[Greens-Media] Greens find extra $2.8 billion from gold in MRRT

[Lamb, Alexandra (Sen C. Milne)]

MEDIA RELEASE


Monday 6 May 2013


Greens find extra $2.8 billion from gold in MRRT

New costings from the Parliamentary Budget Office reveal that the mining tax revenue is worse than previously thought - lower commodity prices have plunged forecast revenue by $3.5 billion since MYEFO in October last year.

The new costings show that we can raise an additional $26.2 billion over the next four years by increasing the tax rate to 40%, plugging the loopholes in the MRRT and including all minerals that make super profits.

Including gold in the MRRT would generate an extra $2.8 billion, making up for the shortfall from the declining commodity price.

"It's time Julia Gillard explained why everything except the big miners is on the table for revenue raising.

"It's time Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott stopped asking the community to brace for tough choices, cutting funding to universities, single parents, and foreign aid, and stood up to the big mining companies that can and should pay more.

"It's ludicrous to think we can raise the revenue we need to plug the ballooning deficit with more and more cuts to the community when Rio Tinto and BHP and Gina Rinehart made multi-billion dollar profits this year.

"As economics professors Ross Garnaut and John Quiggin told the Senate Inquiry into the MRRT hearing last Monday - there is no economic rationale to limit the tax to coal and iron ore at that low rate, and the royalties debacle and overly generous depreciation provisions are fundamental flaws that need to be fixed.

"If we are to get serious about implementing Denticare, if we are serious about providing adequate funding for our public schools and hospitals, then we need to raise the money.

"Only the Greens are putting forward costed initiatives to raise the tens of billions of dollars vital to implementing the nation-building reforms we need.

"Only the Greens have the guts to stand up to the mining companies so that we can invest in our community."