50% profit tax on the big four. New major banking licences for the first time in 30 years. Australian jobs first. Credit card rates capped at RBA cash rate plus 10 points. Tap-and-go fees slashed to EU standard. Sovereign payment rail. Cash access legislated as a right.
No new major banking licence in 30 years. Four banks control 80%+ of home lending and 93% of rural lending. Combined profit $32.4 billion — extracted, not earned. Tens of thousands of Australian jobs offshored to India and the Philippines while the same banks post record profits. The competitive pressure that should produce lower margins simply does not exist.
1,700+ branch closures in a decade — regional towns abandoned. Credit cards charge 22% on a 4.35% cash rate — an 18-point extraction from 3 million Australians in persistent debt. Every tap funds Visa or Mastercard in the United States. Cash customers subsidise frequent flyer points for the wealthy.
Farm debt up from $100B to $140B in 4 years — survival debt. Small business faces personal guarantees and corporate risk frameworks. Australians lost $3.1 billion to scams in 2023 — banks keep the fee, customers lose the money. No mandatory reimbursement framework.
Banks pay 50% corporate tax — double the standard 25%. On $32B profit: approximately $16 billion per year redirected to public services, the Sovereign Wealth Fund, and the Citizen Dividend. If banks raise mortgage rates to absorb the levy, MMP names them publicly by institution and accelerates competition reform.
APRA directed to issue new major banking licences — the first in 30 years. Fifth and sixth major banks capitalised with Sovereign Wealth Fund bonds, competing on mortgages, business and rural lending. Four is a floor, not a ceiling. The price competition 30 years of regulation failed to produce.
Banks holding Australian licences must maintain minimum Australian employment ratios. Offshoring disclosed quarterly by role category. Any bank cutting Australian jobs while posting increased profit faces automatic licence review. Australian banking licences are for Australian communities — not for processing back-office work from a call centre in Manila.
Banks cannot close the last branch in a town without a mandatory community impact assessment and Commonwealth approval. ATM networks in regional areas maintained as a licence condition. Where banking has withdrawn, Australia Post fills the gap — expanded mandate, funded by licence fees on the big four. Cash access is a right, not a service to be withdrawn at shareholder convenience.
CC rates capped at the RBA cash rate plus 10 points — currently 14.35%, down from 22%. No retroactive increases on existing balances. Minimum payments must reduce principal by 2%. Penalty fees capped at $10. 3 million Australians in persistent credit card debt get immediate relief.
Interchange fees on domestic transactions capped at 0.2% — EU standard, down from 0.5–2%+. Saving flows to retailers and consumers, not US card schemes. Sovereign domestic payment rail built within the first term — Commonwealth-owned, RBA-operated. The American toll ends. Australian payments processed in Australia, on Australian rails.
Commonwealth guarantees 80% of any small-business loan up to $500,000 — without requiring the owner's home as collateral. The bank lends against the business, not the family home. The dairy farmer who wants to open a processing facility does not have to risk the farm to do it. The small business that should grow gets the capital that the current risk-pricing model denies.
Australians lost $3.1B to scams in 2023. UK banks reimburse scam victims by default; Australian banks largely do not. MMP mandates UK-style scam reimbursement: the bank that processed the transaction reimburses the customer, then recovers from the receiving institution. The right incentives — banks invest in scam prevention because they bear the cost.
| Current — Failing | MMP — Reformed |
|---|---|
| Big four control 80% of home lending. No new major licence in 30 years. | APRA directed to issue new major banking licences. Real competition. |
| $32B+ extracted in profit. Standard 25% corporate tax. | 50% bank profit tax. ~$16B/yr redirected to public services. |
| CC rates 22% on a 4.35% cash rate. 18-point extraction. | CC rates capped at cash rate + 10 points. 14.35% today. |
| Tap-and-go fees 0.5-2%+ to US card schemes. | Capped at 0.2% EU standard. Sovereign Commonwealth payment rail by Year 4. |
| 1,700+ branch closures. Cash access disappearing. | No last-branch closure without Commonwealth approval. Australia Post expanded. |
| Tens of thousands of Australian jobs offshored while profits rise. | Australian employment ratios mandatory. Offshoring disclosed quarterly. Licence review trigger. |
| SME lending requires personal guarantee — the family home. | 80% Commonwealth guarantee on loans under $500K. No personal guarantee required. |
| Scam victims rarely reimbursed. Banks keep the fee. | UK-style mandatory scam reimbursement. Banks invest in prevention. |
No memos pinned to this policy yet. When an MMP memo on this topic is published, it will appear here with a short summary. The full memo index is at moralmajority.com.au/memos.html.