The Debt-inator: Belgian-born senator Mathias Cormann set to become a familiar Government voice
HE EVEN speaks like Arnold Schwarzenegger. Meet one of Tony Abbott’s favourite henchman. His mission? Exterminating debt.
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HE’S relatively unknown at the moment but soon for many Australians he will be the most recognisable Belgium-born figure since Hercule Poirot.
West Australian Mathias Cormann, 43, is the Minister for Finance in the Abbott Government, the man with the job of making sure the spending knives are used widely and effectively.
If Treasurer Joe Hockey is the architect of the Budget, Mathias Cormann is the enforcer. And for sectors who see their spending knocked off, he will be the Debtinator.
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Senator Cormann was born in Belgium’s German-influenced eastern sector and his heavy accent has become a party trick.
“I’ll be back,” he said at the end of a press conference on Thursday, doing his frequent and familiar — and not quite convincing — Arnold Schwarzenegger impression.
Early last year Senator Cormann, who arrived in Perth in 1994, joked about his distinctive inflections, saying European friends “tell me that I speak with a very strong Australian accent these days”.
He will be speaking more and more for the Government as part of a remarkable migration double: The Belgium born spruiker for the economic policies of London-born Prime Minister Tony Abbott, and Armenian-heritage Treasurer Hockey.
Senator Cormann did a lot of that during the last election campaign. His Senate seat wasn’t up for re-election so he spent the campaign in Canberra as a policy spokesman who seemed always on tap.
After the election it was broadly considered Arthur Sinodinos from Tony Abbott’s home state of NSW would become Finance Minister, and Joe Hockey was always going to be Treasurer.
However, Senator Sinodinos was made Assistant Treasurer and Senator Cormann the Finance Minister.
He showed he had ambitions by running for the job of Government Senate Leader but didn’t have a chance against Attorney-General George Brandis.
And since then he has shown he wants to be busy in his portfolio.
Treasurers get most of the Budget glory or odium, but it’s the Finance Minister who is in charge of spending — either granting money or shutting down the flow of cash to departments and projects.
Senator Cormann has been an activist in that role.
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