Credit advice ‘pretty much sorted’: Assistant Treasurer

In an exclusive interview with ifa – a sister brand of Mortgage Business – the Assistant Treasurer and Financial Services Minister Stephen Jones MP revealed that he believes Australia has a strong mortgage advice offering.

When asked about how younger Australians could be accessing financial advice, Mr Jones flagged that – for most people aged between 20 and 40 – the “principal form/type of financial advice they’re going to be after is: ‘Where do I get the best home loan?’”

He continued: “There’s no shortage of mortgage brokers. [W]hen we’re talking about advice, [people] seem to forget there is a group of credit advisers out there called mortgage brokers and there’s a lot of them and they’re competing with each other and the banks to provide a decent service to their customers.

“I think we’ve got credit advice, at least in the mortgage space ... pretty much sorted there.”

However, the Financial Services Minister added that he believes there is an opportunity to help anyone who may have come into an inheritance or had a large capital gain to access “once-off” financial advice.

He explained: “I think we’ve got to do something with that group as well. And they probably only need once-off advice.

“They don’t need to be having an ongoing contract with a financial adviser. So I’ve got to find a way of dealing with that issue as well. Because another job of work I’ve got going on is around frauds and scams. And I figure if we don’t find a safe place for this group of people, there’ll be hunting season for the scammers.”

In closing, Mr Jones sent a candid message to advisers in the financial services space, assuring them that he “gets it” and believes in “the work you do”.

“You’ve got a minister who gets it, who’s keen on working with the profession. Yeah, I believe in the work you do, but I’m actually motivated by the people you’re serving and their needs,” Mr Jones said.

"So, we’ve got a lot of Australians who will increasingly be relying on advisers and advice to make good decisions. Let’s ensure that we can help Australians make their money work better for them.”

You can find out more about Mr Jones’ thoughts on the future of financial advice, the government’s response to the Quality of Advice Review (QAR) and the potential re-entry of banks and insurers into the advice sector, in the Mortgage and Finance Leader podcast, below:

[Related: EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Shadow financial services minister and shadow assistant treasurer, Stephen Jones MP]