Safe lending laws must remain, says new research

Anglicare Tasmania supports the findings of a new survey that warns of dire consequences if the current safe lending laws are axed.

Financial counsellors across the country say the Government’s proposed changes would create a debt disaster.

The survey from Financial Counselling Australia (FCA) released this week found 97 per cent of respondents wanted safe lending laws to remain, with 93 per cent stating they used these laws to advocate for their financial counselling clients.

Financial counsellors agreed that the responsible lending laws were an important consumer protection, and that their removal would see more clients with unaffordable debt.

Many of the respondents also believed that removing the laws would have a negative impact on the economic recovery, with 71% stating it would hinder the recovery from the pandemic.

Anglicare Tasmania this week lodged a submission to a Senate Committee inquiry tasked with looking at the Bill. Our submission argued that the Federal Parliament should reject the Bill in its entirety.

Further information:

Please read the full media release from Financial Counselling Australia and review the survey results. And here’s an excellent article from the ABC’s Daniel Ziffer.

The National Debt Helpline, 1800 007 007, is your one-stop-shop if you are experiencing financial stress – it’s free and confidential.  Find out more about Anglicare’s financial counselling service here.