Stall FOFA legislation for FSI findings

Plans to push through legislation supporting the Government's Future of Financial Advice (FOFA) reforms should be delayed until after the Financial System Inquiry (FSI) has published its final report, Labor believes.

Speaking in the Senate yesterday Labor Senator, Sam Dastyari, said the Government was "taking steps to ram through a legislative agenda to enforce and enshrine" the reforms.

Senator Dastyari said that pushing through the Government's proposed legislative reforms amounted to "nothing more than a gift to a handful of crooks, con men and criminals who have misused the financial advice industry to promote themselves and their own objectives".

"We know that the financial services (sic) inquiry (FSI) is underway and that, in November, it will hand down a report," he said.

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"We know that the report it will hand down will be scathing on the financial advice industry.

"Our argument here is, rather than bringing in the legislation this week or next week or as soon as possible, considering the minister has already got his way on his regulations, why not wait to allow a proper investigation, a proper FSI report to follow and a lot of these matters that are now being aired, matters involving the Commonwealth Bank, Westpac and, the ANZ when it comes to Timbercorp, to be properly debated, explored and investigated by the FSI and then, at the end of the process, if there is a need for legislation then have the debate.

"But we do not need to ram through this legislation."

While Senator Dastyari was critical of some within the financial advice industry, he said "there are a lot of good people out there", but said the small number of advisers who had given the sector a bad name highlighted the need for strong consumer protections.