THE Joint Standing Committee on Treaties will conduct a new inquiry into the treaty-making process, with a particular focus on trade-related treaties.

“This inquiry will examine the process of consultation undertaken during the negotiation of trade agreements and consider the effectiveness of independent economic analysis in informing these negotiations, with a view to making recommendations to government,” said Committee Chair Dave Sharma MP.

“This has been a topic of growing community and stakeholder interest,” Mr Sharma said.

Committee Deputy Chair Peter Khalil MP said, “Importantly this inquiry will give key stakeholders and the broader Australian community the opportunity to have their say. We look forward to hearing from as many voices as possible as we consider the trade-agreement making process."

The Committee has welcomed the referral from Senator Marise Payne, Minister for Foreign Affairs, and is looking forward to the opportunity to hear from experts and stakeholders.

The Joint Standing Committee on Treaties will inquire into certain aspects of the treaty making process, including:

• considering the role of JSCoT in respect of trade-related agreements, including during the negotiation phase;
• considering the consultation process undertaken by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) before and during the negotiation of trade agreements;
• considering the effectiveness of independent analysis to inform negotiation or consideration of trade agreements; and
• reviewing process around the categorisation of treaty actions.

Submissions are invited by July 31, with public hearings to be held during sitting weeks in August. Information on the progress of the inquiry will be available from the Committee’s webpage.

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THE FEDERAL Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works has announced that it will scrutinise a new project, from the Department of Defence.

Details of the project are: Department of Defence — AIR 555 Phase 1 Airborne Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance Electronic Warfare Capability Facilities Works — $293.65 million.

It is anticipated that the committee will conduct a public and in-camera hearing for the inquiry in early August 2020. The Committee would like to hear from all individuals or organisations interested in the project. Submissions for project will be accepted until July 28, 2020.

Note: The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works is not involved in the tendering process, awarding of contracts or details of the proposed works. Inquiries on these matters should be addressed to the relevant Commonwealth entities.

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THE parliamentary inquiry into activating trade with Pacific Island countries will hear tomorrow from an ANU economist and also a Tasmanian power services company providing renewable energy across the Pacific.

The Trade Sub-Committee of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade will hear evidence from the director of the Development Policy Centre at the ANU College of Asia and the Pacific, Professor Stephen Howes, followed by a video-conference with representatives of power company Entura discussing their projects in the Pacific.

Sub-Committee Chair John McVeigh has reminded people with an interest in this issue that submissions to the inquiry are open until June 30.

A full program for the hearing, as well as submissions to the inquiry, are available on the inquiry website.

Public hearing details

Date: Thursday 18 June, 2020
Time: 9.45am to 11.20am
Location: Committee Room 1R3, Parliament House, Canberra

The hearing will be streamed online at aph.gov.au/live.

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THE Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is advising people to act now to improve their tax time experience.

There are some simple things taxpayers can do now to ensure they can lodge their tax return quickly, securely, and smoothly.

Assistant Commissioner Karen Foat said, "If you are planning on lodging your own return, you can’t beat the ease and accessibility of the ATO’s online myTax service. It has almost completely replaced paper lodgments.

“It’s no surprise that myTax, which processes most refunds in less than two weeks and many in under a week, is growing in popularity. Most people with simple tax affairs can lodge in under half-an-hour from the comfort of their own homes. For most people a lot of their income will be automatically included in their return by the end of July, making it even easier.

“But there are two main speed-bumps that taxpayers hit when lodging online via myTax for the first time. The first is linking their myGov account to the ATO’s online services.”

Avoid Speedbump 1: Link myGov to the ATO now if you plan to do your own return

“My number one piece of advice for people who are going to use myTax for the first time is to log into your myGov account and link to the ATO well before tax time. You’ll be prompted to answer two questions, based on your records, such as an income statement or Centrelink payment summary from the past two years, or your bank account details,” Ms Foat said.

Those who don't have enough information to confirm their identity will need to phone the ATO to get a unique linking code, which can be entered instead of answering the questions. To speed up the process, taxpayers need to have their identification information ready when they call the ATO, such as their Tax File Number and their driver's licence, or Medicare card.

“Needing a linking code was the number one reason that people called us last July. While this is a vote of confidence from taxpayers eager to use myTax, it is a faster process if you get organised early,” Ms Foat said.

“If you need to call us to link, we encourage you to do so now so that you don’t hit any delays when you choose to lodge your tax return. If you need a linking code, June is a great time to get that sorted.”

After people have linked to the ATO, they can not only lodge their tax returns during tax time, but also track their refunds, access their past tax records, manage their super accounts, and view their income statement.

Avoid Speedbump 2: Make sure your income details are complete and finalised before you lodge

“The other main delay at tax time is people lodging before they have all of the information about their income,” Ms Foat said.

For most Australians, income statements have replaced payment summaries. This means that instead of receiving a payment summary from their employer, most people’s income statements will be finalised electronically, and the information provided directly to the ATO. You can view your income statement through myGov and the information from it is automatically included in your return in myTax by the ATO. If you use a tax agent, they will also have access to this information.

Income statements show their year-to-date salary and wages, PAYG withholding tax, and any employer super contributions in near real-time, but it is important to wait until it is finalised before lodging a tax return. Employers have until July 31 to finalise income statements.

“We often see people too eager to get a tax refund making obvious mistakes, which can either delay processing the tax return or result in a bill later on,” Ms Foat said.

“It’s important to check that your employer has finalised the information in your income statement and it is marked as ‘tax ready’ before you lodge.

“Other information from banks, health funds and government agencies will also be automatically inserted into your tax return. For most people this will happen by the end of July.

“Lodging once we have included all of your information in your tax return makes it even easier, but if you are lodging before then, make sure the information provided is complete, accurate, and up to date to avoid delays or a debt later on,” Ms Foat said.

For more information visit:

>      Setting up your myGov account

>      Link your myGov account to ATO online services

>      Accessing your payment summary

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