First, tax incentives do work, at least here in the States, to encourage private capital to enter the market place. That capital, in general through direct participation in exploration activities, creates jobs and opportunity.

The short-term impact on government budgets is blunted by revenues coming in from new sources. Wage earners are paying taxes as opposed to collecting from the government dole, and the government receives increased sales taxes and royalty income from new production.

Mitigation of potential abuse should be viewed as a solvable problem rather than a stumbling block to progress.

Second, the resolution of Native Title issues should be paramount.

We have been stymied since 1996 on a very attractive block due to the glacial progress in resolving this divisive problem!

The tax revenues that the Government of Queensland could have been collecting all these years, the jobs that were not created, and the long-term consequences to the economy ought to have taxpayers asking the politicians some hard questions as to why they have had their heads in the sand for so long.

Exploration dollars that would have been spent in Queensland have gone elsewhere.

Many of your smaller companies are looking for opportunities here because of the exasperating delays. Just read the headlines in your own publication.

As the president of a Texas exploration company that would like to do business in Australia, I hope that the resolution of Native Title comes quickly and that the Government of Queensland will begin to take a pro-active role in the fashion of the South Australian government.

Best regards from Texas,

Kevin Curtis

CG Operating, Inc.

Austin, Texas