APRA on notice to explain super fund payments to unions
At the same time as adverse reports swirl around the Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has been placed on notice to answer questions relating to payments from superannuation funds to trade unions.
The questions, asked during the latest round of Senate Estimates, cover payments from multiple industry funds to trade unions.
The questions have been asked by NSW Liberal Senator, Andrew Bragg and relate to expenses data gathered from the annual members meeting notices of industry funds AustraianSuper, Cbus and First Super.
Bragg as referenced $566,000 paid by AustralianSuper to the Australian Metal Workers Union for an “alliance partnership and has asked APRA whether the regulator knows what that actually represents.
He also asked whether APRA could provide a similar explanation for $300,000 for a similar arrangements with the Australian Services Union and the United Workers Union.
“Then you have hundreds of thousands of so-called directors fees paid to these unions. Have you analysed them?” Bragg asked.
“CBUS said they paid over $300,000 to the Australian Workers Union (AWU) for ”promotion, marketing and sponsorship” purposes. Do you know whether those payments satisfied the best financial interest duty?”
“ $156,000 to the AWU, $700,000 to the CFMEU, $250,000 to the CEPU – mostly for ”sponsorship”. How are these payments in the best financial interest of super members?” Bragg asked in his question.
“It says here that FirstSuper, which is a small $4 billion fund, made numerous payments, including three payments of over $700,000 each to the CFMEU. This totals over $2 million. The alleged purpose is ”Co-ordinator Costs”.
“Do you know whether these ”co-ordinator costs” is for purposes of members best financial interest? This is huge expenditure. How could paying for this possibly be in the best financial interest of members?”
ALP, Unions & Industry Super with directors / bosses snouts sooooooooooooooooooooooo deep in the Super trough $$$$$$$$$$$$ millions and millions and millions in shame and related party payments & donations.
APRA & ASIC are totally REGULATORY CAPTURE CORRUPTED and do NOTHING about such conflicts and payments.
I’d also be interested to know how payments to generally underperforming and failed fund managers are in the best interests of members. Let’s expand the question.
Its easy to get away with when they are marking their own homework regarding the performance of private or unlisted equity, debt and property.
Let’s pretend that I am a super fund trustee and I want to build an office building on behalf of my members as an investment.
What am I required to demonstrate to ensure my members that their spending of their money to build and operate this project was handled appropriately whilst meeting my trustee duties to build wealth for my members retirement?
Is there anything prohibiting me from exclusively using my mates building company, my other mates maintenance company, my mates security company and my other mates commercial real estate agency without much or any consideration to any other provider in the market?
How often would I expect to be looked into to ensure that I am compliant when allocating my members funds?
Can you imagine the corruption that would occur if the Government goes ahead with its plan to allow Industry Super Fund trustees to become quasi Financial Advisers. The Industry Funds are donating money to these organised criminals in the corrupt Unions.
Who knows how many shady individuals have positions of power at the head of these Union based Super Funds.
It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that organised crime could be in positions of power within these funds already.
What a honey pot the Government would be opening up if they allow vertically integrated funds the power to also advise its members on the Trillions of dollars it holds and distributes.
Large portions of this money have been used for infrastructure and major building contracts in this country. Can you see the links here where organised criminals are clearly connected to the use of members retirement funds. We already know that members funds are used to prop up unions and the highest levels of government(I.e. The Labour Party). This is what we do know.
The exposee on unions shown to us the other night shows just how close organised criminals are to members retirement funds already. If the Government allows the funds to have a conflict of interest and give its own members Financial Advice, which is essentially what the current government has proposed, how safe are the funds of Australian retirees.
Does this move give organised criminals who could already be in power a foot in the door to direct further union based super funds to projects that organised criminals are involved in?
I’d be taking a real close look at every last director of these funds before you open up the floodgates to this potential problem!!
I have clients who have been told to produce evidence they are with cbus or else they can’t work on a cfmeu worksite. I also have clients who have been forced to take income protection insurance via eba, in return for a lower pay rise. The most shitty policy you can imagine, with millions of dollars in commissions flowing into the hands of their union. The insurance company was set up by ex-union officials of course. This is going back 10 years or so. Kenneth Haybe was not interested any any of these shinanigans. Nothing to see here. With APRA and ASIC allowing industry funds to get away with dubious valuation practices, huge allocations to opaque and questionable investments, grossly misleading investment option names, and now pushing for conflicted industry fund salespeople to call themselves ‘qualified advisers’, what could possibly go wrong?
Unionist were appointed to the Reserve Bank Board as some sort of pay off. You missed where the Wayne Swan (former ALP Treasurer) gave CBUS members money to get Albanese elected. It was at least $3million direct but the grey non transparent areas say it could be $9 million – channeled back by other unions. All done without your consent or permission.