Shadow minister for financial services Katy Gallagher yesterday pounced on reports in the Fairfax press that Mr Robb pressured Minister for Revenue and Financial Services Kelly O’Dwyer to hold the controversial inquiry into the banks and financial services industry.
“I just want to make a few comments about Andrew Robb’s call for a banking royal commission,” Ms Gallagher said in a doorstop interview in Canberra yesterday.
“More and more we are seeing people come out, including on the government benches and now a senior former minister, try to talk sense into this government about a banking royal commission and yet we see the blind refusal from this minister and continued refusal from this government to stand up for the victims of banking malpractice, poor banking culture and establish a royal commission.”
As a former Cabinet minister who ran John Howard’s successful election campaign in 1996, Mr Robb is an influential figure in Coalition politics.
However, Ms O’Dwyer told ifa the government remains opposed to a royal commission despite the attempted intervention by the former minister.
“The government does not support a royal commission into the banking and financial services sector, because a royal commission will not benefit consumers or the Australian economy,” Ms O’Dwyer said.
“The government is already pursuing an ambitious and broad financial system reform agenda, including the strengthening of ASIC, and this agenda is well on the way to being implemented.
“A royal commission will cost the Australian taxpayers millions of dollars and will take years to complete.”
According to data released by the Australian Bankers’ Association, 46 per cent of Australians support a royal commission into the banks, while just 11 per cent opposed the initiative.
By contrast, an ifa straw poll conducted in July 2016 found that 87 per cent of financial advisers opposed a royal commission, with just 13 per cent in support.
Turnbull and Joyce, both former bankers and banking blood brothers may go down in history as the leaders who destroyed their own parties. What is concerning is their ignoring the victims of bank greed and unethical and perhaps criminal conduct and ignoring and damaging democratic principles. A recent Fairfax poll indicated 93% support for a royal commission, but results have by now, no doubt been taken away from public view. Sweep the victims under the carpet, they might give their banker mates a bad name and are worlds away from the comfortable life of a politician. Both leaders and their bank CEO mates preach the reverse of what is reality. The nationals under Joyce have all but turned their back on farmers fighting the banks, as the banks seek to turn generations of toil to earn and save farm equity into bank profits, by any number of unethical ways, including unfair contracts and non monetary defaults, charging obscene interest rates, jacking rates up in times of hardship. Doing over farmers increases bank profits substantially as most reasonable scale farmers are big in debt, with assets and limited income and resources to fight back. Farmers produce food for our country. Big banks produce nothing. Turnbull has proven to be a leader for the high net worth big end of town – not what he appeared and preached before he got the job and the big bank PR teams always backed by taxpayer bail outs present an image designed to fool us all. News for you, we are not fools and can see through the glossy spin.. We want justice and reform and to achieve justice and reform we must get to the substance of the cause by Royal Commission, not Turnbull seeking to sweep his mates shortfalls under the carpet and ignore victims. The sooner real action is taken, the sooner real reform occurs. The sooner businesses otter than the big banks can grow and employ. This pussy footing PR stuff has delayed real action and reform for too long now. No confidence vote. Royal Commission now. Justice for victims. Real reform and not pretend reform for political reasons. Democracy must win.
Hear Hear you have hit the nail on the head.just no one can hear it squeal .It is the consumer who makes the economy turn not the fraudulent banks.the victims are being swept under the carpet and not have a voice. funny how this resembles Rolf Harris …..the industry turns a blind eye to it all until many years down the track the truth comes out. It is only a matter of time when the director of Whittaker Mcnaught has to answer for his adviser’s filthy actions and cover ups in front of a royal commission. BRING IT ON!!!
Unbelievable – RC for what – how many customers does the CBA have and how many complaints have they received – I don’t work for them but as an outsider this is getting ridiculous – if they measured the number of complaints v clients seen, you will find that its insignificant – from what I have seen CBA has the right intention – which is to remediate and compensate – this is vastly different to what I have seen from other businesses – the reason we hear so much is that its in the media who as we know need to sell papers
There are issues with the CBA compensation scheme. There were several clients removed from that scheme because they revealed further fraud within the operations of the company such as removing documents from the client file during an FOS dispute,This is just the tip of the iceberg.Many client cannot keep fighting.Those who have complained to the CBA have had their files closed. An incredible 80% of clients in the compensation scheme were dismissed……………….I think we have a cover up here.
I think you are in la la land – I know many people in senior roles there along with plenty of Planners and I can assure you – all are very decent and qualified – as for yourself – I am not sure where you get your info from but as I am sure you know – as a corporate, CBA would not allow ‘cover ups’ for a few thousand dollars
One would have to think one has been living under a rock to think the CBA has not been involved with cover ups. I guess what Jeff Morris exposed and the senate enquirers that followed as with the media reports were nothing more than la la land living .I am basing my information on further cover ups by the CBA and their subsidiaries to prevent not thousands of dollars being compensated to to the client but hundreds of thousands to that client. The info I prefer to use is the info I have in my hands of further mis-conduct by the CBA and I can assure you it ain’t pretty.
Give me a break – a RC?? – absolute joke – our banks are regulated more than any bank in the world – I was a Planner in the bank and Compliance was extremely stressful and strict and everything was checked and checked again to the point where you became too scared to do anything – since moving in to IFA land, I have noticed a massive loosening of Compliance and all the things that I was told was ‘putting the license at risk’ when at the bank is non existent in IFA land. I think we need to be very careful of what we wish for as I can assure you compliance requirements in the Banks is far more rigorous than it is for IFA – if you speak to anyone that has transitioned from Bank to IFA – they will say exactly the same and if ASIC started doing checks on IFA’s I can tell you they will find a hell of a lot more crooks and would be banning a lot more Planners
And you get a bonus at the big “witch bank” for denying the terminally ill their rightful sickness benefits? Is this why there is constant checking, to make certain sickness payments are not made to the terminally ill? No wonder they report record profits, but at what cost?
Yes we can can see how those compliance were so strict , that is why there are calls for a royal commission into the banks. As far as being stressful well I don’t see an electrician getting stressed because of the compliance he has to follow. It is part of your job to know your compliance and deal with them accordingly. Are you saying the CBA was too stressed to realize they were not allowed to remove documents from a client file during a dispute?
Steve read my comments mate – what I am saying is that the Bank Planners are monitored much closer than the IFAs – regulator goes after the big banks – if it went after some of the IFAs that I know, I can guarantee they would find a lot of poor compliance standards – unfortunately, unless there is a complaint against an ifa, the regulator does nothing – I am not sure what you are on about re the electrician – perhaps this is where you belong – and for your info – I have worked in both Bank and IFA and I know why Planners are walking out of the banks
I think that the pressure on banks and other financial services provides is enough to slowly change their behavior. It’s happening now in the financial services industry as professionals take control and look after their clients. If the actors don’t perform then they will lose and are losing business in certain areas.
The concerning point is that many bankers think and say that their only duty is to maximise profits for shareholders. This would be akin to an accountant or solicitor saying that it is okay to lose the clients money so long as the practices makes a profit. This is criminal activity and an indication of how wrong it is for these unregulated and unethical egos to destroy lives and businesses without punishment.
Kelly O’Dwyer has just helped the FSC, a corrupt cartel stitch up advisers to the detriment of customers as well. The ACCC should be horrified by this behaviour but were bypassed in the process. Of course she would not want a Royal Commission as she will no doubt be offered some plum roles by these same banks when her political career is over.
Of course Minister O’Dwyer is against a Royal Commission, she will want a cushy (bank) board position when she is finished in Parliament. But of course her previous incarnation as a bank employee will in no way influence her decision on a RC …… will it?
And the rumour is the shredders have been burning out. Steal a loaf of bread when you are hungry and get lashed and hard labour for years. Steal the life savings of the elderly, the sick and vulnerable and get a fat bonus cheque for increasing the dividends of the wealthy Harbourside dwellers and bank CEOs. No wonder they are against a royal commission.
The arrogance of the banks will inevitably lead to a Royal Commission. It is staggering how little has changed in their business model. The same can also be said about the industry super funds. The banks and the industry funds are relentlessly pursuing their own agendas and destroying the public perception of the financial services industry. Their impact on consumer protection and GDP is a disgrace at a time when the financial services industry is most needed to help people navigate the uncertain times ahead and provide a critical boost to the economy. The politicians are mere puppets to these vested interests and hence offer no direction to the community or the industry. LNP are on track to lose the next election and achieve nothing. Labor will then lose the next election and so the musical chairs go on. in the interim, all the bank, industry super fund and union executives and the politicians will collect their salaries and their gravy train will move on.
The government does not support a royal commission into the banking and financial services sector, because a royal commission will not benefit consumers or the Australian economy,” So what is the deterrent for the ASIC FOS and CBA to stop their misbehavior towards consumer rights. The Australian economy is not based on the CBA it is based on consumer confidence and right now there is no confidence in the Australian financial markets. Consumers have been screwed over by these big fellows and they have been left free to do what they want to do and in turn give the independent adviser a bad reputation as part of the industry they work in,The CBA does there own investigations and find an incredible 80% of clients who complained received appropriate advice .Oh please the writing is on the wall for a royal commission into the ASIC,FOS and the CBA.