THE Joint Select Committee on Implementation of the National Redress Scheme will begin public hearings this week, helping to shape the recommendations to be made in its Second Interim Report.

The Committee’s First Interim Report, tabled in May 2020, made 14 detailed recommendations that were intended to inform the Scheme’s legislated second anniversary review.

Committee Chair Senator Dean Smith noted that, while the second anniversary review is ongoing, a number of issues associated with the operation of the Scheme need to be considered now.

These issues include defunct institutions and the operation of the funder of last resort mechanism, awareness and access to the Scheme for Indigenous Australians, and the impact of COVID-19 on the provision of specialised redress support services.

Protecting survivors from opportunistic behaviour by legal practitioners, who seek to target them for financial benefit under the guise of assisting with applications, will also be considered.

“The Committee is dedicated to ensuring the National Redress Scheme is continually recalibrated to improve the experience of survivors,” Senator Smith said.

The Second Interim Report is expected to be tabled in Parliament in early 2021.

Public hearing program

Date: Friday, 25 September 2020
Time: 10am to 1pm
Location: via teleconference

Date: Monday 28 September 2020
Time: 9am to 11.15am
Location: via videoconference

The hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live and public hearing programs will be available at the Committee website prior to the hearing.

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THE Australian Taxation Office (ATO) said it would continue to provide ongoing support to employers to assist them to prepare for the next phase of JobKeeper payments.

The JobKeeper Payment scheme has been extended from September 28, 2020, until March 28, 2021.

"There are some key dates to keep in mind, and simple steps employers can take now, so they are ready for the changes, but please remember that not everything needs to be done from next week” Taxation Deputy Commissioner James O’Halloran said.

“From Monday September 28, employers will need to pay their eligible employees a different rate of JobKeeper, with the rate dependent on the number of hours they work. These rates will change again from Monday, January 4,” Mr O’Halloran said.

It is important for employers to let their eligible employees know now what rate of JobKeeper payment they will receive. This will then be the amount that the ATO pays to employers.

“Although you do not need to re-enrol in JobKeeper, you do need to notify us of your eligible employees and what rate you are paying them as part of your normal payday reporting in October. This can easily be done through Single Touch Payroll," Mr O'Halloran said.

“Employers  will also need to nominate any new employees if they  are applying for a JobKeeper payment for them for the first time,” he said.

For the extension period commencing September 28, 2020, employers will need to show that their actual GST turnover has declined in the September 2020 quarter relative to a comparable period. This needs to be done before October 31, 2020. There is an actual decline in turnover test that can be accessed.. Alternative tests for determining actual decline in turnover may be available in some circumstances and the ATO is encouraging businesses to seek guidance if necessary.

“We are here to support employers and we know how vital the JobKeeper payment is to the community,” Mr O’Halloran said.

“I encourage employers seeking advice on JobKeeper to contact their tax agent or call us on our dedicated help line 13 10 20.

“There is also a range of information, fact sheets and videos available from ato.gov.au to help and support you in this process. We’re also preparing translated information, which will be available in 16 languages,” Mr O’Halloran said.

KEY DATES

ATO has advised employers to:

• Now: notify your employees about the JobKeeper payment they can expect to receive.
• September 28, 2020: start paying your eligible employees Tier 1 and Tier 2 JobKeeper rates based on their hours worked. 
• From September 28: if using Single Touch Payroll to notify us of your eligible employees, provide each eligible employee’s Tier as part of your normal payday reporting. Enrol for the JobKeeper payment if you’re doing so for the first time.
• Between October 1–14, 2020: complete your October JobKeeper monthly business declarations to receive your reimbursement for the September fortnights.
• Between October 1–31, 2020: prepare and submit your businesses actual decline in turnover to the ATO.
• Before October 31, 2020: ensure you meet the wage condition for all eligible employees included in the JobKeeper scheme for the JobKeeper fortnights starting September 28, 2020 and October 12, 2020.
• From November 1, 2020: complete your monthly business declaration and confirm what payment tier you are claiming for each employee.

FURTHER INFORMATION

More information on the rates of the JobKeeper payment is available at ato.gov.au/JobkeeperExtension,

For information about current JobKeeper support and assistance available from the ATO and information about the JobKeeper extension go to ato.gov.au/JobKeeper.

Individuals, sole traders, small or medium businesses having difficulty meeting tax and super obligations because of COVID-19 can contact the ATO’s Emergency Support Infoline on 1800 806 218 to discuss tailored support options.

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WORLD Maritime Day is today, recognising the invaluable efforts of millions of seafarers, dockers, ferry and port workers to keep global supply chains operating during the COVID-19 pandemic, while highlighting the plight of hundreds of thousands seafarers who have been unable to return home to their families due to the crisis.

Organised by the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization, the event shines a spotlight on the vital role of maritime workers in Australia’s security and economic success.

The Maritime Union of Australia said that with more than 98 percent of Australia’s imports and exports carried by sea, the COVID-19 crisis has highlighted the urgent need to reinvigorate the nation’s domestic shipping industry.

MUA national secretary and International Transport Workers' Federation president Paddy Crumlin said this year had demonstrated the absolutely essential work of seafarers and dockers, who are ensuring vital medical supplies and essential household goods continue to arrive in Australia.

“As the COVID-19 pandemic threatened global supply chains, the importance of maritime workers was thrust into the spotlight, with their hard work responsible for keeping fuel, food, and other essential goods flowing,” Mr Crumlin said.

“Without the efforts of maritime workers, Australia’s economy would have collapsed, our health system would have run critically short of equipment, households would have been unable to access essential products, and our resources and manufactured goods would not have been exported to the world.

“This invisible workforce responsible for keeping our island nation operating now faces their own crisis, with hundreds of thousands stuck onboard ships, in some cases for up to 18 months, unable to return to their families due to border closures and a lack of government efforts to repatriate them.

“The Australian Government must do more to address this humanitarian crisis by facilitating the movement of international seafarers through the country so crew changes can once again take place.”

Mr Crumlin said World Maritime Day also highlighted the need to revitalise Australia’s shipping industry, including by creating a strategic fleet of Australian-flagged vessels crewed by Australian workers that can improve our sovereign self-sufficiency and the security for our nation’s fuel and supply capabilities.

“As an island nation, maritime trade keeps the economy ticking, but very few large trading vessels still fly the Australian red ensign, which has undermined our economic sovereignty as supply chains become increasingly reliant on foreign owned, crewed and flagged ships,” he said.

“A smart island nation needs a strong merchant navy — a lesson highlighted by this global pandemic.

“As the number of Australian-crewed vessels declines, not only are quality jobs lost, but our country is left vulnerable to global shocks that can disrupt maritime trade.

“Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack put out a statement today honouring Australian seafarers in the same week that he released a discussion paper seeking to further deregulate Australian shipping and destroy our industry.

“This discussion paper is a further step in building on the government's negligence and abandonment of the national interest under the current policy settings which ignore the lessons of COVID and fuel security.

“Decades of neglect have seen the industry hollowed out, leaving Australia almost entirely dependent on foreign flag-of-convenience vessels, often registered in tax havens and crewed by exploited visa workers on as little as $2 per hour, to move cargo around the coast.”

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PERSPECTIVES from local governments will be heard on Friday, along with bodies representing conservation, natural resource management and farming, as the House of Representatives Environment and Energy Committee conducts another public hearing for its inquiry into the problem of feral and domestic cats in Australia.

Committee Chair, Ted O’Brien MP said the Committee’s inquiry haD received nearly 160 submissions which highlight “the complex nature of the legal, environmental and social factors surrounding feral and domestic cats in Australia”.

He said, “Friday’s public hearing provides the Committee with a further opportunity to build upon its evidence base regarding the impact that cats have on the environment and on agriculture in Australia, and the role of local governments and others in responding to the growing cat problem.”

A full program for the hearing is available on the Committee’s website here.

Public hearing details

Date: Friday 25 September 2020
Time: 10.15am to 2.45pm
Location: via teleconference

The hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live (audio only).

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MONASH University’s Master of Business Administration (MBA) has climbed 16 places in the QS 2021 Global MBA Rankings to 73 in the world.

The Monash MBA now ranks in the world’s top 28 percent out of 258 MBA programs from 40 countries. In the Oceania region, the Monash MBA ranks third, a position it has held for the past three years.

The results come after Monash University ranked in the top 5 percent of universities overall in the QS World University Rankings 2021, rising three places to 55th globally.

Monash Business School’s director of MBA programs, professor Patrick Butler, said the latest results cemented Monash’s reputation as a world-leading institution for executive learning.

“The Monash MBA is focused on producing the next generation of top-tier leaders, whether they be corporate heads of business, leaders of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) or start-up entrepreneurs,” Professor Butler said.

“Our MBA programs are dynamic and agile, equipping today’s executives with the business acumen and social skill set to not only lead but also drive positive change in the evolving global business economy.”

The Monash MBA has global reach, partnering with universities and business schools worldwide, including the Shanghai-based China Europe International Business School (CEIBS), which has campuses in Beijing, Zurich and Accra.

Prof. Butler said Monash prided itself on a diverse cohort; the 2020 MBA intake comprises an equal split of men and women from 11 countries, with 17 industries represented. The sectors with the highest concentration of MBA students are construction, manufacturing, and medicine and allied health.

In addition to intensive theoretical study, the two-year program also involves experience-based modules, consulting projects, overseas learning and industry engagement opportunities. 

www.monash.edu

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THE Queensland Resources Council has welcomed a $500 million investment by Glencore which will see its Mount Isa copper smelter and Townsville refinery extend operations beyond 2022.

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said 570 direct jobs would be secured at a time when Queensland’s unemployment rate is forecast to rise to 9 percent due to the impacts of COVID-19 and welcomed an additional financial incentive from the Palaszczuk Government.

“This is a significant investment from Glencore and will be a huge boost to the regional economies in the north and north-west of Queensland with a further 1000 indirect jobs supported,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“An additional financial incentive has been provided by the Palaszczuk Government to assist with the continued operations following constructive discussions between both parties.

“Smelters and refineries generate downstream jobs in the mining equipment and technology services (METS) sector which supply and service the resources industry.

“I visited Townsville yesterday to promote the importance of the resources sector to Queensland’s economic recovery and the feedback I received was the sector’s massive contribution to jobs and regional economies," Mr Macfarlane said.

“The resources industry will continue to play a critical role in keeping Queenslanders working and earning through COVID-19 and will be central to the State’s future economic prosperity post-COVID-19.

“During the COVID-19 response and its recovery, the resources sector has kept as many of the 372,000 Queenslanders who work in or because of our industry working and earning.”

www.qrc.org.au

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THE Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) is urging all tax practitioners to ensure that they take appropriate steps to validate a taxpayer’s identity, and do not risk compromising client data which may lead to fraud.

It follows a recent case where a registered tax practitioner failed to take appropriate steps in handling and verifying client data. As a result, the TPB determined that the agent breached items of the Code of Professional Conduct in the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 relating to competency, honesty and integrity.

• The registered tax practitioner from Western Sydney, was approached by three individuals who asked him to lodge in excess of 100 income tax returns (ITRs) on behalf of their associated employees. They provided false documentation on behalf of these employees. The agent agreed to lodge these ITRs without undertaking any proper enquiries about the identity of these tax payers. The agent’s recklessness facilitated fake tax returns and in turn fraudulent refunds.

• The TPB terminated the agent’s registration and imposed a five year non-application period. On appeal, the Administrative Appeals Tribunal affirmed the TPB’s termination decision, and varied the non-application period from five years to four years, noting that while there was no direct evidence of dishonesty “…the applicant’s lack of rigour in the conduct of his affairs and his apparent disregard for the duties of his role adds up to something that is almost as bad, and which certainly reflects poorly on his integrity and character. He may not be dishonest, but he has not demonstrated the commitment to competent and conscientious behaviour that one would expect of a tax agent.”

Speaking about this issue, TPB chair, Ian Klug said, "The TPB is concerned to have seen a recent increase in cases relating to poor client verification processes. The verification of client data is of utmost importance in the interaction between tax agent and their client. The TPB is shortly to issue a Practice Note, which aims to give clear guidance on Proof of Identity checks and the policy around them.

"All tax practitioners are bound by the Code of Professional Conduct and failing to take reasonable care when verifying an individual’s identity, acts against the public interest in that it risks inaccurate or fraudulent claims and ultimately erodes trust of the tax profession."

About the Tax Practitioners Board

The TPB regulates tax practitioners in order to protect consumers. The TPB aims to assure the community that tax practitioners meet appropriate standards of professional and ethical conduct. 

Twitter_@TPB_gov_au, LinkedIn and Facebook. 

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THE Queensland Resources Council, the peak organisation for the State’s coal, metal and petroleum producers, explorers and suppliers, has welcomed the release of more than 3000sqkm of land in parts of south west and central Queensland near existing infrastructure to fast-track the gas to market.

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said the resources industry had called on the Palaszczuk Government to release more land for exploration to create jobs, boost exports and drive down energy costs to help stimulate the Queensland economy from the impacts of COVID-19.

“The resources sector has played a critical role in keeping Queenslanders working and earning through COVID-19 and is central to the state’s economic recovery. Allowing industry to responsibly develop gas for both the domestic and export markets  will benefit all Queenslanders” Mr Macfarlane said.

“Senex Energy, State Gas, Comet Ridge and Denison Gas will explore the blocks of land with over 450sqkm assigned with a domestic-only condition.

“Senex has also announced a domestic gas supply agreement with the Northern Oil Refinery near Gladstone with up to 2.5 petajoules of gas which will support 32 jobs directly and hundreds more indirectly.”

Mr Macfarlane said Queensland’s oil and gas industry contributes $8 billion to the State’s economy, supports more than 37,000 full time jobs and invests $2.7 billion with local businesses and community organisations.

www.qrc.org.au

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