Helen Haines (Indi, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I move amendments (2) and (4) together:

(2) Clause 2, page 2 (at the end of the table), add:

(4) Schedule 1, page 19 (after line 26), at the end of the Schedule, add:

Part 4 — Disclosure of receipt of donations

Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918

53 After Division 4 of Part XX

Insert:

Division 4A — Disclosure of receipt of donations

307AA Interpretation

In this Division:

$1,000-exceeding sum from a person or entity means a sum of gifts received from the person or entity that is equal to or more than $1,000.

disclosure threshold-exceeding sum from a person or entity means a sum of gifts received from the person or entity that is equal to or more than the disclosure threshold.

gift recipient means any of the following:

(a) a registered political party;

(b) a State branch of a registered political party;

(c) a candidate (including a member of a group) in an election or a by-election;

(d) a group;

(e) an associated entity.

quarter means a period of 3 months starting on 1 January, 1 April, 1 July or 1 October.

307AB Real-time disclosure of disclosure threshold-exceeding gifts

(1) If a gift recipient receives a disclosure threshold-exceeding sum from a person or entity during a financial year, the recipient's agent or financial controller must provide a return in accordance with this section:

(a) within 5 business days after the day the recipient receives the gift (a trigger gift) that makes the sum of gifts received during the financial year a disclosure threshold-exceeding sum; and

(b) within 5 business days after the day of each subsequent gift (a post-trigger gift) after the trigger gift the recipient receives from the person or entity during the financial year.

Note: For the purposes of paragraph (a), it does not matter whether the trigger gift is itself equal to or more than the disclosure threshold.

(2) The return must:

(a) be in the approved form; and

(b) in the case of a return required under paragraph (1)(a) because of a trigger gift:

(i) set out the disclosure threshold-exceeding sum received; and

(ii) set out the amount or value of each gift that makes up the disclosure threshold-exceeding sum; and

(iii) set out the date on which each of those gifts was received;

(c) in the case of a return required under paragraph (1)(b) because of a post-trigger gift:

(i) set out the amount or value of the post-trigger gift that was received; and

(ii) set out the date on which the post-trigger gift was received.

(3) The return must set out:

(a) if the person or entity was an unincorporated association, other than a registered industrial organisation:

(i) the name of the association; and

(ii) the names and addresses of the members of the executive committee (however described) of the association; or

(b) if the gift or gifts from the person or entity was paid out of a trust fund or paid out of the funds of a foundation:

(i) the names and addresses of the trustees of the fund or of the foundation; and

(ii) the title or other description of the trust fund, or the name of the foundation, as the case requires; or

(c) in any other case—the name and address of the person or entity.

(4) An agent or financial controller of a gift recipient must not contravene subsection (1).

Civil penalty:

The higher of the following amounts:

(a) 60 penalty units;

(b) if there is sufficient evidence for the court to determine the amount or value, or an estimate of the amount or value, of gifts not disclosed—3 times that amount or value.

(5) Subsection 93(2) of the Regulatory Powers Act does not apply in relation to a contravention of subsection (4) of this section.

307AC Quarterly disclosure of $1,000-exceeding gifts

(1) If a gift recipient receives a $1,000-exceeding sum from a person or entity during a quarter, the recipient's agent or financial controller must provide a return in accordance with this section within 5 business days after the end of the quarter.

(2) The return must:

(a) be in the approved form; and

(b) set out the sum of the gifts that the gift recipient receives from the person or entity during the quarter; and

(c) for each of those gifts:

(i) set out the amount or value of the gift; and

(ii) set out the date on which the gift was received.

(3) The return must set out:

(a) if the person or entity was an unincorporated association, other than a registered industrial organisation:

(i) the name of the association; and

(ii) the names and addresses of the members of the executive committee (however described) of the association; or

(b) if the gift or gifts from the person or entity was paid out of a trust fund or paid out of the funds of a foundation:

(i) the names and addresses of the trustees of the fund or of the foundation; and

(ii) the title or other description of the trust fund, or the name of the foundation, as the case requires; or

(c) in any other case—the name and address of the person or entity.

(4) Subsection (1) does not apply if the gift recipient receives a disclosure threshold-exceeding sum from the person or entity during the period:

(a) starting at the start of the financial year in which the quarter occurs; and

(b) ending at the end of the quarter.

(5) An agent or financial controller of a gift recipient must not contravene subsection (1).

Civil penalty:

The higher of the following amounts:

(a) 60 penalty units;

(b) if there is sufficient evidence for the court to determine the amount or value, or an estimate of the amount or value, of gifts not disclosed—3 times that amount or value.

(6) Subsection 93(2) of the Regulatory Powers Act does not apply in relation to a contravention of subsection (5) of this section.

54 Subsection 320(1) (after table item 4)

Insert:

I have just given some brief remarks, in my second reading contribution, about the importance of instigating in the federal parliament a law that would include and ensure that we have a $1,000 political donations disclosure threshold. As I said in my second reading contribution, I think it would be extremely important and it would meet community expectations if we were in fact fair dinkum about political donations transparency in the federal parliament, and if we joined with many of our state governments and other jurisdictions around the world in ensuring we truly understand how often donations come through, where donations come through and the amount of donations that come through to our federal parliament, through donations to major parties and, indeed, to Independents as well.

I have moved a private member's bill in this House in regard to these amendments before. The member for Mayo has done the same. There is strong community support to have greater transparency in political donations, and great community support to see the donations threshold lowered from $14,500 to $1,000.

My thoughts on this are very clear. They are contrary, certainly, to what some other members on the other side might have to say about this, but I have great confidence these are amendments that would be supported by the people, and I urge those in this House to support these amendments today.

Andrew Wallace (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the amendments be disagreed to.

Helen Haines (Indi, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I move amendments (3) and (5) together:

(3) Clause 2, page 2 (at the end of the table), add:

(5) Schedule 1, page 19 (after line 26), at the end of the Schedule, add:

Part 5—Disclosure of local expenses

Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918

55 Section 307(1)

Repeal the subsection, substitute:

(1) If no details are required to be included in a return under this Division in respect of a candidate, the return must nevertheless be lodged and must include:

(a) a statement to the effect that no gifts of a kind required to be disclosed were received; and

(b) if the candidate is:

(i) a candidate in an election of a member of the House of Representatives for a Division; and

(ii) endorsed by a registered political party in that election;

a statement of the amount of electoral expenditure incurred during the period to which the return relates by or with the authority of the registered political party (or by an associated entity connected with the party) specifically in respect of the House of Representatives election for that Division; and

(c) if the candidate is:

(i) a candidate in an election of Senators for a State or Territory; and

(ii) endorsed by a registered political party in that election;

a statement of the amount of electoral expenditure incurred during the period to which the return relates by or with the authority of the registered political party (or by an associated entity connected with the party) specifically in respect of the Senate election for that State or Territory.

As I said just now in my speech in regard to this bill, I applaud the government for endeavouring to improve transparency when it comes to electoral reform. I do wish, though, to help the minister here and help to improve this bill, because I think it can be improved. My first amendment attempted to do that.

As I pointed out to the minister in one of my meetings with him, it is common practice for candidates from major parties to lodge individual AEC returns that state they receive no money whatsoever during an election, and quite obviously this is untrue.

This is a problem because political donations come straight into party headquarters and a combined return is put forward. I think that what's really happening here is that there is a clear exploitation of a loophole to ensure that the public is left in the dark about how much money is actually spent in each electorate, and I think that's a problem. The public have that information about Independent candidates. They know exactly how much was raised and how much was spent. What this amendment seeks to do is improve transparency in our electoral act and to ensure that, for every candidate—every person who runs for election—when they put their AEC return in, it is absolutely clear how much money has been spent, by electorate.

Andrew Wallace (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the amendments be disagreed to.