John Faulkner (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the acting Assistant Treasurer, Senator Cormann. Minister, is it true that on 1 July 2014 the Corporations Amendment (Streamlining Future of Financial Advice) Regulation 2014—the FoFA regulation—was provided to the Senate Table Office in a batch of instruments ready for tabling on 7 July 2014, the next sitting day? Minister, is it true that, subsequent to receipt of the regulation, the Treasury made a request of the Senate Table Office, conveyed by the Office of Parliamentary Counsel, that the tabling be delayed?

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Faulkner for that question. What is true and what the government has said very clearly, right from the word go, is that the regulations that came into effect on 1 July, which were registered on 30 June and which were flagged in terms of the substance as well as the process in a comprehensive five-page statement on 20 June, would be tabled consistent with all of the requirements of the Legislative Instruments Act.

Senator Faulkner would be very well aware that the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 provides for any regulation to be tabled in either house of parliament within six sitting days of those regulations being registered. The government has been transparent, all the way through, that that was our intention; and the reason for that is this is an area that is highly technical. This is an area in which vested commercial interests have spread a lot of misinformation. I was very conscious of the fact we had a number of new crossbench senators joining us here this week who had a lot on their plate—with the carbon tax, in particular—and I was very concerned to ensure that my friends on the crossbench had the opportunity to be properly briefed on what is—

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! On my left.

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

an important area of public policy, given that they have been on the receiving end of a lot of commercial vested interests' propaganda peddled by the Labor Party. I have been transparent all the way through. It has always been the intention to table the FoFA regulations consistent with the requirements of the Legislative Instruments Act and that is exactly—

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Pause the clock. Senator Moore, on a point of order.

Claire Moore (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Women) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I rise on a point of order: direct relevance to the question. The last part of the question was: is it true that the Treasury made a request to the Table Office, conveyed by the Office of Parliamentary Counsel, that the tabling be delayed? The minister has 20 seconds left and has not got to that part of the question.

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On the point of order: you are right, the minister has not got to that part of the question. But he has been directly relevant, up to this point in time, to the entire question. The question was not isolated to one portion.

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

To be entirely candid and truthful, I am not aware of the specific mechanics. But what I do know is that, as minister, I take responsibility for the fact that the government has made a decision to table the FoFA regulations consistent with the requirements of the Legislative Instruments Act by Tuesday next week. (Time expired)

John Faulkner (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Given that the minister is not aware, as he has indicated, of those mechanics, I would ask him to take those two elements of my primary question on notice.

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Minister, is it true that late on Friday, 4 July 2014, a further message was conveyed to the Table Office advising that the Treasury wanted the tabling of the FoFA regulations to be delayed until Tuesday, 15 July 2014—the statutory deadline for tabling? (Time expired)

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Again, I am not involved in the specific mechanics of all of that, but nothing that Senator Faulkner has just said to the chamber is in any way inconsistent with what I have said on behalf of the government. What I have said, on behalf of the government, is that we announced on 20 June some regulatory changes which we believe improve our financial advice laws. Those regulatory changes were registered on 30 June and came into effect on 1 July and, consistent with all of the rules, procedures and laws of the land, and consistent with those requirements, they will be tabled by Tuesday next week. The purpose of that—and I have also been very transparent and candid about this—is so I can in good faith brief new crossbench senators in relation to matters that are highly technical, and about which a lot of misleading misinformation has been spread in the public domain.

John Faulkner (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. Would the minister acknowledge that the specific mechanics that he is not aware of are important? Given that the business of the Senate sometimes prevents documents being tabled by the Clerk on any given day, is the minister aware that, if the Senate does not reach the tabling of documents by the Clerk on 15 July 2014, there is a risk the statutory deadline for the tabling of the FoFA regulations will not be met?

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As a very long-serving and distinguished senator in this place, I know that Senator Faulkner is aware that I am absolutely able to table any document I wish to table, on behalf of the government, on Tuesday. Indeed, I am sure if I sought leave to table the FoFA regs on Tuesday, given the enthusiasm shown by Senator Dastyari yesterday—

Sam Dastyari (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You can table it now!

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Here he is again, waving around a document he said I was hiding. Given the enthusiasm of Senator Dastyari for me to table those regulations—

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister Assisting the Leader for Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Why don't you table it today? Take your chance!

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Carr.

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am sure that on Tuesday the Labor Party, on behalf of the union movement, will facilitate the timely tabling of those regulations so we can comply as a government with all of the necessary legal requirements. I know what the Labor Party wants to do. The Labor Party, on behalf of the union movement and at the behest of the commercial interests of industry funds, wants to put pressure on the Senate—in particular, pressure on the crossbench—to deal with these matters now because they are worried that once people understand what we are doing they are going to change their mind on things. (Time expired)