SENATOR BOB BROWN
AUSTRALIAN GREENS
DISSENTING REPORT
The Committee, in its concluding comments and recommendation
on The Preventing the Misuse of Government Advertising Bill 2010 fails to
acknowledge the widespread community concern about this critical issue. The
report documents the historical concerns and various attempts to address the
issue of transparency and accountability in the expenditure of public funds
through government information and advertising campaigns. The recent public
outcry over the government's $38 million mining tax advertising campaign is
testament to the depth of concern on this issue. This Bill is a necessary step
in enshrining accountability and integrity mechanisms in law, to provide
certainty and clarity to governments and to assurance and confidence in the
community that these practices will be properly implemented and scrutinised.
The recommendation by the Committee that the Bill not
proceed contradicts the evidence of the four expert submissions which all
welcomed the Bill for establishing clear legislative provisions around the use
of public funds for government advertising. Each submission noted that the Bill
incorporated important changes to strengthen the original 2008 guidelines based
on experience of the past two years in which the process had been operational.
While the submissions varied in their view of the role of
the Auditor-General in the Bill, there is agreement that the Auditor General
had a key role to play in the review of government information and advertising
campaigns and their assessment against the guidelines.
The Auditor- General's submission in particular made a
number of relatively minor technical amendments to the Bill for greater clarity
and transparency in the process, which the Greens will move when the Bill is
debated in the Senate. Other submissions have identified minor elements of the
Bill which require rewording for clarity which will also be incorporated.
I draw attention to the important issue of corporate
'political' advertising and the use of tax-deductibility claims by corporate
advertisers. I have raised concerns elsewhere that under the current
arrangements tax payers are effectively funding both the government and
corporate advertising campaigns on the mining tax to the tune of millions of
dollars. I argue that under these circumstances, corporate advertisers should
be subjected to the same regime of accountability and scrutiny that is required
of government advertising expenditure.
I note that Professor Charles Sampford highlighted the need
for a similar legislative approach as outlined in this Bill to apply to
corporate advertising. On pages 3-4 of his submission, Professor Sampford noted
that:
"The answer is not to weaken the accountability regime
for governments but to:
- Recognise the issue in the government accountability
regime; and
- Ensure that corporations and others are also subject
to the same or different but relevant accountability regimes."
He further adds:
“there are strong arguments for such communication to be
subject to some form of vetting or oversight...[that] corporations claim
deductions for corporate advertising and are, in a sense, spending public
money” in addition to expending the assets of their shareholders. And that
"unbalanced funding of different sides of a debate leads to distortions in
the democratic process."
Professor Sampford proposed that oversight of the corporate
advertising could be provided in the following ways:
1. Both government and corporate advertising are
vetted by the same process (on the basis that public funds are involved in both
through deductions and direct expenditure)
2. Disclosure rules and/or TPC (trade practices
code) are amended to void the distinction between political comment and comment
in the course of trade or commerce)
3. Business is covered by disclosures to market and
the TPC
4. Limit advertising of both kinds. Some might argue
the value the public gets for its direct expenditure and tax deductions are not
great.
5. Provide funding for both
I propose that the Bill is adopted
and the issue of corporate advertising is given urgent consideration by the
Government to ensure that democracy is not undermined by the continuation of
business as usual.
Senator Bob Brown
Leader of the
Australian Greens
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