ASIC cuts to limit corporation's abilities, chairman says

The corporate watchdog may be forced to rely on whistleblowers if budget cuts proposed by the Abbott Government are enforced.

Australian Investment and Securities Commission (ASIC) Chairman Greg Medcraft. Source: AAP

 

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Speaking in Melbourne, chairman of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Greg Medcraft said the cuts of $120 million over five years would limit the organisation’s ability to monitor corporations.

“What it means [what] we’ll do less of is proactive surveillance,” he told the ABC.

Mr Medcraft also said ABC staff levels had already been affected.

“It’s approximately a 12 per cent reduction in funding and a 12 per cent reduction in staffing,” he said.

The cuts follow a major bust by ASIC, which uncovered an alleged $7 million insider trading scam involving a bank analyst and a public servant earlier this month.

Australian Federal Police allege 24-year-old Australian Bureau of Statistics staffer Christopher Russell Hill gave market-sensitive information to National Australia Bank associate director Lukas Kamay, who has been sacked.

An ASIC spokesman said the case was uncovered using surveillance and intelligence, as well as tip-offs.

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