Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Hansard source

Following last week’s announcement by Fortescue Metals that it has placed two projects on hold worth $17½ billion in investment and up to 30,000 jobs, I refer the Prime Minister to today’s announcement by the head of Rio Tinto, Mr Tom Albanese, that all Rio Tinto’s Australian expansion plans have been put on hold, that capital would shift to other nations like Canada and that the Rudd government’s proposed great big new tax on mining was Rio Tinto’s top sovereign risk issue on a global basis. I ask the Prime Minister: how much damage will the Australian economy suffer before the Prime Minister backs down on his great big new tax on mining?

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