In a statement aimed at expanding the argument against the Minerals Resource Rent Tax, MCA noted that $A34.7 billion was spent in 2011-12 by the mining industry on community development, a sum many times larger than the projected returns from the MRRT.
 
The survey of 25 Australian mining companies, explorers and resources contracts by corporate social responsibility consultant Banarra tracked spending on indigenous contractors and local suppliers as well as community infrastructure including healthcare centres, education and training, sporting clubs, swimming pools and transport services.
 
MCA chief executive Mitch Hooke said community spending by the mining sector over the 2011-12 period exceeded the industry’s tax and royalty payments, which Deloitte Access Economics estimated at $21 billion.
 
“The scale of industry’s community contribution demonstrates that the best way to maximise a social return from Australia’s resource endowment is to ensure the mining sector remains globally competitive and continues to expand,” he said.
 
“A third layer of taxation on the minerals sector in the form of the MRRT takes Australia in the opposite direction.
 
“It undermines our competitiveness and acts as a disincentive to invest in Australian coal and iron ore projects.”
 
Last month, the federal government announced the release of a draft measure to repeal the MRRT on grounds the tax had failed.
 
The proposal to abolish the tax from July 1, 2014 cited high compliance costs on one of the country’s most important sectors and damage to business confidence critical to future investment in jobs.
 
Hooke said the latest data on the mineral industry’s community spending would be even higher when the contribution from all mining-related companies was considered.
 
“The industry’s tax and royalty payments coupled with the community spend shows that mining will continue to make a very large social and economic contribution after the MRRT is abolished,” he said.
 
“The industry’s community contribution is another demonstration of the mining sector’s commitment to sustainable development in the conversion of natural endowment of social capital as well as economic dividends.”
 
According to the MCA, minerals industry spending over 2011-12 on “hard” infrastructure including schools, libraries and museums as well as “soft” projects such as financial systems and health care totalled $91.9 million.
 
Education and training spending was $37.1 million while spending on local business development and support came to $32.1 million.
 
Land access related payments, including native title, heritage and mine development payments, represented the largest community spending block by far with $259 million paid over 2011-12.