tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62453398885757529292024-03-05T23:45:47.441-08:00Colin Penter: Radical ideas on civil society, the not-for-profit world and social justice activismFrom the West: Radical* ideas and thoughts on civil society, the not-for-profit world and social justice activism from Perth Western Australia
(Radical-going to the root or origin of something)Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.comBlogger102125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-38976581568557678502016-01-21T05:45:00.000-08:002016-01-21T05:45:52.735-08:00Privatisation by stealth: The Abbott/Turnbull Government and Centrelink<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXjaOyPSgGSp5NnGr7pnbX7jZ1L6pllZI1J87n0-hl2gOlOYtlDH1lbsvjv-sb_nMWKG-zsvJ89JYiPwp92Mhpja_Tq97z9VOaZ6vzJR_sPofdb4UbTCmwFglU19rP4V_ukqpj8D4sSZ3b/s1600/centrelink.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXjaOyPSgGSp5NnGr7pnbX7jZ1L6pllZI1J87n0-hl2gOlOYtlDH1lbsvjv-sb_nMWKG-zsvJ89JYiPwp92Mhpja_Tq97z9VOaZ6vzJR_sPofdb4UbTCmwFglU19rP4V_ukqpj8D4sSZ3b/s320/centrelink.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><em>'What I am basically saying is that welfare must become a good deal for investors, for private investors. We have to make it a good deal for the returns to be there, to attract the level of capital that will be necessary in addition to the significant injection of capital and resources that is already provided by the Commonwealth.'</em></span></div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia";"><em><strong>Treasurer Scott Morrison</strong></em></span></div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span> </div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">If 2015 was Centrelinks <a href="http://www.canberratimes.com.au/national/public-service/complaints-soar-in-centrelinks-woeful-year-20151221-glsikg.html">'anus horribulus'</a>, with <a href="http://www.canberratimes.com.au/national/public-service/complaints-soar-in-centrelinks-woeful-year-20151221-glsikg.html">complaints up 35 per cent in just two years</a>, and more than 62,000 grievances reported through official government channels in the past financial year, then the next few years are only going to get worse for the beleagured agency and the people who are forced to use its services.</span></div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span> </div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The privatisation of Centrelink, long predicted by analysts of the social welfare policies of the Abbott/Turnbull Government and promoted by current Treasurer and former Social Services Minister Scott Morrison, is accelerating, and will only worsen Centrelink's dismal performance and reputation. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia";">In March 2015 <a href="https://independentaustralia.net/politics/politics-display/is-the-abbott-government-planning-to-privatise-centrelink,7503">Kelly Tranter wrote</a> about Government plans to privatise Centrelink.</span></div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia";">As Tranter points out, the 2014 report of the Government's National Commission of Audit <a href="http://www.ncoa.gov.au/report/appendix-vol-2/10-22-outsourcing-of-the-government-payments-system.html">recommended</a> the Government investigate “options for outsourcing part or all of the Department of Human Services payments system, including Centrelink. </span><span style="font-family: "georgia";"> </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia";"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia";">The report paved the way for the Government’s plan to move towards privatisation of the Department of Human Services including Centrelink, Medicare and Child Support services.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia";"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia";">Aware of the political risks of the direct privatisation of Centrelink, the Abbott/Turnbull Government has adopted a strategy of 'privatisation by stealth and increments'. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia";"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia";">In September 2015, the Abbott/Turnbull Government and the Department of Human Services <a href="http://www.itnews.com.au/news/dhs-goes-to-market-for-1bn-welfare-it-replacement-409370">sought bids from private sector partners</a> under its billion-dollar, "once-in-a-generation” welfare systems replacement for the software platform to support a new payments engine. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia";"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLbV0jc3Aop5Xo5HEzGFehnzEUmnYfMmZ_BHZcSV8Ly6c0AhopBfgh47yA9AF2UD0CCLHqd6ostU5jjulDb_9Bae8OV0PQUHjyasTeQyib3mwgXOJOASI6JCFU3HeE3rOQMNUEhwKTa2k1/s1600/centrelink3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLbV0jc3Aop5Xo5HEzGFehnzEUmnYfMmZ_BHZcSV8Ly6c0AhopBfgh47yA9AF2UD0CCLHqd6ostU5jjulDb_9Bae8OV0PQUHjyasTeQyib3mwgXOJOASI6JCFU3HeE3rOQMNUEhwKTa2k1/s320/centrelink3.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia";"></span><br />
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia";">Outsourcing of Centrelink services is another form of privatisation by stealth. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia";"></span><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia";"> </span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia";"><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
Since 2012 <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/it-pro/government-it/telstra-losing-millions-on-centrelink-phone-deal-20150623-ghvdgj.html">Telstra has run Centrelink's phone services</a>, after it won a 5 year contract to connect Medicare, Centrelink and Child Support and provide mobile voice, broadband and support services for over several thousand staff across more than 855 sites. Telstra has lost up to $90 million on the deal. </div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
The losers in this outsourcing arrangement include callers to Centrelink phone lines, who have seen <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/national/public-service/centrelink-leaves-26-million-calls-unanswered-20150520-gh5iow.html">services grow worse since the deal was signed in 2012</a>, taxpayers who have seen little value from the outsourcing and Telstra's shareholders.<br />
</div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
A number of Centrelink call centres have been <a href="http://www.cio.com.au/article/555387/union-slams-dhs-decision-outsource-call-centres-telstra/">outsourced to corporate operators</a> since 2014 when <a href="http://telstra%20staff%20are%20due%20to%20begin%20work%20at%20centrelink's%20queanbeyan%20and%20bunbury%20sites%20are%20part%20of%20an%20outsourcing%20campaign/">Telstra took over</a> a number of call centres and there are <a href="http://gov.idg.com.au/article/563869/federal-call-centre-outsourcing-plan-under-scrutiny/">plans to outsource all call centre operations</a> to Telstra.<br />
<br />
Privatisation by stealth also occurs through benign neglect. This occurs when Government runs down and undermines the capacity of Centrelink to perform its responsibilities, through staff cuts and staff freezes; outsourcing and fragmentation of services to private providers who deliver poorer quality services; constant changes to policy and eligibility requirements; underfunding, funding cuts and restrictions; constant restructuring; failure to address problems and failure to invest in systems, process and technology to meet demand.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
The result is poorer quality service, ineffectiveness and the resultant lack of public confidence, which is used as evidence to justify handing over the agency's responsibilities to private sector providers, on the grounds they will deliver services more effectively and cheaper (which is untrue).<br />
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilYTBpReBL5nuQ-xrUhyphenhyphenR5Eb6Fqo5CD1GVmn5By-1xMg8-LrJ0xt3UoBGgxORV1kRh2uq_IP-R8lq29hlKF8rEfyvuKbdmROLwqjrfEqmBP8mmGrRuYGbcvevgpL7OweXo-cuzljp-ePZD/s1600/centrelink2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilYTBpReBL5nuQ-xrUhyphenhyphenR5Eb6Fqo5CD1GVmn5By-1xMg8-LrJ0xt3UoBGgxORV1kRh2uq_IP-R8lq29hlKF8rEfyvuKbdmROLwqjrfEqmBP8mmGrRuYGbcvevgpL7OweXo-cuzljp-ePZD/s320/centrelink2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The extent to which the capacity of Centrelink is being undermined by the Abbott/Turnbull Government to justify privatisation is evident in the <a href="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/dougcameron/pages/46/attachments/original/1452652876/DOUG_CAMERON_-_MEDIA_RELEASE_-_HUMAN_SERVICES_IT_PROBLEMS_SHOW_TURNBULL_GOVTS_INNOVATION_TALK_IS_ALL_SPAM_-_13_JANUARY_2016.pdf?1452652876">range of problems</a> it faces:</div>
<ul>
<li><div style="text-align: justify;">
An Auditor-General' report in May 2015 found almost a quarter of the 57 million phone calls made to Centrelink last year went unanswered, and Australians spent 143 years waiting in vain to speak to the agency in 2013-14, before simply hanging up. About 13.7 million calls did not make it to even the point of being put on hold, after they were blocked or received a "busy signal".</div>
</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
The Australian National Audit Office’s Management of Smart Centre’s Centrelink Telephone Services Report showed that approximately 40 per cent of all incoming calls result from failed online or self-services and the growth of digital transactions has not reduced demand for call centre services as was anticipated.</div>
</li>
<li><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
The department was savaged in a midyear National Audit Office report for its customer service performance and ended the year plagued by serious website malfunctions. In November and December, clients suffered through weeks of disruption to the Centrelink websites used by millions of Australians to manage their payments and report their work activities. The agency was forced to apologise after weeks of "intermittent issues" left many clients unable to log onto their account</div>
</li>
<li><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
A New Year’s Day glitch caused 70,000 people to be told they owed up to $800 to the Government.</div>
</li>
<li><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
DHS staff wages and conditions have been under attack The 2014-15 Australian Public Service ‘State of the Service Report’, shows that only 59% of APS staff believe they are paid fairly, down from 67 per cent last year.</div>
</li>
<li><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
The Minister has failed to respond to Audit Office and Ombudsman reports which note service delivery failures in customer identity protection, call wait times, online and face to face services.</div>
</li>
<li><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
The Commonwealth Ombudsman’s follow-up review of service delivery complaints at Centrelink has revealed that problems have persisted for more than 18 months after his initial report was published in April 2014.</div>
</li>
<li><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
Clients are being "shooed away" from Centrelink offices and told to take their problems online, resulting in an avalanche of complaints.</div>
</li>
<li><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
Frontline staff are facing a 20 per cent increase in instances of customer aggression, blamed by the opposition and unions partly on frustration at the agency's customer service performance.</div>
</li>
</ul>
</span><br />
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="http://unemployedworkersunion.com/">The Australian Unemployment Union</a> (AUU)- an organisation of the unemployed, for the unemployed that fights for a fair and humane welfare system for all- argues that Abbott/Turnbull Government plans to hand over the responsibility to make income support payments to local service providers, both corporate and NFP providers, instead of Centrelink, is further evidence of the privatisation of Centrelink.</span> </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKF-3kVlB-khEhjX36JYryoNx6VfjsD7wCXBixofKZ9NIiTALuqU83D6pUreAYHr_jastPZZkQdJO0g4FSQqsLhHkNhBWayhMtpxD5jU7gDBdUH-F42kiTblQBaYAfVjXSaEQffGBDf81Z/s1600/centrelink4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKF-3kVlB-khEhjX36JYryoNx6VfjsD7wCXBixofKZ9NIiTALuqU83D6pUreAYHr_jastPZZkQdJO0g4FSQqsLhHkNhBWayhMtpxD5jU7gDBdUH-F42kiTblQBaYAfVjXSaEQffGBDf81Z/s400/centrelink4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span> </div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The legislation, to be phased in on July 2016 will initially effect around 2000 unemployed workers. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The legislation will give job agencies unprecedented and sweeping new powers over the lives of unemployed workers.</span></div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span> </div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The AUU currently has a petition** <u><span style="color: #0066cc;">here</span></u> opposing plans by the Abbott Turnbull Government to privatise Centrelink by handing over to local service providers the responsibility to make income support payments instead of Centrelink. </span></div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The full text of the AUU petition is below:</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><em>In December 2015, the Coalition Government introduced legislation to reform the rural Community Development Program (CDP) "so that local service providers will make income support payments instead of Centrelink". The legislation will be phased in on July 2016 and will at first effect around 2000 unemployed workers.</em></span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><em>This is the beginning of what we have all been dreading: placing the functions of Centrelink in private hands, or in other words the privatisation of Centrelink.</em></span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><em>Putting the functions of Centrelink into private hands is a recipe for disaster. Byputting a profit motive into the Social Security System, every Australian citizen's right to Social Security is under threat.</em></span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><em>In an ominous press release, the Minister for Indigenous Affairs Nigel Scullion stated “under these reforms, there will be more local decision-making by providers who know the jobseekers and have closer connections to what is going on in communities. </em><em>Payments will be made weekly so remote jobseekers have immediate access to their money and feel the financial impact of not turning up to activities straight away – not weeks down the track."</em></span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><em>Currently, legislation states that the employment services industry is not able to make compliance decisions as these decisions must be made by Centrelink. It appears that this legislation aims to change that, giving job agencies unprecedented and sweeping new powers over the lives of unemployed workers.</em></span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><em>Starting the privatisation of Centrelink in the rural Community Development Program is yet another example of the Government using Indigenous Australians as guinea pigs to test its new cruel and unusual policies towards the unemployed. </em></span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><em>The Government hopes that if they privatise Centrelink out in the remote areas of the Northern Territory no one will notice. We have noticed and we think it's disgraceful.</em></span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><em>An attack on one unemployed worker is an attack on all workers. We must stand in solidarity with our Indigenous brothers and sisters before it's too late.</em></span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><em>Sign </em></span><a href="https://www.change.org/p/chistian-porter-grant-tidswell-stuart-robert-malcolm-turnbull-stop-the-privatisation-of-centrelink"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><em>this petition</em></span></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><em> and let the Government know we firmly oppose its attempts to privatise Centrelink.</em></span></div>
</blockquote>
<div class="text_exposed_show" style="text-align: justify;">
******************************************************************************</div>
<div class="text_exposed_show" style="text-align: justify;">
** <span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Other petitions by the AUU are </span><a href="https://www.change.org/organizations/australian_unemployment_union"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">, including one calling for the prosecution of Max Employment over allegations aired on ABC 4 Corners Program in 2015 that Max Employment was involved in systemic rorting, gaming and mistreatment of the unemployed. </span></div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span> </div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Four Corners aired allegations that Max Employment regularly sends unemployed clients into "irrelevant training courses" offered by its training organisation arm, thereby enabling Max Employment to collect two separate payments from the Government and maximising its profit in the process.</span></div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span> </div>
<div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I have blogged about the unlawful practices of Max Employment <a href="http://wwwcolinpenter.blogspot.com.au/2012/07/another-corporation-set-to-make.html">here</a> and <a href="http://wwwcolinpenter.blogspot.com.au/2013/10/in-memory-of-elisabeth-wynhausen-truly.html">here</a>.</span></div>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-38665931423390818582015-08-18T22:17:00.001-07:002015-08-19T00:46:20.915-07:00Opposition mounts to Abbott Government's Cashless Welfare Card<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDaPjLTxrVmm6CzTvLXmW_CxYqKnTeNqk3z_V92sdRWx60BXAPsbxiOcGSwDcBYhfFGKQ2vOr80HCjlio9DzbeZkaSv9Hk6YEcWSk5t9v1Ve5aa3peyOzW_20OTgH7JLl-5JbIFT8eFdY/s1600/basicscard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDaPjLTxrVmm6CzTvLXmW_CxYqKnTeNqk3z_V92sdRWx60BXAPsbxiOcGSwDcBYhfFGKQ2vOr80HCjlio9DzbeZkaSv9Hk6YEcWSk5t9v1Ve5aa3peyOzW_20OTgH7JLl-5JbIFT8eFdY/s320/basicscard.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Greens Senator Rachel Siewart has made clear her party's opposition to the Abbott Government proposal to introduce a <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/indigenous/cashless-welfare-card-a-vote-shy-of-getting-over-the-senate-line/story-fn9hm1pm-1227477899557">cashless Welfare Card</a> for Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. Her media release is below.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Legislation for a <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2015/s4287108.htm">12 month trial</a> of the Welfare Card in a number of locations will be introduced into Parliament this week, but can <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/indigenous/cashless-welfare-card-a-vote-shy-of-getting-over-the-senate-line/story-fn9hm1pm-1227477899557">only pass with the support</a> of Labor or at least 6 crossbench senators.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The idea for the Welfare Card was originally proposed by philanthrocapitalist and mining billionaire Andrew Forrest who recommended a cashless welfare card for all working-age Centrelink clients in his 2014 review of Aboriginal employment.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The Welfare Card aims to prevent welfare recipients gambling or buying alcohol or drugs. The intention is that the card will apply to every adult who happens to be on welfare. It is promoted as a way to stop alcohol fuelled violence and abuse of women and children. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">There are two distinct elements to the proposed Welfare Card. Firstly, the introduction of a cashless welfare payments system, and
secondly, the implementation of universal restrictions on the spending of those
welfare payments (including the inability to withdraw cash).</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">In the <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2015/s4287108.htm">trial sites</a> the card will target Indigenous and non-indigenous people and veterans, aged pensioners and others will be able to opt into the card should they choose to do so. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">In the <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2015/s4287108.htm">trial sites </a>80 per cent of all welfare payments will be placed onto the cashless debit card and the remaining 20 per cent will go into an ordinary cash account.</span> </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">However, as </span><a href="http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2015/05/18/comment-income-management-has-failed"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Eva Cox has shown</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> there is no evidence such programs work. She argues that such programs start with the wrong assumptions, that the spending of income recipients is the problem.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Cox argues that they can undermine recipients’ capacities to make their own choices, costs a lot per person to administer, which could be better spent on other services, reduce the focus on external problems (such as job seekers greatly outnumbering jobs and employers' prejudices affecting work prospects) and blames the most vulnerable and reinforces hostile public views</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">An independent evaluation of the Northern Territory Income Management Program concluded:</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The evaluation could not find any substantive evidence of the program having significant changes relative to its key policy objectives, including changing people’s behaviours.</span></em></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span></em><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">More general measures of wellbeing at the community level show no evidence of improvement, including for children.</span></em></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span></em><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The evaluation found that, rather than building capacity and independence, for many the program has acted to make people more dependent on welfare.</span></em></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtuyfB1Di3RCiqz48s72ehrKf4sCLqubU3WGWYAviG3LujRg7hFEQoSutIFqArigNlnLd3YtM8q05U4vVF-2hIJ7p-sZIYz2oY3D09bHCeaZ7IGJOOdlK6rnZ1ZYXNDD-BWr6a5GToYiw/s1600/cashlesswelfarecard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtuyfB1Di3RCiqz48s72ehrKf4sCLqubU3WGWYAviG3LujRg7hFEQoSutIFqArigNlnLd3YtM8q05U4vVF-2hIJ7p-sZIYz2oY3D09bHCeaZ7IGJOOdlK6rnZ1ZYXNDD-BWr6a5GToYiw/s320/cashlesswelfarecard.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Unsurprisingly, there is </span><a href="http://www.news.com.au/national/western-australia/andrew-forrest-attack-critics-of-new-cashless-welfare-card/story-fnii5thn-1227485097093"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">division among Aboriginal leaders</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">, with some supporting the proposal and others opposed to it.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">ACOSS's statement opposing the Welfare Card is </span><a href="http://www.acoss.org.au/media_release/widespread_calls_for_rejection_of_cashless_welfare_card_ignored_acoss/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">here.</span></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Critiques of the Welfare Card proposal are </span><a href="http://theaimn.com/cashless-welfare-card-an-insult-to-all-australians/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">, </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/SIMPlaStopIncomeManagementinPlayford"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">, </span><a href="http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2015/05/18/comment-income-management-has-failed"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">, <a href="http://blog.practicalethics.ox.ac.uk/2014/08/welfare-2-0-abbott-forrest-and-the-healthy-welfare-card/">here</a> and <a href="https://www.greenleft.org.au/node/58632">here</a>.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><a href="http://blog.practicalethics.ox.ac.uk/2014/08/welfare-2-0-abbott-forrest-and-the-healthy-welfare-card/">Christopher Chew</a> from Monash University analyses the proposal from an ethical perspective and concludes:</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>In summary, it seems that the proposal for a Healthy Welfare Card is
disproportionately paternalistic, rests on controversial and elitist assumptions
about welfare recipients and the nature of welfare system, and will only serve
to infantilise and alienate an already vulnerable part of the Australian
community. It is most certainly not empowering, will not give people
complete freedom and will certainly not end paternalism. Perhaps the
intent of this amazing doublethink is that “welfare recipients” will become as
demonised as the ‘illegal boat people’ of election campaigns past.</em></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The proponent of the card, Andrew Forrest has </span><a href="http://www.news.com.au/national/western-australia/andrew-forrest-attack-critics-of-new-cashless-welfare-card/story-fnii5thn-1227485097093"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">contributed to this important social policy debate</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> by dismissing anyone who critiques the proposal as '<strong>useless “hand wringers and pontificators'.</strong></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<strong><span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span></strong><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<strong><span style="font-family: Georgia;">**********************************************************************</span></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<strong><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>Extract from media statement by Senator Rachel Siewart</em></span></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<strong><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em></em></span></strong><br /></div>
<div class="field field-type-text field-field-body-top" style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="field-items">
<div class="field-item odd">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>"I urge the Labor party to be genuine opposition when it comes to voting on legislation that will seek to rollout the healthy welfare card trials. </em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em></em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>“It is incomprehensible that a paternalistic thought bubble by a billionaire could materialise with the support of the Labor party, rolling out as early as next year. </em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em> </em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em><strong>“</strong>80% of someone’s income support forcibly quarantined to a card will make life remarkably harder for this already struggling group. </em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em></em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>“Limiting access to cash will severely restrict the ability to budget and decision making. Whether it be at the markets, lunch money for their kids, or a bus fare – all these things add up and may not be available via card payment. </em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em></em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>"Most importantly people have spoken of being made to feel like second class citizens when talking about their independence and dignity.</em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em></em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>“We know that paternalistic top down measures do not work. Income management has not worked. We know from evaluations that income management hasn’t delivered results. The healthy welfare card is just a continuation of this approach.</em></span><br />
<strong><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em> </em></span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>“The Government should focus its energies on a range of measures and wrap around supports; just restricting spending and access to cash doesn’t address the underlying causes and people will find other ways to buy alcohol and money for gambling. </em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em></em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>“The Government and it appears the Opposition are desperately supporting silver bullet measures, these are complex issues that need to be addressed. </em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em></em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>“The Australian Greens will not be supporting the healthy welfare card in the House of Representatives or the Senate. We will move to send this measure through to a Community Affairs inquiry so that it can be further scrutinised. </em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em></em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>“We must abandon top down approaches that have failed in the past and will fail again. We must work closely with community members to address disadvantage."</em></span></div>
</div>
</div>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-92046249896371080572015-07-26T00:45:00.001-07:002015-07-26T00:45:03.245-07:00Challenging market orthodoxy: the economic lessons of Elinor Ostrom<div class="post-body entry-content" itemprop="description articleBody" style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXEIdkuGaBDWZx9QRH_ee7seuP_1FHe5qqluqqXUJq7vx2DvFZKBWUQU6s7rDuFVHguSlfeqcV8o8LzHbeVGSvGsOEuXYO3_MZy4HMW0BvGfnj4yeh9rhMb_ICatpivzyEqOA47tS5eaE/s1600/ostrom.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXEIdkuGaBDWZx9QRH_ee7seuP_1FHe5qqluqqXUJq7vx2DvFZKBWUQU6s7rDuFVHguSlfeqcV8o8LzHbeVGSvGsOEuXYO3_MZy4HMW0BvGfnj4yeh9rhMb_ICatpivzyEqOA47tS5eaE/s320/ostrom.png" width="289" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #993300;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: black;">It is time that those of us concerned about social and economic justice and the role of the NFP sector and civil society </span></span></span><span style="color: #993300;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: black;">start developing serious policy alternatives to the market driven policies that are being imposed in social policy and the delivery of social and community services.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #993300;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: black;"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #993300;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: black;">Three years after her death in 2012 the work of</span> </span></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elinor_Ostrom"><span style="color: #993300; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Elinor Ostrom</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> remains more relevant than ever for those of us campaigning for alternatives to the contemporary orthodoxy of market fundamentalism and neoliberalism that has colonized large parts of the not-for-profit and civil society sectors.</span></div>
<div class="post-body entry-content" itemprop="description articleBody" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span> </div>
<div class="post-body entry-content" itemprop="description articleBody" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> Ostrom who was a Professor at Indiana University was the first woman to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Economic Sciences in 2009. <br /><br /> Ostrom's work challenged and rebutted fundamental economic beliefs, particularly free market and neo-classical economic paradigms. Ostrom was particularly concerned with <i>relational</i> aspects of economic activity — the ways in which people interact and negotiate with each other to forge rules and informal social understandings.<br /><br /> Ostrom's early work focused on what she called </span><a href="http://co-production./"><span style="color: #993300; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">co-production.</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></div>
<div class="post-body entry-content" itemprop="description articleBody" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span> </div>
<div class="post-body entry-content" itemprop="description articleBody" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Ostrom argued that many public services depend heavily on the contribution of time and effort by the persons who consume these services, i.e. the clients and citizens.</span></div>
<div class="post-body entry-content" itemprop="description articleBody" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span> </div>
<div class="post-body entry-content" itemprop="description articleBody" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Ostrom believed that services rely as much upon the unacknowledged knowledge, assets and efforts of service ‘users’ as the expertise of professional providers. It was the informal understanding of local communities and the on the ground relationships that make services more effective.<br /><br /> Co-production describes the relationship that exist between ‘regular producers’, like health workers, police, and schoolteachers and their ‘clients’ who may be transformed by the services into safer, better educated and/or healthier persons.<br /><br /> Ostrom defined </span><a href="http://www.opendemocracy.net/openeconomy/victor-pestoff/here-comes-citizen-co-producer"><span style="color: #993300; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">co-production</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> as<br /><br /> <i>“…the mix of activities that both public service agents and citizens contribute to the provision of public services. The former are involved as professionals, or ‘regular producers’, while ‘citizen production’ is based on voluntary efforts by individuals and groups to enhance the quality and/or quantity of the services they use”</i><br /><br />One implication is that privatization of public services and the turning over of services to the market fundamentally transforms the relationship between provider and service user, hampering the development of co-production and democratic governance.<br /><br /> Her later work examined how people and communities collaborate and organize themselves to manage collective shared resources like forests, fisheries and natural and social resources. The research overturned the conventional wisdom about government regulation and challenged the idea that private ownership of public resources is better and more effective than the public and collective sphere.<br /><br /> Ostrom's work provides clear evidence that the commons-based traditions of cooperation and communal management of resources is not a violation of basic economic common sense.<br /><br /> Her work undermines political conservatives and mainstream economists who denigrate collectively managed property and government and who argue that only private property and the "free market" can responsibly manage resources. Her work also directly challenges current ideas that privatization and private ownership and expert management of resources is a more effective strategy than collective and public management<br /><br /> Ostrom advocated a “polycentric” approach to managing shared or common resources involving oversight “at multiple levels with autonomy at each level. She argued that shared management of resources helps to establish rules that “tend to encourage the growth of trust and reciprocity” among people who use and care for a particular commons. <br /><br /> Ostrim argued that<i> </i>key management decisions should be made as close to the scene of events and the people and groups involved as possible. Her work showed that the people most affected by or with a stake in shared or common resources are the ones best able to collaborate to use and manage those shared resources effectively and sustainably.<br /><br /> Her work demonstrates that ordinary people are able to create rules, institutions and systems that ensure the equitable and sustainable management of shared and common resources, what is often called our 'common wealth'.<br /><br /> She demonstrated the importance of shared (collective) rather than expert or private management of resources and knowledge and emphasises the importance of active citizen participation. She cited a comprehensive study of 100 forests in 14 countries that detailed how the involvement of local people in decision making is more important to successfully sustaining healthy forests than who is actually in charge of the forests.<br /><br /> David </span><a href="http://www.bollier.org/about"><span style="color: #993300; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Bollier</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><a href="http://www.bollier.org/blog/elinor-ostrom-remembered-1933-2012"><span style="color: #993300; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">writes of</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> the significance of Ostrom's work:<br /><br /><i>In the 1970s, economics was quickly veering into a kind of religious fundamentalism. It was a discipline obsessed with “rational individualism,” private property rights and markets even though the universe of meaningful human activity is much broader and complex. Lin Ostrom pioneered a different, more humanistic way of thinking about “the economy” and resource management. She originally focused on property rights and “common-pool resources,” collective resources over which no one has private property rights or exclusive control, such as fishers, grazing lands and groundwater. This work later evolved into a broader study of the commons as a rich, cross-cultural socio-ecological paradigm. Working within the social sciences, Ostrom proceeded to build a new school of thought within the standard economic narrative while extending it in vital ways.</i><br /><br /> Ostrom's work also has direct relevance to the current economic and environment crises. She wrote:<br /><br /><i>"We cannot rely on singular global policies to solve the problem of managing our common resources: the oceans, atmosphere, forests, waterways, and rich diversity of life that combine to create the right conditions for life, including seven billion humans, to thrive.....Success will hinge on developing many overlapping policies to achieve the goals,.......We have a decade to act before the economic cost of current viable solutions becomes too high. Without action, we risk catastrophic and perhaps irreversible changes to our life-support system.”</i> <br /><br />Articles written in memory of her work are </span><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2012/jun/13/elinor-ostrom"><span style="color: #993300; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">, </span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/13/business/elinor-ostrom-winner-of-nobel-in-economics-dies-at-78.html"><span style="color: #993300; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">, </span><a href="http://onthecommons.org/magazine/commons-champion-elinor-ostrom-1933-2012"><span style="color: #993300; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> and </span><a href="http://www.bollier.org/blog/elinor-ostrom-remembered-1933-2012"><span style="color: #993300; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">.<br /><br /> A reading list of her work is </span><a href="http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/06/13/elinor-ostrom-reading-list/"><span style="color: #993300; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">.<br /><br /> The last article she wrote before she died is </span><a href="http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/green-from-the-grassroots"><span style="color: #993300; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> <br /><br /> Her last book, published just before her death was titled <i><a href="http://press.princeton.edu/titles/9209.html"><span style="color: #993300;">Working Together: Collective Action, the Commons, and Multiple Methods in Practice</span></a>, and</i> describes the advantages of using several different research methods to study a problem.</span> </div>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-1509142124262535362014-04-29T01:00:00.001-07:002014-04-29T08:43:49.656-07:00What is the real intent behind plans to abolish Australia's charity regulator?<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">This government does not like campaigning and advocacy organisations, and the removal of the ACNC as an independent regulator simply exposes those organisations to attack.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Greg Ogle</b></i></blockquote>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRgqmQOTJmWmw9iSZeaRqCgMX_xfcQmlNx6lmyAKNnQuGaOhpZhy_UqtiWtwsytZmqlNu7GR3z02MOs3bdxnaBziKgv6wx6QBp6Z6LaZwRfo5XJXuFKywHFUGCCf6vRcIblAO0Gkr_Fa8/s1600/acnclogo.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRgqmQOTJmWmw9iSZeaRqCgMX_xfcQmlNx6lmyAKNnQuGaOhpZhy_UqtiWtwsytZmqlNu7GR3z02MOs3bdxnaBziKgv6wx6QBp6Z6LaZwRfo5XJXuFKywHFUGCCf6vRcIblAO0Gkr_Fa8/s1600/acnclogo.png" height="84" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">
</span>
<br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Excellent piece by Greg Ogle, <a href="http://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/politics/2014/03/29/andrews-leads-fight-abolish-charities-commission/1396011600#.U19MrfmSwkT"> Independence of Charities Under Threat</a>, on the real intent behind Abbott Governments plans to repeal the national charity regulation body — the 18-month old <a href="https://www.acnc.gov.au/">Australian Charities and Not-for-Profit Commission (ACNC)</a>- and hand back the regulation of charities to the Australian Tax Office. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">
</span>
<br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Ogle argues that repeal of the ACNC paves the way for a return to the </span><a href="http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/the-repression-of-the-bleeding-hearts/2007/01/26/1169788693380.html" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">political attacks of the Howard Government years</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> (1996-2007), particularly attacks on environmental and campaigning groups involved in public advocacy, direct action and activism.</span></div>
<div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Australian Charities and Not-For-Profits Commission (ACNC) was set up less than 18 months ago by the Federal Labor government to regulate the charitable sector. The governing legislation for the ACNC ensured the independence of charities and their right to advocate for charitable causes.</span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"> The objects of the Act that established the ACNC committed to ensuring a “robust, vibrant, independent and innovative” charity sector. The legislative provision ensured that the governance standards required to be met by charities did not constrain advocacy. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">In essence, the legislation gave charities some protection for pursuing advocacy and activist campaigns that challenge Government policy or corporate malfeasance.</span></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj3qJ8qKmR8-5eTsEVRMvxQKPkq07BuAsfHWlOTUJDDMNFbpZTqobG25M5CmSvyWYSceJd3qrZvnDZm-jsF7J5S_1EOkyo4xQxhFjaQf2mP-D1coxgf5dkFo2KP_GWFgG6-GPcBiXjAno/s1600/abbotthoward.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj3qJ8qKmR8-5eTsEVRMvxQKPkq07BuAsfHWlOTUJDDMNFbpZTqobG25M5CmSvyWYSceJd3qrZvnDZm-jsF7J5S_1EOkyo4xQxhFjaQf2mP-D1coxgf5dkFo2KP_GWFgG6-GPcBiXjAno/s1600/abbotthoward.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Ogle <a href="https://newmatilda.com/2014/04/29/independence-charities-under-threat">reminds</a> us of the Howard Government's direct attack of advocacy and campaigning by charities and NGOS: </span><br />
<div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Under the Howard government, the tax office was used to attack and pressure charities who were advocated for policies the government didn’t like. This was at a time of recurring public and parliamentary attacks on those charities by senior Liberal politicians like George Brandis, Brett Mason and Eric Abetz, echoed by industry groups and right wing think tanks. The pressure meant that between 2004 and 2007 The Wilderness Society, for instance, faced at least 20 different public calls for them to be stripped of their charity status. They passed the three Tax Office audits of their “political” activity, but other groups like AidWatch had <a href="http://www.aidwatch.org.au/news/high-court-decision-a-win-for-charities%E2%80%99-freedom-of-speech">long court battles</a> to secure their tax charity status.</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">In a separate article, <a href="http://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/politics/2014/03/29/andrews-leads-fight-abolish-charities-commission/1396011600#.U19MrfmSwkT">Andrews leads fight to abolish Charities Commission,</a> Mike Seccombe shows how the campaign to abolish the ACNC was driven by the self interest of the financial services sector (who administer charitable trusts) and influential parts of the Catholic Church, who are concerned about revealing financial details of the Church. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Seccombe notes how Cardinal Pell, former Head of the Catholic Church in Australia and confidant of Prime Minister Abbott and Minister Andrews, made it clear that he opposed the ACNC.<br /><br />Although there were some initial concerns among charities about the likelihood of increased compliance and regulatory costs, the majority of the charity sector now support the ACNC. Seccombe describes the campaign waged by the powerful financial services industry to abolish the ACNC<br /><br />While the financial services industry claimed they are concerned about the cost of complying with its financial disclosure requirements, Seccombe shows that their real concern is the likelihood of scrutiny by the ACNC of their administration of charitable trusts, that would reveal the grossly excessive fees they take for looking after the bequests of philanthropists.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf7kKAySjup5amW5zjCz9AindNUADckZh5XtLz0qCKRS9VbY6pCwOIBuw2Ti8H_89xPzApNPXpwDxizUzj99MRq1SsbLD8vVy98abzU4YLwVkjGbNM6kMkqlSqAN5ZBOp29p1SsqbtDsQ/s1600/dissentsilencing-small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf7kKAySjup5amW5zjCz9AindNUADckZh5XtLz0qCKRS9VbY6pCwOIBuw2Ti8H_89xPzApNPXpwDxizUzj99MRq1SsbLD8vVy98abzU4YLwVkjGbNM6kMkqlSqAN5ZBOp29p1SsqbtDsQ/s1600/dissentsilencing-small.jpg" height="320" width="220" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Seccombe quotes Tim Costello CEO of World Vision Australia and Chair of the Community Council of Australia: </span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>“It’s pretty apparent there are only two main groups that are strongly opposed. The trustees, who handle dead people’s money, are a major source of opposition because they don’t want transparency about what they charge. The other is the Catholics".</i></span></blockquote>
</div>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Ogle refutes the Minister's claim that the abolition of the ACNC is designed to reduce red tape, by highlighting other ways that the Federal Government could reduce red tape, but refuses to do so.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"> Ogle gets to the heart of the matter:</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>This government does not like campaigning and advocacy organisations, and the removal of the ACNC as an independent regulator simply exposes those organisations to attack.</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Spot on!!! </span>Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-53888612953909354192014-04-21T19:11:00.004-07:002014-04-21T19:23:25.968-07:00The strategic advantage of non profits and civil society groups<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsHSlXy_NTnK5tZ99Sclbdu_1gOeL5G3SsRnFHZRFYV0T0GUWz8Xtkh2rvgAf7CYQjItY7ltRbfu4uEnBel2bzBIASjrolR7Ll_uvtZwowd_nAtRZLyVnx2NeQ6afnyvHCwHmTb5DVEqE/s1600/mccambridge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsHSlXy_NTnK5tZ99Sclbdu_1gOeL5G3SsRnFHZRFYV0T0GUWz8Xtkh2rvgAf7CYQjItY7ltRbfu4uEnBel2bzBIASjrolR7Ll_uvtZwowd_nAtRZLyVnx2NeQ6afnyvHCwHmTb5DVEqE/s1600/mccambridge.jpg" height="267" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">image: Storm Force by John Gaffen www.whitewindmillphotography.co.uk</span><br /><br /><i>"After decades of discourse about how nonprofits need to be more businesslike, I am driven to discuss the differences structurally and in more detail. The admonition to be more like a business is a preposterous proposition—ill informed and exhibiting a sloppy state of mind that tries to draw us all off track to a space of unaccountability. Don’t fall for it. For goodness’ sake—if you want to act like a business, be a business! The major distinguishing factor of a business is its ability to build the wealth of individual owners rather than build collective well-being and value. Decide which bottom line you are dedicated to, and make it your own"<br /><a href="https://nonprofitquarterly.org/management/21245-use-it-or-lose-it-frittering-away-civil-societys-strategic-advantage.html">Ruth McCambridge</a></i></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><br /></i></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Like Ruth McCambridge, I have long been a critic of those who claim that nonprofits should be more business-like and operate like business to remodel themselves along business and market lines. It is both an ill informed and dangerous claim.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The claim reflects a naive understanding of non profit organizations and is predicated on a false assumption that non profits need a dose of "business thinking" to be more effective and effective.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Others who express similar views to McCambridge and I, include <a href="http://www.opendemocracy.net/openeconomy/michael-edwards/why-social-transformation-is-not-job-for-market">Michael Edwards</a> and<a href="http://civilsocietyandthengoworld.blogspot.com.au/2012/10/uk-not-for-profit-leader-warns-against.html"> Deborah Allcock Tyler.</a></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgchtgW8BiBdi2C59_qiwm_ctYyf8zer9yAc0ZX0aEftALevrituXjimKthFuh9mSQ7jOmVSWLdsSZ2iuQlVgt4AHD69tmR5kS8nT58RCx2uwhhGBZDGJu-tq1lCJ7ZD3Xs_-fVeK6XY4I/s1600/NPQimage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgchtgW8BiBdi2C59_qiwm_ctYyf8zer9yAc0ZX0aEftALevrituXjimKthFuh9mSQ7jOmVSWLdsSZ2iuQlVgt4AHD69tmR5kS8nT58RCx2uwhhGBZDGJu-tq1lCJ7ZD3Xs_-fVeK6XY4I/s1600/NPQimage.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">
</span>
<br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In her article U</span><a href="https://nonprofitquarterly.org/management/21245-use-it-or-lose-it-frittering-away-civil-societys-strategic-advantage.html" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">se it or Lose it: Frittering Away Civil Society's Strategic Advantage</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> in the excellent online and print journal </span><a href="https://nonprofitquarterly.org/" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Non Profit Quarterly</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">, of which she is the Editor, McCambridge argues that non profits have a strategic advantage that they are often blind to because they don't recognize or use it. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">And she argues that blindness to this strategic advantage is leading the nonprofit and civil society sector to lose its opportunity to become more influential, particularly in terms of responding to debates and solutions about important social, economic and political issues.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">McCambridge argues that this strategic advantage springs from a number of distinguishing characteristics of non profits that need to be valued much more and worked with in a more conscious and powerful way. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Strategic advantage is not to be found in the lure of competition, business metrics, market orientation, growth for growth's sake and obsession with money and profitability.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Some of the strategic advantages highlighted in Ruth McCambridge's article include:</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"></span><br />
<ul><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">
<li>the tradition of collective association and collective endeavor for the common good</li>
<li>the tradition of being close to constituents and to communities and of providing opportunities to maximise and amplify their voice</li>
<li>the importance of shared values and collective aspirations</li>
<li>the importance of scale, particularly smallness and nimbleness </li>
<li>close engagement and shared fit between the interests and aspiration of those who run the organization and those who benefit from its activities</li>
<li>the focus on mutual benefit and the common good</li>
<li>the tradition of mobilizing people to work together for shared value and of working non competitively in networks</li>
<li>the important of trust and credibility in the eyes of constituents and stakeholders, rather than public image and brand </li>
<li>acting as the vehicle through which constituents and citizens can take action for the common good and mutual benefit</li>
<li>appealing to common cause and individual aspiration through activity aimed explicitly at common benefit as a way for engaging the energy of stakeholders.</li>
<li>availing ourselves of our constituents/stakeholders’ unpaid/volunteer labor.</li>
</span></ul>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">
</span></div>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-62565829992131511452014-04-12T01:51:00.003-07:002014-04-12T01:52:02.707-07:00The Abbott Government, social policy and the greedy ghost of market fundamentalism<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia3s3_m1YBCb1eApOHfVnwyLvWyctBp9SEly2lWNCxPvLfbABcQvmNDe6OuA-cG5fPYV_J2PX657EtU0JWnYGZziMHEwMUeXdLYeL3KHTQD1OencXsqwGVMSr6pDZgywTLrvl6qsC4Pmw/s1600/abbotthockey.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia3s3_m1YBCb1eApOHfVnwyLvWyctBp9SEly2lWNCxPvLfbABcQvmNDe6OuA-cG5fPYV_J2PX657EtU0JWnYGZziMHEwMUeXdLYeL3KHTQD1OencXsqwGVMSr6pDZgywTLrvl6qsC4Pmw/s1600/abbotthockey.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Treasurer Joe Hockey's </span><a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/joe-hockey-signals-raising-pension-age-more-means-testing-of-welfare-20140410-zqt7t.html" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">announcemen</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">t that the Abbott Government plans to increase the pension age (from 67 to 70), impose more welfare means testing and introduce co-payments for medical services comes as no surprise, but provides more evidence of the continuing assault</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> on public spending for the less well off, the vulnerable and disadvantaged.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Abbott Government has already imposed severe spending cuts across many portfolios and shown its intention to cut back public expenditure for the less well off by fundamentally transforming income support in areas such as the <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/kevin-andrews-says-any-changes-to-disability-support-pension-will-be-in-medium-to-long-term-20140311-34jvy.html">Disability Support pension (DSP)</a>, family and welfare payments and welfare support for the long term unemployed.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In addition, there is the expectation that both the <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/kevin-andrews-to-release-an-interim-report-on-patrick-mcclures-welfare-review-before-the-federal-budget-20140410-zqss6.html">report into the Welfare System</a> (the McClure Review) and the report of the <a href="http://johnquiggin.com/2014/04/10/reviewing-the-commission-of-audit-in-advance/">National Commission of Audit</a></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"> (the Business Council of Australia report), both due to be released soon, will recommend serious austerity policies and market driven social policies.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Abbott Government's market fundamentalist policies and its austerity agenda are intended to dismantle public spending for the less well off and the vulnerable, and fundamentally transform public spending and public assets to make them suitable to deliver profit to the business and corporate sector and largess to the already well off.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">What is also worth noting is that this fundamental transformation of social policy and welfare support <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/kevin-andrews-says-any-changes-to-disability-support-pension-will-be-in-medium-to-long-term-20140311-34jvy.html">is being undertaken without any real consultation</a> with the social policy and welfare sector, and continues to be driven by advice from, and the agendas of influential pro- business and corporate lobby groups, such as the Business Council of Australia.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Moreover, the Abbott Government has consistently concealed its real social policy intentions and denied it was planning to impose these policies. None of the policies were made public prior to the last election and back in November 2013 Treasurer Joe Hockey lied when he <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/national/call-to-raise-pension-age-to-70-20131122-2y1n8.html">said that the Government had no plans to increase the pension age</a>.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">While it dismantles social policies that support the less well off and the vulnerable it retains and expands profligate policies for the corporate and business sector and the rich and already well off, such as superannuation tax concessions</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">, various housing-related tax benefits, paid parental leave, asset tests and corporate tax benefits, to name but a few.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">On his blog </span><a href="http://enpassant.com.au/2014/04/12/saturdays-socialist-speak-out-128/" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">En Passant</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> former Tax Office economist, blogger, activist and academic </span><a href="http://enpassant.com.au/2014/04/12/saturdays-socialist-speak-out-128/" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">John Passan</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">t alerts us to the hypocrisy and deceit of Treasurer Joe Hockey's proposals on the age pension:</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Let me get this right. The revenue forgone on tax concessions for superannuation at $45 bn will soon be more than the cost of the pension (over $40 bn). Of that $45 bn in tax concessions $10 to $15 bn will go to the top 10% of income earners. Yet Australia’s greatest Treasurer, Joe Hockey, wants to rein in expenditure on the pension by for example extending the access age to 70 (after Labor increased it to 67 over time by 2023) and tightening up the asset test to perhaps include the family home. Priorities.</i> </span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: justify;">
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">According to the OECD Australia has one of the lowest relative pensions of any member countries (Turkey and Mexico are lower) and 35% of Australian pensioners live in poverty. Priorities.</span></i></div>
</blockquote>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-51453289483069758622014-03-31T07:39:00.002-07:002014-03-31T07:46:41.259-07:00So are there too many non profits?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiWKe_UOnHxmm-5OmgmF_apf_W25LQD8hjMXP2M2rdA95Yi-0WOWjvdezF00Wg6DIR-NDbJOl74sj3azhq3X6mI0wrpd600Q7dNNot6rZ_kpDDe6BybI71ygQLpChaQro6uBawBdRgrKE/s1600/hands.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiWKe_UOnHxmm-5OmgmF_apf_W25LQD8hjMXP2M2rdA95Yi-0WOWjvdezF00Wg6DIR-NDbJOl74sj3azhq3X6mI0wrpd600Q7dNNot6rZ_kpDDe6BybI71ygQLpChaQro6uBawBdRgrKE/s1600/hands.jpg" height="210" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Like <a href="http://thirdsectorsuppliersguide.com/Governance/article/1286581/Debra-Allcock-Tyler-charities-Its-saying-types-biscuit/">Deborah Allcock Tyler</a> I am constantly annoyed when I hear business people, Ministers, senior people in Government agencies, and many people in the non profit sector complain that there are too many non profits, particularly too many small non profits. <br /><br />The claims vary- overlapping or uncoordinated services, duplication of effort and resources, failure to'get their act together', lack of efficiency, wastage of resources and reduced effectiveness, too many different voices, too many agencies for Governments to deal with. I have heard them all.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">And the suggestion that follows is usually that someone- Government, the sector, the bigger agencies, the smaller agencies- should rationalise and reduce the number of non profits, particularly smaller ones who, it is claimed, are often unviable and less effective.<br /><br />Many Government agencies have operated on this assumption for years, and have used their contracting and procurement regimes as a defacto strategy to rationalise the sector. <br /><br />On many occasions I have heard senior Government officers and leaders of nonprofit organisations admit that one benefit of the contracting and procurement regimes that Federal and State Governments have imposed on the non profit sector here in Australia is that it it leads to a rationalization of the non profit sector by squeezing out what they perceive as 'unviable and less effective' (they mean 'less businesslike') non profits, usually smaller agencies.<br /><br />Obviously, non profits should look at ways they can work more effectively with others to reduce duplication and improve their effectiveness and impact. This includes exploring collaborative partnerships with other non profits, if it is a way to deliver better outcomes for the people and the communities they exist to serve.<br /><br />However, I have never understood the claim that more non profits is a bad thing. In particular, it is fundamentally anti-democratic for someone else to decide which non profits should exist, or to decide that there should be an arbitrary limit on the number of non profits. <br /><br />Efforts to reduce the number of non profits, ultimately has the effect of reducing the democratic rights of citizens to take action.<br /><br />And compare this claim that there are too many non profits, with views about for profit businesses. You never hear the claim that there are too many for profit business, despite the evidence of a huge number of failing, poorly run businesses, engaged in criminal and highly questionable conduct. Rather, the view is that the more for profit businesses there are, the better.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /><a href="http://thirdsectorsuppliersguide.com/Governance/article/1286581/Debra-Allcock-Tyler-charities-Its-saying-types-biscuit/">Deborah Allcock Tyler</a> is spot when she writes:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>One principle of a free democracy is the ability of people to come together in service of something they care about, regardless of whether or not someone else is already doing it and thinks they're doing it better than anyone else (which they always do!) or, indeed, if others don't think their cause is important..................................<br /> </i></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>The belief that there are too many charities is pardonable from those outside our sector, who are less likely to see the bigger picture and more likely to see donors and volunteers as willing and obedient stooges and beneficiaries as voiceless, choiceless victims who should be grateful for whatever they get from whomever is allowed to give it.<br /> </i></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>But that belief is, for me, incomprehensible when held by those within the sector. To them I say this: all right, if you genuinely believe that there really are too many charities, close yours down and that will be one less.</i></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The issue of whether there are too many non profits in the US context is discussed <a href="http://dcblog.foundationcenter.org/2012/04/too-many-nonprofits.html">here</a> and <a href="http://www.urban.org/events/firsttuesdays/upload/AreThereTooManyNonprofits.pdf">here</a>. A Canadian perspective is <a href="http://www.muttart.org/sites/default/files/report/aretheretoomanynonprofitsupdate2012.pdf">here</a>.</span>Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-14476014214495288432014-03-11T08:03:00.001-07:002014-03-11T08:03:54.491-07:00Neoliberalism, market fundamentalism and the colonization of Aboriginal policy<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>"Neo-liberalism is a hungry beast and this 21st Century strain of capitalism is shaping the agenda for control of Aboriginal lands...........Australian Government policy is heavily influenced by neo-liberalism through its extraordinary emphasis on managing access for mining companies to resources on Aboriginal lands. This involves controlling what is still perceived as ‘the Aboriginal problem’ and forcing a social transition from traditional values and cultural practice to ‘mainstream’ modernism of a particular brand. It also involves displacing many Aboriginal people from their traditional lands and concentrating them in ‘growth towns.......To make any sense of the aggression behind most current Indigenous policy in Australia you need to study the impact of neo-liberalism around the globe" </i></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;"><b>Jeff McMullen</b></i></blockquote>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAS7bzdc06PfQMpmH6fzO6XmetHfrfW5gDw71608jQUtbAv6TRmuKSDriI72nXDTK2aeXXH-e3oKtkl1t6KsBj92Ktqzmbq8-eQaZokbtE5NnSIWECZYWtAoGA_FCvDF2BmNk5stiaKaoQ/s1600/jeff_mcmullin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAS7bzdc06PfQMpmH6fzO6XmetHfrfW5gDw71608jQUtbAv6TRmuKSDriI72nXDTK2aeXXH-e3oKtkl1t6KsBj92Ktqzmbq8-eQaZokbtE5NnSIWECZYWtAoGA_FCvDF2BmNk5stiaKaoQ/s1600/jeff_mcmullin.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The Australian journalist, writer and social justice campaigner </span><a href="http://www.jeffmcmullen.com.au/" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Jeff McMullen</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> has </span><a href="http://www.jeffmcmullen.com.au/#!articles-2013/c13ia" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">written</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> two cogent and articulate critiques of the colonization of Aboriginal policy making in this country by the cancer of neo-liberalism (or what others call market fundamentalism). </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">One of Jeff McMullen's articles <a href="http://www.newint.com.au/blog/the-new-land-grab/">The New Land Grab</a> is available on line <a href="http://www.newint.com.au/blog/the-new-land-grab/">here</a> (in The <a href="http://www.newint.com.au/blog/">New Internationalist blog</a>). </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The second piece is a book chapter titled </span><i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Dispossession- Neoliberalism and the Struggle for Aboriginal Land and Rights in the 21st Century</i><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> which appears in a new book </span><a href="http://www.connorcourt.com/catalog1/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=246#.UxF4IvmSy-0" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In Black and White: Australians at the Cross Roads (edited by Rhonda Craven, Anthony Dillon & Nigel Parbury)</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">. This article</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> is available </span><a href="http://media.wix.com/ugd/81f86c_afa13f7eee684fffbbf7894b2c4a3b2c.pdf" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">here</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> on Jeff McMullen's own website</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">In drawing on the work of David Harvey and others, and incorporating the voices of Aboriginal people, McMullen makes the case that neoliberalism is a key driver of the agenda for the control of Aboriginal lands and assimilation of Aboriginal people in Australia. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Neoliberalism, McMullen argues is the ideological underpinning of a uniquely Australian strain of state-corporate capitalism that aims to control Aboriginal communities to enable exploitation</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> of the land and mineral wealth on Aboriginal lands. McMullan argues that the real goal here is the upward redistribution of land and mineral wealth.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">McMullen demonstrates the way that successive Federal and State Governments have used the coercive powers of the state to impose an agenda of modernization, control of Aboriginal lands and assimilation and assault on Aboriginal rights and culture.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Drawing on David Harvey's book A Brief History of Neoliberalism, McMullen identifies 4 essential features of the neoliberal agenda and analyses the extent to which they are manifest in Aboriginal policy making in this country:</span><br />
<ol>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Privatization and commodification of public and community goods.</i> This has occurred through the privatization of Aboriginal lands, via policies that open up Aboriginal land to resource </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">exploitation and attempts to override community land ownership and impose private property ownership rights.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Financialization to treat good or bad events as opportunities for economic speculation</i>.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>Management and manipulation of crises to establish a neoliberal agenda.</i> This includes using the Northern Territory Intervention as justification for exerting greater control over Aboriginal communities to enable market and corporate exploitation of the minerals and resources on Aboriginal lands and the use of 'military style campaigns to exert control and challenge Aboriginal sovereignty</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>State redistribution of wealth, not to the poor but to the rich and powerful</i>.</span></li>
</ol>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; text-align: start;">Analyzing Aboriginal policy through the lens of neoliberalism as McMullen does,</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; text-align: start;"><span style="line-height: 18px;"> helps us to understand what drives social policies such as the Northern Territory Intervention and the social engineering to control Aboriginal people still living on traditional lands, as well as the aggressive land grab by mining and resource companies, aided and abetted by Federal and State Governments, which divides Aboriginal communities, and even Aboriginal families. </span></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">He writes:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>'Neoliberalism connects the agendas of modernising Aboriginal culture and allowing mining companies to vigorously exploit and minimal cost the mineral treasures on Aboriginal lands'.</i></span></blockquote>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: start;">McMullen points to the </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: start;">divide and conquer tactics of mining companies and governments i</span><span style="background-color: white; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 18px;">n the Kimberley and Pilbara in Western Australia, across the Northern Territory, on Cape York and in parts of NSW and South Australia, as manifestation of these neoliberal agendas.</span></span></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">McMullen is scathing about the role played by influential Aboriginal leaders, such as Noel Pearson, Marcia Langton and Warren Mundine who have become influential advocates and brokers for neoliberal policies and have gathered adherents and supporters in both political parties and corporate Australia.</span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-62388974334010266692014-01-21T01:33:00.000-08:002014-01-21T01:35:49.574-08:00Attacks on the independence of the voluntary sector and civil society<div data-angle="0" data-canvas-width="246.22400533676148" data-font-name="g_font_10_0" dir="ltr" style="left: 78.1103px; top: 707.685px; transform-origin: 0% 0% 0px; transform: rotate(0deg) scale(0.992839, 1);">
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"
We are on a slippery slope, where it is becoming increasingly common to
hear the view that voluntary organisations should deliver services
but not challenge the status quo, especially if they receive
government funding. We are already seeing a ‘chilling effect,’
with increasing evidence of self- censorship by voluntary
organisations"</span></span></i></div>
<div data-angle="0" data-canvas-width="246.22400533676148" data-font-name="g_font_10_0" dir="ltr" style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14.6667px; left: 78.1103px; top: 707.685px; transform-origin: 0% 0% 0px; transform: rotate(0deg) scale(0.992839, 1);">
<b><i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Roger Singleton, Chair of the Independence Panel for the UK Voluntary Sector</span></span></i></b><br />
<br />
<b><i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></i></b><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The <a href="http://www.independencepanel.org.uk/">Panel for the Independence of the UK Voluntary sector</a> has just released its <a href="http://www.independencepanel.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Independence-undervaluedfinalPDF-copy.pdf">2014 report</a> titled <a href="http://www.independencepanel.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Independence-undervaluedfinalPDF-copy.pdf"><b>Independence Undervalued: The Voluntary Sector in 2014</b></a>, and the picture it paints is despairingly familiar to the situation in Australia:</span></span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> "The voluntary sector is losing its ability to protect the most
vulnerable in society as a result of government attacks on its
campaigning activities, lack of consultation over policy changes, and
funding arrangements that put the future of an independent sector at
risk"</span></span></i></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">In its media release the Panel: </span></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">calls on the British Prime Minister David Cameron to take action to stop weakening
the independence of the sector and to rebuild trust. </span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> calls on voluntary sector leaders to take a stand to preserve the
sector’s independence, which it says is vital to a healthy and
compassionate democracy and the reason why so many people lend their
support to charities and trust their services.</span></span></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> documents numerous instances of a serious and growing
threat from the government to Britain’s long tradition of independent
voluntary action</span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> including</span>:</span></li>
</ul>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Growing criticism by some politicians, including the Secretary of
State for Justice, of charities’ role as voices of communities. There
is an increasingly commonly expressed view that charities should simply
deliver services and not speak out against injustices – leading to
voluntary organisations self-censoring because they are afraid of losing
government work, appearing too political or because of gagging clauses
in state contracts.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">New and proposed restrictions to the ability of voluntary
organisations to challenge government decisions in the courts on behalf
of vulnerable individuals.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Restrictions to campaigning put forward in the Lobbying Bill without
consultation and, despite subsequent changes, with continuing concerns
about their impact.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Cuts in government consultation periods, leaving voluntary
organisations too little time to respond to important questions, despite
assurances this would change.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Damage to support in communities due to loss of public funding for
local specialist voluntary organisations as public service contracts
concentrate on economies of scale rather than social return.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Many state-sponsored charities subject to government interference, for example in appointment of board members.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">A weak Charity Commission ill-equipped to maintain public confidence
that charities are pursuing an independent mission that is furthering
the public good and not state sponsored or driven by private gain; and
lack of government compliance with a document signed by David Cameron to
protect the independence of the sector, the Compact.</span></span></li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Panel chair Sir Roger Singleton CBE said:</span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span></span><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">“An independent voluntary sector lies at the heart of a
compassionate, democratic society, a role that has become especially
important as engagement with mainstream politics declines and the state
reduces in size.</span></span></i><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> Yet we are on a ‘slippery slope’, in which the independence of
voluntary organisations is increasingly undervalued and under threat and
there are insufficient safeguards to protect an independent future for
the sector. It is increasingly seen either as a delivery arm of the
state or only legitimate where it provides services but does not speak
out for wider social change.</span></span></i></blockquote>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> The full 64 page report of the Panel is <a href="http://www.independencepanel.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Independence-undervaluedfinalPDF-copy.pdf">here </a></span></span><br />
<br />Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-65745399210756427372013-03-21T06:33:00.000-07:002013-03-21T06:33:16.618-07:00Should corporate lobbyists and advocates lead NGOs who fight for social justice ?The appointment of Jennifer Westacott, CEO of the <a href="http://www.bca.com.au/Default.aspx">Business Council of Australia</a> as <a href="http://www.mhca.org.au/index.php/about-us/about-the-mhca/77-site-pages">Chair of the Mental Health Council of Australia</a> is further evidence of the trend towards the "corporate and business takeover" of the not- for- profit sector in Australia.<br />
<br />
This
"takeover" occurs in many ways and brings the not-for-profit sector
closer to the value, agendas and practices of corporate Australia and
the business sectors.<br />
<br />
One of the many ways this occurs is through the "revolving door" of
business and corporate leaders appointed to senior management positions
and the Boards of not- for- profit agencies. <br />
<br />
The
intent of the "takeover" is to harness the not-for-profit and civil
society sector (the non- market sectors) so it adopts and serves (and
does not challenge) the interests, visions and hegemony of corporate
Australia and business interests.<br />
<br />
Jennifer Westacott may be eminently qualified and deeply concerned about the mental health of her fellow Australians.<br />
<br />
But
the Business Council of Australia, the organization she leads, is
actively and forcefully pursuing agendas to slash public spending on
social security and social spending and promote privatization of public
services.<br />
<br />
It is hard to see how the CEO of the <a href="http://www.bca.com.au/Default.aspx">Business Council of Australia</a>,
a powerful business and corporate lobby group, who argues, advocates
and lobbies for policies that are antithetical and hostile to the social
justice agenda of the mental health sector could seriously advocate and
fight for the interests of the people and stakeholders the Mental
Health Council represents and acts on behalf of.<br />
<br />
As CEO of the <a href="http://www.bca.com.au/Default.aspx">Business Council</a>
since 2011 Westacott has been an active player in advocating and
lobbying to protect and advance the interests of corporate Australia.
She is a forceful <a href="http://www.bca.com.au/Content/99519.aspx">advocate</a>
for what she calls "unleashing the wealth creating parts of the
economy"to allow them to pursue endless economic growth. This requires
that social policy become a fundamental plank of, and subservient to
economic policy that is pro-growth, in other words pro-corporate and
pro business. <br />
<br />
In the BCA view of the world social policy and the needs
of vulnerable and marginalized people are secondary to the
interests of unleashed and unrestrained corporations and business who
they claim are the real drivers of economic growth and social prosperity. The BCA and Westacott <a href="http://www.bca.com.au/Content/99519.aspx">view</a> is that business and corporations are the ones that really create prosperity and wealth.<br />
<br />
Westacott regularly <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/bigideas/growth-to-what-end3f-changing-the-australian-mindset/4333558">argues</a>
the BCA line that it is only by unleashing economic and business growth
that social prosperity and the vision of a good society can be
achieved. Westacott <a href="http://www.bca.com.au/Content/99519.aspx">argues </a>that the Australian mindset and cultural values has to change to support this unleashing of the power of economic growth.<br />
<br />
In 2011 Westacott gave the <a href="http://www.bsl.org.au/pdfs/JW_Sharing_Prosperity_Brotherhood_of_St_Laurence_Sambell_Oration_FINAL_23%2011%202011.pdf#page=1">Sambell Oration</a>
for the Brotherhood of St Laurence where she laid out her views about
social policy. While she was reflecting the views of the Business
Council of Australia, the speech shows how profoundly her world view
and vision is shaped by corporate and business ideas that are
antithetical and hostile to a not- for- profit sector committed to
social justice.<br />
<br />
In the Sambell Oration Westacott called
for a new partnership between the NGO sector, Government and business
and urged the sector to engage in difficult conversations. The real
purpose of those conversations was primarily for the NGO sector to adopt
and advocate pro- business and pro- corporate policies of the Business
Council of Australia that she argued were necessary to ensure wealth
creation and economic growth, and ultimately social prosperity.<br />
<br />
Westacott
called on the NGO sector to support a new social contract, part of
which was built upon accepting the BCA agenda of : <br />
<ul>
<li>the need for eonomic growth to be unleashed</li>
<li>lower corporate and personal taxes</li>
<li>removal of any "regulation" that restricts profit making</li>
<li>more flexible labour market</li>
<li>reducing the size of Government and cutting Government spending </li>
</ul>
As Bernard Keane argued in <a href="http://www.crikey.com.au/2012/09/21/bca-nostalgic-for-a-bureaucratic-past-it-helped-to-destroy/?wpmp_switcher=mobile">Crikey</a>
Westacott's interventions in public policy have almost always driven by
the self interest of the business community and corporate Australia. <br />
<br />
The
decades long neglect of the needs and well being of people with mental
illness and their family members, carers and people affected has partly
been the result of the dominance in public policy circles of the sort of
"market fundamentalist" (neo-liberal) policy ideas that Jennifer
Westacott and the Business Council of Australia advocate.<br />
<br />
What
on earth leads NGOs to think that corporate and business advocates and
lobbyists who advocate for market fundamentalist policies are the best
people
to fight for and speak on behalf of some of the most vulnerable and
disadvantaged people? Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-29200457662145428422013-03-18T17:12:00.001-07:002013-03-18T17:13:15.935-07:00Not- for- profits take on corporate heavyweights<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFa9cQlK1V46mA6iXCNqXssbHamQMtT8XtMIIWJsozoegqbp8mOD_LS5Jcasdfh_cMPshQR2_tpL0BjXJ2Hn0BDhEwB83PfscG52a2g5xqGSBtF_lWbBmPdlvLC1KK4HQ01psc7SHlsUk/s1600/Greenpeace-Stopthewaste-ad.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFa9cQlK1V46mA6iXCNqXssbHamQMtT8XtMIIWJsozoegqbp8mOD_LS5Jcasdfh_cMPshQR2_tpL0BjXJ2Hn0BDhEwB83PfscG52a2g5xqGSBtF_lWbBmPdlvLC1KK4HQ01psc7SHlsUk/s640/Greenpeace-Stopthewaste-ad.png" width="444" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Environmental not- for- profits in Australia <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">are </span>at</span> t<span style="font-size: small;">h</span>e front line <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">in</span> campaigns</span> and actions against corporate <span style="font-size: small;">heavyweights</span>.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> <span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">As corporations increasingly use their financial and legal <span style="font-size: small;">power</span> to silence and <span style="font-size: small;">challenge</span> <span style="font-size: small;">campaigning organizations, the risks to not-for- profits are significant.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Environmental <span style="font-size: small;">organizations</span> and campaigners are particularly vulnerable as they face off against corporate heavyweights </span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">who are</span> well-resourced, well-connected and <span style="font-size: small;">powerful<span style="font-size: small;">.</span></span> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The risks <span style="font-size: small;">facing</span> not-for-profits <span style="font-size: small;">who</span> tak<span style="font-size: small;">e</span> on corporate heavyweights was demonstrat<span style="font-size: small;">ed in the <a href="http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/breaking-news/green-group-says-sorry-to-clive-palmer/story-e6freuz0-1226590627261">recent case</a> of the W<span style="font-size: small;">WF and its legal stou<span style="font-size: small;">sh</span> with mining magnate Clive P<span style="font-size: small;">almer.</span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In a media release WWF <a href="http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/breaking-news/green-group-says-sorry-to-clive-palmer/story-e6freuz0-1226590627261">claimed</a> that the Clive Palmer owned Yubala nickel refinery near Townsvi<span style="font-size: small;">l</span>le <span style="font-size: small;">Queensland</span> was threatening to collapse, thereby releasing toxins into the environment.<span style="font-size: small;"> T</span>he WWF claimed that</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> three ponds containing toxic industrial waste were at capacity
and could collapse and create a major environmental disaster. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Palmer
sued the WWF and was successful in <span style="font-size: small;">the</span> cou<span style="font-size: small;">rt <span style="font-size: small;">proceedings</span></span>. The WWF was forced to apologize to
Clive Palmer and agreed to pay his legal costs over its claims..</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Now <a href="http://www.greenpeace.org/australia/en/mediacentre/media-releases/oceans/New-ad-campaign-starved-on-a-full-stomach-brought-to-you-by-Coca-Cola/">Greenpace Australia</a> is <span style="font-size: small;">taking</span> on another global corporate heavyweight Coca Co<span style="font-size: small;">la</span> and it will be <span style="font-size: small;">interesting</span> to see how <span style="font-size: small;">it all</span> <span style="font-size: small;">unfolds.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Greenpeace Australia <span style="font-size: small;">has <span style="font-size: small;">launched</span> <span style="font-size: small;">a</span> <a href="http://mumbrella.com.au/greenpeace-launches-confront-print-campaign-on-back-of-court-loss-143933">media <span style="font-size: small;">campaign</span></a> against</span> corporate heavyweight C<span style="font-size: small;">o<span style="font-size: small;">ca Co<span style="font-size: small;">la</span> Amatil to pressure Federal and State Governments to implement a national containers scheme. </span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Gr<span style="font-size: small;">e</span>enpeace's <a href="http://www.greenpeace.org/australia/en/mediacentre/media-releases/oceans/New-ad-campaign-starved-on-a-full-stomach-brought-to-you-by-Coca-Cola/"><span style="font-size: small;">campaign</span></a> comes in the wake of Coca Cola Amatil's <a href="http://www.couriermail.com.au/business/companies/coca-cola-wins-federal-court-case-cash-for-containers-recycling-found-illegal/story-fndfrjq1-1226590179763">vi<span style="font-size: small;">c</span>tory</a> in the Northern Terriry courts <span style="font-size: small;">where</span> <span style="font-size: small;">t<span style="font-size: small;">he powerful and <span style="font-size: small;">wealthy</span> multinational corporation</span></span> used <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">its</span> <span style="font-size: small;">financial</span> and legal power</span> to <span style="font-size: small;">successfully</span> <span style="font-size: small;">dismantle</span> the Northern <span style="font-size: small;">Territory Government's</span> recycling scheme 'cash for containers'.<span style="font-size: small;"> </span>In <span style="font-size: small;">January</span> 20<span style="font-size: small;">11 the Northern Territory Government introduced a deposit scheme to encourg<span style="font-size: small;">age people to <span style="font-size: small;">recycle</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">bottles</span> and cans. C<span style="font-size: small;">o</span>ca Co<span style="font-size: small;">la</span> <span style="font-size: small;">successfully</span> challenged the <span style="font-size: small;">scheme</span> in court claiming it was an <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">inefficient</span> and <span style="font-size: small;">expensive</span> method of increasing recycling rates.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Greenpeace is running full-page ads in The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald</span></span></span>. Its</span> campaign has been entirely
funded by individual donations. In just over
two weeks, over 50,000 people have signed up to the campaign
calling on politicians to implement a national ‘Cash for Containers’
scheme.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Greenpeace is targeting Coca Co<span style="font-size: small;">la </span>Amatil directly <a href="http://www.greenpeace.org/australia/en/mediacentre/media-releases/oceans/New-ad-campaign-starved-on-a-full-stomach-brought-to-you-by-Coca-Cola/">arguing</a> that: </span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">"Coke is currently trashing a popular and proven 10 cent recycling refund
scheme and is the main blocker standing in the way of a national
scheme. ‘Cash for containers’ has run successfully for 30 years in South
Australia, where recycling rates are almost double those across the
rest of the country.<br /><br />Coca Cola Amatil has for years sought to
undermine this proven system, spending hundreds of thousands of dollars
on misleading advertising and reportedly threatening to campaign
against MPs who support the policy.</span></span></span></span></span></i></span></span> </blockquote>
</blockquote>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-70613205703191368562013-03-14T20:17:00.000-07:002013-03-14T20:17:29.395-07:00Why the application of market models is misguided and dangerous?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNXsSDyapu0ItmoN97But7n-xDOjWyIvf1OgGni4Uc8tVpungQSWuekeRJsusFKqe490-N0Mtmtb86fR47DrRHVCarNTQ2Csg2TJVCXOaGVVbr65fQxs6BSZWItjUMLLjD508iJnXGKIw/s1600/nfp%2527sts-about-people-not-profits_large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNXsSDyapu0ItmoN97But7n-xDOjWyIvf1OgGni4Uc8tVpungQSWuekeRJsusFKqe490-N0Mtmtb86fR47DrRHVCarNTQ2Csg2TJVCXOaGVVbr65fQxs6BSZWItjUMLLjD508iJnXGKIw/s1600/nfp%2527sts-about-people-not-profits_large.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
Debra Allcock Tyler and Catherine Walker from the <a href="http://www.dsc.org.uk/Home#.UUKP7Te8xEM">UK Based Directory of Social Change</a> write <a href="http://www.charitiesdirect.com/caritas-magazine/dangerous-myths-1058.html">here</a> on why market based models and market based thinking is counter to the values and raison d'etre of the not for profit sector.<br />
<br />
Allcock Tyler and Walker directly challenge the prevailing market based views that are dominant among influential policy makers and decision makers in areas of social policy and human and community services. They write<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>.....it does seem to be the prevailing view in government circles that
charities are simply another source to supply the market. This view
completely fails to recognise the fact that charitable endeavour is at
its core about altruism. It is not a transactional activity, but a
transformational one. And the work of charities is far more than simply
the cause. The existence of charities acts as a ‘call to the heart’ of
our citizens. Charitable endeavour calls forth in others the desire and
willingness to serve others, our communities and our society. The
current model of the market applied to our sector is not appropriate.
Indeed, it assumes that the market model in and of itself has inherent
attributes that work across sectors. There are some core myths about the market model:</i><br />
<i>
</i><i><span style="color: #ff9900;"><strong>(1) </strong></span>market models are the most effective way to deliver the work of charities;</i><br />
<i>
</i><i><span style="color: #ff9900;"><strong>(2) </strong></span>the beneficiary is the same as any consumer, with rational informed desires about where to seek help;</i><br />
<i>
</i><i><span style="color: #ff9900;"><strong>(3)</strong></span> those
interacting with charities desire to do so on a transactional basis, for
example, givers and volunteers will do so only if an end reward is on
offer; and</i><br />
<i>
</i><i><span style="color: #ff9900;"><strong>(4)</strong></span> charities are inefficient and social investment is the way forward. </i></blockquote>
Allcock and Tyler go on to demolish these myths and argue that the application of market models to the not for profit sector is misguided and dangerous. They conclude:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Charities are fundamentally an embodiment of the best part of human
nature, the best evolutionary bit, the bit that makes us a social being
with the common good at heart. Value comes in living a good life. Value
is about selflessness not about a price tag imposed in an intrinsically
greedy marketplace. This is not piety or sentimentality, nor is it about
good and evil, but it is about what kind of charity sector is best for a
good, big or better society. </i></blockquote>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-26352102847015376782013-03-04T03:42:00.001-08:002013-03-04T03:44:36.536-08:00In Queensland freedom of speech does not apply to some NGOs and civil society<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4qwtiMGQFssBxyAVvCWWvy1C7Jp2PfCslK1NTGD2lqQWsK_BLvyJNRuuqaTJGC2w8tWKP_RdRvNJR9smqVS9fnAuVd8fm2-SEUHpXG-EDf32kDglS6eK2AyHmDhfuiFWSPUa_gfKu73A/s1600/sprngibord.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4qwtiMGQFssBxyAVvCWWvy1C7Jp2PfCslK1NTGD2lqQWsK_BLvyJNRuuqaTJGC2w8tWKP_RdRvNJR9smqVS9fnAuVd8fm2-SEUHpXG-EDf32kDglS6eK2AyHmDhfuiFWSPUa_gfKu73A/s320/sprngibord.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<h5 class="uiStreamMessage userContentWrapper" data-ft="{"type":1,"tn":"K"}">
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="messageBody" data-ft="{"type":3}"><span class="userContent">Funny
how Liberal National Governments vehemently defend the right to freedom
of speech for racists, anti Islamists, climate change deniers and
corporations, but not for civil society groups and NGO's who speak out on
public policy issues<span style="font-size: small;">.</span></span></span></span></span></span></h5>
<h5 class="uiStreamMessage userContentWrapper" data-ft="{"type":1,"tn":"K"}">
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="messageBody" data-ft="{"type":3}"><span class="userContent">Since its election the Queensland Liberal<span style="font-size: small;">-</span>National Newman Government has sought to silence NGO's who wish to contribute to political debate. The <span style="font-size: small;">Government</span> has made it clear that <span style="font-size: small;">NGOs</span> must remain silent if they wish to receive public funding. </span></span>Grant contracts now include clauses preventing non-government organisations advocating for state and federal legislative change.</span></span></span></h5>
<h5 class="uiStreamMessage userContentWrapper" data-ft="{"type":1,"tn":"K"}">
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="messageBody" data-ft="{"type":3}"><span class="userContent"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Stories about the <span style="font-size: small;">attacks</span> on the free sp<span style="font-size: small;">eech rights of NGOs in Queensland are</span></span></span> <a href="http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/gag-clauses-help-stop-grant-abuse-20120919-265tm.html">here</a>, <a href="http://ngotalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=7829.0">here</a>, <a href="http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/ngos-told-they-are-right-to-remain-silent-to-keep-funding-20120820-24ilb.html">here</a>, <a href="http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/ngos-blast-government-gag-rule-20120821-24ju3.html">here</a> and <a href="http://theconversation.edu.au/censoring-public-health-in-queensland-a-dangerous-precedent-9733">here</a>. </span></span></span></span></span> </span></span></h5>
<h5 class="uiStreamMessage userContentWrapper" data-ft="{"type":1,"tn":"K"}">
<span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="messageBody" data-ft="{"type":3}"><span class="userContent"><span style="font-size: small;">This latest <a href="http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/springborg-defends-draconian-gag-orders-20130304-2ffxu.html">piece</a> is from the toda<span style="font-size: small;">ys</span> Brisbane Times. </span></span></span></span></span></span></h5>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<h1 class="cN-headingPage">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Springborg defends 'draconian' gag orders</span></span></h1>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Queensland's health minister has defended gag orders on
not-for-profit groups that receive state funding and has told the
federal government to butt out.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span></i><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The federal government will introduce a new bill which would
ban gag clauses from all commonwealth contracts with the not-for-profit
sector.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span></i><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">It plans to write to state and territory leaders asking them to match the federal commitment.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span></i><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Federal Finance Finance Minister Penny Wong has called the Newman government's gag orders "nothing short of draconian".</span></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span></i><br />
<div class="ad adCentred" id="adspot-300x250-pos-3">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></i> </div>
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span></i><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"First, the Newman government cuts funding to those without a
voice and then silences those who speak on their behalf," she said.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span></i><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">But Queensland Health Minister Lawrence Springborg said
not-for-profit groups should not be wasting their time and money on
political advocacy.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span></i><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">He said the federal government should stop trying to interfere.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span></i><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"We will decide how public money is spent in Queensland," he said on Monday.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span></i><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"In Queensland we believe that if we give money in Queensland
Health to an organisation, then that organisation should be doing what
we fund them for.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
</span></span></i><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"Not running around with political advocacy."</span></span></i><br />
<div style="background-color: white; border: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></i></div>
<h5 class="uiStreamMessage userContentWrapper" data-ft="{"type":1,"tn":"K"}">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="messageBody" data-ft="{"type":3}"><span class="userContent"> </span></span></span></span></i></h5>
</blockquote>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-75953011409827706722013-03-03T16:58:00.002-08:002013-03-03T17:14:11.843-08:00Journalists, social policy and social justice<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZC2LJyCp8ti1UjL4Ic0gLXgkAJrG1UhvfKxlSyhuGO_Pp9G2HhuSQevXcCmaAFHe-mGIbiKN1UEfUHAvr03M-1EZiJt7Jhe0AgxgNUELUw_bshh54p53cx4CNUkkwY1oMuZDcfPEg2Ek/s1600/table+over+65.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZC2LJyCp8ti1UjL4Ic0gLXgkAJrG1UhvfKxlSyhuGO_Pp9G2HhuSQevXcCmaAFHe-mGIbiKN1UEfUHAvr03M-1EZiJt7Jhe0AgxgNUELUw_bshh54p53cx4CNUkkwY1oMuZDcfPEg2Ek/s320/table+over+65.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />For 18 years <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/by/adele-horin">Adele Horin</a>
was the Sydney Morning Herald's social affairs correspondent where she
wrote important and ground breaking articles about social policy issues
and the development and implementation of social policy by Federal and
State Governments.<br />
<br />
<div style="background-color: white; border: medium none; color: black; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">
Along with her former colleague at the Sydney Morning Herald <a href="http://australianetwork.com/nexus/stories/s1993826.htm">Elisabeth Wynhausen</a> (whose website is <a href="http://backstreetbondi.com/">backstreetbondi)</a>, Adele Horin was a journalist who reported on social policy issues from a strong social justice perspective.</div>
<br />
She
has a great ability to write about the myriad of ways that social
policy decisions impact on the daily lives of ordinary people.<br />
<br />
In her final article for the SMH <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/for-richer-and-poorer-the-battle-goes-on-20120824-24rpe.html">For richer and poorer the battle goes on</a><i> </i>Horin writes:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Harsh and simplistic solutions to complex social problems are still
trotted out by the rich and powerful whose encounters with the lives of
the poor are usually non-existent.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>It is the same story in the schools debate. Twenty-four years
ago I wrote, ''If state schools are to avoid their fate as repositories
of the poor, and thus electorally dispensable, the middle class must be
wooed back.'' They weren't.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>The Gonski report presents a compelling economic and social
argument for equalising opportunities for children in public schools. No
subject is more important than improving the life chances of poor
children through the best education possible.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>But the debate appears lost, as the Prime Minister, once
dedicated to the cause, panders to a middle-class with kids in private
schools who consider themselves hard-up. She promises to give extra
funds she doesn't have to wealthy schools while the Opposition Leader
claims rich schools are the true victims of funding injustice. Plus c¸a
change.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Mandatory detention of refugees began in 1992 under then
prime minister Paul Keating. A lot of us overlooked the development in
far-away Port Hedland at the time. All these years later, harsh
treatment of refugees of a kind we know is bound to cause mental illness
and suicides remains our only response, and the ''regional solution''
is no close</i></blockquote>
Adele Horin now works as a freelance
journalist and reports on the interface between aged care policy and the
experiences of Australians getting older. Her articles are published at
her website <a href="http://adelehorin.com.au/">Adele Horin: Coming of Age</a> and in online publications such as the <a href="http://www.theglobalmail.org/feature/the-new-nasty-sibling-rivalry/567/">Global Mail</a>.<br />
<br />
Her latest article <a href="http://www.theglobalmail.org/feature/the-new-nasty-sibling-rivalry/567/">The New Nasty Sibling Rivalry</a>
looks at the ways families are responding to the demands of caring for
ageing parents and the consequences of Federal Government policies hat
often require the sale of the family home to pay for the costs of care
for ageing parents.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijrtVV8iSgVwNOL7aNPj36Bi6VB-z33MKVnj0yAVg7z5luZaZdr5URIL3fcc16A8XI047gMoCBZKljbGGrdVRzEGhEuoOsPnYlj6MByra1Ynz7eg-iAjBnrjidX43-yrwTy7tbGHD3TTnS/s1600/table+over+65.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="341" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijrtVV8iSgVwNOL7aNPj36Bi6VB-z33MKVnj0yAVg7z5luZaZdr5URIL3fcc16A8XI047gMoCBZKljbGGrdVRzEGhEuoOsPnYlj6MByra1Ynz7eg-iAjBnrjidX43-yrwTy7tbGHD3TTnS/s400/table+over+65.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-90515575858666906522012-11-30T18:53:00.000-08:002012-11-30T19:15:49.531-08:00Why demands for greater accountability and stronger governance should be challenged<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTpVVV0TcT_63nrNR119etzA9xDUmbiHDC2t3qiD7F_IVsCdNq_4DwnOELr1IHaPyGV4A2SHEn4NgNUE5fxOKTsiuqXcWfauaj9GAuFpFUlb5_AsypEB04XNwAJMZfo6cFTvvrxEINmGw/s1600/NFpaccountability.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTpVVV0TcT_63nrNR119etzA9xDUmbiHDC2t3qiD7F_IVsCdNq_4DwnOELr1IHaPyGV4A2SHEn4NgNUE5fxOKTsiuqXcWfauaj9GAuFpFUlb5_AsypEB04XNwAJMZfo6cFTvvrxEINmGw/s320/NFpaccountability.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<h2>
</h2>
Very good advice from <a href="http://www.hertie-school.org/anheier/">Helmut Anheier</a> who <a href="http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/Governance/article/1162310/lets-not-overdo-accountability-governance-professor-tells-acevo-conference/">calls </a>on not-for-profits to resist and lobby against demands by legislators, politicians, academic think tanks and corporate leaders for greater not- for- profit accountability.<br />
<br />
This is a critical issue here in Australia where Governments of all political persuasions and corporate and business leaders demand greater not- for- profit accountability and exhort the sector to "<a href="http://knowledge.asb.unsw.edu.au/article.cfm?articleid=1674">rise to the accountability challenge". </a><br />
<br />
Of course their demand for greater not- for- profit accountability is wholly incompatible with their commitment to reduce accountability and regulation of politicians and political parties, and corporations and business.<br />
<br />
Anheier argues <a href="http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/Governance/article/1162310/lets-not-overdo-accountability-governance-professor-tells-acevo-conference/">(here</a>) that the continual focus on accountability and governance produces undermines the reasons why not- for- profits exist.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Charity leaders must lobby against ever greater accountability requirements, delegates were told at <a href="http://www.acevo.org.uk/" target="_blank">Acevo</a>’s annual conference today.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Speaking at the event in London today, Helmut Anheier, professor of sociology and dean at the <a href="http://www.hertie-school.org/" target="_blank">Hertie School of Governance</a> in Berlin, said he was concerned about the growing expectation for the voluntary sector to become more accountable.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>"Why I’m concerned is that continual emphasis on good governance and
accountability will ultimately put non-profits on the defensive, making
it very difficult for them to meet these expectations, unless we take a
proactive solution and steps in that direction," he said.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Anheier, who was Centennial Professor at the London School of
Economics between 2001 and 2009, said the debate about the need for
charities to be more accountable stretched back almost 20 years, but was
now getting louder.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>"It is the ‘audit society’, general institutionalisation, the
suggestion that more and more mechanisms are needed to reassure us that
things are okay," he said. "This is merged with ideas of good
governance, which are now the prime directives for voluntary
organisations."</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>He said that putting emphasis on accountability undermined the reasons non-profit organisations exist. </i></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Innovation in accountability should be encouraged in the charity
sector, he said. He advocated demonstrating the academic Jonathan
Koppell’s "five dimensions of accountability": transparency, legitimacy,
controllability, responsibility and responsiveness.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>"It should be acknowledged that full accountability is beyond what
non-profits can and should do," said Anheier. "New forms of
self-regulation and smart reporting should be encouraged.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>"Lobby against new directives for ever great accountability requirements – let’s not overdo it."</i></blockquote>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-84844848018602224112012-11-12T02:28:00.002-08:002012-11-12T02:29:25.084-08:00We are Spartacus: The power of social justice campaigning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq6llEx0laJvvEglPWNTc2VGs5JpslGDt0jzLmahkUXMyobRNZQMM2TAJB-1SD2GlM5M8gfITAvDX5mcsYxIg5En7ZHlFQ3qe79ZmsKMPW2DP3EhVhWQ8QQyktfh1WMUgXvE5HHCd3NLg/s1600/spartacusn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq6llEx0laJvvEglPWNTc2VGs5JpslGDt0jzLmahkUXMyobRNZQMM2TAJB-1SD2GlM5M8gfITAvDX5mcsYxIg5En7ZHlFQ3qe79ZmsKMPW2DP3EhVhWQ8QQyktfh1WMUgXvE5HHCd3NLg/s320/spartacusn.jpg" width="261" /></a></div>
<br />
Here's hoping that the release of the <a href="http://liberalconspiracy.org/2012/11/12/new-report-highlights-failures-of-work-capability-assessment-for-disabled/">second Spartacus Report</a> in the UK proves to be as significant as the <a href="http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/files/response_to_proposed_dla_reforms.pdf">first Spartacus Report</a> (released in January 2012) which generated a <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/jan/17/disability-spartacus-welfare-cuts-campaign-viral">huge groundswell of opposition</a> to the Cameron Government's welfare reform package for people with disabilities, and resulted in <a href="http://liberalconspiracy.org/2012/02/15/what-yesterdays-welfare-bill-defeat-means-for-the-government-and-activists/">Parliamentary defeats</a> for the Cameron Government (the website of the We are Spartacus Campaign is <a href="http://wearespartacus.org.uk/spartacus-report/">here</a>)<br />
<br />
The <a href="http://liberalconspiracy.org/2012/11/12/new-report-highlights-failures-of-work-capability-assessment-for-disabled/">second Spartacus Report</a> released this week is described as <a href="http://wearespartacus.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/The-Peoples-Review-of-the-Work-Capability-Assessment.pdf">a People's Report</a> and analyses the failures of the Government’s Work Capability Assessment and the Employment & Support Allowance system for people with disabilities.<br />
<br />
It <span class="messageBody" data-ft="{"type":3}"><span class="userContent">includes the
experiences of more than 70 people who have been wrongly assessed,
humiliated, badly treated and forced to go to a tribunal to secure the
benefits to which they are entitled under by law. The report
highlights press reports of some people who have died after
being found fit for work or whose suicide has been linked, at least in
part, to a process which is considered abusive, demeaning
and not fit for purpose. </span></span><br />
<br />
The first Spartacus Report was a social policy and social justice <a href="http://liberalconspiracy.org/2012/07/02/is-labour-missing-the-boat-on-the-changing-nature-of-campaigning/">landmark</a>. It demonstrated the power of an authentic grassroots campaign organized and run by people most directly affected by welfare reform. Rather than attempt to work "inside and with Government and political parties" the campaign directly resisted and challenged Government policy.<br />
<br />
The first Spartacus<a href="http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/files/response_to_proposed_dla_reforms.pdf"> report</a> was written and researched by a group of people with disabilities as part of a grassroots campaign to challenge and reverse a key social policy reform. The report and campaign grew out of the online support networks that sprung up
as people’s right to much needed DLA was removed by the
government. <br />
<br />
The campaign used a wide variety of tactics –
with a particular focus on social media campaign and direct action –
to shift the debate on disability benefits. One significant feature of
the Spartacus campaign was the organic nature of its development from a
social support network to a formal political campaign. <br />
<br />
The first <a href="http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/files/response_to_proposed_dla_reforms.pdf">Spartacus Report</a> showed the Cameron Government's <a href="http://liberalconspiracy.org/2012/01/09/how-the-government-misled-mps-to-deprive-disabled-people/">lies and evasions</a> and its misleading of the public over plans to reform the Disability Living Allowance (DLA) being paid to people with disabilities and replace it with a Personal Independence Payment (PIP). The Report showed that the change would result in significant cuts in benefits and reduction in allowances.<br />
<br />
The Spartacus Report exposed the Cameron Government's lies and evasions on the reform and showed that:<br />
<ul>
<li>There was overwhelming opposition among people with disabilities and disability groups to the reform</li>
<li>The Government ignored the majority of consultation feedback it received and concealed the huge amount of opposition to the reforms</li>
<li>The Government used inaccurate figures to exaggerate the rise in DLA claimants in order to justify its policy</li>
<li>The Government broke its own guidelines about consulting with people with disabilities</li>
<li>The Government ignored advice that the policy breached legislation including the Equality Act, the Human Rights Act and the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities.</li>
</ul>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-10204020880622869592012-11-08T17:18:00.001-08:002012-11-08T21:29:19.057-08:00Rick Cohen on the need for the Not For Profit sector to be more involved in political issuesRick Cohen is one of the best writers and commentators on the US not for profit sector. His regular <a href="http://nonprofitquarterly.org/all-site-terms/term/summary/44.html">Cohen Report</a> can be read on the website of the <a href="http://nonprofitquarterly.org/">Non Profit Quarterly.</a><br />
<br />
He has written <a href="http://nonprofitquarterly.org/policysocial-context/21330-a-time-to-govern-nonprofits-must-help-washington-face-real-problems.html">this excellent piece</a> on the implications of the US elections for the not for profit sector. There is much in here for the Australian not for profit sector to consider.<br />
<br />
One of Cohen's key points is that the not for profit sector needs to be much more engaged in the political debates and issues of the day, whether it is climate change, economic policy, political corruption or corporate power.<br />
<br />
Cohen argues that the nonprofit sector can and should be the bridge
through which the political parties start speaking to—rather than
sidestepping—the critical issues of the day.<br />
<br />
Cohen <a href="http://nonprofitquarterly.org/policysocial-context/21330-a-time-to-govern-nonprofits-must-help-washington-face-real-problems.html">writes: </a><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>In a way, the gig is up. It’s no longer sufficient for the nonprofit
sector to sidestep critical societal issues of race, campaign finance,
climate change, and the fiscal cliff for fear that in speaking out on
them they will alienate arenas of political support they need to
cultivate and protect. It’s equally no longer tolerable for our nation’s
political leaders to be allowed the leeway to feed the nation bromides
without coming to grips with the real issues at hand. And it is
untenable for the leaders in Washington and in the state capitals to
continue down a path of intransigence and obstructionism that makes the
nation appear virtually ungovernable. The nonprofit sector has a
concrete role to play in telling politicians to get their acts together,
to start speaking to the real issues of the day, and to act as if being
elected to government means having to engage in the process of
governing.</i></blockquote>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-81749888366475107702012-10-31T17:49:00.000-07:002012-11-01T05:29:00.132-07:00UK not for profit leader warns against adopting private sector models<a href="http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/bulletin/third_sector_daily_bulletin/article/1156786/debra-allcock-tyler-visit-down-made-worry-theyre-repeating-mistakes/?DCMP=EMC-CONThirdSectorDaily">Deborah Allcock Tyler</a> who is the CEO of the UK based Directory of Social Change is a regular vsitor to Australia and always has important and insightful things to say about the Not-for profit sector<br />
<br />
Last time she was in Australia she <a href="http://www.probonoaustralia.com.au/news/2010/09/nfps-should-not-be-business-uk-expert">slammed the idea</a> that Not for profits should be more business like arguing that it is offensive how much is written about
how NFPs need to be run better and behave more like the business world.
<br />
<table align="right" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="1" style="width: 250px;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><img alt="" src="http://www.probonoaustralia.com.au/sites/www.probonoaustralia.com.au/files/news/allcocktyler300200.jpg" style="height: 200px; width: 300px;" /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td><span style="font-size: 12px;"><span style="color: dimgrey;">Debra Allcock Tyler addresses the 2010 Think Innovation Summi</span></span></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<br />
Allcock Tyler argues that the constant comparison between practices in the business and
Not for Profit sectors is ironic, as it was the failure of corporate
governance and banks that plunged the world into a recession.<br />
<br />
Allcock Tyler has recently <a href="http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/bulletin/third_sector_daily_bulletin/article/1156786/debra-allcock-tyler-visit-down-made-worry-theyre-repeating-mistakes/?DCMP=EMC-CONThirdSectorDaily">visited</a> Australia again as a guest of the Victorian Department of Communities to speak about the experience of the big society and its impact in the UK, social finance and the role of the voluntary sector in social change.<br />
<br />
One of her messages (one that I and many others have been arguing for years) needs to be stated over and over- private-sector models are not the solution to deeply entrenched, long-term social problems and complex human and community needs.<br />
<br />
Allcock Tyler is a strong critic of competitive tendering and contractual approaches arguing that the move to competitive tendering for government
contracts creates a view of NFPs as just another delivery vehicle for
social services. It creates a system where NFPs
are forced to behave more ruthlessly like businesses, in a competitive
manner.<br />
<br />
Allcock Tyler argues that competitive tendering creates a psychological shift about
who the client is – with a contract the client is whoever is paying,
instead of the grant system, where a NFP determines a solution to a
problem and takes it to government for funding. It also this means the
big organisations get bigger, and the medium and small organisations are
left behind.<br />
<br />
Allcock Tyler has warned the Australian not- for- profit sector of the dangers of adopting untested and in many cases failed market- based policies, including social finance, social enterprise and payment by results, which are increasingly popular here in Australia among Governments and which are fiercely promoted by academic think tanks like the Centre for Social Impact and the growing number of corporate funded and business oriented NFP advocacy groups.<br />
<br />
Allcock Tyler writes<a href="http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/bulletin/third_sector_daily_bulletin/article/1156786/debra-allcock-tyler-visit-down-made-worry-theyre-repeating-mistakes/?DCMP=EMC-CONThirdSectorDaily"> here</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>It was a great trip, even though I came away worried that the
Australians are following the UK's lead in government engagement with
the voluntary sector - which, let's face it, is not going well. I did
point out that they really shouldn't follow our example because we're
buggering it up badly (they're Aussies - they like a spade to be called a
spade, and an expletive to emphasise the point always goes down well).</i><br />
<br />
<i>You won't be surprised to hear that I was particularly scathing about
social impact bonds and payment by results. One rather important sort
of chap then asked me how I explained the success of the "Peterborough
experiment". I was flummoxed. I'd never heard of it and said that if it
was that successful people would have been shouting about it loudly.</i><br />
<br />
<i>Amazingly, on my first day back in the UK I was listening to Today
when said 'experiment' was referred to by Chris Grayling, the Secretary
of State for Justice. The absolute shocker was his statement that the
payment-by-results model used in the social impact bond being pioneered
at Peterborough prison was hugely successful - although he hadn't yet
had the report with the evidence to back up that assertion. It seems the
government is so confident this market-based, capital-intensive model
is right that it doesn't need the evidence to prove it.</i><br />
<br />
<i>What really riled me was the bare-faced hypocrisy of this. We in the
sector are constantly exhorted to provide evidence of need and success
in order to get funding - but the government is allowed to get away with
rolling out a controversial, highly contested model of funding the
sector without providing evidence. How hypocritical is that? Well, it
won't work. Private-sector models are not the solution to deeply
entrenched, long-term social problems.</i></blockquote>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-37372089738872357572012-10-19T01:38:00.002-07:002012-10-19T01:41:11.145-07:00Not for profit aged care provider Baptistcare protests Federal Government funding cuts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGeVoFuAwkXgGczFLr-en1Ak7yusNcSGlGT063MRdi9bD7-_Sdbhhsu8sFj1F-Wsz4cPx_AZ3kmQ8k0ozkZDpBY7qOSME2ZqnNsDQE4yMXp0XulVo9GrjIoxVsc4fadXwhaVokKx7mpwI/s1600/baptistcarepotest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGeVoFuAwkXgGczFLr-en1Ak7yusNcSGlGT063MRdi9bD7-_Sdbhhsu8sFj1F-Wsz4cPx_AZ3kmQ8k0ozkZDpBY7qOSME2ZqnNsDQE4yMXp0XulVo9GrjIoxVsc4fadXwhaVokKx7mpwI/s400/baptistcarepotest.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Always <span style="font-size: small;">pleasing</span> to see large Not- for- profit organizations like <a href="http://www.baptistcare.com.au/">Bap<span style="font-size: small;">tistcare</span></a> willing to make a stand and protest against Government policy that disadvantages the people they serve.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">This <a href="http://www.inmycommunity.com.au/news-and-views/local-news/Protest-at-aged-care-cuts/7633991/">report</a> describes a protest by staff at Baptistcare's Rockingham aged care facility against Federal Government funding decisions in aged care that are resulting in $500 million being cut from aged care funding.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Baptistcare is <a href="http://www.australianageingagenda.com.au/2012/10/12/article/Disquiet-on-the-western-front/SQLVUUWQXG.html">extending the protest </a>to 13 of its residential aged care facilities and
three disability and community care sites from today, in protest at the Federal government's decision
</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The organisation has taken the step of launching the <a href="http://www.australianageingagenda.com.au/2012/10/12/article/Disquiet-on-the-western-front/SQLVUUWQXG.html">visual protest</a>,
which includes a call to action via social media, to raise greater
public awareness of the government's <a href="http://www.australianageingagenda.com.au/2012/06/22/article/ACFI-changes-announced/RKGSWDUWYJ.html">1 July adjustments to the Aged Care Funding Instrument</a> (ACFI). </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The protest is part of a larger campaign being run by not- for- profit aged care providers through <a href="http://www.acswa.org.au/Default.aspx">Aged and Community Services WA</a> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> which represents not-for-profit
aged care providers which care for 100,000 of the state's most frail and
vulnerable citizens. </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Flags emblazoned with
“Government Neglects Aged Care” flew outside the Gracehaven facility
protesting reduced federal funds for aged-care organisations to deliver
clinical care services to its residents.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Baptistcare CEO Lucy Morris said the
Government had made it almost impossible for not-for-profit residential
care providers, like Baptistcare, to provide appropriate care for the
elderly and vulnerable.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">“Through its adjustment of the
assessment tool used to fund high-care services, the Government has
stripped money from the services needed to care for older, sicker
residents, who have more complex health needs and need higher levels of
care,” Dr Morris said.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">But Mental Health and Ageing
Minister Mark Butler said subsidies would not be reduced and they would
continue to grow by 2.7 per cent a year above indexation, per resident
over the next five years.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">He said early data for providers’
care funding claims made in July showed average subsidies increased from
$133.96 per resident per day in June to $134.83 in July.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">“Leading Aged Services Australia
(LASA) and Aged and Community Services Australia (ACSA) have claimed
funding will be cut by hundreds of millions of dollars in 2012 and
beyond,” Mr Butler said.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">“These claims are clearly untrue, as
these early figures show. The Government’s aged care package will
increase funding for residential care. This year’s subsidies will be
$310 million more than last year.”</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">ACSA WA chief Stephen Kobelke said
WA’s not-for-profit aged care sector had struggled for years to survive
in one of the world’s most expensive cities.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">“There has been unprecedented
stagnation in the provision of aged-care services in WA, to the point
that 3368 bed licences have now not been taken up since 2007,” he said.</span></span></i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">He said ACSWA figures showed some aged-care providers would face cuts of over $14,000 per resident.</span></span></i></blockquote>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-65448019471594942972012-10-08T20:36:00.001-07:002012-10-08T20:38:34.328-07:00Citizen action in Perth this weekendA busy weekend of activity coming up for WA's citizen led sector and
WA civil society groups with a number of important rallies and events in
Perth this weekend worthy of support. I will be speaking at one of
them.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1ltrxjcRzyBYpz9LQKNjh7is81M2ix5SZ3WpY03-iUj33glLGRmjDeSJGjMjvr9Q51snz8ufVHrfVhs6-J1BLBjlwL83a1YyR4njBR6WseDHe0KdIaE4vAKhyphenhyphenUMLJHz-WhltM8IDtzM1l/s1600/perthprotests.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1ltrxjcRzyBYpz9LQKNjh7is81M2ix5SZ3WpY03-iUj33glLGRmjDeSJGjMjvr9Q51snz8ufVHrfVhs6-J1BLBjlwL83a1YyR4njBR6WseDHe0KdIaE4vAKhyphenhyphenUMLJHz-WhltM8IDtzM1l/s320/perthprotests.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/196162967179400/">Rally against Unconventional Gas Fracking </a>at
1pm this Saturday October 13th in Fremantle is part of a National Week
of Action against unconventional gas fracking as called by the Lock the
Gate Alliance. Here in WA the unconventional gas threat has grown more
serious with
full scale shale and tight gas fields planned for the Mid West and
the Kimberley.<span class="messageBody" data-ft="{"type":3}"><span class="userContent"> Speakers include: Greens MP Alison Xamon,
Jamie Hanson from Conservaion Council of WA, Greg Glazov from Doctors for the Environment,
Marcus Atkinson from Nuclear Free Future, Fremantle Mayor Brad Pettitt
and also a member of No Fracking WAy.</span></span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://us2.campaign-archive2.com/?u=e03222d7a3b106f3f9c57fa07&id=6514087af2">The Global Noise Street Festival</a>
to be held in the Perth Cultural Centre from 6pm to 9pm this Saturday
October 13th forms part of the Occupy Perth celebrations and the Global
Occupy movement.<br />
<br />
The annual <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/360335774050613/">Reclaim the Streets</a> March will commence at 2pm on Saturday 13th October from the Perth Cultural Centre.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/rran.wa?ref=ts&fref=ts">Welcome Refugees</a>
is a protest against mandatory detention and Australia's offshore
asylum seeker processing regimes organized by the Refugee Rights Action
Network (RRAN) WA. The event will take place at 1pm this Sunday October
14th at the Wesley Church corner on the Corner of Hay and William
Streets in the Perth CBD.Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-72834085576032146282012-09-26T20:31:00.001-07:002012-09-26T23:55:10.170-07:00Regulator of the Australian not-for-profit sector is in doubt<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJQkCys1lOUqkau8PCEMpVAur6FObFfnYi2c76nKURS7xCAGgmsizzBpJi9hTaeEulPFnx3DxiE4TxRYFHJYcMEdGC4AiWpjN0YD6enNOAIBicA3pU_JqOXQvBgHQdO9_GLnoWF8BDeAA/s1600/austnfpcommission.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJQkCys1lOUqkau8PCEMpVAur6FObFfnYi2c76nKURS7xCAGgmsizzBpJi9hTaeEulPFnx3DxiE4TxRYFHJYcMEdGC4AiWpjN0YD6enNOAIBicA3pU_JqOXQvBgHQdO9_GLnoWF8BDeAA/s1600/austnfpcommission.jpg" /></a></div>
Excellent and timely piece <a href="http://newmatilda.com/2012/09/26/will-charity-commission-cut-red-tape">here</a> by El Gibbs in <a href="http://newmatilda.com/">New Matilda</a> on the Federal Government's plan to set up an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_Charities_and_Not-For-Profits_Commission">Australian Charities and Not-for-Profit (<span class="caps">NFP</span>) Commission</a> to improve regulation of the not-for-profit sector.<br />
<br />
The Federal Government's l<a href="http://www.notforprofit.gov.au/news/legislation-establish-australian-charities-and-not-profits-commission">egislation</a> to set up up the <a href="http://www.notforprofit.gov.au/news/legislation-establish-australian-charities-and-not-profits-commission">Australian Charities and Not-for Profit Commission</a> to manage all aspects
of NFP governance and require annual financial reporting by organisations
across the country <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/breakfast/charities-commission-on-hold/4271136">went through the House of Representatives last week </a>and is due to come before the Senate in the next sitting of Parliament.<br />
<br />
The relevant bills have been through an extensive consultation process,
including a formal review by a Senate Committee. The Greens, who hold the balance of power in the Senate, support the legislation in broad terms, but intend to <a href="http://greens.org.au/content/greens-recommendations-deliver-improved-not-profit-independence-0">move amendments</a> in the
Senate and may block the legislation if t<a href="http://www.probonoaustralia.com.au/news/2012/09/charity-regulator-start-date-doubt">heir amendments</a> are not adopted.<br />
<br />
The Opposition Liberal National Parties <a href="http://www.probonoaustralia.com.au/news/2012/09/opposition-declares-no-vote-acnc">currently oppose</a> the creation of the Commission. and provided over 30 speakers against the Bill when it came before the House of Representatives last week.<br />
<br />
As El points out the main industry bodies representing the not- for- profit sector in Australia have been calling for the streamlining and improvement of the regulation of the not- for- profit sector for some considerable time and there is widespread support for the Commission. <br />
<br />
However, despite this level of support there remain concerns that, without support from the states and
territories, the impact of the Commission will be to increase, rather
than decrease, the administrative burden on <span class="caps">NFP</span> groups, particularly smaller agencies.<br />
<br />
I have cited El's piece in full:<br />
<br />
<i><b>Will a Charity Commission cut Red Tape </b></i><br />
<i><b>by El Gibbs </b></i><br />
<br />
<i>A proposal to regulate and oversee a section of the Australian
economy that employs 8 per cent of workers and comprises over 600,000
different organisations went through the House of Representatives last
week. It’s due to come before the Senate in the next sitting of
Parliament.</i><br />
<br />
<i>
The proposed legislation will set up a commission to manage all aspects
of governance and require annual financial reporting by organisations
across the country.</i><br />
<br />
<i>
The Australian Charities and Not-for-profit (<span class="caps">NFP</span>) Commission is a long-standing goal of the <span class="caps">NFP</span> sector and has been recommended in a series of reports into the sector since 2001. Currently, charities and <span class="caps">NFP</span>
groups report to a myriad of government agencies. They often have to
report a number of times and in different ways, creating a great deal of
red tape. </i><br />
<br />
<i>
"We are at the altar of the reforms we want and need and we ask for the
support of our national parliament and of the states and territories to
deliver for us better and smarter regulation. We don’t want to be jilted
yet again," David Thompson <span class="caps">AM</span>, Director of the National Roundtable of <span class="caps">NFP</span> Organisations, told New Matilda. </i><br />
<br />
<i>
The Commission will also oversee future changes to the definition of
what is a charity and which organisations are able to claim the
lucrative Deductible Gift Recipient (<span class="caps">DGR</span>)
status, that allows donations to be tax-deductible — this has an impact
on the kind of fundraising an organisation can do. The Commission could
also frame the unique place the <span class="caps">NFP</span> sector holds in relation to the government and business sectors. </i><br />
<br />
<i>
The <span class="caps">CEO</span> of <span class="caps">ACOSS</span>, Dr Cassandra Goldie has <a href="http://acoss.org.au/media/release/community_sector_directors_overwhelmingly_back_not_for_profit_regulator" target="_blank">said</a>:
</i><br />
<blockquote>
<i>
"Our sector is overly but ineffectively regulated. For the reams of
paper and hours of analysis that charities put in to reporting the same
information to multiple funders and regulators, we know little about the
activities, size or scope of this essential sector."
</i></blockquote>
<i>
The proposed Commission will, <a href="http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id:" target="_blank">according</a> to Senator Ursula Stephens, have three main objectives.
</i><br />
<blockquote>
<i>
"Its first object is to maintain, protect and enhance public trust and confidence in the <span class="caps">NFP</span> sector. Its second object is to support and sustain a robust, vibrant, independent and innovative <span class="caps">NFP</span> sector. The third object underlines the important role that the <span class="caps">ACNC</span> will have to promote the reduction of unnecessary regulatory obligations on the <span class="caps">NFP</span> sector."
</i></blockquote>
<i>
In a statement from the State, Territory and National peak groups for
the sector, Goldie states that "the creation of the Australian Charities
and Not-for-profit Commission is the culmination of a long process and
has broad support from the community and social services sector. </i><br />
<br />
<i>
UnitingCare Director, Lin Hatfield-Dodds, told New Matilda that the
opportunities offered by the Commission could be of great benefit to the
community and to the sector:
</i><br />
<blockquote>
<i>
"It’s important that funders can quickly and easily get an objective
and transparent look at the community groups they support. The
Commission could also act as a ‘Report once, use often’ tool, so that
community groups report to one agency across all government. When we are
spending public money, we have to be transparent. However, there is a
risk that we spend more time and administration on reporting, rather
than delivering innovative services."
</i></blockquote>
<i>
However, there are concerns that, without support from the states and
territories, the impact of the Commission will be to increase, rather
than decrease, the administrative burden on <span class="caps">NFP</span> groups. Currently, organisations can either incorporate, and be regulated by <span class="caps">ASIC</span>,
or form an association, which is regulated by state-based Departments
of Fair Trading. The addition of a Commission, with no corresponding
reduction in state-based regulation, is of concern to many groups. <span class="caps">COAG</span> is due to consider these issues early in 2013. </i><br />
<br />
<i>
In the interim, the Commission could drive reform of red tape within the
federal government by streamlining reporting requirements across
departments and agencies. For example, each time a group applies for a
grant, they have to start from scratch, rather than being able to
register with the Commission once for all other agencies. </i><br />
<br />
<i>
The relevant bills have been available for public scrutiny for some
months, and have been through an extensive consultation process,
including a formal review by the Senate Community Affairs Committee.</i><br />
<br />
<i> The
current legislation is the result of many changes, however there are
still concerns held by the Greens, who intend to move amendments in the
Senate in the next sitting of Parliament. </i><br />
<i>
"As I outlined in my dissenting <a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate_Committees?url=clac_ctte/charities_commission/report/d03.htm" target="_blank">report</a>
on this legislation, the Greens remain concerned that there’s not
enough detail about gag-clauses for advocacy groups, and we think there
needs to be more consultation on the governance arrangements and
independence for the sector to advocate on behalf of those they look
after," Greens Senator Rachel Siewert told New Matilda:
</i><br />
<blockquote>
<i>
"Not-for-profit groups are an essential part of civil society and it’s
important that this legislation gives transparency in dealing with
government. We also want to see the Commissioner given more power to
drive the red-tape reduction agenda."
</i></blockquote>
<i>
The Greens confirmed to New Matilda that they will consider blocking the
legislation if their amendments are not adopted by the Government.
However, they stated their commitment to working with the Government to
improve the bills to address the remaining issues of concern to the <span class="caps">NFP</span> sector.
</i><br />
<br />
<i>The <span class="caps">LNP</span> currently opposes the creation of the Commission. Despite the broad sector support, the <span class="caps">LNP</span>
provided over 30 speakers against the Bill when it came before the
House last week. Kevin Andrews, the Shadow Minister for Families,
Housing and Human Services, <a href="http://kevinandrews.com.au/parliament/house-speech/acnc-bill-2012-cid-18-09-2012-22-56" target="_blank">stated</a>
that "this is legislation which has been foisted upon the charitable
sector in Australia which they do not want, which there has been no case
made by the hapless minister at the table." </i><br />
<br />
<i>
"This is simply not true," said Thompson, who leads the sector’s peak
body. "The evidence is in the thousands of words in submissions from the
sector, calling for this reform. The Government has taken on board a
significant number of issues raised in submissions." </i><br />
<br />
<i>
Other <span class="caps">LNP</span> members quoted a range of charitable and <span class="caps">NFP</span>
groups’ concerns about the Bill. However, some of these quotes were
from submissions about a much earlier version of the legislation and
many of these concerns have now been remedied. Several sources have
confirmed that there has been considerable disquiet among those groups
named by <span class="caps">LNP</span> members in the debate. </i><br />
<br />
<i>
One, the Australian Institute of Company Directors, is <a href="http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;db=CHAMBER;id=chamber/hansardr/abd3301a-19e7-46b0-b8af-d07af4a594f0/0095;query=Id:" target="_blank">quoted</a>
as having concerns regarding the impact of the legislation on board
members, most of whom are volunteers. In a recent statement, the <span class="caps">AICD</span>
said: "if suitable amendments giving effect to these changes were to be
made to the current Bill, and subsequent to our review of the revised
Bill wording, we would support its passage through Parliament." They
support the amendments that the Greens will be putting to
the legislation. </i><br />
<br />
<i>
The Bill has been introduced into the Senate and is due to be debated in
the next sitting, starting 9 October. If the legislation is not passed,
Thompson says "it will be back to the drawing board in the quest to get
the regulator we want. We have waited a long time and an enormous
effort has been put in to get it this far."
</i>Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-74739185564911836372012-09-15T07:16:00.001-07:002012-09-15T07:18:52.111-07:00Gerry Georgatos and the power of combining citizen journalism and social justice campaigning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBs_dXg-C5NpgL5vOrb-Yv5GmKt2bV3z8L9hxccSYU1f_yqD4Kf1Q9UhwplJq022d5_uxhisFc5YxxRMBHLur15GpOdRo9-OVCMajC-i_RibrE_jQ4fdDCbeykRerMJDt4lArA06mWFd0/s1600/serco-facts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBs_dXg-C5NpgL5vOrb-Yv5GmKt2bV3z8L9hxccSYU1f_yqD4Kf1Q9UhwplJq022d5_uxhisFc5YxxRMBHLur15GpOdRo9-OVCMajC-i_RibrE_jQ4fdDCbeykRerMJDt4lArA06mWFd0/s320/serco-facts.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439168"><span style="color: black;">Gerry
Georgatos is a West Australian journalist who combines investigative
reporting with a powerful commitment to campaigning on social justice
and human rights issues.</span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439158" style="background-color: transparent; color: #0060bf; font-style: normal;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439168"><span style="color: black;">Gerry is a Western Australian based reporter for the <a href="http://www.nit.com.au/">National Indigenous Times</a>
for whom he writes important stories about Indigenous and social
justice issues that few other journalists are willing to cover.</span></span></span></span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439158" style="background-color: transparent; color: #0060bf; font-style: normal;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439168"><span style="color: black;">Gerry is also the Principal and Convener of the <a href="http://humanrightsalliance.org/">Human Rights Alliance</a></span></span><span id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439168"><span style="color: black;"> through which he has initiated and led groundbreaking social justice campaigns in WA. <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439168"><span style="color: black;">Gerry is also a Phd researcher on Aboriginal Deaths in custody.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439158" style="background-color: transparent; color: #0060bf; font-style: normal;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439158" style="background-color: transparent; color: #0060bf; font-style: normal;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439168"><span style="color: black;">It
is this combination of investigative journalism, social and political
research and social justice campaigning that has resulted in Gerry
exposing injustices ignored by the mainstream media and politicians,
including the illegal imprisonment of Indonesian youths in adult prisons
in WA, Police violence inflicted on a young Aboriginal man in Albany
and the appalling state of Aboriginal homelessness in the Kimberley
region.</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439168"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439158" style="background-color: transparent; color: #0060bf; font-style: normal;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439168"><span style="color: black;">As well as the National Indigenous Gerry's articles also appear in many other places including <a href="http://indymedia.org.au/users/gerry-georgatos/track">Indy Media</a>, <a href="http://indymedia.org.au/brisbane">Indy Media Brisbane</a>, <a href="http://www.greenleft.org.au/taxonomy/term/2945">Green Left Weekly</a> and the <a href="http://www.donnybrookmail.com.au/">Donnybrook-Bridgetown Mai</a>l.</span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439158" style="background-color: transparent; color: #0060bf; font-style: normal;">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtTY45N3Ds0Ks5vow_KVa-eaA6jlnVMbownnfYh_gXpn4YjCUteXhykDPwqPzuzci965SM34GOo0lmRRbkZFoTypSmKfvVzLTbTFUsCUhJCX2xRT0TG9KBLCVnBep0mu1GdQv8mlMMTK3_/s1600/serco_prison_van.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtTY45N3Ds0Ks5vow_KVa-eaA6jlnVMbownnfYh_gXpn4YjCUteXhykDPwqPzuzci965SM34GOo0lmRRbkZFoTypSmKfvVzLTbTFUsCUhJCX2xRT0TG9KBLCVnBep0mu1GdQv8mlMMTK3_/s1600/serco_prison_van.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439168"><span style="color: black;">Gerry's
article below is about the decision by the UK multinational corporation
Serco and the WA Department of Corrective Services to deny Aboriginal
prisoners access to prisoner transport to attend family funerals. </span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439168"><span style="color: black;">The article will appear in the National Indigenous Times this week</span></span><span id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439168">. </span></span></span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439158" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439168"><b>Gerry Georgatos on Aboriginal Funeral outrage</b></span></span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439172" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The
National Indigenous Times has been contacted by two sources during the
last couple of weeks, one within the Department of Corrective Services
(DCS) Western Australia and another withi<var id="yiv197375119yui-ie-cursor"></var>n
SERCO, that Aboriginal inmates will no longer be transported to
funerals. Instead they may be left with the option of paying their
respects to loved
ones by either viewing a recorded or where possible live screening of
the funeral and the procession while alone in a prison wing room. This
has been slammed as inhumane, and culturally inappopriate by most
Aboriginal Elders.</span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439185" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Both sources
said that this initiative was flagged allegedly due to SERCO's
reluctance to transport prisoners to funerals. The multinational
which has the contract to much of the State's prisoner
transport, and manages Acacia Prison, on the outskirts of Perth, and
the lucrative Immigration Detention Centre network
Australia-wide, is allegedly reluctant to provide compulsory funeral
attendances for Aboriginal inmates - it has been alleged that SERCO
management claimed high prison officer risk issues at funerals and also
allegedly cost benefit issues. SERCO is one of the world's wealthiest
companies.</span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439192" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The National
Indigenous Times contacted the DCS, and its spokesperson Brian Cowie said "Gerry, we will have comment for you next week." </span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439201" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">UWA
law student and Nyoongar rights activist Marianne Mackay the former
chairperson of the Deaths in Custody WA contacted the National
Indigenous Times a few days ago to confirm that she had also been
advised that an Aboriginal
prisoner was refused transport to a funeral last Friday. "This is a
first, it doesn't happen that one of our people is not allowed to attend
a funeral. Apparently SERCO refused to transport him and this has
stunned us considering how everybody knows how important it is for our
people to attend funerals. It attacks our cultural integrity."</span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439212" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">SERCO is yet to respond to the National Indigenous Times.</span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439218" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Another
Nyoongar rights activist, Iva Jackson-Hayward has responded with a call
for the State Government to ensure that the DCS and SERCO ensure
Aboriginal inmates do not have their cultural rights eroded. "The DCS
and SERCO are dutibound to protect the rights of our people. Aboriginal
women and men in prison cannot break their customary duty to attend
funerals. It's outrageous what is happening, and it's a human rights
abuse. This is all about money, and SERCO trying to make more of it by
abusing the rights of our people. It is
the Government's duty to pull SERCO into line."</span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439309" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Ms Mackay said the Inspector
of Custodial Services, Neil Morgan was contacted on Friday.</span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439340" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The
WA Prison Officers Union (WAPOU) said the State Government should scrap
SERCO's prisoner transport contract. WAPOU Secretary John Welch made
this call following another whistleblower's leaking of serious
allegations.</span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559 yiv197375119ms__id653" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The
whistleblower said SERCO transported prisoners to wrong prisons, was
late in bringing prisoners to their Court appearances, transported
seriously ill prisoners in prison vans instead of ambulances. It was
only a couple of months ago a prisoner who had open-heart surgery was
returned to the prison in a van instead of an ambulance and arrived with
serious injuries which the DCS tried to play down however CCTV footage
proved otherwise.</span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559 yiv197375119ms__id653" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">All
three whistleblowers said SERCO was not turning up to transport
Aboriginal prisoners to family funerals, and that SERCO made no effort
to account for its failure.</span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559 yiv197375119ms__id653" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Mr Welch said SERCO's failure to ensure contracted prisoner transports gave rise to stress and tensions in prisons.</span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559 yiv197375119ms__id653" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span></span></i></div>
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439315" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"These latest
allegations are so serious that the Barnett Government should cancel
SERCO's contract and bring these services back for the Department of
Corrective Services to run so that we can be confident the community is
being kept safe."</span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559" id="yiv197375119yui_3_2_0_42_1347679079439231" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">
Australia has one of the world's worst prison suicide rates, with
privately run prisons, according to the Australian Institute of
Criminology, enduring proportionately more deaths in custody than
Government run prisons.</span></span></i> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="yiv197375119ms__id56559 yiv197375119ms__id699" style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;">
<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Other serious allegations were made by the whisteblowers to the National Indigenous Times and we will follow these through.</span></span></i></div>
</blockquote>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-68843220745424407562012-09-08T18:44:00.000-07:002012-09-08T18:44:11.569-07:00The paradox of the Paralympics<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBm11bhj0NM9M2m5swY0bTaFffqnxTsAlSE-3HTOSgfcB-ED7M93G8vHELyKZmUJyh8OYgFwcgHj22rFzmpZPjI-dCspgtvO6SCTVm7dxjfDnRdpf39OwGjp36o1GLGpIeueKVja47spM/s1600/atosmedal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBm11bhj0NM9M2m5swY0bTaFffqnxTsAlSE-3HTOSgfcB-ED7M93G8vHELyKZmUJyh8OYgFwcgHj22rFzmpZPjI-dCspgtvO6SCTVm7dxjfDnRdpf39OwGjp36o1GLGpIeueKVja47spM/s320/atosmedal.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Excellent piece </span><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/sep/07/disabled-visitors-paralympic-bubble-reality"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> by Amelia Gentleman on the paradox of the Paralympics- the disconnect between the positive attitudes to disability on display inside the Olympic stadiums and the experience of people with disabilities in the wider British society where intensive Government cuts are creating immense suffering for disabled people and increasing hostility towards people with disabilities is resulting in a soaring of hate crimes.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Many radical and activist groups such as <a href="http://www.dpac.uk.net/">Disabled People against Cuts</a> have campaigned and protested against aspects of the Paralympics such as corporate sponsorship by large corporations such as Atos and cuts to services for people with disabilities. Atos who was a major sponsor of the Paralympics is contracted by the UK Government as administrators of assessments that rob disabled people of their benefits.</span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">In this <a href="http://www.dpac.uk.net/2012/09/dave-king-down-with-the-paralympics-down-with-channel-4-liberalism/">piece </a>on the website of Disabled People against Cuts disability activist <a href="http://www.dpac.uk.net/2012/09/dave-king-down-with-the-paralympics-down-with-channel-4-liberalism/">Dave King argues</a> that the Paralympics are the precise opposite of the values of disability liberation. King writes</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<em>But with the Paralympics we have seen the addition into this cocktail of a supremely powerful and toxic ingredient, the opportunity for liberals to feel good about themselves for supporting the underdog and ‘progress in the fight against prejudice’. It is this thick coating of syrup which has confused even radical disability rights advocates, and is making it almost impossible for critics to speak out, except about the blatantly obvious outrage of Atos as sponsors. But the truth is that, despite all the hopeful talk about how the Paralympics are going to revolutionise people’s ideas about disability, the ideas and values at the core of the Paralympics are the precise opposite of the values of disability liberation. (I write this as a disabled person, one who has undergone one of Atos’ medical assessments and been found wanting, and who is suffering financially as a consequence.</em></blockquote>
</span><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<br /></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">In the Guardian Amelia</span> <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/sep/07/disabled-visitors-paralympic-bubble-reality"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Gentleman</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> writes:</span> </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">There has been a clear reluctance among officials this week to sour the happy atmosphere by talking about the Paralympics paradox – the difficulty of reconciling the amazing excitement around the Games, which has portrayed Britain globally as a place where positive attitudes to disability reign, and a bleaker reality that kicks in beyond Stratford.</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The guide for journalists covering the event is explicit in its instructions that disability and any issues around it should not be the focus of reporting. It stipulates that reporters should concentrate on "performance, sporting ambition, training, competition and the emotions associated with winning and losing". Most athletes contacted to discuss the broader issues of disability for this piece declined to be interviewed. But many disabled visitors were quick to comment on the disconnection between their experiences within the park and their everyday lives at a time when in addition to cuts to services and </span><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/benefits" title="More from guardian.co.uk on Benefits"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">benefits</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> payments, charities such as </span><a href="http://www.scope.org.uk/news/attitudes-survey" title=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Scope</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> have been documenting worsening attitudes and official figures show that </span><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2012/aug/14/disability-hate-crime-increase-reported-incidents-data" title=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">incidents of disability hate crime have soared</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> to their highest ever levels.</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Kalya Franklin, a disability campaigner whose </span><a href="http://benefitscroungingscum.blogspot.co.uk/" title=""><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Benefit Scrounging Scum blog</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> has charted the rising problems faced by disabled people at a time of cuts to services and benefits, was amazed at the ease of her journey to Stratford from Birmingham, describing it as "the smoothest journey I've ever done on public transport". "People were there waiting to offer help – that's very unusual. There were much higher levels of staffing. That's not typical, nor is seeing lots of portable ramps around," she said.</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><i>She was delighted to be at the event, but like many, she was struggling with the Paralympics paradox.</i> </span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">"It's a utopian fantasy of where we need to move towards as a society," she said, pausing for a moment at Stratford station (interrupted on two occasions in the space of five minutes by transport staff asking if she needed assistance). "It's brilliant, because this has shown that with the right attitude, will and financing, it can be done."</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The sporting event was for her, like any sporting occasion, a bit of escapism from daily problems, but she was anxious that attention to the pressing issues facing people with disabilities should not be deflected while the country basks in the international congratulations for having mounted a sellout Paralympic event. She pointed to a planned 20% cut in the disability living allowance (DLA), announced in the 2010 budget, in particular, arguing the that extra money, for employed and unemployed claimants to help with the extra cost of disability, had helped finance the extra cost of care and transport for many disabled visitors to the Games.</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">"What the public haven't realised about the Paralympians is how many of them are completely reliant on DLA. Although they are superfit athletes it doesn't mean they aren't also disabled and have mobility needs and care needs in their day-to-day lives," she said.</span></i></blockquote>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-18331951150846763322012-08-28T16:49:00.005-07:002012-08-28T16:55:14.813-07:00When progressive ideas are used to conceal market agendas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNKMVtNZvJqhLT6kkM8A5ZVAktX4rA3Hbpu70A8QUQgiIMZA9O-KbZOK1RjrH-yGCNp-fKeCyf5tuGmRZ9M3zRT8R-qkZkcnNTrIGN600hgSGsG8D5tU4nUaVHNkGKPaXWw_0Uxw2iUoU/s1600/save%2520our%2520day%2520centre.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br /></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNKMVtNZvJqhLT6kkM8A5ZVAktX4rA3Hbpu70A8QUQgiIMZA9O-KbZOK1RjrH-yGCNp-fKeCyf5tuGmRZ9M3zRT8R-qkZkcnNTrIGN600hgSGsG8D5tU4nUaVHNkGKPaXWw_0Uxw2iUoU/s1600/save%2520our%2520day%2520centre.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNKMVtNZvJqhLT6kkM8A5ZVAktX4rA3Hbpu70A8QUQgiIMZA9O-KbZOK1RjrH-yGCNp-fKeCyf5tuGmRZ9M3zRT8R-qkZkcnNTrIGN600hgSGsG8D5tU4nUaVHNkGKPaXWw_0Uxw2iUoU/s400/save%2520our%2520day%2520centre.jpg" width="400" /></a><span class="userContent"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">This piece from the UK <a href="http://www.socialworkfuture.org/articles-and-analysis/articles/186-mh-day-services">Social Work and Action Network</a> describes vividly how supposedly progressive reforms and ideas like social inclusion, social innovation and user centred services are deployed to conceal market based agendas and how, as a result, they end up destroying effective human and community services.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">The piece also demonstrates that the use of market based approaches damages the most vulnerable and the most disadvantaged and undermines the capacity of human and communty services, thereby creating the conditions for even more marketisation and privatization.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Sadly this situation also applies here in Western Australia.</span><br />
<span class="userContent"></span><br />
<span class="userContent"><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>I work for the NHS within Community Mental Health Services as part of a team whose remit was to enable service users to access educational and employment opportunities. We ran what I considered a unique and progressive service. We worked in a building not far from the city centre. We had an ICT suite where service users could gain qualifications and with our support create or update their CVs.<br /> </em></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>
Within the centre we had a café where service users could gain work experience to gain relevant qualifications with currency in the catering industry. It was also a place where service users could come along for a hot meal, a coffee and a chat.</em></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>
</em></span><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>Our reception was also staffed by service users gaining work experience and relevant qualifications. We delivered in house courses in Building Confidence and Self Esteem. The team alongside ex service users also developed and delivered workshops to service users based on the Recovery Model.<br />
</em></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>We worked closely with local education providers delivering courses such as: Rights and Responsibilities at Work, Working in Retail, Working in an Office, Working in Customer Services and Working in the Public Sector. We also worked closely with Welfare Rights who regularly delivered workshops and advice sessions on benefits, debt and housing issues. We also had thriving Art and Drama projects which rebuilt the confidence of people who had endured a variety of mental health difficulties.</em></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>
</em></span><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>The whole project was person-centred, the idea being that it was a sort of stepping stone which gave them renewed self confidence and skills to move on with our advice, guidance and support into mainstream opportunities to enhance their life chances.</em></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>
</em></span><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>The whole project was person-centred, the idea being that it was a sort of stepping stone which gave them renewed self confidence and skills to move on with our advice, guidance and support into mainstream opportunities to enhance their life chances.</em></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>Then came the reorganization. The reorganization was pushed through using ideas and progressive language originally developed through the previous New Labour government’s Social Inclusion Unit. Day Centres we were told were bad, they simply institutionalized people with mental health difficulties. The whole new focus was to create services without buildings.</em></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>
</em></span><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>During my time working in Mental Health Services I have seen some pretty awful places. Day Centres which offered patronizing services that oozed with boredom with no real progression for service users. Our project was not like this.</em></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>The NHS Trust I work for was at the time of our reorganization looking at squeezed budgets and the cost incurred in leasing buildings. They do have a building programme for new inpatients units, but as yet not one brick has been laid and in some instances planning permission is not yet approved, yet they closed the only inpatient ward in the City.</em></span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>Our project has changed beyond recognition. Some staff will be taking pay cuts in the reorganization which has had a massive impact on morale. We are now expected to record all service user contacts and outcomes from each appointment on 3 separate and different I.T. systems. But more importantly we can no longer deliver the range of opportunities to service users. Everything has to be accessed in the wider community. The café and service user reception has gone. We cannot make appointments to see service users in the building when we are offering advice, guidance and support. We now have to go out in twos to the service users home to ascertain from the service user what we can do for them to promote their social inclusion. The outcomes of the first contact with the service user are discussed at a team meeting and then a member of the team (an education worker, employment worker, volunteer coordinator, arts worker, sports worker) is allocated to the service user, depending on what kind of ambitions they have. </em></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>
</em></span><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>This is followed by a telephone call to the service user and arrangements are made to meet them somewhere in the community. The advice from the trainers from the Social Inclusion Unit was that a café may be a suitable venue for the first appointment. Yes a public place when the service user may be disclosing personal and often quite distressing information.</em></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>
</em></span><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>As a team we are now finding that many opportunities in the community for our service users: colleges, arts projects, leisure centres, etc are few and far between because of the current round of cuts .The local council has made cuts to the passport to leisure scheme which helped people on benefits access leisure centres etc. The local colleges have changed the criteria for fee wavering for people on benefits meaning that many of our service users are unable to access educational opportunities. As the cuts start to bite deeper there will be fewer and fewer opportunities for our services users in the wider community.</em></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>
</em></span><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>To make staff morale worse our building may be given to different teams within the Trust. We have recently heard that we may be supplied with laptops and work from our cars, dropping into Trust buildings to use docking stations to send data to the I.T. systems. We will probably end up as lone workers apart from one afternoon per week when we attend a caseload allocation meeting. It seems to me that our service has now been slimmed down to such an extent it is ripe and ready for privatization.</em></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>
</em></span><blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>Welcome to modern, progressive mental health day services in 21st Century Britain.</em></span></blockquote>
</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<br /></blockquote>
<br />
<br />Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6245339888575752929.post-75750345395070507552012-08-21T17:43:00.002-07:002012-08-21T18:28:48.131-07:00Abbott led opposition to adopt UK style Big Society policies<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj75BRdwF0MPPy9zRK3jZbSvlRfLXX3WkQZtt90-UXbHZVJjxNHtaZIiy_YgRCR6pC_RWG_86wILDJWbgJ6bVbe1QfVLCRk8GKcst5gijtWXejW8sSatneGuQm_TQbS3XhQbmWlhZuUvnw/s1600/cpd_big_society_cartoon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj75BRdwF0MPPy9zRK3jZbSvlRfLXX3WkQZtt90-UXbHZVJjxNHtaZIiy_YgRCR6pC_RWG_86wILDJWbgJ6bVbe1QfVLCRk8GKcst5gijtWXejW8sSatneGuQm_TQbS3XhQbmWlhZuUvnw/s320/cpd_big_society_cartoon.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> Writing in the Sydney Morning Herald</span><a href="http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/coalition-gets-razors-ready-to-slice-bulky-bureaucracy-20120817-24e53.html"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> Lenore Taylor</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> traces the influence of the UK Conservative Government's </span><a href="http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/opinion/politics/the-pain-behind-plan-by-abbotts-mr-fixit-20120817-24dgo.html"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Big Society</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> agenda on the Coalition Opposition's social policy agenda for the next election.</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Coalition frontbenchers have been instructed to slice away federal bureaucratic oversight of aged care, childcare, employment and family services in a bid to devolve government power and deliver budget savings through public service cuts.</span></i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The Coalition, which needs to find more than $30 billion in spending cuts, will pledge cuts to the bureaucracy, but says it will not hit frontline services. The policy is in line with the controversial ''Big Society'' philosophy of British thinker Phillip Blond, who was in Canberra this week for meetings with Coalition leader Tony Abbott and most of his frontbench.</span></i></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Coalition families spokesman Kevin Andrews told The Saturday Age he had developed the model for stripping unnecessary federal oversight of federally funded services delivered by community and private organisations.</span></i></blockquote>
<i>
</i>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">But </span><a href="http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/opinion/politics/the-pain-behind-plan-by-abbotts-mr-fixit-20120817-24dgo.html"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Big Society</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> rhetoric provides cover for severe austerity measures and a fundamental transformation of the delivery of publicly funded human and community services. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">In the UK Big Society rhetoric was used to justify sweeping cuts to public services, to community services and even to the community and voluntary organisations it was supposed to nurture.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">It has also produced the largest ever privatisation of human and community services in UK history with large swathes of the human and community services industry now under the control of private corporations.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Despite promises by the UK Government that local devolution would primarily benefit small community based not- for- profit, it has been large corporations who have been the real winners.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Taylor notes, correctly, that:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">But in Britain, the outsourcing program that was supposed to benefit little community groups ended up giving enormous contracts to large corporations, such as Serco, which runs Australia's detention centres, and in some parts of Britain now runs all the government-funded schools.</span></i> <span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span></blockquote>
</blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The implications of the Big Society agenda for Australia are well documented in a recent report by the Centre for Policy Development titled </span><a href="http://cpd.org.au/2012/05/big-society-how-the-uk-government-is-dismantling-the-state-and-what-it-means-for-australia/"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Big Society: How the UK Government is Dismantling the State and what it means for Australia. </span></a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The Report shows among other things that the reality of Big Society Agenda is vastly different to its rhetoric. The impacts of the Big Society programs in the UK have included:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">An £81 billion cut in public spending over four years including an average 19 per cent budget cut to government agencies, 60 per cent cut to the budget for new public housing and £7 billion cut to the welfare budget.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The UK’s public service is expected to shrink by up to 710,000 public servants over six years.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Corporations and the largest charities have dominated the commissioning process: 35 of 40 Work Programme (employment agency) contracts were awarded to corporations.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Cameron’s budgets have dealt a £5 billion funding cut to the UK’s community sector and funding cuts of £110 million to 2,000 UK charities</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The number of people employed in the UK’s community sector fell by 70,000.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Local government budgets were cut by more than a quarter in 2010-11 resulting in staff cuts of 10-20 per cent and widespread cuts to programs.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">During 2010-11, public sector employment fell by 4.3 per cent. Private sector employment increased by 1.5 per cent.</span></li>
</ul>
Colin Penterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01157449907235227574noreply@blogger.com1