[Non transport]Article: Springborg defends 'draconian' gag orders

[somebody]

Springborg defends 'draconian' gag orders

Date
    March 4, 2013 - 12:42PM

    Comments 6

Queensland's health minister has defended gag orders on not-for-profit groups that receive state funding and has told the federal government to butt out.

The federal government will introduce a new bill which would ban gag clauses from all commonwealth contracts with the not-for-profit sector.

It plans to write to state and territory leaders asking them to match the federal commitment.

Federal Finance Finance Minister Penny Wong has called the Newman government's gag orders "nothing short of draconian".
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"First, the Newman government cuts funding to those without a voice and then silences those who speak on their behalf," she said.

But Queensland Health Minister Lawrence Springborg said not-for-profit groups should not be wasting their time and money on political advocacy.

He said the federal government should stop trying to interfere.

"We will decide how public money is spent in Queensland," he said on Monday.

"In Queensland we believe that if we give money in Queensland Health to an organisation, then that organisation should be doing what we fund them for.

"Not running around with political advocacy."

Read more: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/springborg-defends-draconian-gag-orders-20130304-2ffxu.html#ixzz2MXab0y5P

Groan!!

[ozbob]

Does have some implications for transport and many other areas such as health, education, community services, disability services and so forth.

Organisations that receive state funding could not lobby on fares for example?  Argue for a local bus service??  They need to grow up and toughen up ..

I have never sought and would never accept funding from government no matter who is polishing the leather. 

[somebody]

I suppose the glass half full angle is that the Feds are opening up the debate.  That Qld is resisting it applying to them makes things no worse than present.

[p858snake]

..."In Queensland we believe that if we give money in Queensland Health to an organisation, then that organisation should be doing what we fund them for. ...

Yes, and that is what their auditing process is for.

[Golliwog]

Meanwhile, in the Tertiary Education Sector: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/opinion/politics/lets-hear-more-from-pyne-on-chalk-and-talk-teaching-20130303-2fe88.html

......
The higher education sector has renewed its plea for an increase in indexed base funding. Professor Glyn Davis, in his capacity as chairman of Universities Australia, has called for a 2.5 per cent annual increase over the next five years.
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Davis also announced an advertising campaign, budget $5 million, to ''engage Australians in a conversation about how universities can contribute to a more prosperous and intellectually vibrant Australia'' - which is a very polite way of saying ''universities deserve more of your tax dollar''.
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Davis, however, was at pains to note that universities were not intending any overt politics with this campaign. The ads would stop as soon as the election writs were issued later this year. And no public or student funds would be used to bankroll the sortie.

The ads are clearly not party political; and an ad spend of $5 million is modest in the grand scheme of things. But the resort to advocacy of this nature is part of a growing trend in third-party lobbying in this country. Lobbying is coming out of the back room and into the lounge room. We are moving, inexorably, towards an American-style political action committee system where interest groups with sufficient resources to intervene in political debates do so regularly.
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Does the State government not understand that a NFP group is capable of using the government funding as it is intended, but also to continue advocating for improvements?

[Gazza]

Exactly...A media release costs nil.