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The financial services sector is already highly regulated according to Malcolm Turnbull who says Labor is overreacting to the recent problems. Courtesy ABC News 24.
Police have put out a call for any information relating to the murder of Melbourne grandmother Jeanette Moss, as they continue to search for the 69-year-old's killer.
One Australian is unaccounted for and seven others injured after a van mowed people down in a popular Barcelona tourist spot, killing more than a dozen people and injuring about 100 more.
The key crossbench senator says he will refer himself to the High Court and continue working after the shock discovery he is a British overseas citizen.
The financial services sector is already highly regulated according to Malcolm Turnbull who says Labor is overreacting to the recent problems. Courtesy ABC News 24.
Professor Ian Ramsay, who is chairing an independent review of the country's external dispute resolution scheme, says the number of consumers left suffering losses at the hands of Australia's financial firms is a sign the current system is not working.
"There's a strong element of unfairness here. These are people who have lost money, gone through the process of going through [the ombudsman], and getting a decision in their favour, and not being paid," he said.
Professor Ian Ramsay is chairing the review into external resolution schemes. Photo: Josh Robenstoe
"It's a double loss in a sense. You suffer the loss ... and then you don't get paid."
Almost $14 million in unpaid compensation is owed to victims of financial advice and misconduct, according to the panel's latest issues paper, released on Thursday.
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This includes consumers who have been deemed eligible for compensation by the ombudsman due to fraud, misconduct or bad advice but because of issues such as insolvency, have never been paid.
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"Most of these determinations are in the financial planning area, and a common reason for non-payment is bankruptcy or insolvency," Professor Ramsay said.
Treasurer Scott Morrison announced plans for a "one stop shop" for consumer complaints. Photo: Alex Ellinghausen
Under consideration are compensation schemes such as ex-gratia payments and schemes similar to those set up for asbestos and sexual abuse victims.
The panel is also considering whether the compensation scheme should be retrospective.
The Consumer Action Law Centre said any scheme should also apply to victims of dodgy credit providers as well as financial planners.
"Fourteen million is a huge amount for those people but for the sector as a whole it's a small price to pay to rebuild trust," policy officer Cat Newton said.
The panel will consider whether the scheme can be used in situations where a court or tribunal has ordered that a consumer or small business be compensated and this has not occurred.