❓ Mr Templeman asks about the reporting of gifts by local government employees and officials, specifically regarding gifts from family and friends. The Minister clarifies the existing legislation and mentions ongoing work to improve guidance on gift and travel contribution reporting.
AnsweredQoN 5452Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to the introduction of the transparency measures, enacted through the City of Perth Act 2016 , and ask: (a) can the Minister confirm whether local government employees and elected officials have to report gifts from family and friends for birthdays and other special occasions, as the Department of Local Government and Communities Special Governance Bulletin, in March, addressing gift and travel disclosures has led them to believe; (b) if yes, why; and (c) if not, does the Minister have plans to consult with the sector to allay their concerns on the matter?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
14 June 2016
Responded by
Minister for Local Government
Response time
34 days
(a)–(c)
Section 5.74 of the Local Government Act 1995 (the Act) requires the following ‘Relevant Persons’ to disclose gifts and contributions to travel:
Section 5.74 also provides an exemption from the disclosure provisions if the gift or contribution to travel is from a relative. A relative is defined in this section as:
(whether or not the relationship is traced through, or to, a person whose parents were not actually married to each other at the time of the person's birth or subsequently, and whether the relationship is a natural relationship or a ralationship established by a written law).
Gifts from all other persons are required to be disclosed where their value exceeds $200.
Under section 5.82(4) of the Act, gift means any disposition of property, or the conferral of any other financial benefit, made by one person in favour of another otherwise than by will (whether with or without an instrument in writing), without consideration in money or money’s worth passing from the person in whose favour it is made to the other, or with such consideration so passing if the consideration is not fully adequate, but does not include any financial or other contribution to travel.
My Department of Local Government and Communities, through its Governance Roundtable (with membership from the Department, Western Australian Local Government Association and Local Government Managers Australia) is currently working to identify areas of improvement in the legislation and/or guidance on the reporting of gifts and travel contributions.
Section 5.74 of the Local Government Act 1995 (the Act) requires the following ‘Relevant Persons’ to disclose gifts and contributions to travel:
Section 5.74 also provides an exemption from the disclosure provisions if the gift or contribution to travel is from a relative. A relative is defined in this section as:
(whether or not the relationship is traced through, or to, a person whose parents were not actually married to each other at the time of the person's birth or subsequently, and whether the relationship is a natural relationship or a ralationship established by a written law).
Gifts from all other persons are required to be disclosed where their value exceeds $200.
Under section 5.82(4) of the Act, gift means any disposition of property, or the conferral of any other financial benefit, made by one person in favour of another otherwise than by will (whether with or without an instrument in writing), without consideration in money or money’s worth passing from the person in whose favour it is made to the other, or with such consideration so passing if the consideration is not fully adequate, but does not include any financial or other contribution to travel.
My Department of Local Government and Communities, through its Governance Roundtable (with membership from the Department, Western Australian Local Government Association and Local Government Managers Australia) is currently working to identify areas of improvement in the legislation and/or guidance on the reporting of gifts and travel contributions.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.