TURNBULL MUST CRACK DOWN ON BANKING MISCONDUCT

We welcome the news that the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has signed off on a new Banking Code of Practice. But for too many Australians, this step is too little too late.  The rorts, rip-offs and scandals exposed in the Banking Royal Commission have shocked all Australians. People have had their homes taken, their businesses wound up and their lives destroyed by misconduct in the banking sector. This type of conduct cannot be allowed to continue.  While Labor welcomes the efforts by banks to lift standards, clearly more needs to be done.  Labor is committed to cracking down on misconduct in the banking sector. We will be looking carefully at the Royal Commission’s recommendations for what further reform is required to protect Australians from this kind of behaviour.  Malcolm Turnbull has no real desire to crack down on banking misconduct.  For 600 days, the Malcolm Turnbull and the Liberals resisted a Banking Royal Commission.  This year, ASIC – the corporate watchdog – had its staffing cut and its resourcing reduced by millions of dollars.  And now Malcolm Turnbull wants to reward the big banks with a $17 billion tax cut.  It’s clear that Malcolm Turnbull and the Liberals want to protect the big banks.  Labor wants to protect Australian customers and small businesses. We will invest in schools and hospitals, and we will fight for fair rules for a financial sector on which almost all Australian people and businesses rely.