Tony Abbott believes the nation's banking regulators should be sacked in the wake of appalling stories out of the financial services royal commission.
The former prime minister has questioned what the regulators were doing while misconduct, as revealed in hearings, was allowed to happen.
"My fear is at the end of this royal commission we will have yet another level of regulation imposed on the banks when frankly what should happen is all the existing regulators should be sacked and people who are much more vigilant and much less complacent go in in their place," he told 2GB radio on Monday.
It comes as Malcolm Turnbull has admitted agreeing to a banking royal commission years ago would have been a better move politically.
But the prime minister insists he wanted to fix the laws and make changes rather than waiting for a report.
Mr Turnbull was responding to pressure to admit the government was wrong to wait, after Labor leader Bill Shorten wrote to him demanding an apology.
In the letter to Mr Turnbull, Mr Shorten says the first 14 days of the commission has heard shocking and shameful evidence of systemic wrongdoing and a culture of cover-up in the industry.
"Along with many Australians, I can't help but wonder how many customers were ripped off by this kind of misconduct in the two years it took the government to relent and agree to Labor's calls for a royal commission," he writes.
Mr Turnbull agreed "it would have been better for us politically if we had done so years ago".
"But the reason I didn't proceed with a royal commission is this: I wanted to make sure we took the steps to reform immediately, and got on with the job," he told reporters in Berlin.
Acting prime minister Michael McCormack said the coalition was looking to the future.
"The prime minister has conceded that, yes, in hindsight it may have been better to have had a royal commission earlier," he told reporters in Brisbane
"But at the end of the day the important thing is let's not worry about the past. Let's worry about the future."
Former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce has admitted he was wrong to oppose such a commission for so long.
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But Financial Services Minister Kelly O'Dywer refused eight times to say the government got it wrong in a television interview on Sunday.
Instead she talked up the coalition's efforts to boost the standards for financial advisors, increase the penalties for misconduct and offer greater funding for the regulator ASIC.
Nationals senator John 'Wacka' Williams, who was a strong advocate for an inquiry, predicts more wrongdoing by the banks will be uncovered.
"If I was opposing the royal commission like many of my colleagues did, or most of them, I'd do Barnaby (and say) 'look I had it wrong'," he told ABC radio on Monday.
Given the evidence heard already, Mr Shorten says it's time for the government to consider a compensation scheme for victims of proven wrongdoing and wants the commission to be given more time and resources if requested.
Finance Minister Mathias Cormann has said if the commissioner asks for a longer inquiry it will be acted upon by the government.
