Huge majority give mining the thumbs up NINETY-SIX per cent of Australians say the mining industry is important to the economy and 69 per cent view it favourably, according to a survey that casts doubt on rhetoric that the benefits of the boom are not being widely spread. A Newspoll conducted exclusively for The Australian has found support for the sector is higher among men, at 74 per cent, compared with 65 per cent of women, while 31 per cent of men have a "very" favourable view of the industry compared with 17 per cent of women. A total of 23 per cent of the 1202 people surveyed had an unfavourable view, while just 2 per cent thought it not important to the nation's economy. The survey - taken as part of The Australian's Path to Prosperity series, in association with GE - was conducted before last week's federal budget. GRAPHIC: Newspoll results The findings come amid frustration over budget measures aimed directly at miners, including changes to exploration deductions and a crackdown on multinationals, and also over union arguments that the benefits of the boom are not being widely spread. Nimrod Resources chairman and former Queensland Labor treasurer Keith De Lacy said efforts "to position the resources industry as the enemy has not been successful" and that such efforts were "not only bad public policy but is also bad politics." "I think every person understands that the resources industry is vital to our economic wellbeing and ultimately everybody benefits from a successful resources sector in terms of income, jobs and government revenue," Mr De Lacy said. Anglo American Australia chairman Graham Bradley said the broad community appreciated "what business knows, and that is mining underpins Australia's prosperity and has been an enormous benefit to our most disadvantaged citizens, including indigenous Australians." A separate survey of senior company executives, conducted exclusively for The Australian by Hall and Partners, found that the top impediment to the sector was government red tape, interference or policy. In that survey, 41 per cent cited government as the biggest impediment, but did not detail further the extent to which the issue was with federal, state or local government; that was followed by 40 per cent who cited a lack of foreign and local investment. In a separate question, 55 per cent of managers said typical red tape around government regulations and laws was a bigger impediment to the growth and success of their company than green-tape regulations relating specifically to the environment. Resources Minister Gary Gray said last night the government was committed to working with all state and territory governments to deliver more efficient regulation and there were a range of initiatives by which it could do so, including in relation to coal-seam gas, mine safety and land access. Mr Gray said the implementation of any changes would be subject to consultation, "ensuring they produce intended results while maintaining robust environmental regulation and a safe and sustainable industry." On the minerals resource rent tax, 86 per cent of managers said it had damaged Australia's reputation as a destination for resources investment and 78 per cent did not believe that the MRRT was the right strategy to benefit all Australians. That finding undermines the claims made by Julia Gillard and Wayne Swan that the MRRT would spread the benefits of the mining boom to all Australians and strengthen the whole economy. Minerals Council of Australia chief executive Mitch Hooke said the poll confirmed that the nation's attractiveness as a place to do business was slipping because of a combination of rising costs, declining productivity, increasing regulation and new taxes. "With commodity prices having fallen from peak levels, complacency about the mining sector, emerging protectionist sentiment and backsliding on economic reform pose a real threat to the minerals industry and wider economy," Mr Hooke said. Governments have got to stop throwing sand in the wheels of the minerals industry. If Australia is to capitalise on the volume-led phase of the mining boom, we must acknowledge our drifting international competitiveness and set about remedying the problem. This means removing the road blocks to growth and shifting the political narrative from spreading the bounty of the 'mining boom' to how we continue to grow the industry for the benefit of all Australians. The chairman of Perth-based, Africa-focused uranium miner Paladin Energy, Rick Crabb, said industry wanted government to "promise to leave us alone," as well as more support for research and development. "Just let us get on with it," Mr Crabb said. We are dealing with projects that rely on a long investment cycle.