Senator BRANDIS (Queensland—Attorney-General, Vice-President of the Executive Council and Leader of the Government in the Senate) (14:01): It's scarcely necessary to say, in relation to a question coming from, of all people, Senator Kim Carr, that I don't accept any of the premises of the question. Nevertheless, I can advise the Senate that the Prime Minister announced this morning that the government will establish a royal commission into the alleged misconduct of Australia's banks and other financial services entities. The commission will consider the conduct of banks and insurers, financial service providers and superannuation funds, not including self-managed superannuation funds. It will also consider how well equipped regulators are to identify and address misconduct. It will not inquire into other matters such as the financial stability or the resilience of our banks. The government has taken this action to further ensure our financial system is working efficiently and effectively. All Australians have the right to be treated honestly and fairly in their dealings with banking, superannuation and financial services providers. The highest standards of conduct are critical to the good governance and corporate culture of those providers. The royal commission will take a sensible, efficient and focused approach, investigating misconduct and practices falling below community standards and expectations. It will not be a never-ending lawyers' picnic. Let me make this clear: we will ensure the commission will not defer, delay or limit any proposed or announced policy legislation, or regulation that we are currently implementing. The government will complement the existing actions— The PRESIDENT: Senator Brandis, please resume your seat. Senator Macdonald, on a point of order? Senator Ian Macdonald: I'm seriously trying to hear what the minister is saying. Could you ask the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, just for today, not to interject continuously or, alternatively, could you ask the leader to speak up? I simply cannot hear Senator Brandis over Senator Wong's continuous shouting and screeching. The PRESIDENT: Senator Macdonald, without naming any particular people, there was a lot of noise coming from the left. I was calling the left of the chamber to order whilst Senator Brandis was answering the question because I could not hear him either. Senator Hinch? Senator Hinch: This is very unusual, but I actually support what Senator Macdonald said. The PRESIDENT: It wasn't a point of order, Senator Hinch. Could I ask senators, again, to keep in mind courtesies to their colleagues so we can hear the answer. Senator BRANDIS: Where was I? Mr President, the commission will complement the existing actions the government is taking in the sector which I've explained to senators in answer to questions earlier in the week. This includes establishing the new one-stop shop for resolving customer complaints, significantly bolstering the Australian Securities and Investments Commission's powers and resources. The PRESIDENT: Order! Your time has expired, Senator Brandis. Senator Carr, a further supplementary question.