Update on Quality of Advice Review

AFA News 12 May 2022. As the election campaign has progressed and with few new policy announcements on financial advice, it is evident that both sides of politics are awaiting the recommendations of the Quality of Advice Review (QAR).

At the AFA we have been very focused on the QAR.  We have been participating with other associations in looking at the key objectives and identifying the recommendations that we can all get behind.  We have also been talking to licensees to seek their input on the best solutions.

On 5 May 2022, we ran a member webinar to discuss where we are up to in our thinking on the QAR and to seek the input of members.  This webinar is available on the AFA website, including a copy of the presentation.

In the webinar, we identified the overall objective of improving the accessibility and affordability of financial advice to both make financial advice available to more Australians, and also to help reduce the cost and complexity of running a financial advice practice.  In our preliminary work, we identified a few key drivers of important change:

  • Reducing regulatory uncertainty
  • Regulatory relief
  • Process re-engineering/improvement
  • Retaining or increasing life insurance commissions
  • Ensuring financial advice is a sustainable profession.

Please watch the webinar to see more about what our priorities are and to delve into the specific initiatives that might help to achieve these objectives.

We welcome member input on our current thinking and your thoughts on specific recommendations that you think will make a real difference.

A poll question asked during the webinar indicated that the level of optimism about what the QAR will deliver was mixed, with roughly as many being pessimistic as those who are optimistic.  The reality is that with an absence of key policy announcements emerging during the election campaign, the QAR must be our biggest hope of addressing the current issues in financial advice.

Please click here for a copy of the QAR Terms of Reference.

Please click here for a copy of the QAR issues paper.

For any questions on the QAR, please email policy@afa.asn.au

Issued 12.05.2022. AFA Policy & Education Update

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