❓ Question regarding the necessity of reviewing legacy state agreements related to BHP's iron ore royalty payments, given public misunderstanding. The Minister rejects the need for review, citing previous assurances from the prior government regarding royalty monitoring.
AnsweredQoN 8Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
BHP — IRON ORE
ROYALTY PAYMENTS
8. Ms M.J. DAVIES to the Minister for Mines and Petroleum:
I have a supplementary question. The
Premier is on record as pursuing BHP for short-changing the people of WA under
these legacy state agreements. The minister has said that the deduction is not
due to the legacy state agreement act. Does the minister agree that a review of
these acts is necessary to clear up the misunderstanding that is currently in
the public arena on this matter?
ROYALTY PAYMENTS
8. Ms M.J. DAVIES to the Minister for Mines and Petroleum:
I have a supplementary question. The
Premier is on record as pursuing BHP for short-changing the people of WA under
these legacy state agreements. The minister has said that the deduction is not
due to the legacy state agreement act. Does the minister agree that a review of
these acts is necessary to clear up the misunderstanding that is currently in
the public arena on this matter?
AnswerView source ↗
The simple answer is no. I make it
clear that we are making sure that all companies in the industry pay their
appropriate share of royalties, because we are determined to get all the
royalties that are due to Western Australians. The National Party is not the
first to raise this matter. I draw everybody's attention to the answer
from the then Treasurer and now Leader of the Opposition on 10 June 2015 in
budget estimates to my question to him about the Singapore trading hub that was
being talked about in the media at the time by these major companies. I quote
from Hansard what the then Treasurer and now Leader of the Opposition
said —
We have asked DMP, and it is very
confident, given the simplicity of our arrangements, that there is no evasion
of the value of our iron ore, and therefore diminishing our royalties.
Indeed, the then Under Treasurer
helped out—as is done in estimates—the then Treasurer with the
answer to the question and said —
That is very carefully monitored by
both agencies. To date, no evidence has been raised that the difference between
the benchmark and realised price is anything untoward.
This issue has been around,
according to the reports in the media—because of course I cannot talk
about individual taxpayers—since 2004. Let me make it clear. This is
not a new issue—the use of Singapore hubs. That is why I asked the
member's government what it was doing about it. I was assured by the
member's government that there were no problems. That is one of the
reasons I am proud to be part of the McGowan government, which will leave no
stone unturned on behalf of the taxpayers of this state to get all the revenue
that is due.
clear that we are making sure that all companies in the industry pay their
appropriate share of royalties, because we are determined to get all the
royalties that are due to Western Australians. The National Party is not the
first to raise this matter. I draw everybody's attention to the answer
from the then Treasurer and now Leader of the Opposition on 10 June 2015 in
budget estimates to my question to him about the Singapore trading hub that was
being talked about in the media at the time by these major companies. I quote
from Hansard what the then Treasurer and now Leader of the Opposition
said —
We have asked DMP, and it is very
confident, given the simplicity of our arrangements, that there is no evasion
of the value of our iron ore, and therefore diminishing our royalties.
Indeed, the then Under Treasurer
helped out—as is done in estimates—the then Treasurer with the
answer to the question and said —
That is very carefully monitored by
both agencies. To date, no evidence has been raised that the difference between
the benchmark and realised price is anything untoward.
This issue has been around,
according to the reports in the media—because of course I cannot talk
about individual taxpayers—since 2004. Let me make it clear. This is
not a new issue—the use of Singapore hubs. That is why I asked the
member's government what it was doing about it. I was assured by the
member's government that there were no problems. That is one of the
reasons I am proud to be part of the McGowan government, which will leave no
stone unturned on behalf of the taxpayers of this state to get all the revenue
that is due.
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