The Coalition has criticised the Labor government’s approach to the financial services sector, claiming its review process has kept the industry at arms length and not allowed for genuine consultation.
Shadow Minister for Financial Services Luke Hartsuyker said the Coalition believes greater consultation with industry could have been better made through working groups and direct discussions.
“The endless reviews in the sector have allowed Labor to cherry pick recommendations and claim consultation has occurred through the review process,” Hartsuyker said.
“Releasing Cooper on the eve of an election campaign has made it difficult for the industry to meaningfully respond to the government.”
Hartsuyker said the Coalition believes the participants rather than the government should be at the centre of the financial services industry.
“I’m a firm believer that confidence is a driving factor of investment performance. The industry needs confidence in the integrity of its professional standards and needs to know that the government won’t circumnavigate those standards for political interests,” he said.
“I have faith in industry self-regulation and taking advice from the industry about where legislation is needed.”
Hartsuyker’s comments come as the industry continues to wait for the Coalition’s financial services policy.
Commenting on Treasury’s handing of its consultation with industry, Snowball Group managing director Tony McDonald said the government understands the issues and is doing a “sensational job of engaging”.
“They are really are doing a good job of engagement. They get it and they’re doing exactly the things the electorate seems to be crying out for, which is just talking through the detail,” McDonald said.
AMP financial planning and advice director Steve Helmich said: “I think [with] all these reviews and this focus on planning and what we’re doing, we will sit back in a couple of years and think this was the start of more and more people using financial planners, and a better outcome for Australia.”
Under the leadership of the Minister for Financial Services and Corporate Law, Chris Bowen, the Labor government has released three reviews that examined the financial services industry – the Ripoll review, the Henry review and the Cooper review.
