Category: MIL-OSI

Source: Murray Darling Basin Authority

JULES SCHILLER: Well as you know, the Albanese government was overwhelmingly re-elected and Jason Clare has resumed his ministry. He is the Federal Education Minister. He joins us now. Jason Clare, welcome.

JASON CLARE, MINISTER FOR EDUCATION: G’day, guys. Good to be here.

SCHILLER: Congratulations on your re-election and becoming Federal Education Minister again. Of course, one of the big ticket promises of your Government was to reduce the debts of HECS students by 20 per cent. When will they see that extra money in their pockets?

CLARE: This year there’s two things that we’ve got to do: one, we’ve got to pass a law through the Parliament to make this happen. And then the second thing is the Tax Office have to lop this off everyone’s debt. You’re right – one of the biggest promises we made in the campaign was to cut everyone’s student debt by 20 per cent, and that’s 3 million Aussies that might have a debt from uni or TAFE or somewhere else. And it will be the first bill that we introduce into the Parliament when Parliament sits for the first time in the last week of July.

What that legislation will do is cut everyone’s debt by 20 per cent and backdate that cut to this coming Saturday. And that’s important because every 1st of June in every year HECS debts or student debts get indexed. That 20 per cent cut will come into effect before that indexation effectively happens this Saturday, to make sure that we honour the promise we made, and we cut everyone’s debt by 20 per cent. Legislation, once that’s passed, getting the Tax Office to cut everyone’s debt by 20 per cent.

RORY McLAREN: What is the cost to the budget of this decision, Minister?

CLARE: The cost to the budget over the forward estimates, or the next four years, is about $700 million dollars. The cost over the longer term is around about $16 billion. We’re reducing the debt that’s owed by Australians to the Commonwealth over the next few decades by about $16 billion dollars. Now, what it means –

McLAREN: That’s not small. That’s not a small change to the federal budget at all.

CLARE: No, it’s not small. It’s not small. But when you think about the 3 million Australians – many of them in their 20s and 30s, they’ve just finished uni, they’re just moving out of home, they’ve got their first job, they want to buy a home, and they’ve got this big HECS debt that they’ve got to pay off. I think everyone listening will know somebody in this situation and perhaps will know that HECS debts are bigger today than they were when I went to uni, when many of us went to university – that by cutting this debt by 20 per cent, it’s going to help a lot of people get a good start in life, make it easier to get out there and buy their first home. The average debt today is about $27,000 and so what this will mean for someone in that situation is that their debt will be cut by about $5,500.

SONYA FELDHOFF: And while I’m sure they will be thrilled about that, they will then get it indexed again. And a lot of people question how fair the indexation side of things is. Is there any option to look at that?

CLARE: We’ve done that. One of the things that we did last year, because of rampant inflation, when inflation was raging around the world. It hit Australia and it hit HECS debts here in Australia. We saw HECS debts go up by 7 per cent in 2023. That wasn’t fair. Everybody with a HECS debt told us that, and so we passed legislation last year that said that HECS debts or student debts can’t go up by either the lowest of either inflation or wages.

So that change happened last year, and it meant that in December last year, everyone with a HECS debt would have seen their debts drop. We cut HECS debts by about $3 billion dollars last year because of that. So that’s an important change. Indexation is important because it means that when the Australian taxpayer lends you a dollar, you get that dollar back in real terms. But we’ve changed the formula to make it fairer.

SCHILLER: Jason Clare, can I ask you about the Job-ready Graduates Scheme? Now this was introduced by Dan Tehan, your predecessor, under the Morrison Government. It increased the contributions, HECS debts of arts students, society and culture degrees by around about 113 per cent. Considering a lot of these students are women who overwhelmingly voted for you in the federal election, it is seen as punitive because, you know, they’re earnings aren’t necessarily as much as STEM graduates. Will you reverse this decision?

CLARE: It’s one of the things that we’re looking at right now. You’re right – it was introduced by the former Liberal Government and didn’t work. If the intention was to reduce the number of people doing arts degrees, then that hasn’t happened. There’re more people studying arts degrees today than when they implemented this reform. And that’s because people pick the courses that they love, that they’re passionate about, that they want to do, not based on the price tag attached to it.

Fixing it is complex. What we have announced is that we’ll establish something called the Australian Tertiary Education Commission to help to drive long-term reform of our universities and our tertiary education system. It starts work on the 1st of July, so in just over a month’s time. And one of the tasks that we’ve asked them to look at is exactly this – to look at that Job-ready Graduates program and what change can happen.

Can I mention just quickly two other things, because there’s been a lot of attention on the cut to HECS by 20 per cent, and that’s what that bill that I introduce will do. But the bill will do two other things as well: it will change the amount of money that you have to earn before you start paying your debt back. At the moment you have to start paying it back once you earn $54,000 a year. That will be increased to $67,000 a year. And it will also reduce your annual repayments. For somebody on an income of $70,000 a year it will reduce the amount that you have to repay back to the Government every year by about $1,300 a year. It means more money in your pocket. And they were recommendations by Bruce Chapman, the architect of HECS who designed it with John Dawkins back in the 80s.

FELDHOFF: Just before we move on from the HECS debt, Federal Education Minister, I’ve got a question on the text line. I think you mentioned June 1st was the date that that would be backdated to?

CLARE: Yep.

FELDHOFF: So, I don’t think that applies to this person. What about those that just finished paying their HECS debt back? Do they get a refund? I guess hypothetically, what happens if you choose to pay the HECS debt, you know sometime after June 1st? Will they get the refund?

CLARE: People that have got a HECS debt today and they have a HECS debt next week, they’ll see the benefit of this. Obviously if your HECS debt has already been paid off today then a 20 per cent cut to zero is still zero.

FELDHOFF: But if you paid that off on June 2nd, for instance, you might get a refund?

CLARE: I’ll have to have a look at that. But what we want to do is make sure that everybody that’s got a HECS debt, a student debt now, and there’s 3 million of them right across the country, get the benefit of this cut by 20 per cent.

McLAREN: Minister, ahead of the federal election you managed to get a new funding agreement in place with states and territories for schools. It comes at a time when the latest NAPLAN results show one in three Australian school students is performing below literacy and numeracy benchmarks. How quickly can you turn that performance around in this term of government?

CLARE: This agreement that we’ve struck not just with the South Australian Government but every Government across the country is crucial. It makes good on what Whitlam was talking about in the 50s about needs-based funding for schools and what Gonski built as a formula but has never been implemented before. It’s about funding our schools properly but also tying that funding to practical and real reforms that are going to address the sort of things you’re talking about.

What NAPLAN really tells us is this – and it’s a test for students at school in year 3, year 5, year 7 and year 9 – and it tells us that about one in 10 children are below what we used to call the minimum standard, but it’s one in three children from poor families, from our outer suburbs, from our regions, Indigenous kids, who are below that minimum standard. And even more concerningly, what really concerns me, because there’s always going to be children who fall behind, what NAPLAN tells us is that 80 per cent of the children who are below the minimum standard in year 3 are still below the minimum standard when they’re 15 in year 9 – in other words, they’re not catching up.

What this funding is tied to are things like phonics checks, literacy checks in year 1 that South Australia did first, and the rest of the nation has followed. But also, numeracy checks in year 1 to identify the maths skills of students when they first start school, and South Australia is going to roll that out next year along with Victoria and New South Wales. And then when you identify the children through those checks that are behind, investing in things like catch-up tutoring where, if a child needs more individualised support, they get it by being taken out of a classroom of 25 or 30 –

McLAREN: But this is all going to take time, Minister, with respect. So how quickly are you hoping to see improvements in the results, as a result of the agreements you reached, including with Queensland back in March?

CLARE: There’s two things I want to see improvements in. I want to see improvements in results through things like that catch-up tutoring. I want to stress this point, because it’s an example of the sort of practical reforms that I think are necessary. We know that if a child gets taken out of a big class into individualised support with one or two other children 40 minutes a day, four days a week, they can learn as much in six months as they’d normally learn in 12 months. In other words, they catch up, and the sooner a child who needs extra support gets it, the better chance they have of catching up occurs.

But the other thing that we need to do is increase had number of kids finishing high school. 10 years ago, 83 per cent of young people at public high schools finished high school. Today it’s 73 per cent. It’s gone in the absolute wrong direction in public schools. We’ve got to turn that around. It’s more important to finish school today than it was when we were kids and then go on to TAFE or go on to uni, get the sort of skills for the jobs that are being created now and will be created in the future.

If we get this right, if the funding is invested in the right things that help kids catch up, they’re more likely to finish school, particularly kids from poor backgrounds and from the outer suburbs. And so, this is all connected. It doesn’t mean that you can click your fingers, pass a bill and it all gets fixed straight away; that’s not the way this works. But you’ve got to invest now in the right things to see an impact in the years ahead.

SCHILLER: You’re listening to Jason Clare, Federal Education Minister. It is 891 ABC Radio Adelaide’s Sonya, Jules and Rory for Breakfast at 13 minutes to 9. Jason Clare, can I ask you about civics in schools? I think we spoke to some people who literally voted – their basis of voting was who gave them a how-to-vote card first.

FELDHOFF: Yeah.

SCHILLER: Now, that’s not all –

FELDHOFF: And we don’t learn civics in school to a great extent.

SCHILLER: Yeah. That’s not all people, but the understanding of how local government, state government and federal government works you would have to say is not great at the moment. Do you think this is a discipline that needs to be more prominent in our education?

CLARE: We do learn it at schools. One of the things that worries me is I often find that kids in primary school have got a better grasp on this than kids in high school. It’s a big part of the curriculum in year 5 and year 6, and when I visit primary schools and I ask children about the way the Parliament works, you get the right answers. If I go and see students in year 9 or year 10, they’ve sometimes forgotten it. It’s not just what you learn in the classroom, it’s the opportunity to visit Parliament House, whether it’s in Adelaide or whether it’s in Canberra as well. We’ve cut the cost of those visits to make it easier for people not just from Canberra to visit Parliament House but from South Australia as well. I think last year about 3,500 students visited Canberra, get to visit the War Memorial as well. People don’t just learn in the classroom. If you can see it with your own eyes, I think it has an impact. But all of the evidence we’re getting is that young people don’t understand the way that our system of Government works as well as you’d like them to. And it’s the sort of thing we need to look at.

FELDHOFF: Yeah. So that will be a priority. Any others that you have over the next three years, given that it’s the first time we’ve spoken to you since you’re re-in the role?

CLARE: A couple of things. Obviously top priority is doing what we promised, delivering on the things that we committed to. So that’s the legislation we’ve talked about this morning – cutting student debt by 20 per cent. In schools, it’s the rollout of this big agreement, the billion dollars in South Australia but $16.5 billion across the country and the reforms that are tied to it.

I’m also responsible for early education as well. And so that includes the rollout of the 15 per cent pay rise for our early educators and building more early education centres in places where they don’t exist. We know that most of the brain develops before you even get to school and children who miss out start behind. And so those investments there are just as important.

FELDHOFF: Thank you for your time today. The Federal Education Minister Jason Clare.

Source:

Source: New places to play in Gungahlin

Source: New places to play in Gungahlin

Requirements for conducting the compliance audit

As an approved self-managed super fund (SMSF) auditor, you must possess the required capabilities and competencies to conduct a compliance audit of an SMSF. This includes having full knowledge of the relevant legislation and its application to SMSFs.

You must conduct your compliance audit in accordance with the Standards on Assurance Engagements (ASAE)External Link produced by the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board.

The relevant ASAEs are outlined under Guidance Statement GS 009 Auditing Self-Managed Superannuation Funds (PDF, 1.38 MB)External Link.

Based on your audit, you must be assured the trustees of the fund have met the requirements set out in super laws. When doing the compliance audit, you must:

• consider materiality and risk
• obtain sufficient and appropriate evidence on which to base your conclusions
• test identified contraventions against the Auditor/actuary contravention report (ACR) reporting criteria
• document your conclusions, opinions and judgments in writing to keep as part of your audit working papers
• include sufficient audit working papers to enable another auditor who has had no previous involvement with the audit to understand the work performed and the opinion reached
• report your professional opinion in the approved Self-managed superannuation fund independent auditor’s report (IAR) form (NAT 11466)
• notify the trustee in writing and report to us in the ACR if you form the opinion that a contravention of a matter specified in the ACR may:
  • have occurred
  • be occurring, or
  • occur in the future.

SISA: compliance audit checks

The following sections provide guidance on the audit checks and evidence that would be needed to support your audit opinion in relation to the super laws listed in:

This guidance does not replace or limit any professional obligations or standards that you are required to meet.

You must consider the circumstances of your client when planning an SMSF audit. In some circumstances, you will need to collect additional evidence and perform additional tests.

Section 17A: definition of an SMSF

Check if the fund meets the definition of an SMSF by collecting evidence and checking the:

• trust deed
• current number and names of members
• type of trustee
• relationship between members (for example, no member of the fund is an employee of another member, unless they are relatives)
• names of individual trustees or directors of corporate trustees
• details of legal personal representatives where relevant.

Further details about the definition of an SMSF can be found in SMSFR 2010/2 Self Managed Superannuation Funds: the scope and operation of subparagraph 17A(3)(b)(ii) of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993.

Section 35AE: accounting records

Check accounting records are:

• kept in Australia
• written in English or in a form that allows easy translation to English
• kept on file for at least 5 years (by sighting historical records or seeking written confirmation from the trustees).

Section 35B: accounts and statements

Check the accounts and statements (an operating statement and a statement of financial position) have been:

• signed by the required number of trustees or directors of the corporate trustee as indicated for each financial year below
  • 2020–21 and earlier financial years
    • corporate trustee with a single director – one director
    • corporate trustee with multiple directors – at least 2 of the directors
    • individual trustees – at least 2 of the trustees
  • 2021–22 and later financial years
    • corporate trustee with one or 2 directors – all of the directors
    • corporate trustee with 3 or more directors – at least half of the directors
    • individual trustees with 2 trustees – all the trustees
    • individual trustees with 3 or more trustees – at least half of the trustees
• kept for at least 5 years (by sighting historical records or seeking written confirmation from the trustees).

Section 35C(2): giving documents to auditors

Check the trustees have responded to your written requests for documents within 14 days and that you have kept a record of any:

• written requests to the trustees for documents relevant to the audit
• advice you sent to the trustees reminding them they must provide the requested documents within the required timeframe of 14 days and failure to do so is a reportable contravention.

Section 62: sole purpose test

Check the fund complied with the sole purpose test by confirming the:

• trust deed established the fund solely for the provision of benefits for fund members (upon their retirement or turning 65 years old) and their dependants (in the case of the member’s death before retirement)
• fund’s activities and transactions were entered into with the sole purpose of providing benefits to members in retirement (or their dependants upon their death) and not to provide a present-day benefit before a condition of release has been met.

Make and document enquiries about the purpose of activities that have a risk of having a purpose that breaches the sole purpose test, such as:

• investments acquired, transactions or contracts entered into that provide
  • minimal or no returns for the fund
  • a current or additional personal benefit to members
• an active business run by the SMSF.

Further details about the sole purpose test can be found in SMSFR 2008/2 Self Managed Superannuation Funds: the application of the sole purpose test in section 62 of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 to the provision of benefits other than retirement, employment termination or death benefits.

Section 65: loans or financial assistance to members

Check the fund has not lent money or provided financial assistance to members and relatives by:

• examining bank statements and seeking explanation from trustees for any unusual transactions, including transfers of money to members or relatives
• checking details of all loans by the fund (including parties to the loan, loan term, interest, repayments)
• checking any transactions with related parties for financial assistance to members or relatives
• reviewing asset ownership to ensure the investment is owned by the fund and that a charge or other form of security has not been taken over any of the SMSF’s assets to secure a member’s or relative’s personal borrowing

Further details about the prohibition of loans and financial assistance to members can be found in SMSFR 2008/1 Self Managed Superannuation Funds: giving financial assistance using the resources of an SMSF to a member or relative of a member that is prohibited for the purposes of paragraph 65(1)(b) of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993.

Section 66: acquisitions from related parties

Check whether the fund has acquired assets from related parties by:

• identifying the parties involved in fund acquisitions
• obtaining evidence of the parties to acquisitions, including sighting minutes of meetings regarding the purchase, invoices or contracts of sale.

If there is a related-party acquisition, check whether it is:

• an excepted acquisition
• acquired at market value.

Further details about the prohibition on acquisitions from related parties can be found in SMSFR 2010/1 Self Managed Superannuation Funds: the application of subsection 66(1) of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 to the acquisition of an asset by an SMSF from a related party.

Section 67, 67A and 67B: borrowings

Check whether the fund has any borrowings by examining financial statements, documents and bank statements to check for overdrafts, loans or unusual contractual terms or transactions.

If there is a borrowing, obtain evidence (including loan documents) and perform testing to determine:

• the reason for the borrowing
• whether it is allowed under the borrowing exceptions
• whether the trust deed permits the fund to borrow.

If the fund has a limited recourse borrowing arrangement (LRBA) under section 67A, check the:

• asset is a type that can be acquired by the fund
• trust deed allows for LRBAs and the investment is in line with the fund’s investment strategy
• loan documents ensure there is limited recourse available to the lender should the fund default on the borrowing
• deed of the holding trust (also known as the custody deed or the bare trust deed)
• express terms of any guarantee arrangements limit the rights of the guarantor to rights relating to the asset that is the subject of the arrangement.

If there is a replacement asset, check that it is allowed to be treated as an acquirable asset under section 67B.

Further details about borrowing restrictions for SMSFs can be found in:

• SMSFR 2009/2 Self Managed Superannuation Funds: the meaning of ‘borrow money’ or ‘maintain an existing borrowing of money’ for the purposes of section 67 of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993
• SMSFR 2012/1 Self Managed Superannuation Funds: limited recourse borrowing arrangements – application of key concepts.

Section 82, 83, 84 and 85: in-house assets

Check if the fund had at any time in the year, and the end of the previous year, related-party investments, loans or leases by sighting financial statements, bank statements and any other relevant supporting documents such as share and unit certificates, loan documents or lease documents.

If the SMSF invested in related parties, determine whether the investment meets the definition of an in-house asset, and whether any exceptions apply, by checking:

• the proportion of shares or units held in the related entity
• whether SMSF trustees or related parties hold a controlling interest or can sufficiently influence decisions of the entity (for example, directors, significant share or unit holding, casting votes or control over the day-to-day operations of the entity)
• the related entity’s financial statements, including whether it has borrowed, its dealings are at arm’s length, and distributions are paid as they fall due.

Calculate the market value ratio of the in-house assets at the end of the income year, the end of the previous income year and whenever an in-house asset was acquired during the income year.

Further information about in-house assets can be found in:

• SMSFR 2009/4 Self Managed Superannuation Funds: the meaning of ‘asset’, ‘loan’, ‘investment in’, ‘lease’ and ‘lease arrangement’ in the definition of an ‘in-house asset’ in the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993
• SMSFR 2009/3 Self Managed Superannuation Funds: application of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 to unpaid trust distributions payable to a Self Managed Superannuation Fund
• SMSFD 2008/1 Self Managed Superannuation Funds: how does the happening of an event in sub-regulation 13.22D(1) of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Regulations 1994 affect whether a self managed superannuation fund’s investments in related companies or unit trusts are in-house assets of the fund
• SMSFD 2007/1 Self Managed Superannuation Funds: when is a dividend or trust distribution ‘received’ before the end of 30 June 2009 for the purposes of paragraph 71D(d) of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993.

Section 82: in-house assets – market value ratio

If the market value ratio exceeded 5% at the end of the previous income year:

• obtain evidence of a written plan to dispose of excess in-house assets by the end of the current year
• seek evidence that the written plan has been carried out.

Section 82 is breached if the trustees fail to make or carry out the section 82 written plan by the end of the year following the year in which the market value ratio exceeds 5%. Exceeding the market value ratio for the first time in the year being audited is not a breach of section 82 but:

• may be a breach of sections 83 and 84
• may lead to a breach of section 82 in the following year
• is a significant matter that should be communicated to the trustees.

Section 83: in-house assets – acquisition

Check any acquisitions by the fund (including the creation of loans and leases) to confirm whether the:

• acquisition was of an investment, loan or lease that was an in-house asset
• market value ratio of the fund exceeded 5% at the time of the acquisition
• acquisition caused the market value ratio to exceed 5%.

Section 84: in-house assets – take reasonable steps to comply

Check the trustees have taken all reasonable steps to comply with the in-house asset rules.

Where you have identified a breach of sections 82 or 83, you should consider whether the trustees had taken all reasonable steps to avoid the breach.

Trustee documents, including minutes of meetings, may contain further evidence about the acquisition and disposal of in-house assets.

Section 85: in-house assets – anti-avoidance

Check fund transactions (including transactions entered into through third parties) for schemes intended to circumvent the in-house asset rules by:

• sighting bank statements and other relevant supporting documents for transactions, including the methods for valuing assets
• considering the relationship between the fund and the parties to the transactions.

Section 103: record keeping – minutes

Check minutes of trustee meetings are retained on file for at least 10 years by:

• sighting meeting minutes and records of decisions relevant to the year under audit and retaining these on the audit file
• seeking written confirmation from trustees that these minutes and records are kept on file for at least 10 years.

Section 104: record keeping – change of trustees

Check the trustees keep and retain records for at least 10 years of all trustee consents to their appointment as a trustee of a superannuation entity or as a director of a corporate trustee of a superannuation entity and all changes of trustees, or directors of the corporate trustee, by:

• sighting records of trustee changes and consents relevant to the year under audit and retaining a copy of these on the audit file
• seeking written representations from trustees that these records are kept on file for at least 10 years.

Section 104A: record keeping – trustee declarations

Check that a trustee declaration has been signed and has met the record keeping requirements. Trustees and directors appointed after 30 June 2007, or that have taken an education course to comply with an education direction, must keep their completed declaration for as long as it is relevant to their fund or for at least 10 years (whichever is longer). ‘As long as it is relevant’ means at least while an individual is appointed a trustee or director of the corporate trustee of the fund. You need to:

• sight a signed trustee declaration for each person that was required to sign one and retain a copy of these on the audit file
• seek written representations from trustees that the trustee declarations are kept in line with record keeping requirements.

Section 105: record keeping – member or beneficiary reports

Check the fund has kept and retained all member or beneficiary reports for at least 10 years by:

• sighting any member or beneficiary reports relevant to the year under audit
• seeking a written representation from trustees that the reports are kept on file for at least 10 years.

Section 109: investments made and maintained on an arm’s length basis

Check the fund’s investments are made and maintained on an arm’s length basis by examining:

• financial statements and source documents
• bank statements
• supporting documents of transactions, such as leases, loan documents or purchase contracts to check for commercial terms and a market rate of return.

Section 126K: disqualified persons

Check no trustee, or director of a corporate trustee, of an SMSF is a disqualified person by:

• seeking a written representation from each trustee or director that they are not a disqualified person
• searching:

SISR: compliance audit checks

Sub regulation 1.06(9A): pension payments

Obtain evidence that the fund has rules for pension payments as set out in SISR sub-regulation 1.06(9A) and that the fund complies with the rules (that is, payments are made at least annually and the minimum required payment has actually been paid to the member during the year) by examining:

• the trust deed
• bank statements for payments
• actuarial certificates, where relevant
• member records evidencing pension payments
• any amounts accrued as pension payments.

Regulation 4.09: investment strategy

Review the fund’s investment strategy for evidence the trustees have formulated and implemented an investment strategy that:

• considers the whole of the fund’s circumstances
• considers investment risk and returns, diversity, liquidity and the ability to discharge liabilities as they fall due
• considers the insurance needs of members
• is regularly reviewed.

Generally, the investment strategy is in writing. If there is no written investment strategy, obtain a written description of the investment strategy with sufficient detail to enable you to confirm compliance with regulation 4.09.

Evidence the investment strategy has been reviewed may be found in:

• an updated investment strategy
• notations on the current investment strategy
• information contained in minutes of trustee meetings.

Check the investments of the fund to confirm the trustees have implemented the investment strategy.

Regulation 4.09A: separation of assets

Check the fund’s money and assets are held separately from money and assets held personally by the trustees or a standard employer-sponsor by:

• sighting asset ownership documents, including bank statements, to verify SMSF assets are held in the name of trustees on behalf of the fund (for example, R & J Smith as trustees for the Smith SMSF or R Smith Pty Ltd as trustee for the Smith SMSF)
• checking for alternative documentation that protects the fund’s assets (for example, a valid declaration of trust) where State law prevents ownership in the SMSF’s name
• reviewing transactions on bank statements to ensure fund money is not mixed with money belonging to related parties of the SMSF.

Where there has been a change in trustees, obtain evidence that ownership documents reflect the change.

Regulation 5.03: investment returns

Check the investment returns (including those from reserves) are allocated to each member’s account in a fair and reasonable way by:

• checking details of the reserve account
• reviewing earning allocations to each member’s account to determine if they are reasonable given the circumstances
• sighting the member records and accounts.

Further details about SMSF reserves can be found in SMSFRB 2018/1 The use of reserves by self-managed superannuation funds.

Regulation 5.08: minimum benefits

Check that minimum benefits have been maintained by:

• sighting member accounts and records that evidence pension or lump sum payments
• verifying any loans to members are genuine loans supported by appropriate documentation and transactions (e.g. regular repayments)
• checking whether members receiving payments have met a condition of release.

Regulation 6.17: restriction on payments

Check any payments were cashed, rolled over or allotted in accordance with the SISR rules by obtaining and evaluating evidence that the:

• payments were only paid to members who were eligible to receive those payments under the SISR and the fund’s trust deed (based on age, cessation of employment, death, terminal medical condition, temporary or permanent incapacity, compassionate grounds, severe financial hardship, or transition-to-retirement)
• trustees have complied with the SuperStream rules in the SISR for rollovers to and from an SMSF from 1 October 2021, as a failure to comply is a contravention of regulation 6.17.

Further details about checking an SMSF’s compliance with the SuperStream rules can be found in SuperStream SMSF rollovers and auditor reporting obligations.

Regulation 7.04: acceptance of contributions

Test the trustees were able to accept contributions by checking:

• the trust deed of the fund
• members’ ages and employment status
• the type and source of contributions (this could include downsizer contributions for members over the eligible age)
• timing and amount of contributions
• the member’s TFN was quoted to the trustee within 30 days of receiving the contribution if not already provided to the fund.

If a contribution was accepted that was inconsistent with the requirements of SISR regulation 7.04, check if the trustees have returned the amount to the entity or person who made the payment.

Regulation 8.02B: assets must be valued at market value

Check the trustees have valued all fund assets at market value when preparing the accounts and statements for the fund each income year.

Check the trustee’s valuation of the fund’s assets by:

• obtaining evidence from the trustees to confirm what method of valuation they used to value assets
• obtaining the supporting documentation that the trustees relied on when verifying market value of their fund’s assets
• assessing whether the evidence that the trustees relied on is objective and supportable
• sighting third-party financial statements to verify that assets such as units in unit trusts, shares and loans are valued at market value, which includes checking that the entity is a going concern and that the assets are recoverable.

Further details about checking a fund’s compliance with regulation 8.02B can be found at Guide to valuing SMSF assets and Verifying the market value of fund assets.

Regulation 13.12-13: recognition, encouragement or sanctioning of assignments and charges

Check and confirm the trustees have not recognised, encouraged or sanctioned an assignment of, or a charge over, a member’s super interest by seeking written confirmation from trustees.

If you become aware of any assignment of, or charge over, super interests, you must obtain relevant evidence.

Regulation 13.14: charges over assets

Check the trustees have not given a charge over or in relation to a fund asset by obtaining:

Regulation 13.18AA: collectables and personal use assets

Check the collectables and personal use asset rules have been met by sighting:

• insurance documents to check that assets were insured within 7 days of acquisition and insured in the fund’s name
• written records of the decision for storage of collectable and personal use assets
• written evidence from the trustees that the asset is not used by, or leased to, a related party or stored in the private residence of a related party
• lease agreements for terms and conditions to determine if lessees are related parties of the SMSF.

If the collectable or personal use asset is sold to a related party, obtain evidence that the asset was transferred at market value as determined by an independent qualified valuer.

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

Strike Force Trident is calling for witnesses to an aggravated robbery that occurred in Alawa on Monday 26 May 2025.

Between 10:40am and 10:50am, it is alleged a group of people approached a female who was riding her e-scooter on the footpath along Trower Road and assaulted her before stealing the e-scooter.

The incident is alleged to have occurred between Lakeside Drive and Alawa Crescent along Trower Road.

Police are urging anyone who witnessed the incident or who may have dash cam footage from the area at the time to make contact on 131 444. Please reference job number NTP2500054115. You can make anonymous reports via Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

Source:

Hamilton Fire Brigade is one of 20 brigades trained and ready to respond to select medical Triple Zero calls as part of a new program that commenced in late 2024 and has been progressively rolled out across country Victoria.

The new Fire Medical Response (FMR) program is a joint initiative between CFA and Ambulance Victoria that will see CFA brigades and Ambulance Victoria dispatched simultaneously to cardiac arrests. Ultimately, 50 brigades across the state will provide this service.

Hamilton Brigade Captain Malcolm Anderson said the decision to join the program was an easy one to make given the benefits it will provide the Hamilton community.

“Our members already have a great working relationship with Ambulance Victoria, responding together to various incidents.  We see this program as a logical and valuable extension,” Malcolm said. 

“By co-responding trained brigade members to cardiac arrest calls alongside Ambulance Victoria crews we hope to get responders to patients sooner and improve the chances of survival.

“What this program means is that community members who call for an ambulance may receive both firefighters and Ambulance Victoria crews. There is no specific order in which the services may arrive at the incident.  Our ultimate aim is to get to the patient as quickly as possible.”

Hamilton brigade members have been training with Ambulance Victoria paramedics in preparation for the program which will complement Ambulance Victoria’s service in the local area.  

“We have undergone extensive training with 12 members completing the FMR program and will be available to respond once we go live at the end of May,” Malcolm said.

CFA Acting Chief Officer Garry Cook said the program was a natural fit for CFA because of the 52,000 volunteers across the state.

“CFA has more than 1,100 volunteer fire stations with nearly 52,000 members,” Garry said.

“This puts CFA in a unique position to complement Ambulance Victoria’s response in 50 locations across Victoria to help deliver early intervention to cardiac arrests.”

Ambulance Victoria Executive Director of Regional Operations, Danielle North, said Victoria’s cardiac survival rates are one of the best in the world, thanks to high rates of early intervention.

“The Fire Medical Response program will improve survival rates for people in rural and regional Victoria,” Danielle said.

“Quick intervention with CPR and a defibrillator has the greatest impact on improving a patient’s chances of surviving a cardiac arrest.” 

Submitted by	CFA Media

Source:

Following welcomed rainfall that saw up to 70mm reach parts of northeast Victoria over the last five days, fire restrictions will now ease for Towong Shire Council on Friday 30 May at 1.00am.

This comes after the Fire Danger Period was initially extended last week due to underlying dryness and elevated fire risk.

District 24 Acting Assistant Chief Fire Officer Brett Myers said the arrival of rain in the right areas of far northeast Victoria has allowed restrictions to be lifted earlier than anticipated.

“We’re really pleased that over the weekend a consistent bout of rain hit the ground and thankfully it fell in all the areas that needed it the most,” Brett said.

“The impact of the rain was widespread, with 30 to 70mm reaching over the municipal area.

“Early indications suggest that the quantity of rain has made a notable impact and has absorbed positively, suggesting benign fire behaviour moving forward.”

Residents within Towong Shire Council are reminded that while the window for burning off resumes shortly, extreme care should still be taken to protect their local communities.

“Now is not the time for landowners to be complacent. We ask when conducting fire activity at your home, you have sufficient water and resources on hand to extinguish it properly,” Brett said.

“Make sure you have your mineral earth break in, and that you are still monitoring weather conditions. As we’ve seen recently, things can change rapidly, and fire will spread quickly.”

Since 1 April to 27 May, CFA has responded to 236 escaped burn-offs across the state.

“Escaped burn-offs continue to cause significant concern,” Brett said.

“Not only do they tie up our resources, but they also present a real danger to the community and our volunteers.

“Please register your burn-off online at Fire Permits Victoria to help prevent false alarms which divert resources from other emergencies.”

Landowners can apply for a permit to burn off at firepermits.vic.gov.au.

Burn off safety checklist:

• Obtain a permit if required and check and monitor weather conditions – particularly wind.
• Postpone your activity if high fire risk conditions develop. 
• Notify your neighbours if the burn will generate fire and smoke. 
• Leave a three-metre fire break, free from flammable materials around the burn.
• Ensure you have enough water on hand (10 litres for small fires).
• Never leave a burn-off unattended – stay for its entire duration.
• Ensure there are enough people to monitor, contain and extinguish the burn effectively.

Submitted by	CFA media

Source: Australian Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Industry

The Albanese Government is taking the next step in delivering a streamlined and strengthened foreign investment regime with a new, more efficient and more effective online portal to process applications.

This is all about increasing speed, efficiency and transparency for foreign investors looking to put capital to work in Australia.

From today, investors can now use the Foreign Investment Portal to submit foreign investment proposals, pay fees, and view outcomes.

This change is one part of our broader reforms to our foreign investment framework, to help boost our economic security and attract the investment we need in our economy.

Our reforms are delivering faster decisions, clearer rules and stricter scrutiny when necessary.

The new portal will help streamline and strengthen the system, with:

• The collection of accurate and complete information upfront, reducing requests for further information.
• Faster, more efficient processing of applications, as regulators have access to high quality and accurate data.
• Centralised communications, where all correspondence is captured within the secure portal, improving transparency.
• Quicker identification and management of risks to Australia’s national interest and national security.

We’ve developed this portal in close consultation with stakeholders, including by providing early access to a number of law firms to explore the new portal and provide insights on their experience.

We’ve used this feedback to inform system enhancements and further refine our instructional and support materials – found on the foreign investment website.

Treasury will continue to seek feedback on how the portal is performing, and improve and refine it to better serve the growing number of investors using it.

Treasury will provide additional support to investors as they start using the new portal, to make sure they have the information and assistance they need to navigate the new system.

Efficiencies gained will enable quicker identification and management of low‑risk investments, strengthen the management of high‑risk investments, and support Australia’s national interests.

Further information is available at the foreign investment website.

Source: New places to play in Gungahlin

The illicit tobacco trade

Engaging in the illicit tobacco trade is a serious offence. It significantly deprives the Australian community of vital funding which could be used to fund essential community services such as health, education, transport and infrastructure.

Tobacco is illicit when it is grown, manufactured and/or produced in Australia or imported into the domestic market without customs duty being paid.

Illicit tobacco products may include:

• cigarettes
• cigars
• loose tobacco (also known as ‘chop-chop’)
• tobacco leaf and plant matter.

The illicit tobacco trade includes but is not limited to the unlicensed:

• production of tobacco plant or leaf
• manufacture of tobacco products
• tobacco sold without payment of taxes.

Tackling illicit tobacco

We use a range of investigative and legislative approaches to disrupt illicit tobacco activity. These include:

• gathering intelligence
• conducting investigations
• conducting audits and using proceeds of crime action to target wealth created by those participating in the growing, manufacture, distribution or sale of illicit tobacco
• working with federal and state government and law enforcement agencies as part of investigations and intelligence sharing (see Illicit Tobacco Taskforce)
• identifying, seizing and destroying identified crops
• collecting evidence as part of prosecution activity
• using the Taxation Administration Act 1953, Excise Act 1901 and the Criminal Code Act 1995 to prosecute offenders.

Every crop we seize and destroy, burns another hole in the illicit tobacco trade. We continue to disrupt the illicit tobacco trade by prosecuting those who are found to be domestically growing and manufacturing illicit tobacco.

See examples in our Illicit tobacco case studies.

Illicit tobacco enforcement – results as at 31 March 2025

Financial year	Number of seizures	Amount seized and destroyed (kilograms)	Cigarettes (sticks)	Estimated excise duty ($million)	Number of convictions
2018–19	8	41,400	Nil	42	4
2019–20	22	130,656	11,480	171	4
2020–21	23	109,186	5,496,379	178	1
2021–22	21	110,349	1,661,520	176	1
2022–23	16	66,711	1,207,516	111	6
2023–24	81	16,687	13,382,445	45	11
2024–25	7	20,959	6,089,733	52	3
Total	178	495,948	27,849,073	775	30

Illicit Tobacco Taskforce

On 1 July 2018, the Illicit Tobacco Taskforce (ITTF) was established as part of new reforms. The ITTF enhances the ability of the ATO and our partner agencies to protect Commonwealth revenue, by proactively detecting, disrupting and dismantling serious organised crime syndicates that deal in illicit tobacco.

The taskforce draws on the expertise and advanced capabilities of the:

• ATO
• Australian Border Force (lead)
• Department of Home Affairs
• Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission
• Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre
• Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions and law enforcement partners.

Using the consolidated power of these government agencies, the taskforce fights back against organised international and local criminals that operate multimillion dollar crime syndicates.

Domestically grown tobacco

The ATO is responsible for domestically grown or manufactured tobacco. It’s illegal to grow tobacco in Australia without the appropriate excise licence. Currently, no one is licensed to grow or manufacture tobacco seed, plant or leaf for commercial sale or personal use.

We receive referrals from the ITTF, state law enforcement partners and tip-offs from industry and the community. We use the referrals to produce actionable intelligence to bring both civil and criminal consequences against those who engage in illicit tobacco.

However, organised crime syndicates continue to set up and run these growing operations, sometimes by targeting unsuspecting landowners, attempting to lease land to grow illicit tobacco. These operations are not run by genuine farmers or landowners, but by criminals living and operating in local communities.

Organised criminals who deal in illicit tobacco rob the Australian community of valuable revenue, instead:

• using their profits to fund their lavish lifestyles
• allowing them to continue to engage in criminal behaviour well beyond the sale of illegal tobacco.

Signs that someone is growing tobacco

Some of the signs that land is being used to grow, manufacture or produce illicit tobacco are:

• intense labour production between November and May
• people approaching real estate agents, landowners or farmers to lease land within or outside of the state they live in
• suspicious responses to online and print ads where land is being advertised for sale or lease
• unusual earthworks along creeks and rivers on private and public land
• an unusual source of loose tobacco
• unexplained and potentially unlawful use of water resources
• a strong tobacco odour
• large, leafy plants that, depending on the size, may resemble kale, cabbage or corn and may have a pink flower growing on top
• other suspicious activity.

‘Under the counter’ tobacco

Organised crime syndicates also target tobacco retailers across Australia to buy and sell illegally grown tobacco, also known as ‘under the counter’ or ‘black market’ tobacco.

Buying and selling illicit tobacco is a serious tax crime. Retailers choosing to become involved in the illicit tobacco trade not only contribute to the loss of funding for essential community services, but they also gain an unfair advantage over honest businesses who are doing the right thing. There are penalties for selling illicit tobacco.

Removing illicit tobacco from our streets creates a level playing field for all retailers.

Signs that someone is selling illicit tobacco

Some of the signs that tobacco retailers are selling ‘under the counter’ tobacco are:

• cigarettes, cigars or loose-leaf tobacco (sometimes referred to as ‘chop-chop’ or ‘roll your own’) are missing health warning labels
• strong tobacco odour despite the shop containing strongly scented items like candles and incense
• customers asking for ‘cheap cigarettes’ or ‘under the counter cigarettes’
• customers leaving a retailer with small plastic bags, often black in colour.

Penalties

The government passed the Treasury Laws Amendment (Illicit Tobacco Offences) BillExternal Link which outlines a tobacco offence regime. The tax laws increased the set penalties to a level that provides greater deterrence to illegal activity. The penalty amount is calculated in multiples of a penalty unit. If the infringement occurred on or after 7 November 2024, the penalty unit amount is $330.

Penalties by activity for illicit tobacco

Activity	Penalty
Possessing more than 2 and less than 5 kilograms	Civil penalty – a fine of up to $33,300
Possessing 5 kilograms or more	Criminal penalty – a criminal conviction with a prison sentence of up to 5 years or a fine between $66,000 and $330,000, or both
Selling illicit tobacco products	Criminal penalty – a criminal conviction with a prison sentence of up to 5 years or a fine between $66,000 and $330,000, or both
Buying illicit tobacco products	Criminal penalty – a criminal conviction with a prison sentence of up to 5 years or a fine between $66,000 and $330,000, or both
Manufacturing or producing illicit tobacco	Criminal penalty – a criminal conviction with a prison sentence of up to 10 years or a fine between $165,000 and $495,000, or both

Tobacco tax gap

The tobacco tax gap is the difference between the estimated value of excise or customs duty raised from tobacco according to the law (‘tobacco duty’) and the value actually raised for a financial year. The tobacco tax gap estimate includes illicit tobacco importation and ‘chop-chop’.

For 2022–23, we estimate the net tobacco tax gap to be 14.3%. This equates to approximately $2.7 billion in lost excise revenue, meaning that $2.7 billion was channelled into organised criminal activities, instead of funding essential community services.

How to report it

If you suspect that illicit tobacco is being grown, manufactured or sold in your community you can report it anonymously to us by:

Keep up to date

Learn more about what illicit tobacco is and how we are fighting back. Discover and share our content.

Media releases

Source: Australian National Party