The federal government wanted it the easy way but Australians in general will have to pay the painful price for such monumental blunder, this according to banking stalwart Don Argus, who also warned on Monday that retreating local production, would in the long run hurt the economy.

Speaking at the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) held in Perth yesterday, the former BHP Billiton chair decried the government's lazy attitude towards local and global economic development that were surprisingly met by measures that Argus characterises as "substandard and politically expedient."

Apart from its failure to roll out painful but economically-sound policies, Argus scored the government of Prime Minister Julia Gillard for ignoring the importance and even necessity of opening up her ears on the general sentiments of the Australian business community prior to the introduction of new taxes such as the resources super profits tax and the carbon pricing.

In the process, Argus believes that Ms Gillard lost a golden opportunity to use the mining boom in fuelling further economic expansions that would have assured of a better state for the domestic economy in the years, or even decades to come.

"I am concerned future generations of Australians will look back and lament that we did not make the most of what lies ahead of us. I fear they will look back with regret that our leaders opted for the most politically expedient outcomes, not those that were in the best long-term interests of the country," Argus was quoted by The Australian as saying.

In order to avoid incurring further damages, Argus said that Ms Gillard should use her energy in ensuring that productivity in Australia will not further stall and resume growth movement soon, which he suggested can be done by appreciating and rewarding the hard works of employees such as the case in the mining industry.

Argus called into question the Fair Work Act that was passed under the auspices of the ruling Labour Party, which he said was being used as a tool to forcibly press for union demands that in the end render employers in a position that is non-conducive to productivity growth.

As for the new tax measures that the Ms Gillard wants to roll out, Argus said that simplifying first the schemes would serve both the interests of the government and the business sector.

Specifically, Argus is apprehensive that taking the initiative in carbon pricing could prove unwise for Australia, which he said should re-channel its attention in harnessing existing and clean energy sources, such as the natural gas, instead of working on projects that have yet to return encouraging results.

"We need a more rigorous evaluation before large amounts of taxpayer money are spent on speculative investments in renewable energy that could actually be less effective than other options in reducing emissions," Argus stressed on his audience.

In a statement, the Treasurer reminded Argus that the problems he highlighted have been slowly developing and only showed up their symptoms lately, and in fact were inherited by the current government.

"The fact is that we've seen a long-term structural decline in productivity growth over a long period of time after a decade of neglect from our predecessors in critical infrastructure and skills investment," a spokesman from the Treasurer's office was quoted by The Australian as saying.

"We know from history that it takes time to see the benefits of the long-term structural improvements we have been investing in from the day we came to office," the statement added.