GOVERNMENTAL INVESTIGATIONS – AUSTRALIA

Another inquiry on family law mess

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Original article by Nicola Berkovic, Richard Ferguson
The Australian – Page: 4 : 18-Sep-19

Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced on 17 September that a joint select committee will conduct an inquiry into the family law system. The inquiry will be headed up by former social services minister Kevin Andrews and is expected to take a year to run. Morrison told the Coalition party room that the family law system is "an awful human mess’, while Law Council of Australia president Arthur Moses says the system is plagued by "systemic failures". Issues that the inquiry will look at include the system’s impact on children and the powers of judges to compel litigants to be truthful.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Top lawyers warn ASIC against hasty moves

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Original article by Hannah Wootton
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 33 : 23-Aug-19

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg recently indicated that the federal government aims to pass 40 pieces of legislation in response to the Hayne royal commission’s recommendations by the end of 2020. It wants 90 per cent of relevant legislation to be implemented by mid-2020. However, corporate lawyers have stated that problems could arise if the government and the Australian Securities & Investments Commission persist with their "ambitious deadlines" for implementing the commission’s recommendations.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

Greens, Labor urge Senate to dig deeper into press freedom

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Original article by Rachel Baxendale
The Australian – Page: 2 : 24-Jul-19

The Senate’s communications committee will hold its own inquiry into the issue of press freedom. The inquiry will have a broader scope than the one that is being undertaken by the parliamentary joint committee on intelligence and security. Labor’s Katy Gallagher says the second inquiry is necessary because unlike the PJCIS, the communications committee is not controlled by the Coalition. The inquiries come in the wake of controversial police raids on the ABC’s Sydney office and the home of a News Corp Australia journalist.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. SENATE STANDING COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT, COMMUNICATIONS, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND THE ARTS, AUSTRALIA. PARLIAMENTARY JOINT COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, CENTRE ALLIANCE, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE

Dragging the chain on Hayne

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 18-Jul-19

The Coalition began implementing some of the Hayne royal commission’s recommendations prior to the federal election. However, the government has warned that the bulk of the recommendations are unlikely to be implemented before the end of 2019, although Treasury has begun the consultation process and is drafting legislative reforms. Shadow treasurer Jim Chalmers says the government’s lack of action on Kenneth Hayne’s recommendations will reinforce the view that the Coalition tends to "go soft" on misconduct in the banking sector.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL COMPLAINTS AUTHORITY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

Media bosses in dark on charges

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Original article by Rosie Lewis
The Australian – Page: 4 : 4-Jul-19

Attorney-General Christian Porter and Communications Minister Paul Fletcher held talks with media industry representatives on 3 July. The meeting failed to ease the media sector’s concerns about Australian Federal Police raids on the ABC’s Sydney office and the home of a News Corp Australia journalist in early June, and whether journalists will face prosecution as a result of the raids. Media executives have also expressed reservations about the government’s plans for the parliamentary joint committee on intelligence and security to hold an inquiry into press freedom.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, SPECIAL BROADCASTING SERVICE (SBS), FREE TV AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. PARLIAMENTARY JOINT COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, CENTRE ALLIANCE

Press freedom probe backed

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Original article by Rosie Lewis, Zoe Samios
The Australian – Page: 2 : 3-Jul-19

The parliamentary joint committee on intelligence and security will undertake an inquiry into the impact of police and intelligence agencies’ powers on freedom of the press. The inquiry was approved by federal cabinet on 2 July, and follows the recent police raids on the ABC’s offices and the home of a News Corp Australia journalist. Labor proposes to establish a separate inquiry into press freedom and the public’s right to know, while media companies advocate changes to laws affecting freedom of the press rather than a parliamentary inquiry.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. PARLIAMENTARY JOINT COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS

Lack of action on high regional airfares disgraceful

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Original article by Jenny Wiggins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 3-Apr-19

An investigation by federal parliament’s rural and regional affairs and transport committee into regional air fares was due to report its findings in March 2018. However, it is now likely that it will not do so until after the federal election. Queensland MP Robbie Katter says there have been no cuts to regional air fares since the inquiry began in November 2017. Katter wants airlines to provide information to the government about how they determine air fares, while airlines have blamed airports for the high cost of regional airfares.

CORPORATES
KATTER’S AUSTRALIAN PARTY, QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, ALLIANCE AIRLINES PTY LTD, VIRGIN AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX VAH, AUSTRALIA. SENATE STANDING COMMITTEE ON RURAL AND REGIONAL AFFAIRS AND TRANSPORT

Hayne incites confusion over financial industry codes

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 18-Mar-19

Financial services industry codes have been designed by industry bodies such as the Australian Banking Association and the Financial Services Council. The banking code is enforceable through contracts between banks and customers, but codes covering non-banking financial services are not legally or contractually enforceable. One of the Hayne royal commission’s recommendations was that industry codes should be more legally enforceable, but governments, regulators and industry bodies are uncertain as to how to implement the recommendation.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, AUSTRALIAN BANKING ASSOCIATION, FINANCIAL SERVICES COUNCIL, INSURANCE COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL COMPLAINTS AUTHORITY, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

CBA shelves wealth sale on Hayne hit

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Original article by Richard Gluyas
The Australian – Page: 21 & 25 : 15-Mar-19

The Commonwealth Bank has advised that the divestment of its wealth and mortgage broking assets has been put on hold to allow it to focus on implementing the Hayne royal commission’s recommendations and its customer remediation program. National Australia Bank also recently indicated that it will postpone its proposed demerger of wealth manager MLC due to the fallout from the royal commission.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, COLONIAL FIRST STATE GROUP LIMITED, COLONIAL FIRST STATE GLOBAL ASSET MANAGEMENT, FINANCIAL WISDOM LIMITED, COUNT FINANCIAL LIMITED, AUSSIE HOME LOANS LIMITED, MLC LIMITED, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, IOOF HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX IFL, MITSUBISHI UFJ TRUST AND BANKING INCORPORATION, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC

Labor fully committed to Hayne

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 12-Mar-19

Shadow financial services minister Clare O’Neil will use a Committee for Sydney speech on 12 March to reveal that Labor will reject only one recommendation in the Hayne royal commission’s final report if it wins the upcoming federal election. Labor has joined the Coalition in opposing the proposal to shift the cost of mortgage brokers’ fees from lenders to borrowers. Labor has previously only expressed in-principle support for many of Kenneth Hayne’s recommendations.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, COMMITTEE FOR SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION