THE Salvation Army has called calls on government and business to take immediate action on the reform agenda set by the Banking Royal Commission and the Senate Inquiry into Credit and Financial Services targeted at Australians at risk of financial hardship.

The Salvation Army is shining a light on a slew of predatory and unfair practices that persist almost 10 months after the Royal Commission and Senate Inquiry reports were handed down.

Head of The Salvation Army’s Moneycare, Tony Devlin, said the arrival of Anti-Poverty Week underlines the need for the recommendations to be pressed into action.

“It is still far too easy for the very people who can least afford it - those who are already struggling with debt - to get even further into financial trouble and debt when confronted with changed circumstances,” Mr Devlin said.

Salvation Army research paints a similarly gloomy picture, revealing that one quarter of participants in The Salvation Army’s Moneycare program experience extreme housing stress, with 16 percent experiencing energy stress. Participants spent at least 50 percent less on essential items such as food and health compared to average Australian households.

Law reform around predatory lending and increased funding for financial counselling services is particularly needed. The case for increased financial counselling services is strengthened by survey figures showing that more than 90 percent of participants in Moneycare’s financial counselling programs reported improved ability to handle their own financial situations and to resolve their financial difficulties.

“The vulnerable and desperate don’t need a pay day loan or a ‘buy now, pay later scheme,” Mr Devlin said.  "What is needed is financial counselling such as that offered by Moneycare which is holistic in its approach, which focuses on working with the person as a whole and builds long-term financial capability and resilience.”

Anyone in need of assistance is encouraged to contact The Salvation Army’s free and confidential Moneycare financial counselling service. For more information, call 1800 007 007 (National Debt Hotline) or visit salvationarmy.org.au/moneycare.

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THE REPEAL of legislation related to the former publicly-owned shipping company Australian National Line, which was sold to a French owner, highlights the ongoing failure of the Morrison Government’s to support a strong domestic shipping industry, according to the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA).

The primary aim of the ANL Legislation Repeal Bill, which passed the Senate last night, is to remove the legal protection for a number of business names formerly used by the Commonwealth shipping company, including: ANL; Australian National Line; Maritime Agencies of Australia; and Searoad.

The Maritime Union of Australia said the Federal Government had found time to debate legislation with the sole aim of allowing a foreign shipping company to use names that deceptively suggested they were based in Australia, but was missing in action when it came to protecting what remains of Australia’s domestic fleet.

“The Morrison Government has found the time to draw up legislation to allow the foreign owner of the former Commonwealth shipping line to use business names and domain names that deceptively suggest an ongoing link to Australian shipping, yet they’ve been unwilling to do anything to actually support the local industry or seafarers,” Maritime Union of Australia national secretary Paddy Crumlin said.

“ANL isn’t based in Australia, it no longer employs Australian seafarers, yet the Federal Government is passing legislation that is solely aimed at assisting this foreign business by removing restrictions on its use of deceptive business names likes Australian National Line and Maritime Agencies of Australia.

“It is embarrassing enough that the Australian National Line is no longer Australian, but it is truly insulting that the Morrison Government is putting more legislative effort into assisting this foreign company than they do to assist what remains of our domestic shipping industry.”

Mr Crumlin said the Federal Government should be focusing its energies on supporting Australia’s economic and national security by investing in the strengthening of our domestic shipping industry.

“The number of Australian-owned and crewed vessels is continuing to shrink, with thousands of jobs lost in recent decades,” Mr Crumlin said.

“Not only has this had substantial economic and social impacts, it has left our island nation extremely vulnerable to any global conflicts or economic shocks that may disrupt maritime trade.

“Rather than support Australian shipping, the Morrison Government has continued to issue licenses to foreign flag of convenience vessels to operate in our waters, supply our fuel, carry our resources, and move cargo around the coast.

“These vessels, which our nation is now almost entirely dependent on, are often registered in tax havens and crewed by exploited visa workers on as little as $2 per hour.

“There is a genuine crisis in Australian shipping, and it has potentially serious implications for all Australians, yet rather than take action, the Morrison Government is wasting their time with this insignificant and irrelevant legislation.”

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THE Joint Standing Committee on Migration is holding the first public hearing for its inquiry into migration in regional Australia in Canberra on October 16, 2019.

The committee will hear from the Department of Home Affairs, to discuss current regional migration settings and policy.

“This will be an excellent opportunity for the Committee to examine what visas and policies are currently in place to encourage migrants to settle and stay in regional areas,” said Julian Leeser MP, committee chair.

“This hearing will provide the committee with the necessary information on current policy before we hit the road to talk with people in regional areas about what is working to help migrant settle and stay in their communities.”

The first of these regional visits is scheduled to take place in Adelaide, Murray Bridge and Mount Gambier on November 18, 19 and 20.  Further details on the inquiry, including the terms of reference, are available on the inquiry website.

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THE House Economics Committee will scrutinise Macquarie, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, Bank of Queensland, Suncorp, Citi, and the Australian Banking Association at a public hearing in Canberra on November 29, 2019.

The chair of the committee, Tim Wilson MP, said, "These hearings are an important mechanism for the Parliament to publicly scrutinise and hold Australia’s banking sector to account.

"This will be the first time small banks appear before our Inquiry, whereas the big four appeared throughout the whole of the last Parliament.

"The committee’s scrutiny will include examining the banks’ progress in implementing the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry," Mr Wilson said.

"Given widespread misconduct in banking and financial services identified by the Hayne Royal Commission, it is important that the smaller banks and the Australian Banking Association are held accountable to ensure that they are making the crucial improvements needed to restore trust in the sector."

Public hearing details

Date: Friday, 29 November 2019
Time: 9.15am to 4.30pm
Location: Main Committee Room, Parliament House, Canberra

9.15am – Australian Banking Association
10.15am – Break
10.30am – Macquarie Group
11.30am – Bendigo and Adelaide Bank
12.30pm – Break
1.30pm – Bank of Queensland
2.30pm – Suncorp
3.30pm – Citi Australia
4.30pm – Close

The hearings will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live.

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