Speaking at the Actuaries Institute Financial Services Forum in Sydney on Monday, the FSC chief compared the Murray inquiry to previous inquiries such as the Wallis and Campbell inquiries.
Mr Brogden said that while these previous financial system inquiries came about in response to “pent up” demand for change, that there is no overwhelming demand for major change this time around with the Murray inquiry.
“So my biggest concern is that they will have to find something to mark themselves with,” Mr Brogden said. “That is my great concern.”
“The flipside to all that is this is the rarest of all things which is the government has given no instructions to David Murray as to what it wants,” he said. “It is a genuine open inquiry.”
Mr Brogden also shared his views on how he believes the inquiry will progress, anticipating a lengthy period before any policy response might be forthcoming.
“It is my view that Government will respond sometime during 2015, legislation maybe 2015/16,” he said. “Unless there are urgent issues that come out of the Murray inquiry, I don’t see any commencement of legislative change until well into the next term of the parliament. We are some way from seeing any changes taking effect.”
Australian Bankers’ Association chief Steven Münchenberg spoke of his “frustration” with the single-mindedness of financial services regulators.
“We are frustrated with a lot of regulation that has been brought in,” Mr Münchenberg said.
“It has been put in place to deal with one particular issue without regard to all the consequences,” he said.
“All our regulation has been put in place with only stability in mind, and little regard for the competitiveness and the efficiency of the system.”
