Liberal senator Andrew Bragg says Treasurer Jim Chalmers has been undermining the inquiry into the nation’s corporate regulator, after a damning report found the Australian Securities and Investments Commission is not working, letting down millions of investors and failing to chase business and financial service criminals.
Yesterday, a Senate investigation led by Bragg into ASIC demanded that the 33-year-old commission be split into a regulator and a financial conduct investigator, revealing it failed to deliver justice to mum and dad investors while its timid legal approach did not deter criminal behaviour.
Liberal senator Andrew BraggCredit: Alex Ellinghausen
Speaking this morning on ABC Radio National, Bragg said he did not agree with Chalmers’ assessment that he was being too partisan about ASIC.
“The reality is that [Chalmers] has obstructed this inquiry, he fought public interest immunity claims to stop the Senate from getting key evidence, and he worked with ASIC to undermine the power from day one,” Bragg said.
Loading
“Labor voted against the inquiry.”
Bragg also advocated for greater protection of whistleblowers within ASIC.
“I think whistleblowers take huge personal risks, to try and do the right thing, I think whistleblowers are treated appallingly in this country, so if whistleblowers come forward and that leads to fines and prosecutions, I think they could be rewarded,” he said.
“It really worries me that when people have taken risks to come forward to report appalling behaviour inside institutions, they’re treated like dirt. So we’ve got to do a better job there and the pendulum has to swing.”
Source Agencies
