Carbon cop handed tough new powers

As part of the government's carbon tax package released yesterday, the new Clean Energy Regulator will be given extensive powers to conduct investigations on company premises, compel people to testify even if it requires providing self-incriminating evidence and to make copies of sensitive documents, according to a report by The Australian.

The new regulator will enforce the new six cents per litre fuel tax that will be charged to some 60,000 businesses, among other measures introduced as part of the carbon tax, the report said.

The new powers given to the regulator come with the threat of up to 10 years in prison or up to $1.1 million in fines for corporations that do not cooperate or who break the carbon tax laws.

Australian Tax Office data shows that this tax increase will directly affect up to 60,000 businesses from 1 July, 2012, and nearly 100,000 companies when an additional 40,000 road transport businesses are captured by the tax on 1 July, 2014," an MCA spokesman said.

He added that it would raise $3.3 billion in the first three years and $16bn to 2020, including the change to aviation excise.

The government has consistently claimed the tax would directly apply to only 500 firms. Last night it argued the fuel treatment in the scheme did not change those figures as the companies concerned faced no extra administrative arrangements and were not liable to directly pay for pollution permits. This was limited to about 500 companies that emitted more than 25,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent a year and would be liable to pay for pollution permits.

The MCA spokesman said that, based on Australian Taxation Office data, from July 1 next year, 22,500 construction firms, 5300 manufacturing businesses and 1500 mining operators would pay more for fuel.

A spokesman for Mr Combet said the government announced on July 10 that there would be a carbon price for off-road business fuel use through reduced fuel tax credits -- but this would not apply to the agriculture, forestry and fishery industries. He said households paid 38c a litre in fuel excise and would pay no more.

"By contrast, off-road business fuel use is normally free of excise, due to fuel tax credits," he said. "The government will reduce the fuel tax credits by around 6c a litre. This will not impose any additional administrative burdens because businesses already fill out the forms for fuel tax credits, but it will create incentives to improve fuel efficiency and lower pollution from the transport sector."

Tony Abbott, speaking yesterday in the northern NSW electorate held by Tony Windsor, taunted Julia Gillard to resume her carbon tax promotion tour. "The Prime Minister is hiding . . . refusing to talk to the Australian people," the Opposition Leader said. "Not only did she not wear out the shoe leather, she didn't even wear the shoes in. At the first sign of a blister she's back in her office hiding . . . because she knows the more she talks about this tax the less people like it.