QUEENSLAND'S resources sector continues to underpin the economy and regional jobs after coal exports set a new State record with 21.43 million tonnes of metallurgical and thermal coal exported in June said the Queensland Resources Council (QRC).

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said the 11 percent increase on the same month last year highlighted the increasing demand from world markets for Queensland’s coal.

“Queensland’s coal is the commodity of choice with our high quality thermal coal needed to power high efficient, low emissions coal-fired power plants in Asia and our metallurgical coal used to make steel is building the bridges and skyscrapers in modern cities,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“The 215,00 men and women working across Queensland’s coal industry can be proud of this achievement and it means more jobs and more revenue for Queensland. Last financial year Queensland’s resources sector paid a record $5.2 billion in royalty taxes with coal contributing $4 billion ($12 million a day) to the Government to help build new schools, hospitals and roads.

“But if we are to support jobs at home and export to the world it is essential that we have stable and reliable regulation for our resources sector in order to attract new investment which benefits every Queenslander. People want industry and Government to work together with communities and wider society to promote effective, constructive, and mutually beneficial relationships."

The data from Queensland’s major ports found the majority were operating above average monthly volumes with the Port of Gladstone recording a 5 million tonne increase in coal exports resulting from improved efficiencies and growing demand from overseas customers.

“Queensland’s exports from all resources earnt over $70 billion for the 12 months to May this year for the first time which represents 81 percent of the State’s record export earnings of $85.8 billion. In dollar terms, exports from the resources sector – coal, minerals and gas – are worth more than $190 million every day,” Mr Macfarlane said. 

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THE Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, Kate Carnell said if the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) re-authorises the Australasian Performing Rights Association’s (APRA) operations, it should be limited to a year-by-year basis until APRA can be more transparent about its activities and provide better coverage to all businesses.

“The ACCC has heard our ongoing concerns over the lack of transparency with regard to APRA’s current reporting obligations,” Ms Carnell said.

“We are not convinced there has been adequate improvement in this area and have today issued a notice to APRA to provide more information about its operations and coverage.

“While the detail of APRA’s operations remains unclear and its coverage of businesses unsatisfactory, we believe the ACCC should refrain from re-authorising APRA for a five year period and instead proceed on an annual basis.

“We note the ACCC will hold a pre-decision conference on the re-authorisation on 19 July.

“In the meantime, we welcome comments by small businesses, including artists, impacted by the operations of APRA and OneMusic," Ms Carnell said.

“In our follow-up submissions to the ACCC regarding this issue we have asked that APRA be required to disclose in detail exactly what licence fees cover, for example artists on streaming services are not necessarily covered by APRA’s licence.

“We have again raised the need for comprehensive community radio coverage so that emerging Australian artists whose airplay is mostly through alternative channels such as community radio, internet radio and other broadcasters are paid the royalties they are entitled to.

“We will also be re-submitting our view that APRA must ensure licence fees provided to venues are tailored for actual use, rather than capacity.

“These and a number of other issues are critical to the future of Australian small businesses and need to be addressed before the APRA licence is re-issued.”

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QUEENSLAND Resourcews Council (QRC) chief executive Ian Macfarlane has released a statement following the resources industry safety summit on Wednesday.

"The Queensland Resources Council (QRC) will work with the government, unions and workers to implement the outcomes of today’s safety summit, including a safety reset to reach every worker on every shift," Mr Macfarlane said.

"The issue of safety is an ongoing top priority in our industry and there is a shared commitment to safety from all in our sector. The recent tragic loss of life and injury must strengthen that commitment and our collective resolve. 

"Everyone who works in a mine or a quarry - or any other workplace for that matter - is entitled to leave for work and return home safely to their loved ones. When resources companies say safety is their top priority, it’s backed with action," he said.

"Each mine in Queensland already has substantial and regular safety briefings and procedures in place.  The QRC has committed to work with the government on the two safety reviews established by Minister Lynham and our member companies have committed to a safety reset across all mines. 

"This reset will be on top of the comprehensive safety briefings that already occur on each mine site. The reset will have the ability to meet mine-by-mine and site-specific requirements to ensure the best safety outcomes," Mr Macfarlane said.

"The objective must be to reach every worker across every shift.  Therefore, these resets will be tailored to the individual sites and their various rostering and operational requirements.  

"QRC will work with the employee representatives - the CFMEU and the AWU - to ensure our industry has the most robust safety culture it can and that two-way conversations between management and operational staff are ongoing."

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The QRC and its members will participate in a safety forum at the annual Queensland Mining Industry Health and Safety Conference next month (18 to 21 August).

We will also work with the Government on reforms to strengthen safety culture in the resources sector. This includes further discussions on sanctions for reckless behaviour, as well as the Government’s proposal for legislation on the offence of “industrial manslaughter”.

We thank Minister Lynham for convening today’s safety meeting and thank all participants for their constructive approach.

GOVERNMENTS at the state and territory level must work together with the Federal Government "to fast track recent commitments on infrastructure, including both transport and social infrastructure projects, in light of today’s very mixed results for building activity,” according to Master Builders Australia chief economist Shane Garrett. 

ABS data released earlier indicate that the total volume of building work done in Australia dipped by 0.3 percent during the March 2019 quarter compared with the last three months of 2018. Compared with a year earlier, the total volume of building work is down by 0.9 percent.

“Commercial building is one of the economy's pillars at the moment," Mr Garrett said. "The amount of work done here rose by 3.2 percent during the March 2019 quarter and has reached a new all-time high.

"Strong population growth is boosting demand for new shops, cafes and restaurants with robust employment growth benefitting office and industrial building activity.

“In contrast, the volume of new home building has fallen to its lowest ebb since the end of 2013. This is mostly due to another sharp reduction in apartment/unit starts during the March 2019 quarter, meaning that high density dwelling commencements have lost 41.8 percent over the past year.

"Continued price falls, tight credit conditions and an absence of confidence have all contributed to the slump. As well as the obvious challenges for the building sector, the housing downturn is also holding consumers back, hurting demand in the economy," Mr Garrett said.

“The figures released this morning take into account activity only up until the end of March. Since then, there has been a bunch of very good news for the building sector with the April budget heavy on infrastructure commitments and the conclusive outcome to May’s federal election.

"We’ve had two interest rate reductions, a significant package of tax cuts passed, the relaxation of APRA’s mortgage rules -- and the new First Home Loan Deposit Scheme kicks off in January.

"We will keenly await building figures over coming months to see how all this good news affects the pipeline of activity," Mr Garrett said. 

“A real opportunity now exists to get all parts of the building industry moving again. We’ve heard lots of commitments on infrastructure in recent times but the challenge now is for federal, state and territory governments to fast track these major projects and get things happening on the ground in a real and tangible way."

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