The Queensland Resources Council (QRC) has unveiled a new campaign on how much the increase in the State Government’s coal royalty tax is costing Queenslanders.
According to QRC Chief Executive Ian Macfarlane, the resources industry supports the next phase of the Keep Queensland Competitive campaign to demonstrate the negative consequences of the royalty tax on new investment and employment in Queensland’s resources sector.
“Economists warned the new royalty rates would cost Queensland investment and jobs — and they have. The royalty tax hikes have already cost Queensland a new $2 billion investment which would have created more than 2000 jobs,” Macfarlane said.
Macfarlane stated that there are new projects in the pipeline worth more than $100 billion, according to data from the Australian Government Department of Industry, Science, and Resources. According to him, these projects include investments in the minerals required for renewable energy and low-emission technology. He added that if Queensland maintains its uncompetitive royalty rates, such projects may be in jeopardy.
“When the investment rules change so drastically and so suddenly as they did when the world’s highest coal royalty was introduced in Queensland last year, that’s a wake-up call for investors in all resources projects who have reason to rethink whether Queensland is the best place to invest,” Macfarlane said.
He stated that without new resource projects, there won’t be any new job opportunities, which will have an effect on every Queenslander in some manner.
“At a time when the cost of living is increasing and mortgage rates are on the rise, the best security people can have is a job, which is what the resources sector can provide. A stable and competitive royalty system that’s attractive to investors is also more likely to deliver consistent royalty tax returns that allow for long-term investments in hospitals, roads, schools and new energy infrastructure,” he noted.
“This short-sighted tax grab hurts Queensland in the long run, because it costs us new projects and new jobs. Regional Queenslanders pay an especially high price with the loss of infrastructure, services and the job-creating projects of the future,” Macfarlane said.
He added, “The resources industry is asking the Queensland Government to work with us on a better way to secure the state’s resources future.”
