Tony Zappia (Makin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The push by the major banks to phase out the use of cash and cheques, close down bank branches and remove ATMs is causing widespread inconvenience and anger throughout the community. For some people it is making their lives extremely difficult. In particular, elderly people and migrants who are not internet savvy, who simply don't trust an internet system that they don't understand, who are fearful of being scammed, and who know that every internet transaction exposes them to internet surveillance, are becoming anxious. Simultaneously, business operators know that, in the midst of a power or internet failure, they will be unable to operate their business, and some have paid dearly for such events already.

This issue was the subject of a recent Senate committee inquiry that tabled its report last month. I share many of the concerns raised in the course of that inquiry. Firstly, the withdrawal of cash means that every person will need to have a bank account to function in Australian society. Secondly, every person or entity will have every financial transaction recorded. Privacy will be a thing of the past. Even worse, no-one will know who has access to their financial transaction records and personal affairs. Thirdly, once banks have control of every financial transaction, new and increased transaction fees will be imposed. It is already happening, with card transaction fees being charged or increased. Fourthly, for people with no internet or mobile device, life will become extremely difficult.

In days gone by, the use of cash also enabled people to better manage their money. People could physically see how much money they had left. The use of cash taught people to be more prudent with their spending, and people were not getting into the financial difficulties that we often see today with the use of credit cards. The committee's report states that, based on APRA data, 2,100 bank branches closed between 2017 and 2023, equating to 40 per cent of branches in metropolitan areas and 35 per cent of branches in regional Australia. Many of the bank branch closures in country towns have often directly contributed to the demise of those towns.

Furthermore, the number of businesses that no longer accept cash has also grown. For some businesses, there are legitimate security and safety reasons why they prefer to be cashless. However, I don't believe that that is the primary reason for the banks phasing out cash and closing branches. Adding to frustrations, Australia Post, that was once often filling the gap caused by bank branch closures, is now on a nationwide post office branch closure program. Calls to ensure that cash not only continues to be made available but cannot be refused as a form of payment for essentials are growing louder.