Russell Broadbent here, your Independent Member for Monash.
I recently asked the Treasurer during question time what more the Government can do to protect the Australian people from scammers.
In 2022 alone, Australians lost three billion dollars to scammers. Let me repeat that again - three billion dollars!
More than ever, this issue is of great concern to me and it should be for you too…
I was told recently by a bank manager that a significant number of their customers were being scammed.
And I personally know of a couple who were scammed of $100,000, and another friend of $40,000 - so much money, gone in the blink of an eye.
But the blame doesn’t just lie with these deceived and manipulated Australians. While everyone must be wary of incoming scams to some degree, industries should and must be held to account.
In The Age last Friday, David Crowe notes how ‘dangerously easy’ it is to scam Australians of their cash. As he says, ‘industries will have to pay a price if their collective complacency allows fraud to thrive’.
In response to community concerns, the Treasury Department is currently drafting legislation to impose mandatory obligations when responding to fraud on industry players such as telcos, banks, and social media companies.
It’s about time, and it’s long overdue.
At the end of the day, hardworking Australians deserve better protection from this evil.
That’s justice as I see it.
