WAYNE Swan has refused to rule out changing the 6 per cent threshold at which the government s proposed resources super-profits tax would kick in.
At a media conference this morning, the only element of Labor's contentious mining tax package the Treasurer would guarantee as non-negotiable was the 40 per cent tax rate.
Queensland Premier Anna Bligh and others have argued that the 6 per cent threshold is too low, pointing towards the 11 per cent return allowed under the petroleum resource rent tax.
When asked if he was prepared to move on the 6 per cent figure, the definition of a super profit, Mr Swan said: “I'm not ruling anything in, or out.
“We are committed to getting a fair share for the Australian people. We've put out the design of the tax and we are consulting on that, and that is what we are continuing to do.”
When pressed on whether the threshold was a “non-negotiable” Mr Swan said: “I can tell you this. The government is absolutely committed to putting in place a resource super-profits tax of 40 per cent which delivers fair value to all Australians for the resources that they own 100 per cent, which will deliver vital tax cuts for corporate Australia, for small business; investments in superannuation and infrastructure.”
Mr Swan used the media conference to point to an open letter from 20 leading economists and academics that backed the government's mining tax.
He said the group saw “very clearly that replacing a royalty regime with a profits-based tax is squarely in the national interest”.
The group, including the former chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission Allan Fels, issued a statement today supporting the proposal to claw back 40 per cent of mining's super profits.
They say the debate over the tax has been dominated by misinformation.
But they agree it is still appropriate for the big miners and government to negotiate the finer details.
“Mining is different to other industries in that it uses and depletes natural resources,” the group's statement said.
“Some return on those resources should flow to the Australian public.
“The existing royalty system reflects the fact that it is desirable to levy a charge for access to publicly-owned mineral resources, in addition to normal corporate income tax.”
The group said the move was consistent with effective economic strategy.
Opposition resources spokesman Ian Macfarlane said the government was using economists “to put out pure economic theory”.
“But in the practical world we all know this tax is destroying Australian jobs and destroying Australians' superannuation,” he said.
Opposition finance spokesman Andrew Robb suggested he could be believed on the super-profits tax because he was a former “practising economist”.
“These economists are attempting to shift the focus of this debate,” he said.
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