FOFA was originally introduced by the Gillard Labor government through the Corporations Amendment (Future of Financial Advice) Act 2012 and became mandatory on 1 July 2013 [1].
The Coalition government, elected in September 2013, announced changes to FOFA on 20 December 2013, citing the need to "reduce compliance costs and regulatory burden on the financial services sector" [2].
These amendments were implemented through regulations commencing 1 July 2014, though they were initially disallowed by the Senate on 19 November 2014 before being reinstated with bipartisan support through revised regulations in December 2014 and July 2015 [2].
具体 jù tǐ 修正案 xiū zhèng àn 包括 bāo kuò : :
The specific amendments included:
- Removing the "opt-in" obligation that required advice providers to renew client agreements every two years [3]
- Removing the requirement for fee disclosure statements to be sent to pre-1 July 2013 clients [3]
- Removing the "catch-all" element of the "safe harbour" for the best interests duty [3]
- Allowing general advice to be exempt from conflicted remuneration in some circumstances [3]
**Regarding the $140 billion figure:** No authoritative source could be found verifying this specific amount.
Superannuation fees are substantial—Australians paid over $32 billion in fees in 2023 and $10.2 billion in the year ended June 2024 [4][5]—but the specific claim of "$140 billion taken out" through FOFA amendments cannot be verified through government reports, parliamentary records, or mainstream media sources.
The claim omits several critical pieces of context:
1. **FOFA was originally Labor legislation:** The original consumer protection framework was introduced by the Gillard Labor government, not the Coalition [1].
The Coalition amended existing legislation rather than creating the regulatory environment from scratch.
2. **Bipartisan support for some amendments:** The revised regulations that were ultimately implemented received bipartisan support in the Senate [2].
3. **Policy rationale provided:** The government stated the amendments were intended to "ensure the integrity of the financial advice framework was maintained whilst delivering a system that offered affordable and accessible financial advice to the Australian community" [2].
The amendments aimed to facilitate "scaled advice"—limited advice on specific topics at lower cost.
4. **Banking Royal Commission revelations:** The 2017-2019 Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry (established by the Turnbull Coalition government) revealed widespread misconduct including fees charged without service and inappropriate erosion of member balances [6].
提供 tí gōng 的 de 原始 yuán shǐ 来源 lái yuán 是 shì Herald Herald Sun Sun ( ( heraldsun heraldsun . . com com . . au au ) ) , , News News Corp Corp Australia Australia 的 de 出版物 chū bǎn wù [ [ 7 7 ] ] 。 。
The original source provided is The Herald Sun (heraldsun.com.au), a News Corp Australia publication [7].
**Assessment:**
- The Herald Sun is a mainstream metropolitan newspaper based in Melbourne
- News Corp Australia publications have been widely documented as having a conservative editorial bias and generally supporting Coalition governments [8]
- The specific article from 2014 appears to be an opinion piece or commentary on superannuation protection
- While a mainstream source, News Corp's political alignment suggests potential bias in framing issues against the Coalition
The use of a News Corp source for a claim critical of the Coalition is notable, as this would typically be unexpected given the organization's general editorial stance.
* * * * 评估 píng gū : : * * * *
However, without access to the full article content, the specific framing and arguments cannot be fully assessed.
**Did Labor do something similar?**
Search conducted: "Labor government FOFA reforms 2012 financial advice consumer protection"
Finding: The original FOFA reforms were Labor's legislation.
* * * *
The Gillard government introduced FOFA in 2012 in response to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services' inquiry into financial products and services [1][3].
**Key differences:**
- Labor implemented the original consumer protection framework including the best interests duty, ban on conflicted remuneration, opt-in obligation, and fee disclosure requirements [3]
- The Coalition's amendments watered down some of these protections, particularly the opt-in requirement and fee disclosure obligations for existing clients
- The Banking Royal Commission later found misconduct occurred under both regulatory frameworks, suggesting the original FOFA protections were insufficient to prevent systemic problems
**Comparative context:**
Superannuation and financial advice fees have been a long-standing issue across multiple governments.
The $32 billion in superannuation fees paid in 2023 [4] demonstrates this is a systemic issue affecting Australians regardless of which party is in government.
Both Labor and Coalition governments have struggled to effectively regulate the financial services sector, as evidenced by the extensive misconduct revealed by the Banking Royal Commission [6].
While critics argued the Coalition's FOFA amendments weakened consumer protections [9], the government maintained the changes were necessary to reduce regulatory burden and make financial advice more affordable and accessible [2].
The subsequent Banking Royal Commission (2017-2019), established by the Coalition government itself, revealed widespread misconduct in the financial services sector including superannuation [6].
This suggests the problems in the sector were deeper than the specific FOFA amendments and occurred under both Labor's original framework and the Coalition's amended version.
While superannuation fees cost Australians billions annually ($32 billion in 2023 alone) [4], attributing a specific $140 billion loss to the FOFA amendments is unsubstantiated based on available evidence.
**Key context:** This is not entirely unique to the Coalition—financial services regulation has been a challenge for both major parties.
The original FOFA framework was Labor's creation, and the Banking Royal Commission revealed misconduct that predated and postdated the Coalition amendments.
原始 yuán shǐ FOFA FOFA 框架 kuāng jià 是 shì Labor Labor 的 de 创举 chuàng jǔ , , Banking Banking Royal Royal Commission Commission 揭示 jiē shì 的 de 不当 bù dàng 行为 xíng wéi 既 jì 早于 zǎo yú 也 yě 晚于 wǎn yú Coalition Coalition 的 de 修正案 xiū zhèng àn 。 。
The Coalition did amend the FOFA reforms to reduce certain consumer protection requirements, including removing the opt-in obligation and fee disclosure requirements for existing clients.
However, the specific claim of "$140 billion taken out of superannuation accounts" cannot be verified through authoritative sources.
该 gāi 说法 shuō fǎ 还 hái 忽略 hū lüè 了 le FOFA FOFA 最初 zuì chū 是 shì Labor Labor 的 de 立法 lì fǎ 、 、 部分 bù fèn 修正案 xiū zhèng àn 获得 huò dé 两党 liǎng dǎng 支持 zhī chí , , 以及 yǐ jí Banking Banking Royal Royal Commission Commission 揭示 jiē shì 的 de 在 zài 双方 shuāng fāng 监管 jiān guǎn 框架 kuāng jià 下 xià 都 dōu 发生 fā shēng 了 le 系统性 xì tǒng xìng 金融服务 jīn róng fú wù 不当 bù dàng 行为 xíng wéi 的 de 事实 shì shí 。 。
The claim also omits that FOFA was originally Labor's legislation, that some amendments received bipartisan support, and that systemic financial services misconduct occurred under both parties' regulatory frameworks as revealed by the Banking Royal Commission.
The Coalition did amend the FOFA reforms to reduce certain consumer protection requirements, including removing the opt-in obligation and fee disclosure requirements for existing clients.
However, the specific claim of "$140 billion taken out of superannuation accounts" cannot be verified through authoritative sources.
该 gāi 说法 shuō fǎ 还 hái 忽略 hū lüè 了 le FOFA FOFA 最初 zuì chū 是 shì Labor Labor 的 de 立法 lì fǎ 、 、 部分 bù fèn 修正案 xiū zhèng àn 获得 huò dé 两党 liǎng dǎng 支持 zhī chí , , 以及 yǐ jí Banking Banking Royal Royal Commission Commission 揭示 jiē shì 的 de 在 zài 双方 shuāng fāng 监管 jiān guǎn 框架 kuāng jià 下 xià 都 dōu 发生 fā shēng 了 le 系统性 xì tǒng xìng 金融服务 jīn róng fú wù 不当 bù dàng 行为 xíng wéi 的 de 事实 shì shí 。 。
The claim also omits that FOFA was originally Labor's legislation, that some amendments received bipartisan support, and that systemic financial services misconduct occurred under both parties' regulatory frameworks as revealed by the Banking Royal Commission.