I welcome today's announcement by the inaugural Chairman, Ms Elaine Henry, CEO of The Smith Family, that a Not For Profit Council of Australia is to be established.
The idea of a Council arises from the sector's commitment to build its capacity to meet the challenges of the 21st Century. It was presented formally to Government at a meeting of the Prime Minister's Community Business Partnership in April and received enthusiastic support. At that meeting, it was agreed that a small amount of government funding - up to $50,000 - would be provided to enable some initial establishment work to be done, including preparation of a Constitution.
The Council's interim Board reflects the diverse 'community of interest' making up the not for profit sector. The sector comprises a wide variety of organisations - large and small, involved in welfare provision, cultural activities, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, to name just a few. Many community groups and organisations will benefit from the Council's work and will no doubt seek to join as the Council establishes its role.
As announced today by Ms Henry, an early priority of the Council will be to prepare a Budget to meet its funding needs in the early years. Before the Council becomes self-sufficient through membership fees, it will need to seek funding from other sources, including business, not for profit organisations and government. For its part, the Commonwealth Government would welcome an approach from the Council for a financial contribution to its initial funding needs.
I would like to recognise and express my appreciation of the major contribution of Mr John Dahlsen to the development of the Council. Today's announcement would not have been possible without this work, all of which was undertaken pro bono.
There will be plenty of work for the Council to do, judging by the widespread interest in its early priorities expressed in consultations with the sector prior to its establishment. I wish the Council well as it goes about this important work and look forward to an effective partnership developing between the Council and the Government.