Independent Andrew Wilkie has threatened the Gillard government's mining tax, warning he will block it unless it is fundamentally redrawn and possibly expanded to capture profits from more mining companies.
Mr Wilkie, the first independent to pledge his support to Labor in the hung parliament, says the proposed mining tax is "unsatisfactory", must be redesigned from scratch and should be included in next year's proposed tax summit along with the rate of GST.
His position sets up a showdown with Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Treasurer Wayne Swan, who wants the mining tax excluded from the summit and has refused to canvass changes to the GST.
Mr Wilkie told The Weekend Australian that unless the mineral resources rent tax was changed he would oppose its legislation if it were introduced into the House of Representatives.
"I think we need to go back to the drawing board because the MRRT as it is currently designed is unsatisfactory," he said.
Although he would not specify his preferred changes to the MRRT, saying experts should be consulted, Mr Wilkie suggested the tax could be applied to a wider number of mining companies.
Mr Wilkie, who said the nation's richest companies could pay more tax, told The Weekend Australian he would write to the prime minister to urge the inclusion of both the mining tax and the GST at the tax summit.
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