On Tuesday Peru’s Prime Minister Salomon Lerner stated that the new mining tax would help bridge the gap in infrastructure, particularly in areas of extreme poverty.

"The state's responsibility is to shorten the gap in infrastructure in areas of extreme poverty where mineral development takes place. We are going to use this as a fund for even greater investment through public private partnerships where we can make a major infrastructure fund for roads, water and electricity," he said, in statements quoted by Andina.

Lerner said that issues like education and health have budgets set by the treasury, because funding for these programs can not be "in the swings of the ups and downs of mineral prices."

"All social programs, education and health are within the ordinary national income, as the VAT in the country's annual common budget," he told a television channel.

Lerner revealed that new mining companies investing in the country, from this agreement onwards would pay the windfall profits tax on such income.

Speaking before congress last week, Lerner stated that this tax would not affect the investment or the competitiveness of the mining companies, and would provide a $30 billion investment in the mining sector during the next five years.

The government had previously argued that this tax would ensure that mining companies give more revenue to the state, due to the windfall they get from the increase in the price of metals in the international market.

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