David Feeney (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Assistant Treasurer, Senator Sherry. Can the Assistant Treasurer inform the Senate of developments relating to the Victorian bushfire fund and the taxation treatment of the generous donations made to the fund by Australians who are keen to assist their fellow citizens?

Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Feeney—I know you have taken, as a Victorian senator, a keen interest in this issue. Today, of course, the royal commission into the Victorian bushfires will be tabled in the Victorian parliament. It is not appropriate for me to comment on that particular aspect of the Victorian fires, but what I can report to the Senate is that the government has been able to provide additional help to victims of these terrible fires. The additional assistance that has been announced today is by way of removing and clearing some legal obstacles to the wider distribution of the generous donations made by the public, which total a remarkable sum of some $370 million. The Parliamentary Secretary for Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction, Mr Bill Shorten, and I have today announced amendments to the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 to allow the Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund to conduct a significantly broader range of charitable and community activities. The changes will be retrospective from 19 January this year, when the first fires commenced at Delburn.

In summary, the measures will allow the fund to: provide for long-term assistance to orphaned minors, under the age of 18, without the need for annual assessments; provide reimbursements to individuals or organisations for performed eligible charitable activities; provide a discretionary payment of up to $15,000 to assist households for the period in which they are in transitional housing; provide a grant of up to $10,000 to affected primary producers to use for repair and restoration of farm activities, including re-fencing of properties; and establish what is called a ‘look-through provision’ so, if a family has a farm in a trust or company, they will also be eligible for assistance. (Time expired)

David Feeney (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the minister for his answer and I have a supplementary question. Can the Assistant Treasurer please explain to the Senate the process of how these changes came about?

Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Changing tax law is always a challenging process, and in this particular case the circumstances were both unique and unprecedented. Donations have to meet a charitable purpose test for them to be tax-deductible. Many of the purposes under consideration in Victoria would not normally meet this requirement and they would also not necessarily meet what the community would generally regard to be charitable works. But I am happy to say that, through the excellent work of Treasury, the ATO and the fund itself, chaired by Ms Christine Nixon, we have come up with a unique set of amendments that will apply only to the Victorian fires—as I have said, retrospectively. The changes will be governed by a broad principle that outlines that the primary consideration of the fund remains the provision of assistance to individuals and communities in towns and suburbs affected by the bushfires to ensure they are re-established and in a thriving and socially inclusive— (Time expired)

David Feeney (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I have a further supplementary question. What assurances can the Assistant Treasurer give about the Australian government’s continued support for the victims of the Victorian bushfire disaster?

Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The changes I have announced today are another contribution to a significant list of support measures by both the federal Labor government and the Victorian government. But I do also want to acknowledge a number of others who have taken an active and keen interest in this process. I firstly want to acknowledge the interest of the shadow Assistant Treasurer, Mr Tony Smith. He and I have had a number of conversations about these amendments and I would indicate their general support for this approach. I also want to acknowledge three Liberal-National Party members in particular: Mr Russell Broadbent and Ms Fran Bailey, Liberal members of the lower house, and also Mr Darren Chester, National Party member for Gippsland. There has been a great deal of work and consultation on a very, very lengthy and complex range of issues to come to today’s announcement. I am very pleased to report the general support of all those involved. (Time expired)