Jacqui Lambie (Tasmania, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Banking and Financial Services Commission of Inquiry Bill 2017, which was coordinated by the Greens. I agreed to co-sponsor this bill because I am sick of hearing stories from my constituents of heartbreak and financial ruin. A royal commission into the banking and financial sector has been put off and put off by the government. I think it is important to ask ourselves: why is the Liberal government opposed to taking a magnifying glass to this sector? It cannot be the cost, because the government did not think twice about spending around $46 million on the trade union royal commission, as reported by The Australian in 2015. It cannot be politics, because a poll run by think tank The Australia Institute last year found that 68 per cent of respondents supported a royal commission into the banks. Instead, the Liberal government has proposed inquiry after inquiry after inquiry, has supposedly improved the powers of ASIC and has improved access to the Financial Ombudsman Service—small, insignificant changes in the grand scheme of things, compared to the collateral damage left behind by the endless search for a greater profit.

No, the Liberal government's small changes are not adequate. Australia needs to see a cultural shift before the industry can restore its reputation. Banks are a vital part of our lives and they should view themselves that way, as a part of our community, instead of worrying only about their bottom line, their shareholders and the amount that they pay their executives.

For the crossbench, this is not about a political witch-hunt. A commission of inquiry into the banks is not about getting even for the government's trade union royal commission. That would be absolute rubbish. It is simply about rooting out any wrongdoing or unethical behaviour by lending organisations and other financial services. There have been enough scandals in recent years to warrant a commission of inquiry. My office has been flooded with complaints relating to the banks and other financial services.

When the Greens approached me to co-sponsor this bill, my response was a wholehearted yes, on the condition that the bill also take a close look at the insurance sector and payday lenders. A number of small businesses were absolutely devastated by the Tasmanian floods last year, and many of them struggled with their insurance claims. Some were misled by their insurance company or their insurance broker. Others had their first claim rejected. These businesses, who had lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in stock, building damage, vehicles and more, had to fight for months to get what was owed to them. We fork out tens of thousands of dollars for insurance to guarantee that, when the unthinkable happens, we can tap back into that investment to save ourselves from going under. So it is particular horrendous when insurance companies or their brokers compound that tragedy and disaster, making people's lives absolutely miserable and forcing them into the ground further during a time when insurance is supposed to ease the pain and suffering.

Payday lenders acting as predators—and I am putting it politely—are taking advantage of everyday Australians, pushing them into loans they cannot afford, and they know it, just as I do, yet they are still getting away with it. I have spoken to people who were hounded into taking out a loan with payday lenders, glossing over the requirements and resulting in my constituents and many other Australians drowning in debt. The commission of inquiry is exactly what these sectors need to clean house and have a fresh start.

Ultimately this comes down to leadership. If our banks and financial sector had absolutely nothing to hide, they would be leading the way to a royal commission or a commission of inquiry. A business with nothing to hide would have thrown open its doors and welcomed the opportunity to brag about a bill of clean health to prove its community-mindedness. But, more than for the banks, this was an opportunity for the Liberal government to show leadership. Instead, they have skirted around the issue, with one toothless inquiry after another after another, and they are still doing it.

There is a clear imbalance of power here, and the banks' 'too big to fail' attitude needs to be reined in. They are not untouchable. We are in this place today to even the playing field, to restore the balance of power and to restore public confidence in our banking and financial sectors in this country. I will tell you what: it is a long time overdue.