AFA News 4 November 2021. ASIC and APRA appeared before a Senate Estimates hearing on Thursday 28 October 2021 and were subject to a range of questions relating to financial advice. Queensland Nationals Senator Susan McDonald took the lead in asking many of these questions. The Senate Estimates process occurs typically twice a year and is a good platform for politicians to hold Government Departments and Agencies accountable.

Senator McDonald asked ASIC a number of questions relating to the following:

• ASIC’s state of preparations for holding the financial adviser exam in 2022.
• The ASIC Funding Levy and advisers paying for the Westpac High Court case.
• Complaints about lost insurance due to the Protecting Your Super and Putting Members Interests First reforms.
• Oversight of unlicensed operators.
• Actions ASIC might have taken to prevent the misreporting of people as financial advisers by the ABC.

Please click here to see the video of financial advice questions with ASIC.

Senator McDonald also asked APRA a number of questions relating to life insurance, including the following:

• Complaints about lost insurance due to the Protecting Your Super and Putting Members Interests First reforms.
• The reasons for a 50% decline in retail life insurance new business over the last 5 years.
• APRA’s view and approach to upfront premium discounting practices.
• APRA’s oversight of premium increases in the IDII market and what they are doing to protect the interests of existing policyholders.

Please click here to see the video of financial advice questions asked of APRA.

Please click here to see the full Hansard transcript of the ASIC and APRA appearance at Senate Estimates.

For any questions on the content of these videos, please email policy@afa.asn.au

Issued 04.11.2021. AFA Policy & Education Update

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