Coal lobby uses GST scare campaign to push for coal royalty cuts

The Queensland Conservation Council (QCC) is concerned that a review of the GST is a veiled attempt to help the coal industry avoid paying royalties.

The Queensland Productivity Commission (QPC) announced the review today after months of relentless campaigning from the coal industry against Queensland's coal royalty scheme - a scheme which the Crisafulli Government committed to maintaining ahead of their election in 2024.

QCC says coal royalties are a fair, bare minimum to ensure Queenslanders get a share of the industry's super profits, and that the campaign against the scheme is a smokescreen for their own poor business decisions and a failure to accept the climate reality.

Queensland Conservation Council campaigner, Ms Charlie Cox, says

It's concerning that today's announcement has come after a coordinated attempt by coal companies to pressure the State Government into cutting royalties.

The coal industry wants everyday Australians to pay GST instead of having to pay royalties on the super profits they make from digging up and selling resources that belong to Queenslanders.

We support the Productivity Commission making sure Queensland gets our fair share of GST, but we are worried this is being used as a cover for coal companies who want to pay lower royalties.

Let's be clear: while industry claims this routine GST adjustment 'costs' Queenslanders $3.6 billion over two years, the royalty scheme delivered $5 billion to the state in the last financial year alone. It’s obvious that the real cost the coal companies don't want to pay is the royalties.

Queenslanders overwhelmingly supported changes to the royalty regime in 2022 to ensure that coal companies share a portion of their super profits from our resources. The Crisafulli Government knows this and that's why they committed to keeping the coal royalties when they won Government.

In 2025, Queenslanders, particularly Central Queenslanders, expect coal corporations to reinvest some of the super profits generated from the resources we own back into their regions and their futures. This expectation is an election commitment the Crisafulli Government should uphold.

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