted on Thursday a spokesman for Nicholls confirmed the meeting had taken place, and while he would not be drawn on its particulars, he conceded the outcome had been "wholly unsatisfactory" from the Queensland opposition leader's point of view.
Last month the two betting houses announced a merger after Tabcorp agreed to pay a 20 per cent premium for Tatts shares. A week later at the Tatts AGM, shareholders were assured that despite $130 million in synergies being highlighted during the merger pitch process, the impact on local jobs would be minimal.
Against the backdrop of a hung Parliament it's yet to be seen what the Opposition will seek to extract from Tatts and Tabcorp in return for their blessing of the merger. We watch with interest.
