Labor's decision to refer the Financial Sector Legislation Amendment Bill (No. 1) 2000 to two Senate Committees, with an August reporting date, proves they have no credibility when it comes to consumer protection in superannuation.
This referral will delay implementing important amendments to the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 (SIS Act) which aim to better protect the savings of super fund members.
It will delay removing the limitation on the number of members for the Superannuation Complaints Tribunal.
"This will not help the Tribunal address the backlog of cases that built up in the 18 months since a High Court challenge curtailed the Tribunal's powers."
Amendments to the SIS Act, designed to better protect super members' savings, are now also on hold.
"The pool of super savings is now more than $440 billion and growing at 12% a year. So, strengthening the powers of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority and helping it make successful prosecutions is essential to protect these funds.
"The ALP has shown that it is captive to vested interests in this area and is not interested in protecting consumers."
The Financial Sector Legislation Amendment Bill (No. 1) 2000 will further enhance Australias world-class financial regulatory system and also amends the Banking Act 1959 and the Reserve Bank Act 1959.