Media Release

KAP Leader and Federal Member for Kennedy Bob Katter has condemned the Government’s new tax hike on motorists and dismissed claims the money raised would fund road projects.

“The cost of fuel in Australia is already exorbitant, in North Queensland we are consistently and continually paying close to $1.60 a litre for fuel.

“Fuel prices already place huge pressure on Queenslander’s weekly budgets, and unlike metropolitan Australia we don’t have the choice of extensive government subsidised public transport systems.

“The Government said the funds from this tax hike would go to improving roads – it will and these roads will be Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. This mob has not allocated a cent to roads north of Townville.

“All these Governments have done is cut, cut, cut. There is barely a dollar allocated for highways in rural and regional Queensland.

“Unbelievable given the Government is going to bring in revenue of close to $2,000 million extra from the petrol tax hike. Rest assured there is more tunnel vision here,” said Mr Katter.

In the 43rd Parliament north Queensland was allocated close to $1,000 million on roads and almost $400 million from the later years of the Howard Government.

“Prior to this Government we benefited from two Cairns overpasses – and significant funds allocated to other areas in the Kennedy electorate such as the Bruce Highway, Hann Highway, Flinders Highway, Outback Way, Wills
Development Road, Phosphate Hill Road, various truck rest areas and boom gate crossings, Cardwell Range, Gairloch floodway, Mulgrave River Bridge, Bruce Highway upgrades, Savannah Way, the Cloncurry truck bypass, and various
‘black spots’.

“So once again I remind the people of North Queensland, when we fill up at the petrol station, we are taxed at 20 cents in the litre.

"When people in the metropolitan areas fill up at petrol stations, they do so with subsidised transportation systems.

“When they go to work they are subsidised, when we go to work we are taxed,” said Mr Katter.

Yesterday the Federal Government announced it would raise the fuel tax by half a cent per litre from November 10, and then an option to continue with six months increments in line with inflation.

The Government is raising the fuel excise tax as a customs tariff rather than pass the laws through the Parliament.

“The Government’s determination to implement this tax is quite cunning and extraordinary – all because they could not get it through the democratic process,” Mr Katter said.