The Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia (MFAA) has received a record number of submissions to its revamped Excellence Awards.

Starting this year, the MFAA’s Excellence Awards will be integrated with the nationwide Broker 2020 events as state-based awards ceremonies ending with a national awards ceremony. The association has also introduced five new categories aimed at including a wider range of MFAA members.

MFAA CEO Siobhan Hayden says broekrs have responded well to these changes with the number submissions four times greater than what was received last year. In total, there are over 240 finalists.

“We asked members what changes they wanted and this included state-based events and an easier awards submission process. However we still wanted to maintain the quality required in the submissions,” Hayden said.

“Other interesting changes include the significant level of support for key categories outside of the general broker categories with both Young Professional and Best Newcomer awards attracting a large number of submissions. This interest is a positive sign for the industry as new and young talent demonstrate a real engagement with the industry.”

The judging process was conducted by volunteer industry professionals at senior levels. Most awards were assessed by three different judges and an average of the scores was calculated to decide the list of finalists.

“This is the largest list of finalists in the history of the MFAA’s Excellence Awards, and we are now working hard to verify the information so that we can deliver a great set of events across the country,” Hayden said.

“We’re grateful to everyone who participated, from members who submitted to the judges who reviewed those submissions.”

This article was originally sourced from Australian Broker and was written by Julia Corderoy. 

Fifty prominent Australians, including the former governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia and the president of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, have written an open letter to Malcolm Turnbull asking him not to cut company tax and to make fairness the cornerstone of the upcoming federal budget.

“Cutting programs which support needy Australians to give more tax benefits to companies is not fair,” the letter, which appeared in newspapers on Wednesday, read. “A serious tax reform package designed to be fair should address as a priority the current generous tax concessions to the top end of town.”

“The pursuit of equity and fairness must lie at the heart of our national goals,” it said. “Collecting more tax, more equitably, will make Australia a better place to live and work.”

Senior members of the government have signalled that cutting company taxes remains a live option for the 3 May budget.

Executive director of the Australia Institute, Ben Oquist, warned that option would be “fiscally irresponsible”.

“Proponents of a cut to the company tax rate continue to promote claims of long-term, trickle-down benefits without identifying the immediate impact to revenue and in-turn essential services,” he said. “In fact, a five point cut in the company tax rate would deliver a projected $27 billion windfall over ten years for the four major banks alone. This simply makes no economic sense and would put Australia’s revenue base at risk.”

Former governor of the RBA Bernie Fraser told ABC Radio the “trickle down” theory of tax cuts is “discredited”.

“It doesn’t work and history shows it doesn’t work that way,” he said. “It’s even more untrue and unfair if those company tax cuts, if they were to be made, were made at the expense of cutting back on some necessary service spending. That would be the unkindest cut of all.”

He pointed to the lowering of company tax over the last few decades, saying it has not had an impact on making society more equitable.

“What it’s done is increase the profit share, and that’s increased over this period, at the expense of the income share,” Fraser said.

The national president of the ACTU, Ged Kearney, said Australians want the government to address corporate tax avoidance.

“Australians are sick of being told they must live within their means and accept cuts to services while our government allows big business to skirt their responsibilities,” she said. “The ACTU will run an aggressive campaign this election to make sure Australians realise the truth about corporate tax because it’s robbing us of the revenue needed to fund hospitals, build new schools and invest in infrastructure.”

She pointed to an online Essential poll of 1,010 people that found only 9% think the current tax arrangements are working. Nearly nine out of ten respondents supported the notion of a national anti-corruption body that oversees matters of tax avoidance, similar to New South Wales’

Independent Commission Against Corruption.

Other signatories to the letter include the president of the Uniting Church, Stuart McMillan, Nobel prize winner and former Australian of the year, Peter Doherty, and a number of prominent academics.

This article was originally sourced from The Guardian and was written by Shalailah Medhora. 

Australia's mango harvest has wrapped up, with the last pieces of fruit coming off trees in Victoria and New South Wales, as well as some farms in Queensland that grow a super-late variety called Brooks.

Australian Mango Industry Association chief executive Robert Gray said demand for Aussie mangoes had been strong throughout the season, meaning growers received some of their best and most consistent prices ever.

He said the size of the national crop was also much better than initial estimates.

"It's now looking more likely that we're not going to be down as much as we thought and we might even approach similar quantities to last year, so we might finish up with around 9 million trays," he said.

"That would put it up there with about the second-biggest year we've ever had.

"The feedback I'm getting from both growers and retailers is the average value of fruit sold and paid back to growers were up on last year.

"Growers in the Katherine region [NT] are telling me they probably had the highest returns they've ever had in terms of dollars, so a combination of quantity plus price."

Industry and export markets expanding

Mr Gray said the mango industry was in a stage of growth with new plantations being developed, older plantations yielding more, and recently-established orchards starting to come into production.

He said the 2015/16 mango season was one of the industry's biggest for exports, with more than 12 per cent of the national crop sold overseas.

He said plenty of fruit had gone to established markets such as Singapore, Hong Kong and the Middle East, and also into new markets such as America.

Mr Gray said by the year 2020, the industry was aiming to export 20 per cent of the national crop.

Looking ahead, the current wet season in northern Australia has delivered below-average rain and above-average temperatures, which is not ideal for mango trees, but Mr Gray said industry should remain confident.

"It's [the next season] going to be bigger and better, whether that's in volume I'm not sure, but what we're seeing is, that if volumes are down, prices are starting to make up for that as long as we focus on quality," he said.

"So whatever crop is thrown our way next season we're going to maximise the value of it."

This article was originally sourced from ABC Rual and was written by Matt Brann. 

The dental profession has a long and proud history of working in the community to promote the importance of oral health and the critical role it plays in a person’s quality of life.

This spirit of volunteering was on impressive display over the Easter break as a group of nearly 90 dedicated volunteers spent their Easter break delivering free dental and medical care to the residents of Tara, a farming town on the Queensland Darling Downs.

Part of an annual tradition that has operated since 2006 when the first volunteering mission was without mobile units and had to rely on a van loaned to them by Queensland Health, the trip is sponsored by the Buddhist Tze Chi Foundation.

It chose Tara when it emerged that that locals in need of dental care faced extensive waiting periods of up to two years to receive publicly-funded treatments.

Over the course of this year's trip, over 250 patients were treated over 12 hour days, with some even receiving treatment in their homes if they couldn't make it to the dental team in town.

If you're interested in offering your services in a volunteering capacity, go to Volunteering for an extensive range of opportunities.

This media release was sourced directly from the Australian Dental Association. 

The AMA supports many of the recommendations of the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade References Committee report into the Mental Health of Australian Defence Force (ADF) Members and Veterans, which was released yesterday.

AMA President, Professor Brian Owler, said today the proposal for annual mental health screening for Australian Defence Force personnel is particularly welcome.

“The 2010 ADF Mental Health Prevalence and Wellbeing Study that found that, while the 12-month prevalence of mental disorders in the ADF is the same as that of the community, the ADF has a different profile of mental disorder,” Professor Owler said.

“This reflects the occupational stressors to which ADF personnel are exposed, such as deployment experiences and absence from family and support networks.

“ADF personnel suffer more from mental health complaints such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, depressive episodes, suicidal ideation, and making a suicide plan.

“Annual screening would help ensure that mental health problems are identified at a much earlier stage, would support early intervention, and lead to much better mental health outcomes for affected personnel.

“The Report recommends the development of a universal identifier for veterans that is linked to their service and medical record, a concept supported by the AMA.

“A similar recommendation was made in the 2013 report of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade on the inquiry into the care of Australian Defence Force personnel wounded and injured on military operations.

“The 2013 recommendation for a unique identifier was given ‘in-principle’ support by the Government, but little progress appears to have been made since then.

“A unique or universal identifier could help improve health outcomes for these patients. It would allow longitudinal tracking, which is critical to improving the robustness of research into the health of serving and former ADF personnel.

“It could also support the transition from ADF-funded health services to services funded by the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) and mainstream health services.

“There is strong support for this concept among veterans’ groups consulted by the AMA.

“The AMA encourages the Government and the bureaucracy to fast track this important initiative to support defence force personnel,” Professor Owler said.

This media release was sourced directly from the Australian Medical Association. 

Leading Age Services Australia appoints a new chief executive officer as it moves to adopt a national model, becoming the third national peak body in the sector to announce a leadership change in recent weeks.

On Wednesday evening LASA announced it had appointed Sean Rooney, a former CEO of the Australian Medicare Local Alliance (AMLA), as its new chief executive officer, as the peak body entered the final stages of transitioning from a federated to national organisation. 

Mr Rooney, who is currently executive director of sustainability and climate change in the ACT Government, has previously held executive roles at the CSIRO and in public, private, and not-for-profit organisations.

He takes over from Patrick Reid, who has been CEO of LASA for the past three years.

Mr Rooney is expected to begin in the role in June, at which point the required amendments to LASA’s constitution were expected to be completed, the peak body said.

Dr Graeme Blackman, LASA chairman, said Mr Rooney had practical experience at the nexus of the health and aged care sector from his time at the AMLA, where he managed the national, member-based organisation with a large workforce and an annual turnover of more than $28 million.

Mr Rooney said he was excited about the potential for influencing aged care reform and ensuring that the voices of LASA members were heard in policy making.

The LASA board thanked Mr Reid for his service, saying he had helped unify and strengthen the organisation’s policy and advocacy functions. “He has led our association through transition, policy reforms and a change in government. He leaves LASA in a far stronger position today,” said Dr Blackman.

Several leadership changes

LASA is the third national peak body in the sector to announce changes to its executive.

Earlier on Wednesday National Seniors announced its CEO Michael O’Neil was stepping down after 10 years in the top job.

Mr O’Neill said it was time for “fresh blood and fresh ideas” at the organisation.

“When I commenced this role in 2006, I received a legacy of 30 years of growth and development. I leave at the 40-year mark, confident that the organisation is in good shape with a bright future”, said Mr O’Neill, who said he planned to remain in the workforce.

National Seniors chairman David Carvosso said Mr O’Neill had been an outstanding lobbyist for older Australians with both government and big business.

“Michael started with National Seniors in 2006, promising to stay for five years. We are fortunate that he has stayed in the job for nearly a decade”, said Mr Carvosso.

The National Seniors board said it had embarked on an extensive recruitment process, with a replacement to be announced in May.

Last week Australian Ageing Agenda reported that John Kelly, CEO of Aged and Community Services since 2012, was stepping down as the peak body also progressed with moves to transition from a federated to national entity.

ACSA said it was now recruiting a new leader to oversee the new management structure, which would bring together 70 staff nationally.

Changes come at momentous time

The changes in leadership at the peak bodies come at a pivotal time, as providers and consumers await to hear the government’s plans for the next phase of reforms to the sector.

The Aged Care Sector Committee, which is the government-appointed body of providers, consumers and professionals, provided its ‘roadmap for reform’ to the Minister for Aged Care Sussan Ley in early December.

Since then stakeholders have been awaiting the government’s response, and many were expecting further discussions on the proposals.

The committee’s roadmap was largely informed by the earlier blueprint produced by the National Aged Care Alliance, the broader consortium of aged care providers, consumers and professional groups that provides a forum to achieve consensus between stakeholders.

The Federal Government has already flagged that it sees residential aged care as the next area requiring reform (see our previous coverage here and here).

The peak bodies will also be gearing up for this year’s federal election, hoping to make aged care an election issue with all major political parties, and gathering support for addressing the sector’s workforce issues in particular.

And there are the ongoing issues with the rollout of the current Living Longer Living Better reforms – such as some unintended negative consequences from CDC and implementation problems with My Aged Care – that require lobbying of the department.

This article was originally sourced from Australian Ageing Agenda and was written by Darragh O'Keeffe. 

Young Hobart professional, Naomi Searle, is the only Australian shortlisted for the Association Network’s Young Association Executive of the Year Award for her work with the Australasian Military Medicine Association (AMMA).

The international award recognises association executives in the first ten years of their career who are making outstanding contributions to the sector. Naomi is the Conference and Association Manager for AMMA and also manages their quarterly journal, the Journal of Military and Veterans’ Health. Naomi was nominated for the award after a great first year in the role that saw her increase the Association’s conference profit by over 20% and maintain strong connections with its national and international members. “I was expecting a kind email saying that I was unsuccessful as I had only been in the role nine months,” said Naomi. “So it was amazing when I made the top three alongside two highly accomplished international young association professionals.”

Paula Leishman, Managing Director of Leishman Associates who have managed the association since 1996, says that Naomi’s shortlisting in the top three Young Associations Executives was well deserved. “Naomi has worked with us for the last two years and during that time she has demonstrated a maturity well beyond her years, together with a capacity and willingness to learn. Providing her with the opportunity to reinvigorate AMMA has been a great decision. This achievement is further testament to the young talent that we have here in Tasmania.”

Naomi will travel to Berlin on the 9th April to attend the award ceremony and the annual Association Congress. “I’m excited to network with other association professionals and see how they are tackling challenges such as member retention, corporate sponsorship and new innovations in Association Management,” said Naomi.

-ENDS-

AMMA is an independent, professional scientific organization of medical and allied health professional. AMMA promotes the study and research into military medicine and veterans’ health throughout Australasia. For further information please visit http://amma.asn.au/

Media Enquiries:

Naomi Searle – Conference and Association Manager

03 6234 7844

naomisearle@leishman-associates.com.au

This year at the AuSAE Conference and Exhibition (ACE) we have partnered with Air New Zealand to provide you with the best opportunity to walk away with two return Business Premier Tickets to your choice of one of four Air New Zealand destinations in North and South America - Buenos Aires, Los Angeles, San Francisco or Houston. Flying Business Premier with Air New Zealand you will enjoy a world-class flying experience with a lie flat bed, gourmet meal options and friendly kiwi service.

To go in to the draw to win this fantastic prize, simply travel through the ACE exhibition hall, and collect stamps for your ACE Passport. Each time you make a business connection at one of our exhibition destinations you are one step closer to jetting off to one of four Air New Zealand destinations.

ACE promises to be an action packed two day event featuring presentations from over 30 industry sector leaders, 4 keynote speakers, 60 exhibitors and 2 social functions. 

To register for the most valuable, diverse and challenging association professionals event for 2016 register here.

The Community Broadcasting Association of Australia (CBAA) is now accepting workshop proposals for their 2016 conference, taking place in Melbourne from 10 – 12 November.

The premier event in the community broadcasting calendar, the conference is the largest annual sector gathering, and a unique event that brings broadcasters together to develop and strengthen their skills, knowledge base and network.

Proposals are encouraged from people and organisations from within and outside the community broadcasting sector that focus on capacity-building within community radio stations and effective not for profit business practices.

Submissions from interested speakers should focus on the following topics:

• Conflict resolution
• Volunteer management
• Financial viability
• Technology development
• Community engagement
• Governance
• Engaging with rural and regional communities

Submissions are open until 5pm AEST on Sunday, 24 April 2016.

Find out more and submit your proposal here: https://www.eiseverywhere.com/eSites/167231/Homepage

Find out more about the Conference at www.cbaa.org.au/conference

Do you currently face any of the below challenges as an Association professional?

• Growing and retaining membership
• Management of Boards
• Attracting high value sponsorships
• Diversifying income streams
• Personal leadership growth and opportunities

The 2016 AuSAE Conference and Exhibition (ACE) will address the above issues and many more faced by Association Executives. To view the full ACE Program please click here.

Over 30 high calibre industry leaders will share their knowledge and experience together with distinguished keynote speakers to inform and inspire you. Network and connect with like-minded industry professionals throughout the conference including two engaging social functions.

Early bird registrations close in 3 days, don't miss out - register here today.

We look forward to welcoming you to the most valuable, diverse and challenging association professionals event for 2016.