2016-04-20
Greens spokesperson for Finance, Senator Peter Whish-Wilson, says the last minute rush to fix financial regulation is an admission by the Government that they have wasted their three years in office.
Senator Whish-Wilson said, “I am pleased that the government has made this ASIC announcement today as it perfectly highlights that they have spent their time in office heading in the wrong direction when it comes to financial regulation.
“This is a government that has spent the last three years trying to remove the so-called ‘red tape’ of consumer protections in the financial sector. This is the government that said ASIC has enough resources to do the job.
“Two years ago, when the Greens first called for a Royal Commission into the financial sector, the government refused to admit there were any problems.
“The Liberals have had four successive Assistant Treasurers over the last three years and it has taken until now to recognise their stance on financial regulation has been woefully inadequate.
“Restoring some of the funding that Joe Hockey took away is an admission of error by the government but as an action it doesn’t go far enough to solve the systemic problems in the financial sector.
“Without a Royal Commission, whistle-blower protections, and tougher penalties for white-collar crime you will never restore public confidence in the regulation of the financial sector. The problems simply run too deep.
“The fact that the Australian Bankers Association has rushed out to welcome these measures shows that these reforms don’t go anywhere near far enough. A Royal Commission is needed to make the banks so frightened of their dodgy behaviour being exposed that they act decisively to rein in their reckless culture,” he concluded.