LIF bill back on table this week
The Federal Government will be looking to re-introduce the Life Insurance Framework (LIF) into parliament on Thursday, with the Association of Financial Advisers' (AFA) members voting to retain the lobbying power of the association last week, according to Kelly O'Dwyer.
Speaking at a media doorstop at the AFA 2016 National Adviser Conference in Canberra last week, the minister for revenue and financial services said the government did not want to exacerbate the underinsurance problem in Australia but wanted to ensure conflicts in advice provided were abolished when it came to life insurance products.
"There are a number of issues that this government has taken out of the too hard basket. Life insurance framework changes are actually one of them," O'Dwyer said.
"It could've been tackled during the FOFA [Future of Financial Advice] reforms. It wasn't.
"I think it's fair to say that the government only makes those changes and reforms that it thinks are absolutely necessary."
On the topic of professional standards, O'Dwyer said the government had formed an agreement with the banks to fund the government statutory body responsible for overseeing the professional standards, including the ethical standards and exams.
"You'd be aware that we have a lot of industries stakeholder consultation before the election. We're going to proceed with the next round of consultations on those reforms," she said.
"The government is looking to actually have that legislation drafted in Parliament before too long."
Recommended for you
TAL has introduced four new courses to its Risk Academy focused on ethical dilemmas as part of Ethics Month to help advisers meet their CPD requirements.
Unadvised Australians believe they need $2 million to retire comfortably, according to Colonial First State, a wide variance compared to advised individuals which estimate $1.3 million.
Financial advisers can now access Vanguard’s diversified managed account strategies on HUB24 and Netwealth, marking a “significant expansion” through new distribution channels.
The heads of two financial advice licensees have joined the board of the Financial Services Council as it looks to deepen its engagement with the space and strengthen its representation.
