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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-11-18 Daily Xml
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Ministerial Statement

CHARITIES

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Minister for Correctional Services, Minister for Gambling, Minister for Youth, Minister for Volunteers, Minister Assisting the Minister for Multicultural Affairs) (14:04): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement.

Leave granted.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Charities play an important role in our society. Without the good work of so many of our charities and the thousands of volunteers and workers who support them in that work, our community would be all the poorer for it. Charitable work is a vital and necessary part of helping the underprivileged and the most vulnerable in our community. So, it causes disappointment and some justifiable anger when some less than honest elements insinuate themselves into the industry to raise money for themselves on the back of people's generosity and desire to help those in need.

In September 2008, amendments were made to the Collections for Charitable Purposes Act 1939 to include increased disclosure by charities, the establishment of a charities website to increase transparency for all licensed charities, and the introduction of inspectoral powers. As a result of these investigations and random audits, two charity licences have been revoked and two refused. I can inform the house that approximately 12 charities are currently undergoing an audit and that the Office of the Liquor and Gambling Commissioner intends to investigate a number of others as a result of complaints, police intelligence and audit processes. These include but are not limited to allegations of fraud, misappropriation of funds, collecting at night, the conduct of collectors, the legitimacy of a charity and being strongarmed into signing an ongoing sponsorship.

We believe that the number of complaints is due to publicity surrounding the investigation of licences and increased information provided to the public through the Office of the Liquor and Gambling Commissioner's charities website. There are 516 licensed charities, and the majority do the right thing. They should be commended for their important role in dedicating their life to making a difference.

However, while the system is working, I believe that we can and should do more to make sure that collection practices are consistent with community expectations. I recently instructed the Office of the Liquor and Gambling Commissioner and the Department of Treasury and Finance to draft a new code of practice to help make charities more transparent and to properly regulate the activities of collectors.

I can advise the house today that a new code has been drafted and will soon be available for community consultation. Under the plan, charities will be required to provide a breakdown of all funds, assets and expenditure to the Office of the Liquor and Gambling Commissioner. This information will be published each year on the charities website. It means that South Australians can look up an organisation before they donate and see for themselves how much of their money would go towards wages and administration and how much would be used for charitable purposes.

The code of practice also proposes restrictions on collection times, which includes telemarketing and door-to-door appeals. Except by prior appointment, a licensed charity must not ask for donations on Easter Sunday, Good Friday and Christmas Day. They can on Saturdays between 9am and 5pm and Sundays between noon and 5pm.

All collectors must be trained and keep a current document on their premises detailing the approximate percentage of donations returned to the charitable purpose. They must offer donors a numbered receipt for their donation that shows the name of the charity. Any contract for donations to be collected on an ongoing basis must be subject to a 10 day cooling-off period.

I can also advise the house that an advice line is being set up through the Office of the Liquor and Gambling Commissioner. It will run between 8am and 6pm. In the meantime, complaints can be made through the Office of the Liquor and Gambling Commissioner on 8226 8500 or the charities website, www.charities.sa.gov.au.

We will be keeping a closer eye on collectors in the lead-up to Christmas, when South Australians are traditionally the most generous. A team of inspectors will hit the streets for a four week blitz, concentrating on shopping centres in the city and metropolitan area without warning. People caught collecting unlawfully will face a maximum of one year behind bars and could be fined up to $4,000.

This process is not about creating a cloud of suspicion: quite the contrary. As I said, the majority of charities do the right thing. We want them to be involved in this process. We want their input. We want to get this right for everyone. Members of the public have the right to know where their hard-earned dollars end up. These changes are designed to increase public confidence, which can only be a good thing for our charities. If they are not doing anything wrong, they have no reason to be concerned.

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