Ideologically stripped and now tainted with illegal beahaviour

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ustralia has been ideologically stripped of its climate change protections and now further moves, painted as illegal behaviour, are directed at the country’s environmental groups.

Mark Dreyfus -
"ideological attack".

Today’s Melbourne Age says, “The Abbott government recently launched a parliamentary committee inquiry into a registry of green groups that allows donors to groups like the Wilderness Society and Greenpeace, along with smaller organisations, to deduct contributions from their tax.

“The government says the review is necessary to ensure tax concessions do not support illegal activity and will ensure environment groups face high standards of transparency. Some Coalition MPs have also sought to draw a distinction between groups that carry out on-the-ground environment restoration works and those engaged in political campaigns.”

According to The Age, the shadow Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus - Labor's frontbench representative on a parliamentary committee inquiry now looking at the charitable status of almost 600 environment groups - has declared the review an ideological attack by the government on political advocacy.

Read The Age story - “Big green donors warn funds could dry up if Abbott government changes tax rules”.