The Federal Government’s resource super profits tax continues to be a cause of frustration for some in north-west Queensland after Treasurer Wayne Swan handed down his third budget.
The big winners in the budget were in health, skills training, renewable energy and tax breaks, but it is the Federal Government’s 40 per cent tax on mining profits which is not gaining popularity in western Queensland.
The Member for Maranoa, Bruce Scott, says the budget predicates on the new tax.
“In this budget there’s a $9 billion tax on the resource sector but there’s no new money for roads like the Landsborough, the Warrego, the Capricornia Highway,” he said.
The super tax has prompted Xstrata Copper to suspend its exploration programs in Mount Isa and Cloncurry.
