[Weekly Wrap] Adviser advocate resigns

PAA general manager Jenny Campbell, one of the most vocal lobbyists in support of RFAs in particular, has announced that she is standing down from her role as general manager of the organisation.

Friday, August 23rd 2013, 11:22AM

by Susan Edmunds

You can read more about the move here.

She has always been very clear about the need for mortgage advisers to be able to offer KiwiSaver advice. So it must be gratifying for her to see the Code Committee considering a pathway for them to do just that.

The committee has been holding a series of public consultation meetings across the country.

I went to the Auckland one, where advisers asked committee chairman David Ireland about CPD changes, suitability requirements, new adviser competency requirements, and the proposed pathway to allow a "KiwiSaver-only" adviser.

Some of the more sceptical commenters focussed on the CPD changes in particular, saying the move to require 30 hours of structured CPD across a two-year period, instead of the current 10 structure and 10 unstructured per year, was designed to boost training provider organisations such as the IFA, rather than the advisers themselves.

Ireland says this is not the case - the committee wants to encourage advisers to improve their competence and skill over time, so that advisers do not engage in a "race to the bottom". He said a less prescriptive approach would allow advisers more flexibility to choose what was right for them.

I spoke to Ireland again yesterday and he said the committee was pleased with the range of discussion and dialogue it had been having with stakeholders. "There are a lot of different views out there. They vary from one extreme to the other."

But he said advisers with any opinion should offer it to the committee because some changes might come down to the wire. "Well-reasoned input may tip the balance."

You can read more of his update on the feedback so far here.

In other news, Australian superannuation schemes aren't keeping their end of the bargain when it comes to transtasman portability. A proposal from the Productivity Commission that a "what's my number"-style campaign could work for KiwiSaver schemes has also generated a lot of interest, particularly from those at pains to point out that price isn't everything.

On the insurance front, OnePath has announced some product changes and says trauma protection is becoming increasingly important. And no surprise - in mortgages, it's mostly been about the pending LVR restrictions. I've now heard two opposing views on what the LVR move will do the regions so it will be interesting to see how it pans out. Will Aucklanders buy properties in the regions because it's easier? Or will the restrictions completely quash what small amount of progress those regions' property markets are making?

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