The industry superannuation funds have signalled they will be continuing their long running campaign against financial planning commissions with Industry Funds Management chairman Garry Weaven claiming only the intellectual debate has been won.
Defying suggestions by other spokesmen in the financial services industry that the debate over commissions had been run and won by the industry funds, Weaven claimed there were those who had an agenda to “win the peace” by retaining commissions in another guise.
Participating in a panel discussion during an Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST) conference on the Gold Coast, Weaven said: “Commissions are not dead. We’ve only won the intellectual debate.”
His comments came as other speakers on the panel suggested that if the Coalition were able to form a minority Government then commissions would continue to exist irrespective of the moves undertaken by the planning industry.
Weaven and the other panellists were also critical of the Cooper Review’s MySuper proposal, warning that it represented a “dumbing down” of the superannuation system.
The chief executive of major industry fund Hostplus, David Elia, said the basic flaw in the MySuper proposal was that it was founded on a fundamental belief in lowest cost, which did not necessarily equate to the best outcome for superannuation fund members.
First Nations Australians have faced systemic barriers accessing super, with rigid ID checks, poor service, and delays compounding inequality.
“Slow and steady” appears to be the Reserve Bank’s approach to monetary policy as the board continues to hold on to its wait-and-see method.
AFCA’s latest data has shown a decline in complaints relating to superannuation, but there is further work to be done, it has warned super funds.
Limited exposure to fossil fuel companies has positively impacted the performance of Australian Ethical’s balanced and growth funds, the super fund says.