One down, one to go: Dangerous anti-charity regulations scrapped; Senators urged to block undemocratic new ‘political campaigner’ Bill
The Human Rights Law Centre has welcomed the news that the Senate has voted to disallow the Morrison Government’s proposed new anti-charity regulations.
The dangerous regulations would have handed the Charities Commissioner extraordinary and far-reaching powers to deregister charities for the most minor of offences like blocking a footpath at a vigil, or if they thought it was likely a minor offence may occur in the future. To prove compliance, charities’ time and donations would have been tied up in unprecedented red tape and legal fees, depriving communities of vital support.
The regulations were defeated after Senator Rex Patrick introduced a disallowance motion in the Senate, which passed by 24 votes to 19 on this afternoon.
Human Rights Law Centre Senior Lawyer Alice Drury said:
“This is an important win for human rights and for charities across Australia at a time when their advocacy is more important than ever.
“Australian charities have been on the frontlines, helping Australian communities survive the pandemic and during the bushfires before that. The Government should be welcoming charity advocacy in this time, not silencing them.
“These proposed laws were a case of extreme overreach and have no place in our democracy. It is good that they have been scrapped. But they should never have been introduced in the first place.
“These dangerous proposed regulations are part of a broader trend in which charities, communities and individuals speaking out on important issues like climate change are increasingly being targeted, prosecuted, intimidated and harassed.
“The attacks on our charities by the Morrison Government need to stop.”
The win for charities comes as the Morrison Government is also attempting to rush a new Bill through the Senate which would discourage charities from spending resources on important issues-based advocacy around election time.
The Government made last minute amendments to the Electoral Legislation Amendment (Political Campaigners) Bill 2021 (Cth) which would operate retrospectively to misleadingly label some charities as “political campaigners”. The last-minute amendments worsen the already regressive Bill and create significant legal uncertainty for charities.
The Government has given no reason for not including these changes in the original Bill or the sudden urgency to have them passed. Yet they have blocked attempts to have the Bill properly scrutinised by a Parliamentary committee, meaning the Bill could go to a vote as soon as Monday.
Human Rights Law Centre Senior Lawyer Alice Drury said:
“Successive Governments have attempted to silence charities through a strategy of death by a thousand cuts.
“Charities have enormous expertise to contribute to public debate. Instead of repeatedly trying to silence charities and wrap them up in red tape, the Morrison Government should respect charity advocacy as an essential part of a healthy democracy.”
Media contact:
Evan Schuurman, Media and Communications Manager, 0406 117 937, evan.schuurman@hrlc.org.au