Justine Keay (Braddon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I appreciate the opportunity to speak on this important issue because, in my electorate, local charities are the fabric of the local communities and, in every town, those charities are supported almost always by volunteers. They are there to support the disadvantaged and the vulnerable people in my communities who are doing it tough. But it is very clear that this government is continuing to undermine the very work of these very decent, hardworking volunteers as they go about doing this work in these communities. They already undermine these people to such an extent that local charities are too afraid to speak out on issues of importance.

I know from conversations with many local groups that they are too afraid to speak out because they are worried that their funding will be cut. This is the climate of fear that they currently operate in thanks to the government sitting opposite. But now this government wants to go even further and stifle their voice and tie them up in bureaucratic knots. It is some sort of warped priority that this government could claim to be the advocates for free speech when at the same time they make it harder for charitable groups to express a public view. How is it that this government says it's alright for someone to be a bigot but it's not alright for a charity to call for increased funding to tackle homelessness?

Once again, we see evidence that this Prime Minister continues to lurch to the far Right and become captive of the ideologues in the coalition. But, then again, when it comes to supporting our charities, this government has a track record that, by any reasonable measure, it could not be proud of. For six years the coalition had a policy to abolish the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission. The government already forces social services charities to sign gag clauses to prevent them from speaking out on policy issues. Since being elected, there have been multiple ministers responsible for charities, with one minister refusing to meet with the charities commission head. To top it off, before the end of last year, this government appointed as the head of the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission a person who is opposed to the work of charities. Gary Johns might be a nice man—I have never met him—but, from what he has said about charities, he could not possibly be the right person for the job. Any person who attacks the work of beyondblue, supporting vulnerable young LGBTQI people, is clearly unfit for the role.

It is clear that those opposite have not spoken to or engaged in any positive way with charities. Just seven days ago, Pro Bono released a survey and found that that many charities are unclear and uncertain about how they stand to be affected by the government's electoral funding and disclosure reform bill. In fact, 96 per cent of the respondents had not been consulted by the government on this bill.

Last year I had the great pleasure to participate in the Vinnies CEO Sleepout. It is a national program, and I hope everyone has the same opportunity to participate. This campaign is to raise awareness of homelessness and the reasons that people themselves in this situation. Can someone from the other side please explain why this charity should be stifled and tied up in knots through a political disclosure regime? Why should they feel threatened to speak for the need for extra funding to address homelessness?

I do agree that front groups for political parties should have a higher degree of scrutiny. In my state of Tasmania, in the middle of a state election, big, vested interstate interests groups are openly funding a third-party campaign against the opposition party. These types of activities certainly need proper scrutiny and a more timely reporting mechanism. The community should also be given the opportunity to know who is behind the campaigns and how much is being contributed. The community should have the right to know who the puppetmaster is who is pulling the Tasmanian Liberal Premier's strings. But that does not mean that charities such as beyondblue, Anglicare, St Vincent de Paul and many others should be caught up. The government needs to go back to the drawing board and redraft its legislation and maybe even talk to these charities. You could actually learn something for a change. Maybe then we could have a sensible conversation with those on the other side of this House.

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