Australia's Charities Regulator to Crack Down on Political Advocacy After Complaints
Australia’s charities regulator has warned it will crack down on improper political advocacy in the sector and lobby to remove “frustrating” secrecy provisions that gag it from speaking about its work.
The Australian Charities and Not-For-Profits Commission (ACNC) released its latest compliance report on Wednesday, outlining its activities over the past 2 years.
The commission used the report to outline four areas of focus for the next 2 years: terrorism financing; improper political advocacy; fraud and financial mismanagement; and preventing harm done by charities to their supposed beneficiaries.
The ACNC said it had received a growing number of complaints about charities—which benefit from significant tax concessions—engaging in political advocacy.
Twenty-seven complaints were made about 21 charities thought to have engaged in inappropriate advocacy for a party or candidate in the past 2 years.
