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  • SouthEast Housing Co-operative Online
    The SouthEast Housing Co-operative, based in Dandenong, Victoria, has gone online. The co-operative is a leading rental housing co-operative with the mission statement of increasing and providing secure, affordable and environmentally sustainable long term community housing managed by and for low income people and deliver excellent services to improve the quality of housing of residents.
  • Social Enterprise in Australia
    Finding  Australia's Social Enterprise Sector - Final Report has been released by the FASES project - a joint initiative of Social Traders and the Australian Centre for Philanthropy and Non-Profit Studies, Queensland University of Technology. FASES is Finding Australia's Social Enterprise Sector.  You can download a summary report and for a full report. 
  • ICA's New Director-General
    The International Co-operative Alliance has named Charles Gould as its new Director-General - replacing Iain Macdonald who has served as Director-General for the past eight years. The ICA has 240 member organisations from 91 countries - representing nearly one billion individuals and providing more than 100 million jobs. For more about the ICA's new Director-General visit http://www.ica.coop
  • CBH Demutualisation Push
    A dissident group within the CBH Group is attempting to reduce the influence of growers on the board of the Western Australia co-operative. The board has rejected the group's proposal. Read more in WA Business News.
  • Co-operatives WA's Spotlight on Co-operatives
    Co-operatives WA has announced an important partnership with three of the State's largest co-operatives and the University of Western Australia - with funding from the Federal Government. The research program will study - Sustainable Cooperative Enterprise: An Investigation into the Factors Influencing the Sustainability and Competitiveness of Co-operative Enterprises. For more visit the Co-operatives Australia website.
  • National Community Housing Standards and Co-operatives
    The third edition of the National Community Housing Standards Manual (May 2010) has just been released in Australia - developed by JPX Consulting Pty Ltd and published by Housing NSW. This edition replaces the second edition published in 2003.  The third edition takes account of the seven international principles of co-operation adopted by the International Co-operative Alliance to guide the formation and management of co-operatives. The Manual reproduces the seven principles. The manual can be downloaded from the website of the Community Housing Federation of Australia.
  • Blue Mountains 30th
    The Blue Mountains Food Co-op Ltd in Katoomba, New South Wales,  is celebrating its 3oth birthday in 2010. The co-operative is Australia's largest organic food co-operative. The co-operative's website: www.bluemtnsfood.asn.au  The email address is: bmfoodcoop@exemail.com.au

A New Cooperatives National Law

Last Updated on Saturday, 12 December 2009 04:19 Written by David Griffiths Saturday, 12 December 2009 01:58

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Australia's Ministerial Council on Consumer Affairs has invited comments on a proposed Cooperatives National Law, Cooperatives National Law Bill and Consultation Regulatory Impact Statement for this proposed legislation. The three documents are available from the Co-operatives and Association section of the NSW Fair Trading website http://www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au  NSW Fair Trading is coordinating public comment on behalf of all States and Territories.

 

The proposed Cooperatives National Law aims to:

  • Provide a nationally consistent replacement for the separate legislation currently regulating co-operatives in States and Territories.
  • Provide a method for efficiently applying and maintaining consistent co-operatives legislation - including Regulations.
  • Make it easier to understand the interactions between co-operatives legislation and the Corporations Act 2001.
  • Ensure that provisions of the Corporations Act 2001, which are relevant to co-operatives, are applied consistently across States and Territories.
  • Simplify financial and auditing requirements for small co-operatives.
  • Reduce restrictions on co-operatives operating across borders.
  • Introduce nationally consistent provisions for the supervision of co-operatives.

You can submit comments by completing an online survey at http://www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au or by making a written submission and sending it by email, mail or fax by 26 February 2010.