PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Australian government is hoping for an upsurge in resources investment following the dumping of the minerals resource rent tax (MRRT).

“We hope that investors from around the world now look at Australia and realise that we are open for business, and that there are opportunities for them to invest and to achieve a solid return,” Finance Minister Mathias Cormann said on the sidelines of Paydirt’s Africa Downunder conference, in Perth.

The federal government this week secured the necessary votes to abolish the MRRT, striking a deal with six crossbenchers to repeal the tax, including the Palmer United party led by industry heavyweight Clive Palmer.

“The repeal will obviously help to attract investment [and] help to grow the mining industry more strongly, which will generate stronger economic growth and create more jobs,” Cormann said on Friday.

The Minister reiterated the flaws in the tax, calling it the “biggest public policy failure in tax, since federation”.

“It was such a stupid tax, it was complex, it was distorting, it was inefficient, and costly to comply with and administer, and didn’t raise any meaningful revenue,” Cormann said.

The MRRT managed to rake in only A$600 000 in revenue during the June quarter – only one-half of a per cent of the estimated A$150-million revenue forecast at the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook.

The original resource super profits tax announced by then Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, had been estimated to raise A$49.5-billion from 2012/13 to 2016/17. This figure was revised downward to A$26.5-billion over the same period, when previous Prime Minister Julia Gillard introduced the MRRT.

Net revenue from the MRRT at the 2014/15 Budget was expected to total just A$300-million.

“Getting rid of it improves certainty, it improves our capacity to attract investment, to grow the mining industry more strongly, to strengthen economic growth. So that is a good thing all round since stronger growth means better opportunity all round,” Cormann added.