Yabby>> Sonofgloin, your figures don't make a lot of sense, are you even
allowing for dividend imputation? Keating was smart enough to realise
that income should only be taxed once, not twice.<<

Yabby these figures are not company EBIT results. They are from the taxation office and simply display a six year growth of tax revenue to the govt. Div imputation has nothing to do with it. But as I said to Thinker you are right in regard to my conclusion getting lost on the way.

Sonofgloin, they might represent tax revenue, but it
would depend on the tax office accounting method.

BHP for instance, pay 6.3 billion$ in tax to Govts.
But that is not the end of it. Super funds and some
private individuals, pay less then 30% tax. So the
Govt would have to pass on that money to them and it
could not be calculated as income. Other individuals
pay more then 30%, they would have to pay extra on
those dividends.

So it really depends on which figures that you are
comparing, for net company tax income would vary,
depending on the income of shareholders and wether they
are Australian or not.

Yabby, can't disagree with that lot, but it gets away from the reason I quoted the ATO stats. Company tax was 45% in 1990; it is 30% soon to be 28% in 2010. In the last six years state taxes increased by 25% and federal by 33%. We are paying more personal taxes because corporate is paying less.
The mining segment is only 8% of GDP, while the service industry is 70%, but how do you tax an industry as diversified as the service segment, mostly small businesses, and a core of voters in their own right, you don't. You can't hook into the manufacturing industry; they’re on their knees now. So you hook into the eggs already in the basket, miner’s profit. No core of voters to upset, except the shareholders and they generally do not vote Labor.

If the Rudd govt had brought in the mining tax to fund the health system, it would be the sort of compassionate Labor policy that has lifted our standard of living. But it is being implemented to pay back the money we did not owe two and a half years ago. Instead of adding taxes, they should manage our money more constructively, they have plenty of it. Our tax revenue went up by 40% in the last six years and I don’t see anything around me that is 40% better. In fact it’s 40% worse.

*Company tax was 45% in 1990; it is 30% soon to be 28% in 2010.*

The reason they changed that, Sonofgloin, is to try and make
Australia competitive with the rest of the world. Many global
companies can pick and choose from where they operate. An
American company might base its SE Asian headquarters in
Sydney, Singapore or Hong Kong. Without corporate investment,
you don't have jobs, its as simple as that.

*Instead of adding taxes, they should manage our money more constructively,*

Ah, there we completley agree! The way Canberra pees money
up against walls, never ceases to amaze me. If I managed
my own money the way they waste my tax dollars, I would have
gone broke years ago.

That's why I liked Costello as treasurer. He spent alot of
this time arguing with Howard, as he felt the best place
for taxes was to give it back to taxpayers where possible.

the real issue...is re super/profits///thats just not about mining..BUT about all super/profit...like that bankers get...or anyione gets...thats abouve their basic income

see that a super proffit...is/should be based on a bonus
a special bonus...like set a basic wage...for managers....at a prorata/rate..average...and anything abouve that...gets a super tax

i watched abc/news...some room..filled with miners...in suits
the thought occured...what is THEIR GROSS INCOME...for the room of fatcats...

[ok it could just as easy have been a room full of bwankers...in 10,000 dollar suits...or footballers...'earning'...6 million per year

BUT THE CONCEPT IS SOUND....look at clever lawyers..[or accountants..they are GREAT at minimising..tax they owe...at the bottum,..of harbours....THESE CLASS..GET THE PERKS...and the bonus...GROSS BONUS/BRINGS DOWN THEIR TAX

well enough..is enough...the average footballer...gets 70,000..per anum...any more..they pay[25 percent...SUPER TAX...the average banker...gets 200,000...OK ANYTHING MORE THAN THAT..pay ya tax

the normal lawyer..gets..100,000..anything more...supertax it
yes you say..but some work harder...ok they prove it..and get compensated...

but the default being..the top 20 percent..pay the tax...in every area

some other things been bugging me...bhp..got income of 120 million[say]..but paid tax only on 20 million...why..BECAUSE..the rest went to fat cats...and buyouts...and new investment...ok we can live with this

BUT as a smoker..i got shafted..[no representation..should mean no tax...yeah right...the govt is bending over...so they can get shafted by the fat cats...yet again...they got govt ear...just lok at how..states..have gifted them with reducing royalties

govt[fed/govt/...should makle up the difference...any state,,plat\ying such games..simply loses..the royalty..they forfeited...

BUT FED MAKES SURE ITS PAID IN FULL..[if the states dont want it,FED should make sure..what is taken..is paid for..at a real value..full royalies

another thing..is to tax...those big machines..when they get exported/..our currency..devalued..to pay for that...tax em whenm they go overseas

they claimed tax deductions..thus they belong to govt/the people

further...those...jobs...lol..
they bring in workers..locals dont get them jobs

further...most sales are on forward con-tracts...many miners only are/..'miners'...to forward trade in metals...tax them too

we need a transaxction tax..one percent
we need an export tax..two percent
we ned a super gains tax...its time them fatcats paid their way

we pay for infastructure...they get the gain...its moraly corrupt

The figures you researched re GDP Sonofgloin are definite indicators or the real situation, it does illustrate the true picture , the mining segment is only 8% of GDP.

Your analysis Sonofgloin I agree with, I too, am most probably an aggrieved taxpayer. But I also think it possible, that as well as overstating the contribution that Mining makes in Australia vested interests overstate the extent of Australia's debt.

If the Rudd Govt had to bail out its banks, as was the case In the US and Europe etc the deficit would have been much worse for Australia so I think Australia,s deficit at this stage is manageable. Not overly excessive.

In fact Treasury predicts surplus in 3 yrs. Why isn't that, "where we would like to be in 3yrs" in any case ?.

THe Rudd Govt has been naive, in-experienced, even sloppy, but economically (big picture view), they haven't done too bad at all.

It just can't be a good thing, for a young democracy like Australia to allow an Industry contributing 8% of GDP and "a govt in exile" ruling from the Senate, blocking and frustrating advertise it's way to power, or to dictate the terms of the next election, through media manipulation.

We could have had an ETS except for the black knight, Tony Abbott stepping in, in defence of Big Business undermined Malcolm Turnbull's leadership and changed that. With or without the approval of the Greens we could have had an ETS.

And now we can have a mining tax, thats returns Australia's budget to surplus in 3 yrs adds to our national savings, infrastructure investment, provides tax cuts for small/ medium businesses etc . Not meaning to overstate the upside of an SPT for Miners.