Senate Economics Legislation Committee

Senate Estimates hearing,

Searchable transcript of the Senate Economics Legislation Committee, 29 Oct 2026 Senate Estimates hearing, with chapters: ASIC Insolvency and Decommissioning Liabilities, ASIC Enforcement and Audit Misconduct, ASIC Small Business and Private Credit, ASIC Superannuation and Whistleblowers, APRA…

Chapters

  1. ASIC Insolvency and Decommissioning Liabilities (14:34)

    ASIC discusses rising corporate insolvency rates and the audit of decommissioning liabilities for offshore oil and gas companies.

  2. ASIC Enforcement and Audit Misconduct (42:07)

    ASIC provides updates on enforcement actions regarding Equity Trustees and the investigation into audit misconduct at KPMG.

  3. ASIC Small Business and Private Credit (1:33:20)

    ASIC addresses small business insolvency trends, credit card surcharge absorption, and the implementation of sustainability reporting.

  4. ASIC Superannuation and Whistleblowers (2:20:16)

    ASIC answers questions regarding IPO market conduct, the financial stability of Diversa, and whistleblower protections in the transport industry.

  5. APRA Housing and Mortgage Arrears (3:04:19)

    APRA examines housing market risks, including negative equity, mortgage arrears, and the valuation of illiquid superannuation assets.

  6. ABS Census and Mortality Data (3:56:13)

    The ABS discusses the administration of the Census, data collection for green jobs, and modeling for excess mortality.

  7. ABS Crime and Social Statistics (5:23:44)

    The ABS addresses the availability of statistics on crime, child slavery, and First Nations incarceration rates.

  8. DISR Industrial Support and Net Zero (5:36:33)

    DISR outlines industrial support packages for Whyalla and Tomago, and the design of green aluminium production credits.

  9. DISR R&D Tax and Fossil Fuel Exports (6:22:32)

    DISR discusses the administration of the R&D tax incentive and the modeling of fossil fuel exports under net zero targets.

  10. DISR Green Iron and Biotech R&D (6:46:31)

    DISR provides updates on the Green Iron Investment Fund, the closure of the Whyalla blast furnace, and biotech R&D.

  11. DISR AI Safety and Data Breaches (7:24:28)

    The AI Safety Institute discusses its role in investigating the Services Australia data breach and testing frontier AI models.

  12. Geoscience Australia Hazards and Mapping (7:56:22)

    Geoscience Australia details its work in earthquake monitoring, satellite-based fire detection, and groundwater mapping in Northern Australia.

  13. NRF and Net Zero Authority Transition (8:19:46)

    The National Reconstruction Fund and Net Zero Economy Authority discuss investment pipelines and regional workforce transitions in Gladstone.

  14. ANSTO Workplace Culture and Nuclear Advice (9:07:13)

    ANSTO addresses internal workplace culture, performance management frameworks, and its role in providing nuclear advice to the government.