In welcoming the release of the terms of reference for the Quality of Advice Review the FPA describes the review as the perfect opportunity “to measure and assess the impact of all this regulatory change on the profession.”
Outlining the raft of regulatory change over the past 21 years FPA CEO Sarah Abood, says the Government and regulators “…have rarely taken the opportunity to assess the success or failure of these multiple layers of measures to address the issues of professionalisation, quality of advice and the accessibility and affordability of advice to consumers.”
“The result has been considerable regulatory duplication and inefficiency.”
Abood points to the “unprecedented regulatory change” in the financial planning profession including:
- The introduction of the financial services reforms
- Measures to address and support consumers through the global financial crisis
- The introduction and modifications of the Future of Financial Advice reforms
- The professionalism and education standard frameworks introduction
- The life insurance framework
- The implementation of the Royal Commission recommendations
…the perfect opportunity …to address the unintended consequences
Abood says the FPA welcomes the review as “…the perfect opportunity to measure and assess the impact of all this regulatory change on the profession, and address the unintended consequences created such as the tick-a-box, rules-based, compliance-heavy advice process that financial planners are currently required to comply with.”
She notes that the FPA is looking forward to working with Levy and regards the review “…as a significant opportunity to set out our members’ vision for the future of the financial planning profession.” (Also see: Quality of Advice Review Terms of Reference Released.)
Abood adds that the review will also set a framework enabling financial planners to provide affordable, engaging, scalable and professional advice.
“The final terms of reference are sensible and closely align to the FPA’s vision for the review. In particular, this includes how the regulatory framework could better enable high quality, accessible and affordable financial advice for consumers and remove unnecessary complexity.”
She adds that it is critical to have the view of all stakeholders in the profession included in the review, “…in particular financial planners and their clients who can provide real world, practical examples of how the current regulatory environment and requirements adversely impact the client experience.”
