Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has ruled out applying a gas export tax to existing contracts despite overwhelming public support, as pressure for a fairer return from Australia\u2019s gas exports continues to build ahead of the budget.<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has ruled out applying a gas export tax to existing contracts as new Australia Institute polling shows overwhelming support for a levy.<\/p>\n
In a speech to the Chamber of Minerals and Energy of Western Australia (the lobby group representing major mining and energy companies), the PM said it was the \u201cworst possible time\u201d to jeopardise key trading partners.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur gas exports are directly linked to our national fuel security,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is why I can confirm that the budget will not undermine existing contracts on gas exports.\u201d<\/p>\n
His remarks come just a week after a Senate inquiry scrutinised how Australia taxes gas exports, with the Australia Institute warning the delay is costing Australia roughly\u00a0$350 million dollars each week\u00a0in foregone revenue.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn making this decision, the Prime Minister has simply chosen to delay the inevitable,\u201d said Dr Richard Denniss, co-CEO of The Australia Institute.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Prime Minister\u2019s decision to kick the can down the road might feel politically easy right now, but it is going to come at an enormous cost to both the budget and the Australian voters\u2019 faith in their government.\u201d<\/p>\n
The PM\u2019s choice of words sparked speculation that a levy could still be imposed on new gas contracts and the spot market in next month\u2019s budget.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis fight is far from over. Public pressure for a gas export tax is growing by the hour, and the Prime Minister knows it, so he\u2019s keeping the door open ahead of the budget,\u201d said the Senate inquiry\u2019s committee Chair, Greens Senator, Steph Hodgins-May.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0Conservation Council of WA (CCWA)\u00a0said it would be an \u201cinsult to all Australians\u201d amid a\u00a0cost-of-living crisis\u00a0if the Albanese government opted for the status quo.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re\u00a0hoping\u00a0the Prime Minister is\u00a0listening\u00a0to the Australian people and that\u00a0he\u2019ll take steps to get a fair deal from multinational gas giants, considering the groundswell of\u00a0Australians from across the political spectrum\u00a0who\u00a0are\u00a0calling for this tax as a bare minimum,\u201d said CCWA Executive Director Matt\u00a0Roberts.<\/p>\n
New polling by the Australia Institute shows seven in ten voters nationwide agree gas export companies should pay a 25 per cent gas export tax, including four in five Labor voters.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cVoters get that they\u2019re being ripped off by multinational gas companies, and now they know that their Prime Minister is OK with that. I think it is optimistic for the Albanese Government, and the gas industry, to think this issue will blow over,\u201d said Dr Denniss.<\/p>\n
Independent Senator David Pocock, who has been a prominent backer of the policy, told ABC Radio the decision was\u00a0\u201cdisappointing\u201d\u00a0given the groundswell of public support.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is just the start of this campaign. We\u2019re going to see more and more Australians angry with the capture of the major parties by vested interests,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
While West Australian Premier Roger Cook said he thinks a new tax on gas exports would be \u201cbad for WA\u201d, it appears many of his constituents disagree.<\/p>\n
The Australia Institute polling found two in three WA voters (68 per cent) support a tax on gas exports, while more than half do not believe collecting more revenue from gas companies would be bad for the state.<\/p>\n
\u201cDespite companies making billions of dollars from our natural resources, West Australians are wearing the costs. High energy prices, fossil fuel-driven climate\u00a0change\u00a0and climate disasters;\u00a0we\u2019re\u00a0all poorer because of the gas industry,\u201d said Mr Roberts.<\/p>\n
Last week, a Senate inquiry heard evidence over\u00a0three public hearings, with environmental, community and advocacy groups appearing, alongside LNG heavyweights Woodside Energy, Shell, Chevron and INPEX.<\/p>\n
The sector consistently argued that higher taxes would\u00a0risk undermining energy security\u00a0and future supply, particularly amid\u00a0global instability\u00a0and rising demand.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe made our submission to the gas tax inquiry just\u00a0last Friday, yet just days later, the Prime Minister\u00a0is\u00a0here in town eating bacon and eggs with the\u00a0fossil fuel\u00a0lobby,\u00a0giving them the green light, while\u00a0the clear majority of\u00a0Australians\u00a0are\u00a0ignored,\u201d said Mr Roberts.<\/p>\n
Japan\u2019s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi will arrive in Australia on Friday to discuss the evolving global energy crisis.<\/p>\n
The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Mr Albanese said he was\u00a0staking his personal reputation\u00a0on the country\u2019s relationship with its Asian neighbours.<\/p>\n
\u201cAustralia is a reliable supplier of energy. That\u2019s what we do, that\u2019s our reputation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s my reputation as well, as prime minister, and I have good relationships with all of our partners.\u201d<\/p>\n
THIS IS AN ADVERTISEMENT AND NOT AN ACTUAL NEWS ARTICLE, BLOG, OR CONSUMER PROTECTION UPDATE.<\/span><\/pre>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has ruled out applying a gas export tax to existing contracts despite overwhelming public support, as pressure for a fairer return from Australia\u2019s gas exports continues…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1478,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1477","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glowshadow-haven.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1477","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glowshadow-haven.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glowshadow-haven.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glowshadow-haven.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glowshadow-haven.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1477"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/glowshadow-haven.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1477\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1499,"href":"https:\/\/glowshadow-haven.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1477\/revisions\/1499"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glowshadow-haven.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1478"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glowshadow-haven.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1477"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glowshadow-haven.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1477"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glowshadow-haven.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1477"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}