Australia Mining Tax Clears Hurdle, After Much Debate

Australia Mining Tax Clears Hurdle, After Much Debate

www.bbc.co.uk

The Australian government's plan to impose a 30% tax on big mining companies has cleared a major hurdle, passing through parliament's lower house.

It will go to the upper senate early next year, but is expected to pass.

The government said the tax was a way to distribute wealth more evenly from Australia's resources boom.

It will go into effect in July 2012, and will apply to mining giants such as Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton.

Spreading wealth
The Minerals Resource Rent Tax Bill will tax coal and iron profits.

When the tax becomes law, mining companies will have to pay about $

(visit the link for the full news article)


Related News Links:
www.carbontax.net.au

At first, I fist pumped and seen this as a step in the right direction for my sunburnt homeland. Three seconds later I realised, if it is too good to be true- it probably is.

Firstly, revenues generated by this tax should be (IMO) channeled in to initiatives such as the construction of minerals processing plants mandatory for all minerals extracted from Australian soil- further bolstering the Australian employment opportunity and local economies- there is no clarity as to exactly where this surplus revenue will be directed.

Secondly, I'm still asking myself how this ties in with the carbon tax set to come in to effect next year. This will see a tax placed upon these companies which is historically unprecedented but, in specific regards to the mining industry- how will these companies be able to pass on that tax to Australian citizens as minerals such as iron ore and coal are obviously commodities? Will it significantly effect the overall price of Iron and Coal on the global market?

The tax will only affect the mining of coal and iron ore, two of only a large number of minerals we export but notably, two of the highest exported minerals.

Will we truly see distribution of this wealth among us peasants? Maybe in hokey social programs although, I don't think anybody can complain about a national budget surplus.

I will continue looking in to and theorising about this.

Will it (as the opposition suggest) discourage foreign investment in Australia's mining sector? I'm not in a position to theorise, but if it did perhaps we would see some local initiative? Hopefully.

I just can't see how Julia Gilalrd's government would be going against her masters, what's in this tax for them that we're not hearing about? Perhaps it will come to light in future that it was a smoke-screen contractual tax entitling your BHP's of the world to stake their claim on Australia's resources?

Interesting.

www.bbc.co.uk
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by Pirateofpsychonautics
There’s no difference between our governments giving them rights to rape our land then them giving banks rights to print money, its a scam on the people.
If they are making billions, there’s no reason they should be getting taxed up to 80% of profit.
Sick of them ruining our country and destroying pristine habitat such as the Great Barrier Reef. What’s the point of having a world heritage park if you can mine in it and spill chemicals into the water like there’s no tomorrow.
Everything is about short term gain for a small amount of people, why wont people stand up to them. They are going to completely ruin our world environment, and it doesn’t take much to do that because there is a tipping point.
This corporate world makes me sick.

Yep, agree 100% mate.

Not to mention that a lot of it happens on land sacred to peoples who are stewards of the earth. The rape of everything sacred to them for the wealth illusion

Originally posted by Pirateofpsychonautics
Yep, agree 100% mate.

Not to mention that a lot of it happens on land sacred to peoples who are stewards of the earth. The rape of everything sacred to them for the wealth illusion

Yeah I know I used the term 'our' land, which its not. But we are the people who control it, so it’s up to us to protect it.
Sad thing is that people are going to realise what they have been allowing when its way too late.