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Who will look after us in our final years? A pay rise alone won’t solve aged-care workforce shortages

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/stephen-duckett-10730">Stephen Duckett</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-melbourne-722">The University of Melbourne</a> Aged-care workers will receive a significant pay increase after the Fair Work Commission <a href="https://www.fwc.gov.au/documents/decisionssigned/pdf/2024fwcfb150.pdf">ruled</a> they deserved substantial wage rises of up to 28%. The federal government <a href="https://ministers.dewr.gov.au/burke/fair-work-decision-aged-care">has committed to</a> the increases, but is yet to announce when they will start. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> Tens of thousands of aged care workers will receive a major pay rise after the Fair Work Commission recommended the increase. <a href="https://t.co/NeNt1Gvxd9">https://t.co/NeNt1Gvxd9</a> — SBS News (@SBSNews) <a href="https://twitter.com/SBSNews/status/1768557710537068889?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 15, 2024</a></blockquote> But while wage rises for aged-care workers are welcome, this measure alone will not fix all workforce problems in the sector. The number of people over 80 is expected to <a href="https://treasury.gov.au/sites/default/files/2023-08/p2023-435150.pdf">triple over the next 40 years</a>, driving an increase in the number of aged care workers needed. <h2>How did we get here?</h2> The Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, which delivered its <a href="https://www.royalcommission.gov.au/aged-care/final-report">final report</a> in March 2021, identified a litany of tragic failures in the regulation and delivery of aged care. The former Liberal government was dragged reluctantly to accept that a total revamp of the aged-care system was needed. But its <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/ministers/the-hon-greg-hunt-mp/media/respect-care-and-dignity-aged-care-royal-commission-452-million-immediate-response-as-government-commits-to-historic-reform-to-deliver-respect-and-care-for-senior-australians#:%7E:text=Minister%20for%20Senior%20Australians%20and,%2C%20dementia%2C%20food%20and%20nutrition.">weak response</a> left the heavy lifting to the incoming Labor government. The current government’s response started well, with a <a href="https://theconversation.com/anthony-albanese-offers-2-5-billion-plan-to-fix-crisis-in-aged-care-180419">significant injection of funding</a> and a promising regulatory response. But it too has failed to pursue a visionary response to the problems identified by the Royal Commission. Action was needed on four fronts: <ul> <li>ensuring enough staff to provide care</li> <li>building a functioning regulatory system to encourage good care and weed out bad providers</li> <li>designing and introducing a fair payment system to distribute funds to providers and</li> <li>implementing a financing system to pay for it all and achieve intergenerational equity.</li> </ul> A government taskforce which proposed a <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-will-aged-care-look-like-for-the-next-generation-more-of-the-same-but-higher-out-of-pocket-costs-225551">timid response to the fourth challenge</a> – an equitable financing system – was released at the start of last week. Consultation closed on a <a href="https://media.opan.org.au/uploads/2024/03/240308_Aged-Care-Act-Exposure-Draft-Joint-Submission_FINAL.pdf">very poorly designed new regulatory regime</a> the week before. But the big news came at end of the week when the Fair Work Commission handed down a further <a href="https://www.fwc.gov.au/documents/decisionssigned/pdf/2024fwcfb150.pdf">determination</a> on what aged-care workers should be paid, confirming and going beyond a previous <a href="https://www.fwc.gov.au/documents/sites/work-value-aged-care/decisions-statements/2022fwcfb200.pdf">interim determination</a>. <h2>What did the Fair Work Commission find?</h2> Essentially, the commission determined that work in industries with a high proportion of women workers has been traditionally undervalued in wage-setting. This had consequences for both care workers in the aged-care industry (nurses and <a href="https://training.gov.au/Training/Details/CHC33021">Certificate III-qualified</a> personal-care workers) and indirect care workers (cleaners, food services assistants). Aged-care staff will now get significant pay increases – 18–28% increase for personal care workers employed under the Aged Care Award, inclusive of the increase awarded in the interim decision. <figure class="align-center "><figcaption></figcaption>Indirect care workers were awarded a general increase of 3%. Laundry hands, cleaners and food services assistants will receive a further 3.96% <a href="https://www.fwc.gov.au/documents/decision-summaries/2024fwcfb150-summary.pdf">on the grounds</a> they “interact with residents significantly more regularly than other indirect care employees”.</figure> The final increases for registered and enrolled nurses will be determined in the next few months. <h2>How has the sector responded?</h2> There has been no push-back from employer groups or conservative politicians. This suggests the uplift is accepted as fair by all concerned. The interim increases of up to 15% probably facilitated this acceptance, with the <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-does-the-budget-mean-for-medicare-medicines-aged-care-and-first-nations-health-192842">recognition of the community</a> that care workers should be paid more than fast food workers. There was <a href="https://www.accpa.asn.au/media-releases/accpa-welcomes-further-aged-care-wage-rises">no criticism from aged-care providers</a> either. This is probably because they are facing difficulty in recruiting staff at current wage rates. And because government payments to providers reflect the <a href="https://www.ihacpa.gov.au/">actual cost of aged care</a>, increased payments will automatically flow to providers. When the increases will flow has yet to be determined. The government is due to give its recommendations for staging implementation by mid-April. <h2>Is the workforce problem fixed?</h2> An increase in wages is necessary, but alone is not sufficient to solve workforce shortages. The health- and social-care workforce is <a href="https://www.jobsandskills.gov.au/data/employment-projections">predicted</a> to grow faster than any other sector over the next decade. The “care economy” will <a href="https://theconversation.com/care-economy-to-balloon-in-an-australia-of-40-5-million-intergenerational-report-211876">grow</a> from around 8% to around 15% of GDP over the next 40 years. This means a greater proportion of school-leavers will need to be attracted to the aged-care sector. Aged care will also need to attract and retrain workers displaced from industries in decline and attract suitably skilled migrants and refugees with appropriate language skills. The <a href="https://theconversation.com/demand-driven-funding-for-universities-is-frozen-what-does-this-mean-and-should-the-policy-be-restored-116060">caps on university and college enrolments</a> imposed by the previous government, coupled with weak student demand for places in key professions (such as nursing), has meant workforce shortages will continue for a few more years, despite the allure of increased wages. A significant increase in intakes into university and vocational education college courses preparing students for health and social care is still required. Better pay will help to increase student demand, but funding to expand place numbers will ensure there are enough qualified staff for the aged-care system of the future. <img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225898/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/stephen-duckett-10730">Stephen Duckett</a>, Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-melbourne-722">The University of Melbourne</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/who-will-look-after-us-in-our-final-years-a-pay-rise-alone-wont-solve-aged-care-workforce-shortages-225898">original article</a>. Image: Getty

Retirement Income

"This is about looking after the vulnerable": Major gambling reform unveiled

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet plans to spend $340 million to overhaul the NSW gambling industry in what he describes as the largest social, community and law enforcement reforms in the state’s history. In order to stop problem gambling and eliminate money laundering in pubs and clubs, NSW is set to roll out cashless poker machines. There will be an introduction of mandatory cashless gambling across all venues in NSW. Any new machines purchased are required to be cashless and the roll out of the digital machines will begin early next year. The plan is for poker machines in NSW to be entirely cashless by 2028. It is an enormous transition. “I’ll work to ensure no-one is left behind, that no jobs are lost,” Perrottet said. The plan will provide no-interest loans for small and medium venues to assist them with the roll out of the cashless technology. It also provides a one-off $50,000 “diversification” grant for venues to invest in new income. Gamblers will also be able to set a daily limit for themselves, which will be locked for seven days in order to stop spending more than planned, and they will only be able to use money from their personal bank account; credit cards will no longer be accepted. “Today, we fix money laundering, we fix problem gambling and we support pubs and clubs across New South Wales,” Perrottet said. The reform is the result of a report released by the NSW Police Commission which had recommended many of the changes in attempt to stop money laundering. Image credit: Getty

Legal

"Sheer terror": Pensioner slapped with five-figure government fine

Pensioner Rosemary Gay opened up about the “sheer terror” she faced upon receiving a letter from the government demanding she pay back the $65,000 Robodebt bill they claimed she had been overpaid. Rosemary’s nightmare began on September 19, 2016, when the letter arrived, an event that Rosemary confesses “turned my life upside down and created an enormous emotional and mental strain on me." The letter detailed that she was required to pay the total of $64,999.17 in overpaid welfare benefits. Centrelink claimed this was because her declared amounts did not reflect what she actually earned during the period of July 9, 2010, to 6 October, 2016. “It turned my life upside down,” Rosemary told the Robodebt Royal Commission on Monday, “I’ve never earned that much money, how could I owe that much money? And the fact I was to come up with it within a matter of three or four weeks, it was sheer terror.” The emotional 76-year-old admitted that she feared she would have to sell her home to cover the debt, and detailed the bleak path she saw before her, “all I could see was that I may be faced with selling my home and losing everything that I had worked for in my 70 years, and I just saw it all going away instantly.” After contacting Centrelink, Rosemary confirmed that what she had reported was the same as what was on the paperwork. She admitted to assuming that would “be the end of it.” Officials at Centrelink eventually told Rosemary that it came down to a “glitch”, and after a review, the total of her debt was reduced to $6,600. Of her Robodebt experience, Rosemary said, “it was a very dark period of time for me and one that is very difficult to re-live. My mental health and physical health, at that stage, were at a very low ebb.” A second review brought a new letter to Rosemary in December 2016, this time stating that her debt had been reduced to $120. Finally in 2020, Rosemary was informed by Centrelink that she would be refunded the $120, with the Coalition government winding up the unlawful scheme - ruled as such by the Federal Court in 2019. It is suspected that more than 381,000 people were affected, and that over $750m was wrongfully recovered from the victims. “I was shocked and angry by this time to think they could initially cause such a traumatic experience to anybody accessing support from a pension,” Rosemary told the Royal Commission, “it will continue to remain with me forever. It’s just something I will never get over and it has had a huge impact on my physical and mental wellbeing … “That they could turn someone’s life upside down and still get it so wrong over and over again.” Image: Getty Images

Money & Banking

Almost 200,000 Aussies will have robodebt review scrapped

Nearly 200,000 Australians caught up in the controversial robodebt scheme will see their cases dropped by the federal government. After the scheme was put on hold in 2019 by the then-Coalition government, 197,000 Aussies who were under a robodebt review will no longer be under investigation. The practice, which ran from July 2015 until November 2019, assessed income data from the Australian Tax Office against fortnightly Centrelink payments and raised $1.73 billion in unlawful debts against over 400,000 people. While initially hailed as a cost-saving measure to crack down on fraudsters, the government ended up repaying about $751 million, plus interest, wrongly taken from 381,000 people. The latest announcement will see letters sent confirming the scrapping of the debt to about 124,000 people who received an initial review letter, as well as 73,000 who didn’t know a review had begun at all. It is understood the debt investigations will be dropped to avoid a hit to public confidence in the social security system and because of the likelihood that any debts uncovered wouldn’t be worth the money needed to pursue them. Labor Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth said she was pleased to relieve the stress the scheme caused to those affected by the “fiasco”. "The Robodebt fiasco is something that should be of deep concern to all Australians. It was meant to save money, however, we know it had a significant human cost," she said in a statement. "We know as late back as 2016, there were members of the public flagging concerns that these debts weren't right. "Individuals felt increasingly anxious, depressed, and worried because these debts kept coming and they couldn't understand them." With <a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/news/news/he-was-harassed-woman-tells-how-son-took-his-life-over-incorrect-robodebt-bill" target="_blank" rel="noopener">over 2,000 Australians dying</a> after receiving hefty debt notices and being harassed by debt collectors, families of the victims have directly blamed the scheme for their deaths. Bill Shorten, the Government Services Minister, described the scheme as “shameful and illegal”. "We are removing any doubt that has been hanging over the heads of Robodebt victims for almost a decade," he said. "These dodgy debts were raised by the former Government in an illegal shakedown against some of the most vulnerable to underpin their discredited surplus forecasts." The announcement comes as public hearings in a $30 million <a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/finance/money-banking/pm-launches-probe-into-unlawful-robodebt-scheme" target="_blank" rel="noopener">royal commission</a> into the scheme are expected to commence later this month. Image: Getty Images

Money & Banking

Australian veterans report calls for 13 "urgent" recommendations

The Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide has handed down its report, calling for 13 "urgent" recommendations to be made. The Albanese government says it will look to implement all recommendations, which include an urgent elimination of the backlog of compensation claims for veterans. The report comes after nine months of hearings across the country, which detailed abuse at all ranks of the service. Commissioners heard that the Australian Defence Force (ADF) was not doing enough to address suicides and accounts of ex‑personnel who said they were left suffering from anxiety and panic attacks due to lack of resources. Chair Nick Kaldas and commissioners James Douglas and Peggy Brown said the prevalence of suicide and mental health issues among serving and ex-serving ADF members was something “that should concern us all”. Among the recommendations, the government has been told to simplify veteran compensation and rehabilitation laws, eliminate the claims backlog and improve administration of the scheme. Another key recommendation is that people who engage with the royal commission should have increased protections. Veterans’ Affairs and Defence Personnel Minister Matt Keogh said the Albanese government had only seen the “confronting” report 15 minutes before it was publicly released and would go through the recommendations in detail, while working to see how the recommendations can be implemented effectively. “Unfortunately, the rate of veteran suicide in Australia is a national tragedy … It is devastating that Australia has lost more serving and former personnel from suicide than it has lost through operations over the last 10 years,” Mr Keogh said. “We recognise the importance and the significance of this report.” The 13 urgent recommendations include: <ul> <li>Simplify and harmonise veteran compensation and rehabilitation legislation </li> <li>Eliminate the claims backlog</li> <li>Improve the administration of the claims system</li> <li>The Department of Veterans' Affairs to provide advice on its funding needs</li> <li>Remove the Department of Veterans' Affairs Staffing Level Cap</li> <li>Increase protections for persons engaging in this Royal Commission</li> <li>Provide exemption from parliamentary privilege </li> <li>Limit public interest immunity claims</li> <li>Improve administrative release of information</li> <li>Co-design information to increase awareness of redactions for access requests</li> <li>Embed trauma-informed practices for information access</li> <li>Encourage up-to-date consent for information access</li> <li>Co-design education on information access mechanisms</li> </ul> Image credits: Getty Images

Caring

Who’s liable if you’re injured or killed riding an e-scooter?

The rental e-scooter craze is sweeping the globe, with millions of the vehicles dotting pavements in <a href="https://assets.ey.com/content/dam/ey-sites/ey-com/en_gl/topics/automotive-and-transportation/automotive-transportation-pdfs/ey-micromobility-moving-cities-into-a-sustainable-future.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more than 600 cities</a>. <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200608-how-sustainable-are-electric-scooters" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Studies predict</a> there will be 4.6 million shared e-scooters in operation worldwide by 2024. While e-scooters <a href="https://www.mearth.com.au/blogs/news/why-electric-scooters-are-greener-than-you-think" target="_blank" rel="noopener">have been praised</a> as a greener form of transport, they have also caused scores of injuries and even deaths. Australia’s e-scooter fleet is comparatively small at <a href="https://micromobilityreport.com.au/infrastructure/bike-scooter-share/2022-a-year-of-change/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">around 10,000 units</a>, yet major hospitals in <a href="https://9now.nine.com.au/a-current-affair/melbourne-emergency-department-sees-escooter-injuries-daily/9cdd73d5-0bee-4546-ab65-2cf650201e5b" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Melbourne</a>, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-07-22/electric-e-scooter-e-bike-injuries-brisbane-emergency-department/100313526" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Brisbane</a> and <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-07-15/warning-issued-to-escooter-riders-in-perth/101242834" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Perth</a> are reporting “daily” presentations with e-scooter related traumas to both riders and pedestrians. Worse, according to media reports at least seven Australians have been killed through falls or collisions since their <a href="https://raine.co/blogs/news/electric-scooter-trials" target="_blank" rel="noopener">introduction in 2018</a>, including a <a href="https://7news.com.au/news/qld/queensland-boy-15-dies-five-days-after-suffering-critical-injuries-in-e-scooter-crash-c-7563230" target="_blank" rel="noopener">15-year-old Queensland boy last week</a>. Although the National Transport Commission <a href="https://www.ntc.gov.au/sites/default/files/assets/files/NTC-Decision-RIS-PMDs.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recommended</a> in 2020 that e-scooters be limited to a speed of 10 km/hr on footpaths and 25km/hr on roads or bike lanes, most states have allowed higher speeds on footpaths. Many riders also shun the helmet requirement imposed by the e-scooter terms of use and the <a href="https://www.legislation.sa.gov.au/__legislation/lz/c/r/australian%20road%20rules/current/2014.205.auth.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Australian Road Rules</a>. It therefore seems that more carnage is on the horizon. We need a uniform regulatory framework balancing the risks and benefits of e-scooters, and clarifying avenues for compensation. <h2>Who’s liable for e-scooter injuries?</h2> The <a href="https://pcc.gov.au/uniform/Australian-Road-Rules-10December2021.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Australian Road Rules</a> empower the states to prohibit e-scooters on public roads and footpaths. Most states have banned them by default, but many local councils have authorised <a href="https://www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/safety-and-road-rules/road-safety-programs/e-scooter-trials-in-victoria" target="_blank" rel="noopener">temporary trials</a>, which are still in effect. Obviously, if you crash due to your own misuse or recklessness, you are personally responsible for your injuries or those you cause to others. But if the accident is caused by a fault with the e-scooter, that might be different. Some of the e-scooter companies, such as Neuron, <a href="https://www.rideneuron.com/terms-of-service/au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">state that they exclude liability</a> for injury except where it’s caused by their negligence. Where you’ve crashed due to uneven pavement or damaged road, the disrepair will generally need to be known or otherwise significant to prove the local council breached its duty of care to you. You would then seek compensation through the council’s public liability insurer. You would likely have to try to do the same if you trip over a dormant e-scooter that has been dumped in random locations, as they often are. Third parties who are injured by an e-scooter rider are in a difficult position. This is because <a href="https://jade.io/article/67447" target="_blank" rel="noopener">only parties to a contract</a> can incur rights and obligations under the contract. E-scooter contracts are between the user and the respective company, so those who are struck by e-scooters, or trip over a dormant one, have no contractual rights against the company. An injured third party would have to sue the rider directly. But attaining the rider’s personal details could be difficult if they drive off or are evasive, and they will <a href="https://attwoodmarshall.com.au/escooter-laws/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">likely be unable to pay compensation</a>. Complicating matters is the fact minors also ride e-scooters. <a href="https://www.li.me/en-au/user-agreement" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lime</a> and <a href="https://www.rideneuron.com/terms-of-service/au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Neuron</a> forbid minors from using their vehicles, but <a href="https://global-uploads.webflow.com/5b685812f109cf81a7d99e25/61b3143240d08942f78415ce_Terms%20of%20Services%20-%20Beam%20Australia%20(website)%20-%20December%202021.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Beam</a> allows people under 16 to ride with parental consent. E-scooters are colourful, funky, and marketed in a manner appealing to young and likely inexperienced riders. Each of the e-scooter companies’ terms warn that breaching the terms of use, such as riding as an unauthorised minor, can void insurance entitlements, meaning many unwary parents or caregivers may be left to foot hefty medical and legal bills. <h2>Excluding liability through the fine print</h2> When a user downloads and accesses the relevant app to activate an e-scooter, they agree to the terms of service. <a href="https://jade.io/article/68500" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The law states</a> that you’re bound by the terms you sign (physically or digitally), even if you don’t read them – and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/mar/03/terms-of-service-online-contracts-fine-print" target="_blank" rel="noopener">most people don’t</a>. Australia’s biggest e-scooter companies – <a href="https://www.li.me/en-au/user-agreement" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lime</a>, <a href="https://global-uploads.webflow.com/5b685812f109cf81a7d99e25/61b3143240d08942f78415ce_Terms%20of%20Services%20-%20Beam%20Australia%20(website)%20-%20December%202021.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Beam</a>, and <a href="https://www.rideneuron.com/terms-of-service/au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Neuron</a> – all have lengthy user agreements, each containing exclusion clauses. These clauses restrict or exclude the companies’ liability if you’re injured while using them. But are they watertight? It depends on wording. Beam’s agreement, for example, states that the company isn’t liable to users “for any death, disability or personal injury […] howsoever caused” arising directly or indirectly in connection with use of its e-scooters. Such statements, though broad, are <a href="https://jade.io/article/65000" target="_blank" rel="noopener">generally sufficient</a> to exclude negligence liability. The reference to “indirect” injury also implies a user being injured by a third party (such as an errant rider, driver, or pedestrian) would have no recourse against the company. However, the courts <a href="https://www.bailii.org/cgi-bin/format.cgi?doc=/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/1953/2.html&query=(white)+AND+(v)+AND+(john)+AND+(warwick)" target="_blank" rel="noopener">have also said</a> that where liability can arise on two or more different bases – such as negligence and breach of contract – then you need to use more specific wording in your exclusion clause. Lime, Beam, and Neuron all mention negligence, so they would likely be covered. <h2>Insurance as a panacea?</h2> Compulsory third-party insurance is <a href="https://www.qbe.com/au/news/ctp-explained" target="_blank" rel="noopener">required</a> with motor vehicle registration in Australia. But this isn’t so with e-scooters, as they’re not classified as registrable vehicles. Extending the compulsory third-party insurance scheme to e-scooters might help resolve some of the liability questions that linger. However, the <a href="https://mylicence.sa.gov.au/road-rules/riding_motorised_scooters" target="_blank" rel="noopener">South Australian Government</a> has observed this isn’t possible because e-scooters don’t meet <a href="https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/infrastructure-transport-vehicles/vehicles/vehicle-design-regulation/australian-design-rules" target="_blank" rel="noopener">national standards</a> that govern registrable vehicles. While some home and contents insurance policies may offer some coverage for e-scooter injuries, this hasn’t been tested and young victims almost certainly won’t have this insurance. Workplace insurance might also apply if the accident occurred on the way to, or during, work. Again, this will depend on the relevant policy and whether the rider was obeying all road rules and the e-scooter’s terms of use. If a rider is hit by a car, the driver’s compulsory third party insurance would cover any resulting injury or death. The e-scooter companies have started introducing third party liability insurance schemes which might protect riders from claims brought by, for example, injured pedestrians. However, the policies generally have numerous exclusions, such as where riders breach the terms of use (for example for not wearing a helmet or being underage). <h2>The need for a unified approach</h2> Multiple stakeholders are involved in rental e-scooter arrangements. From a regulatory perspective, state and local governments have a duty to consider and protect all members of the community when they allow and control e-scooter trials. The chosen approach can also impact redress mechanisms for those injured by e-scooters. At the moment, there’s different approaches across Australia. So it’s essential that all levels of government work together to craft a uniform regulatory framework. Additional safety measures can help curb the injury and death count, such as more precise “geofencing” to restrict e-scooters to certain areas and remote deactivation for breach of safety rules. Ensuring only those with a driver’s licence are authorised to ride e-scooters could also help, and this could be implemented by linking e-scooter app sign-up to state government licence databases. In the meantime, law enforcement is critical to ensure riders are riding e-scooters in a safe and legal manner. This article originally appeared on <a href="https://theconversation.com/whos-liable-if-youre-injured-or-killed-riding-an-e-scooter-187436" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a>. Image: Shutterstock

Legal

“We still have a problem”: One in five people in aged care treated with antipsychotics

One in five aged care residents are being given antipsychotic medication - used to treat the symptoms of psychosis - that has been linked to chemical restraint by the aged care royal commission, according to new data. The data was mandatorily collected for the Department of Health from over 2400 aged care homes, revealing the industry’s heavy reliance on using antipsychotics on patients. Residents are also more likely to be given the drugs if they live in rural areas. Over half of those receiving the drugs don’t have a psychosis diagnosis, which is of particular concern as the royal commission found that “many of these medications were being used as chemical restraint”. “I have to say it was higher than I was expecting,” pharmacy researcher Dr Juanita Breen, who appeared as an expert witness at the royal commission, told the <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-31/chemical-restraint-antipsychotic-drugs-widespread-in-aged-care/100950924" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ABC</a>. Dr Breen said this data suggested that much of the use of these drugs was inappropriate. “It means that these medications are being used for other reasons,” she said. “It would suggest that a large proportion would be used as chemical restraint … that we still have a problem.” An earlier study from 2019 made similar findings after tracking 5825 people in residential aged care facilities over the age of 65 for three years, between 2014 and 2017. The study also found that residents were being given the medication for significantly longer periods of time than was recommended, per the <a href="https://www1.racgp.org.au/newsgp/professional/antipsychotics-overused-in-residential-aged-care-s" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RACGP</a>. Despite recommendations not to extend use of the medication beyond 84 days, the study found that the mean use for men and women sat at 212 days and 216 days (or around 30 weeks) respectively. Other experts who testified at the royal commission also indicated that a decrease in medically-trained staff at aged care facilities, combined with an increase in patients with complex needs, had contributed to the overreliance on antipsychotics. Former aged care nurse Amanda Gorton, who left the industry in 2020, told the ABC that staff shortages had regularly left her feeling overwhelmed. The same year, the home she worked at failed an audit from the aged care watchdog, the Quality and Safety Commission, over its use of antipsychotics. Ms Gorton said she saw workers use the drugs to restrain residents because they didn’t have the capacity to care for them. “I went home often in tears because I thought it can’t stay like this,” she said. “It has to get better, it has to improve, we can’t be treating elderly people like this.” According to an analysis of hundreds of aged care audits from the commission, Human Rights Watch said they found that the inappropriate use of antipsychotics was taking place all over the country. “We found homes where more than 75 percent of residents were given these drugs and there was not adequate documentation of why they needed them or relevant diagnosis,” researcher Sophie McNeil said. “We found homes where residents were so drugged up that they experienced a significant increase in falls, which resulted in injuries.” Ms McNeill also said there was a clear link between workforce issues and using chemical restraint, after finding that staff also used antipsychotics to deal with residents asking for help or who were in pain. “There’s not enough staff to look after people. So instead, vulnerable, older Australians are given these drugs when they don’t need them,” she said. The data and analyses come after the Senate passed an aged care bill on its last sitting day aimed at addressing several recommendations from the royal commission. It included an amendment to ensure every facility has a registered nurse rostered 24 hours a day. “Putting people on drugs, restraining people, is the easy option for an aged care facility that doesn’t have the necessary staff to deal with these sorts of matters,” Senator Rex Patrick, who put forward the new amendment, said. Having gone through the Senate without a formal division (where senators vote by sitting on the left or right of the chamber), the bill will be sent back to the House of Representatives for a vote. However, Senator Patrick believes the government won’t want the amendment to be successful and will “park the bill and it will never be seen again”. “The government didn’t want the optics of voting against nurses 24/7 in aged care, so they simply let it go through on the voices knowing that, tactically, they can avoid dealing with it in the house today,” he said. Image: Getty Images

Caring

"Dying alone": Royal commission highlights aged care crisis

One of the commissioners of the Royal Commission into aged care says the system is in crisis - and that the federal government is to blame for failing to prepare for the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.Commissioner Lynelle Briggs - formerly the CEO of Medicare Australia - said the isolation of elderley people in their rooms for months without regular showers and care was “completely unacceptable”.“What we’re looking at in aged care is months on end with no-one visiting them, and sometimes dying alone,” Ms Briggs <a style="background: transparent;margin: 0px;padding: 0px;border: 0px;vertical-align: baseline" href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-02-04/royal-commissioner-says-aged-care-is-in-crisis/100804202" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.“It really shouldn’t be allowed to happen and the government should have sorted its strategy out for how to prevent this happening again.”Ms Briggs said the government’s lack of preparation had taken “a bad situation to a crisis”.With the submission of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety’s final report last year, the commissioners recommended significant and urgent work was needed to improve the workforce and governance of aged care.The report, simply titled Neglect, painted a heartbreaking picture of the conditions people have experienced in aged care settings, <a style="background: transparent;margin: 0px;padding: 0px;border: 0px;vertical-align: baseline" href="https://agedcare.royalcommission.gov.au/sites/default/files/2021-03/final-report-executive-summary.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">including</a> cases of abuse, poor nutrition, and substandard care regarding oral health, injuries, mental health and social needs.Recently, Minister for Aged Care Richard Colbeck has faced mounting calls to resign as the number of deaths in aged care in the last month have outstripped those for the whole of 2021.Since July 2021, a total of 777 aged care residents have died with Covid.Around 500, or 64 percent, have passed away within the last month.Senator Colbeck has denied that the system is experiencing a crisis and says Australia has seen fewer deaths than overseas.However, Ms Briggs said this isn’t good enough.“The fact that we’re doing better than overseas on deaths in aged care is not the answer,” she said.“We were quite clear in the reports we put through that the life of an older person should be valued equally with the life of a younger person.“We shouldn’t be seeing the disproportionate impact on this group when we’ve known for two years they were particularly vulnerable to the disease.”When Channel Nine asked Defence Minister Peter Dutton about the problems in aged care, he said it was hard to find the balance between protecting residents and ensuring they weren’t completely isolated.“You can’t argue on the one hand that people feel isolated and you want to allow loved ones in - which is the natural reaction - but then say we’re surprised when Omicron is introduced into aged care facilities,” Mr Dutton said.“It’s a witches’ brew, it’s difficult to deal with.”The comments from Ms Briggs come days after the federal government announced it would offer two one-off $400 payments to aged care workers to recognise the continuing difficulty of their work and retain workers, with a quarter of shifts reportedly going unfilled.Unions and the opposition have called the payments an insult to workers, with the government rejecting pressure to back a Fair Work case for a $5 hourly wage increase.Ms Briggs said the royal commission had warned of a worker shortage a year ago, and that the workers in the aged care sector were under-recognised, underpaid and underskilled.She said the one-off payments were “simply not enough” and that not introducing a pay rise was “short-sighted”.“I had been expecting that the government would join with employers and employees in this case,” she added.Image: Getty Images

Caring

How much is too much for aged care?

A nationwide survey has found that over 60 percent of taxpayers would be willing to pay more tax in return for quality aged care. The survey, commissioned by the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, was conducted by Professor of Health Economics Julie Ratcliffe and her colleagues at Flinders University’s Caring Futures Institute. Professor Ratcliffe and her colleagues published their findings in the <a rel="noopener" href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.5694/mja2.51242" target="_blank">Medical Journal of Australia</a> in September 2021, after designing the survey to determine Australians’ willingness to pay more for better aged care. “At present, four percent of Australia’s income tax contributions are allocated to aged care,” the researchers <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.scimex.org/newsfeed/how-much-are-australians-willing-to-pay-for-quality-aged-care" target="_blank">wrote</a>. “Modelling by the Commission indicates that a doubling of this expenditure base may be required in the short to medium term to meet the needs of Australia’s rising numbers of old people.” The team surveyed 6500 current income taxpayers who are not receiving aged care. “We found that 61 percent of current income taxpayers would be willing to pay an additional 1.4 percent income tax per year on average to ensure a satisfactory level of aged care, while income taxpayers would be willing to pay an additional 3 percent income tax per year to achieve high quality aged care,” they said. Interestingly, the researchers found that respondents who had an aged care experience through close family members were willing to pay more to ensure “universal access to satisfactory or high quality care”, while those who hadn’t were less willing. “Similarly, younger people were also willing to pay slightly more than older people to ensure universal access to satisfactory or high quality care,” the team wrote. However, Professor Ratcliffe and her colleagues said increasing income tax contributions wouldn’t be enough to bolster the aged care system as the number of older Australians continues to grow. The survey comes as the ratio of working age Australlians to those aged over 85 continues to decline, from a 101:1 ratio in 1978 to 33:1 in 2018. By 2058, it is expected that there will only be 15 working Australians for every person aged 85 or older. To combat this, the team suggest a combination of contributions from income tax, “means-tested personal co-contributions and voluntary self-funded contributions for extra services or supports”. Elsewhere, in countries such as Japan and Germany, similar schemes are used to pay for aged care, including compulsory social insurance, taxing superannuation earnings over a certain threshold, and private insurance. “As a society, we need to take collective responsibility, building upon the foundations laid by our Australia-wide survey to carefully consider all options for ensuring the quality, safety and sustainability of Australia’s aged care system for all Australians in need, now and into the future,” the researchers concluded. Image: Getty Images

Money & Banking

The new enclosure: how land commissions can lead the fight against urban land-grabs

When Boris Johnson sold the 35-acre <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/f7b5599c-c7b0-11e2-9c52-00144feab7de">Royal Albert Docks in London</a> to Chinese buyers in 2013, it was his biggest commercial property deal as mayor of London and one of China’s largest investments in the UK. The Greater London Authority sold off further parcels of land in the area in a bid to regenerate the Royal Docks, which had fallen into disrepair with the decline of the docklands from the 1960s. Over the past few decades, huge transfers of land from public to private ownership have occurred throughout Britain. Since Margaret Thatcher was elected prime minister in 1979, <a href="https://www.versobooks.com/books/3050-the-new-enclosure">one-tenth</a> of the entire British landmass, or about half of the land owned by all public bodies, has been privatised. This has included, for instance, dozens of <a href="https://www.forces.net/services/tri-service/more-50-bases-go-mod-estate-sell">former military bases</a> on Ministry of Defence land. In our cities, one result of this land privatisation has been the long-term shift from public to private housing tenure: social rented housing <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13604813.2012.709403">declined</a> from 31% of Britain’s total housing stock in 1981 to just 18% in 2012. As what was effectively our <a href="https://theconversation.com/urban-commons-are-under-siege-in-the-age-of-austerity-heres-how-to-protect-them-121067">common wealth</a> is sold off, local authorities are losing the capacity to address the interconnected housing and climate change <a href="https://www.tcpa.org.uk/blog/blog-the-need-for-better-environmental-standards-in-homes-old-and-new">crises</a>. From London to Leeds, this transformation of land has <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0264275115300299">impeded democratic involvement</a> in urban planning. It has <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13604813.2012.709403?needAccess=true">displaced</a> working-class communities. And it has <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13604813.2012.754190">heightened</a> social inequalities. In a bid to make Liverpool the fairest and most socially inclusive city region in the UK, the mayor, Steve Rotherham, launched England’s first land commission in September 2020. The commission’s findings chime with <a href="http://www.gmhousingaction.com/who-owns-the-city/">our research</a>. It argues for a fundamentally new understanding of what land is. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/433148/original/file-20211122-17-1h5hnoj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="Panoramic view of London from Highgate Hampstead Park" /> Even many of our so-called urban commons don’t belong to the people at all. <a href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/panoramic-view-london-highgate-hampstead-park-632934269" class="source">pabmap | Shutterstock</a> <h2>What is a land commission?</h2> Liverpool was the first metropolitan area in England to establish a participatory land commission. The participants were from the public, private and voluntary sectors as well as from academia. They were <a href="https://www.liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk/steve-rotheram-launches-englands-first-land-commission-focused-on-community-wealth-building/">tasked</a> with a radical year-long mission: to figure out how to make the best use of publicly owned land in the city region. The idea is to build what economists call <a href="https://cles.org.uk/community-wealth-building/what-is-community-wealth-building/">community wealth</a>. In response, the commission released its <a href="https://cles.org.uk/publications/our-land/">final report</a> in June 2021, in concert with the Manchester-based <a href="https://cles.org.uk/">Centre for Local Economic Strategies</a>. Public authorities in recent decades have largely looked at urban land through a narrow economic growth lens. This has focused on <a href="https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/man-city-champions-league-final-20494480">attracting investment</a> at the expense of wider community needs – social housing, say, or public green space. By contrast, the commission recognises that land plays an important function in <a href="https://landforthemany.uk/">addressing</a> social and environmental, as well as economic, needs. This challenges the processes of privatisation, commodification and wealth extraction that have characterised urban development since the 1980s, and which political economist Brett Christophers has described as the <a href="https://www.versobooks.com/books/3050-the-new-enclosure">“new enclosure”</a>. Similar processes can be seen in <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305750X16305484">other countries</a> around the world too. <a href="https://www.thelandmagazine.org.uk/articles/enclosure-grand-scale">Karl Marx</a> and <a href="https://www.dukeupress.edu/the-invention-of-capitalism">others</a> drew a direct connection between the <a href="https://www.pmpress.org/index.php?l=product_detail&p=568">enclosure of the commons</a>, which took place during the 16th-19th century in England, and the concentration of wealth in the hands of the elite. If enclosure led to the dispossession of the rural peasantry, that storing up of wealth by the privileged few, in turn, led to the rise of capitalism in western Europe. As historical <a href="https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520260009/the-magna-carta-manifesto">research</a> shows, the very notion of the commons is revolutionary. It defines land as collective wealth that belongs to everyone. This stands in stark contrast to the capitalist model of private property. It is this idea that motivated the 17th-century reformer, <a href="https://www.culturematters.org.uk/index.php/culture/theory/item/2978-a-common-treasury-for-all-gerrard-winstanley-and-the-diggers">Gerard Winstanley</a>, along with a group of men and women who became known as the Diggers, to create a social order based on common ownership of the land. This historical tradition animates the Liverpool land commission’s vision of how urban land can be managed for the benefit of the many rather than the few. The report explicitly situates the commission’s work within that long history of enclosure and resistance, quoting a <a href="http://jacklynch.net/Texts/winstanley.html">1649 pamphlet</a> from Winstanley: “The earth was not made for you, to be Lords of it, and we to be your Slaves, Servants and Beggars; but it was made to be a common Livelihood to call, without respect of persons.” <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/433146/original/file-20211122-25-nausrs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/433146/original/file-20211122-25-nausrs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="Overhead view of the Three Graces and the Liverpool waterfront" /></a> Urban land is increasingly seen as an economic asset, at the expense of its social functions. <a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/lrG9KIuxQzo" class="source">Phil Kiel | Unsplash</a>, <a href="http://artlibre.org/licence/lal/en" class="license">FAL</a> <h2>Practical steps</h2> The commission’s report includes a series of practical recommendations to reclaim the social function of urban land. These include establishing a citizen-led body for governing public land. It recommends making public land available to community organisations for socially valuable projects such as cooperatives, green spaces and social enterprises. And it suggests establishing an online map of public land resources, including empty land, that is currently held by councils. Further, it recommends capturing rising land values (future profits derived from the development of currently underused land) to fund reparations for Liverpool’s historic role in the transatlantic slave trade. And it suggests using public land to install the green infrastructure needed to combat climate change. If adopted, these recommendations will mark a rupture from the Thatcherite approach to <a href="https://theconversation.com/ending-austerity-stop-councils-selling-off-public-assets-113858">selling off public assets</a> that has dominated since the 1980s. As such, the commission demonstrates how decisions about urban land use can be undertaken in a democratic, participatory and transparent manner. <a href="http://www.gmhousingaction.com/who-owns-the-city/">Our research</a> on public land privatisation in the neighbouring city of Manchester suggests that the land commission approach needs to be expanded to other UK cities. We raised a number of concerns about public land sales by Manchester City Council, including the lack of transparency around deals and the fact that large amounts of public land have been sold to private developers to build <a href="http://www.gmhousingaction.com/report_launched_on_housing_finance_gm/">city centre apartment blocks</a> that contain no social or affordable housing. In response to this research, over 60 civil society organisations <a href="http://www.gmhousingaction.com/gm-land-commission-letter/">signed an open letter</a> calling for the mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, to stick to his <a href="https://andyformayor.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Andy-Burnham-Manisfesto-v2.1-002.pdf">manifesto</a> commitment to establish a Greater Manchester land commission. The UK government’s “<a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/56238260">levelling-up</a>” programme has brought regional inequality and postindustrial urban decline to the fore once again. But addressing these longstanding issues will require a fundamental rethink about what land is for and the purpose it serves in today’s society. The Liverpool land commission has opened the door to the future. Which cities will follow?<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/167817/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jonathan-silver-534810">Jonathan Silver</a>, Senior Research Fellow, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sheffield-1147">University of Sheffield</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/tom-gillespie-1253447">Tom Gillespie</a>, Hallsworth Research Fellow, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-manchester-1204">University of Manchester</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-new-enclosure-how-land-commissions-can-lead-the-fight-against-urban-land-grabs-167817">original article</a>. Image: Songquan Deng | Shutterstock

Real Estate

Jacqui Lambie blows up over Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide

The Tasmanian Senator shouted her questions at Attorney-General, Michaelia Cash, during question time on Tuesday, demanding to be told why the royal commission had been delayed for quite a few months. Senator Lambie – a veteran herself - asked: “You already decided you were having a royal commission back in April. Why couldn't you have asked for (legal) tenders back then?” “Why can't the government walk and chew gum at the same time?” Then she shouted: “Why are we so far behind?” Senator Cash said she didn’t agree the commission was falling behind and she said the government “recognises the importance of those engaging with the royal commission”. But Senator Lambie asked for more information – especially for those taking part in the commission. She questioned Senator Cash about what legal financial support would be provided to veterans. “They want to be called to give evidence at the hearing. But before they can do that, a lot of them need funding for legal advice,” Senator Lambie said. “It's been three months since the prime minister announced the royal commission. When will people know what the plan of attack is here?” she added. Senator Cash confirmed a legal financial assistance scheme would be provided for those who engaged with the commission, but as it was independent from government, the commission itself would ultimately determine how hearings would be run. This only seemed to frustrate Senator Lambie more and she retaliated: “To save everyone some hurt here – we just want to know: if we get called up in front of the royal commissioner will we have funding to use our own lawyers?” “That is what I would like answered, please. We need to know this!” she said. But the Speaker cut Senator Lambie off before she could say any more. Senator Cash then said that along with legal financial assistance, counselling and support services would also be made available to people engaging with the royal commission. Senator Lambie has been a vocal supporter of defence veterans having been discharged from the Australian Corps of Military Police herself after her career ended because of a spine injury. The Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide was established in July after many people said it was necessary to address the high rates of mental illness and suicide among Australia’s returned servicemen and servicewomen. The commission will be required to deliver an interim report by August next year and a final report by June 2023. Image: Getty Images

News

Scott Morrison orders royal commission into veteran suicides

<div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in"> Prime Minister Scott Morrison has called in for a royal commission into veteran suicides after months of demand for a commission. He said he remains committed to establishing a permanent commission of inquiry into veteran suicides, but an independent office will operate alongside a standalone inquiry. “We have been taking many steps as a government, as governments before us have as well, to address this very serious issue of death by suicide of our veterans and our serving Defence Force personnel,” he said. <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CN14x3ILT9J/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CN14x3ILT9J/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Scott Morrison (@scottmorrisonmp)</a> </div> </blockquote> “That is why, today, we are announcing that I intend to convene and recommend to the Governor-General a royal commission into death by suicide for veterans.” Morrison said that he hopes the royal commission will be a "healing process" for the families of veterans. “I hope it will be a process by which veterans and families can find some comfort, but it obviously can’t replace the loss,” he said. Morrison anticipates it will begin in July. </div> </div> </div>

News

What is a Royal Commission in Australia?

The Governor-General of Australia is empowered under the <a href="http://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/rca1902224/">Royal Commissions Act of 1902</a> (Cth) to establish commissions of inquiry on behalf of the Crown, when there is a particularly important issue of public concern. Typically, Royal Commissions fit two categories: the first is primarily investigative, with the aim of uncovering the truth about something. The second’s purpose is more along the lines of research, to provide information that will inform government policy. Usually, there is a degree of overlap between the two. In recent times, we’ve had Royal Commission inquiries into aged care, <a href="https://www.sydneycriminallawyers.com.au/blog/royal-commission-rejects-punitive-approach-to-juvenile-justice/">youth detention</a>, <a href="https://www.sydneycriminallawyers.com.au/blog/banking-royal-commission-to-get-more-funding/">finance and banking practices</a>, and institutional child sexual abuse to name a few. Generally, once a Royal Commission has commenced, it must run to its conclusion – it cannot be stopped. These are the highest forms of public inquiry available to governments on matters of public concern. A Royal Commission has a specialist focus and has vast powers to probe an issue thoroughly, including undertaking research and consultations with experts in the field, as well preparing a list of witnesses. Royal Commissions also often include public consultations which give people with a vested interest in the topic a chance to participate. Before the start of any Royal Commission, the government will prepare a document that defines the scope and powers of a Royal Commission, as well as a date for completion of the inquiry, and deadlines for delivering reports and findings. Royal Commissions can be called by the federal government alone, by the federal government in conjunction with a state government or just by a state government. Recently, the government of South Australia called a Royal Commission into the nuclear fuel cycle. At this time, a Commissioner also formally appointed. This is a role with enormous responsibility. The Commissioner oversees the entire process of the inquiry. The position of Commissioner is usually held by retired or serving judges, because they are impartial and can draw on their court room experience to ensure that hearings run smoothly, and all evidence is presented, facts are clarified, and, most importantly, that all parties involved have the opportunity to be heard. The Powers of a Royal Commission While a Royal Commission will take evidence in a number of ways, including written submissions and sometimes informal interviews, it will often also host ‘formal’ hearings. These hearings may be either be open or closed. Open hearings can be attended by members of the public, and the information given at these hearings is publicly accessible. In closed hearings, only certain specified categories of people many be present. Generally, closed hearings are conducted to protect a person’s identity or the ‘evidence’ they are providing. The Royal Commission has broad powers, including the power to issue a summons compelling people to participate. If a person fails to comply, then they can be arrested and in serious cases, sent to prison. A search warrant can also be issued to obtain information pertinent to the inquiry. It is also an offence to intentionally provide false or misleading evidence to a Royal Commission or to intentionally obstruct or disrupt it – in much the same way that <a href="https://www.sydneycriminallawyers.com.au/blog/what-is-the-offence-of-perjury-in-new-south-wales/">perjury</a> and <a href="https://www.sydneycriminallawyers.com.au/blog/what-is-perverting-the-course-of-justice/">perverting the course of justice</a> are both offences in a court of law. Royal Commissions can, and do, refer information about suspected or alleged crimes to relevant law enforcement authorities and <a href="https://www.sydneycriminallawyers.com.au/blog/abusive-aged-care-workers-may-be-criminally-prosecuted/">can make recommendations with regard to prosecution</a>. When a Royal Commission has conducted all of its research, investigation and evidence gathering, it will compile the information it has into a single report which is presented to Parliament, along with a list of recommendations based on these findings. Recommendations Made by a Royal Commission Time and again, there has been public frustration that the <a href="https://www.sydneycriminallawyers.com.au/blog/indigenous-deaths-in-custody-25-years-on-from-the-royal-commission/">recommendations of Royal Commissions are not always fully implemented.</a> For example, data with regard to recommendations made by the recent Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to <a href="https://www.sydneycriminallawyers.com.au/criminal/offences/sexual-offences/child-sex-offences/">Child Sexual Abuse</a> found that out of 288 recommendations, 48% were implemented in full and 16% partially. Twenty-one percent were rated as not implemented, and the implementation status of 14% could not be determined. While there is an expectation that governments should commit to implementing all recommendations made by a Royal Commission, sometimes this is not feasible for various reasons including the cost of implementation, clashes with other initiatives already in place, or the need for further analysis or information. Usually there is a great deal of public pressure and an expectation of change, which does force governments to be accountable to a degree. The purpose of having a Royal Commissions is after all, to thoroughly investigate issues and seek to instigate change. Written by Sonia Hickey and Ugur Nedim. Republished with permission of <a href="https://www.sydneycriminallawyers.com.au/blog/what-is-a-royal-commission-in-australia/">Sydney Criminal Lawyers.</a>

Retirement Life

Aussies latest target in horrific new scam

Aussies are the latest targets in a worldwide scam that is circulating on Facebook, as the scam lures in victims with the promise of very cheap smartphones. This scam is unlike normal Facebook scams, as online hackers have gone to great lengths to make it look like legitimate news articles are endorsing the very cheap smartphones. Other publications that have been caught up in the scam include The Guardian, BBC, Stuff NZ, Yahoo News! And news.com.au. The scam has also been operating worldwide in other countries, such as the United States, New Zealand, Singapore, Norway, Sweden and France. Swinburne University social media major director Dr Belinda Barnet said to <a href="https://www.news.com.au/technology/online/sick-fraudsters-target-aussies-in-facebook-fake-news-scam/news-story/67f877e521f9a9357752f84b57f7f2be">news.com.au</a> that the attention to detail from the scammers is “particularly disturbing”. The fake news articles offer Samsung Galaxy S10 smartphones for $1 to $3, pretending that the very cheap deal is a part of a “marketing strategy” to inflate its popularity over Apple. “Samsung can regain AU users by giving away extremely low-priced phones to people and converting them to repeat Samsung customers who will spread the word to their friends,” the fraudulent article said. Readers are then encouraged to click a link to “claim their offer”, which leads to a copied Samsung website that extracts names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses and their credit card details to pay for the $3 phone. Victims instead report being charged $99 by an unknown company and receiving no phone in return. “These scams are proliferating more and more and Facebook is not doing enough to counter it,” Dr Barnet. “It’s obviously concerning that an actual masthead is being used. “If we regulate and make social media companies responsible for the pieces they promote — even if we didn’t regulate organic posts but just the things that make Facebook money — that would solve a lot of problems.” Samsung says that they are aware of this scam and have urged customers to "be vigilant". "Samsung is aware of this hoax offer for the Samsung Galaxy S10. We can confirm this is not an official Samsung promotion and we caution customers to be vigilant when considering third-party offers for Samsung products," the company said in a statement. "If customers would like to verify an offer or promotion regarding a Samsung product, they can contact <a rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://nam05.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.samsung.com%2Fau%2Finfo%2Fcontactus%2F&data=02%7C01%7CLilia.Villela%40edelman.com%7C767941065b764e9f425408d798c2b460%7Cb824bfb3918e43c2bb1cdcc1ba40a82b%7C0%7C0%7C637145834344082553&sdata=2hK1PnWszlQFALLz1aD95j54NK03Ad0VXHWsoTll0uQ%3D&reserved=0" target="_blank" data-auth="NotApplicable">Samsung</a> for further information." Facebook said that the social network uses automated and human moderators to identify scams but is unable to “catch every ad” that promotes a hoax. “We do not want ads that include widely debunked misinformation or make misleading and unsubstantiated claims on our platform,” he said. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s Digital Platform Inquiry found that scams on digital platforms have grown by 188 per cent over four years. “The ACCC is concerned by the increase in this behaviour and the use of digital platforms to facilitate such conduct,” the report found. “This is damaging for businesses that inadvertently display these advertisements, and for consumers who fall victim to these scams and suffer both financial and non-financial loss.”

Technology

Inventor promising rain to farmers for 50k denies "preying" on the desperate

An inventor has been accused of “preying” on vulnerable farmers by promising his device can change the weather and make it rain to where they need it most. However, David Miles from <a rel="noopener" href="http://www.milesresearch.co/" target="_blank">Miles Research</a> has insisted “there’s no way we want to con anyone”. Miles is currently offering a three-month rain contract to farmers in Victoria’s grain belt for $50,000 on a “success basis”. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has slammed this, saying that farmers should not do business with Miles, but they are powerless to stop him. “It’s preying on people’s desperation,” Australian Competition and Consumer Commission deputy chairman Mick Keogh <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/am/farmers-desperately-turn-to-a-man-who-can-make-it-rain/11630332" target="_blank">told ABC Radio on Wednesday</a>. “If you wanted to prosecute a court requires you to prove essentially that there’s no basis for the claims being made and that is a very difficult thing to do. By far the very best defence against them is widespread consumer education. It’s up to individuals obviously to make their own mind up. If it sounds too good to be true it probably is.” Miles has denied the allegations, saying that the ACCC are defaming him. “How can they do that without looking at our contracts? We’re success based, if we don’t deliver rain we don’t get paid,” he said to <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/other-industries/we-dont-want-to-con-anyone-inventor-charging-50000-for-rain-denies-preying-on-farmers/news-story/4a253e71686cf66c41b8bab257921cd8" target="_blank">news.com.au</a>. “I think the ACCC probably jumped the gun in making that comment. They’ve never seen the contracts, they haven’t spoken with me. We don’t mind scepticism, but the Government needs to be careful not to defame us as they did in 2006.” What Miles is referring to is that he has been operating weather modification technology for nearly two decades under a different business name of Aquiess. The Victorian Government highly criticised the business back in 2006. Miles has said a “small private group” of farmers has seen results from the program. “They signed the agreement that if by the end of June they’d received 100mm, they pay $50,000, if they only receive 50mm, they would only pay $25,000. Anything under half we don’t want to be paid,” he said. One farmer vouched for the device, saying that he’s seen results. “I got involved because it sounded good, the fact you can control weather, because as a farmer rainfall is everything,” he told the broadcaster. “I think the evidence is out there, you look at the forecast what’s meant to come and all of a sudden it increases dramatically. You know that he’s behind it and I reckon I haven’t seen such good crops in this district ever, everywhere.” <img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7832009/water-thing.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/3c0f74f296be4a5b9ce6f2b76932f4a7" /> Image credit: Miles Research Whitepaper Miles is keeping his technology under wraps as he fears it could be stolen by competitors or “weaponised” by the government. “There’s no way we want to con anyone,” he said. “Our best approach at the moment is to put up a risk-free model, so the farmers can get some rain and we can get some income to get a facility. We’ve been able to make adjustments to approaching weather and we want to be able to offer that to the rest of Australia.” On Miles’ website, since deleted, he claimed the technology uses “electromagnetic scalar waves”. “Electromagnetic scalar waves don’t exist,” University of Melbourne associate professor of physics Martin Sevior told ABC Radio. “There’s no such thing. He’s taken a few words and put them together and made them sound somewhat scientific but it’s meaningless.” Miles has also not patented the technology, as this would involve exposing how it works. “We were advised against patenting because it’s basically exposing how it works. There are a lot of big companies that invest in trawling through patents. We thought it’s probably right to go down the lines of Coca-Cola,” he said. “I understand the scepticism, the only other way is to fully prove up our science and physics and peer review. If we did that, we’ll lose it, it will be taken up as a national security interest and it’ll then be weaponised.”

Home & Garden

“People are fed up”: Treasurer Josh Frydenberg asks ACCC to investigate banks who fail to pass on rate cuts

Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has asked the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to investigate the banking sector for failing to pass on interest rate cuts to customers in full. This comes after three official rate cuts since January, meaning that the new rate is a record low of 0.75 per cent. Frydenberg has said that the big four banks, ANZ, NAB, Commonwealth Bank and Westpac have failed to pass on the rate changes in full to their customers. "It's costing someone with a $400,000 mortgage around $500 in higher interest payments than they otherwise should have to pay if these last three rate cuts were passed on in full," Frydenberg told Channel 9, according to <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-10-14/josh-frydenberg-asks-accc-to-investigate-banking-sector/11598614">The ABC</a>. "But it's not just these last three rate cuts where the banks have failed to pass them on, it's actually what's happened previously under the Labor government, there were 14 different rate cuts and only five of them were passed on in full. "So clearly there's a structural challenge here, there's a pattern of behaviour and the Australian people are fed up." Frydenberg has said that the ACCC needs to use its “particular powers to compel documentation to lift the hood and get to the bottom of this issue”. Labor also welcomes the inquiry by the ACCC in principle, but is asking to see the details of the plan. "Labor has been calling for the ACCC to play a bigger role here," Shadow Treasurer Jim Chalmers told AM. "With record household debt and stagnant debt under the Liberals you can see why customers are frustrated at the banks for not passing through interest rate cuts. "The big banks are still very profitable by international standards so they shouldn't be doing the wrong thing by borrowers. "We want to make sure that those interest rate cuts can do good in the economy, that means having them passed onto consumers." ANZ chief executive Shayne Elliot welcomes the inquiry. "Despite intense competition, there is cynicism in the broader community about interest rates for home loans," he said. "We know we have not done a good job in explaining our position and we will be working hard to ensure this process delivers results." Mike Baird, chief customer officer for consumer banking at NAB agrees, saying that the inquiry is “an important opportunity to discuss the challenges of an increasingly low interest rate environment and engage in a broader discussion about how we support all our customers— both depositors and borrowers". Westpac has said it’s “too early to comment” and a spokesman for Commonwealth Bank has said that it was “currently digesting the implications”.

Money & Banking

Samsung in deep water over water resistant phone claims

Electronics giant Samsung are being taken to court for telling consumers that many of the four million Galaxy phones sold in Australia were water resistant while knowing they were not. They have denied the claims made by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). The ACCC said that it had commenced Federal Court proceedings against Samsung for misleading and deceiving customers with claims about various Galaxy phones across more than 300 advertisements since February 2016. There were a variety of advertisements across social media, online, TV, billboards, brochures and other media that depicted the phones as being water resistant and showed them being used at pools and beaches. The phones were also advertised as being water resistant up to 1.5 metres for 30 minutes. “Samsung showed the Galaxy phones used in situations they shouldn’t be to attract customers,” ACCC Commissioner Rod Sims said on Thursday. “Under the Australian Consumer Law, businesses cannot mislead consumers about their products’ capabilities.” The ACCC have said that Samsung did not sufficiently test its phones to back the advertised claims and denied warranty claims from users who said their phones were damaged in water. “Samsung itself has acknowledged that water resistance is an important factor influencing Australian consumer decisions when they choose what mobile phone to purchase,” Mr Sims said. Samsung has issued a statement denying the allegations and saying that it “intends to defend the court proceedings brought by the ACCC.” “Samsung stands by its marketing and advertising of the water resistancy of its smartphones,” the statement said. “We are also confident that we provide customers with free-of-charge remedies in a manner consistent with Samsung’s obligations under its manufacturer warranty and the Australian Consumer Law. “Customer satisfaction is a top priority for Samsung and we are committed to acting in the best interest of our customers.”

Technology

BIG W safety recall: Check your grandkids don’t have this

Check your grandkids' closet to ensure that they don’t have these pyjamas laying around. A set of Wiggles girls’ pyjamas have been recalled due to fears that they are a fire hazard. The Emma Wiggles frill sleeve pyjamas in sizes 2 to 6 are being recalled after being sold in BIG W nationwide. The pyjamas were sold between January 2 and March 7 this year and the <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.productsafety.gov.au/recall/big-w-girls-frill-sleeve-pyjamas-emma-wiggles" target="_blank">Australian Competition and Consumer Commission</a> has explained why the clothes are a risk. <img id="__mcenew" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7825972/girls-pj-emma-wiggles-photo.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/ed13fc4258de4536980a4d947d300d6b" /> Source: The ACCC The clothes have frills which pose a potential fire hazard. Anyone who has purchased the pyjamas should immediately cease using the PJ set and return it to any BIG W story for a refund, according to the ACCC. Have you seen these pyjamas or does your granddaughter own them? Let us know in the comments.

Money & Banking

NAB admits to charging 4000 dead customers fees

The National Australia Bank (NAB) has become the latest financial institution revealed to be deducting fees from dead customers. The claims were confirmed during the Royal Commission as the bank’s superannuation comes under scrutiny. The former chair of NAB’s superannuation trustee Nulis, Nicole Smith, said the error was discovered after NAB went through its books in May, after similar allegations were made against the Commonwealth Bank in April. NAB admitted charging more than 4000 dead superannuation customers advice fees. NAB has also been accused of charging customers for no service, after some members were billed for financial advice when there was no adviser attached to their account. Earlier, Ms Smith admitted there was a “conflict” when bankers behind the overcharging of fees were asked to review whether customers should be refunded for the error. Counsel assisting the Royal Commission, Michael Hodge QC, is examining the case of NAB charging fees but providing no service, which has now seen customers being refunded up to $122 million. Mr Hodge said there was a conflict that the people who had levied the fees were also being asked to recommend to the superannuation trustee board if there was a need to compensate customers. “It is hopelessly conflicted isn’t it? If it is the one (doing the review) that has taken the money and has to pay it back,” Mr Hodge asked Ms Smith. “Yes, there is a conflict in terms of the revenue,” she said. When he continued on the point, Ms Smith said: “I believe it is conflicted — but not hopelessly conflicted.” In 2016, NAB spent five or six months discussing ways to keep the wrongly charged fees from their superannuation members, although the bank denied trying to avoid the refund to customers. Ms Smith claimed there was “appropriate representation” from the trustee working with NAB, outside legal advice and the review process was considered independent. The commission heard that at one stage NAB proposed reviewing the delivery of services based on “fair exchange value”, not on whether the service had actually been provided to customers or not. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission rejected the proposal. Ms Smith agreed with ASIC, saying: “You can't charge a fee unless you've actually provided a service.” During the commission, Ms Smith admitted that she did not challenge the bank on some of their internal processes which led to the scandal.

Money & Banking

Australia’s top 10 super funds revealed

A panel of industry experts have revealed their choices for the top 10 super funds in Australia. The panel follows the Productivity Commission’s proposal to see experts name the top 10 funds based on long-term net returns, fees, governance and their record on meeting “member needs”. With a third of all super accounts belonging to an owner who has an account with another fund and five million people having default products with poor performance, the commission is calling for an overhaul of the way employees end up in super funds. According to the panel of experts, choosing the right super fund can leave employees with an extra $375,000 by the time they enter retirement, reported the <a href="https://www.heraldsun.com.au/moneysaverhq/super-funds-matching-productivity-commission-best-in-show-proposal-revealed/news-story/7daf4354b2303c1fa879f795c4d12ca1" target="_blank">Herald Sun.</a> The Commission’s draft report released last month, said: “At the heart of our preferred model is a single shortlist of ‘best in show’ products for all members.” “Members should be empowered to choose their own product, and the shortlist should be designed to make this safe and easy to do.” The super funds that were ranked top by the experts included Australian Super, First State Super, Hesta, Rest and CareSuper. Sunsuper, Cbus, Hostplus, QSuper and Equip also made the list. The panel of industry experts included managing director of Dixon Advisor Nerida Cole, CEO of Super Ratings Kirby Rappell, head of research at Chant West Ian Fryer and research strategy head at Morningstar Anthony Serhan. However, Mr Rappell said: “There are some real challenges to making the proposal workable in practice”. What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.

Money & Banking

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