WHat did the IPA do with all those millions?

The Daily Telegraph, 6 July 2018, p.23:

…a mysterious foundation, CEF, which received $4 million from Hancock Prospecting in the year to June 2015, and the conservative Institute of Public Affairs think tank, which received $4.5 million from Hancock Prospecting. The Institute did not declare Hancock Prospecting’s donation in its annual report, and after receiving the funds awarded Mrs Rinehart life membership. [my yellow highlighting]

So one of the big donors to that lobby group passing itself off as a public policy think tank, the Institute Of Public Affairs Limited - endorsed as a Deductible Gift Recipient since 30 March 2006 - has been revealed.

I wonder what the Institute of  Public Affairs Limited or the The Trustee For Institute Of Public Affairs Research Trust did with all those millions?

Because IPA annual reports do not show a $4.5 million spike. By 30 June 2015 its revenue which is primarily derived from membership fees and donations stood at $3.24 million (down from $3.47 million in June 2014) and only rose by $1.75 million as at 30 June 2016. In fact between June 2015 and June 2017 IPA revenue only rose by a total of $2.86 million.

By the end of the 2017 financial year the Trustee was telling the Australian Charities and Not-for-profit Commission that it was still only a “medium sized charity” run by 5 volunteers holding only $1,140,497 in cash or cash equivalents and this was the trust’s total assets.

In fact that $4.5 million donation isn’t recorded in any of the financial reports submitted to the charities commission either.

Even though the IPA is supposedly a think tank and the trust fund was set up for the public charitable object of undertaking scientific research one is tempted to question this omission. 

June 2015 was less than a year out from the 2016 federal election campaign. Given their ‘joined at the hip’ relationship, did the IPA use part or most of these millions to assist the Liberal Party election campaign in some manner?

Perhaps the IPA Board* would like to enlighten us all on that point?

* Institute of Public Affairs Limiter Board Members

The Hon. Rod Kemp,  Chair

John Roskam, Executive Director

Dr Janet Albrechtsen

Harold Clough

Dr Tim Duncan

Dr Michael Folie

Michael Hickinbotham

Geoff Hone

Rod Menzies

William Morgan

Maurice O’Shannassy 

Institute of Public Affairs Research Trust Board Members

KEMP, CHARLES RODERICK, Chair

ALBRECHTSEN, JANET KIM

CLOUGH, WILLIAM HAROLD

DUNCAN, WILLIAM TIMOTHY

FOLIE, GEOFFREY MICHAEL

HICKINBOTHAM, MICHAEL ROBB

HONE, GEOFFREY WILLIAM

MENZIES, RODNEY WILLIAM

MORGAN, WILLIAM HUGH MATHESO

O'SHANNASSY, MAURICE JOSEPH

ROSKAM, JOHN PETER