THE Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Kate Carnell has welcomed the Australian Government response to the Parliamentary Joint Committee inquiry into the Franchising Code of Conduct.

“I am pleased to see that the response picks up on a number of the concerns of franchisees.” Ms Carnell said.

“The report focuses on the three key parts of the lifecycle of a franchisee – entry, running the business, and exiting the business

“My office already deals with a broad range of complaints, centred around these aspects of owning a franchise. We know that the power imbalance between franchisor and franchisee makes negotiating disputes incredibly difficult.”

The response incorporates the functions of the Franchising Mediation Adviser into the Ombudsman’s office.

“This is a welcome change that we and others have been advocating for over some time now  that will help us more effectively resolve disputes” Ms Carnell said.

The Review pointed to further consultation on a number of important aspects in franchising practices and disputes.

“I remain concerned that the response’s commitment to ongoing consultation will further delay the changes that everyone in the sector know are sorely needed," Ms Carnell said.

“I appreciate that this can be a complex area, but it has now taken a full 18 months for the Government to respond to the Parliamentary Joint Committee report.  Further consultation and delay in effecting change is unacceptable and will continue to heap pressure on small businesses during these extremely difficult times.

“We will continue to advocate for timely and effective changes to assist small businesses, and look forward to working with the Government to deliver these crucial reforms.”

www.asbfeo.gov.au

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CELEBRATING its 10th anniversary, the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) has released a new corporate plan for 2020-21, outlining its purpose, vision and values for the coming year.

In his introductory message, TPB chair, Ian Klug said the role of the TPB is to support the public and enhance the integrity of the tax profession.

"On our 10th anniversary, our vision speaks powerfully to the important role we play not only in upholding the broader integrity of the tax system but also in implementing whole-of-government reform initiatives," Mr Klug said.

"The way we achieve our purpose, as set out in this plan, includes supporting honest practitioners, who make up the large majority, through registration services, complaint resolution, investigations of alleged misconduct and, where appropriate, sanctions."

Mr Klug said the Australian community generally has high levels of trust in its tax practitioners – with over 71 percent of taxpayers choosing a tax professional.

"This year we want to improve our services for those tax practitioners who model professional and ethical conduct," he said.

Mr Klug also refered to the TPB compliance program, modified to target high risk tax practitioners, particularly those who have attempted to defraud government stimulus measures.

He said in 2020-21 there would be an increased focus on these and unregistered advisers, expecting 1,000 investigations to be completed.

"Sanctions, such as suspensions and terminations, will be imposed after review and decision by our independent board – supporting community confidence in the integrity of the system and providing a deterrent to misconduct," Mr Klug said.

Mr Klug said the TPB was "continually evolving, taking insights from government reviews" and refers to "opportunities to support government decisions on reforms arising from the Hayne Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry".

He also said the TPB awaits the government decisions on the recommendations arising from the independent review of the TPB, "subject to these decisions, we are confident that the TPB will continue to effectively serve the community into the future."

About the Tax Practitioners Board

The Tax Practitioners Board regulates tax practitioners in order to protect consumers. The TPB aims to assure the community that tax practitioners meet appropriate standards of professional and ethical conduct. Twitter @TPB_gov_au, Facebook and LinkedIn.

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THE Queensland Resources Council has welcomed Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk’s  commitment to strengthen the resources sector’s role in Queensland’s COVID-19 response and recovery.

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said the Premier’s announcement of $5 million for a feasibility study into a gas pipeline from the Bowen Basin was a request in the QRC and AMEC’s Resource Industry Recovery Agenda.

“QRC believes the new gas pipeline can aggregate gas collection to increase the supply of gas across the region and lower the cost of delivering it to customers,” Mr Macfarlane said. "It will also maintain downward pressure on the delivered price of domestic gas.  There is also a role for the Australian Government’s Northern Australian Investment Facility to consider how it can support pipeline proposals."

Mr Macfarlane said more broadly, the Premier had identified the resources sector as “one of Queensland’s great strengths” and she has also recognised the work of the coal, metals and gas industries to protect workers and keep critical supply chains open.

“For the 372,000 Queensland men and women who rely on the resources sector for their employment, QRC thanks the Premier for her recognition of the sector’s role in the COVID-19 recovery and response,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“As an industry, we have worked extremely hard to protect our workers, their families, the communities we work in and the businesses we support.  We have done this and maintained as much of the $74 billion economic contribution to the Queensland economy as possible despite upheaval in global markets and movement restrictions.

"What does that mean for every Queenslander? Just over $40 every day for every Queensland man, woman and child.

“Right now, Queenslanders need that economic contribution more than ever," he said.

“I had the opportunity to meet the Premier last week, and her comments today reinforce her support for the sector’s role in the COVID-19 response.”  

Mr Macfarlane said QRC would continue to work with the government to secure bipartisan support for a resources industry development plan, stable rates and thresholds on the royalty taxes paid by all resource commodities for the next decade, and a streamlined assessment and approval process for new projects.

QRC Resource Industry Recovery Agenda: https://www.qrc.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Resource-Industry-Recovery-Agenda.pdf

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THE AUSTRALIAN Taxation Office (ATO)  has implemented changes to the JobKeeper employee eligibility rules following the registration of the Coronavirus Economic Response Package (Payments and Benefits) Amendment Rules (No.7) 2020. 

These changes mean employers already enrolled in JobKeeper may be able to receive the JobKeeper payment for more of their employees.

"We have released new information on www.ato.gov.au/JobKeeper to further support employers with JobKeeper payments in these difficult times," ATO Deputy Commissioner James O’Halloran said.

"Importantly the key date for assessing which employees are eligible for JobKeeper is now 1 July 2020, rather than 1 March 2020. Additionally, employees that meet the eligibility requirements can now be nominated by a new employer if their original employment with a JobKeeper employer ended before 1 July 2020. Employees can still only be nominated by one employer at any given time.

“JobKeeper enrolments are still open. We encourage all businesses to review the eligibility criteria and if eligible, enrol in the program to start receiving JobKeeper payments. Employers already receiving JobKeeper are encouraged to review the new eligibility criteria against all employees and updated guidance is now available on our website,” Mr O’Halloran said.

Employers should start paying new eligible employees a minimum of $1,500 per fortnight from the JobKeeper fortnight 10, which commenced on August 3.

For the fortnights commencing on 3 August 2020 and 17 August 2020, the ATO is allowing employers until 31 August 2020 to meet the wage condition for all new eligible employees included in the JobKeeper scheme under the 1 July eligibility test.

Employers can commence claiming for the JobKeeper reimbursement for the new eligible employees from 1 September when they can lodge their August monthly declaration claim.

“The ATO is here to support those doing it tough and knows how vital the JobKeeper payment is to the community," Mr O'Halloran said. "We have provided more than $37 billion in JobKeeper payments to around 989,000 businesses and not-for-profits. This means around 3.6 million individuals are now covered by JobKeeper.”

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

“We are committed to providing the community with the help they need through this difficult period, and have a range of practical support options available,” Mr  O’Halloran said.

Further announcements by the Federal Government regarding the extension to the JobKeeper Payment program are subject to the passage of legislation. These changes will not impact JobKeeper payments until after September 28, 2020 and guidance will be provided in due course, according to the ATO.

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

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