Industry groups have heartily welcomed Treasury’s consultation paper outlining the interim findings and reform proposals for Michelle Levy’s Quality of Advice Review, saying the proposals will have a “huge impact” on the advice profession and seeing it as a “great opportunity” to make substantial changes.
The AFA’s chief executive Phil Anderson says that the consultation paper “…sets out some very substantial proposals that if implemented will have a huge impact on the advice profession.”
These include proposals with respect to changes to the Best Interests Duty, the removal of Statements of Advice and the removal of Fee Disclosure Statements (see: Scrap SoAs – QoA Review Recommendation).
Anderson says the AFA is supportive of many of the recommendations put forward in the proposal paper “…and acknowledges the need for significant reform to achieve meaningful change. We have always advocated for affordable and accessible advice for more Australians.”
He adds that this is “…a most critical exercise and one that offers the advice profession a great opportunity to make some very substantial changes to fix the current issues.”
Meanwhile, the FSC also welcomes the Quality of Advice Review consultation paper with CEO Blake Briggs saying it “…outlines a sensible roadmap for delivering affordable and accessible financial advice by focusing on outcomes for consumers, not out-dated compliance documents and red tape.”
He notes that financial advice is “…weighed down by layers of red tape that has pushed the cost of advice to more than $5000, putting it out of reach for most Australians.”
Briggs says the review has listened to stakeholders and got the balance right, by detailing a framework that allows consumers to get advice on the topics they need, with all the necessary consumer protections, and through a channel that suits them, rather than a one-size-fits-all model.
He says the financial advice industry “…can now have hope that policymakers are listening to their concerns and will embrace the opportunity offered through the proposals paper to open new affordable advice pathways for consumers.”
…The onus is on industry, consumer groups and Government to support the evolution of the simpler regulatory framework…
“The onus is on industry, consumer groups and Government to support the evolution of the simpler regulatory framework while maintaining necessary consumer protections,” Briggs adds.
The Joint Associations Working Group (JAWG) says the Quality of Advice Review “…is critically important given its focus on how to improve the current system of providing financial advice for the benefit of all consumers.”
It says the proposal paper “…demonstrates the Federal Government’s ongoing commitment to an independent review aimed at identifying suitable ways to improve access to quality, affordable and accessible financial advice for all Australians.”
It notes the paper sets out proposals to make it easier for consumers to have meaningful, fit-for-purpose conversations with their advice provider about all, or part of, their financial and lifestyle objectives while maintaining robust consumer protections — an objective the JAWG supports.
“We also take the opportunity to acknowledge the quality and depth of the engagement from the QoAR team led by Michelle Levy, given the complexities and range of issues involved.”
The JAWG is comprised of 12 industry associations.
