Bank bosses to face public grillings

Bank bosses will be forced to regularly tell Australians how they are fixing their corporate cultures if Labor wins the next election.

A composite image of signage of Australia's 'big four' banks

Labor wants the big four banks to explain how they implement the royal commission's recommendations. (AAP)

Big bank bosses will be forced to reveal how they plan to clean up their act and fix their cultures if Labor wins the next election.

The policy comes as the government handed the Australian Financial Complaints Authority the ability to consider complaints going back to January 1, 2008.

Under the Labor plan, banks will have to publicly report how they're meeting the recommendations from the banking royal commission.

"We'll make banking execs front up to parliament and explain what they are doing to clean up their act," Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said.

"The royal commission can't be left to gather dust on a bookshelf.

"We will continue the fight to make sure consumers are protected and the banks aren't let off the hook."

The four major banks and the regulators will have to develop plans to implement the royal commission's recommendations by August 1.

Then every six months they will all have to publicly report about their progress, and the chief executives of the banks will have to front up to explain themselves.

Labor wants parliament to sit for extra days in March to push through new laws ahead of the May election, otherwise they may not be in place until August.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced on Wednesday the complaints authority would now have a window between July 1 this year and June 30, 2020, to consider complaints dating back to January 1, 2008.

The new remit will cover complaints that have not previously been heard and which fall within AFCA's current monetary limits and compensation thresholds.

Current compensation thresholds are: $500,000 for consumers; $1 million for small businesses; and $2 million for primary producers.

Mr Frydenberg said such a move showed the government was committed to restoring trust in the financial system, while Labor was seeking to pull stunts.

"We already have systems in place for the banks to come and explain their case to the parliament," he said.

"And after two weeks we are still waiting for Labor's comprehensive response to the royal commission."


Share
2 min read

Published

Source: AAP


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world
Bank bosses to face public grillings | SBS News