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ABA hits back at new BAS & tax Agent Code of Conduct rules with Senators in the dark on their 'devastating' impact.
In a show of people power, armed with a petition of 2100+ BAS Agent signatures, Australian Bookkeepers Association (ABA) worked with all accounting & BAS Agent associations in lobbying government. The Conservatives agreed to move a ‘Motion to Disallow’ in the Senate against the new ‘rushed’ and ‘harmful’ Code of Conduct legislation. The motion could not be passed without support from most of the independent senators.
Lobbying of independent senators was undertaken by associations. ABA corresponded with each to point out the impact on the BAS Agent community and the contribution this predominantly sole trader industry makes to our economy. 9 of the 11 Independent senators were supportive, while the ALP and Green senators unanimously voted against the motion. Despite the Motion falling down in a tied 31 votes for and against, ABA Director, Peter Thorp, says that this was an important ‘wake up call’ for the government to stop pushing the industry around. The government earned the support of a critical independent vote on the basis they were now (albeit very belatedly), consulting with the professional associations to rectify some of the more offensive provisions.
“Senators were simply unaware of how critical our industry is to Australian small businesses, much less the broad and devastating impacts of these new rules,” said Peter. “It was always going to be hard to change minds quickly, but we did claw back respect with a commitment to make further changes to these rules with proper consultation moving forward.”
The ABA, on behalf of its members, together with the other professional associations objected to the legislative Instrument called the Tax Agent Services (Code of Professional Conduct) Determination 2024. The rules were introduced in response to the PWC misconduct by the Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services, Stephen Jones, using new unprecedented powers that ABA said was deficient in its lack of consultation.
“The underlying basis for the Determination to raise the bar for the Tax and BAS Agent community is warranted and not without merit,” said Peter. “But treading all over sole traders that operate nothing like big corporations, shows no understanding of the industry and the implications of these rules.”
“Our efforts proved that, with the announcement in the Senate that the government has committed to publicly consult with industry bodies from now on and will make further changes to the tax Determination,” said Peter.
The Determination is to be finalised in early October, insisting on urgent consultation.
“This was a wake up call to the Government that our industry deserves better,” continued Peter. “We’ve proven ourselves over years of regulatory interference and technology change by hanging in there for Australian small businesses.”
“Bookkeepers can’t afford more red tape; they need a medal for keeping the wheels turning through initiatives such as Jobkeeper, Boost, Single Touch Payroll, and Client-Agent-Linking” said Peter.
“It’s a shame the industry was left out of the conversation till now, but I’m hopeful that we can now bring sense to these rules in a way that improves the industry, not pushes it down.”
Should any resources be required once the final determination wording is known, ABA wants to assure all members that these will be made available well before the implementation date of 1 July 2025.
