Superfunds giants could face one of the largest class actions in Australian history...

Transcription

1 WED 12 SEPTEMBER 2018 Mediaportal Report Superfunds giants could face one of the largest class actions in Australian history.... Channel 7, Melbourne, Sunrise, David Koch, Sam Armytage, Natalie Barr, Mark Beretta 12 Sep :32 AM Duration: 0 min 33 secs ASR AUD 31,939 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Superfunds giants could face one of the largest class actions in Australian history. Following revelations at the royal banking commission, Slater and Gordon is launching claims against superfunds owned by big banks. It is said that up to five million Australians could get their money as part of this legal action. CBA, AMP and Colonial First State are the ones being accused by Slater and Gordon. 391,000 All, 153,000 MALE 16+, 231,000 FEMALE 16+ Also broadcast from the following 43 stations Central GTS/BKN Port Lincoln (Port Lincoln), Central GTS/BKN Port Pirie (Spencer Gulf), Channel 7 (Sydney), Channel 7 (Brisbane), Channel 7 (Adelaide), Channel 7 (Perth), GWN7 (Perth), Prime7 ACT (Canberra), Prime7 Albury (Albury), Prime7 Armidale (Armidale), Prime7 Ballarat (Ballarat), Prime7 Bendigo (Bendigo), Prime7 Coffs Harbour (Coffs Harbour), Prime7 Cooma (Cooma), Prime7 Dubbo (Dubbo), Prime7 Gippsland (Sale), Prime7 Gold Coast (Gold Coast), Prime7 Griffith (Griffith), Prime7 Mildura (Mildura), Prime7 Moree (Moree), Prime7 Newcastle (Newcastle), Prime7 North Coast (Lismore), Prime7 Orange (Orange), Prime7 Shepparton (Shepparton), Prime7 Swan Hill (Swan Hill), Prime7 Tamworth (Tamworth), Prime7 Taree (Manning River), Prime7 Wagga Wagga (Wagga Wagga), Prime7 Warrnambool (Warrnambool), Prime7 Wollongong (Wollongong), Seven Bundaberg (Bundaberg), Seven Cairns (Cairns), Seven Central (Alice Springs), Seven Mackay (Mackay), Seven Mt Isa (Mt Isa), Seven Rockhampton (Rockhampton), Seven Sunshine Coast (Sunshine Coast), Seven Toowoomba (Toowoomba), Seven Townsville (Townsville), Southern Cross Central (Alice Springs), Southern Cross Darwin (Darwin), Southern Cross GTS/BKN Broken Hill (Port Pirie), Southern Cross Tasmania (Hobart) COPYRIGHT This report and its contents are for the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only and must not be provided to any third party by any means for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia and/or the relevant copyright owner. For more information contact copyright@isentia.com DISCLAIMER Isentia makes no representations and, to the extent permitted by law, excludes all warranties in relation to the information contained in the report and is not liable for any losses, costs or expenses, resulting from any use or misuse of the report.

2 The father of a down syndrome man who was sold a life insurance policy under duress... Channel 9, Melbourne, Today, Karl Stefanovic, Sylvia Jeffreys and Tim Gilbert 12 Sep :06 AM Duration: 0 min 50 secs ASR AUD 28,082 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X The father of a down syndrome man who was sold a life insurance policy under duress has spoken out against the horrific culture of cold calling on the financial sector. Grant Stewart has told the Banking Royal Commission that when he rang Freedom Insurance to cancel his son's policy, they have tried to persuade to keep it. The Royal Commission resumes today. 389,000 All, 156,000 MALE 16+, 222,000 FEMALE 16+ Interviewees Grant Stewart, Father Also broadcast from the following 38 stations Channel 9 (Adelaide), Channel 9 (Brisbane), Channel 9 (Perth), Channel 9 (Sydney), Channel 9 Darwin (Darwin), GEM (Perth), GEM (Regional West Australia), Imparja Alice Springs (Alice Springs), Imparja Longreach (Longreach), Imparja Mt Isa (Mt Isa), NBN Central Coast (Gosford), NBN Coffs Harbour (Coffs Harbour), NBN Gold Coast (Gold Coast), NBN Lismore (Lismore), NBN Moree (Upper Namoi), NBN Newcastle Hunter (Newcastle), NBN Tamworth (Tamworth), NBN Taree (Taree), Southern Cross ACT (Canberra), Southern Cross Albury (Albury), Southern Cross Bundaberg (Bundaberg), Southern Cross Cairns (Cairns), Southern Cross Mackay (Mackay), Southern Cross Rockhampton (Rockhampton), Southern Cross Shepparton (Shepparton), Southern Cross Toowoomba (Toowoomba), Southern Cross Townsville (Townsville), Southern Cross Victoria Ballarat (Ballarat), Southern Cross Victoria Bendigo (Bendigo), Southern Cross Victoria Gippsland (Sale), Southern Cross Victoria Swan Hill (Swan Hill), Southern Cross Victoria Warrnambool (Warrnambool), Southern Cross Wagga Wagga (Wagga Wagga), Southern Cross Wollongong (Wollongong), Tasmania Digital Television (Hobart), West Digital Television (Albany), WIN Mildura (Mildura), WIN Orange (Orange) Superfunds giants could face one of the largest class actions in Australian history.... Channel 7, Melbourne, Sunrise, David Koch, Sam Armytage, Natalie Barr, Mark Beretta 12 Sep :04 AM Duration: 1 min 35 secs ASR AUD 101,745 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Superfunds giants could face one of the largest class actions in Australian history. Following revelations at the royal banking commission, Slater and Gordon is launching claims against superfunds owned by big banks. Ben Hardwick, Slater and Gordon, says that the trustees have charged people with excessive fees. 522,000 All, 209,000 MALE 16+, 302,000 FEMALE 16+ Interviewees Ben Hardwick, Slater and Gordon Vision AMP, CBA Also broadcast from the following 43 stations Central GTS/BKN Port Lincoln (Port Lincoln), Central GTS/BKN Port Pirie (Spencer Gulf), Channel 7 (Sydney), Channel 7 (Brisbane), Channel 7 (Adelaide), Channel 7 (Perth), GWN7 (Perth), Prime7 ACT (Canberra), Prime7 Albury (Albury), Prime7 Armidale (Armidale), Prime7 Ballarat (Ballarat), Prime7 Bendigo (Bendigo), Prime7 Coffs Harbour (Coffs Harbour), Prime7 Cooma (Cooma), Prime7 Dubbo (Dubbo), Prime7 Gippsland (Sale), Prime7 Gold Coast (Gold Coast), Prime7 Griffith (Griffith), Prime7 Mildura (Mildura), Prime7 Moree (Moree), Prime7 Newcastle (Newcastle), Prime7 North Coast (Lismore), Prime7 Orange (Orange), Prime7 Shepparton (Shepparton), Prime7 Swan Hill (Swan Hill), Prime7 Tamworth (Tamworth), Prime7 Taree (Manning River), Prime7 Wagga Wagga (Wagga Wagga), Prime7 Warrnambool (Warrnambool), Prime7 Wollongong (Wollongong), Seven Bundaberg (Bundaberg), Seven Cairns (Cairns), Seven Central (Alice Springs), Seven Mackay (Mackay), Seven Mt Isa (Mt Isa), Seven Rockhampton (Rockhampton), Seven Sunshine Coast (Sunshine Coast), Seven Toowoomba (Toowoomba), Seven Townsville (Townsville), Southern Cross Central (Alice Springs), Southern Cross Darwin (Darwin), Southern Cross GTS/BKN Broken Hill (Port Pirie), Southern Cross Tasmania (Hobart) COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

3 Newspaper Headlines... Sky News Live, Sydney, First Edition, Brooke Corte and Kieran Gilbert 12 Sep :43 AM Duration: 1 min 38 secs ASR AUD 817 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Newspaper Headlines The Australian - Mark Knight cartoon controversy. Financial Review - Direct life insurance on the ropes regarding Banking Royal Commission. The Sydney Morning Herald - Tyrell case referred to the coroner. The Age - Dutton v Quaedvlieg. The Mercury - An explosive conversation between Tas Treasurer and then-treasurer Scott Morrison. Cairns Post - The highway pledge from Bill Shorten. 19,000 All, 8,000 MALE 16+, 10,000 FEMALE 16+ Also broadcast from the following 9 stations Sky News Live (Melbourne), Sky News Live (Canberra), Sky News Live (Brisbane), Sky News Live (Adelaide), Sky News Live (Perth), Sky News Live (Regional NSW), Sky News Live (Regional Queensland), Sky News Live (Regional Victoria), Sky News Live (Tasmania) Interview with Slater and Gordon Ben Hardwick. Armytage says that superfunds giants... Channel 7, Melbourne, Sunrise, David Koch, Sam Armytage, Natalie Barr, Mark Beretta Duration: 2 mins 58 secs ASR AUD 172,251 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Sep :21 AM Interview with Slater and Gordon Ben Hardwick. Armytage says that superfunds giants could face one of the largest class actions in Australian history. She mentions that Slater and Gordon is launching claims against superfunds owned by big banks. She notes that up to five million Australians could get their money as part of this legal action. She adds that CBA, AMP and Colonial First State are the ones being accused by Slater and Gordon. Hardwick says that the trustees have charged people with excessive fees. He notes that up to five million Australians may be able to join these series of class action. He mentions that the amount people can get is based on the amount of their superannuation. He notes that the Slater and Gordon lawyers won't get paid by percentage as they will only be paid by the hour. 394,000 All, 159,000 MALE 16+, 225,000 FEMALE 16+ Interviewees Ben Hardwick, Slater and Gordon Vision CBA Also broadcast from the following 43 stations Central GTS/BKN Port Lincoln (Port Lincoln), Central GTS/BKN Port Pirie (Spencer Gulf), Channel 7 (Sydney), Channel 7 (Brisbane), Channel 7 (Adelaide), Channel 7 (Perth), GWN7 (Perth), Prime7 ACT (Canberra), Prime7 Albury (Albury), Prime7 Armidale (Armidale), Prime7 Ballarat (Ballarat), Prime7 Bendigo (Bendigo), Prime7 Coffs Harbour (Coffs Harbour), Prime7 Cooma (Cooma), Prime7 Dubbo (Dubbo), Prime7 Gippsland (Sale), Prime7 Gold Coast (Gold Coast), Prime7 Griffith (Griffith), Prime7 Mildura (Mildura), Prime7 Moree (Moree), Prime7 Newcastle (Newcastle), Prime7 North Coast (Lismore), Prime7 Orange (Orange), Prime7 Shepparton (Shepparton), Prime7 Swan Hill (Swan Hill), Prime7 Tamworth (Tamworth), Prime7 Taree (Manning River), Prime7 Wagga Wagga (Wagga Wagga), Prime7 Warrnambool (Warrnambool), Prime7 Wollongong (Wollongong), Seven Bundaberg (Bundaberg), Seven Cairns (Cairns), Seven Central (Alice Springs), Seven Mackay (Mackay), Seven Mt Isa (Mt Isa), Seven Rockhampton (Rockhampton), Seven Sunshine Coast (Sunshine Coast), Seven Toowoomba (Toowoomba), Seven Townsville (Townsville), Southern Cross Central (Alice Springs), Southern Cross Darwin (Darwin), Southern Cross GTS/BKN Broken Hill (Port Pirie), Southern Cross Tasmania (Hobart) COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

4 Interview with Grant Stewart, witness, Royal Commission into Banking. Disturbing... Channel 9, Melbourne, Today, Karl Stefanovic, Georgie Gardner, Sylvia Jeffreys, Tim Gilbert 12 Sep :20 AM Duration: 6 mins 4 secs ASR AUD 180,151 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Interview with Grant Stewart, witness, Royal Commission into Banking. Disturbing evidence has been heard from the Royal Commission into Banking as it turned its attention to the insurance industry. Many have been shocked by the audio of a salesman from Freedom Insurance really pushing a 26yo man with Down Syndrome to sign up. Gardner plays an audio clip where Stewart had to coach his son through cancelling the policy. Stewart provides a ground as to how his son came to take out the policy, recalling the calls he was receiving from salespeople from Freedom Insurance. Stewart clarifies that it was a random call, and that he did not seek out the insurance company. Stewart says it has been disturbing call done in a manipulative way. Stewart says his son felt guilty about what he did, and adds he has become wary since. Stewart says it has been a complicated process, and he adds he got some advice on Consumer Action on what to do. Stewart also confirms that the salespeople have tried to prevent him from cancelling despite him explaining that his son had Down Syndrome. Stewart says the bigger picture is beyond their own experience, and he hopes to stop something like it happening to others. Stefanovic says he was astounded when he heard the call, commenting it was appalling. Stefanovic also recalls that the government, including Prime Minister Scott Morrison, did not want to have a Royal Commission into Banking. 303,000 All, 127,000 MALE 16+, 170,000 FEMALE 16+ Interviewees Grant Stewart, witness, Royal Commission into Banking Also broadcast from the following 38 stations Channel 9 (Adelaide), Channel 9 (Brisbane), Channel 9 (Perth), Channel 9 (Sydney), Channel 9 Darwin (Darwin), GEM (Perth), GEM (Regional West Australia), Imparja Alice Springs (Alice Springs), Imparja Longreach (Longreach), Imparja Mt Isa (Mt Isa), NBN Central Coast (Gosford), NBN Coffs Harbour (Coffs Harbour), NBN Gold Coast (Gold Coast), NBN Lismore (Lismore), NBN Moree (Upper Namoi), NBN Newcastle Hunter (Newcastle), NBN Tamworth (Tamworth), NBN Taree (Taree), Southern Cross ACT (Canberra), Southern Cross Albury (Albury), Southern Cross Bundaberg (Bundaberg), Southern Cross Cairns (Cairns), Southern Cross Mackay (Mackay), Southern Cross Rockhampton (Rockhampton), Southern Cross Shepparton (Shepparton), Southern Cross Toowoomba (Toowoomba), Southern Cross Townsville (Townsville), Southern Cross Victoria Ballarat (Ballarat), Southern Cross Victoria Bendigo (Bendigo), Southern Cross Victoria Gippsland (Sale), Southern Cross Victoria Swan Hill (Swan Hill), Southern Cross Victoria Warrnambool (Warrnambool), Southern Cross Wagga Wagga (Wagga Wagga), Southern Cross Wollongong (Wollongong), Tasmania Digital Television (Hobart), West Digital Television (Albany), WIN Mildura (Mildura), WIN Orange (Orange) COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

5 Newspaper Headlines... ABC News, Sydney, News Breakfast, Michael Rowland, Madeleine Morris and Georgie Tunny 12 Sep :15 AM Duration: 1 min 56 secs ASR AUD 20,726 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Newspaper Headlines - The Australian: A boy drowned in the Swan River following police chase. - ABC News: Domestic violence advocates believe there's a crisis after a third family died in a mass killing. - The Age: Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton used parliamentary privilege to escalate the feud with former Border Force chief Roman Quaedvlieg. - The Guardian: A new Climate Institute shows voters want action on climate change and Australia to remain in the Paris agreement. - The Mercury: Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull had to sideline Scott Morrison during GST negotiations after an expletive-laden tirade against his Tas counterpart. - The Sydney Morning Herald: Grocery costs will rise if the drought wipes out millions of tons of NSW crops. - The Financial Review: The direct life insurance model is on the ropes following allegations of worthless products and illegal sales methods in the Royal Commission. - The NT News: A fire tore through several properties at Humpty Doo yesterday. - The Advertiser: New figures show more than a quarter of year 12 students in the SA public system don't complete their HSC. - The Daily Telegraph: Carolina Gonzales has spoken about the death of her gangster husband. - The Canberra Times: Residents in the property sector are at odds over appeal rights on new property developments. - The Courier Mail: A nine-year-old has taken the controversial stance of kneeling for the national anthem at her school. - The Herald Sun: The paper defends star cartoonist Mark Knight for his internationally criticised Serena Williams cartoon. 184,000 All, 100,000 MALE 16+, 85,000 FEMALE 16+ Also broadcast from the following 22 stations ABC (Hobart), ABC (Darwin), ABC (Sydney), ABC (Brisbane), ABC (Adelaide), ABC (Melbourne), ABC (Perth), ABC (Canberra), ABC (Regional Queensland), ABC (Regional Victoria), ABC (Regional NSW), ABC (Albany), ABC News (Melbourne), ABC News (Regional NSW), ABC News (Brisbane), ABC News (Adelaide), ABC News (Perth), ABC News (Regional Queensland), ABC News (Hobart), ABC News (Canberra), ABC News (Regional Victoria), ABC News (Regional West Australia) COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

6 Superfunds giants could face one of the largest class actions in Australian history.... Channel 7, Melbourne, Sunrise, David Koch, Sam Armytage, Natalie Barr, Mark Beretta 12 Sep :06 AM Duration: 1 min 18 secs ASR AUD 75,479 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Superfunds giants could face one of the largest class actions in Australian history. Following revelations at the royal banking commission, Slater and Gordon is launching claims against superfunds owned by big banks. 394,000 All, 159,000 MALE 16+, 225,000 FEMALE 16+ Vision AMP, ANZ, CBA, NAB, Westpac Also broadcast from the following 43 stations Central GTS/BKN Port Lincoln (Port Lincoln), Central GTS/BKN Port Pirie (Spencer Gulf), Channel 7 (Sydney), Channel 7 (Brisbane), Channel 7 (Adelaide), Channel 7 (Perth), GWN7 (Perth), Prime7 ACT (Canberra), Prime7 Albury (Albury), Prime7 Armidale (Armidale), Prime7 Ballarat (Ballarat), Prime7 Bendigo (Bendigo), Prime7 Coffs Harbour (Coffs Harbour), Prime7 Cooma (Cooma), Prime7 Dubbo (Dubbo), Prime7 Gippsland (Sale), Prime7 Gold Coast (Gold Coast), Prime7 Griffith (Griffith), Prime7 Mildura (Mildura), Prime7 Moree (Moree), Prime7 Newcastle (Newcastle), Prime7 North Coast (Lismore), Prime7 Orange (Orange), Prime7 Shepparton (Shepparton), Prime7 Swan Hill (Swan Hill), Prime7 Tamworth (Tamworth), Prime7 Taree (Manning River), Prime7 Wagga Wagga (Wagga Wagga), Prime7 Warrnambool (Warrnambool), Prime7 Wollongong (Wollongong), Seven Bundaberg (Bundaberg), Seven Cairns (Cairns), Seven Central (Alice Springs), Seven Mackay (Mackay), Seven Mt Isa (Mt Isa), Seven Rockhampton (Rockhampton), Seven Sunshine Coast (Sunshine Coast), Seven Toowoomba (Toowoomba), Seven Townsville (Townsville), Southern Cross Central (Alice Springs), Southern Cross Darwin (Darwin), Southern Cross GTS/BKN Broken Hill (Port Pirie), Southern Cross Tasmania (Hobart) Superfunds giants could face one of the largest class actions in Australian history.... Channel 7, Melbourne, Sunrise, David Koch, Sam Armytage, Natalie Barr, Mark Beretta 12 Sep :31 AM Duration: 0 min 29 secs ASR AUD 28,065 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Superfunds giants could face one of the largest class actions in Australian history. Following revelations at the royal banking commission, Slater and Gordon is launching claims against superfunds owned by big banks. It is said that up to five million Australians could get their money as part of this legal action. CBA, AMP and Colonial First State are the ones being accused by Slater and Gordon. 394,000 All, 159,000 MALE 16+, 225,000 FEMALE 16+ Also broadcast from the following 43 stations Central GTS/BKN Port Lincoln (Port Lincoln), Central GTS/BKN Port Pirie (Spencer Gulf), Channel 7 (Sydney), Channel 7 (Brisbane), Channel 7 (Adelaide), Channel 7 (Perth), GWN7 (Perth), Prime7 ACT (Canberra), Prime7 Albury (Albury), Prime7 Armidale (Armidale), Prime7 Ballarat (Ballarat), Prime7 Bendigo (Bendigo), Prime7 Coffs Harbour (Coffs Harbour), Prime7 Cooma (Cooma), Prime7 Dubbo (Dubbo), Prime7 Gippsland (Sale), Prime7 Gold Coast (Gold Coast), Prime7 Griffith (Griffith), Prime7 Mildura (Mildura), Prime7 Moree (Moree), Prime7 Newcastle (Newcastle), Prime7 North Coast (Lismore), Prime7 Orange (Orange), Prime7 Shepparton (Shepparton), Prime7 Swan Hill (Swan Hill), Prime7 Tamworth (Tamworth), Prime7 Taree (Manning River), Prime7 Wagga Wagga (Wagga Wagga), Prime7 Warrnambool (Warrnambool), Prime7 Wollongong (Wollongong), Seven Bundaberg (Bundaberg), Seven Cairns (Cairns), Seven Central (Alice Springs), Seven Mackay (Mackay), Seven Mt Isa (Mt Isa), Seven Rockhampton (Rockhampton), Seven Sunshine Coast (Sunshine Coast), Seven Toowoomba (Toowoomba), Seven Townsville (Townsville), Southern Cross Central (Alice Springs), Southern Cross Darwin (Darwin), Southern Cross GTS/BKN Broken Hill (Port Pirie), Southern Cross Tasmania (Hobart) COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

7 The Banking Royal Commission has heard insurer Freedom Insurance offered its staff... MIX FM 102.3, Adelaide, 06:30 News, Newsreader 12 Sep :31 AM Duration: 0 min 21 secs ASR AUD 156 SA Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X The Banking Royal Commission has heard insurer Freedom Insurance offered its staff cash, luxury cruises, Vespa scooters, and Bali holidays to beat sales targets. It's revealed among the customers they have signed up were a man with down syndrome and a woman whose policy covered 29 different people. 25,000 All, 7,000 MALE 16+, 15,000 FEMALE 16+ Newspaper Headlines... ABC News, Sydney, News Breakfast, Michael Rowland, Madeleine Morris and Georgie Tunny 12 Sep :17 AM Duration: 2 mins 0 sec ASR AUD 9,716 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Newspaper Headlines - The Australian: A boy drowned in the Swan River following police chase. - ABC News: WA Police describes the drowning of a boy during a pursuit as nothing short of a tragedy. - The Age: Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton used parliamentary privilege to escalate the feud with former Border Force chief Roman Quaedvlieg. - The Guardian: A new Climate Institute shows voters want action on climate change and Australia to remain in the Paris agreement. - The Mercury: Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull had to sideline Scott Morrison during GST negotiations after an expletive-laden tirade against his Tas counterpart. - The Sydney Morning Herald: Grocery costs will rise if the drought wipes out millions of tons of NSW crops. - The Financial Review: The direct life insurance model is on the ropes following allegations of worthless products and illegal sales methods in the Royal Commission. - The NT News: A fire tore through several properties at Humpty Doo yesterday. - The Advertiser: new figures show more than a quarter of year 12 students in the SA public system don't complete their HSC. - The Daily Telegraph: Carolina Gonzales has spoken about the death of her gangster husband. - The Canberra Times: Residents in the property sector are at odds over appeal rights on new property developments. - The Courier Mail: A nine-year-old has taken the controversial stance of kneeling for the national anthem at her school. - The Herald Sun: The paper defends star cartoonist Mark Knight for his internationally criticised Serena Williams cartoon. 74,000 All, 43,000 MALE 16+, 32,000 FEMALE 16+ Also broadcast from the following 22 stations ABC (Hobart), ABC (Darwin), ABC (Sydney), ABC (Brisbane), ABC (Adelaide), ABC (Melbourne), ABC (Perth), ABC (Canberra), ABC (Regional Queensland), ABC (Regional Victoria), ABC (Regional NSW), ABC (Albany), ABC News (Melbourne), ABC News (Regional NSW), ABC News (Brisbane), ABC News (Adelaide), ABC News (Perth), ABC News (Regional Queensland), ABC News (Hobart), ABC News (Canberra), ABC News (Regional Victoria), ABC News (Regional West Australia) COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

8 Program Preview... Channel 9, Melbourne, Today, Karl Stefanovic, Sylvia Jeffreys and Tim Gilbert 12 Sep :17 AM Duration: 0 min 22 secs ASR AUD 8,065 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Program Preview - Royal Commission into Banking. - School girl boycotting the National Anthem. - Jersey Boys live performance. 141,000 All, 65,000 MALE 16+, 74,000 FEMALE 16+ Also broadcast from the following 38 stations Channel 9 (Adelaide), Channel 9 (Brisbane), Channel 9 (Perth), Channel 9 (Sydney), Channel 9 Darwin (Darwin), GEM (Perth), GEM (Regional West Australia), Imparja Alice Springs (Alice Springs), Imparja Longreach (Longreach), Imparja Mt Isa (Mt Isa), NBN Central Coast (Gosford), NBN Coffs Harbour (Coffs Harbour), NBN Gold Coast (Gold Coast), NBN Lismore (Lismore), NBN Moree (Upper Namoi), NBN Newcastle Hunter (Newcastle), NBN Tamworth (Tamworth), NBN Taree (Taree), Southern Cross ACT (Canberra), Southern Cross Albury (Albury), Southern Cross Bundaberg (Bundaberg), Southern Cross Cairns (Cairns), Southern Cross Mackay (Mackay), Southern Cross Rockhampton (Rockhampton), Southern Cross Shepparton (Shepparton), Southern Cross Toowoomba (Toowoomba), Southern Cross Townsville (Townsville), Southern Cross Victoria Ballarat (Ballarat), Southern Cross Victoria Bendigo (Bendigo), Southern Cross Victoria Gippsland (Sale), Southern Cross Victoria Swan Hill (Swan Hill), Southern Cross Victoria Warrnambool (Warrnambool), Southern Cross Wagga Wagga (Wagga Wagga), Southern Cross Wollongong (Wollongong), Tasmania Digital Television (Hobart), West Digital Television (Albany), WIN Mildura (Mildura), WIN Orange (Orange) Newspaper Headlines... Sky News Live, Sydney, First Edition - Early, Brooke Corte and Kieran Gilbert 12 Sep :11 AM Duration: 1 min 54 secs ASR AUD 300 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Newspaper Headlines The Australian - Police chase ended in tragedy in Perth. Financial Review - Direct life insurance on the ropes [regarding Banking Royal Commission] The Sydney Morning Herald - The new aged care watchdog. The Age - Low literacy and numeral skills affecting job seekers. The Mercury - An explosive conversation between Tas Treasurer and then-treasurer Scott Morrison. Cairns Post - The highway pledge from Bill Shorten. 6,000 All, 4,000 MALE 16+, 2,000 FEMALE 16+ Also broadcast from the following 9 stations Sky News Live (Melbourne), Sky News Live (Canberra), Sky News Live (Brisbane), Sky News Live (Adelaide), Sky News Live (Perth), Sky News Live (Regional NSW), Sky News Live (Regional Queensland), Sky News Live (Regional Victoria), Sky News Live (Tasmania) COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

9 Program Preview... Radio National, Canberra, Breakfast (Early), Fran Kelly 12 Sep :05 AM Duration: 2 mins 0 sec ASR AUD 43,213 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Program Preview - Discussion about Peter Dutton unleashing on Roman Quaedvlieg over the au pair affair. - Discussion on how a young man with down syndrome was coerced into life insurance that he did not understand. - Discussion on a New York trader's reflection over the collapse of Lehman Brothers. - Kelly mentions the Parliament witnessing a dramatic disintegration of a once close friendship when Home Affairs Minister Dutton unleashed a scathing attack on his former Qld colleague and the man he appointed as the nation's first Border Force Commissioner three years ago Quaedvlieg and has accused him of leaking information about his alleged into intervention into au pair visa cases and also aimed to discredit Dutton's character. He notes that Quaedvlieg will be Labor's Godwin Grech who was a former Treasury official who was caught fabricating evidence in the so-called Utegate Scandal. - Interview with Deputy Opposition Leader Tanya Plibersek. - Interview with the father of a young man with down syndrome Grant Stewart, who was pressured into buying a life insurance policy that he did not understand. - Kelly mentions the life insurance company Freedom Insurance who had called the 26yo and pressured into the contract which is considered illegal. She notes that the disturbing case was showcased at the Banking Royal Commission yesterday. 59,000 All, 33,000 MALE 16+, 28,000 FEMALE 16+ Interviewees Stephen Guilfoyle, Wall Street trader[excerpt] Also broadcast from the following 8 stations Radio National (Sydney), Radio National (Melbourne), Radio National (Brisbane), Radio National (Perth), Radio National (Hobart), Radio National (Adelaide), Radio National (Darwin), Radio National (Newcastle) COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

10 Superfunds giants could face one of the largest class actions in Australian history.... Channel 7, Melbourne, Sunrise, David Koch, Sam Armytage, Natalie Barr, Mark Beretta 12 Sep :03 AM Duration: 0 min 33 secs ASR AUD 25,625 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Superfunds giants could face one of the largest class actions in Australian history. Following revelations at the royal banking commission, Slater and Gordon is launching claims against superfunds owned by big banks. CBA, AMP and Colonial First State are the ones being accused by Slater and Gordon. 152,000 All, 71,000 MALE 16+, 77,000 FEMALE 16+ Vision AMP, ANZ, CBA, NAB, Westpac Also broadcast from the following 43 stations Central GTS/BKN Port Lincoln (Port Lincoln), Central GTS/BKN Port Pirie (Spencer Gulf), Channel 7 (Sydney), Channel 7 (Brisbane), Channel 7 (Adelaide), Channel 7 (Perth), GWN7 (Perth), Prime7 ACT (Canberra), Prime7 Albury (Albury), Prime7 Armidale (Armidale), Prime7 Ballarat (Ballarat), Prime7 Bendigo (Bendigo), Prime7 Coffs Harbour (Coffs Harbour), Prime7 Cooma (Cooma), Prime7 Dubbo (Dubbo), Prime7 Gippsland (Sale), Prime7 Gold Coast (Gold Coast), Prime7 Griffith (Griffith), Prime7 Mildura (Mildura), Prime7 Moree (Moree), Prime7 Newcastle (Newcastle), Prime7 North Coast (Lismore), Prime7 Orange (Orange), Prime7 Shepparton (Shepparton), Prime7 Swan Hill (Swan Hill), Prime7 Tamworth (Tamworth), Prime7 Taree (Manning River), Prime7 Wagga Wagga (Wagga Wagga), Prime7 Warrnambool (Warrnambool), Prime7 Wollongong (Wollongong), Seven Bundaberg (Bundaberg), Seven Cairns (Cairns), Seven Central (Alice Springs), Seven Mackay (Mackay), Seven Mt Isa (Mt Isa), Seven Rockhampton (Rockhampton), Seven Sunshine Coast (Sunshine Coast), Seven Toowoomba (Toowoomba), Seven Townsville (Townsville), Southern Cross Central (Alice Springs), Southern Cross Darwin (Darwin), Southern Cross GTS/BKN Broken Hill (Port Pirie), Southern Cross Tasmania (Hobart) The Banking Royal Commission has heard insurer Freedom Insurance offered its staff... WS FM, Sydney, 06:00 News, Newsreader 12 Sep :01 AM Duration: 0 min 23 secs ASR AUD 414 NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X The Banking Royal Commission has heard insurer Freedom Insurance offered its staff cash, luxury cruises, Vespa scooters, and Bali holidays to beat sales targets. It's revealed among the customers they have signed up were a man with down syndrome and a woman whose policy covered 29 different people. 54,000 All, 29,000 MALE 16+, 25,000 FEMALE 16+ Jones discusses another issue concerning the Banking Royal Commission. He reports... 2GB, Sydney, Breakfast, Alan Jones 12 Sep :45 AM Duration: 2 mins 28 secs ASR AUD 3,851 NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Jones discusses another issue concerning the Banking Royal Commission. He reports that law firm Slater and Gordon has launched what could be the country's biggest group of class actions against superannuation funds owned by the big banks. He says the firm will allege the funds owe more than one billion dollars to customers in over-inflated fees and gouged returns on low-risk cash schemes. Jones adds that Colonial First State, which is owned by the Commonwealth Bank, and AMP Superannuation are expected to be amongst the first to be targeted. He then explains his own health insurance and Medicare rebates and says something has to be done about educating people on the exact details of their policies. 114,000 All, 56,000 MALE 16+, 58,000 FEMALE 16+ Also broadcast from the following 1 station 4BC (Brisbane) COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

11 Jones gives updates on the ongoing inquiry of the Banking Royal Commission into the... 2GB, Sydney, Breakfast, Alan Jones 12 Sep :42 AM Duration: 2 mins 12 secs ASR AUD 3,435 NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Jones gives updates on the ongoing inquiry of the Banking Royal Commission into the insurance industry. He says another day of damaging hearings has shed doubt on the industry's direct insurance business model. Jones reports that the son of Baptist pastor Grant Stewart, who was born with Down Syndrome, was bulldozed into buying an insurance package from call centre staff for Freedom Insurance. Jones criticises such over-the-top, unscrupulous selling and expresses his disbelief over the staff's insensitivity. 114,000 All, 56,000 MALE 16+, 58,000 FEMALE 16+ Also broadcast from the following 1 station 4BC (Brisbane) Super funds will be targeted in Australia's possible largest class action launched by... Channel 7, Melbourne, Sunrise, David Koch, Samantha Armytage, Natalie Barr, Mark Beretta 12 Sep :37 AM Duration: 1 min 8 secs ASR AUD 52,344 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X Super funds will be targeted in Australia's possible largest class action launched by Slater and Gordon due to the evidence at the Banking Royal Commission. The law firm believes around five million Australians have been affected by the stitch-up as the big banks have been caught investing their clients' money into accounts affiliated with their parent companies instead of accounts that provide the best rate of return. The banks could fork out around $1b if the class action is successful. 142,000 All, 66,000 MALE 16+, 72,000 FEMALE 16+ Vision AMP Also broadcast from the following 41 stations Central GTS/BKN Port Lincoln (Port Lincoln), Central GTS/BKN Port Pirie (Spencer Gulf), Channel 7 (Sydney), Channel 7 (Brisbane), Channel 7 (Adelaide), Channel 7 (Perth), GWN7 (Perth), Prime7 ACT (Canberra), Prime7 Albury (Albury), Prime7 Armidale (Armidale), Prime7 Ballarat (Ballarat), Prime7 Bendigo (Bendigo), Prime7 Coffs Harbour (Coffs Harbour), Prime7 Cooma (Cooma), Prime7 Dubbo (Dubbo), Prime7 Gippsland (Sale), Prime7 Gold Coast (Gold Coast), Prime7 Griffith (Griffith), Prime7 Mildura (Mildura), Prime7 Moree (Moree), Prime7 North Coast (Lismore), Prime7 Orange (Orange), Prime7 Shepparton (Shepparton), Prime7 Swan Hill (Swan Hill), Prime7 Tamworth (Tamworth), Prime7 Taree (Manning River), Prime7 Wagga Wagga (Wagga Wagga), Prime7 Warrnambool (Warrnambool), Prime7 Wollongong (Wollongong), Seven Cairns (Cairns), Seven Central (Alice Springs), Seven Mackay (Mackay), Seven Mt Isa (Mt Isa), Seven Rockhampton (Rockhampton), Seven Sunshine Coast (Sunshine Coast), Seven Toowoomba (Toowoomba), Seven Townsville (Townsville), Southern Cross Central (Alice Springs), Southern Cross Darwin (Darwin), Southern Cross GTS/BKN Broken Hill (Port Pirie), Southern Cross Tasmania (Hobart) COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

12 The Banking Royal Commission will turn its attention to the Commonwealth Bank's life... 2GB, Sydney, 05:30 News, Natalie Peters 12 Sep :32 AM Duration: 0 min 9 secs ASR AUD 388 NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X The Banking Royal Commission will turn its attention to the Commonwealth Bank's life insurance business. Hearings will continue in Melbourne today. 106,000 All, 51,000 MALE 16+, 56,000 FEMALE 16+ Also broadcast from the following 13 stations 2BS (Bathurst), 2CC (Canberra), 2EC (Bega), 2GN (Goulburn), 2LT (Lithgow), 2MAX (Narrabri), 2QN (Deniliquin), 2XL (Cooma), 2YOU FM (Tamworth), Coast FM (Gosford), Great Lakes FM (Taree), Macquarie Sports Radio (Sydney), Magic 2CH (Sydney) The law firm Slater and Gordon is launching claims against superfunds owned by big... Channel 7, Sydney, Early News, Jodie Speers 12 Sep :03 AM Duration: 0 min 31 secs ASR AUD 21,099 National Australia Industry Super Australia - Radio & TV ID: X The law firm Slater and Gordon is launching claims against superfunds owned by big banks after revelations at the Royal Commission. The claim involved a series of legal actions which will start with the Commonwealth Banks owned Colonial First State and AMP. 31,000 All, 15,000 MALE 16+, 11,000 FEMALE 16+ Vision AMP, ANZ, Commonwealth Bank, NAB, Westpac Also broadcast from the following 42 stations Central GTS/BKN Port Lincoln (Port Lincoln), Central GTS/BKN Port Pirie (Spencer Gulf), Channel 7 (Brisbane), Channel 7 (Melbourne), Channel 7 (Adelaide), Channel 7 (Perth), GWN7 (Perth), Prime7 Albury (Albury), Prime7 Armidale (Armidale), Prime7 Ballarat (Ballarat), Prime7 Bendigo (Bendigo), Prime7 Coffs Harbour (Coffs Harbour), Prime7 Cooma (Cooma), Prime7 Dubbo (Dubbo), Prime7 Gippsland (Sale), Prime7 Gold Coast (Gold Coast), Prime7 Griffith (Griffith), Prime7 Mildura (Mildura), Prime7 Moree (Moree), Prime7 Newcastle (Newcastle), Prime7 North Coast (Lismore), Prime7 Orange (Orange), Prime7 Shepparton (Shepparton), Prime7 Swan Hill (Swan Hill), Prime7 Tamworth (Tamworth), Prime7 Taree (Manning River), Prime7 Wagga Wagga (Wagga Wagga), Prime7 Warrnambool (Warrnambool), Prime7 Wollongong (Wollongong), Seven Bundaberg (Bundaberg), Seven Cairns (Cairns), Seven Central (Alice Springs), Seven Mackay (Mackay), Seven Mt Isa (Mt Isa), Seven Rockhampton (Rockhampton), Seven Sunshine Coast (Sunshine Coast), Seven Toowoomba (Toowoomba), Seven Townsville (Townsville), Southern Cross Central (Alice Springs), Southern Cross Darwin (Darwin), Southern Cross GTS/BKN Broken Hill (Port Pirie), Southern Cross Tasmania (Hobart) Policy scams come to light Daily Telegraph, Sydney, Editorials 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 10,254 Photo: Yes Type: Editorial Size: cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Some years ago, a Daily Telegraph staffer was in his flat at night when he heard voices from the unit next door. There was something odd about this. While his neighbour was a relatively recent arrival from Vietnam and spoke only limited English, the other voice - a very rapid, insistent-sounding voice - was clearly Australian. View original - Full text: 390 word(s), ~1 min 232,067 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

13 Australians told to 'get super ' Courier Mail, Brisbane, Business News, SAMANTHA BAILEY 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 4,918 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: LAW firm Slater and Gordon says bank-owned super funds owe more than $1 billion to Australians being urged to join class actions to recover money "gouged" from their retirement savings. Launching its "Get Your Super Back" campaign yesterday, Slater and Gordon said the Commonwealth Bankowned Colonial First State and AMP were likely to be the first targets of planned class actions. Members of those two institutions combined had lost more than half a billion dollars, it said. View original - Full text: 398 word(s), ~1 min 135,007 CIRCULATION Class actions won't fix anything - but tougher laws might The Australian, Australia, Business News, James Kirby 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 6,406 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: FINANCIAL SERVICES ROYAL COMMISSION Law firm Slater and Gordon plans to launch "a series of class actions" off the of evidence revealed at the banking royal commission. This will not be a fix; it will be a fee bonanza. View original - Full text: 594 word(s), ~2 mins 94,448 CIRCULATION NAB overhauls broker commissions The Australian, Australia, Business News, Cliona O'Dowd 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 6,483 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: The big four banks are finally making changes to how mortgage broker commissions are calculated, a year and a half after the corporate regulator recommended they do so, with National Australia Bank the first to announce that commissions will now be linked to the amount drawn down rather than the total loan facility approved. Anthony Waldron, NAB's executive general manager of broker partnerships, told The Australian it was a way for the industry to move forward and reduce conflicts of interest. View original - Full text: 518 word(s), ~2 mins 94,448 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

14 It takes more than serendipity or good fortune to achieve strong profitability The Australian, Australia, Business News, Phil Ruthven 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 10,008 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: The Ruthven Institute has been created to assist Australian businesses achieve world best-practice profitability. It has found that barely one in eight businesses at the big end of town - our 2000 largest enterprises, accounting for more than 40 per cent of the nation's revenue - achieved best-practice profitability over the past three years, and one in five actually ran at a loss. View original - Full text: 801 word(s), ~3 mins 94,448 CIRCULATION Love hurts: Unsuspecting partners in tax nightmares Age, Melbourne, Money, Nassim Khadem 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 33,231 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² VIC Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: She remembers the agony of being squashed under a 500-kilogram bale of hay for nine-and-a-half hours. "It took another two hours for the rescue squad to get me out," says Sally, who faced a tragic accident on a family farm that later became the subject of a drawn-out tax dispute. (Her name has been changed for legal reasons). View original - Full text: 1086 word(s), ~4 mins 83,229 CIRCULATION Banks set to face massive class action Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, Business News, Mathew Dunckley Ruth Williams 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 38,417 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: SUPER 'Exorbitant' fees claim At least two of Australia's financial powerhouses face the threat of class actions for ripping off their superannuation clients. View original - Full text: 604 word(s), ~2 mins 88,634 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

15 Small buyers spend up big Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, Business News, Carolyn Cummins 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 6,643 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Small-sized investors have spent up at the Burgess Rawson's September Portfolio auction, garnering more than $28.8 million in assets. Metro banks proved to be the drawcard for investors, with the commercial realtor's auction achieving a 75 per cent clearance rate. View original - Full text: 185 word(s), <1 min 88,634 CIRCULATION 'Irresponsible' loans by Westpac. Not Age, Melbourne, Business News, Stephen Bartholomeusz 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 23,273 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² VIC Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Last week, Westpac was hit with a record $35 million fine for breaching the lending provisions of the National Consumer Protection Credit Act. That's an interesting outcome, given that its lending doesn't appear to have been irresponsible. View original - Full text: 772 word(s), ~3 mins 83,229 CIRCULATION Class action to seek $1bn over fee gouging on super The Australian, Australia, General News, Richard Gluyas 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 3,267 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Law firm Slater & Gordon is preparing a series of class actions against superannuation funds owned by the major banks and AMP, alleging customers are owed more than $1 billion because of excessive fees and payment of below-market interest rates on cash holdings. The law firm alleges that millions of super fund members could be eligible to join the actions, with Commonwealth Bank and AMP the first targets in a claim worth more than $500 million. View original - Full text: 339 word(s), ~1 min 94,448 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

16 Banks, Telstra help ASX snaps eight-session losing streak Canberra Times, Canberra, Business News, Sarah Turner 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 5,584 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² ACT Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Australian shares snapped an eight-session losing streak yesterday as banks and Telstra, along with a handful of miners, helped the market take some losses made amid ongoing Sino-US trade tensions and turmoil in emerging markets. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index ended the session up 38 points, or 0.6 per cent, at The All Ordinaries index rose 37 points, or 0.6 per cent, to 6287, while the Australian dollar ticked up to US71.24 against the US dollar. View original - Full text: 397 word(s), ~1 min 17,579 CIRCULATION Mum and dad shareholders still miss out Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, Money, John Collett 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 92,202 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: 1, cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: The shares favoured by small investors have underperformed the broader Australian sharemarket over the past year, John Collett. Retail shareholders who favour Australia's biggest companies have missed out on the growth in the wider sharemarket. View original - Full text: 916 word(s), ~3 mins 88,634 CIRCULATION Love hurts: Unsuspecting partners in tax nightmares Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, Money, Nassim Khadem 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 49,142 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: She remembers the agony of being squashed under a 500-kilogram bale of hay for nine-and-a-half hours. "It took another two hours for the rescue squad to get me out," says Sally, who faced a tragic accident on a family farm that later became the subject of a drawn-out tax dispute. (Her name has been changed for legal reasons). View original - Full text: 1099 word(s), ~4 mins 88,634 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

17 Ask Noel Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, Money, Noel Whittaker 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 17,848 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: I am 69 and currently receiving a Commonwealth Super pension. I also have about $200,000 in another super account in the accumulation mode. My only property is a studio unit that I have had for 20 years, but have only lived in for about two years, and wish to sell. Is it possible to contribute the proceeds of the sale into my super account? You have owned the property for more than 10 years, and you are eligible for at least a part capital gains tax exemption, so I know of no reason why you should not be eligible for the downsizing scheme. Keep in mind the proceeds must be placed in superannuation within 90 days of settlement. View original - Full text: 500 word(s), ~2 mins 88,634 CIRCULATION August sales, profits up Gympie Times, Gympie QLD, General News 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 191 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: PM swap dents confidence but conditions good AUSTRALIAN business conditions rebounded in August as firms reported improved sales and profits, a new survey has revealed. But the latest National Australia Bank index of business conditions, released yesterday, showed confidence softened, perhaps in reaction to political uncertainty following the removal of Malcolm Turnbull (pictured) as the nation's prime minister. View original - Full text: 374 word(s), ~1 min 2,997 CIRCULATION It's OK to say no to the National Party Gympie Times, Gympie QLD, Letters 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 81 Photo: No Type: Letter Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: LETTERS TO THE EDITOR DEAR politicians, while I am weeding beans, I think a lot... mainly why do I grow produce? View original - Full text: 302 word(s), ~1 min 2,997 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

18 Banks set to face massive class action Age, Melbourne, Business News, Mathew Dunckley Ruth Williams 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 26,909 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² VIC Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: SUPER 'Exorbitant' fees claim At least two of Australia's financial powerhouses face the threat of class actions for ripping off their superannuation clients. View original - Full text: 604 word(s), ~2 mins 83,229 CIRCULATION Women's wages key target of union plan Age, Melbourne, General News, Anna Patty 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 7,329 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² VIC Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Unions have put pay parity front and centre in a new push to ensure wage deals don't disadvantage women. The onus would be on businesses and unions to prove women weren't worse off than male counterparts as part of an Australian Council of Trade Unions blueprint for improving gender equity in the workplace. View original - Full text: 304 word(s), ~1 min 83,229 CIRCULATION Women's wages target of union plan Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, General News, Anna Patty 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 49,622 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: ACTU BLUEPRINT The push is on finally - to try to ensure fewer women retire in poverty, writes Anna Patty. View original - Full text: 830 word(s), ~3 mins 88,634 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

19 Inactive accounts to be joined Canberra Times, Canberra, Business News, John Collett 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 5,763 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² ACT Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: In a move that will save super fund members hundreds of dollars a year in fees, 19 industry funds have agreed to co-operate and auto-consolidate members' accounts that are inactive with less than $6000 in them. They estimate that would save the typical industry fund member with multiple accounts $260 a year, and particularly benefit those working part-time and casually. View original - Full text: 488 word(s), ~1 min 17,579 CIRCULATION Mum and dad shareholders still miss out Canberra Times, Canberra, Business News, John Collett 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 23,155 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² ACT Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: The shares favoured by small investors have underperformed the broader Australian sharemarket over the past year, writes John Collett. Retail shareholders who favour Australia's biggest companies have missed out on the growth in the wider sharemarket. View original - Full text: 861 word(s), ~3 mins 17,579 CIRCULATION Love hurts: Unsuspecting partners in tax nightmares Canberra Times, Canberra, Business News, Nassim Khadem 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 17,315 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² ACT Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: She remembers the agony of being squashed under a 500-kilogram bale of hay for nine-and-a-half hours. "It took another two hours for the rescue squad to get me out," says Sally, who faced a tragic accident on a family farm that later became the subject of a drawn-out tax dispute. (Her name has been changed for legal reasons). View original - Full text: 1071 word(s), ~4 mins 17,579 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

20 'Gut wrenching': push for cold-calling ban over sales tactics Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, General News, John Collett Clancy Yeates 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 25,772 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: LIFE INSURANCE High-pressure sales tactics used to sell life insurance over the phone are endemic in the industry, insurance experts say, as consumer advocates claim the model is broken and call for a ban on the practice. View original - Full text: 618 word(s), ~2 mins 88,634 CIRCULATION 'Irresponsible' loans by Westpac were not very irresponsible Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, Business News, Stephen Bartholomeusz 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 27,853 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Last week, Westpac was hit with a record $35 million fine for breaching the responsible lending provisions of the National Consumer Protection Credit Act. That's an interesting outcome, given that its lending doesn't appear to have been irresponsible. View original - Full text: 760 word(s), ~3 mins 88,634 CIRCULATION Where to begin our super retirement system Northern Territory News, Darwin, Business News, Alan Kohler 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 5,422 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² NT Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: THE total amount of money in the Australian superannuation pot is now $2.7 trillion, equal to the market value of two American companies, Amazon and Apple, but let's not quibble. It's regarded by most as a gobsmacking amount of money, a great national asset, yet after 25 years of compulsory super, amassing the mighty sum of Amazon+Apple, the qualifying age for the Age Pension can't be raised by three years to 70 without leaving millions high and dry. Hardly a triumph of national policy, you would think. View original - Full text: 1138 word(s), ~4 mins 11,279 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

21 Gen X and Y in fear of retirement cash gap Northern Territory News, Darwin, General News 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 446 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² NT Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: GENERATION X wants to retire at 63 but believe they will need to work almost a decade longer to afford it. Research by ING has found that Gen X - those aged 39 to 53 - believe they will need an average $1.5 million nest egg. View original - Full text: 178 word(s), <1 min 11,279 CIRCULATION Call to join class action Hobart Mercury, Hobart, Business News, SAMANTHA BAILEY 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 470 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² TAS Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: LAW firm Slater and Gordon says bank-owned super funds owe more than $1 billion to Australians being urged to join class actions to recover money "gouged" from their retirement savings. Launching its Get Your Super Back campaign, Slater and Gordon said the Commonwealth Bank-owned Colonial First State and AMP were likely to be the first targets of planned class actions. View original - Full text: 151 word(s), <1 min 28,265 CIRCULATION Funds face lawsuits over super West Australian, Perth, Business News 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 1,683 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² WA Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: ? Melbourne Bank-owned superannuation funds face class actions on the of evidence from the banking royal commission. Law firm Slater and Gordon is inviting Australians to sign up to the Get Your Super Back claim, which will involve class actions, most likely starting with Commonwealth Bank-owned superannuation fund Colonial First State and AMP. View original - Full text: 158 word(s), <1 min 147,676 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

22 Nahan pins tax hope on US amnesty West Australian, Perth, General News, Nick Butterly 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 3,349 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² WA Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: State Liberal leader Mike Nahan says he hopes to receive an "amnesty" from the US Government to resolve dual citizenship and taxation headaches. The Opposition Leader took partyroom colleagues by surprise last month after revealing that he was in an unresolved dispute with America's Internal Revenue Service over claims he could owe a big sum in unpaid tax. View original - Full text: 287 word(s), ~1 min 147,676 CIRCULATION Big banks bereft of moral limits West Australian, Perth, Letters 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 2,717 Photo: Yes Type: Letter Size: cm² WA Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Am I the only cynical person who thinks it is odd that a number of big banks in Australia have raised their interest rates after being fined by regulators and coming in for scathing criticism after revelations at the Royal Commission into the Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry? These so-called "august" organisations have been found to have overcharged customers for services not supplied, among other criminal acts, and have generally treated the Australian people with contempt at all levels. View original - Full text: 271 word(s), ~1 min 147,676 CIRCULATION Gen X and Y want to retire in near future Queensland Times, Ipswich QLD, General News, Anthony Keane 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 507 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Finance expert says never too early to plan for life without work GENERATION X wants to retire at 63 but believes it will need to work almost a decade longer to be able to afford it. View original - Full text: 538 word(s), ~2 mins 6,256 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

23 SLATER'S RICH PICKINGS Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, General News, Kylar Loussikian 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 7,924 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: With Slater & Gordon preparing to launch a "Get Your Super Back" campaign, targeting AMP and Colonial First State with class actions, it's important to note the law firm board's long links to industry super funds. Or, as they were, competitors of the retail funds now in their sights. View original - Full text: 141 word(s), <1 min 88,634 CIRCULATION Bank super to face class action Newcastle Herald, Newcastle NSW, General News 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 2,111 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: BANK-OWNED superannuation funds face the threat of class actions on the of evidence from the banking royal commission. Millions of Australians are being invited by law firm Slater and Gordon to sign up to the Get Your Super Back claim, which will involve a series of class actions, most likely starting with Commonwealth Bankowned superannuation fund, Colonial First State and AMP "The banking royal commission exposed appalling behaviour by the bank-owned super funds who may have stripped money from the retirement savings of millions of hard working Australians," head of class actions for Slater and Gordon, Ben Hardwick, told reporters. View original - Full text: 234 word(s), <1 min 23,625 CIRCULATION Bank super to face class action Border Mail, Albury-Wodonga, General News 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 492 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² VIC Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: BANK-OWNED superannuation funds face the threat of class actions on the of evidence from the banking royal commission. Millions of Australians are being invited by law firm Slater and Gordon to sign up to the Get Your Super Back claim, which will involve a series of class actions, most likely starting with Commonwealth Bankowned superannuation fund, Colonial First State and AMP "The banking royal commission exposed appalling behaviour by the bank-owned super funds who may have stripped money from the retirement savings of millions of hard working Australians," head of class actions for Slater and Gordon, Ben Hardwick, told reporters. View original - Full text: 234 word(s), <1 min 13,519 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

24 Bank super to face class action Warrnambool Standard, Warrnambool VIC, General News 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 397 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² VIC Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: BANK-OWNED superannuation funds face the threat of class actions on the of evidence from the banking royal commission. Millions of Australians are being invited by law firm Slater and Gordon to sign up to the Get Your Super Back claim, which will involve a series of class actions, most likely starting with Commonwealth Bankowned superannuation fund, Colonial First State and AMP "The banking royal commission exposed appalling behaviour by the bank-owned super funds who may have stripped money from the retirement savings of millions of hard working Australians," head of class actions for Slater and Gordon, Ben Hardwick, told reporters. View original - Full text: 234 word(s), <1 min 8,274 CIRCULATION Bank super to face class action Launceston Examiner, Launceston TAS, General News 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 772 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² TAS Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: BANK-OWNED superannuation funds face the threat of class actions on the of evidence from the banking royal commission. Millions of Australians are being invited by law firm Slater and Gordon to sign up to the Get Your Super Back claim, which will involve a series of class actions, most likely starting with Commonwealth Bankowned superannuation fund, Colonial First State and AMP "The banking royal commission exposed appalling behaviour by the bank-owned super funds who may have stripped money from the retirement savings of millions of hard working Australians," head of class actions for Slater and Gordon, Ben Hardwick, told reporters. View original - Full text: 234 word(s), <1 min 17,631 CIRCULATION At last, some good news for investors in the big banks Australian Financial Review, Australia, Companies and Markets, Patrick Commins 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 7,423 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: "Do you know the only thing that gives me pleasure? It's to see my dividends coming in," John Rockefeller reportedly said in the early 1900s. The founder of Standard Oil was America's first billionaire and is still considered one of the richest men in history, so he knew a thing or two about turning a buck. View original - Full text: 626 word(s), ~2 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

25 Slater & Gordon targets CBA, AMP for $500m Australian Financial Review, Australia, General News, Joanna Mather 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 4,288 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Slater & Gordon says it is preparing to sue major banks and wealth managers for charging excessive fees and paying below-market rates on cash holdings. The "Get Your Super Back" campaign will involve a series of class actions, with Commonwealth Bankowned superannuation fund Colonial First State and AMP super likely to be the first targets. View original - Full text: 501 word(s), ~2 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION WaveStone's Allfrey calls out lofty valuations Australian Financial Review, Australia, General News, Vesna Poljak 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 20,934 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: 1, cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Exclusive VesnaPoljak View original - Full text: 1192 word(s), ~4 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION Life insurance in need of reform Australian Financial Review, Australia, General News, Tony Boyd 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 12,156 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Disgrace period Counsel assisting Rowena Orr will need gum boots to protect herself from the disgusting mess inside the Augean stables of life insurance. View original - Full text: 1318 word(s), ~5 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

26 Miners emerge as new dividend darlings Australian Financial Review, Australia, Companies and Markets, Vesna Poljak And Sarah Turner 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 11,347 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Exclusive Australian investors are set to share in a record $18.9 billion dividend bonanza this month as the big miners emerge as the market's new dividend stars, offsetting more miserly payouts from embattled blue chips such as AMP and Telstra. Bell Potter's Richard Coppleson says for the year to June 30 total dividends increased 4.1 per cent to $81.5 billion. He argues mining stocks will find a new audience among income investors because uncertainty over prospects for the banks and Telstra has disappointed "retail income lovers". Australian investors are set to share in a record $18.9 billion dividend bonanza this month as the big miners have emerged as the market's new dividend stars, offsetting more miserly payouts from embattled blue chips such as AMP and Telstra. View original - Full text: 948 word(s), ~3 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION Guidance the casualty as Woolworths defends claim Australian Financial Review, Australia, Companies and Markets, Sue Mitchell 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 6,978 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Woolworths shareholders fear companies will become averse to issuing detailed earnings guidance following a flood of class action claims from investors who say they lost money after reiving on profit forecasts. The latest such claim has been lodged by class action specialist Maurice Blackburn, which is seeking at least $100 million for shareholders who saw their Woolworths shares fall by almost 40 per cent after the retailer ed away from profit guidance in 2015, saying it needed to sacrifice margins to win customers lost to Coles and Aldi. View original - Full text: 860 word(s), ~3 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION IPO Wealth Fund raises $40m from investors Australian Financial Review, Australia, Companies and Markets, Yolanda Redrup 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 2,326 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: The IPO Wealth Fund has raised $40 million from wealthy investors to emerging companies headed towards initial public offerings. The fund, which was started by chief executive James Mawhinney, is structured so that investors buy units in the IPO Wealth Fund, which then provides a loan to its parent company Mayfair 101, which acts as the investment vehicle for ing start-ups. View original - Full text: 307 word(s), ~1 min 44,635 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

27 MPG launches regional fund Australian Financial Review, Australia, Property, Larry Schlesinger 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 7,646 Photo: Yes Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Fund manager MPG has embraced the idea of "Big Australia" after launching a $66.4 million regional property fund that will own commercial property in regional hubs like Newcastle, Bendigo, Armidale and Maryborough. MPG is seeking to raise a minimum of $25 million from retail investors for the open-ended fund, which is forecast to deliver a 7 per cent initial annual return. View original - Full text: 509 word(s), ~2 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION CSIRO innovation fund adds $132m Australian Financial Review, Australia, General News, Yolanda Redrup 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 3,216 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Exclusive The CSIRO's innovation fund Main Sequence Ventures has raised an additional $132 million for its first fund, bringing on board superannuation fund Hostplus, the Singapore government's Temasek and US aerospace and defence multinational Lockheed Martin as investors. View original - Full text: 412 word(s), ~1 min 44,635 CIRCULATION Bank super to face class action Illawarra Mercury, Wollongong NSW, General News 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 1,175 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² NSW Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: BANK-OWNED superannuation funds face the threat of class actions on the of evidence from the banking royal commission. Millions of Australians are being invited by law firm Slater and Gordon to sign up to the Get Your Super Back claim, which will involve a series of class actions, most likely starting with Commonwealth Bankowned superannuation fund, Colonial First State and AMP "The banking royal commission exposed appalling behaviour by the bank-owned super funds who may have stripped money from the retirement savings of millions of hard working Australians," head of class actions for Slater and Gordon, Ben Hardwick, told reporters. View original - Full text: 234 word(s), <1 min 10,806 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

28 Direct life insurance on the ropes Australian Financial Review, Australia, General News, James Frost And Misa Han 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 6,877 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² National Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: Inquiry skewers dud policies, illegal hard sell The direct insurance business model is in doubt following extraordinary revelations that it sells worthless policies using illegal methods to people who don't understand them and have no hope of making a claim anyway. View original - Full text: 783 word(s), ~3 mins 44,635 CIRCULATION Veterans call for fair go Townsville Bulletin, Townsville QLD, General News, Clare Armstrong 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 1,420 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: CALLS for a veterans' superannuation provider to be subjected to the same scrutiny as other funds are ramping up with the launch of a new petition ing the defence community. Herbert MP Cathy O'Toole has started a petition to pressure the Federal Government into including the Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation in the Royal Commission into the Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry. View original - Full text: 388 word(s), ~1 min 16,484 CIRCULATION Australians urged to take action to 'get super ' Courier Mail, Brisbane, Edition Changes - Metro, SAMANTHA BAILEY 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 1,387 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² QLD Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: LAW firm Slater and Gordon says bank-owned super funds owe more than $1 billion to Australians being urged to join class actions to recover money "gouged" from their retirement savings. Launching its "Get Your Super Back" campaign yesterday, Slater and Gordon said the Commonwealth Bankowned Colonial First State and AMP were likely to be the first targets of planned class actions. Members of those two institutions combined had lost more than half a billion dollars, it said. Slater and Gordon is targeting fee gouging and the paying of uncompetitive interest rates to retirement savers who have part of their super in cash. "This means that millions of Australians may be out of pocket and a handful of banks have lined their pockets," Slater and Gordon class action head Ben Hardwick said. View original - Full text: 183 word(s), <1 min 135,007 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT For the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only. Not to be provided to any third party for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia. For further information contact copyright@isentia.com

29 Super class action targets bank funds Geelong Advertiser, Geelong VIC, General News, SAMANTHA BAILEY 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 997 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² VIC Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: LAW firm Slater and Gordon says bank-owned super funds owe more than $1 billion to Australians being urged to join class actions to recover money "gouged" from their retirement savings. Launching its Get Your Super Back campaign, Slater and Gordon said the Commonwealth Bank-owned Colonial First State and AMP were likely to be the first targets of planned class actions. View original - Full text: 477 word(s), ~1 min 16,687 CIRCULATION Nahan pins tax hope on US amnesty West Australian, Perth, Edition Changes, Nick Butterly 12 Sep 2018 Page words ASR AUD 3,349 Photo: No Type: News Item Size: cm² WA Australia Industry Super Australia - Press ID: State Liberal leader Mike Nahan says he hopes to receive an "amnesty" from the US Government to resolve dual citizenship and taxation headaches. The Opposition Leader took partyroom colleagues by surprise last month after revealing that he was in an unresolved dispute with America's Internal Revenue Service over claims he could owe a big sum in unpaid tax. View original - Full text: 284 word(s), ~1 min 147,676 CIRCULATION COPYRIGHT This report and its contents are for the internal research use of Mediaportal subscribers only and must not be provided to any third party by any means for any purpose without the express permission of Isentia and/or the relevant copyright owner. For more information contact copyright@isentia.com DISCLAIMER Isentia makes no representations and, to the extent permitted by law, excludes all warranties in relation to the information contained in the report and is not liable for any losses, costs or expenses, resulting from any use or misuse of the report.

30 Daily Telegraph, Sydney Section: Editorials Article type : Editorial Classification : Capital City Daily : 232,067 Page: 22 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 10,254 Words: 390 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Policy scams come to light Some years ago, a Daily Telegraph staffer was in his flat at night when he heard voices from the unit next door. There was something odd about this. While his neighbour was a relatively recent arrival from Vietnam and spoke only limited English, the other voice a very rapid, insistent-sounding voice was clearly Australian. So our staffer knocked on his neighbour s door and discovered the fellow being badgered by an insurance salesman to take out an entire range of policies, right there and then. Contracts were on the kitchen table. All of them, of course, were wholly in English. And the payments to which the neighbour would be committed were enormous. The staffer and his neighbour were friends. Despite the language barrier, they had by now established a cheerful way of communicating through various simple shared words, hand signals, facial gestures and the like. They would occasionally drop by each other s apartments to try different styles of cooking. That closeness definitely paid off for the neighbour, who was quickly put in the picture by our staff member. To that point, the neighbour had believed the insurance salesman was some sort of government representative and that these policies were compulsory. It was a straight-up scam, and it ended the moment our staffer saw that one of the policies being forced on his neighbour was for car insurance. The bloke didn t own a car. He didn t even have a licence. Such dodgy practices are clearly still a part of the insurance industry, as the banking royal commission heard yesterday. In one shocking example, the commission heard that Freedom Insurance sold a number of insurance policies, including accidental death cover, over the phone to an intellectually disabled Melbourne man with Down syndrome. The target for that sale did not understand what he was buying. The commission also heard that Freedom sold tens of thousands of accidental death policies annually yet received no more than 22 claims a year. It seems Freedom s corporate and sales culture was especially aggressive, with cash and holiday bonuses on offer to staff who signed up the most people. As new Freedom chief operating officer Craig Orton told the commission, that approach is done for under his watch. It s one step forward for an industry that needs to take giant strides in the right direction.

31 Courier Mail, Brisbane Author: SAMANTHA BAILEY Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 135,007 Page: 24 Printed Size: cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 4,918 Words: 398 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Australians told to get super A handful of banks have lined their pockets BEN HARDWICK LAW firm Slater and Gordon says bank-owned super funds owe more than $1 billion to Australians being urged to join class actions to recover money gouged from their retirement savings. Launching its Get Your Super Back campaign yesterday, Slater and Gordon said the Commonwealth Bankowned Colonial First State and AMP were likely to be the first targets of planned class actions. Members of those two institutions combined had lost more than half a billion dollars, it said. Slater and Gordon is targeting fee gouging and the paying of uncompetitive interest rates to retirement savers who have part of their super in cash. This means that millions of Australians may be out of pocket and a handful of banks have lined their pockets, Slater and Gordon class action head Ben Hardwick said. He said that the firm intended to recoup as much lost super as it could. The firm expects that up to one-third of all adult Australians may be eligible to join the class actions. What funds like Colonial First State have been doing is dumping super with a parent bank such as CBA. The interest from the parent bank is so low that investors in the cash option are receiving rates as low as 1.25 per cent a year. This is even below the RBA cash rate. This rate of return is ludicrously low. Standard bank interest should be around 2.0 to 2.5 per cent. The move follows evidence at the royal commission of misconduct by the major banks. Slater and Gordon will now be pressing for retail super fund members to be compensated for the difference between their returns on cash and the returns they should have received if the trustee had done their job properly. Evidence at the banking royal commission has also included revelations of high fees whittling away savings by AMP, and cases where Colonial First State failed to move customers from a high-fee fund to a low-fee fund. We re happy the royal commission has exposed these dodgy practices, but we don t believe exposure is good enough, Mr Hardwick said. We now think it s time that Australians got their super from the big banks. The Commonwealth Bank said it was aware Slater and Gordon was investigating potential class actions, but it had not been served with any legal proceedings. THE AUSTRALIAN

32 The Australian, Australia Author: James Kirby Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 23 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 6,406 Words: 594 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Class actions won t fix anything but tougher laws might JAMES KIRBY WEALTH EDITOR FINANCIAL SERVICES ROYAL COMMISSION Law firm Slater and Gordon plans to launch a series of class actions off the of evidence revealed at the banking royal commission. This will not be a fix; it will be a fee bonanza. We are talking about 20 potential class actions coming down the line centred heavily on the issue of poor rates of return in cash accounts. Yes, the cash account issue is a scandal but clogging the courts with class actions will not change behaviour in the big banks and insurers. We need tougher laws. Sales executives inside the banks and insurance companies must have a deterrent. They don t fear class actions; they fear individual penalties and prison. When class actions succeed, lawyers get 40 per cent of any cash awarded. In turn, the affected companies add their payout costs to a list of forthcoming abnormal items in their annual accounts and the people who were cheated or abused get a small cheque in the distant future. In other words, it is business as usual. At their very best class actions have been useful, but increasingly that usefulness is being eroded. The recent squalid rush over AMP, where five fully funded actions were launched separately, is perhaps the best example even the jurists are now complaining about this feeding frenzy. In a remarkable blast at competing law firms (and their funders), a statement from the NSW Supreme Court judges said: Those bringing the action have their own self-interests: any funders for their percentage take, lawyers for their professional fees, and, sometimes, lead plaintiffs for any special position they can negotiate in the overall arrangement. Meanwhile, something that could stop the rot a package of laws that would toughen up penalties is being held up in the Senate. Roughly a year ago, Minister Kelly O Dwyer who at the time managed what has become a disbanded portfolio of financial services put forward tougher legislation to increase penalties for bad behaviour in superannuation. She followed that up with more legislation in April this year that aimed to broaden penalties across the financial services sector. The combined legislation had real teeth it carried an expanded ability to ban advisers, to increase civil penalties and to impose a maximum of 10 year s imprisonment for individuals breaking the Corporations Law. Now pressure is building again to move those reforms forward. Nationals senator John Williams, a key player in getting the royal commission off the ground, has said he wants to activate the legislation. Williams told a super conference a few days ago he specifically supported planned changes to the Superannuation Industry Act that would see criminal penalties for executives who failed to match their obligations in super. In many ways the failings of the financial services system especially in super and insurance revealed by the bank inquiry are simply too entrenched and varied to be handled by random class actions. There may be up to five million people involved in these actions and the cash value might top a billion dollars it s a national issue requiring national action. The class action initiatives get great public attention. Betting agencies are now running odds on which banks might have to pay out the most in compensation the latest numbers from Sportsbet put CBA at $1.65. But it is tougher laws that will cut down bad behaviour; a slew of class actions will do no such thing. The combined legislation had real teeth an expanded ability to ban advisers and a maximum of 10 years imprisonment

33 The Australian, Australia Author: Cliona O'Dowd Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 23 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 6,483 Words: 518 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 NAB overhauls broker commissions CLIONA O DOWD BANKING The big four banks are finally making changes to how mortgage broker commissions are calculated, a year and a half after the corporate regulator recommended they do so, with National Australia Bank the first to announce that commissions will now be linked to the amount drawn down rather than the total loan facility approved. Anthony Waldron, NAB s executive general manager of broker partnerships, told The Australian it was a way for the industry to move forward and reduce conflicts of interest. This was the industry coming together and saying we hear the change in expectations coming, so we want to get ahead of the curve, Mr Waldron said. It s not about reducing the total commissions paid; it s about removing a potential conflict. The reason for the delay in adopting the recommendations was due to the complex system change that was required to implement the new measures, he said. The other banks are expected to soon follow suit with similar announcements as they work to implement the new rules by the industry s self-imposed deadline of December 31. The new rules, which NAB said would come into effect in November, stemmed from proposals put forward in the ASIC and Sedgewick broker remuneration reviews that were released in early In the wake of the reviews, which criticised the commissions paid to mortgage brokers, the banks set up the Combined Industry Forum, or CIF a group of lenders, mortgage brokers and industry bodies to facilitate the adoption of ASIC s recommendations. Mr Waldron, who is also chairman of the CIF, said the industry was changing to focus on doing the right thing, and to improve consumer trust. ASIC s broker review was about ensuring good customer outcomes. So how do we ensure that and how do we codify that in the mortgage broking industry. He said the banks would be announcing a number of other revisions before the end of the year to further reduce the potential conflicts of interest. Like the way that brokers report to customers: they ll start to provide customers with information on the number of lenders they have used, the number of lenders they can use and their top six lenders over the previous year. So the customer can see the breadth of choice that s there. There s also a large number of reporting changes in terms of more information being provided to the regulators. The banks have been under immense pressure this year as the financial services royal commission has lifted the lid on their rotten culture but Mr Waldron said the new rules were not linked to the numerous damning revelations. This is something that s been worked on for a good couple of years, he said. Mr Waldron added that brokers would not be surprised by the new rules. The CIF came out with a number of recommendations in December 2017 about how the industry would respond (to ASIC s review) and it was communicated to brokers then. It shouldn t be a major surprise to them. V1 - AUSE01Z01MA It s not about reducing the total commissions paid; it s about removing a potential conflict. ANTHONY WALDRON, NAB

34 The Australian, Australia Author: Phil Ruthven Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 27 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 10,008 Words: 801 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 It takes more than serendipity or good fortune to achieve strong profitability PHIL RUTHVEN The Ruthven Institute has been created to assist Australian businesses achieve world best-practice profitability. It has found that barely one in eight businesses at the big end of town our 2000 largest enterprises, accounting for more than 40 per cent of the nation s revenue achieved best-practice profitability over the past three years, and one in five actually ran at a loss. The best-practice profitability benchmark at the tail-end of the Industrial Age some five decades ago was considered to be 11 per cent or twice the 10-year bond rate. An active and risky asset such as a share in a business deserved a premium over a passive and safe asset such as a government bond. In our new age of service industries, even passive property assets these days can earn twice the normal bond rate, so the benchmark was raised by the US to four times the normal bond rate in the 1970s, or around 22 per cent return on equity after tax. The Dow Jones index s top 30 stocks have averaged this comfortably now for several decades. Australia s ASX top 30 hasn t it s still stuck at twice the normal bond rate. It is ironic at a time of fierce criticism of so-called gouging by retail electricity corporations that our largest five electricity suppliers accounting for well over 55 per cent of the market had an average profitability of just 5.4 per cent return on their shareholder funds after tax. Our 100 largest corporations have only averaged an 8.7 per cent return over the past three years, beaten by many property trusts and superannuation trusts. In short, the majority of the nation s corporate sector does not really know how to make world best-practice returns. But there are really encouraging performances, as the table reveals. Australia had some 2.2 million businesses as we entered financial year 2018, employing 12.5 million people. Many new businesses start up each year, but nearly as many exit the economy around one in eight. They generated total revenues of about $5.1 trillion and a value on final goods and services (GDP) of $1.8 trillion. The totality of the nation s enterprises, including government and private sector activities, have returned a mere 3.8 per cent average return on shareholder funds after tax over the past three decades. Moreover, these enterprises registered a pitiful 2.3 per cent return on equity for Both the long-term average and the most recent yearly performance are far below the returns on 10-year government bonds (5.5 per cent very long term average, and 2.4 per cent last year). Such circumstances raise the question: why invest in these poorly performing businesses, especially when bond rates are passive assets (whereas shares are active, involving greater risk)? Our 100 largest businesses have $1.1 trillion in revenue (more than 20 per cent of the nation s total revenue), yet their average profitability was a disappointing 8.7 per cent return on shareholder funds after tax (ROSF) over the past three years to the end of Stretching the returns across our largest 1500 companies lowers the average ROSF to 6.9 per cent on a weighted average basis. However, on the brighter side, the nation s best 100 businesses accounting for revenue of more than $104bn had an outstanding average ROSF of 51.2 per cent. The Ruthven Institute has created a new website that explains how they did it, and how almost any company can consistently earn world s best-practice profitability of more than 22 per cent per annum. Our best performers are to be found across 15 of Australia s 19 industry divisions, suggesting there is no such thing as a bad industry only bad planning, strategy and management. Interestingly, the best 100 were almost evenly split in local versus foreign ownership, and covered different types of ownership. The best-performing 100 companies had aggregate revenues of $104bn just 1.9 per cent of the nation s total revenue. That said, all are considered large enterprises, with none falling into the SME category. Three of the best performers, however, were in the biggest 100 list (CSL, TCorp and JB Hi-Fi). The Ruthven Institute identified 56 companies that have consistently performed over an extended period. These companies registered on the best 100 list for one-year, three-year and five-year ROSF averages, which required average returns on shareholder funds after tax of at least 30 per cent. These sustained performers had an outstanding weighted average return of 55.1 per cent. Such levels of profitability far surpass world s best-practice profitability of 22 per cent and it is certainly impressive that these companies have been able to maintain high returns for years. The results indicate more than serendipity or good fortune. Phil Ruthven is the founder/owner of IBISWorld, the world s largest

35 The Australian, Australia Author: Phil Ruthven Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 27 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 10,008 Words: 801 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 online industry information corporation. He recently founded the Ruthven Institute. Profitabilty in Australia s economy Return on shareholder funds after tax (%) Best 100 Best 100 foreign Best 100 locals Best 100 local privates Best 100 local listed World best practice New age > 1955 Financial corporations Biggest 100 corporations Commercial property Best 100 government Biggest 1422 corporations 10-year bonds All non-financial corporations Recent 3-year average Past 30 years Past 150 years All businesses General government Source: Ruthven Institute

36 Age, Melbourne Author: Nassim Khadem Section: Money Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 83,229 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 33,231 Words: 1086 Item ID: Page 1 of 3 Love hurts: Unsuspecting partners in tax nightmares Insight Nassim Khadem She remembers the agony of being squashed under a 500-kilogram bale of hay for nine-and-a-half hours. It took another two hours for the rescue squad to get me out, says Sally, who faced a tragic accident on a family farm that later became the subject of a drawn-out tax dispute. (Her name has been changed for legal reasons). Sally was placed in an induced coma for six days. Her arm was eventually amputated. I remember crying on the witness stand as I was still very ill and under a lot of medication for my injuries from my accident, Sally says. I was under pressure being asked questions about my credit card debt and why I was helping the former husband. I could not process what he was asking quick enough. In my many years as a tax writer, I ve come across many stories like this. It is the story of the unsuspecting wives/partners who end up in a world of pain, simply because they chose the wrong partner in life. When their partner is wanted by authorities such as the police and the Australian Taxation Office, these women, tragically, also become targets. When money moves offshore Sally says the Tax Office alleged her husband s company was set up as an assetstripping arrangement, by which the assets of the company were removed overseas so that the directors of the company, including Sally, could avoid paying tax. Sally says she was told by her ex-husband that this arrangement was designed to protect her assets and that she was unaware there was a problem with the Tax Office until much later, when she received news of the assessment, which she later objected to. When Sally finally became aware her exhusband was diverting income offshore and told the Tax Office about it, it was too late. Her ex-husband s estate was now bankrupt, meaning that to recover debts, the Tax Office could go after assets owned, either solely or jointly, by his then spouse. In the end Sally was hit with interest and penalties amounting to more than $1 million. She did not pay the money the Tax Office alleged she owed because she was fighting her ex-husband in the Family Court for control of assets. Assuming she could take control of and sell the assets that would allow her to pay the Tax Office. But she failed in her attempts to sell the property. She lost the tax case, and then lost a subsequent appeal in the Federal Court. She later made a claim for compensation from the Tax Office, arguing she was not a Continued Page 4

37 Age, Melbourne Author: Nassim Khadem Section: Money Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 83,229 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 33,231 Words: 1086 Item ID: Page 2 of 3 Unsuspecting partners in tax nightmares From Page 1 willing participant in the tax avoidance schemes. The Tax Office s conclusion in its response to her which she shared with Fairfax Media was that while her case was sad, the ATO was not the author of [her] misfortune. It said she had a tax liability that she did not pay, despite various opportunities to do so, and the courts had found against her. The conman There are other cases. Joanne Hambrook spent more than 10 years in various court battles with the ATO because of her ties with Patrick Shaun Wilson, who formerly lived in Kangaroo Point, Brisbane, and is now believed to be in the Philippines. In February 2011 then Liberal Senator Brett Mason in an address to parliament, described Wilson as a disgrace and sociopathic conman. Mason told the Senate that Wilson had conned ordinary people who have little recourse after convincing investors to put money into a natural medicines company, New Zeal, leaving them hundreds of thousands of dollars out of pocket. Hambrook had nothing to do with Wilson s New Zeal business. He was a director of a number of her companies that ended up coming under the Tax Office s watch because the pair were in a de facto relationship in the 1990s. After the relationship breakdown, Hambrook was in dispute with her expartner over whether a piece of land was owned by him or their self-managed superannuation fund, called the Interhealth Superannuation Fund. Wilson, who over the years has undergone his own legal battles with the ATO he was declared bankrupt in 2011 and discharged three years later decided to seek his SMSF member entitlement be paid out to him. Hambrook saw problems with paying out his entitlement given that there was a dispute before the Brisbane Supreme Court regarding the SMSF s assets. The Tax Office commenced legal proceedings to enforce the SMSF s obligation to pay out Wilson s entitlement. Hambrook went to court to fight against this action on the basis that there was an ongoing dispute regarding the SMSF s assets the property in dispute in the Supreme Court that needed to be resolved prior to calculating member entitlements. She lost the case. The costs of defending against the Tax Office s action Hambrook says it was more than $400,000 resulted in the depletion of the SMSF s assets. By the end of the legal proceedings there were no assets left in the SMSF available to either member. The ATO has unjustly succeeded in destroying multiple companies, my super fund, 10 of my best working years and has left me with nothing but debts and serious health problems, Hambrook says. In 2013 she lodged a complaint against the Tax Office, saying the agency breached its model litigant obligations (MLO) by chasing after the fund and leaving it with no money. As well as seeking redress under MLO, Hambrook in 2014 filed a compensation claim with the Tax Office. After two years of another stressful drawn out complaints process in September 2016, the Tax Office admitted to defective administration, only in the case of the super fund audit, she says. It offered the destroyed and non-existent Interhealth super fund $10,000 under the CDDA Scheme for compensation. The offer was disingenuous as the fund no longer exists, she says. In the meantime the Tax Office will investigate itself it will decide whether it breached its model litigant obligations. The Tax Office told Fairfax Media company directors have a number of responsibilities under law, including the payment of tax and discharging debts. Where a court finds a director liable for a tax debt we are obliged to take action under the law, a spokeswoman said. Fairfax Media attempted to contact Patrick Shaun Wilson for comment. The ATO... has left me with nothing but debts and serious health problems.

38 Age, Melbourne Author: Nassim Khadem Section: Money Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 83,229 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 33,231 Words: 1086 Item ID: Page 3 of 3 Joanne Hambrook has spent more than 10 years in costly court battles with the ATO.

39 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Mathew Dunckley Ruth Williams Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 28 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 38,417 Words: 604 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 SUPER Exorbitant fees claim Banks set to face massive class action Mathew Dunckley Ruth Williams At least two of Australia s financial powerhouses face the threat of class actions for ripping off their superannuation clients. On Tuesday, plaintiff law firm Slater & Gordon revealed it was seeking expressions of interest for a class action against financial institutions following damaging revelations about their treatment of customers, saying they collectively owed Australians more than one billion dollars. The company said the first targets would be the Commonwealth Bank of Australia-owned Colonial First State and AMP, but at a press conference on Tuesday it also mentioned it might look at adding IOOF in future, as well as most of the major retail funds. There would be a series of announcements over the coming weeks and months, it foreshadowed. Slater & Gordon said it would be alleged that big banked super funds charged their clients exorbitant fees and failed to achieve competitive returns from their cash investments. Branding the campaign Get Your Super Back, the company said the action would be brought on behalf of millions of Australians in bankowned super funds. Slater & Gordon said the allegation arose from evidence at the Hayne royal commission, which is probing misconduct in the banking, superannuation and financial services industry. The commission has heard evidence superannuation customers at bank funds were placed in cash investment options that offered low returns that could be severely eroded by fees charged. A well-placed source said the class action would also consider the fees-for-no-service scandal, where major financial organisations have admitted charging thousands of customers some of them deceased for services they did not receive. The companies have already agreed to pay compensation over that scandal, which is estimated to eventually hit $1 billion. AMP and IOOF have been contacted for comment. Commonwealth Bank said it was aware of the announcement. Commonwealth Bank, or its subsidiaries, have not been served with any legal proceedings, the bank s statement said. CBA will keep the market informed of developments. At the press conference, Slater & Gordon s head of class actions, Ben Hardwick, pointed to royal commission revelations that some AMP super fund members were actually getting negative returns on cash investments, due to measly interest rates as well as the fees charged to their accounts. On our calculations, fund members of Colonial and AMP combined have lost over half a billion dollars from their superannuation accounts, he said. This will fundamentally degrade their retirement. We intend to bring class actions to recoup as much of this money as we can. Mr Hardwick said Slater & Gordon was in advanced discussions with several litigation funders to bankroll the actions. The company was also speaking to potential lead plaintiffs for the cases, he said, and had received a number of registrations since it announced the class action on Tuesday morning. When asked whether the firm might face competition from other class action law firms, Mr Hardwick said we believe we are best placed to take this case forward. The firm would be paid in the usual way lawyers are remunerated, Mr Hardwick said. Slater & Gordon, and at least three other class action law firms, already has a shareholder class action on foot against AMP over the scandals revealed at the banking royal commission and the resulting damage to its market value. The class action comes as regulators are also ramping up their legal efforts. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission announced last week it would prosecute National Australia Bank over the fees-for-no-service scandal.

40 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Mathew Dunckley Ruth Williams Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 28 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 38,417 Words: 604 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 Australians owed more than one billion dollars. The first targets would be the Commonwealth Bank of Australia-owned Colonial First State and AMP. Photo: AAP

41 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Carolyn Cummins Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 27 Printed Size: 83.00cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 6,643 Words: 185 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Small buyers spend up big Carolyn Cummins Small-sized investors have spent up at the Burgess Rawson s September Portfolio auction, garnering more than $28.8 million in assets. Metro banks proved to be the drawcard for investors, with the commercial realtor s auction achieving a 75 per cent clearance rate. Included in the results were prime assets including an NAB in Rockdale, Sydney, sold for $5.5 million on a 4.33 per cent yield; the Westpac bank site in Kogarah sold for $3.5 million on a 4.58 per cent yield, and a medical facility in Bondi Junction sold for $2.59 million on a 4.94 per cent yield. Burgess Rawson Sydney director Simon Staddon said nine out of the 12 properties on the auction block were sold to private investors, with many above their reserve and the remaining three currently under negotiation. Investors have confidence in inner-city locations because of future tenant demand, particularly as both Darlinghurst and Bondi Junction have witnessed considerable population growth in recent years, Mr Staddon said. These assets are favoured by self-managed super funds for the strong yields on the land value and the long leases which generate recurring rental income.

42 Age, Melbourne Author: Stephen Bartholomeusz Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 83,229 Page: 22 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 23,273 Words: 772 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 Irresponsible loans by Westpac. Not COMMENT Stephen Bartholomeusz Last week, Westpac was hit with a record $35 million fine for breaching the responsible lending provisions of the National Consumer Protection Credit Act. That s an interesting outcome, given that its lending doesn t appear to have been irresponsible. Westpac settled with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and agreed to pay the largest civil penalty ever awarded under the National Credit Act on the eve of a scheduled federal Court trial. ASIC had claimed, and Westpac ultimately agreed, that it contravened the Act in two respects. One was that it had used a benchmark, the Household Expenditure Measure (HEM), rather than consumers declared living expenses, in assessing their capacity to repay home loans. The second was that, for borrowers with an interest-only period in their loans, it failed to use the higher repayments at the end of the interest-only period to assess their capacity to repay the loans. There has been a focus by ASIC, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority and the banking royal commission on responsible lending and criticism of the banks reliance on the HEM benchmark to assess borrowers capacity to repay loans. ASIC is reported to be investigating other banks and non-banks for similar breaches of the Act to Westpac s. In Westpac s case, between December 2011 and March 2015 the bank s automated decision system approved 261,987 home loans. For about 50,000 of those loans it received, but didn t use, consumers actual expense information that was higher than the HEM and for a similar number of loans with an interest-only period it used the incorrect method of assessing the customers capacity to repay the loan at the end of the interest-only period. Of the 100,000 loans, ASIC said Westpac should not have automatically approved 5041 for using the HEM benchmark rather than the declared expenditure and 5395 for using the incorrect method for assessing the loans with interest-only periods. That s less than 4 per cent of the loans handled by the automated system. The HEM benchmark is only one of the inputs into Westpac s automated decision system. It had more than 200 rules within it. And, to the extent that it used the HEM, it added a buffer to produce a required minimum monthly surplus before the loan could be automatically approved. Expenses declared by the borrower were taken into account by the automated decision system, but only if they were more than 70 per cent of what Westpac deemed verified monthly income, or after-tax income that met Westpac s particular criteria. Those loans could be referred for manual assessment. So, of the 261,987 loans approved by the automated decision system, 5041 wouldn t have been approved had the customers declared expenses been used and 5395 with interestonly periods wouldn t have been approved had Westpac used the residual term calculation. How did those irresponsibly lent loans fare? In Westpac s total Westpacbranded home loan book it has accounts that have been in arrears for 90 days or more that, over the past seven years, have had a delinquency rate that has ranged from 0.45 per cent to 0.67 per cent. Over the same period, it has received applications for hardship assistance from borrowers that ranged from 0.08 per cent to 0.17 per cent of its book. According to the statement of facts agreed between ASIC and the bank, loans approved by the automated decision system between December 2011 and March 2015 have, to date, had a lower rate of hardship applications and a similar level of delinquencies to manually approved home loans. Loans approved by the automated decision system also had a higher rate of additional repayments, or funds in linked offset accounts, than manually approved loans made in that period. If, as Westpac s consumer bank CEO, George Frazis, later said, the credit quality of those loans lent is equal to or better than the bank s entire $440 billion Australian mortgage portfolio, how can the process of assessing them be deemed irresponsible? Or does that imply Westpac s lending, whether it complies with ASIC s interpretation of the Act or not, has all been irresponsible? It is understandable that APRA should focus on the stability of the system. It s also, however, in the interest of the economy and consumers that the process is as low-cost and timely as possible. With the advent next year of the open banking regime, which will give banks and non-banks access to customers banking data, the HEM controversy should become a legacy issue and Westpac s record fine an historical and somewhat puzzling curiosity.

43 Age, Melbourne Author: Stephen Bartholomeusz Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 83,229 Page: 22 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 23,273 Words: 772 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 George Frazis says the loans that cost the bank $35 million are performing as well, or better, than the rest of its mortgage book. Photo: Louie Douvis

44 The Australian, Australia Author: Richard Gluyas Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 94,448 Page: 2 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 3,267 Words: 339 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Class action to seek $1bn over fee gouging on super Law firm Slater & Gordon is preparing a series of class actions against superannuation funds owned by the major banks and AMP, alleging customers are owed more than $1 billion because of excessive fees and payment of below-market interest rates on cash holdings. The law firm alleges that millions of super fund members could be eligible to join the actions, with Commonwealth Bank and AMP the first targets in a claim worth more than $500 million. Head of class actions Ben Hardwick said the royal commission had revealed that some AMP super customers were getting negative returns on their cash investment option. We don t believe there is any justification for a bank-owned fund member being worse off than industry fund members, especially when they have chosen to invest in a passive cash investment option which requires the fund to do basically nothing, Mr Hardwick said. We think retail fund members should be compensated for the difference between their returns on cash, and the returns they should have received if the trustee had done their job properly. CBA said yesterday it was aware of the law firm s announcement but had yet to be served with any legal proceedings. The bank said it would keep investors informed of any developments, but was committed to acting in the best interests of members. An AMP spokeswoman also said the company had not been served with legal documents. We understand the proposed Slater & Gordon class action may be related to issues in our superannuation business that we previously identified and reported to the regulator, she said. As we set out in our submissions to the royal commission, we are already fixing these issues and remediating customers. Typically, class action law firms try to attract as many claimants as possible before launching a formal legal case to maximise the size of any settlement or court ruling. Slater & Gordon said up to one-third of all adult Australians could be eligible to claim. Mr Hardwick described CBA s returns for some investors as ludicrously low. RICHARD GLUYAS

45 Canberra Times, Canberra Author: Sarah Turner Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 17,579 Page: 21 Printed Size: cm² Market: ACT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 5,584 Words: 397 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Banks, Telstra help ASX snaps eight-session losing streak EQUITIES Sarah Turner Australian shares snapped an eight-session losing streak yesterday as banks and Telstra, along with a handful of miners, helped the market take some losses made amid ongoing Sino-US trade tensions and turmoil in emerging markets. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index ended the session up 38 points, or 0.6 per cent, at The All Ordinaries index rose 37 points, or 0.6 per cent, to 6287, while the Australian dollar ticked up to US71.24 against the US dollar. Australian shares have performed well this year, with the index up 1.9 per cent year-to-date, but the last week has been tough for Australian investors after the benchmark fell more than 3 per cent over seven sessions. Investors started to worry about lofty valuations for some high-flying growth stocks and also about how the mining sector will perform if HOW THE MARKET MOVED TUESDAY (%) Telecoms Energy IT Financials Real estate Industrials Cons staples Materials Utilities Cons disc Health care Percentage moves in the 11 sectors that make up the S&P/ASX 200 Index. SOURCE: BLOOMBERG S&P/ASX 200 TUESDAY 6180 POINTS 6160 commodity prices tumble on a weaker Chinese outlook. But those worries took a seat as investors pushed the benchmark higher. The telecom sector was the strongest performer by sector after Telstra shares climbed 2.9 per cent to $3.20. Commonwealth Bank climbed as well. The bank s shares rose 1.6 per cent to $71.87, extending gains made in the previous session when Citi analysts upgraded the lending giant to neutral from sell with a $72 price target. Banks were broadly higher as a sector, with ANZ ending the day up 1.1 per cent at $28.58 and Westpac gaining 0.7 per cent to $ Energy firms were the other big support to the market, with Woodside up 1.6 per cent to $36.12, Origin Energy up 3.2 per cent to $8.07 and Oil Search higher by 2.6 per cent to $8.68 a share. Broker moves helped to support some mining stocks yesterday, with South32 jumping 2.3 per cent to $3.63 and Whitehaven Coal climbing 3.7 per cent to $5.00 after both firms were upgraded to buy Deutsche Bank. CSL declined 0.7 per cent to $ after the healthcare firm traded without the rights to its latest dividend payout. Other stocks in the growth bucket trading lower included Aristocrat Leisure, down 1.3 per cent at $29.60, and Xero, down 1.9 per cent at $ The latest round of hearings of the Hayne inquiry into the financial services sector is zeroing in on the insurance sector and IAG shares lost 2.4 per cent to $7.29 and Suncorp shares were down 0.8 per cent at $ AM 4.15PM

46 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: John Collett Section: Money Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 92,202 Words: 916 Item ID: Page 1 of 4 Mum and dad shareholders still miss out The shares favoured by small investors have underperformed the broader Australian sharemarket over the past year, John Collett. Retail shareholders who favour Australia s biggest companies have missed out on the growth in the wider sharemarket. The nine most widely held stocks have returned, on average, only 7.5 per cent for the year to August 31, this year, compared with the return of the wider Australian sharemarket of 16 per cent. The returns are total returns that take into account not just the change in share price but also the dividends paid to shareholders. Big falls in the share prices of Telstra the most widely held stock with 1.4 million shareholders and the poor share price performance of the besieged wealth manager, AMP, have held mum and dad shareholders. The poor return for small investors comes despite a strong season of profit reports. Analysis by CommSec, which created the so-called Mums and Dads Index, suggests that for the year to June 30, 2018, the combined profits of the 200 largest listed companies rose 8.4 per cent on the previous financial year. Craig James, the chief economist at CommSec, says the main reasons for the underperformance of mumand-dad stocks include the good performance of smaller-capitalised stocks as well as those that are more globally dependent. The lower Aussie dollar and stronger global economy has supported exporters and companies with significant foreign operations, James says. Banks, insurance and telco stocks, which are favoured by small investors, have under-performed over the past year. While materials, energy, food and technology are among the winners. AMP in the news Result: Its six-month profit to June 30, 2018, fell 74 per cent to $115 million due to impairment linked to its financial planning scandal. Key Points: The wealth manager is in the news for all the wrong reasons with revelations before the banking royal commission that it mislead the regulator among other issues. AMP s wealth management business saw total net cash outflows of $873 million for the first half of 2018, compared to net inflows of $1.023 billion in the prior corresponding half. Telstra s competition Result: Telstra s a net profit declined 8.9 per cent to $3.53 billion for the year to June 30, with mobile revenue

47 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: John Collett Section: Money Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 92,202 Words: 916 Item ID: Page 2 of 4 falling 0.4 per cent and fixed line revenue down 9.2 per cent. Key points: Over the year, 342,000 retail customers, 88,000 retail fixed broadband customers and 135,000 retail bundles were Mums and dads still miss out From Previous Page added, but the company is facing increasing competition as the NBN is rolled out. CBA hit by costs Result: Australia s biggest bank reported a 5 per cent drop in profits to $9.2 billion for the year to June 30, which was dragged down by more than $850 million in oneoff regulatory and compliance costs. Key points: It painted a picture of subdued conditions in retail banking. And there could be further fallout for the bank from the banking royal commission, which will hand down its final recommendations in February. Woolworths outguns Coles Result: Woolworths reported a 12.5 per cent jump in net profit to $1.75 billion for the year to June 24, from $1.5 billion. Key Points: Woolworths has now outperformed Coles on comparable sales growth for seven consecutive quarters. Qantas flies high Result: The carrier posted a 14 per cent rise in underlying profit before tax $1.6 billion to June 30, 2018, from $1.4 billion for the previous financial year. Key points: International s earnings rose by 7 per cent to $399 million and earnings from domestic operations jumped by 25 per cent to $1.1 billion. Suncorp beats expectations Result: Cash earnings fell 4 per cent to $1.1 billion in the year to June 30, 2018, but that was better than analysts were expecting. Key points: Suncorp flagged it would offload its life business for $725 million to Japan s TAL Daiichi Life and return $600 million of that to shareholders. IAG to offload Asian assets Result: The insurance giant s net profit for the year to June 30, 2018, fell to $923 million from $929 million last year after higher tax liabilities and softer investment results. Key points: The general insurers key

48 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: John Collett Section: Money Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 92,202 Words: 916 Item ID: Page 3 of 4 brands include NRMA, SGIO, SGIC, CGU and Swann Insurance. Asset sales in Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam will allow the insurer to return 25 cents per share to shareholders. Wesfarmers to spin-off Coles Result: Wesfarmers posted a 58.3 per cent fall in net profit to $1,197 million for the year to June 30, 2018, and was weighed down by $1.4 billion in write-downs and charges as it navigates a period of transition. Coles full-year earnings before interest, tax and depreciation fell 6.8 per cent to $1.5 billion. Key points: Wesfarmers will spin-off Coles as a separate company and Wesfarmers shareholders will receive shares in the company with the supermarket posting its best sales results in almost two years. Tabcorp s merger pays-off Results: Gaming giant Tabcorp has swung to a $28.7 million profit for the year to June 30, 2018, in a messy result following its recent merger with rival Tatts Group. Key points: The merger with Tatts Group is helping to deliver strong growth in its online betting and online lotteries businesses. RETURNS FOR MUM AND DAD INVESTORS Share price performance 1 year to August 31, 2018 (%) IAG Wesfarmers Suncorp Tabcorp Qantas Woolworths *All Ords Accum Index *Mums & Dads Index *Dividends re-invested CBA Telstra AMP SOURCE: COMMSEC

49 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: John Collett Section: Money Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 92,202 Words: 916 Item ID: Page 4 of 4 Illustration: Dionne Gain

50 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Nassim Khadem Section: Money Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 49,142 Words: 1099 Item ID: Page 1 of 3 Love hurts: Unsuspecting partners in tax nightmares Insight Nassim Khadem She remembers the agony of being squashed under a 500-kilogram bale of hay for nine-and-a-half hours. It took another two hours for the rescue squad to get me out, says Sally, who faced a tragic accident on a family farm that later became the subject of a drawn-out tax dispute. (Her name has been changed for legal reasons). Sally was placed in an induced coma for six days. Her arm was eventually amputated. I remember crying on the witness stand as I was still very ill and under a lot of medication for my injuries from my accident, Sally says. I was under pressure being asked questions about my credit card debt and why I was helping the former husband. I could not process what he was asking quick enough. In my many years as a tax writer, I ve come across many stories like this. It is the story of the unsuspecting wives/partners who end up in a world of pain, simply because they chose the wrong partner in life. When their partner is wanted by authorities such as the police and the Australian Taxation Office, these women, tragically, also become targets. When money moves offshore Sally says the Tax Office alleged her husband s company was set up as an assetstripping arrangement, by which the assets of the company were removed overseas so that the directors of the company, including Sally, could avoid paying tax. Sally says she was told by her ex-husband that this arrangement was designed to protect her assets and that she was unaware there was a problem with the Tax Office until much later, when she received news of the assessment, which she later objected to. When Sally finally became aware her exhusband was diverting income offshore and told the Tax Office about it, it was too late. Her ex-husband s estate was now bankrupt, meaning that to recover debts, the Tax Office could go after assets owned, either solely or jointly, by his then spouse. In the end Sally was hit with interest and penalties amounting to more than $1 million. She did not pay the money the Tax Office alleged she owed because she was fighting her ex-husband in the Family Court for control of assets. Assuming she could take control of and sell the assets that would allow her to pay the Tax Office. But she failed in her attempts to sell the property. She lost the tax case, and then lost a subsequent appeal in the Federal Court. She later made a claim for compensation from the Tax Office, arguing she was not a Continued Page 4 1HERSA1 E001

51 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Nassim Khadem Section: Money Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 49,142 Words: 1099 Item ID: Page 2 of 3 Unsuspecting partners in tax nightmares From Page 1 willing participant in the tax avoidance schemes. The Tax Office s conclusion in its response to her which she shared with Fairfax Media was that while her case was sad, the ATO was not the author of [her] misfortune. It said she had a tax liability that she did not pay, despite various opportunities to do so, and the courts had found against her. The conman There are other cases. Joanne Hambrook spent more than 10 years in various court battles with the ATO because of her ties with Patrick Shaun Wilson, who formerly lived in Kangaroo Point, Brisbane, and is now believed to be in the Philippines. In February 2011 then Liberal Senator Brett Mason in an address to parliament, described Wilson as a disgrace and sociopathic conman. Mason told the Senate that Wilson had conned ordinary people who have little recourse after convincing investors to put money into a natural medicines company, New Zeal, leaving them hundreds of thousands of dollars out of pocket. Hambrook had nothing to do with Wilson s New Zeal business. He was a director of a number of her companies that ended up coming under the Tax Office s watch because the pair were in a de facto relationship in the 1990s. After the relationship breakdown, Hambrook was in dispute with her expartner over whether a piece of land was owned by him or their self-managed superannuation fund, called the Interhealth Superannuation Fund. Wilson, who over the years has undergone his own legal battles with the ATO he was declared bankrupt in 2011 and discharged three years later decided to seek his SMSF member entitlement be paid out to him. Hambrook saw problems with paying out his entitlement given that there was a dispute before the Brisbane Supreme Court regarding the SMSF s assets. The Tax Office commenced legal proceedings to enforce the SMSF s obligation to pay out Wilson s entitlement. Hambrook went to court to fight against this action on the basis that there was an ongoing dispute regarding the SMSF s assets the property in dispute in the Supreme Court that needed to be resolved prior to calculating member entitlements. She lost the case. The costs of defending against the Tax Office s action Hambrook says it was more than $400,000 resulted in the depletion of the SMSF s assets. By the end of the legal proceedings there were no assets left in the SMSF available to either member. The ATO has unjustly succeeded in destroying multiple companies, my super fund, 10 of my best working years and has left me with nothing but debts and serious health problems, Hambrook says. In 2013 she lodged a complaint against the Tax Office, saying the agency breached its model litigant obligations (MLO) by chasing after the fund and leaving it with no money. As well as seeking redress under MLO, Hambrook in 2014 filed a compensation claim with the Tax Office. After two years of another stressful drawn out complaints process in September 2016, the Tax Office admitted to defective administration, only in the case of the super fund audit, she says. It offered the destroyed and non-existent Interhealth super fund $10,000 under the CDDA Scheme for compensation. The offer was disingenuous as the fund no longer exists, she says. In the meantime the Tax Office will investigate itself it will decide whether it breached its model litigant obligations. The Tax Office told Fairfax Media company directors have a number of responsibilities under law, including the payment of tax and discharging debts. Where a court finds a director liable for a tax debt we are obliged to take action under the law, a spokeswoman said. Fairfax Media attempted to contact Patrick Shaun Wilson for comment. The ATO... has left me with nothing but debts and serious health problems.

52 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Nassim Khadem Section: Money Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 49,142 Words: 1099 Item ID: Page 3 of 3 Joanne Hambrook has spent more than 10 years in costly court battles with the ATO.

53 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Noel Whittaker Section: Money Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 2 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 17,848 Words: 500 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Ask Noel Noel Whittaker I am 69 and currently receiving a Commonwealth Super pension. I also have about $200,000 in another super account in the accumulation mode. My only property is a studio unit that I have had for 20 years, but have only lived in for about two years, and wish to sell. Is it possible to contribute the proceeds of the sale into my super account? You have owned the property for more than 10 years, and you are eligible for at least a part capital gains tax exemption, so I know of no reason why you should not be eligible for the downsizing scheme. Keep in mind the proceeds must be placed in superannuation within 90 days of settlement. I am a married woman aged 68, and working part-time earning $25,116 a year. I pay $31 a week tax. I have a debt-free investment property netting $14,000 a year. My total gross income is $39,116 a year. My husband owns the home we live in. He has an income of $21,000 a year. If I salary sacrifice up to say 75 per cent of my weekly wage, adding in the employer contribution to the allowed $25,000, would I minimise my tax? I realise that 15 per cent contributions tax into superannuation would be levied, however the remainder of my wage should not attract tax. My tax obligation for this past financial year is $3223 not including the tax paid on wages last financial year. I would appreciate your advice. When I asked my accountant about this, I am sure she did not comprehend my query. Your employer should be paying around $2400 in super, which means there is still $22,600 available for you with which to make a tax-deductible contribution. However, you do not want to be making deductible contributions that take your taxable income below the effective tax-free threshold which is $20,542. Therefore, I suggest the maximum additional superannuation contribution you make should be $18,574. I am 75 and have a negatively geared investment property that I intend to keep for my only child. If Labor wins office and negative gearing is grandfathered, what strategies can I put in place so that my child inherits the property and can fund the debt? Keep in mind that Labor has to win office, draft legislation, and then have it passed. They claim there will be no retrospectivity with respect to negative gearing so you should not be affected. Given you are just 75 now, it would be reasonable to expect you have at least 10 years ahead of you. It would be a very bad investment if it had not moved from negatively geared to positively geared in that time. Noel Whittaker is the author of Making Money Made Simple and numerous other books on personal finance. Keep in mind that Labor has to win office, draft legislation, and then have it passed. They claim there will be no retrospectivity with respect to negative gearing so you should not be affected.

54 Gympie Times, Gympie QLD Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 2,997 Page: 16 Printed Size: cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 191 Words: 374 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 August sales, profits up PM swap dents confidence but conditions good AUSTRALIAN business conditions rebounded in August as firms reported improved sales and profits, a new survey has revealed. But the latest National Australia Bank index of business conditions, released yesterday, showed confidence softened, perhaps in reaction to political uncertainty following the removal of Malcolm Turnbull (pictured) as the nation s prime minister. The index regained two points to stand at plus-15 in August, well above the longrun average of plus-six. The survey s measure of profitability climbed six points to plus-16 in August, recovering all of July s dip, while its sales index added a point to a strong plus-19. In a promising development, the survey s employment index held firm. The employment index continues to suggest growth in employment of around 23,000 per month over the next six months, said NAB group chief economist Alan Oster. With a stabilisation in the labour force participation rate, this should be enough to see the unemployment rate decline further over the rest of The official jobs report for August is due tomorrow and is expected to show the jobless rate stayed at a six-year low of 5.3 per cent. The survey s often volatile measure of business confidence dipped three points to plus-four in August. The poll was taken just after the Liberal Party ousted Mr Turnbull and replaced him with treasurer Scott Morrison as the new prime minister. The Coalition has since slumped in opinion polls, leaving the Labor Party, under Bill Shorten, in a commanding position to win the next election. Still, firms reported strength in their own businesses, with forward orders rising and investment plans picking up outside the mining sector. In combination with a rebound in business conditions this month, this suggests that the business sector has continued to perform strongly as we enter the second half of 2018, said Mr Oster. The Reserve Bank of Australia has highlighted the resilience of business conditions as it forecast economic growth would top 3 per cent this year and next. The central bank last week kept official interest rates unchanged for a record 25th consecutive month, citing the loose monetary policy s role in supporting confidence. Three of the four major banks have raised interest rates independently of the central bank.

55 Gympie Times, Gympie QLD Section: Letters Article type : Letter Classification : Regional : 2,997 Page: 8 Printed Size: cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 81 Words: 302 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR It s OK to say no to the National Party DEAR politicians, while I am weeding beans, I think a lot... mainly why do I grow produce? The National MP who represents one of the lowest socio seats in the country is calling for a levy on milk to cover the drought along with other National MPs. It seems economic/ taxation policies are out of bounds for the Nats. So they look for things that will get them in, so they can neglect many issues facing their electorates. I am not sure many politicians understand the legislation that the bureaucrats will end up writing. So my question is will all dairy farmers be getting 10 cents per litre or just drought affected dairy farmers? Much of the Wide Bay electorate is not in drought. Who is collecting the 10 cents per litre? So a little corner shop who sells milk, how do they pass on the 10 cents collected? Or are you just asking Coles and Woolworths to put the levy on milk? Is it more paper work for small business? When will the dairy farmer be paid? And how will they be paid? Via processor, via small business, or by federal government? Daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly? Horticulture was in the news when the National Party had an opportunity to discuss superannuation and how so much of hard working seasonal poor peoples wages leave the regional electorates under the guise they need to fund their own retirement. So as the focus isn t on the dramas of drought on horticulture, problems with me feeding all the starving wildlife and how we are getting poorer, I will try to analyse what the National Party is doing to try and win their low socio seats. P.S. It s OK to say no to the National Party. Madonna Waugh, Widgee

56 Age, Melbourne Author: Mathew Dunckley Ruth Williams Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 83,229 Page: 29 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 26,909 Words: 604 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 SUPER Exorbitant fees claim Banks set to face massive class action Mathew Dunckley Ruth Williams At least two of Australia s financial powerhouses face the threat of class actions for ripping off their superannuation clients. On Tuesday, plaintiff law firm Slater & Gordon revealed it was seeking expressions of interest for a class action against financial institutions following damaging revelations about their treatment of customers, saying they collectively owed Australians more than one billion dollars. The company said the first targets would be the Commonwealth Bank of Australia-owned Colonial First State and AMP, but at a press conference on Tuesday it also mentioned it might look at adding IOOF in future, as well as most of the major retail funds. There would be a series of announcements over the coming weeks and months, it foreshadowed. Slater & Gordon said it would be alleged that big banked super funds charged their clients exorbitant fees and failed to achieve competitive returns from their cash investments. Branding the campaign Get Your Super Back, the company said the action would be brought on behalf of millions of Australians in bankowned super funds. Slater & Gordon said the allegation arose from evidence at the Hayne royal commission, which is probing misconduct in the banking, superannuation and financial services industry. The commission has heard evidence superannuation customers at bank funds were placed in cash investment options that offered low returns that could be severely eroded by fees charged. A well-placed source said the class action would also consider the fees-for-no-service scandal, where major financial organisations have admitted charging thousands of customers some of them deceased for services they did not receive. The companies have already agreed to pay compensation over that scandal, which is estimated to eventually hit $1 billion. AMP and IOOF have been contacted for comment. Commonwealth Bank said it was aware of the announcement. Commonwealth Bank, or its subsidiaries, have not been served with any legal proceedings, the bank s statement said. CBA will keep the market informed of developments. At the press conference, Slater & Gordon s head of class actions, Ben Hardwick, pointed to royal commission revelations that some AMP super fund members were actually getting negative returns on cash investments, due to measly interest rates as well as the fees charged to their accounts. On our calculations, fund members of Colonial and AMP combined have lost over half a billion dollars from their superannuation accounts, he said. This will fundamentally degrade their retirement. We intend to bring class actions to recoup as much of this money as we can. Mr Hardwick said Slater & Gordon was in advanced discussions with several litigation funders to bankroll the actions. The company was also speaking to potential lead plaintiffs for the cases, he said, and had received a number of registrations since it announced the class action on Tuesday morning. When asked whether the firm might face competition from other class action law firms, Mr Hardwick said we believe we are best placed to take this case forward. The firm would be paid in the usual way lawyers are remunerated, Mr Hardwick said. Slater & Gordon, and at least three other class action law firms, already has a shareholder class action on foot against AMP over the scandals revealed at the banking royal commission and the resulting damage to its market value. The class action comes as regulators are also ramping up their legal efforts. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission announced last week it would prosecute National Australia Bank over the fees-for-no-service scandal.

57 Age, Melbourne Author: Mathew Dunckley Ruth Williams Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 83,229 Page: 29 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 26,909 Words: 604 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 Australians owed more than one billion dollars. The first targets would be the Commonwealth Bank of Australia-owned Colonial First State and AMP. Photo: AAP

58 Age, Melbourne Author: Anna Patty Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 83,229 Page: 10 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 7,329 Words: 304 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Women s wages key target of union plan Anna Patty Unions have put pay parity front and centre in a new push to ensure wage deals don t disadvantage women. The onus would be on businesses and unions to prove women weren t worse off than male counterparts as part of an Australian Council of Trade Unions blueprint for improving gender equity in the workplace. The suite of proposals also includes calls for more superannuation for women who are often in lower paid professions and leave the workforce temporarily to look after children. The call comes as Kelly O Dwyer, Minister for Jobs and Industrial Relations, prepares to deliver the federal government s first statement on women s economic security in coming weeks. I am committed to supporting women in the workforce and addressing women s economic equality, she said. The gender pay gap stands at 15.3 per cent, with women earning on average $ less than men each week, an ACTU study says. When it comes to full-time pay, men take home 22.4 per cent a year more than women each year. The average super balances for women at retirement age between 60 to 64 is 42 per cent less than for men. That works out at an average of less than $80,000. This is unlikely to fund any more than three years of retirement even on the most basic living standard, the report says. To ensure fewer women retire in poverty, the ACTU is calling for the removal of a $450 minimum threshold on earnings that attract compulsory employer super contributions. It believes women in part-time and short-term work should be paid super for every dollar they earn below $450. The union also wants an increase in the low-income super tax offset from $500 to a maximum payment of $1000. This would entitle those on up to $37,000 to receive a yearly payment of up to $1000.

59 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Anna Patty Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 14 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 49,622 Words: 830 Item ID: Page 1 of 3 ACTU BLUEPRINT Women s wages target of union plan The push is on finally to try to ensure fewer women retire in poverty, writes Anna Patty. Unions have put pay parity front and centre in a new push to ensure wage deals don t disadvantage women. The onus would be on businesses and unions to prove women weren t worse off than their male counterparts as part of an Australian Council of Trade Unions blueprint for improving gender equity in the workplace. The suite of proposals also includes calls for an increase in superannuation for women who are often in lower paid professions and leave the workforce temporarily to look after children. The call comes as Kelly O Dwyer, Minister for Jobs and Industrial Relations, prepares to deliver the federal government s first statement on women s economic security in coming weeks. I am committed to supporting women in the workforce and addressing women s economic equality, she said. The gender pay gap stands at 15.3 per cent, with women earning on average $ less than men each week, an ACTU study says. When it comes to fulltime pay, men take home 22.4 per cent a year more than women each year. The average superannuation balances for women at retirement age between 60 to 64 is 42 per cent less than for men. That works out at an average of less than $80,000. This is unlikely to fund any more than three years of retirement even on the most basic living standard, the report says. To ensure fewer women retire in poverty, the ACTU is calling for the removal of a $450 minimum threshold on earnings that attract compulsory employer superannuation contributions. It believes women in part-time and short-term work should be paid superannuation for every dollar they earn below $450. The union also wants an increase in the lowincome superannuation tax offset from $500 to a maximum payment of $1000. This would entitle workers earning up to $37,000 a year to receive a yearly payment of up to $1000. Early childhood teacher Theodora Hatzihrisafis is among workers in female-dominated professions battling for more pay in recognition of her TAFE Certificate III and university teaching degree qualifications. Having taken four years off work to raise three children, she is also likely to retire with less superannuation than most men. That is nearly four years I have missed out on superannuation that will mean thousands of dollars less for my retirement, she said. When I went to work, about 60 per cent of my wage was going to childcare fees so I was funding my return to work. Marian Baird, Professor of Gender and Employment Relations at the University of Sydney, said she saw great merit in removing the $450 per month minimum threshold because it disadvantages women and other workers in low paid or precarious jobs. It is also an incentive for employers to break down people s employment and income to levels that sit under the threshold, she said. ACTU president Michele O Neil said the Fair Work Commission should be empowered to intervene in enterprise bargaining to ensure that gender equity issues were resolved. And, as part of the approval process, that whatever type of agreements are in place should not be approved if they don t afford equal remuneration for work of equal or comparable value, she said. Ms O Dwyer said the government was already working towards addressing pay inequity, including measures on flexible work, paid parental leave and early childhood education and child care reforms. Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive James Pearson said industrial relations regulation was not the way to achieving better retirement incomes for women. Awards set pay on a gender neutral basis and there are already pay equity laws and laws to prevent discrimination on the basis of gender, Mr Pearson said. Further workplace regulation is not the answer and restrictions on flexible work would be counterproductive. Early childhood educator Gwen Alwood said she earned $20,000 per year when she started in the profession as a trainee seven years ago. She said she now earns enough to pay the rent in Rockdale, Sydney with about $100 to spare each fortnight. My wage only covers rent and that is pretty ridiculous. I work nine hours a day, five days a week, she said. There are women I know who are retiring with less than $100,000 in super who have worked in early childhood for more than 30 years. Action plan The ACTU is calling for the removal of a $450 minimum threshold on earnings that attract compulsory employer superannuation contributions. an increase in the low-income superannuation tax offset from $500 to a maximum payment of $1000, entitling workers earning up to $37,000 a year to receive a yearly payment of up to $1000.

60 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Anna Patty Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 14 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 49,622 Words: 830 Item ID: Page 2 of 3 My wage only covers rent and that is pretty ridiculous. Early childhood educator Gwen Alwood

61 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Anna Patty Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 14 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 49,622 Words: 830 Item ID: Page 3 of 3 Theodora Hatzihrisafis, left, is a working mum of three children; Gwen Alwood, above, says she struggles on low wages. Photos: James Alcock, Wolter Peeters

62 Canberra Times, Canberra Author: John Collett Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 17,579 Page: 24 Printed Size: cm² Market: ACT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 5,763 Words: 488 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Inactive accounts to be joined Super & funds John Collett I n a move that will save super fund members hundreds of dollars a year in fees, 19 industry funds have agreed to co-operate and auto-consolidate members accounts that are inactive with less than $6000 in them. They estimate that would save the typical industry fund member with multiple accounts $260 a year, and particularly benefit those working part-time and casually. The problem with multiple accounts is members pay more than one set of fees as well as more than one set of life insurance premiums. REST, the industry fund for workers in the retail sector, only joined in this week. Hostplus, covering workers in the hospitality sector which has a large number of members working part-time and casually is also part of the initiative. The move is being driven by Industry Funds Australia, the umbrella group representing most industry funds. REST is not a member of Industry Funds Australia, but it and three other nonmember industry funds have joined the initiative. It is meant to work in addition to the efforts of the Tax Office, which uses its extensive data-matching powers, including tax file numbers, to make matches. A super account is deemed lost if a fund cannot make contact with the account owner and there is no activity on the account. Lost super accounts with less than $6000 in them are automatically transferred to the Tax Office. Industry Super-owned AUSfund an eligible rollover fund will be co-ordinating the consolidation of members inactive accounts to an active account held in a participating industry super fund. If a successful match is found, the account balances that are inactive will be merged with the members account balance that is active usually the fund into which compulsory super is being paid. If AUSfund cannot find an active account, it will manage the money until the rightful owner can be found. The money will attract investment returns, less a low annual administration fee of $11.50 a year and 0.53 per cent fee to cover other costs. For the year to June 30, 2018, AUSfund produced an investment return of more than 6 per cent. While there are no fees on the accounts held by the Tax Office, the accounts earn only the rate of inflation, or about 2 per cent. And the fund member has to initiate a search for lost super held by the Tax Office. Fund members will be able to opt out of the industry funds consolidation scheme, but a survey following an earlier trial found members who had accounts consolidated were happy for funds to chase their savings. Industry Super Australia chief executive Bernie Dean says the auto-consolidation cuts through restrictive rules that limit the ability of funds to reunite members lost and inactive savings without first obtaining express consent. This is the right thing to do for members they expect the system to sort out multiple accounts for them, he said.

63 Canberra Times, Canberra Author: John Collett Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 17,579 Page: 24 Printed Size: cm² Market: ACT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 23,155 Words: 861 Item ID: Page 1 of 4 Mum and dad shareholders still miss out The shares favoured by small investors have underperformed the broader Australian sharemarket over the past year, writes John Collett. Retail shareholders who favour Australia s biggest companies have missed out on the growth in the wider sharemarket. The nine most widely held stocks have returned, on average, only 7.5 per cent for the year to August 31, this year, compared with the return of the wider Australian sharemarket of 16 per cent. The returns are total returns that take into account not just the change in share price but also the dividends paid to shareholders. Big falls in the share prices of Telstra the most widely held stock with 1.4 million shareholders and the poor share price performance of the besieged wealth manager, AMP, have held mum and dad shareholders. The poor return for small investors comes despite a strong season of profit reports. Analysis by CommSec, which created the so-called Mums and Dads Index, suggests that for the year to June 30, 2018, the combined profits of the 200 largest listed companies rose 8.4 per cent on the previous financial year. Craig James, the chief economist at CommSec, says the main reasons for the underperformance of mumand-dad stocks include the good performance of smaller-capitalised stocks as well as those that are more globally dependent. The lower Aussie dollar and stronger global economy has supported exporters and companies with significant foreign operations, James says. Banks, insurance and telco stocks, which are favoured by small investors, have under-performed over the past year. While materials, energy, food and technology are among the winners. AMP in the news Result: Its six-month profit to June 30, 2018, fell 74 per cent to $115 million due to impairment linked to its financial planning scandal. Key Points: The wealth manager is in the news for all the wrong reasons with revelations before the banking royal commission that it mislead the regulator among other issues. AMP s wealth management business saw total net cash outflows of $873 million for the first half of 2018, compared to net inflows of $1.023 billion in the prior corresponding half. Telstra s competition Result: Telstra s a net profit declined 8.9

64 Canberra Times, Canberra Author: John Collett Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 17,579 Page: 24 Printed Size: cm² Market: ACT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 23,155 Words: 861 Item ID: Page 2 of 4 per cent to $3.53 billion for the year to June 30, with mobile revenue falling 0.4 per cent and fixed line revenue down 9.2 per cent. Key points: Over the year, 342,000 retail customers, 88,000 retail fixed broadband customers and 135,000 retail bundles were added, but the company is facing increasing competition as the NBN is rolled out. CBA hit by costs Result: Australia s biggest bank reported a 5 per cent drop in profits to $9.2 billion for the year to June 30, which was dragged down by more than $850 million in one-off regulatory and compliance costs. Key points: It painted a picture of subdued conditions in retail banking. And there could be further fallout for the bank from the banking royal commission, which will hand down its final recommendations in February. Woolworths outguns Coles Result: Woolworths reported a 12.5 per cent jump in net profit to $1.75 bill ion for the year to June 24, from $1.5 billion. Key Points: Woolworths has now outperformed Coles on comparable sales growth for seven consecutive quarters. Qantas flies high Result: The carrier posted a 14 per cent rise in underlying profit before tax $1.6 billion to June 30, 2018, from $1.4 billion for the previous financial year. Key points: International s earnings rose by 7 per cent to $399 million and earnings from domestic operations jumped by 25 per cent to $1.1 billion. IAG to offload Asian assets Result: The insurance giant s net profit for the year to June 30, 2018, fell to $923 million from $929 million last year after higher tax liabilities and softer investment results. Key points: The general insurers key brands include NRMA, SGIO, SGIC, CGU and Swann Insurance. Asset sales in Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam will allow the insurer to return 25 cents per share to shareholders. Wesfarmers to spin-off Coles Result: Wesfarmers posted a 58.3 per cent fall in net profit to $1,197 million for the year to June 30, 2018, and was weighed down by $1.4 billion in write-downs and charges as it navigates a period of transition. Coles fullyear earnings before interest, tax and depreciation fell 6.8 per cent to $1.5 billion. Key points: Wesfarmers will spin-off Coles as a separate company and Wesfarmers shareholders will receive shares in the company with the supermarket posting its best sales results in almost two years. Tabcorp s merger pays-off Results: Gaming giant Tabcorp has swung to a $28.7 million profit for the year to June 30, 2018, in a messy result following its recent merger with rival Tatts Group. Key points: The merger with Tatts Group is helping to deliver strong growth in its online betting and online lotteries businesses. Suncorp beats expectations Result: Cash earnings fell 4 per cent to $1.1 billion in the year to June 30, 2018, but that was better than analysts were expecting. Key points: Suncorp flagged it would offload its life business for $725 million to Japan s TAL Dai-ichi Life and return $600 million of that to shareholders.

65 Canberra Times, Canberra Author: John Collett Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 17,579 Page: 24 Printed Size: cm² Market: ACT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 23,155 Words: 861 Item ID: Page 3 of 4 Illustration: Dionne Gain

66 Canberra Times, Canberra Author: John Collett Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 17,579 Page: 24 Printed Size: cm² Market: ACT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 23,155 Words: 861 Item ID: Page 4 of 4 RETURNS FOR MUM AND DAD INVESTORS Share price performance 1 year to August 31, 2018 (%) IAG Wesfarmers Suncorp Tabcorp Qantas Woolworths *All Ords Accum Index *Mums & Dads Index CBA Telstra AMP *Dividends re-invested SOURCE: COMMSEC

67 Canberra Times, Canberra Author: Nassim Khadem Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 17,579 Page: 25 Printed Size: cm² Market: ACT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 17,315 Words: 1071 Item ID: Page 1 of 3 Love hurts: Unsuspecting partners in tax nightmares Insight Nassim Khadem S he remembers the agony of being squashed under a 500-kilogram bale of hay for nine-and-a-half hours. It took another two hours for the rescue squad to get me out, says Sally, who faced a tragic accident on a family farm that later became the subject of a drawn-out tax dispute. (Her name has been changed for legal reasons). Sally was placed in an induced coma for six days. Her arm was eventually amputated. I remember crying on the witness stand as I was still very ill and under a lot of medication for my injuries from my accident, Sally says. I was under pressure being asked questions about my credit card debt and why I was helping the former husband. I could not process what he was asking quick enough. In my many years as a tax writer, I ve come across many stories like this. It is the story of the unsuspecting wives/ partners who end up in a world of pain, simply because they chose the wrong partner in life. When their partner is wanted by authorities like the police and the Australian Taxation Office, these women, tragically, also become targets. When money moves offshore Sally says the Tax Office alleged her husband s company was set up as an assetstripping arrangement, by which the assets of the company were removed overseas so that the directors of the company, including Sally, could avoid paying tax. Sally says she was told by her ex-husband that this arrangement was designed to protect her assets and that she was unaware there was a problem with the Tax Office until much later, when she received news of the assessment, which she later objected to. When Sally finally became aware her exhusband was diverting income offshore and told the Tax Office about it, it was too late. Her ex husband s estate was now bankrupt, meaning that to recover debts, the Tax Office could go after assets owned, either solely or jointly, by his then spouse. In the end Sally was hit with interest and penalties amounting to more than $1 million. She did not pay the money the Tax Office alleged she owed because she was fighting her ex-husband in the Family Court for control of assets. Assuming she could take control of and sell the assets that would allow her to pay the Tax Office. But she failed in her attempts to sell the property. She lost the tax case, and then lost a subsequent appeal in the Federal Court. She later made a claim for compensation from the Tax Office, arguing she was not a willing participant in the tax avoidance schemes. The Tax Office s conclusion in its response to her which she shared with Fairfax Media was that while her case was sad, the ATO was not the author of [her] misfortune. It said she had a tax liability that she did not pay, despite various opportunities to do so, and the courts had found against her. The conman There are other cases. Joanne Hambrook spent more than 10 years in various court battles with the ATO because of her ties with Patrick Shaun Wilson, who formerly lived in Kangaroo Point, Brisbane, and is now believed to be in the Philippines. In February 2011 then Liberal Senator Brett Mason in an address to parliament, described Wilson as a disgrace and sociopathic conman. Mason told the Senate that Wilson had conned ordinary people who have little recourse after convincing investors to put

68 Canberra Times, Canberra Author: Nassim Khadem Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 17,579 Page: 25 Printed Size: cm² Market: ACT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 17,315 Words: 1071 Item ID: Page 2 of 3 money into a natural medicines company, New Zeal, leaving them hundreds of thousands of dollars out of pocket. Hambrook had nothing to do with Wilson s New Zeal business. He was a director of a number of her companies that ended up coming under the Tax Office s watch because the pair were in a de facto relationship in the 1990s. After the relationship breakdown, Hambrook was in dispute with her expartner over whether a piece of land was owned by him or their self-managed superannuation fund, called the Interhealth Superannuation Fund. Wilson, who over the years has undergone his own legal battles with the ATO he was declared bankrupt in 2011 and discharged three years later decided to seek his SMSF member entitlement be paid out to him. Hambrook saw problems with paying out his entitlement given that there was a dispute before the Brisbane Supreme Court regarding the SMSF s assets. The Tax Office commenced legal proceedings to enforce the SMSF s obligation to pay out Wilson s entitlement. Hambrook went to court to fight against this action on the basis that there was an ongoing dispute regarding the SMSF s assets the property in dispute in the Supreme Court that needed to be resolved prior to calculating member entitlements. She lost the case. The costs of defending against the Tax Office s action Hambrook says it was more than $400,000 resulted in the depletion of the SMSF s assets. By the end of the legal proceedings there were no assets left in the SMSF available to either member. The ATO has unjustly succeeded in destroying multiple companies, my super fund, 10 of my best working years and has left me with nothing but debts and serious health problems, Hambrook says. In 2013 she lodged a complaint against the Tax Office, saying the agency breached its model litigant obligations (MLO) by chasing after the fund and leaving it with no money. As well as seeking redress under MLO, Hambrook in 2014 filed a compensation claim with the Tax Office. After two years of another stressful drawn out complaints process in September 2016, the Tax Office admitted to defective administration, only in the case of the super fund audit, she says. It offered the destroyed and non-existent Interhealth super fund $10,000 under the CDDA Scheme for compensation. The offer was disingenuous as the fund no longer exists, she says. In the meantime the Tax Office will investigate itself it will decide whether it breached its model litigant obligations. The Tax Office told Fairfax Media company directors have a number of responsibilities under law, including the payment of tax and discharging debts. Where a court finds a director liable for a tax debt we are obliged to take action under the law, a spokeswoman said. Fairfax Media attempted to contact Patrick Shaun Wilson for comment.

69 Canberra Times, Canberra Author: Nassim Khadem Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 17,579 Page: 25 Printed Size: cm² Market: ACT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 17,315 Words: 1071 Item ID: Page 3 of 3 Joanne Hambrook has spent more than 10 years in costly court battles with the ATO.

70 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: John Collett Clancy Yeates Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 5 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 25,772 Words: 618 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 LIFE INSURANCE Gut wrenching : push for cold-calling ban over sales tactics John Collett Clancy Yeates High-pressure sales tactics used to sell life insurance over the phone are endemic in the industry, insurance experts say, as consumer advocates claim the model is broken and call for a ban on the practice. Mark Kachor, managing director of life insurance and superannuation researcher DEXX&R, said evidence before the financial services royal commission of cold calling by ClearView and Freedom Insurance was typical of direct call centres across the [insurance] industry. The royal commission has heard this week how ASX-listed ClearView admitted more than 300,000 criminal breaches of laws banning the sale of financial products during unsolicited meetings or phone calls. Its sales tactics included targeting people in remote Indigenous communities with near-worthless policies. It also heard how Freedom Insurance used hard-sell techniques over the phone, including to a man with Down syndrome who was unable to understand the cover he was buying. The company initially failed to cancel the policy despite calls and an from his father, before it later withdrew the policy. They have been chosen [by the royal commission] as the example for all of this, but you will find the Clear- View experience across-theboard, Mr Kachor said, referring to direct selling on the phone as opposed to selling through an adviser or a super fund. Mr Kachor also questions the value of some of these policies, which often have lots of exclusions. You have to have all of these exclusions, because the more questions the sales agent asks [the potential customer], the less likely the person is to buy, he said. The fundamental principle is to ask no questions and exclude all pre-conditions, for example, so that someone can say yes and you [the insurer] contain the risks. A review of direct life insurance sales released late last month by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission also found life insurance sold in this way was much more likely to be rejected if a claim was made. Susan Quinn, senior policy officer at the Consumer Action Law Centre, who is attending the royal commission in Melbourne, said she believed the practices were endemic in the industry. What s really clear so far is that there are major problems with cold calling and flogging life insurance, she said. And the incentives and commissions sitting behind what is going on are pretty horrifying to see displayed before us, with little legal compliance. To hear that a company [Clear- View] may have breached provisions in legal compliance over 300,000 times is unbelievable. In its review, ASIC unveiled plans for tighter rules governing life insurance companies and their distributors directly selling their policies to consumers through outbound sales calls. Ms Quinn said the Consumer Action Law Centre wanted an outright ban as the law is not working... the way it is intended. Alexandra Kelly, principal solicitor at the Financial Rights Legal Centre, also supports a ban on unsolicited sales of life insurance over the phone, saying the model appears to be broken. It was common for clients to not understand the life cover they had been sold through an unsolicited sales call, and recordings of these calls often showed sales people racing through the critical information. The royal commission had also shown types of life insurance being sold through cold calling were often junk, she said, because of the difficulties customers faced if they needed to make a claim. I don t think there s value in it if you re effectively tricking people through high-pressure sales tactics to sign up, Ms Kelly said. Labor s financial services spokesperson, Clare O Neil, said testimony yesterday was gut-wrenching. Words cannot describe how disgusted I am that a young man s disability was exploited so that an insurance company could meet a sales target.

71 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Stephen Bartholomeusz Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 25 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 27,853 Words: 760 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 Irresponsible loans by Westpac were not very irresponsible COMMENT Stephen Bartholomeusz Last week, Westpac was hit with a record $35 million fine for breaching the responsible lending provisions of the National Consumer Protection Credit Act. That s an interesting outcome, given that its lending doesn t appear to have been irresponsible. Westpac settled with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and agreed to pay the largest civil penalty ever awarded under the National Credit Act on the eve of a scheduled federal Court trial. ASIC had claimed, and Westpac ultimately agreed, that it contravened the Act in two respects. One was that it had used a benchmark, the Household Expenditure Measure (HEM), rather than consumers declared living expenses, in assessing their capacity to repay home loans. The second was that, for borrowers with an interest-only period in their loans, it failed to use the higher repayments at the end of the interest-only period to assess their capacity to repay the loans. There has been a focus by ASIC, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority and the banking royal commission on responsible lending and criticism of the banks reliance on the HEM benchmark to assess borrowers capacity to repay loans. ASIC is reported to be investigating other banks and non-banks for similar breaches of the Act to Westpac s. In Westpac s case, between December 2011 and March 2015 the bank s automated decision system approved 261,987 home loans. For about 50,000 of those loans it received, but didn t use, consumers actual expense information that was higher than the HEM and for a similar number of loans with an interest-only period it used the incorrect method of assessing the customers capacity to repay the loan at the end of the interest-only period. Of the 100,000 loans, ASIC said Westpac should not have automatically approved 5041 for using the HEM benchmark rather than the declared expenditure and 5395 for using the incorrect method for assessing the loans with interest-only periods. That s less than 4 per cent of the loans handled by the automated system. The HEM benchmark is only one of the inputs into Westpac s automated decision system. It had more than 200 rules within it. And, to the extent that it used the HEM, it added a buffer to produce a required minimum monthly surplus before the loan could be automatically approved. Expenses declared by the borrower were taken into account by the automated decision system, but only if they were more than 70 per cent of what Westpac deemed verified monthly income, or after-tax income that met Westpac s particular criteria. Those loans could be referred for manual assessment. So, of the 261,987 loans approved by the automated decision system, 5041 wouldn t have been approved had the customers declared expenses been used and 5395 with interestonly periods wouldn t have been approved had Westpac used the residual term calculation. How did those irresponsibly lent loans fare? In Westpac s total Westpacbranded home loan book it has accounts that have been in arrears for 90 days or more that, over the past seven years, have had a delinquency rate that has ranged from 0.45 per cent to 0.67 per cent. Over the same period, it has received applications for hardship assistance from borrowers that ranged from 0.08 per cent to 0.17 per cent of its book. According to the statement of facts agreed between ASIC and the bank, loans approved by the automated decision system between December 2011 and March 2015 have, to date, had a lower rate of hardship applications and a similar level of delinquencies to manually approved home loans. Loans approved by the automated decision system also had a higher rate of additional repayments, or funds in linked offset accounts, than manually approved loans made in that period. If, as Westpac s consumer bank CEO, George Frazis, later said, the credit quality of those loans lent is equal to or better than the bank s entire $440 billion Australian mortgage portfolio, how can the process of assessing them be deemed irresponsible? Or does that imply Westpac s lending, whether it complies with ASIC s interpretation of the Act or not,

72 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Stephen Bartholomeusz Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 25 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 27,853 Words: 760 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 has all been irresponsible? It is understandable that APRA should focus on the stability of the system. It s also, however, in the interest of the economy and consumers that the process is as low-cost and timely as possible. With the advent next year of the open banking regime, which will give banks and non-banks access to customers banking data, the HEM controversy should become a legacy issue and Westpac s record fine an historical and somewhat puzzling curiosity. 1HERSA1 A025 ASIC is reported to be investigating other banks... for similar breaches.

73 Northern Territory News, Darwin Author: Alan Kohler Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 11,279 Page: 30 Printed Size: cm² Market: NT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 5,422 Words: 1138 Item ID: Page 1 of 3 Where to begin our super retirement system WEDNESDAY ESDA SEPTEMBER ALAN KOHLER THE total amount of money in the Australian superannuation pot is now $2.7 trillion, equal to the market value of two American companies, Amazon and Apple, but let s not quibble. It s regarded by most as a gobsmacking amount of money, a great national asset, yet after 25 years of compulsory super, amassing the mighty sum of Amazon+Apple, the qualifying age for the Age Pension can t be raised by three years to 70 without leaving millions high and dry. Hardly a triumph of national policy, you would think. According to the ATO, 14.8 million Australians had super accounts on June 30, It s probably now about 15 million. That s $180,000 a person, which wouldn t trouble anyone s pension means test. As a retirement sum, that would earn $9000 a year at a yield of 5 per cent and wouldn t cover an annual holiday to the Gold Coast, let alone get anyone off the pension. Moreover, the boom in property investment in recent years has been largely driven by people panicking as they near retirement with insufficient super. There are so many problems with our supposedly world-beating retirement savings system it s hard to know where to begin. At least one problem is starting to be fixed, by default: the hopeless underperformance of retail funds is being fixed simply by people pulling their money out of them, partly because of the revelations in the royal commission of fees charged for nothing but also because of poor performance. The latest APRA data shows retail funds suffered a net outflow of $8.4 billion in the year to June Corporate funds lost $6.5bn. Industry funds, on the other hand, had a net inflow of $30.9bn, twice the combined outflow of the retail and corporate funds. This is a trend that is only going to accelerate and lead to the complete collapse of the retail super industry unless it undergoes an unlikely and dramatic transformation. There is a long way for the image of the sector, which has been so blackened by actions revealed in the royal commission, but it s mainly about performance. The APRA June quarter data shows the retail funds average performance in the year to June was 7.4 per cent. The average industry fund performance was 9.8 per cent. That sort of gap has been entrenched for years. The difference between those two performances if applied to 40 years of saving $500 a month is exactly double: $1.5m vs $3m. Retail super funds as a class can t possibly survive with that kind of difference in outcome, and nor should they. A government that wasn t blinded by anti-union bias and misguided faith in competition would urge all Australians to join industry funds, and possibly even shut down the underperforming retail funds, to get the cost of the Age Pension down. If the average annual return of super funds could be maintained at about 10 per cent instead of 7.5 per cent, not only would the cost to the government of the Age Pension collapse, so would the amount of property investing that makes housing so unaffordable. The regulators meanwhile seem paralysed by the spuri-

74 Northern Territory News, Darwin Author: Alan Kohler Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 11,279 Page: 30 Printed Size: cm² Market: NT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 5,422 Words: 1138 Item ID: Page 2 of 3 ous idea that both competition and liquidity are needed. To overcome the bewildering array of default funds and the unfair dispersion of their outcomes, the Productivity Commission wants to list the 10 best in class default super funds for employers to choose from. There s no official data available on the long-term performance of the 104 My- Super default funds, so we can t see which are the now best in class. APRA only publishes individual performances by quarter. But let s go with that. In the latest quarter June 2018 the 10 best performing My- Super default funds were: Law Employees Super Fund, Max Super, UniSuper, SmartSave, Lutheran Super, Toyota Super, Nationwide, Hostplus, First Super and Meat Industry Employees Super Fund. Presumably that list is not quite what the PC had in mind since half of them are tiny retail funds nobody s ever heard of, even though their returns for the quarter were pretty fancy. LESF, which is not an industry fund, returned 6.65 per cent for a single quarter and the No.2 fund, Max Super, run by Tidswell Financial Services, with BlackRock as investment manager, also returned more than 6 per cent for the quarter. Lutheran Super is doing very nicely too, and you only have to show up at the church to get into that fund (I checked). But how will the 10 be chosen? The only thing that matters in long-term saving is the compound rate of return. Super funds are only in the retirement outcome business they are not banks providing financial services and really the only question is what time frame should be used to judge them. Obviously one quarter is too short but should it be 10 years? That cuts out any new ones. One year? Probably too short. And what about the fact that smaller funds like LESF and Max Super tend to do better than large ones because they can be more nimble, although UniSuper, Hostplus and AustralianSuper did OK in the quarter. But anyway, once a small fund goes on the top 10 list, they won t stay small for long. What s more, a third of all the super money is invested in cash and fixed income. It s hard to imagine anything more idiotic than investing close to a trillion dollars of the national long-term retirement savings in cash and bonds with interest rates where they are and bonds probably heading into a great secular bear market. Super funds should be focused entirely on outcomes, which is all about getting the highest compound interest over the long term leading to the greatest possible retirement income. The risk of short-term volatility is irrelevant. A system that requires money to be locked up for 40 years but allows the customers to get it out of one fund and move it to another within days is a form of madness. The result is that all of the funds have to carry crushing amounts of liquidity just in case the customers want it: the 221 funds that have more than four members are sitting on $175 billion in cash, ready to go, earning almost nothing after fees and unnecessarily reducing retirement incomes. And despite some controversy about Hostplus s high level of unlisted, and therefore illiquid, infrastructure investments, the average allocation among industry funds is just 7 per cent too low, if anything. The average allocation of retail funds to that asset class is zero. I have the solution. The government should require all super funds to pay a 1.85 per cent per annum fee for the privilege of being taxed at 15 per cent. That would produce $50 billion in revenue, which, as it happens, is the annual cost of the Age Pension.

75 Northern Territory News, Darwin Author: Alan Kohler Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 11,279 Page: 30 Printed Size: cm² Market: NT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 5,422 Words: 1138 Item ID: Page 3 of 3

76 Northern Territory News, Darwin Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 11,279 Page: 11 Printed Size: 79.00cm² Market: NT Country: Australia ASR: AUD 446 Words: 178 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Gen X and Y in fear of retirement cash gap GENERATION X wants to retire at 63 but believe they will need to work almost a decade longer to afford it. Research by ING has found that Gen X those aged 39 to 53 believe they will need an average $1.5 million nest egg. However, they don t believe they will reach that financial milestone until age 72, and more than half are yet to start planning for retirement. Generation Y aged 24 to 38 want to retire at 61 but believe they will need more money $1.74 million and won t have that until age 68. ING head of retail banking Melanie Evans said the findings suggested a lack of knowledge about superannuation among people under 50. Many of them haven t sat down and worked out a plan, she said. The research involving 2000 people also found Baby Boomers were more likely to spend their children s inheritance. The age pension pays a maximum of $ a fortnight and for Generation X and younger, it cannot be claimed until the age of 67.

77 Hobart Mercury, Hobart Author: SAMANTHA BAILEY Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 28,265 Page: 19 Printed Size: 65.00cm² Market: TAS Country: Australia ASR: AUD 470 Words: 151 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Call to join class action firm Slater and Gordon says bank-owned super funds owe more than $1 billion to Australians being urged to join class actions to recover money gouged from their retirement savings. Launching its Get Your Super Back campaign, Slater and Gordon said the Commonwealth Bank-owned Colonial First State and AMP were likely to be the first targets of planned class actions. Members of those two institutions combined had lost it said. The firm is targeting fee gouging and the paying of uncompetitive interest rates to retirement savers who have part of their super in cash. Slater and Gordon class action head Ben Hardwick said the firm expects up to onethird of all adult Australians may be eligible to join the class actions. The Commonwealth Bank said it was aware Slater and Gordon was investigating class actions but it had not been served with any proceedings.

78 West Australian, Perth Section: Business News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 147,676 Page: 27 Printed Size: 96.00cm² Market: WA Country: Australia ASR: AUD 1,683 Words: 158 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Funds face lawsuits over super Melbourne Bank-owned superannuation funds face class actions on the of evidence from the banking royal commission. Law firm Slater and Gordon is inviting Australians to sign up to the Get Your Super Back claim, which will involve class actions, most likely starting with Commonwealth Bank-owned superannuation fund Colonial First State and AMP. The banking royal commission exposed appalling behaviour by the bank-owned super funds who may have stripped money from the retirement savings of millions of hard-working Australians, Slater and Gordon head of class actions Ben Hardwick said. It will be alleged Colonial First State dumped super with its parent bank, which had ludicrously low interest rates. Mr Hardwick said the royal commission also revealed some AMP customers were getting negative returns on their funds. Would-be claimants can register through the law firm s website getyoursuper.com, but the action will take weeks to months to lodge and the class actions could take years to resolve. AAP

79 West Australian, Perth Author: Nick Butterly Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 147,676 Page: 17 Printed Size: cm² Market: WA Country: Australia ASR: AUD 3,349 Words: 287 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Nahan pins tax hope on US amnesty Nick Butterly State Liberal leader Mike Nahan says he hopes to receive an amnesty from the US Government to resolve dual citizenship and taxation headaches. The Opposition Leader took partyroom colleagues by surprise last month after revealing that he was in an unresolved dispute with America s Internal Revenue Service over claims he could owe a big sum in unpaid tax. Amid a debate over the eligibility of dual citizenship holders to sit in State Parliament, Dr Nahan claimed he had been unable to revoke his US citizenship because of the IRS claim he owed unpaid taxes. Dr Nahan said yesterday that he was among tens of thousands of dual citizens who hoped they may now be eligible for an amnesty. If successful, he said that would automatically allow him to revoke his US citizenship. The US Government has come out with an amnesty widely, I have been told, Dr Nahan said. We are pursuing that in my case and in the case of tens of thousands of other people in a similar position. Dr Nahan has previously suggested that the sum being demanded by the IRS potentially ran to hundreds of thousands of dollars. The former WA treasurer, who was born in Michigan, claims he had been in the process of renouncing his US citizenship after entering Parliament but the US put a stay on that process, claiming he owed unpaid tax. Dr Nahan said the IRS was pursuing him for taxes owed on earnings from his Australian self-managed superannuation account. The US is one of the few countries to tax non-resident citizens. Many dual US-Australian citizens living in Australia are reported to be fighting a similar battle as a result of recent law changes in the US.

80 West Australian, Perth Section: Letters Article type : Letter Classification : Capital City Daily : 147,676 Page: 19 Printed Size: cm² Market: WA Country: Australia ASR: AUD 2,717 Words: 271 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Big banks bereft of moral limits Am I the only cynical person who thinks it is odd that a number of big banks in Australia have raised their interest rates after being fined by regulators and coming in for scathing criticism after revelations at the Royal Commission into the Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry? These so-called august organisations have been found to have overcharged customers for services not supplied, among other criminal acts, and have generally treated the Australian people with contempt at all levels. It seems that anything and everything is legitimate in the mind of the bankers, as long as they pay large dividends to their shareholders who in the main are other financial institutions to the detriment of the mums and dads (and school children) who bank with them. The Reserve Bank of Australia has left interest rates on hold. Yet the big banks have decided that the cost of doing business is the reason why they have increased their rates. Since when did being fined for undertaking illegal activities become a bona fide cost of doing business? It is unbelievable that the banks who have just announced their half-yearly profits (CBA $9.38 billion, Westpac $4.2b, ANZ $3.32b) can thumb there noses at the Australian people and the Government by raising interest rates to recover the fines imposed on them for their illegal activities. Surely there is something that the Government or Royal Commission can do to protect the little people of this country who are just trying to survive and put a roof over the heads of their children. Arthur Ventham, Clarkson Banks have raised interest rates.

81 Queensland Times, Ipswich QLD Author: Anthony Keane Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 6,256 Page: 8 Printed Size: cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 507 Words: 538 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 Finance expert says never too early to plan for life without work Gen X and Y want to retire in near future ANTHONY KEANE GENERATION X wants to retire at 63 but believes it will need to work almost a decade longer to be able to afford it. New research by ING has found Gen X those aged 39 to 53 believes it will need an average $1.5 million nest egg. However, they don t think they will be financially ready to reach that until age 72 and more than half haven t yet started planning for retirement. Generation Y aged 24 to 38 wants to retire earlier, at 61, thinks it will need more money $1.74 million and won t have it until age 68, the research found. ING head of retail banking Melanie Evans said the findings suggested a lack of knowledge about super and retirement among people aged under 50. Some were unsure where to start, others focused more on mortgages and short-term living expenses, and many wanted to maintain or improve their lifestyles when they retired and know that comes at a higher cost, she said. Many of them haven t sat down and worked out a plan so they re just making assumptions. Ms Evans said it was never too early to start retirement planning, and getting advice was important. Start seeing super as your money. It s nearly one in ten dollars you earn. Track it as you would a savings account or mortgage, she said. ING s research involved 2000 people and also found that baby boomers were more likely than younger generations to spend their children s inheritances. As the first generation with superannuation earnings for a large portion of their working life, they also feel as though they ve earned it and it s theirs to enjoy, Ms Evans said. Pivot Wealth founder and financial adviser Ben Nash said young generations had high aspirations for retirement and did not feel that the pension would be enough. I think the boomers and their parents generation felt the age pension was their right, but now the reality has set in that in today s society it s difficult to maintain a lifestyle at a level that most people want with this money alone, he said. The younger someone is, the higher their expectations generally are around the lifestyle they want to live. The age pension currently pays a maximum $ a fortnight and for Gen X and younger can t be claimed until age 67. Last week Prime Minister Scott Morrison scrapped long-term plans to raise the pension age to 70. Planning for Prosperity senior financial adviser Bob Budreika said people s ideas about retirement used fairly crude figures that did not factor in whether they would spend less as they aged, or use a combination of pension and their own money. I hear Generation X and Y say the pension probably won t be there when we get there. People are preparing themselves to be self-sufficient, he said. There will be some sort of social security there but I think the benefits will be less. Mr Budreika suggested people use retirement calculators on and super fund websites to project how much they needed.

82 Queensland Times, Ipswich QLD Author: Anthony Keane Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 6,256 Page: 8 Printed Size: cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 507 Words: 538 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 FREE TIME: The younger someone is, the higher their expectations generally are around the lifestyle they want to live.

83 Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Author: Kylar Loussikian Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 88,634 Page: 2 Printed Size: 99.00cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 7,924 Words: 141 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 CBD KYLAR LOUSSIKIAN SLATER S RICH PICKINGS With Slater & Gordon preparing to launch a Get Your Super Back campaign, targeting AMP and Colonial First State with class actions, it s important to note the law firm board s long links to industry super funds. Or, as they were, competitors of the retail funds now in their sights. Labor-aligned businessman James MacKenzie, who sits on Chris Bowen s export policy costing panel, is both Slater & Gordon s chairman and the chair of the Victorian Funds Management Corporation, which manages about $60 billion for 30 Victorian public agencies. And there s long-time (and former) Australian Super chair Elana Rubin, also close to industry super funds, who is also on the Slater & Gordon board. But if there s one thing Slater & Gordon knows well, having lost more than $500 million in 2017, is how investors feel after their savings are completely shredded.

84 Newcastle Herald, Newcastle NSW Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 23,625 Page: 11 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 2,111 Words: 234 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Bank super to face class action BANK-OWNED superannuation funds face the threat of class actions on the of evidence from the banking royal commission. Millions of Australians are being invited by law firm Slater and Gordon to sign up to the Get Your Super Back claim, which will involve a series of class actions, most likely starting with Commonwealth Bankowned superannuation fund, Colonial First State and AMP The banking royal commission exposed appalling behaviour by the bank-owned super funds who may have stripped money from the retirement savings of millions of hard working Australians, head of class actions for Slater and Gordon, Ben Hardwick, told reporters. We re happy the royal commission has exposed these dodgy practices but we don t believe exposure is good enough, we don t think it s fair that Australians retirement savings may have been gauged and today we are saying enough is enough, he said. It will be alleged that Colonial First State dumped super with its parent bank, which had ludicrously low interest rates, below even the Reserve Bank of Australia s cash rate. Mr Hardwick said the royal commission also revealed some AMP customers were getting negative returns on their funds. We don t believe there is any justification for a bankowned fund member being worse off than an industry fund member, especially when they have chosen to invest in a passive cash investment option, which requires the fund to do basically nothing, Mr Hardwick said.

85 Border Mail, Albury-Wodonga Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 13,519 Page: 12 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 492 Words: 234 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Bank super to face class action BANK-OWNED superannuation funds face the threat of class actions on the of evidence from the banking royal commission. Millions of Australians are being invited by law firm Slater and Gordon to sign up to the Get Your Super Back claim, which will involve a series of class actions, most likely starting with Commonwealth Bankowned superannuation fund, Colonial First State and AMP The banking royal commission exposed appalling behaviour by the bank-owned super funds who may have stripped money from the retirement savings of millions of hard working Australians, head of class actions for Slater and Gordon, Ben Hardwick, told reporters. We re happy the royal commission has exposed these dodgy practices but we don t believe exposure is good enough, we don t think it s fair that Australians retirement savings may have been gauged and today we are saying enough is enough, he said. It will be alleged that Colonial First State dumped super with its parent bank, which had ludicrously low interest rates, below even the Reserve Bank of Australia s cash rate. Mr Hardwick said the royal commission also revealed some AMP customers were getting negative returns on their funds. We don t believe there is any justification for a bankowned fund member being worse off than an industry fund member, especially when they have chosen to invest in a passive cash investment option, which requires the fund to do basically nothing, Mr Hardwick said.

86 Warrnambool Standard, Warrnambool VIC Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 8,274 Page: 7 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 397 Words: 234 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Bank super to face class action BANK-OWNED superannuation funds face the threat of class actions on the of evidence from the banking royal commission. Millions of Australians are being invited by law firm Slater and Gordon to sign up to the Get Your Super Back claim, which will involve a series of class actions, most likely starting with Commonwealth Bankowned superannuation fund, Colonial First State and AMP The banking royal commission exposed appalling behaviour by the bank-owned super funds who may have stripped money from the retirement savings of millions of hard working Australians, head of class actions for Slater and Gordon, Ben Hardwick, told reporters. We re happy the royal commission has exposed these dodgy practices but we don t believe exposure is good enough, we don t think it s fair that Australians retirement savings may have been gauged and today we are saying enough is enough, he said. It will be alleged that Colonial First State dumped super with its parent bank, which had ludicrously low interest rates, below even the Reserve Bank of Australia s cash rate. Mr Hardwick said the royal commission also revealed some AMP customers were getting negative returns on their funds. We don t believe there is any justification for a bankowned fund member being worse off than an industry fund member, especially when they have chosen to invest in a passive cash investment option, which requires the fund to do basically nothing, Mr Hardwick said.

87 Launceston Examiner, Launceston TAS Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 17,631 Page: 12 Printed Size: cm² Market: TAS Country: Australia ASR: AUD 772 Words: 234 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Bank super to face class action BANK-OWNED superannuation funds face the threat of class actions on the of evidence from the banking royal commission. Millions of Australians are being invited by law firm Slater and Gordon to sign up to the Get Your Super Back claim, which will involve a series of class actions, most likely starting with Commonwealth Bankowned superannuation fund, Colonial First State and AMP The banking royal commission exposed appalling behaviour by the bank-owned super funds who may have stripped money from the retirement savings of millions of hard working Australians, head of class actions for Slater and Gordon, Ben Hardwick, told reporters. We re happy the royal commission has exposed these dodgy practices but we don t believe exposure is good enough, we don t think it s fair that Australians retirement savings may have been gauged and today we are saying enough is enough, he said. It will be alleged that Colonial First State dumped super with its parent bank, which had ludicrously low interest rates, below even the Reserve Bank of Australia s cash rate. Mr Hardwick said the royal commission also revealed some AMP customers were getting negative returns on their funds. We don t believe there is any justification for a bankowned fund member being worse off than an industry fund member, especially when they have chosen to invest in a passive cash investment option, which requires the fund to do basically nothing, Mr Hardwick said.

88 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Patrick Commins Section: Companies and Markets Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 17 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 7,423 Words: 626 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 At last, some good news for investors in the big banks Commins Patrick Commins "Do you know the only thing that gives me pleasure? If s to see my dividends coming in," John Rockefeller reportedly said in the early 1900s. The founder of Standard Oil was America's first billionaire and is still considered one of the richest men in history, so he knew a thing or two about turning a buck. Rockefeller may have been exaggerating for dramatic effect, but various studies show that over the longer term what you get in payouts dominates the total return from your investment This is particularly the case in Australia, where franking credit rules make a dollar paid out worth more to Aussie investors than offshore ones. And in the land of dividends, the banks are royalty. The big four of CBA, ANZ, Westpac and NAB have paid out around $20 billion over the past year to their hordes of cash-hungry investors. Income is a big deal to many bank shareholders, particularly those who are using it to fund their lifestyle or retirement All of which means bank investors are prepared to suffer through the endless slings and arrows of the royal commission on one condition: those cheques keep rolling in undiminished despite the obvious challenges. So a quick glance at the dividend yields on offer from big four stocks shows some appetising numbers. Yields range from 5.6 per cent for ANZ to 7.1 per cent from NAB shares. Grossed up, the range is from 8 per cent to an eye-watering 10.2 per cent But high dividends relative to the price are a double-edged sword. At some point it begins to cut both ways, and a generous yield shifts from being a sign of a robust cash-generative business to a sign that investors are worried the dividend is at risk. There is certainly no growth - looking wards or forwards. The long boom in household credit has just about exhausted itself, leaving the banks pincered between intensifying regulation and virtually zero organic revenue growth. Over the past three years, none of the major lenders have recorded growth in payouts on a per share basis by more than 1 per cent ANZs has actually gone wards, by 4 per cent on Bloomberg numbers. Flat dividend growth is one thing; a cut is another thing entirely. So what chance of the unthinkable? "We believe major bank dividends are sustainable," Bell Potter bank analyst T. S. Lim wrote this week. For some perspective, major bank dividends have gone wards only three times over the past 39 years: after the 1987 sharemarket crash, the early 1990s recession, and in the aftermath of the GFC, Lim notes. (ANZs cut in May of 2016 is considered idiosyncratic.) The Bell Potter analyst does not think bad loan expenses will push to levels seen in previous crises, as the banks have "derisked" by moving away from unsecured personal lending and are not financing as much property development A stable and healthy economy for the foreseeable future helps, as do healthier capital buffers. NAB is the only big bank where the consensushasa lower dividend: a fall from $1.98 in the most recent financial year to $1.95 in the current NAB is also the only bank that earns a "hold" recommendation from Lim, and, coincidentally or not is the only one of its big four peers not to lift its key variable mortgage rate in recent days. "Bankvaluations look extremely attractive with little short to mediumterm risk around a systemic bad debt cycle," one Australian fund manager told its clients this week. Perhaps. While shareholders may be unwilling to sell as long as dividends hold up, one feels that there are few new buyers waiting in the wings.

89 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Patrick Commins Section: Companies and Markets Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 17 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 7,423 Words: 626 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 Safe as houses Moves in dividends v bad debts ^ti^ Sector average change in J j \ ] dividend (c/share, LHS) ft ' -10 : A/J \ Sector bads l.i:.i doubtful debts I1 :V (% of total loans, RHS) It : V ha* SOURCE: BELL POTTER Major bank dividends have gone wards only three times over the past 39 years.

90 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Joanna Mather Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 9 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 4,288 Words: 501 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Slater & Gordon targets CBA, AMP for $500m Joanna Mather Slater & Gordon says it is preparing to sue major banks and wealth managers for charging excessive fees and paying below-market rates on cash holdings. The "Get Your Super Back" campaign will involve a series of class actions, with Commonwealth Bankowned superannuation fund Colonial First State and AMP super likely to be the first targets. The law firm claims millions of super fund members may have been affected and says it will seek to recoup at least $500 million from CBA and AMP. Slater & Gordon will allege that AMP charged high fees while AMP failed to obtain for members competitive cash interest rates on cash option funds. The allegations arise from evidence to the Hayne royal commission. AMP has not been served with any court papers. "We're committed to acting in the best interests of our superannuation members at all times and acting in accordance with our legal and regulatory obligations," a company spokesman said. "We encourage any customers who have concerns to contact AMP directly." In a statement on Tuesday Slater & Gordon head of class actions Ben Hardwick said retail funds had been paying uncompetitive interest rates for people who held part of their super in cash option funds. "What funds like Colonial First State have been doing is dumping super with a parent bank such as CBA," he said. "The interest from the parent bank is so low that investors in the cash option are receiving rates as low as 1.25 per cent a year. This is even below the RBA cash rate." Mr Hardwick said standard bank interest should be about 2 per cent to 2.5 per cent An AMP spokesman said the company was already responding to cash investment issue raised at the royal commission. "We have reduced the administration fees on some of our cash investment options to address the issue of negative returns in the small number of funds impacted by this issue," she said. "We are also compensating affected customers for lost earnings. "In July, we also announced that we are cutting fees on our flagship MySuper products, benefiting around 700,000 existing customers, as well as new customers, improving member outcomes." Mr Hardwick said retail fund members should be "compensated for the difference between their returns on cash, and the returns they should have received if the trustee had done their job properly". "Industry funds have demonstrated the return that should be produced on cash investments when a proper effort is made by the trustee to secure the best available interest rate," he said. "On our calculations, fund members of Colonial and AMP combined have lost over a half billion dollars from their superannuation accounts. We intend to bring class actions to recoup as much of this money as we can." The commission heard evidence that because of a trailing commission of 60 basis points, Colonial members invested in cash received a poorer return than members in die CBA staff fund. Ben Hardwick says retail funds have paid uncompetitive interest rates.

91 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Vesna Poljak Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 20,934 Words: 1192 Item ID: Page 1 of 4 WaveStone's Allfrey calls out lofty valuations SHOCKWAVES 10 YEARS AFTER THE GFC Exclusive VesnaPoljak "Definitely valuation-wise, it reminds me a bit of 2007 or 2000," says Catherine Allfrey, about whether today's markets have anything in common with two of the great modern bubbles. "People are very optimistic, shall we say, about the future with the way that they've been willing to pay out and look out in terms of duration for earnings for companies. There's a lot of view in the market that everything will be OK. People are giving everyone the benefit of the doubt at the moment, they're pricing everything in and they're looking over the horizon to try and get these valuations to stack up." However, that only applies to certain sectors, the WaveStone principal says. Other sectors, including banks, "people just don't want to know about". "There is such a dispersion in valuations currently. The technological disruptions that we're going through as well and the way that's turning this model on its head is also probably another reason why it is what it is. It's not like the dotcom era, these are real cashflow businesses - Google, Facebook -1 am a believer in that and I am a believer in the technological change we're witnessing. "From that perspective I get it. But I think some of these businesses have run ahead of themselves in terms of valuations." Ten years ago, WaveStone was a much smaller investment manager, Continued p36 From page 1 WaveStone's Allfrey calls out lofty valuations but it had a front-row seat to the crisis in Australia via its absolute return fund. Today it oversees $4 billion. "Most equity investors in 2007 were saying, 'this is getting crazy, and this is getting out of control'. At that time, in 2007, some things were starting to go wrong. November 2007 was the peak and there were the problems with the property trusts. That started around that time and I still remember... we actually shorted Centro Property and it collapsed 90 per cent in two days." Allfrey remembers an ill-timed Christmas mail-out arriving from the wobbling Centro. "Their economist at the time or something suggested that they didn't need to worry about what was going on in subprime markets in the US, because people would have more money to spend," she recalls. "The model at the time was just wrong. Today they're very focused on leverage within the actual model, they're very different beasts. But it was also dependent on the quality of the underlying property as well. The problem for Centro in hindsight, that really was the canary in the coal mine, because they were exposed to low-grade retail assets." After a four-year litigation, Centro and its auditor PwC settled for $200 million with shareholders in That was the first sign the global crisis had arrived on Australian shores and worse was to come. "Shortly after, the whole thing exploded. It was a bit of a crazy time. What happened was this whole tightening and the lack of liquidity in the market then ended up being an economic downturn. It wasn't as long as it could have been, and in hindsight, I think the authorities globally did the right thing. Remember we had the short-selling ban, there were so many different things that happened during that time." ASIC banned short-selling in financials in Australia in 2008, falling into line with other regulators. It was not lifted until "I remember at the time we went to zero in small caps. People forget" Allfrey says. "These small caps become like lobster pots, you can get in but you can't get out One of the best decisions we made during that time was to get out of small caps." The market was down nearly 30 per cent for the year to March 2009, and WaveStone was down 7.9 per cent "That's still painful," the fund manager says. The business found a big brother in Challenger, which itself was not immune to the wrecking ball smashing through the financial system. "I still remember Warren Buffett was coming on rescuing these companies - Goldman Sachs. He would be on CNBC every second day just calming everyone down. And then the market would lurch another 3 to 5 per cent down." Everything was suddenly highly correlated and there was nowhere to hide to protect returns. It reminded her of the events around September 11,2001. The circuit breaker was the capitalraising binge in early "The ability for the superannuation system to underwrite the Australian corporates shouldn't be forgotten. That was testament to the fact we had the liquidity on the equities side, we might not have had it from the credit markets globally, but the Australian banking system could do heavily discounted rights issues through that March quarter of "Something like $80 billion was raised by the banks and corporates." That required investors who had managed to hang on to pivot as it dawned on the market that defensives were the wrong place to be: the stimulus had arrived and it was working. Everyone had to go into cyclicals, so resources took off. "The problem was we could have all been very clever until the beginning of March 2009, but if you weren't positioned for the market recovery from that point - the market moved 6 per cent in March. You had to be buying at the right time," Allfrey says. Price-earnings multiples "were in the tens for the market, as opposed to nearly 16 today". "It was just incredible, absolutely incredible. CSL, what was that priced then? Some of these businesses were ridiculous. Seek was at $3." Years later, the fund manager watched The Big Short, the film based on the Michael Lewis book of the same name, at an outdoor cinema in Sydney. As painful as the subject matter was, she loved it "It's really the other side of the story, that we weren't being told just how bad it was." Appraising the world today, Allfrey concludes once again there is a lot of leverage. "Every asset class has been bid up in terms of valuation. Plus, we've got a household sector that is very leveraged here in

92 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Vesna Poljak Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 20,934 Words: 1192 Item ID: Page 2 of 4 Australia, so the question is, is that due to the fact we've had low interest rates? Absolutely." At some point "rates will increase again". E3 These small caps become like lobster pots, you can get in but you can't get out. Catherine Allfrey Catherine Allfrey Then Founding principal, WaveStone Capital Now Founding principal, WaveStone Capital The lesson WaveStone, a small outfit at the time, was able to spot one of the weakest links in the Australian financial system, the property trusts, and profitably bet against Centro. Catherine Allfrey concludes that the business's underlying shopping centre assets were insufficient to support a debtladen model. The fund manager credits Australia's superannuation-ed equity market with contributing the liquidity to recapitalise the sharemarket in early 2009, providing a necessary circuit breaker, even though Australia lacked liquidity on the credit side. Finally, she argues that valuations for some sectors in today's market are too full, and this is a consequence of the necessary stimulus that arose from saving the financial system 10 years ago.

93 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Vesna Poljak Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 20,934 Words: 1192 Item ID: Page 3 of 4 A s h o r t p o s i t i o n i n C e n t r o p a i d o f f f o r W a v e S t o n e i n D e c e m b e r ; a n d A l l f r e y r e m e m b e r s W a r r e n B u f f e t t p r e a c h i n g c a l m, R O B H O M E R, L O U I S E K E N N E R L E Y, BLOOMBERG SHOCKWAVES 10 YEARS AFTER THE GFC High valuations for the likes of Google have merit, says Catherine Allfrey (right).

94 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Vesna Poljak Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 20,934 Words: 1192 Item ID: Page 4 of 4

95 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Tony Boyd Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 12,156 Words: 1318 Item ID: Page 1 of 3 Chanticleer For crowing there was not his equal in all the land... Disgrace period Counsel assisting RowenaOrrwill need gum boots to protect herself from the disgusting mess inside the Augean stables of life insurance. Chanticleer page Life insurance in need of reform As soon as commissioner Kenneth Hayne decided to investigate life insurance he should have ordered a pair of gumboots for counsel assisting Rowena Orr to protect her from the disgusting mess inside the Augean stables. The filth has been piling up for decades. The ugly situation is a result of a combination of factors unique to Australia. The industry finds itself friendless and horribly exposed by the Hayne inquiry because of commission-based incentives that created a misalignment between the interests of consumers and the people selling the policies. The commissions were happily underwritten by life insurers and reinsurers who were in on the "joke" being played on consumers. Standing behind the systemic rip-offs were industry bodies preaching about the under-insurance in the Australian economy while remaining powerless to push through much-needed reforms, including an industry-wide code of practice. Throw in a ready supply of unethical people keen to get rich quick and a high level of financial illiteracy and you have a recipe for financial disaster. Overseeing thismessisa weak regulator moving ever so slowly to pull the industry into line. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has been trying to fix life insurance for about five years. In recent months it seems to have been moving a little faster. The icing on top is a succession of federal governments of both political persuasions unwilling to shoehorn a recalcitrant industry into an ethical business model. This week's evidence at the Hayne inquiry about the manifest rip-offs in direct selling of life insurance brings memories of the early days of life insurance in Australia A new employee of a life insurance company was handed a copy of the phone book and told to get out and sell. It has become a little bit more sophisticated now, but not by much. Instead of wearing out shoe leather the people working for ClearView and Freedom Insurance were selling life policies directly over the phone with high pressure sales tactics. Soft targets such as disabled people or those with little or no knowledge of finance, or with no need of life cover, or with no ability to claim against policies, were inevitably caught up in the hard sell. We can probably thank Orr's forensic cross examination of staff from ClearView and Freedom Insurance for the death of direct insurance, which amounts to $500 million in annual premiums. This type of life insurance is surely dead and buried given that no board of directors would want to tolerate the risks involved. How can a board be sure that people selling direct life insurance are adhering to company protocols? How can they be sure that they are not ignoring the industry's code of practice? Of course, the Freedom Insurance evidence showed that many of the allegedly illegal direct life sale practices at the company were condoned by the company or simply ignored. Freedom Insurance and ClearView have already pulled out of the segment Anyone else left standing should probably exit with haste even if their sales practices are squeaky clean. The life industry has clung desperately to commissions for fear that Australians would never take up life insurance if forced to pay an upfront fee. But the wise heads in the industry recognise that the sooner commissions go the better. The industry was forced into implementing a gradual reduction in commissions and an extension of commission claw- periods from January this year. Commissions clearly lead to bad behaviour. But they can also lead to solvency problems. Chanticleer remembers well the life insurance agency wars of the 1990s. AMP and National Mutual Life paid multimilliondollar "agency development loans" to their top selling life insurance salesmen. The two companies spent about $300 million in "loans" to agents as part of their efforts to out bid each other for supremacy of the life insurance market. It fired badly on them because the sale of capital-guaranteed products ate away at capital and reserves when financial

96 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Tony Boyd Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 12,156 Words: 1318 Item ID: Page 2 of 3 markets moved the wrong way. It was during the peak of the agency wars that ANZ Banking Group, under chief executive Will Bailey, tried to buy National Mutual Life under chief executive Eric Mayer. Fortunately, then federal treasurer Paul Keating stopped the deal going ahead. The combination would have been a financial disaster given the later solvency issues in National Mutual and the weaknesses in ANZ's balance sheet exposed by the 1991 recession. One of worst practices in life insurance was the deliberate churning of customers from one company to another every 13 months to generate upfront commissions of 140 per cent of the premium. It is not as if life insurers and reinsurers were not aware of the practices. Chanticleer has spoken to a financial adviser who attended a series of meetings in 2010 where life insurers talked about "black flagging" about 50 life insurance advisers who had mastered the churn strategy. The discussion about forcing the bad apples out of the industry ended when a life insurer owned by one of the big four banks said it could not participate for fear of cartel behaviour. Reform of commissions only got serious in 2015 after the publication of the Trowbridge report. It recommended a series of reforms to restore consumer trust in an industry "through eliminating misaligned financial incentives offered to advisers and licensees, and encouraging competition through a wider choice of products so Australians are adequately insured for their life cycle needs". The Financial Services Council followed this up with a life insurance code of practice which included these commitments: "We will be honest, fair, respectful, transparent, timely, and where possible we will use plain language in our communications with you; we will monitor sales by our staff and our authorised representatives to ensure sales are appropriate; and if we discover that an inappropriate sale has occurred, we will discuss a remedy with you, such as a refund or a replacement policy." The code of practice became compulsory for retail life insurance from October 1,2016. But it remained voluntary for group life insurance sold through superannuation funds or under the auspices of trustees. In other words, the single largest segment, group life cover, was not compulsorily covered. Some in the industry urged ASIC to make the code RG183 compliant and applicable to all forms of life cover, but that failed. That was a serious mistake. After all, some of the rorts found in group life cover are just as bad as the practices uncovered in direct life sales, if not worse. This showed a weak and insipid application of policy reform by the Financial Services Council. It is hoped the Hayne inquiry will explore the exclusions that have been added to group life policies. At least with a retail life product it is not possible to change terms and conditions. But a group life policy can be changed. One of the less than subtle changes to group life cover inside superannuation funds includes adjusting the total and permanent disability policy to exclude payment where the person "can be re-trained into any other type of work". Another well known change to group life TPD policies is to exclude payment if the doctor rules the person can never work again. Previously the TPD payment would be made if the doctor said you were unlikely to be able to work again. Life insurance companies are overflowing with compassionate stories about the times they have served customers in times of their greatest need. But until the industry drags its sales practices into the 21st century and weeds out the bad behaviour, it will be as trusted as the banks. TONYBOYD Throw in a ready supply of unethical people keen to get rich quick and a high level of financial illiteracy and you have a recipe for financial disaster.

97 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Tony Boyd Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 12,156 Words: 1318 Item ID: Page 3 of 3

98 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Vesna Poljak And Sarah Turner Section: Companies and Markets Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 11,347 Words: 948 Item ID: Page 1 of 3 Miners emerge as new dividend darlings Exclusive Australian investors are set to share in a record $18.9 billion dividend bonanza this month as the big miners emerge as the market's new dividend stars, offsetting more miserly payouts from embattled blue chips such as AMP and Telstra. Bell Potter's Richard Coppleson says for the year to June 30 total dividends increased 4.1 per cent to $81.5 billion. He argues mining stocks will find a new audience among income investors because uncertainty over prospects for the banks and Telstra has disappointed "retail income lovers". Companies p!3 Miners unseat Telstra as new dividend stars Vesna Poljak and Sarah Turner Australian investors are set to share in a record $18.9 billion dividend bonanza this month as the big miners have emerged as the market's new dividend stars, offsetting more miserly payouts from embattled blue chips such as AMP and Telstra. Bell Potter's Richard Coppleson finds that for the year ruled off June 30,2018, total dividends increased 4.1 per cent to $81.5 billion. The final tranche of dividends will be paid out to investors this month and next September's calendar of payments - including BHP Billiton's US63$ or 88.5* a share on September 25 and Commonwealth Bank's $2.31 a share on September 28 - are ahead 16 per cent on September Mr Coppleson argues that cyclical mining stocks will find a new audience among income investors because "the market is unsure about the mediumterm prospects for the banks and Telstra has disappointed retail income lovers". Although investors will have to be cautious around the commodity cycle, if the miners are able to maintain their dividends for a few years at current levels that will win investors. hi the past 18 years, BHP has only cut its dividend four times, although on the last occasion it was a necessarily savage event For example, targeting a 6 per cent fully franked yield, Rio Tinto would find support in a sell-off at $65 (it closed at $71.32 on Tuesday) and BHP at 5.5 per cent fully franked would pique interest at $28 (its last trade on Tuesday was at $31.20). Another remarkable aspect of the earnings season was that although the payout ratio - the proportion of earnings paid out as dividends - was slightly lower at 91 per cent overall dividends were higher. Five of the six biggest increases came from miners, and BHP's uplift was worth $1 billion alone. "Companies are looking to capital management as opposed to growth. There's a greater propensity for companies to return capital to shareholders," said Katana fund manager Romano Sala Tenna. "There's been the odd share buy and special dividend. We haven't seen bank dividends grow and they are the biggest dividend payers." Three of the big four banks have September 30 balance dates. Shareholders see those dividends in November. "Companies are right to consider whether they should pay out dividends or invest for growth. Over the last decade or so I don't think that they considered that enough. "They need to consider the return on invested capital from each scenario and pick the one that gives the best return. "If you can find a genuine growth story, it will outdo a company throwing off cash any day of the week," the fund Continued p22

99 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Vesna Poljak And Sarah Turner Section: Companies and Markets Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 11,347 Words: 948 Item ID: Page 2 of 3 From page 13 Miners unseat Telstra as new dividend stars manager said. But he also said such stocks were not typical of the ASX"s top 20 where industrials and banks were concerned. "I think there's a level of appeasement going on as well. Some companies believe the safest option is to give money to shareholders. If you make an acquisition, there's a risk you could fail. Companies are also getting disrupted so quickly; they are spending money just to maintain profits." "It's hard to find options to grow," Mr Sala Tenna concluded. MST Marquee senior research analyst Hasan Tevfik said earnings season was characterised by earnings downgrades, dividend upgrades, and increased capex. "There's a clear increase in payout expectations," he said. "Companies are a bit more comfortable. It was a strong revenue environment" But he has previously argued that those revenue gains were being squandered as costs bit The biggest trend over the past 10 years has been higher payout ratios and lower growth, which has led some companies to pay for higher dividends in capital losses. hi Australia, a lot of self-managed super funds are already in pension phase and prominently represented on the registers of retail investor-oriented stocks. For example, Telstra discloses that per cent of shareholders account for 2.9 per cent of the register where those investors own 1,000 shares or less in a parcel, hi cutting its dividend, which was signalled to the market prior to the 2018 results, Telstra said it needed to increase capital expenditure to execute its transformation in a competitive market for telco services. Rio Tinto famously departed from its progressive dividend policy, and BHP did the same, almost three years ago, averting a trap that led the miners to follow through on dividends they could not reasonably afford during a depressed commodity price cycle, and putting their credit ratings at risk. The old mentality meant the dividend could not fall. They have since moved to a more conventional ratio-based strategy, hi BHP's case it is a minimum of 50 per cent of underlying profit earned, and for Rio, 40 to 60 per cent of underlying earnings through the cycle. Banks are in the process of spinning off assets which could provide an opportunity to re-base dividends lower, according to some market analysts. Companies are looking to capital management as opposed to growth. There's a greater propensity for companies to return capital to shareholders. Romano Sala Tenna, Katana fund manager

100 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Vesna Poljak And Sarah Turner Section: Companies and Markets Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 11,347 Words: 948 Item ID: Page 3 of 3 Windfall 20 biggest dividend payers through September and October 1 l 2 ;BHP* 5 JRioTinto 6 7 Woolworths! 8 : Suncorp 9 icsl ; South32 ; 12 iagl 13 : Amcor : 14 ; Fortescue 15 Alumina 16 iqbe 17 ;CBA Stock Woodside IAG AMP 18 :APA Group i 19 Aurizon : 20 ; Brambles ; Total I Amount paid 2017(5) 3,983,498,260 i : Telstra ; 1,843,461,168 \ ,197, ,934,212! 62.0 i 647,208,240 I 50.0 ; 517,079,955! ,139,198 i ,504, ,037, ,912, ,705,171 i 29.9 : 778,449, ,980, ,847,133 i 22.0 j 423,178, ,719, ,605, ,473,373 15,505,042,592 Final dividend : :2017{c/share): ; ! : 8.9 i 14.5! Amount paid 2018(5) 4,065,237,168 \ 1,743,501, j 2,749,136,929; 3 : Wesfarmers 1,360,608,290 ; ; 1,360,608,290 \ 'Estimate. "Interim dividend for Dec 31 balance dates. 1,308,262,764 j 704,568, ,538,923 I 656,661,971 ; 623,281,897 \ 578,255,063 j 473,504,869 : 431,531, ,169, ,133,127 i 373,655,778 j 337,212, ,838,405 j 291,846,914 i 283,174,524 j 260,706,811 i 230,831,647 16,498,157,856 Final dividend 2018(c/share)j Dividends by week ($b) _J L i ".'. I ".::». Sep Oct BHP dividends (% change, YoY) i ; jit_ SOURCE: BELL POTTER/COPTO REPORT

101 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Sue Mitchell Section: Companies and Markets Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 13 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 6,978 Words: 860 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Guidance the casualty as Woolworths defends claim Sue Mitchell Woolworths shareholders fear companies will become averse to issuing detailed earnings guidance following a flood of class action claims from investors who say they lost money after reiving on profit forecasts. The latest such claim has been lodged by class action specialist Maurice Blackburn, which is seeking at least $100 million for shareholders who saw their Woolworths shares fall by almost 40 per cent after the retailer ed away from profit guidance in 2015, saying it needed to sacrifice margins to win customers lost to Coles and Aldi. In a Federal Court filing this week, Maurice Blackburn alleged Woolworths breached its continuous disclosure obligations and engaged in misleading conduct in 2014 and 2015 by issuing and reaffirming profit guidance it could not meet without adversely affecting its competitiveness. Under former chief executive Grant O'Brien, Woolworths issued three profit downgrades between February 2015 and November 2015 after deciding to invest at least $500 million into reducing grocery prices and improving service in stores. The price reductions decimated earnings in Woolworths' Australian supermarkets and, combined with mounting losses in the now defunct Masters hardware business and deteriorating sales at BIG W, saw its shares sink almost 40 per cent over 15 months to $22.50 in November 2015, from $37.02 in August The class action claim was launched on behalf of Woolworths investors who bought shares between August 29, 2014, when the company forecast 4 to 7 per cent net profit growth, and the retailer's strategy day in May 2015, when Woolworths admitted it had been relying on the wrong metrics to measure price competitiveness and onshelf availability and more price cuts were necessary. After hitting a low of $20.50 in July by which time Woolworths had sunk more than $1 billion into prices and service - the stock has rebounded 38 per cent to more than $28 this year as sales and margins recovered. Shares rose 1 per cent on Tuesday to $ Maurice Blackburn class actions principal Andrew Watson said the case reinforced the need for enhanced transparency and proper disclosures from large listed companies and ensured they were held to account if they failed to provide the market with accurate information. However, Woolworths said on Tuesday it would thoroughly defend the proceedings and took its continuous disclosure obligations seriously. Woolworths cast doubt on the success of the claim, pointing to the fact that in April 2017 Maurice Blackburn proposed a class action claim funded by litigation funder IMF Bentham. In January 2018 IMF Bentham decided not to proceed with funding the claim, saying the case no longer met its investment criteria. IMF Bentham's withdrawal followed lengthy correspondence with Woolworths, which is understood to have provided the litigation funder with compelling evidence there was no merit in pursuing the claim. Maurice Blackburn has now teamed Continued p22 From page 13 Guidance the casualty of Woolworths claim up with Singaporean-based litigation hinder International Litigation Funding Partners (ILFP), which has funded successful class actions against QBE, NAB and Multiplex. Fund managers said the growth in class action claims that hinged on profit guidance increased the risk corporates would stop issuing detailed profit forecasts. "It potentially makes them more cautious about giving really precise guidance - it will be much more general in nature," said Argo Investments senior investment officer Andy Forster. "As a shareholder you inevitably tend to participate in them even though you'd probably wish they didn't happen... what you get out of them is relatively small," Mr Forster said. "There's not much left for the shareholder at the end of it" Another Woolworths shareholder said companies were already moving away from issuing detailed guidance to avoid being "trapped" by class actions. "Guidance is given under a certain scenario and people change their mind," the fund manager said. "They won't give guidance at all... if you're going to be sued every time you change it" A case in point is Myer, which was before the Federal Court last month defending a class action claim led by TPT Patrol, the trustee of lead plaintiffs the Amies Superannuation Fund, which alleged Myer engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct and failed to abide by its continuous disclosure obligations by providing profit guidance without a reasonable basis in Maurice Blackburn, which has launched successful class actions against Aristocrat Centra Properties, QBE, River City, National Australia Bank, Multiplex and GIO, believes the Woolworths claim is strong. "Maurice Blackburn has run the nation's largest shareholder class actions including the only cases to have settled for in excess of $100 million," a spokesman said on Tuesday, "and we've never wavered from our belief in the strength of this case both on the merits and in terms of investor support for it which is extremely strong." Australia has become the second most active class action market in the world, behind the US, driven by new entrants in the litigation funding market according to a Herbert Smith Freehills report Litigation funders pay expenses related to a class action in return for a percentage of any final settlement usually between 20 per cent and 45 per cent Woolworths Woolworths has cast doubt on the success of a $100 million class action claim by Maurice Blackburn Lawyers.

102 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Yolanda Redrup Section: Companies and Markets Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 16 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 2,326 Words: 307 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 IPO Wealth Fund raises $40m from investors Yolanda Redrup The IPO Wealth Fund has raised $40 million from wealthy investors to emerging companies headed towards initial public offerings. The fund, which was started by chief executive James Mawhinney, is structured so that investors buy units in the IPO Wealth Fund, which then provides a loan to its parent company Mayfair 101, which acts as the investment vehicle for ing start-ups. The fund has told investors to expect an annual return of about 6.45 per cent for money committed for five years. The median return among superannuation funds' growth options was 9.4 per cent in and 9.1 per cent per annum over the past five years. However, IPO Wealth has found ing from investors looking for stable returns but keen to take on a little more risk than parking cash in a term deposit at their bank. Lifelong entrepreneur and selffunded retiree Jan de Tastes was one of the early ers of IPO Wealth and said this let her continue ing founders and giving to the community, without taking on as much risk. "Being retired, I needed to have an income that I could trust that was steady and with an optional repayment time that was my choice," she said. "For me, risk is all a part of life... but I've had friends in shares be devastated by the self-managed superannuation fund dealings." Since launching last year, the company has made 16 investments in businesses such as dining rewards start-up Liven and Indian business-to-business payments company PayMate, as well as ThinkMarkets and online accounting and business management software company Accloud. It has also invested in some fintech lenders. The returns it offers investors are target returns and can fluctuate up or down based on the performance of investments, but since March last year, it has met all of its returns on time.

103 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Larry Schlesinger Section: Property Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 29 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 7,646 Words: 509 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 MPG launches regional fund Larry Schlesinger Fund manager MPG has embraced the idea of "Big Australia" after launching a $66.4 million regional property fund that will own commercial property in regional hubs like Newcastle, Bendigo, Armidale and Maryborough. MPG is seeking to raise a minimum of $25 million from retail investors for the open-ended fund, which is forecast to deliver a 7 per cent initial annual return. "All the properties have been carefully selected in growing regional locations for their defensive income streams and potential for capital growth," said MPG director Brett Gorman. "They are new or near new and are located in areas targeted for infrastructure improvements and population growth." The new fund will be seeded with eight East Coast regional properties, most of which are leased to federal and state government agencies or departments on long-leases. The minimum investment size is $10,000 with the fund to carry $30 million of debt and due to rollover in September Mr Gorman said MPG would look to grow the portfolio "by targeting government-tenanted commercial properties valued up to $20 million in growing regional locations, which we believe are often overlooked by the larger institutional investors and are out of reach of most individual property investors". Its biggest asset is the underconstruction Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority building in Armidale, an agricultural centre in the NSW Northern Tablelands. Due to be completed in mid the 2475 square metre office building is secured by a 15-year lease to APVMA and a 10-year lease to the Department of Human Services. Other assets include the office of the Environmental Protection Authority office building in Traralgon in Victoria's La Trobe Valley, the Centre for Non-Violence building in Bendigo, a United Children childcare facility in Geelong and four Centrelink properties in Newcastle, Hervey Bay, Maryborough and Echuca. MPG joins a growing number of developers and investors looking beyond the major capital cities and targeting regional hotspots with growing populations and strong, diversified economies. Investors embracing the Big Australia theme include property fund manager Quintessential Equity, which has fully leased its $120 million new Worksafe building in Geelong and rich lister Tony Denny, who has a $500 million pipeline of sold-out apartment projects on the NSW Central Coast MPG evolved out of property developer the McMullin Group, established by the late Spotless founder Ian McMullin, and has more than $550 million of funds under management Its retail funds are popular with self-managed super funds. The fund manager already has a track record of investing in regional property, acquiring the Tweed Hub homemaker centre in Tweed Heads on the NSW-Queensland border from listed landlord Aventus for just over $40 million in March and a Coles supermarket in the NSW Southern Highlands for $9.45 million in December Key points MPG's new $66.4 million property fund will target assets in regional locations. Its biggest asset is the APVMA building under construction in Armidale. Brett Gorman... the fund is seeking government-tenanted commercial properties in growing regional areas.

104 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Larry Schlesinger Section: Property Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 29 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 7,646 Words: 509 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 MPG's new $66 million regional property fund will own the Centre for Non-Violence building in Bendigo.

105 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: Yolanda Redrup Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 5 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 3,216 Words: 412 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 CSIRO innovation fund adds $132m Exclusive Yolanda Redrup The CSIRO's innovation fund Main Sequence Ventures has raised an additional $132 million for its first fund, bringing on board superannuation fund Hostplus, the Singapore government's Temasek and US aerospace and defence multinational Lockheed Martin as investors. The latest capital injection puts the fund's total at $232 million - $32 million over its original target It is led by a team of well-known investors and entrepreneurs, including the founder of incubator Pollenizer, Phil Morle, Blackbird Ventures co-founder Bill Bartee and BuildinglQ founder and long-time investor Mike Zimmerman. Mr Zimmerman told The Australian Financial Review that almost one year on from the fund's launch, he feels the premise (to help commercialise "deep tech" innovations") is working. "We're feeling upbeat We've seen over 1000 investment opportunities so far and we've ed companies that have raised follow-on rounds and attracted coinvestors, and they've added about 100jobs,"hesaid. "We're targeting a portfolio of 25 to 30 companies and we've ed nine companies so far." Main Sequence's investments to date include artificial intelligence cancer diagnostic and treatment company Maxwell Plus, FluroSat which helps farmers increase the yield of their crops using satellite imaging, and satellite communications start-up Myriota. It is poised to make another three investments in the coming weeks and identifies its target industries as quantum computing, health, space and agricultural technology. Thanks to the fresh round of capital, it will also bring on a sixth partner. The first $100 million that kickstarted Main Sequence came from the federal government which contributed $70 million, and the CSIRO, which put in $30 million, hi the latest capital raising the University of Melbourne has also joined the fund's list of ers. The CSIRO innovation fund helps turn Australia's world-class research into new businesses, new opportunities and new jobs," Industry, Science and Technology Minister Karen Andrews said. "Main Sequence Ventures' success shows not only a strong belief in the value of Australia's public research, but the promise of a strong return on investment in companies born from science." Mr Zimmerman, who spun out his business BuildinglQ from the CSIRO about 10 years ago, said collaboration between academia and the private sector was improving, as was the commercial expertise of researchers, but the fund was also looking for other ways to "get intellectual property out of the lab". Research being commercialised by Main Sequence portfolio companies stems from institutions such as Data61 and the Australian National Fabrication Facility, plus the CSIRO, University of South Australia and Sydney University.

106 Illawarra Mercury, Wollongong NSW Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 10,806 Page: 11 Printed Size: cm² Market: NSW Country: Australia ASR: AUD 1,175 Words: 234 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Bank super to face class action BANK-OWNED superannuation funds face the threat of class actions on the of evidence from the banking royal commission. Millions of Australians are being invited by law firm Slater and Gordon to sign up to the Get Your Super Back claim, which will involve a series of class actions, most likely starting with Commonwealth Bankowned superannuation fund, Colonial First State and AMP The banking royal commission exposed appalling behaviour by the bank-owned super funds who may have stripped money from the retirement savings of millions of hard working Australians, head of class actions for Slater and Gordon, Ben Hardwick, told reporters. We re happy the royal commission has exposed these dodgy practices but we don t believe exposure is good enough, we don t think it s fair that Australians retirement savings may have been gauged and today we are saying enough is enough, he said. It will be alleged that Colonial First State dumped super with its parent bank, which had ludicrously low interest rates, below even the Reserve Bank of Australia s cash rate. Mr Hardwick said the royal commission also revealed some AMP customers were getting negative returns on their funds. We don t believe there is any justification for a bankowned fund member being worse off than an industry fund member, especially when they have chosen to invest in a passive cash investment option, which requires the fund to do basically nothing, Mr Hardwick said.

107 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: James Frost And Misa Han Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 6,877 Words: 783 Item ID: Page 1 of 2 Direct life insurance on the ropes Inquiry skewers dud policies, illegal hard sell James Frost and Misa Han The direct insurance business model is in doubt following extraordinary revelations that it sells worthless policies using illegal methods to people who don't understand them and have no hope of making a claim anyway. In a damaging day of hearings at the royal commission into the financial services sector, wealth manager Clear- View's chief risk officer, Gregory Martin, conceded it was difficult to see how the direct sales model could be financially viable and compliant with the law while Freedom Insurance surprised the market by abandoning twothirds of its controversial product lines. Direct insurance sales were slammed in an ASIC report that found three out of every five insurance policies sold via this channel were cancelled within three years in a practice that ASIC's chairman James Shipton said "undermined trust in the industry". Among those involved in the direct and non-advised life insurance model are Commlnsure, Freedom, NobleOak, Suncorp, TAL and OnePath/ ANZ, St Andrew's Life Insurance and Hannover Life Re. Baptist pastor Grant Stewart revealed in evidence to the commission yesterday that his son - born with Down syndrome - was no longer comfortable answering his phone after he was bulldozed into buying a package of insurance from one of Freedom's call centre operatives. There wereat least five complaints of similar behaviour. Freedom Insurance sold six lines of insurance including funeral insurance, life cover, TPD, loan protection, accidental death and accidental injury via outbound phone calls, but yesterday the company said it would stop selling all but two products. Freedom's chief operating officer, Craig Orton, revealed the significant change in its business model as well as the scrapping of commissions and non- Continued p8 From page 1 Direct life insurance on the ropes monetary incentives in a series of amendments to his statement to the commission. Counsel assisting Rowena Orr, QC, said: "Freedom told the commission at three o'clock yesterday afternoon that it has decided to cease selling all of these products except funeral insurance and loan protection cover through outbound sales calls. Is that right?" "That's correct That's correct" Mr Orton said. "That's a very significant change, isn't it, Mr Orton?" Ms Orr asked. "It is a significant change," he said. Freedom will continue to use the outbound sales model - telephone marketing to consumers - to sell funeral insurance and loan protection, which deliver more than 85 per cent of Freedom's revenue. Mr Orton revealed the changes were made in a discussion between himself, the chief marketing officer and the chief executive officer over the last week. He could not produce evidence of exactly when it occurred. Freedom told the ASX on September 6 it was conducting a strategic review of the business model following the ASIC review. Board minutes dated September 5 show the company had already made decisions to scrap commissions because they were leading to poor outcomes for customers: "Freedom recognises a link between its remuneration structures and the misselling to vulnerable customers." Ms Orr argued a program of incentives for sales staff that included boat trips, Bali holidays and motor scooters as well as penalties that included paying for overheads, referred to as "seat time", contributed to poor outcomes for customers. Call-centre operators were encouraged to "smash lives" or hit life and funeral insurance targets. "My view is that any commission payable by sales agents has the potential to be conflicted. It doesn't matter how big or how small," Mr Orton said. The policies themselves also came under scrutiny. Freedom employees would often sell accidental death and accidental injury policies as a low-cost alternative to life insurance. "Can you explain what you mean by that?" Ms Orr asked. "It provides a cheap alternative but doesn't provide coverage for natural causes," Mr Orton said. "Well, it's not a true alternative to life

108 Australian Financial Review, Australia Author: James Frost And Misa Han Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : National : 44,635 Page: 1 Printed Size: cm² Market: National Country: Australia ASR: AUD 6,877 Words: 783 Item ID: Page 2 of 2 cover, is it?" Ms Orr asked. "No. No, you're right" Mr Orton said. "And that's because the circumstances in which you can claim on an accidental death policy and an accidental injury policy are much more limited than under a life insurance policy?" Ms Orr asked. "Thaf s correct" Mr Orton said. Freedom sold 21,709 accidental death policies in Only 10 policies were paid out A report from ASIC found accidental death policies had the lowest claims ratio of all insurance types at 16.1 per cent or 16.1<t paid out for every $1 collected in premiums. Freedom's list of reasons for which it could refuse an accidental death included "self-inflicted injury, criminal activity and aerial activity". Aerial activity was defined as anything other than flying in a plane as a fare-paying passenger in a fixed-wing aircraft operated by an airline or charter company. "It would exclude an injury sustained, for example, in a helicopter accident?" Ms Orr asked. "By that definition, yes, yes," Mr Orton replied.

109 Townsville Bulletin, Townsville QLD Author: Clare Armstrong Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 16,484 Page: 12 Printed Size: cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 1,420 Words: 388 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Veterans call for fair go CLARE ARMSTRONG CALLS for a veterans superannuation provider to be subjected to the same scrutiny as other funds are ramping up with the launch of a new petition ing the defence community. Herbert MP Cathy O Toole has started a petition to pressure the Federal Government into including the Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation in the Royal Commission into the Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry. The commission specifically excludes the corporation in its current terms of reference. There are about 700,000 members who belong to the corporation, which represents public servants, and current and former Australian Defence Personnel. Labor s veterans affairs and defence personnel spokeswoman Amanda Rishworth also wrote to then-treasurer Scott Morrison asking the Government to reconsider the exclusion. I understand the Government is satisfied that the current level of scrutiny applied to the CSC is appropriate however, given the importance of the CSC as the custodian of the superannuation savings for public servants and our current and former Australian Defence Personnel, we believe it is inappropriate to exclude them from the royal commission, she said. Earlier this year, Mr Morrison said the corporation was excluded because it was a statutory government agency operating under higher standards. Ms O Toole said she launched the petition on behalf of the very concerned veteran community in her electorate. The feed from veterans has been overwhelming, she said. I think it s very unfair that the corporation isn t included and why should veterans and serving members not be afforded the same courtesy as other super funds so they can feel confident and secure that their fund is being properly run. They just want to be on the same level playing field and know their fund is doing the best by them. In June members of the Alliance of Defence Service Organisations (ADSO) wrote to then-prime minister Malcolm Turnbull asking for the commission to be expanded. Simply put, the veterans community is not convinced of assurances that (the corporation) is as well oversighted and regulated as has been the claim thus far, ADSO spokesman Kel Ryan said. The royal commission s terms of reference say, all Australians have the right to be treated honestly and fairly in their dealings with superannuation providers. The Defence family of 230,000 service men and women, serving and retired, and those they leave behind, are also Australians.

110 Courier Mail, Brisbane Author: SAMANTHA BAILEY Section: Edition Changes - Metro Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 135,007 Page: 41 Printed Size: 79.00cm² Market: QLD Country: Australia ASR: AUD 1,387 Words: 183 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Australians urged to take action to get super SAMANTHA BAILEY LAW firm Slater and Gordon says bank-owned super funds owe more than $1 billion to Australians being urged to join class actions to recover money gouged from their retirement savings. Launching its Get Your Super Back campaign yesterday, Slater and Gordon said the Commonwealth Bankowned Colonial First State and AMP were likely to be the first targets of planned class actions. Members of those two institutions combined had lost more than half a billion dollars, it said. Slater and Gordon is targeting fee gouging and the paying of uncompetitive interest rates to retirement savers who have part of their super in cash. This means that millions of Australians may be out of pocket and a handful of banks have lined their pockets, Slater and Gordon class action head Ben Hardwick said. He said that the firm intended to recoup as much lost super as it could. The firm expects that up to one-third of all adult Australians may be eligible to join the class actions. We now think it s time that Australians got their super from the big banks, he said.

111 Geelong Advertiser, Geelong VIC Author: SAMANTHA BAILEY Section: General News Article type : News Item Classification : Regional : 16,687 Page: 5 Printed Size: cm² Market: VIC Country: Australia ASR: AUD 997 Words: 477 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Super class action targets bank funds SAMANTHA BAILEY LAW firm Slater and Gordon says bank-owned super funds owe more than $1 billion to Australians being urged to join class actions to recover money gouged from their retirement savings. Launching its Get Your Super Back campaign, Slater and Gordon said the Commonwealth Bank-owned Colonial First State and AMP were likely to be the first targets of planned class actions. Members of those two institutions combined had lost more than half a billion dollars, it said. The firm is targeting fee gouging and the paying of uncompetitive interest rates to retirement savers who have part of their super in cash. This means that millions of Australians may be out of pocket and a handful of banks have lined their pockets, said Slater and Gordon class action head Ben Hardwick. Mr Hardwick said the firm intended to recoup as much lost super as it could. The firm expects up to onethird of all adult Australians may be eligible to join the class actions. What funds like Colonial First State have been doing is dumping super with a parent bank, such as CBA, he said. The interest from the parent bank is so low investors in the cash option are receiving rates as low as 1.25 per cent a year. This is even below the RBA cash rate. This rate of return is ludicrously low. Standard bank interest should be around two to 2.5 per cent. That s what most banks offer to ordinary customers with their normal termdeposits. And that s what industry super fund members and some retail fund members have been getting. We don t believe there is any justification for a bankowned fund member being worse off than industry fund members, especially when they have chosen to invest in a passive cash investment option, which requires the fund to do basically nothing. The move follows evidence at the royal commission of misconduct by the major banks. Slater and Gordon will be pressing for retail super fund members to be compensated for the difference between their returns on cash, and the returns they should have received if the trustee had done their job properly. Banks had been taking Australian for a ride, Mr Hardwick said. It s been about lining their own pockets: about propping up their profits and undermining the entire scheme. Evidence at the royal commission has also included revelations of high fees whittling away savings by AMP, and cases where Colonial First State failed to move customers from a high-fee fund to a lowfee fund. We re happy the royal commission has exposed these dodgy practices, but we don t believe exposure is good enough, Mr Hardwick said. We now think it s time that Australians got their super from the big banks. The Commonwealth Bank said it was aware Slater and Gordon was investigating class actions but it had not been served with any proceedings. THE AUSTRALIAN

112 West Australian, Perth Author: Nick Butterly Section: Edition Changes Article type : News Item Classification : Capital City Daily : 147,676 Page: 17 Printed Size: cm² Market: WA Country: Australia ASR: AUD 3,349 Words: 284 Item ID: Page 1 of 1 Nahan pins tax hope on US amnesty Nick Butterly State Liberal leader Mike Nahan says he hopes to receive an amnesty from the US Government to resolve dual citizenship and taxation headaches. The Opposition Leader took partyroom colleagues by surprise last month after revealing that he was in an unresolved dispute with America s Internal Revenue Service over claims he could owe a big sum in unpaid tax. Amid a debate over the eligibility of dual citizenship holders to sit in State Parliament, Dr Nahan claimed he had been unable to revoke his US citizenship because of the IRS claim he owed unpaid taxes. Dr Nahan said yesterday that he was among tens of thousands of dual citizens who hoped they may now be eligible for an amnesty. If successful, he said that would automatically allow him to revoke his US citizenship. The US Government has come out with an amnesty widely, I have been told, Dr Nahan said. We are pursuing that in my case and in the case of tens of thousands of other people in a similar position. Dr Nahan has previously suggested that the sum demanded by the IRS potentially ran to hundreds of thousands of dollars. The former WA treasurer, who was born in Michigan, claims he had been in the process of renouncing his US citizenship after entering Parliament but the US put a stay on that process, claiming he owed unpaid tax. Dr Nahan said the IRS was pursuing him for taxes owed on earnings from his Australian self-managed superannuation account. The US is one of the few countries to tax non-resident citizens. Many dual US-Australian citizens living in Australia are reported to be fighting a similar battle because of recent law changes in the US.