Labor will today give voice to the victims of banking rorts and rip-offs from the North West and West Coasts of Tasmania that Malcolm Turnbull and Brett Whiteley sought to silence.
The schedule for hearings of the banking royal commission indicates there are no public hearings for Tasmania scheduled before the next election.
The Liberals fought tooth and nail to stop the Banking Royal Commission uncovering serious misconduct by the banks, and, unfortunately, it now appears Tasmanians wont get their chance to put their case, in person before the royal commission, about how they were ripped off by banks, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, Senator Penny Wong said today.
Former banker Brett Whiteley voted six times against the Banking Royal Commission when he was a Member of Parliament, Labor candidate for Braddon Justine Keay said today.
Brett Whiteley has never voted infavour of holding a royal commission into the banks. If it was up to Brett Whiteley the rip-offs and rorts that the royal commission has exposed would never have seen the light of day.
Labor will be holding our own Braddon Banking Forum in early July to give some aggrieved banking victims an opportunity to air their stories. We will present these stories to the royal commission to further the case for full hearings to be held in Tasmania.
Tasmanian victims include people like Braddon resident Brian Tipler, whose bank lost $24,000 from the estate of his deceased mother and is refusing to do anything about it.
In a submission to the Royal Commission,Mr Tipler says the NAB closed the Burnie account where the money from the estate was deposited in 1998, without authorisation, and now claims that it is too far back to find the paper work.
Mr Tipler says he has not heard back from the royal commission, and, is disappointed he wont have chance to give evidence, in person, to the commission.
The Royal Commission is conducting hearings in Queensland next week, looking into rural and remote communities and natural disaster insurance, Labor Senator for Tasmania Anne Urquhart said, its disappointing the royal commission into the banks isnt coming to the North West and West Coasts of Tasmania before the people of Braddon vote in a federal by-election.
Former bankers Brett Whiteley and Malcolm Turnbull fought for 18 months to stop Labor calling a royal commission into the banks. Now Labor will ensure Tasmanians they can have their say about the bank rorts and rip-offs.
Authorised by Noah Carroll, ALP, Canberra.