LABOR today is demanding Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull give victims of dodgy banking practices a compensation fund — and an apology.
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has written to the Prime Minister identifying those measures as the least the Government could do after “dragging its feet” on a Royal Commission.
And he pledges Labor backing of any move to extend the life of the banking, superannuation and financial services royal commission.
It comes after Mr Turnbull he made a mistake not starting a royal commission sooner.
After shocking evidence of financial abuse was uncovered, Mr Turnbull has faced criticism for not starting the commission sooner.
“You’re all right when you say it would have been better for us politically if we had done so years ago,” Mr Turnbull told reporters in Berlin on Sunday.
“No doubt Bill Shorten should have called a royal commission when he was financial services minister in the Labor government.
“But the reason I didn’t proceed with a royal commission is this: I wanted to make sure we took the steps to reform immediately, and got on with the job.”
The prime minister gave a speech at a Westpac function in April 2016 where he tore into the banks for their “unacceptable behaviour” but he refused to back a royal commission.
Mr Turnbull said he was concerned a commission would drag on and paralyse reform, as everyone would wait until it had made recommendations.
“With the benefit of hindsight and recognising you can’t live your life backward, isn’t it better we’ve got on with all those reforms?” he said.
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Mr Shorten wants it to hear all grievances which might be in the 3400 submissions to the inquiry.
The demands signal Labor is determined to indict the Government for resisting calls for an inquiry into abuse of banking and financial services customers, while being swift to create politically motivated royal commissions into actions by Labor leaders including Kevin Rudd, Julia Gillard and Mr Shorten.
That resistance will be depicted as a failure of judgment, a failure which might have condemned more people into loosing money to misconduct.
In a letter to Mr Turnbull, released by the Opposition Leader’s office, Mr Shorten said in just 14 days of hearings the public had heard “shocking and shameful evidence about systemic wrongdoing and a culture of cover-up in the banking industry”.
“Along with many Australians, I can’t help but wonder how many customers were ripped off by this kind of misconduct in the two years it took the Government to relent and agree to Labor’s calls for a royal commission,” wrote Mr Shorten.
“How many Australians continued to be hit with ‘fees for no service’ in the two years the Government continued to protect the banking industry from a Royal Commission?”
The claim of two years of inactivity is highlighted by a letter Mr Turnbull wrote to Mr Shorten in August, 2016, rejecting a Labor call for an inquiry, in part because “the financial sector is one of the most heavily regulated and constantly reviewed sectors of the economy — both by Parliamentary committees and by independent bodies”.
“Given your long experience in the financial services portfolio I am sure you have more immediate and practical proposals for reform than simply calling for an inquiry,” the Prime Minister wrote in the letter made public by Mr Shorten’s office today.
The Opposition Leader said the Government should seriously consider a compensation scheme for “the victims of proven wrongdoing”.
“It’s unacceptable for people to suffer because of the misconduct of others, with no dependable access to justice,” he said.
And he wrote: “Further, the victims of this shocking misconduct deserve an apology from your Government that this Royal Commission was not established sooner.”
Creation of the Royal Commission came about after Barnaby Joyce stood aside as Nationals leader and Deputy Prime Minister, news.com.au has been told by Coalition sources who had been battling for an inquiry.
Mr Joyce’s veto had prevailed over Nationals colleagues, but his departure freed them to press harder.
However, last week Mr Joyce volunteered he had got it wrong. His confession put not only his judgment into question, but that of Mr Turnbull and Treasurer Scott Morrison.
But Financial Services Minister Kelly O’Dwyer the Government was reluctant to agree with Labor, or Mr Joyce, that it had mishandled the issue.
Asked seven times on ABC’s Insiders if the Government gift it wrong, Ms O’Dwyer declined to answer directly.
“We did it soberly, we did it carefully,” she said.
And she said: ”The financial services sector accounts for about 10 per cent of our economy. You can’t rush into these things as a stunt.”
Bill Shorten in his letter head Prime Minister Turnbull to account.
“When you confirmed the Royal Commission would be established, you said it was ‘regrettable’,” he said in the letter.
“The only thing ‘regrettable’ about all of this is that this disgraceful behaviour has gone on for so long, and that this Royal Commission didn’t start sooner.
“Consideration of extending the Royal Commission’s reporting time, of an associated compensation scheme for victims, and giving an apology to victims is the least the Government can do given it dragged its feet for so long in acting on the scandals plaguing the banking and financial services sector.”
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