…Australian taxpayers deserve much greater accountability and transparency concerning the subsidies they provide to politically active environmental organisations than often, and in some cases habitually, engage in criminal behaviour. In this grievance debate, I am calling on all my colleagues in this parliament to ensure this farce comes to an end. Taxpayer subsidies for many environmental organisations exist because the law recognises that work to protect or improve the environment is a charitable activity, and the subsidy provided to them by the taxpayer, via a tax break for that purpose, is clearly valid for the great majority of the 600-plus organisations around the country that now enjoy it…’
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