Australian Charities and Not-For-Profits Commission axing could jeopardise terror funding investigations, senator Nick Xenophon says
Federal Government plans to abolish Australia's charities commission could jeopardise investigations into terrorism funding, independent senator Nick Xenophon says.
Officials from the Australian Charities and Not-For-Profits Commission (ACNC) have told a Senate estimates hearing the organisation could help investigate abuses and prevent donations being used to fund terrorist activities.
"We have a dedicated knowledge base on the activities of charities and in addition to that we have very good international connections," commissioner Susan Pascoe said.
Ms Pascoe also told the committee the commission was helping charities avoid being duped by fronts for terrorist groups.
"We've developed resources to assist them to detect where they might be the subject of abuse of their charity," she said.
But the Government wants to abolish the organisation, saying it is not considering any proposals to increase its investigatory capability.
"I have never seen the ACNC as a lead agency in the fight against terrorism," Finance Minister Mathias Cormann said.
Senator Xenophon said the Government should be increasing the agency's funding, if it is serious about combating terrorism.
"My question to the Government is: follow through on your promises to keep Australians safe by ensuring that the ACNC has the same resources, equivalent resources as their UK counterpart which has been very effective at tracking down money that's used charities as a conduit for terrorist organisations," he said.
The Government announced its intention to abolish the ACNC last year, as part of a "red-tape repeal".
It said the commission's regulatory functions could be performed by the Australian Taxation Office.