THE Greens have confirmed they will look at widening the range of minerals caught by the Gillard government's tax on iron ore and coal profits should they win the balance of power in the Senate.
THE Greens have confirmed they will look at widening the range of minerals caught by the Gillard government's tax on iron ore and coal profits should they win the balance of power in the Senate.
Speaking after addressing the Australian Uranium Conference in Fremantle today, WA Greens Senator Scott Ludlam today confirmed the Greens would consider seeking amendments to the tax to at least include uranium, especially given BHP Billiton's plans for a $20 billion expansion of its Olympic Dam copper-uranium mine at Roxby Downs.
"We will be looking at that very closely," he said. "I think it's a scandal that uranium was excluded from that, particularly something on the scale of the Roxby expansion in South Australia.
"For them to be exempt from paying their fair share of taxes and royalties I think is scandalous."
Senator Ludlam's comments come just a day after federal Greens leader Bob Brown indicated his party wanted to amend the government's mineral resource rent tax to rake in an extra $600 million needed to fund a further reduction in general company tax.
The government expects its tax to bring in $10.5 billion in the first two years.
To date, the Greens have indicated their primary objectives would be to return the headline rate back to the original 40 per cent rate and review the threshold at which it kicks in.
Senator Ludlam's comments will inflame industry fears that the tax could be extended to more than coal and iron ore should the Greens win the balance of power in the Senate, an increasingly likely outcome since Labor and the Greens struck a preferences deal at the weekend.
That has the potential to scupper the already uneasy truce reached between the government and miners since the basic terms of the revised tax were agreed earlier this month.
Prior to Julia Gillard's ousting of Kevin Rudd from the Lodge, all miners were to be taxed 40 per cent of profits once their returns exceeded the long term bond rate of 6 per cent.
But following Ms Gillard's ascension to the prime ministership, a new deal was reached that excluded all minerals other than coal and iron ore, reduced the headline rate to 30 per cent, and lifted the threshold to the bond rate plus 7 per cent.
While the government has stated it's determination to implement the tax as announced, it faces the real possibility of having to negotiate with the Greens to get its legislation passed in the Senate.
In the government's favour, Senator Brown has also indicated he will not block the tax if the government refuses to back down on any amendments proposed by the Greens.
To date, opposition leader Tony Abbott has vowed the coalition will not implement the tax if elected and will vote against it should it remain in opposition after the August 21 election.
Earlier, Senator Ludlam told the uranium conference that the nuclear power industry was in a long term decline and that there was no economic justification for an expansion of Australia's uranium mining sector.
He said few if any of the new uranium mines planned in WA were likely to be viable.