The Beagle
Apr 21, 2022
The Beagle has been a long supporter of Guide Dogs Australia. We will continue to watch the outcome of this "dog act" as The Beagle stands for dogs not being used as political tools
It is disappointing to see that the Guide Dogs have either been misused for political electioneering purposes, or may have breached the rules.
(Source: ACNC)
In a statement, Guide Dogs Victoria said its board had ‘no prior knowledge of the distribution of this material’, that it had requested the material ‘be immediately removed from circulation’ and that it had ‘launched an internal investigation’.
The statement goes on to say:
‘Guide Dogs Victoria has been made aware of the distribution of political material which includes comments from our CEO who appears to endorse a local candidate in the upcoming Federal Election.
The board had no prior knowledge of the distribution of this material and does not endorse it.’
The Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) lists the promotion of a political party or candidate as a ‘disqualifying purpose’, of which it lists three.
Its website states:
‘Purposes that will disqualify an organisation from being a registered charity are... promoting or opposing a political party or candidate for political office.’
The above is an extract of the full article published in The Independent