David Pocock (ACT, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I move the amendment on sheet 3098:

(1) Clause 308, page 304 (after line 18), after subclause (4), insert:

(4A) A registered provider must not deduct a retention amount from a refundable deposit balance in any one year period if the sum of all retention amounts deducted from the refundable deposit balance in that period is equal to or greater than 2 per cent of the refundable deposit.

This is around the two per cent cap—the ceiling. There's clearly a different standard of parliamentary scrutiny when it comes to legislation versus delegated legislation and a potential disallowance. I think that this sort of thing should be in primary legislation. We have the habit, it seems, of putting a lot of pretty important, consequential matters in delegated legislation, which doesn't have the same level of scrutiny. I think, if this two per cent were to change, this would require parliamentary scrutiny and debate. If it made sense, I'm sure, as we are seeing today, there'd be good-faith negotiations and contributions, and we'd come up with a new plan. But I don't think this should be in delegated legislation. This would significantly impact the finances of older Australians if it were raised, and that's why I'm proposing this amendment.