The announcement was immediately criticised by the Greens and the Coalition,with Greens MLC Abigail Boyd labelling the increase an “insult” and “wholly inadequate”.
“A 2.6 per cent increase to coal royalties,with a 12-month delay,is an insult and shows just how cosy with,or fearful of,the fossil fuel industry this NSW Labor government is,” she said.
Opposition leader Mark Speakman said the royalty hike was a “$2.7 billion tax grab” and a “broken election promise”,underlining Mookhey’s pre-election promises of no new taxes.
“This will have an impact on electricity prices,” Speakman said. “This potentially has an impact on jobs. This is a government that says one thing before the election and does something completely different after the election.”
Ahead of the government’s first budget on September 19,Mookhey said the increase would have a negligible impact on power bills,while the proceeds would help mitigate a $1.3 billion write-down in royalties revenue.
“The existing coal royalty system is out of date. That’s why we are modernising these rates to ensure that the people of NSW do indeed share in the wealth that their resources create,” he said.