NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED) FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2007 21. EVENTS AFTER THE BALANCE SHEET DATE No matters or circumstances have arisen since the end of the financial year that have significantly affected or may significantly affect the operations of the Company, the result of those operations, or the state of affairs of the Company. 22. RESPONSIBILITY AS TRUSTEE The Dairy Structural Adjustment Fund (the DSAF) constitutes a purpose trust, established under clause 77 of schedule 2 to the Dairy Produce Act 1986 (as amended) (the Act) for the statutory purpose of paying entitlements and administrative costs under the Dairy Industry Adjustment Program (the Program). The Program comprises four Schemes to assist dairy farmers and dairy communities to adjust to deregulation of the Australian dairy industry. The Schemes are administered by the Dairy Adjustment Authority, Centrelink and the Department of Transport and Regional Services. It is these agencies that determine entitlements to be paid from the DSAF. Until 30 June 2003, the DSAF was vested in and administered by the Australian Dairy Corporation. The Dairy Industry Service Reform Act 2003 (the Reform Act) amended schedule 2 to the Act and caused the Australian Dairy Corporation to become registered as a Corporations Act Company, with the name Dairy Australia Limited (the Company), with effect from 1 July 2003. Following the amendments contained in the Reform Act, schedule 2 to the Act provides that the “industry services body” must keep and administer the DSAF and that the assets of the DSAF are held on trust by the industry services body. On 1 July 2003, the Company was declared the industry services body by the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. Accordingly, the Company is the Trustee of the DSAF under schedule 2 to the Act. The manner in which the Company’s responsibilities as Trustee are required to be discharged and the arrangements regarding sourcing of funds to enable the Company to operate to achieve its objectives in its broader capacity as the industry services body are set out in a deed between the Commonwealth, through the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, and the Company. The deed has been termed the Statutory Funding Deed (the deed). The deed stipulates the nature of the amounts required to be deposited into and withdrawn from the DSAF, and thus prohibits the Company’s own resources from being applied to meet the obligations of the DSAF. The Program administered by the DSAF, together with various other costs of performing its activities (including the administration costs of the Dairy Adjustment Authority), are ultimately met from the proceeds of the dairy adjustment levy imposed by the Commonwealth on domestic retail sales of milk. In order to meet the scheduled payments, the Company, in its capacity as Trustee, has maintained various financing arrangements, thus meeting its joint responsibility with the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, to take all reasonable steps to ensure that there is sufficient money in the DSAF to make the structural adjustment payments and meet any other calls as those calls fall due. The Act requires the Commonwealth to pay all levy monies collected to the DSAF and also prohibits the Commonwealth from discontinuing the levy until all obligations of the DSAF have been met. The DSAF has recognised these as rights receivable from the Commonwealth, equal to the amount of the DSAF’s net liabilities. The Act enables the rights to be recognised, they are probable of receipt, and the amounts recognised are reliably measurable given their direct relationship to the net amount of the DSAF’s liabilities at any point in time. The Company, in its capacity as Trustee, is not required to recognise the revenues, expenses, assets and liabilities of the DSAF in its own financial statements. Further, the separate financial statements of the Dairy Adjustment Authority report the detail of the administration expenses incurred in fulfilling its responsibilities. Section 86A of Schedule 2 of the Dairy Produce Act 1986 provides that the Company is entitled to be fully indemnified against any liability (including any liability as to costs) incurred by it in keeping and administering, or purporting to keep and administer, the DSAF, and any such indemnification is to be paid out of the assets of the DSAF. It is anticipated the final Program payments will be completed during the 2008 financial year when the final payments are made to eligible dairy entities. The Dairy Industry Adjustment Levy will continue to be received by the DSAF with the effect of settling the borrowings over the following financial year. The current estimated time for the conclusion of the DSAF is during the 2008/09 financial year. As at the reporting date, the following is a summary of the financial position of the DSAF: 2007 2006 $’000 $’000 Assets Levy rights receivable 413,151 632,088 Other operating assets 22,297 14,461 Total assets 435,448 646,549 Liabilities Producer entitlements payable 206,930 401,888 Interest bearing liabilities 225,000 240,000 Other operating liabilities 3,518 4,661 Total liabilities 435,448 646,549 Net assets of the DSAF as at the reporting date - -
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