Don't do it Swanee! Don't water down the RSPT

Here I was thinking that at last the big bloated mining companies operating in Oz might finally be made to pay a realistic tax on the huge profits they make out of a very finite resource.
Even in the middle of the global financial crisis they were all doing nicely thank you.
I switch on the radio today and find that Swan and Bowen are being tipped to back down and give in to the dishonest media campaign those same big miners are running.
Don't do it fellas - those Aussies battling their way towards retirement and facing less and less in the way of social infrastructure to help in old age are standing squarely behind this tax rearrangement.
Swanee - forget the meeja, ignore the polls, remember the people!

How some of that filthy lucre's adding up:
17 May 2010 Leighton announces third quarter profit of $400m and $37.5bn of work in hand....These are strong results for the nine months which reflect solid performances in mining and infrastructure
26 Feb 2010 ... Perilya announces net profit after tax of $28.5 million in six latest month report.
Rio Tinto's net profit after tax came to $5.43 billion in 2009
Fortescue Metals Group reported net profit after tax for the 12 months to June 30, 2009 of $626.13 million
30 June 2009 On an underlying basis, Centennial returned a record $82.0 million after-tax result.
9 September 2009 Hillgrove Resources Limited (ASX: HGO) is pleased to announce a net profit after tax (NPAT) for the six months ended 31 July 2009 of $53,973,885 (2008 6 months: $2,208,242 loss) after tax expense of $27,170,778
Industrea have announced an adjusted net profit after tax (NPAT) of $41.3 million for the 12 months to 30 June 2008, up 122% from the previous year's result
2008 Alumina Limited's net profit after tax for 2008 was $168 million...AWAC's 2008 net profit after tax was US$592 million compared to US$953 million in 2007
ERA's net profit after tax for the full year ended 31 December 2008 was a record $221.8 million, compared with $76.1 million for the same period in 2007. Earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) were $318.0 million (2007: $108.0 million)

Australian Federal Election 2010: Bowen does Hartsuyker on superannuation

Australian Federal Minister for Financial Services, Superannuation and Corporate Law and Minister for Human Services Chris Bowen, speaking of NSW Nationals MP for Cowper Luke Hartsuyker, according to Hansard on 24 May 2010 courtesy of OpenAustralia:

One month ago the shadow minister for superannuation—and, yes, there is one; it is the member for Cowper—gave a speech to the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees.

It was a scripted, written speech.

As far as we know the member for Cowper might have even rehearsed in front of the mirror, so we should have been able to take what he said as the gospel truth.

He said that the opposition in government would allow people over 50 to make concessional top-ups to their superannuation payments.

That was a commitment from the shadow minister for superannuation.
It lasted one month.
On 19 April this was announced as policy by the shadow minister for superannuation.
On 19 May, the shadow minister for finance announced this was no longer opposition policy; it had been discontinued.
It lasted a month. Their commitment to people aged over 50 lasted a month.
How inconsistent can you be?
But the Leader of the Opposition is probably very pleased with this. He is probably pleased with the inconsistency.

We're all in trouble when the Australian coal industry lobby begins an advertisemnt with this graphic

A NewGenCoal online advertising link to its website on 24 May 2010

Not everyone stays on a webpage for the complete advertising slideshow and so might not be aware that the people at NewGenCoal are actually referring to climate change denialism in this graphic - not their own stated position on global warming.

Still, this image does feed the prejudice of some in the Australian energy sector.......

Remember when overseas travel was an Oz rite of passage?

Remember when overseas travel was an Oz rite of passage? When dressed in our best clobber we boarded that ocean liner or hopped on a Qantas or Boeing flight and, with a letter of introduction to Grand-aunt Susan's second cousin once removed in the north of England, we headed overseas on our great adventure? One of the lucky few who had managed to scrape together the money for such a luxury or perhaps one of the very privileged who had received enough money to cover travel costs as a 21st birthday gift. Well times have changed. Today's global travel is inexpensive by comparison and Generation Y is lapping it up.
According to Roy Morgan this month:
"The majority of Generation Y have moved out of home according to a recent study by Roy Morgan Research. In the 12 months to March 2010, only 25% of Gen Y now live with their parents (down from 51% five years ago), with 40% living with a partner, 27% in a shared household and 8% in some other arrangement. Additionally, 27% of Gen Y now have children.
More than half of Generation Y have completed a tertiary qualification or are still studying at a tertiary institution (53%) with 45% of them currently in full time work.
Almost all Gen Y (95%) have accessed the internet in the last 4 weeks, with 80% having accessed a community or messaging site, such as Facebook, and 27% having bought, sold or shopped online in the last 4 weeks. 62% also agree that they 'are always ready to try new and different products' — higher than both Gen Z (58%) and Gen X (57%)." and

"Gen Y * is more likely than other generations to have taken at least one overseas holiday or leisure trip in the last 12 months, according to the latest Roy Morgan Research Single Source data.

In the year ended March 2010, 25.4% of Gen Y had taken at least one overseas holiday or leisure trip in the last 12 months, ahead of Baby Boomers (22.6%), Gen X (17.7%), Pre-Boomers (15.4%) and Gen Z (14.8%).

* Gen Y is defined as Australians born between 1976 - 1990; Gen Z between 1991 - 2009; Gen X between 1961 - 1975; Baby Boomers between 1946 - 1960; and Pre-Boomers 1945 or earlier.

"As Generation Y of Australia age, move through the life stages, and become increasingly wealthy over the next decade they could potentially represent a larger proportion of tourism expenditure in Australia. The challenge is that many of Gen Y are choosing an overseas holiday rather than a domestic one.
"Gen Y have diverse cultural backgrounds, but as a group they are highly educated and career minded. Roy Morgan Research has recently released a report on Gen Y Holiday and Leisure Trends which can assist tourism operators and destination marketers in understanding what motivates Gen Y, how they relate to the world, and how to communicate with them."

Vandals told to take up a sport or start knitting

Haylee Gough, Chloe Duroux, Lily Porra and Tayla Lambeth are Year 6 students at Grafton Public School. They penned the following piece for the local paper, The Daily Examiner.

Stop the vandalism

AS Year 6 students we are all sick and tired of inconsiderate vandals destroying our schools almost every weekend, disturbing our schoolwork, costing us money and forcing someone else to clean it up.

These thoughtless people are disturbing our schoolwork. Children can't work in their classrooms if the general assistant or their teacher is cleaning up the mess or something is being replaced.

Vandalism is costing schools across Australia millions of dollars a year. This money could be better spent on school resources, sports equipment and electronics, like whiteboards and computers.

Someone always has to clean up the mess, whether it is the cleaner, general assistant, teachers or maybe even the students. It is very dangerous to clean up broken glass and burnt property.

In conclusion, we insist that these vandals stop what they're doing NOW! If they're so bored on the weekend, why don't they take up a sport or start knitting.

Source: The Daily Examiner, 25/5/2010

Nats Kevin Hogan spins the resource profits tax for his NSW North Coast audience

Well one NSW North Coast Nationals federal candidate in this year's Australian federal election, Kevin Hogan, thinks he has finally found a local issue on which to hang his hat.

His 25 May 2010 letter to the editor in The Daily Examiner suggests that the new resource profits tax and rebate scheme (an opt-in replacement of the crude oil excise operating in parallel with state royalties) will seriously impair Metgasco's Casino project:

A tax too far
I MET with representatives from Metgasco last week.
They are gravely concerned that the Rudd Government's proposed new Resource Profits Tax will in their words 'seriously impair' Metgasco's Casino project.
They have written a letter to Kevin Rudd expressing their concerns.
Metgasco has invested tens of millions of dollars in the project to date.
It has the potential to offer local jobs and boost the local economy.
It also will offer a supply of 'clean' energy to the Northern Rivers, replacing some of our reliance on coal-powered energy.
This project does not deserve to be killed off by another bad policy decision by the Rudd Government.
Local jobs are more important than Labor taxes to pay for wasteful spending.
KEVIN HOGAN, Nationals Candidate for Page

Predictably Mr. Hogan has gone electioneering without looking into the company background.

In 2007 Metgasco Ltd received a $1 million grant from the Australian Government to assist with its exploration and development in the Clarence-Morton Basin [RWE Australian Business News, 1 May 2007].

Three years later in April 2010 Metgasco told the Excellence in Oil & Gas Conference that it had "A$29 million" in cash at the end of 2009, no debts, energy resources (ten gas/oil exploration wells showing significant coal seam gas reserves ) in trial production with good profit margins anticipated once fully operational and, that the Casino power station had reached development application stage.

According to what the company told ASX at the end of April it is continuing to investigate gas commercialisation opportunities and currently in discussions with several prospective customers and will be progressing its exploration and testing activities.

The company's share price is also tracking above the last ordinary share issue listed price of 11 May 2010, according to the Australian Securities Commission this week.
This despite the fact that share price had been steadily falling between mid-April to early May this year:



















[ASX,Metgasco Ord,Chart of daily prices over 6 months,Dec 2009-May 2010]

Indeed to date the company has never again reached the heady days of 2007 and 2008 when it share price went over the dollar.

Despite the Nationals candidate's protestations, the 11 May budget night announcement does not appear to have affected this company's Casino project. Something a spokesperson had to concede to The Byron Shire News on 11 May 2010.

The fact is that at this point in time Megasco is more an exploration company, rather than a fully operational development and production company generating strong positive cashflows and demonstrating significant value creation.
Therefore it is nowhere near attracting any form of 'super profit' in the foreseeable future.
The company would appear to be some years off from paying any appreciable level of tax directly to federal or state governments.

Metgasco is just another mining company lobbying against the prospect of paying a decent return to the nation when the good times roll and, Kevin Hogan just another wannabe politician happily stirring the pot in pursuit of his own ambitions.

***************************************

Hogan's attempt to spin the deferred national emissions trading scheme met a similar response from a NSW North Coast resident in The Northern River Echo on 13 May 2010:

Carbon dating
Kevin Hogan levels the charge at Kevin Rudd that the Prime Minister only believes in the latest opinion poll on an issue (Echo, May 6). Amongst other things, Mr Hogan links this claim to the deferral of the emissions trading scheme. Maybe Kevin Hogan doesn't study opinion polls because they have consistently shown over the last few years that the vast majority of Australians do want to see government action to decrease carbon pollution. Recent polling has the figure running at 65% in favour and it has been higher than that. The federal Labor government has attempted to get a price on carbon pollution and did strike a deal with Malcolm Turnbull to get the carbon pollution reduction scheme through the Senate. The Liberal/National coalition then moved to change its leadership to prevent the scheme from being enacted. Global warming may still be the greatest moral issue of our time but the Liberals and the Nationals do not believe that it is, and are doing all they can to make sure this Labor government does not get an emissions trading scheme underway. The electorate will have the opportunity to break the deadlock in the Senate at the next election. Maybe then we won't be in a position where the coalition blocks everything socially and environmentally progressive. A delay is not a backflip when the people creating the delay are the opposition parties. The cowardice on the issue of carbon pollution and global warming is being displayed by the Liberal/National coalition.
Eric Kaiser,Kyogle

Mid-week blues......