Queensland treasurer Cameron Dick hands down 2022 state budget with $23.bn in health spending, a payroll tax levy and increased coal royalties
Queensland has announced plans to increase royalties on coal companies amid record profits, as surging prices for fossil fuels help fund investment in the state’s healthcare sector.
The state has also set aside $1.6bn for mental health services over five years, to be funded by a payroll tax levy applied to the largest 1% of businesses. Under the existing scheme, the top tier royalties rate kicked in at $150 per tonne. Queensland coking coal has been selling for about $500 a tonne.Miners will now pay 20% for prices above $175 a tonne, 30% for prices above $225 a tonne, and 40% for prices above $300 a tonne.The high prices have already had a substantial impact on the state’s bottom line – coal royalties income for the current financial year will be more than $9bn – almost triple the projection in last year’s state budget.
The Queensland Resources Council has said previously that increasing royalties “overnight and without warning will have a negative impact on foreign investment and confidence in our industry.”Part of the government’s $23.6b spend on healthcare will go towards a pledge to hire additional 9,450 health workers over the four-year term of the government.New hospitals will be built in Bundaberg, Toowoomba and Coomera.
Among the cost of living measures announced in the budget was $6.8bn in concessions to Queenslanders – a 10% increase from last year, including a $175 cost-of-living rebate to manage electricity costs. It also commits almost $40m to “help protect Queensland’s native animals at risk” across the region, including $24.6m to support the South East Queensland Koala Conservation strategy.
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