Andrew Leigh

Yesterday it looked as though we'd get to decide on the future of the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission once and for all. Today, the government has backed away from putting it to a vote. This uncertainty is bad for the charity sector and has gone on long enough.

 MEDIA RELEASE

ALARMED ANDREWS RUNS AWAY FROM ACNC FIGHT

Social Services Minister Kevin Andrews has beaten a retreat from putting his plan to abolish the charities commission to a vote in the parliament, leaving not-for-profits in limbo again heading into Christmas.

Yesterday Minster Andrews finally allowed for debate on the bill to abolish the charities commission, 253 days after it was first introduced to the House of Representatives.

The debate was scheduled to continue today, but the government has now pulled its bill again and will not bring it to a vote before Parliament rises for the year.

Yesterday the government finally brought the bill to abolish the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission forward for debate. I kicked things off for the Opposition by explaining exactly why we need to keep this important, effective agency.

Speech: Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission Repeal Bill (No.1) 2014

House of Representatives

I move:

That all words after “That” be omitted with a view to substituting the following words:

“whilst not declining to give the bill a second reading, the House is of the opinion that the Government’s plan to abolish the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission is an insult to the good work of the charitable sector, and to all Australians who want accountability and transparency when it comes to their generous donations.”

What the charities commission does

Let me start with a story of great concern. It is about some scammers who set up charities with names such as Friends of the Disabled Children's Task Force, Friends of the Underprivileged Children's Task Force, and Chronic Constructive Pulmonary Disease of Australia Incorporated. Australians, inspired by a deep sense of generosity, donated more than $1 million to them. It turned out that there was not much evidence of the money going to the disadvantaged or needy, and those charities have now been shut down.

All scammers are dodgy, but I have always regarded charity scammers as a particular form of low-life. Other scammers exploit greed or lust or ignorance, but charity scammers prey on our goodwill; they take that great Aussie tradition of wanting to help the vulnerable, and they use it to line their own pockets.

Phillip Hughes played 26 test matches, made 26 first-class centuries and died just days before his 26th birthday, following a freak accident while playing for South Australia in a Sheffield Shield game against New South Wales last week. Phillip Hughes's death was the result of terrible luck. The injury that he suffered was an incredibly rare one, with only a hundred cases having been identified in the medical literature and only one previously in a cricket match.

Speech at the opening of the Eugene Anchugov Chinese art exhibition

Parliament House, Canberra

3 December 2014

I acknowledge Philip Ruddock and other members of parliament, Eugene Anchugov, David Fang and Kevin Lui.

Thank you for bringing this extraordinary exhibition to the Great Hall.

When I was in Beijing recently I took some time to enjoy the street-life.

I found myself looking on as a bystander to an unusual calligraphy lesson.

Using water from a small plastic bucket, two men were taking turns painting characters on the pavement squares with a long handled brush.

The brush was about three feet long, so they could paint directly onto the pavement without crouching or bending.

It was in no way clear who was the master and who was the pupil. 

The Abbott Government has decided to use the last two days of parliament for the year to debate abolishing the charities commission. That's an appalling message to send the not-for-profit sector as they're gearing up to help hundreds of thousands of Australian families out over Christmas.

MEDIA RELEASE

CHARITIES COMMISSION KERFUFFLE AN EMBARRASSMENT FOR ANDREWS

The Abbott Government’s plans to abolish the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission are in a shambles, as the government will this afternoon attempt to rush through a pointless bill which cannot pass the Senate.

Exactly one year ago, Social Services Minister Kevin Andrews stood up in the parliament and committed to sending the charities commission to the chopping block.

I spoke in the House to the ACT Government Loan Bill 2014, a bill to assist the Australian Capital Territory deal with the devastating legacy of Mr Fluffy loose asbestos in Canberra homes. 

ACT Government Loan Bill 2014 

House of Representatives 

2 December 2014

The ACT Government Loan Bill 2014 provides the appropriate mechanism for the provision of $750 million in the form of a concessional loan to the ACT government to deliver a program to buy back and demolish houses in the ACT affected by Mr Fluffy loose-fill asbestos. It is part of the $1 billion loan facility agreed between the federal and ACT governments on 28 October 2014. Seven hundred and fifty million dollars will be paid this financial year, with the remaining $250 million to be paid next financial year. The ACT government then plans to buy and demolish 1,021 homes contaminated with Mr Fluffy loose-fill asbestos insulation.

The Mr Fluffy asbestos affair has affected thousands of Canberrans. It involves 1,021 properties across 58 suburbs, directly impacting approximately 4,500 people. The ACT government personal support team has intensively engaged with homeowners to deal with their individual circumstances. They have six officers and a dedicated Canberra Connect task force call team also has six officers. There have been payments of financial emergency assistance to families now exceeding $1.2 million, which includes support for hazard reduction works of properties, temporary accommodation and the replacement of essential contaminated items. This has been deeply traumatic for the many families involved in the ACT. I pay tribute to the Gallagher government for the way in which they have handled this unique situation, which has affected so many Canberrans.

As it becomes increasingly clear that the Abbott Government cannot get some of its most unfair policies through the Senate, I joined GetUp! on the lawns of Parliament to wave farewell to federal budget.

Bon voyage Budget! 

Speech to the GetUp! rally - Parliament House, Canberra

I’m sure I speak for the other two politicians here with us – Clive Palmer and Christine Milne – when I say that this is definitely the coolest event we’ll attend today.

Today is the 160^th anniversary of the Eureka uprising – a demonstration of how people power can change Australia. Now, I’m not urging you to burn your mining licences – those of you who have them – but it is a reminder that people committed to building a better Australia can ultimately prevail.

Friends, Tony Abbott’s unfair budget needs to go. This Budget represents a shift in the burden from the poor to the rich: Robin Hood in reverse. 

With the Abbott Government refusing to back my push for greater tax transparency, I took to the pages of Business Spectator to make the case for more truth and less 'truthiness' in the debate about multinational tax.

The truth about the government's tax stance, Business Spectator, 2 December 2014

If you want to know how your local school is performing, you can check the My School website for data on its results, funding, enrolments and more. If you want to be sure about a company you’re doing business with, you can search ASIC’s registers for details of its ownership, history and past run-ins with the law. And if you want to find out where to eat out, many states and territories have rated their restaurants for food safety (my favourite is Brisbane City Council, which gives all establishments a star rating).

Transparency is valuable in many contexts because it helps us make more informed decisions — whether as parents, consumers or businesspeople. More sunlight provides a strong incentive for companies, organisations and individuals to do the right thing.

That transparency principle underpins the Private Members Bill I’ve just introduced in the federal parliament. The bill aims to put more information about how much tax multinational companies pay into the public domain. With better information out there on the public record, we’ll be able to have a frank and informed discussion about whether big companies are paying their fair share.

As the start of December brings a new Labor government for Victoria, I joined Sky AM Agenda to talk about what lessons the federal Liberals should be taking from the defeat of their state counterparts, starting with their unfair budget.

E&OE TRANSCRIPT

TELEVISION INTERVIEW

SKY AM AGENDA

MONDAY, 1 DECEMBER 2014

SUBJECT/S: Victorian state election; Joe Hockey’s mini-budget; Movember

KIERAN GILBERT: This is AM Agenda, thanks for your company this Monday. With me is the Coalition frontbencher Darren Chester and Labor's Andrew Leigh, the Shadow Assistant treasurer. Gentlemen, good morning to you both. Let's start with the Victorian election again. As a Victorian, Darren, you've said that some federal issues were at play over the weekend?

DARREN CHESTER, MEMBER FOR GIPPSLAND: It is a disappointing result for the Coalition and you need to be a realist in these situations. It was quite a tough environment in Victoria and some of the federal issues were playing into that. I think primarily it was a campaign fought on some pretty tough state issues for the government. The TAFE issue, ambulance pay, the Geoff Shaw disfunctionality that surrounded the parliament there for a couple of months, that made it very hard for Denis Napthine and Peter Ryan to get a clear message out. There's always more than one issue that plays into an election. I think there's no doubt that the tough budget decisions we had to make, and continue to try and implement, have had some impact but I wouldn't overstate that. 

Yesterday I spoke about one of Canberra's great social justice activists who passed away recently. Vale Liz Dawson. 

 In memory of Liz Dawson

House of Representatives 

27 November 2014 

After 18 months on kidney medication, Patrick's teeth had been all but destroyed. He was 39 years old, and he:

‘… grew a five-inch beard to hide his mangled mouth; his four children were embarrassed about the way he looked.’

Patrick was ultimately the beneficiary of a dental program put in place by a Salvation Army worker by the name of Liz Dawson. Liz saw Patrick not as somebody to be feared but as somebody to be helped. That is the way she was: helping Canberrans wherever she could. In another of her projects, she enlisted the help of her own hairdresser, Angelo Cataldo, to provide free haircuts to those who could not afford them in order to make a difference to their self-esteem. One of the hairdressers, Sheldon Brown, said:

‘You forget how important [it is] and how much your hair and your appearance affects how you feel as a person and gives you the confidence to overcome challenges.’