QRC boss Ian Macfarlane slams Treasurer Cameron Dick’s 2023-24 coal royalties budget

Cameron Dick’s big royalties-fuelled spend in the regions has not mollified the pugnacious former resources minister as he warns of dark times for Queensland 10 years from now.

(Top left) QRC boss Ian Macfarlane is sharply critical of Treasurer Cameron Dick (right).

Billions of dollars from new coal royalties will soon flow back into Central Queensland to finance large-scale infrastructure projects and cost-of-living relief.

But for Queensland Resources Council chief executive Ian Macfarlane, the regions are still the losers in Treasurer Cameron Dick’s big spending budget.

“What is going to be spent in the regions next year is nowhere near an eighth of what they have collected from the regions in the last 12 months,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“I am very impressed that regional Queensland is getting something back but it is nowhere near an equitable amount.”

The June 13 budget revealed a staggering $15.3bn haul from coal royalties, three times what the government had anticipated.

Mr Dick’s decision to introduce three new tiers in 2022 netted an extra $5.7bn across 2022-23 and out to 2027, the Treasury forecasts the new tiers will deliver an additional $7.2bn on top of the pre-existing royalty structure.

In his budget speech on Tuesday, Mr Dick defended the new regime and said it had delivered a “rich reward” for Queenslanders.

Treasurer Cameron Dick gives his 2023-24 budget speech at Parliament House in Brisbane. Picture: Liam Kidston

“We can deliver our state’s biggest cost of living program, our state’s biggest building program, and deliver lower debt, because of one simple reason: progressive coal royalties,” he said.

“Our decision, to take on the mining lobby, to stand our ground, and to fight for the people of our state, has delivered a rich reward for Queenslanders.”

The budget’s massive capital spend on the back of the coal rush includes a sweep of Central Queensland projects such as $550m for the Fitzroy-Gladstone pipeline project and $50m for the replacement of North Queensland Bulk Ports’ Bowen wharf.

The government has also trumpeted $1bn for the Pioneer-Burdekin pumped hydro scheme west of Mackay.

See all the projects in the government’s $89bn pipeline here.

A Treasury spokesman confirmed on budget day every dollar earned from the new tiers would be funnelled back to the regions.

The budget also invests in the resources sector, including $21m to support gas exploration in the Bowen and Galilee basins.

Ships moored off Hay Point waiting to be loaded with coal. Mr Dick’s budget revealed a staggering $15.2bn haul from coal royalties.

Isaac Mayor Anne Baker said her council was “pleased” with the budget’s investments back into resource communities, particularly its $43.2m allocation for the Isaac Resources Excellence Hub.

But Mr Macfarlane said it was not enough.

“This money is earned in Central Queensland, in the Isaac shire, in the Central Highlands shire, in the Banana shire and it benefits towns like Mackay, who add to that value because they provide the added value in terms of servicing and selling goods, those shires are not seeing $18bn given back to them,” he said, referring to the total royalty collection, which includes petroleum earnings.

He also argued the gush of cash would not offset the potential damage from reduced investment he sees ahead.

Queensland Resources Council chief executive Ian Macfarlane says the royalty regime puts future budgets at risk. Picture: Dan Peled

“When you listen to companies like Coronado, who are based in the US, what they are hearing in the New York market is that Queensland is now a risky place to invest because the government changes the rules and changes the tax rates without consultation,” he said.

“We are hearing the same thing out of Europe and out of the UK.

“The question that is missing is who is going to be paying the royalties in five or ten years’ time?

“What is going to underpin the economy and the state budget in five and 10 years’ time when those new mines aren’t there to replace the mines that will close down because they are mined out.”

“There’s a $96bn contribution to Queensland’s economy from the resources sector.

“That number is going to fall because investors are looking at other countries like Indonesia, America, Colombia, Africa, to make their next investment, and New South Wales and WA of course.”

Originally published as QRC boss Ian Macfarlane slams Treasurer Cameron Dick’s 2023-24 coal royalties budget