Australia’s mining companies spent $22 million to get rid of Prime Minister Rudd

The industry’s national body, the Minerals Council of Australia, spent $17.2 million, mainly on TV advertisements; BHP Billiton spent $4.2 million; Rio Tinto just over $537,000,…

A snip at $22m to get rid of PM, The Age, Mark Davis, February 2, 2011 HOW much does it cost to bring down a prime minister? The answer: a tad over $22 million.That’s how much the mining industry spent in six weeks last year on its campaign against Kevin Rudd’s plan for a resource super profit tax.The advertising and public relations campaign dominated the airwaves in May and June.
But the Australian Electoral Commission’s political spending disclosures for 2009-10, released yesterday, reveal just how much the miners spent campaigning against the plans to levy a 40 per cent tax on their ”super” profits……..

The figures show the industry spent $22.2 million on the campaign which ran from the start of May until late June when Ms Gillard took over and negotiated a compromise on the tax.

The industry’s national body, the Minerals Council of Australia, spent $17.2 million, mainly on TV advertisements; BHP Billiton spent $4.2 million; Rio Tinto just over $537,000, and a smaller lobby group, the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies, just under $274,000……

Mining industry spent $22m on its campaign against Kevin Rudd