Protect our charities

LUKE GOSLING

WE all know charities are valuable to our community. But did you know that the NT’s not-for-profit sector is worth more than the mining sector, and employs more than double the workforce?

That’s according to a report commissioned by the Northern Territory Council of Social Service (NTCOSS) last year. More than 10,000 people are employed by NT charities, with another 11,000 volunteers on top of that.

The sector feeds over $615m back into the local economy each year.

I’m proud to volunteer with Vinnie’s and veterans’ organisations, and I congratulate all the excellent charities we have working to improve life for everyone in the Top End, such as the Aboriginal Men’s Shelter, Foodbank, Variety, and PAWS, to name just a few.

And that’s why the Morrison government’s proposed governance changes to this sector are so alarming and unnecessary.

They will do real damage.

The only time the Morrison government pays attention to charities is when they want to slap another gag on the sector’s ability to speak up for the Australian people, especially Australians in need.

Ever since they were elected, the Coalition has waged a war on Australian charities.

When the government first introduced these governance changes, they claimed they were cracking down on criminals pretending to be activist charities.

But in the past four years, just two of 59,000 charities have been disqualified for breaking the law. That’s 0.003 per cent.

There is no such thing as a “charity crime wave”.

The changes would merely give the Coalition a new set of tools to shut down any criticism – because they want charities to be seen but not heard.

Charities can already be deregistered for breaking the law, and their staff, members, and volunteers can face penalties.

But the Coalition government wants to go even further: their unfair proposed new rules go far beyond anything that applies to political parties, businesses, or other organisations.

If enacted, a charity could be deregistered for the most minor offences imaginable, like blocking a footpath at a public vigil.

What’s more, a charity could be shut down if the Charities Commissioner believes a minor breach could occur in the future.

That is absurd. It wades into Minority Report territory, where Australians can be punished before they’ve even done anything wrong.

And the Charities Commissioner himself, Gary Johns, has already said under questioning during Senate Estimates that he’s seen no evidence to support the changes to the regulations.

The Liberals’ own review recommended the existing regulations around “unlawful conduct’” should be scrapped, but instead the Morrison government want to dramatically expand the scope of the activities the regulations could capture.

These changes would be terrible for our democracy.

They would severely restrict the extremely important work charities are able to do.

And they have dire consequences for freedom of speech and political communication in this country.

NTCOSS is our peak body for our local community sector.

CEO Deborah Di Natale says, “the regulations are a case of extreme

What’s more, a charity could be shut down if the Charities Commissioner believes a minor breach could occur in the future

overreach and it is not clear what problems they are meant to solve.”

Scott Morrison should not give Commissioner Johns – someone who has criticised Beyond Blue and Recognise, and sees Australian charities as rife with “impure altruism” – more tools to strip the charitable status of organisations that raise their voices to criticise governments.

I have worked in the charities and nonprofit sector, and I stand with faith groups and the community sector who oppose these very concerning changes.

Labor values the contributions that charities and non-profits make to our civil society, public discourse, and the democratic process.

We’ll do everything we can to protect that important role.