FPA welcomes handing down of High quality of Recommendation Assessment last report back to Authorities

Mon nineteenth December 2022

The Monetary Planning Affiliation has welcomed Michelle Levy’s handing down of the ultimate report of the High quality of Recommendation Assessment to the Authorities, and eagerly awaits its findings by the Monetary Companies Minister, Stephen Jones.

FPA CEO, Sarah Abood, stated it’s essential the Minister strikes shortly to cut back the regulatory burden that monetary planners are beneath, which has seen important value added to the occupation over the previous 10 years.

“The Assessment is a crucial alternative to cut back the price of offering recommendation in Australia and enhance the flexibility of Australians to get entry to prime quality skilled monetary recommendation.

“Whereas we’re ready to see the ultimate suggestions, our members have been inspired by these made within the Proposal Paper earlier this yr, together with a extra principles-based method to regulating the availability of economic recommendation.

“The FPA believes the regulatory prices of offering private recommendation should come down, to assist enhance the affordability of recommendation for shoppers and guarantee there’s a stage taking part in discipline for the regulatory necessities and requirements imposed on recommendation suppliers.

“Additional, the regulatory atmosphere ought to facilitate the availability of straightforward private monetary recommendation to shoppers in an reasonably priced method by monetary planners and monetary planning practices, to satisfy shopper demand.”

The FPA says new regulatory necessities should:

• construct shopper belief within the several types of recommendation providers and advantages by means of excessive requirements, applicable schooling and coaching, efficient necessities and accountability, and clear regulation of the supplier, utilized constantly throughout the monetary providers sector,
• scale back enter prices into the availability of economic recommendation,
• facilitate a rise in monetary recommendation suppliers,
• guarantee energetic accountability for all monetary recommendation suppliers,
• keep constant shopper protections throughout the occupation, and
• be honest and equitable.

Ms Abood provides the influence on competitors within the monetary recommendation market should be a key consideration when inspecting the present authorized obligations and making suggestions for regulatory change, and should not present a structural aggressive benefit to at least one kind of supplier over one other.

“Importantly, solely ‘related suppliers’ who meet the skilled requirements needs to be legally permitted to make use of the phrases monetary planner and monetary adviser and like phrases,” she says.