The Government has established a GST Start-Up Assistance Office.
The Office, working to the supervision of the New Tax System Advisory Board and including private sector advisory panels, will help small and medium enterprises, charities and education bodies prepare for the introduction of the GST.
The GST Start-Up Office will administer the delivery of $500 million in Government assistance for small and medium enterprises, charities, education bodies through:
An education and information program on business skills for The New Tax System;
Assisting key industry and professional organisations to deliver information and assistance to their members;
A train the trainer program to increase the number of people able to train others to provide advice on business skills and the GST; and
Direct assistance to individual enterprises to prepare for the GST.
These initiatives are drawn from the work of the Small Business Consultative Committee which was established to identify the needs of small business with the transition to the GST, and also separate consultation with charity and education groups.
The Office will begin disbursing funding of $130 million to assist key industry and professional organisations deliver GST related information to their members and around $7 million to the train the trainer program. The Government will announce allocation of the remainder of the $500 million shortly.
The specific assistance measures and programs provided by the GST Start-Up Assistance Office will be developed in consultation with two private sector advisory panels, one covering small and medium businesses and the other the charity/education sectors. This will ensure that the assistance provided is tailored to the needs of each sector.
The members of the advisory panels have extensive experience and networks within their sectors and include:
Business Advisory Panel
Ian Baldock - Chair, Council of Small Business Organisations of Australia;
Wendy Craik - Executive Director, National Farmers' Federation;
Gregory Evans - Policy Manager, The Australian Gas Association;
Mitch Hooke - Executive Director, Australian Food and Grocery Council;
Phil Naylor - Chief Executive Officer, Australian Retailers' Association; and
Angela Ryan - Tax Director, Australian Society of Certified Practising Accountants.
Community Sector Advisory Panel
Pauline Iles - Director, Australian Nursing Homes and Extended Care Association;
John Landau - Chief Executive Officer, Royal Blind Society, NSW;
Father Brian Lucas - Archdiocesan Secretary and Financial Administrator, Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney;
Di Mildern - Chair, Non-Government Schools Funding Review Committee;
Geoff Sam - Chief Executive Officer, Ashford Community Hospital; and
Peter Veenker - Chief Executive and Director, Canberra Institute of Technology.
Futher details on panel members is attached.
Those representative organisations around Australia which are able to undertake education and information programmes for their members in small and medium enterprises, charities or the education field will be eligible for funding. The Office will shortly write to such organisations inviting proposals. Proposals will be assessed by the Advisory Panels. The New Tax System Advisory Board will also shortly announce further details on the other assistance programs which are being developed.
For further information on the GST start-up assistance contact (02) 6263 4405.
CANBERRA
13 August 1999
Media Inquiries: Niki Savva (03) 9650 0244
DETAILS OF PANEL MEMBERS
Business Advisory Panel
Ian Baldock is the Chair, Council of Small Business Organisations of Australia and is the Executive Director, Queensland Retail Traders and Shopkeepers Association. He is also the Chair, National Association of Retail Grocers of Australia and a member of the Small Business Consultative Committee.
Wendy Craik is the Executive Director, National Farmers' Federation. She is a former Executive Officer of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.
Gregory Evans is the Policy Manager, The Australian Gas Association and Deputy Chair of the Small Business Consultative Committee. He is a former Executive Director of the Wool Council of Australia and also runs a woolgrowing enterprise in southern New South Wales.
Mitch Hooke is the Executive Director, Australian Food and Grocery Council. He is a former Executive Director of the Grains Council of Australia.
Phil Naylor is the Chief Executive Officer, Australian Retailers' Association. He is a former Executive Director of the Retailer's Association, Queensland Limited.
Angela Ryan is the Tax Director, Australian Society of Certified Practising Accountants and represents ASCPA on the Business Coalition for Tax Reform, the Small Business Consultative Committee and the CCH GST Editorial Board.
Community Sector Advisory Panel
Pauline Iles is Director, Australian Nursing Homes and Extended Care Association (ANHECA) Ltd. and a Board Member of ANHECA - WA. She is also a Proprietor/Director of Nursing at St Michael's Retirement Village and Nursing Home Community in North Perth and is a Justice of the Peace in Western Australia.
John Landau is the Chief Executive Officer, Royal Blind Society, NSW. He also chairs the ACROD Ltd. Tax Group (and represents ACROD Ltd. on the Australian Tax Office (ATO) Charities/Non-Profit Advisory Committee) and is a former First Assistant Commissioner, Withholding and Indirect Tax, ATO.
Father Brian Lucas is the Archdiocesan Secretary and Financial Administrator, Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney. He is a member of the Australian Catholic Church Tax Working Group and also the ATO's Charity/Non-Profit Consultative Committee.
Di Mildern is the Chair, Non-Government Schools Funding Review Committee. She is a former First Assistant Secretary in the Departments of Education, Training and Youth Affairs, and Transport and Regional Development.
Geoff Sam is the Chief Executive Officer, Ashford Community Hospital. He is a former President of both the Australian College of Health Service Executives and the Australian Private Hospitals Association, and has served as Chief Executive Officer of both private and public hospitals.
Peter Veenker is the Chief Executive and Director, Canberra Institute of Technology. He is currently the Chair of TAFE Directors Australia, and Director/Member representing the Minister on the Board of the national company "Australian Training Products".