Madonna Jarrett (Brisbane, Australian Labor Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

I finished my contribution last night by saying that many rural communities still experience unreliable telecommunications. Just this week, it was reported that telecommunications across the western cape suffered another outage just hours after services were restored following a bushfire which brought services down over the weekend. Electronic payment terminals are only as reliable as the networks supporting them. Cash provides certainty. Labor understands that Australians living outside major cities deserve the same access to essential goods, regardless of technology limitations. Older Australians also benefit significantly. While many seniors happily embrace digital banking, many others remain comfortable using cash. That preference deserves respect. No Australian should feel excluded simply because they don't use the latest payment technology.

Labor believes inclusion means ensuring everyone can participate in the economy, not just those who are digitally connected. The reforms also help Australians experiencing financial hardship. Community organisations have long recognised that physical cash can be an effective budgeting tool. People leaving situations involving financial control or domestic violence, people recovering from gambling addiction, people rebuilding after a financial crisis—for these Australians, cash provides an essential means to buy food and pay for medicines and greater control over their personal finances. By protecting access to cash, our government is also protecting financial choice. Importantly, our reforms do strike a sensible balance. We have not required every business in Australia to accept cash. Instead, we focused on essential purchases, fuel and groceries, the items that Australians simply cannot live without. It recognises that businesses also face costs when handling cash—costs associated with security, banking, transport, insurance, staff time et cetera. Labor acknowledges these realities by exempting many small businesses with turnover below $10 million while requiring larger retailers selling essential goods to continue accepting cash.

We want to protect consumers. We want to support vulnerable Australians but also recognise the practical challenges faced by businesses. Our government also recognises that accepting cash means very little if cash cannot actually reach communities. As Australians increasingly use digital payments, transporting cash around the country has become more expensive. Fewer companies now provide these services. Without government action, there was a genuine risk Australia's cash distribution system could become unsustainable. That's why, with this bill, our government is establishing a national framework to protect Australia's cash distribution network. This legislation helps ensure ATMs remain stocked, retailers continue receiving cash deliveries and Australians maintain reliable access to notes and coins into the future.

Most of us have probably had the experience of going to an ATM when you need the cash, only to find it closed. All of a sudden we're stranded, and then we start thinking: 'Where is the closest ATM? I wonder if it's closed.' Our heads then go to: 'What if I can't get any cash? Who can I ask a favour of? Who can I borrow from?' It can go on and on, creating fear and anxiety. There is no excuse.

These reforms are about protecting critical infrastructure. When we think about infrastructure, we often think about roads and ports and railways, electricity and telecommunications. But cash distribution is also part of Australia's economic infrastructure. If people cannot access cash or use cash when they need it, consumer choice is reduced and economic resilience is weakened. That is why our government is ensuring cash remains available even as payment habits evolve.

I mention consumer choice as it really is another important aspect of these reforms. It is not about forcing Australians to use cash. If somebody prefers a digital wallet or to use their watch, that's perfectly fine. If another person prefers cash, though, that should also be respected, and we believe Australians should have both options. Freedom of choice is strengthened when governments preserve alternatives rather than allowing one system to eliminate another.

The reforms also recognise an important principle: technology should serve people. People should not become servants to technology. Innovation is valuable; we all know that. Digital payment has transformed commerce. It has also transformed how we shop, how we work and how we entertain ourselves. But governments do have a responsibility to ensure innovation remains inclusive, and that means protecting Australians who continue to rely on cash while embracing modern payment technologies.

Now, some critics have argued that these reforms are unnecessary because cash use is declining, but declining does not mean disappearing. The Reserve Bank data showed millions of Australians still use cash every week, particularly for budgeting, emergencies and smaller purchases. I don't know about you, but I love a good fete, and in fact we have lots of them across Brisbane. I can assure you I am often putting my hand in my pocket, pulling out a few dollars to pay for a game of hoops, a jar of bickies or maybe a pair of handmade earrings. These schools rely on these wonderful community activities to raise money for much-needed books or playground facilities. They rely on us having cash.

Labor recognises that even if cash becomes less common, it does remain critically important. Sometimes public policy isn't about serving the majority; it's about ensuring minorities aren't excluded. And that's exactly what these reforms achieve. Others have argued the reforms should have applied to every business. We instead chose to a targeted approach: essential purchases first, protect Australians where it matters most, and review the policies over time. That demonstrates responsible government, carefully balancing consumer protection with business practicality.

We have also committed to reviewing the cash acceptance mandate after three years to ensure it remains effective and fit for purpose. Good governments don't simply introduce reforms and walk away. They monitor, they listen to stakeholders, they listen to consumers, and they improve policies where necessary. Ultimately, this issue is about more than banknotes and coins; it's about inclusion and choice.

In closing, the Albanese Labor government believes Australians should never be denied access to essential goods simply because they choose to pay with legal Australian currency. That's why Labor has protected the right to use cash for essential purchases. That's why Labor is safeguarding Australia's cash distribution. And it's why Labor is ensuring, even in an increasingly digital economy, no Australian is left behind. Technology will continue to evolve, and payment methods will continue to change. Fairness, accessibility and consumer choice should always remain at the heart of public policy. Labor's cash reforms reflect those values. They modernise Australia's payment system while preserving an important choice for millions of Australians. They protect vulnerable people, they strengthen resilience during emergencies, they support regional communities, they recognise that people need choice, and they demonstrate that progress and inclusion can go hand in hand. I commend the bill to the House.

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

My late father, Lance, was a wise person, and I can remember when I left home at 22 to get married to my wife Catherine all those years ago—in 1986—he gave me $50 and said, 'Keep it in your wallet, and make sure you always have cash with you.' If I reach in here, into my coat, I've got $10.

Government Members:

Government members interjecting—

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

There are no moths coming out there, member for McEwen or member for Corangamite, but it's certainly important to always have a bit of cash on you because you never know when you're going to get caught short. You never know when the technology is going to fail or when the point-to-point Visa operators or electronic payments systems fail. Certainly, in regional Australia, this is very much the case. I've been interested to hear the contributions from those opposite. I had shadow ministerial table duty last night, and I spent a lot of time listening to Labor members talking about this particular bill—the Cash Distribution Framework Bill 2026.

I was pleased that so many of them talked about people in country areas. It's good to hear Labor members talking about the regions because, all too often, in any bill before this chamber or the House, we don't hear about how any bill is going to affect regional people. We know that regional people are the ones who keep the lights on. We know that regional people are the ones who grow the food and fibre. We know that regional people are the ones who support our resources, minerals and mining industries to ensure our exports and balances of payments are what they need to be. Indeed, we are the very backbone of Australia, and cash in regional areas—regional economies—is so very important.

I heard the member for Swan, and I like the member for Swan, but, in that contribution, I was interested to hear the reference to, last year, the Treasurer securing commitments from Australia's big banks to hold off regional bank closures until the middle of 2027. That's slightly cute because we can't give the Treasurer too much credit in that regard. I have to say, the big banks were certainly making sure that they did the right thing, as far as the regions are concerned, for once, finally, a bit earlier than that. Certainly, the Commonwealth Bank, on 7 July 2023, put out a media release, and the introductory paragraph read:

Commonwealth Bank is maintaining banking services and employment in regional Australia by keeping all CBA regional branches open until at least the end of 2026, a three year extension on its current commitment.

That, obviously, is a rolling commitment by the CBA. They too, have finally been dragged kicking and screaming to the table to support and protect regional communities. A lot of those banks have big holdings from what's popularly termed in country areas as 'old money'. That old money might have come off the back of a sheep, it might have been traditional money from an area that has been very wealthy in the past, passed on down through the families and is still in those banks. Those banks have then all too often, through the late eighties and since then, started to desert regional communities. It's not right that those banks are happy to have the cash holdings of that old money, and even just average customers with average holdings in those banks, and then close the branch. I appreciate that we're in 2026. I appreciate that many people—most people—are now paying via electronic means, via their phone, with tap-and-go, with credit cards or the like. But cash is still important, and that's why this legislation is vitally important.

I know that the member for Page, in his responsibilities as assistant shadow Treasurer, has moved an amendment to this bill. That's important, too, and I will get to that. But I just want to make some comments in relation to the banking inquiry of 2023. It was at that time, when the CBA had its initial moratorium on bank closures, that Senator Mathew Canavan and former Liberal senator Gerard Rennick were going around the regions and holding these important fora to look into banking closures. Senator Canavan, now the federal leader of the Nationals, has never wavered in his view that banks are vital and cash is important.

It was the hearing for that inquiry at Junee that had a lot to do with the CBA's decision, with other banks following suit, on the importance of cash as king, in regional economies in particular. The thing about Junee is that it is 42 kilometres from Wagga Wagga. If the CBA had closed its branch there, that would have left age-old enterprises such as the Co-Op, a very successful business, and the Junee Licorice & Chocolate Factory, probably one of Riverina's best tourism destinations, without cash on the premises when they opened of a day or forced to make a daily commute to Wagga Wagga—as I said, the distance of a good marathon away—to get cash to have in their tills for those people for whom cash is the only means of paying for goods and services.

That is not right. It is not fair. The CBA came to its senses and put in place the moratorium—and good on them for doing that. I said at the time that Junee was going to have a great opportunity to speak up against bank closures in their community. I commend the then mayor, Neil Smith, who, with me, fought for the Senate Standing Committee on Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport to hold a hearing for the inquiry into regional bank closures in what is a rail-and-jail town—but a very important town.

Junee is halfway between Sydney and Melbourne, on the main rail line. It's been a huge agricultural producer. Like many of those regional towns, it deserves and needs banking services. It's got a community of 6½ thousand people. Without a local bank, many people would have had to make the one-hour round trip to Wagga Wagga—and that would probably mean going a bit fast, to do it in within 60 minutes—just to access simple banking services. That was not good enough, and I'm pleased that Junee is still getting banking services. That's where I commend Regional bank and like-minded organisations for starting up premises throughout country areas, particularly in the Riverina, to offer an option, an alternative to the big banks, who have not been as forthcoming as perhaps they should have in providing services and the branches in regional areas.

When NAB, the National Australia Bank, pulled out of Temora, the spokesperson for that particular organisation phoned me and said that a limited number of customers were going through the bank each week or each fortnight and they were the same customers. I appreciate that. Some of those banks have huge premises and they cost a lot to run. But, still, our country communities, which keep this nation going, deserve to have banks, particularly when some of the holdings of those customers are quite substantial.

Without bank branches, businesses, farms and particularly the elderly suffer immense disadvantage when compared to their city counterparts. They do so because, if you don't have banking services and you therefore don't have cash availability, older people—our populations in regional Australia are ageing—aren't able to access those vital banking services and that cash as quickly and as easily as somebody would in a metropolitan area. I said at the time that I didn't want to see older people who've lived in those towns their entire lives being forced to perhaps move to larger population areas just to get the sort of access to services that they need and deserve. So that inquiry at Junee on 21 September 2023 was important to what we're discussing now and the actions of the bigger banks to stay open and remain in those country communities.

We are not going to oppose this bill, but I do commend the member for Page for the amendment that he has brought to this debate because it is important that that we refine the bill such that it is better than in its current form. In June 2023, going back to that year when we had the Senate inquiry going around the countryside, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission approved the merger of Australia's two largest cash-in-transit companies, Armaguard and Prosegur. That decision handed a single company control of up to 90 per cent of the market—a private monopoly over how cash physically moves around Australia. Now, I know the ACCC would have looked into all the whys and wherefores about that particular merger, but, still and all, we know also how mergers and monopolies, moreover, can cause such disadvantage particularly in regional Australia and especially in those country communities.

This particular bill recognises that cash distribution is a form of critical national infrastructure. I again say I'm interested to see how many Labor members are speaking on this particular bill. I've heard Labor member after Labor member talking about how, generally—and they're right, by the way—infrastructure refers to rail, roads, dams, ports and airports and those sorts of things. But cash is an important part of national infrastructure, and we are very fortunate in Australia that our cash reserves, the cash that each and every one of us has in our wallets and purses and handbags et cetera, are of the polymer type. It's world-leading technology introduced many, many years ago; it's not of the paper variety. It's another one of those Australian inventions that is world leading, which is a very good thing. I can see the member for McEwen nodding. He agrees with me. We should be very proud of what our technology has enabled us to do in the cause of protecting cash.

I know that our police are very vigilant on our highways and byways to make sure that one of the now biggest distributions of illegal trade—that is, vapes and illegal cigarettes and the cash that flows with them, alongside them and behind them—is very much part and parcel of their day-to-day investigative operations.

Australia's cash-in-transit network is dominated by Linfox Armaguard. As I said before, it handles roughly 85 to 90 per cent of the market. I know the ACCC continues to monitor such things.

This particular legislation that is before the House is important. It's good that there is relative agreement across the chamber, but I do urge and encourage that the amendment brought forward by the member for Page is followed and adopted.

Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

The old saying says, 'Cash is king.' Cash is essential to our economy. Cash plays an important role in promoting economic inclusion. Payment systems resilience and the store of value, particularly in times of uncertainty. If you talk to the RBA, around seven per cent of the population still use cash for more than 80 per cent of their transactions. High-cash users are more likely to be older and, in many cases, have a lower household income. These are the groups more likely to feel financial pressure and value having a good handle of their funds.

For seniors, the appeal of cash extends beyond budgeting. Many prefer it for its simplicity, reliability, most of all, security. Cash transactions do not rely on internet access or digital literacy, which can be barriers for older Australians. There are also concerns about scams and privacy, with physical currency offering anonymity and reducing exposure to fraud. Similarly, regional Australians are more likely to use cash than those living in capital cities. Natural disasters and electrical blackouts are times when access to cash is particularly critical. Blackouts, which occur more frequently in rural and regional areas, necessitate the use of cash. If you're a local business and the connectivity drops, you've missed the sale. There's a reason why emergency service agencies recommend that households keep cash in their emergency kits.

Australians across all demographic groups continue to use cash as a way to make their everyday payments. But now cash distribution is under threat. Declining transactional cash use is placing pressure on the economics of storing, processing and transporting cash around the country. Industry consolidation, as the member for Riverina mentioned, and structural changes mean that it's time that regulations change as well. Our government is committed to giving a fair go to all Australians. Maintaining reasonable access to cash to withdraw and to deposit services for Australians who want or need to use cash is part of keeping that commitment. It's why we're acting to ensure Australians have access to cash. No matter what part of the country you live in, you should be able to go and get your groceries, your meat and veg, and just hand over a couple of pineapples. This is why I'm proud to support these bills.

In these bills we are establishing regulatory powers to enable the sector to shift back to a sustainable footing. Cash-in-transit companies service the needs of financial institutions, large retailers and hospitality venues. It's important that regulations target large-scale businesses without becoming a hurdle for smaller operations. We're also including safeguards to ensure the continuity of critical services for all Australians.

We are taking a specific and decisive approach that is tailored to the modern economy, and we are doing it in four main ways. Increased oversight abilities for the ACCC will support fair, transparent and reasonable pricing outcomes while helping maintain the long-term economic viability of the sector. Specifically, cash levels in rural and regional communities will be monitored to ensure stability. The bills create obligations for designated entities when negotiating cash distribution services and access agreements. Through this, the ACCC will have the power to approve standard terms of agreements. It also establishes processes of arbitration to resolve disputes and enables the ACCC to determine dispute resolution requirements for designated entities. The ACCC is also empowered to establish service level standards to support fair and reasonable access to cash across Australia. These standards may cover factors such as availability and timeliness, with the ACCC taking into account these bills' objectives and the public interest.

Similarly, we want the RBA to be able to act in a crisis. While transactional cash use has declined, many Australians would still face genuine hardship if cash became harder to access or use, which is why the Reserve Bank needs the appropriate powers to act quickly and decisively to sustain critical services in the event of a crisis. It also enables up to $400 million in funding support to ensure the continuity of critical cash distribution services. The funding support is intended as a last resort, limited to situations where an entity's resources are insufficient to address the losses or threats due to cash availability. The crisis and resolution powers are subject to clearly defined triggers for intervention and are distinct from the RBA's day-to-day monitoring and regulatory functions. They are consistent with crisis resolution frameworks that apply to other critical services in banking, insurance and settlement.

There are also the good-faith requirements for designated providers when they negotiate with customers. The consolidation of the industry means that customers have relatively low bargaining power. The government is stepping in to ensure their interests are fairly protected. The Reserve Bank will be able to designate entities that have a sufficient role in the cash system, or those that provide critical cash distribution services. Limiting regulation to critical entities will keep the framework tight. It means targeting areas of the greatest benefit, while avoiding unnecessary burden on smaller providers or new entrants that don't provide critical services. Of course, the temporary interim direction powers for the ACCC for the 24 months after the commencement of this legislation will encourage sustainable, commercially negotiated agreements. The government wants to make the transition process as seamless as possible.

As a whole, these are four clear changes designed to modernise cash distribution and support everyday Australians. As cash use declines, the sector has become more concentrated, which means it's more costly to operate. We're making sure the system continues to function in the public interest. The Australian Banking Association stated:

The Cash Distribution Framework Bills are a critical step to provide security to the long-term availability of cash in Australia.

The government has consulted widely, reflecting the importance of these bills. The framework has been informed by recommendations from the Council of Financial Regulators and the ACCC and consultation with industry and, in particular, community stakeholders. Throughout this process, other groups such as the Customer Owned Banking Association, Coles, Woolies, Wesfarmers and Australia Post have expressed their broad support for the objectives. The Treasury has engaged with key players in the goal of making compliance as simple as possible.

I think we all agree that we want to ensure that Australia's payment system is resilient and fair and works in the interests of everyday Australians. We do this by providing additional certainty that cash will be delivered and collected so businesses that have active tills or ATMs are stocked and consumers can use loose change at the check-out. Together, these powers create a coherent framework, complementing our cash acceptance mandate, which came into effect at the start of the year. To reflect on that mandate, we've delivered on our commitment to mandate cash acceptance for essential purchases that require food and grocery retailers to accept cash since January this year. We made it mandatory for businesses to accept cash when they sell those essential items. It ensures that everyone who depends on cash for fuel or groceries isn't getting left behind. In addition to the cash mandate for fuel and groceries, consumers already have options to pay their bills, including utilities, phone bills, council rates et cetera, in cash at their local Australia Post outlet through Post Billpay. You should be able to pay with cash when you need to, and that's what the laws are all about.

As payment methods change, the government is making sure the system works for everyone, not just those who can easily move away from cash. This is another practical policy from a practical government. Whether it's for elderly Australians, those in remote and regional areas or those in low-income communities, these bills before the House today will provide stability and ensure continuing availability of cash. With that, I commend these bills to the House.

Aaron Violi (Casey, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for the Digital Economy) | Link to this | Hansard source

It is important that I rise to speak on the Cash Distribution Framework Bill 2026. This is an important discussion for all Australians and many in my community. To be very clear, the coalition is not opposed to this bill. This bill addresses a significant and genuine example of a monopoly that has been created for a multitude of reasons, but it's important that we get the balance right and make sure that the business involved can be viable and is able to deliver cash to our communities, in particular, our regional communities, where we know the costs just because of geography are more expensive. We need to make sure that that company is viable; equally, when any company has 90 per cent market share, we need to make sure that they are not looking to price gouge. It becomes even more important when we're talking about cash, which is so essential to how we operate.

In my community and across the nation, cash is king, as they like to say. Deputy Speaker Sharkie, I caught some of your contribution yesterday and I thought it was, as always, a good contribution. The example of your daughter being in Far North Queensland with cyclones and making sure that she had cash on hand was great advice from a mother. It's advice that many in my community live by as well. In June 2021, my community was caught in the storms that knocked out power for three months for some people. In my household, our driveway was blocked because of trees falling down and we didn't have power for three weeks, and we were lucky. You know it's a bad storm when three weeks makes you one of the lucky ones without power. Cash became so important to be able to operate in that system.

We need to remember and respect that there are a lot of Australians that don't like using credit cards, that don't like using digital payments and that rely on and use cash because it's what they've always used and it's what they want to continue to use. We should respect that, and we need to be really clear that any Australian that wants to use cash should always be able to use cash. I remember speaking to some members of the national seniors group in my electorate. We were talking about many issues, and they've got stickers to give to businesses that say, 'We'll take cash.' There was a lovely lady that was talking to me about how she uses her cash as her budgeting system, like so many people do. She takes that money out of the bank; she puts the cash aside for bill 1, bill 2 and bill 3; and then she knows that the cash that she has left is what she can spend. Once she runs out of that money, that is the end of her spending money for that week. That discipline has been instilled in so many people. We need to allow people like that to operate in a cash system.

I also stand here as the shadow minister for the digital economy and cybersecurity, so I spend a lot of time looking at technological opportunities, our digital infrastructure and our cyber-resilience, and there are huge productivity gains in a digital world. I was just meeting with the AmCham alliance and the digital companies that work for them. Digital essentially allows us to move payments across countries and across states to each other instantly, so there are a lot of advantages, particularly when we look at the economic advantages. I will always be a strong advocate for it, in particular, in my role as the shadow minister for the digital economy. But I want to be really clear, and the coalition's position is really clear: growing the digital economy should not be at the expense of the cash economy. It is not about having a choice between a digital payment and a cash payment; it is about making sure we give that choice to the consumers. Those that want to use digital payments should absolutely be able to use them, and we should make them as cost-effective as possible. But those that want to use cash should always have the ability to use cash.

One of the challenges of the digital economy is that, while it is a lot more efficient and it drives productivity in our economy, it does create some resilience challenges. If the infrastructure is down, whether it is power or the technology not working at that time, we can see the profound implications for the community, so we need to invest in that digital resilience and build that redundancy. One of the best resilience redundancy mechanisms we can build for the Australian people is cash and making sure that it's still available and viable, which is why this bill is important.

The reality is that part of that is also building communications resilience and making sure that those phone towers can be relied on. If the phone towers are working in communities, it means our phones are working to get help, but it does also mean that our payment systems can continue to operate. This cash mechanism is crucial, but investing in the resilience of communications, particularly in regional and rural communities, keeps people safe and allows people to use payments as well.

One of the challenges when it comes to resilience and the digital economy is that, while we might have cash at home, if our town has lost power and that supermarket does not have a back-up generator, we actually can't use it, because so many businesses are reliant on the digital asset of their register and their EFTPOS machine to make sure they can actually run the transactions. We learnt that in Victoria when there was an outage recently, the V/Line trains were not able to run, and many regional Victorians had to stay in the city because they had no way to get home. That investment in digital infrastructure is linked to this conversation as well.

It is important that this bill puts a regulator in charge of our cash distribution system to protect all Australians and to make sure that cash distribution is working for all Australians. This legislation has taken a while to come. It's legislation that we're supporting, but it would have been nice if it could have been quicker. The ACCC approved a merger between Australia's two largest cash-in-transit companies, Armaguard and Prosegur, in June 2023. The Albanese Labor government have now waited until August 2026 to act. This delay has caused significant challenges. The government should not have waited three years to build a proper, permanent framework.

In October 2023, Armaguard approached the government, the RBA and the major banks saying that if it didn't get an extra $190 million over three years, it would no longer be viable. By Easter of 2024, the risks were laid bare. Armaguard warned it couldn't keep operating without a large bailout. Coles paused cash deliveries and limited instore cash withdrawals. Shoppers faced the real prospect of not being able to get or use cash over the long weekend. It took an emergency meeting chaired by the Reserve Bank Governor and a $50 million rescue package from the banks and the major retailers to keep the cash trucks running. This bill is finally acting. But, again, these issues were there in 2023 and 2024. We are now in 2026.

Importantly, the bill creates an emergency regime so that if a carrier is at risk of collapsing, cash can keep moving across our economy. The regime will be managed by the RBA, with similar powers to what APRA have for the banks and insurance companies. We need to again make sure that we protect this, because cash is king, but we need to acknowledge that imbalance—that it is a lot more expensive to get cash to regional communities than to suburban and metropolitan communities. We do not want a situation where, because of economics, a business is delivering cash to city locations and not to regional communities. That is why it is a sensible move that we support.

However, this bill is focused just on making sure that the cash gets delivered—which is crucial, as I said. It doesn't do anything to guarantee you can actually spend it when you get to the store. Labor, as always, are very good at creating bills with impressive-sounding names that sound like they're going to fix a problem but that always fall short when you look at the detail. They've done that with their cash payments mandate. It commenced in January. Again, it sounds very impressive—a cash payment mandate. Most Australians would hear that and think: 'Fantastic, I can go into any store in my community and use cash. They'll be required to take my cash as a payment.' However, when we go to the detail and get under the headline, that is not true. Labor's so-called cash payment mandate only applies to supermarkets and to fuel and for a total of up to $500 between the hours of 7 am and 9 pm. So too bad if it's 9.05 pm and you've got cash to get some bread and milk from the supermarket. They can refuse to take that cash. What will happen outside of those hours? If that store so decides, Australians will be left with no options but to use electronic payments.

The government will talk about how the mandate is for essential services such as supermarkets and fuel, absolutely. But staggeringly—and I've had so many people in my community raise this concern with me—Labor's mandate does not allow any Australian, particularly elderly Australians, to pay cash for medicines at the pharmacy. It is staggering that this government sets a mandate, pretends that it covers everything, covers two narrow areas, leaves medicines off and talks about how it covers essentials. Tell any Australian that needs to go to the pharmacy that their medication is not essential. On top of this, cash only works if you can withdraw it and businesses can bank it. The closure of over 800 bank branches since 2022 has made this considerably more difficult for business owners and elderly Australians in my community and in many regional communities across Australia. It is deeply concerning that the moratorium on bank closures expires on 31 July 2027 and, as it stands today, the government has no plan for what happens after the moratorium ends.

Recently, I got a phone call from my mum, who is a constituent and likes to take advantage of the fact that she can call the member whenever she likes. She lives in Yarra Glen and is concerned about the Commonwealth Bank in Yarra Glen. She was talking to the teller there, who said they've already reduced hours and, if people don't use the bank, there is a risk that it will not be there in 2027. This is a concern, with the bank being the last bank available in my home town of Yarra Glen. I know many other Australians beyond my mum are concerned about it, but I'm sure she'll be happy to know, now that it's in Hansard, that I do listen to her.

This is the reality of this complication complicated system when it comes to cash. It's about making sure that it's available to Australians. It's about making sure it can get where it needs to go in terms of banks and stores. We need to make sure that banks are available to those that want to use them, and we need to make sure that it is economical for everyone involved in the ecosystem. While this bill is a good step and we support it, it is an ongoing issue that I'll continue to monitor for my community. I will always be an advocate for the digital economy and the opportunities that it creates for our country, for our individuals and for our businesses. But, to finish where I started, it is not a question of embracing the digital economy at the expense of the cash economy. It is about making sure that a digital economy works for all Australians, a cash economy works for all Australians and they work together. Ultimately, it is the consumer that has the choice on the payment method that they want to use as they interact with businesses in their community.

Sarah Witty (Melbourne, Australian Labor Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

The other day I was out and about in the community talking to friends and neighbours. I had one question to ask: 'What's important to you?' It's something that I ask everybody when I meet them.

I was there early to prepare, and there was no-one else around. All of a sudden, out of the blue, someone flew over to me and wanted to have a chat. I asked, as I always do, 'What's important to you?' Their reply surprised me. They said that what is important to them is their job. And it wasn't about what they said; it was about how enthusiastic they were. I then thought, 'Well, actually I have the best job in the world,' so I had to know what their job was. I asked, 'What's your job?' They said they are the CEO of an exchange company that supports children and teaches them about money. Then they said they are a little famous. I was a bit curious because I didn't recognise them at first, and I said, 'Alright, what's your name?' They said their last name is Fairy and their first name is Tooth.

It was the tooth fairy! They were out and about having a chat, and they wanted to tell me about a friend—a little boy they had an eye on. His name is Leo. He is a twin, and he was very excited because his tooth had become wobbly. He came to his mum and let her know. His twin brother had received $2 the other day and was excited about what he was going to spend it on at the shop.

Later on in the day, Dad helped get that tooth removed and, at the end of the night, Leo was happy to go to bed nice and early. Mum asked him to take his brother with him. It was a really great night for Mum as she settled in for a kid-free night with Dad and a glass of wine. She was woken up really early the next day with a very excited Leo coming in because he'd received some money from the tooth fairy. Mum looked over, bleary-eyed, and asked, 'What have you got there, Leo?' Leo said, 'I got $20, Mum—$20 from the tooth fairy!' He ran up, excited to tell his brother about how much money he had received. Mum then looked over at Dad and asked, 'What is going on?' Dad went on to explain that the tooth fairy had looked everywhere to find some money but wasn't able to find anything, and all he had was $20 in his pocket.

I asked the tooth fairy if that had happened before, and the tooth fairy sighed and said: 'Yes, sometimes it's hard for the tooth fairy to find cash. It's not as easy as it used to be.' More often than not, this actually happens. Parents don't keep coins around the house like they used to. Many pay with the tap of a card. They order online. Their wages arrive electronically. It's a wonderful and convenient way of receiving money—right up until that little tooth falls out at bedtime. Suddenly the search begins. Drawers are opened, jacket pockets are checked and the car's cup holders become the last place of hope to find a gold coin. Every parent listening probably knows exactly what I'm talking about.

In 2025, the Reserve Bank found that around 15 per cent of payments were still made in cash. While around one in 10 Australians rely on cash for most of their purchases, for older Australians, families with young children, people on lower incomes and many regional communities, cash remains an essential part of everyday life. Cash is also there when the internet fails, when the power is out or when the EFTPOS systems break down. Cash is a way of making a moment feel real. Just as the tooth fairy said, a child can hold it, they can count it and they can begin to understand what it's worth. Cash makes money visible. It helps children learn.

When people think about cash, they rarely think about financial infrastructure. They think about pocket money, a $20 note from a grandparent, a gold coin for a fundraiser or the selling of something on Marketplace. Have you ever tried to sell something on Marketplace? Have you had something lying around the house which was too good to go into landfill but which you no longer used? If you had, you would know that the key thing you need is cash. I know most people use cards or phones for making purchases, but if you're standing at your neighbour's door buying that musical instrument that you'd always wanted to learn, you need cash. Cash is quick and an efficient part of the modern economy.

I support innovation. I support technology that makes life easier. But modernisation should expand choice. It should never shut people out. A fall in the use of cash does not mean the need has disappeared. It means people who still rely on cash could become easier to overlook. Well, Labor will not overlook them. The Albanese Labor government has committed to maintaining cash for as long as Australians want to use it. That commitment sits behind the cash acceptance mandate that began on 1 January 2026. Supermarkets and fuel retailers covered by that mandate must accept cash between 7 am and 9 pm for transactions of $500 or less.

A cash mandate at the check-out only works if cash can still move through the economy. Shops need change, ATMs need filling and communities need reliable access. This bill, the Cash Distribution Framework Bill 2026, creates a national framework to protect that distribution system. It allows the Reserve Bank to safeguard critical cash providers and give the ACCC oversight of fair commercial arrangements so businesses and communities can continue to access cash when they need it. The first purpose of this bill is clear: protect choice, protect access and keep cash available for people who still need it.

It seems the tooth fairy's generosity can also have consequences elsewhere in a family budget, as was revealed later that day when I spoke to a lovely couple. They were out and about because it was Mum's birthday. Mum and Dad were chatting with me and her two boys, who happen to be twins, were playing nearby. Mum was out looking for a present because, apparently, the kids didn't get the present that she had asked for. Dad had pulled some money out and given it to the kids for them to go shopping for Mum's present, but, as it turned out, Dad was a little bit short due to one very expensive tooth. Mum rolled her eyes; of course, they were only joking—partly.

This family, like other families, understands that money involves choices. Small businesses like the tooth fairy's understand that too. For a business to keep accepting cash, it needs confidence in the system behind it. It needs to know what a service will cost, it needs fair terms and it needs somewhere to turn when negotiations break down. The tooth fairy knows that running a small business is harder than most people think. It needs suppliers, transport, somewhere to exchange notes for coins and confidence that cash will actually be available when it is asked for.

Every small business depends on infrastructure that most customers never see. When you buy a loaf of bread, you don't think about the truck that delivered it. When you withdraw cash, you probably don't think about the systems that move those notes safely across the country. Yet, if those systems stop working, everyone notices. That is exactly why this legislation matters

This bill gives the ACCC the power to approve standard terms for providers that supply cash. Those terms can cover services and pricing. They will create a baseline that a critical provider must make available. Chosen providers must also negotiate in good faith. Their terms must be fair, clear and equal. This is important in a market where customers may have few alternatives. A small supermarket cannot build its own cash network. A regional business may have only one realistic provider.

The framework also recognises that locations affect cost. Moving cash through inner Melbourne is different from moving it hundreds of kilometres across regional Australia. The bill allows for pricing to reflect those differences. It also requires pricing to be set fairly and transparently.

Businesses will have access to dispute resolution. A disagreement should not become a breakdown in service. The ACCC will also be able to set compulsory minimum standards. Those standards can cover quality, dependability and service ease of use.

The bill also creates reporting and record-keeping duties. Those responsible for oversight need to see where pressure is building. They need to act before a weak point becomes a breakdown. This is especially important for regional and remote Australia. Bank branch closures have already reduced local access. Reliable cash service cannot become another thing regional Australians are told to live without. The government has secured commitments from the major banks not to close further regional branches before 31 July 2027. The government has also secured strong investment in Bank@Post. For many communities, Bank@Post provides basic banking services including access to cash. A branch or post office cannot provide cash if cash cannot reach it. The second purpose of this bill is clear: turn the promise of cash access into systems businesses can rely on.

Cash also remains part of community life much closer to home. Across Melbourne, school fundraisers, markets, sporting club canteens and neighbourhood events bring people together every weekend. Volunteers run cake stands. They sell raffle tickets. They raise money for playgrounds, uniforms and junior teams. Sooner or later, someone places a jar of lollies on a table and asks us to donate for a guess and a chance to win the jar.

The next family I met told me about their school's fundraiser—guess how many jelly beans were in a jar. After being begged by her daughter, the mum dug into her purse and handed over a couple of coins so she could guess. It was a big decision for her daughter and she spent most of the day trying to get the number right. She was so determined she even asked her dad for a couple of extra coins to make some more guesses. Her hard work paid off, and, yes, she won. The whole family celebrated. Dad joked that the puzzle should probably come with a toothbrush. Mum immediately started negotiating how many jelly beans could actually be eaten in one day. The little girl, however, had already worked out a business plan. She was going to share some with her friends, save some for later and keep the rest hidden from her brother.

It struck me that all of those little decisions were really lessons about money—spending, saving, sharing. Those are lessons children often first learn with coins in their hands. The tooth fairy may not have been very happy with the haul of lollies, but I am certain they would not make the same mistake of overspending on one tooth, especially when she had eaten her share of 1,723 jelly beans. The mum was hopeful that the child didn't end up at the tooth fairy's enemy, the dentist.

Cash is about more than payments. It's about family life. You cannot promise Australians access to cash while leaving the system that moves it to chance. This bill gives the Reserve Bank crisis readiness and resolution powers. When the legislative triggers are met, the Reserve Bank will be able to give directions, appoint a statutory manager and use compulsory transfer powers. The bill also provides for free stays, temporary suspensions of termination rights and, where needed, temporary government funding. These are strong powers for serious circumstances.

Similar tools already exist in insurance, banking, clearing and settlement systems. Their purpose is simple: protect the public when a critical service is at risk. Critical providers will also need their own crisis plan. They must understand their risk. They must be ready to respond and government must be ready too. A crisis is not the moment to start deciding who has the authority. This bill puts the rules in place early. It gives the power to act quickly and it protects communities from a sudden and disorderly breakdown. The third purpose of this bill is clear: prepare before a crisis, act when action is needed and keep cash moving.

This legislation is practical Labor reform. Labor has always believed progress should improve people's lives. This legislation reflects a simple principle. As technology changes, Australians should not lose choice. A modern economy should work for everyone—older Australians, families, regional communities and small businesses alike. This bill comes from that same belief. Older Australians must be able to participate. People on lower incomes must be able to manage their money in a way that works for them. Regional communities must retain access to essential services. Small businesses must have fair terms and reliable systems behind them and the tooth fairy must be able to swap coins for teeth. Labor embraces new technology. We back innovation. We look after people. That is the difference between simply watching a market change and taking responsibility for where that change leads.

This bill protects choice. It keeps an essential service working in the public interest. From the tooth fairy to marketplace, from small businesses to school fundraisers, cash remains part of the moments that shape families and bring communities together. Behind those moments sit a national system. Labor is making that system fairer. Labor is making it stronger. Labor is making sure progress carries people with it. I commend this bill to the House.

Tom Venning (Grey, Liberal Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Cash Distribution Framework Bill 2026. Let me be clear from the outset. The coalition will not oppose this bill, will help pass it and will help pass it quickly. Cash is critical national infrastructure, and it is right to protect it. But I want the House to understand what cash means in a place like my electorate of Grey and why the government's late arrival to this problem matters so much to the people I represent.

My electorate covers over 90 per cent of South Australia. In a capital city, cash is a choice; you tap a card or you tap a phone and, if the terminal goes down, there is an ATM in the foyer or a bank around the corner. In parts of my electorate, the nearest bank or ATM is not a dash up the road; it can be hundreds of kilometres away. So, when the cash system fails in the country or in the bush, it is not an inconvenience; it becomes a crisis.

The Reserve Bank published its latest work on this in April, drawing on the 2025 Consumer Payments Survey. The findings are worth putting on the record. About half of Australians use cash in a typical week. Around 15 per cent of all payments and about 19 per cent of in-person payments are still made in cash. After decades of decline, cash use has stabilised—as I say, cash is king. About 1½ million Australian adults rely mainly on cash for everyday payments. One in three Aussies says they would face hardship or major inconvenience if they could not withdraw cash. Among those who use cash the most, that figure is over 70 per cent, and the Reserve Bank is clear about who those Australians are: older Australians, households on lower incomes, people who find online banking difficult, people living in regional Australia and people in remote communities, including Indigenous communities where digital services are less reliable or simply don't exist at all. We must remember that, in a lot of these remote communities, there is no internet and there is no phone reception, so POS machines simply don't work. That is the description of my electorate.

The Reserve Bank makes one further point: cash is a backup. Our emergency services agencies tell Australians to keep cash in an emergency kit so they can still buy what they need when the power or the phone network is down—under this government, the power and the network are down a lot—and, in Grey, that is not a theory.

So how did the nation's cash system end up in this position? Well, in June 2023, the ACCC approved the merger of Australia's two largest cash-in-transit companies, Armaguard and Prosegur. That decision handed one company control of 85 per cent to 90 per cent of the market—a private monopoly over how cash physically moves around this country. The ACCC only allowed it with a temporary three-year undertaking, setting conditions on the merged business until September of 2026. That should have been the starting gun for this government to build a proper, permanent framework. It wasn't.

The merger was finalised in September. By October, just weeks later, Armaguard went to the government, the Reserve Bank and the major banks and said that, without an extra $190 million over the three years, it would no longer be viable. By Easter of 2024, the risks were laid bare. Armaguard warned that it could not keep operating without a large bailout. Coles paused cash deliveries and limited in-store withdrawals. Shoppers faced a real prospect of not being able to get cash or even use it over a long weekend. It took an emergency meeting chaired by the Governor of the Reserve Bank and a $50 million rescue from the banks and the major retailers to keep the trucks running. Further support was needed again in 2025.

With the ACCC's undertaking due to expire in a month's time, the government has, at the eleventh hour, finally turned up with a plan. They should have been working on this from day one. They should have been working on this from the day that the merger was approved. Instead, they delayed, and that delay put the ongoing strength of our cash system at risk. The last thing this country needs is a run on cash. That is a dangerous thing for an economy to face, and this government should have taken it seriously in June of 2023, when the merger was announced. This is a government that waits for a crisis instead of preventing it.

On the bill itself, it finally puts a regulation in charge of the cash distribution system. It creates an emergency regime so that, if the carrier is ever at risk of collapsing, cash can keep moving—rather than the system simply falling over. The Reserve Bank would manage that regime with emergency powers similar to those APRA already holds over banks and insurers—and to the financial market infrastructure regime. It gives the ACCC the power to require fair and transparent pricing, to approve the terms offered to banks and to retailers and to set service-level standards instead of having a monopoly set its own terms. In a crisis, the Treasurer, with the written approval of the Minister for Finance, can draw up to $400 million per event from consolidated revenue, to be recovered afterwards from the major users.

We are the party of lower regulation, free enterprise and less government interference. That has not changed. But a monopoly is a market failure. You cannot have one company setting the price of moving the nation's cash without anybody watching. That is not fair. That is not fair on the Australians who rely on it. These powers are sensible; they are the same kind we already use to protect banking, insurance and payments. We support them.

But here is the problem. This bill makes sure cash gets delivered; it does nothing to guarantee that you can actually spend it once it gets there. Labor's cash payment mandate, which commenced on 1 January of this year, is simply inadequate. It only covers supermarkets and fuel—only up to $500 and only between 7 am and 9 pm. It does not even cover medicines bought from a pharmacy, so an older Australian who has budgeted in cash their whole life can be told that their money is not good enough for their own prescriptions. That is not good enough.

Then there is a larger hole. Cash only works if you can withdraw it and if a business can bank it. We have seen over 800 bank closures since 2022. More than 2,489 closed between 2017 and the middle of last year. The moratorium on regional bank closures expires on 31 July 2027. It only applies to major banks, and many of them left our towns long before it was signed. Only last year, we had banks close down in Tumby Bay, Cleve and Wudinna, never to be opened again. Those communities no longer have access to banking services. Previous to that, up in Coober Pedy, a town five hours away from Port Augusta and some seven hours away from Alice Springs—there is no bank in that community of 1,600 people. The moratorium ends in less than 12 months, and this government has no plan for the day after. You cannot protect the cash system while the places to keep cash keep disappearing.

It's not only about taking money out; it's about putting it back in. The Reserve Bank found that around 75 per cent of Australians report inconvenient access to withdrawal services, but only 65 per cent say the same about deposits. By both measures, access has become less convenient than it was three years ago. More than two-thirds of merchants who accept cash report problems doing so. They struggle to find somewhere to deposit cash and draw out change. In the city, that is a walk down the street; in my electorate, it is a small-business owner driving an hour and a half each way, with the week's takings on the passenger seat, to a branch two towns over.

Until recently, Peter and Wendy Amey ran the Orroroo post office. There is no bank in Orroroo. The post office is the only option for banking services in that town not just for residents but for businesses and community organisations—the pub, the footy club, the netball club—and there are strict limits on how much cash the post office can hold. At the time, it was $15,000; it's just been increased to $20,000. That sounds like a lot, but when there are no banking services in town it simply is not. On pension day, that money goes out the door quickly, even with the $2,000 daily limit in place.

And it's not just on pension day. Say you want to buy a second-hand car and the seller wants cash. If the price is 4½ grand you cannot simply walk up and withdraw that; it takes three days to do so. Or, on a Monday, when the pub and the sports club want to deposit their cash, all of a sudden you're over your holding limit. Peter and Wendy Amey then had to notify the area managers, and it could take days to bring it back down. Too much cash is a problem; not enough cash is a problem. And a family behind a post office counter in the country is left to manage it.

It is worse further out. In the more remote communities, the mail run might be only once or twice a week—and in the last six months not at all, given that the roads in the north-east of the state are still closed. The government has no plan for what will happen after the branch moratorium ends. Then again, this government has no plan for regional, rural and remote Australia at all. It is a city-centric government with blinkers on as to the realities of regional, rural and remote Australia.

Policies get written for a postcode where the bank, the chemist, the ATM and the mobile towers are all within walking distance. We saw it with the 3G shutdown, when the promise was equivalent coverage but the delivery was silent on the handset. We see it with a cash payment mandate that assumes that the only things you ever buy with cash are groceries and fuel. And we see it here in a framework that protects the trucks but forgets the town they are driving to.

The coalition will help pass this bill and will help pass it quickly, because the undertaking runs out in September. Putting a regulator in charge of cash distribution is the right call. Giving the Reserve Bank the power to keep cash moving in a crisis is the right call. Requiring fair and transparent pricing from a monopoly is the right call. But let's be honest about the record. This is a government that let the cash system drift for three years and acted only when the clock ran down. For the people I represent, cash is not nostalgia, and it is not a preference. It is how you pay when the power is out, when the network is down, when the terminal will not connect and when the bank left the town a decade ago. The coalition will always stand up for the right of Australians to use cash.

Susan Templeman (Macquarie, Australian Labor Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on this important bill, the Cash Distribution Framework Bill 2026. At a recent community event I was reminded of how handy it is to carry cash. I was at a market, and a stallholder's EFTPOS machine wasn't behaving. Some of us who were waiting were unfazed; we had cash and could still support that small trader by handing over notes for our purchase. That's a very everyday example of why cash is still so important—not just that businesses accept it but that it's available, including in ATMs and post offices, in places outside the main cities, including those across the vast area of Macquarie. Whether it's a petrol station on the Putty Road, the post office at Bilpin, the upper mountains in Blackheath or the Lennox Centre in Emu Plains—it shouldn't matter where you are—cash should be within cooee.

My constituents know firsthand that, when natural disaster hits, cash is more than just handy to have. We need cash because it provides a reliable backup when digital systems fail, and that's what happens in bushfires, in flood, in major storms and even in cyberattacks. And when bank branches have largely left the playing field over the course of the previous decade or so in much of Macquarie, it's the post offices and agencies that can provide essential access to cash through Bank@Post.

For some people, cash protects personal privacy. For others, it's a way to stick to physical spending limits. For some elderly people, it's an easier concept than tapping, and others prefer it because it lets them bypass surcharges or processing fees. These are some of the reasons people like Peter from Blackheath, Jasmine from Lawson and Isabel from the Hawkesbury have shared with me their preference and their desire to continue to be able to access cash, and we absolutely agree.

Cash promotes economic inclusion. It makes payment systems more resilient, and it's an important store of value, including in times of uncertainty. A substantial portion of the Australian population would face genuine hardship or major inconvenience if cash were to become harder to access or use as a payment method. In 2025, the Reserve Bank found that roughly one in 10 Australians still used cash for most of their purchases, particularly older Australians, lower income households and those in rural and regional Australia, and around 15 per cent of payments were made overall in cash. No-one should be left behind in a payment system.

The amendments that we're considering today, those put forward by the government, support our legislation and provide additional certainty that cash will be delivered and collected around Australia so businesses have cash in their tills, ATMs are stocked with notes and consumers can use cash at the checkout. We're continuing to build on our changes that make it mandatory for fuel and grocery retailers to accept cash so Australians can continue to pay with cash for essentials if they want to. So the Albanese government is getting on with the job of not just talking about cash but also ensuring that Australians have continued access to cash, recognising it remains essential for many households, small businesses and regional communities.

We know that Australians still need and want to use cash, and this reform puts people first by protecting choice, inclusion and access, but what's become really clear is that the system of distribution for cash, from bank vaults to machines or cash registers was not up to scratch. The cash distribution framework bills, including these amendments, aim to change that. The framework demonstrates the government's commitments to a payment system that's resilient, fair and works in the interests of everyday Australians. By strengthening the oversight and accountability, the government is ensuring critical cash services operate transparently and sustainably, providing confidence to communities and businesses alike. This is a really practical, forward-looking reform. We're backing industry initiatives but at the same time providing a regulatory framework so that we secure a reliable cash distribution system for the long-term.

As I've highlighted in speaking about Macquarie, Australia's natural geography can heighten the challenges of ensuring that communities in regional and remote areas continue to have services provided and that those services are delivered at reasonable prices. Consultation on our changes highlighted that reliable access to cash and bank branch services is a significant concern for consumers, and I know that that would be the case for many people across the more regional parts of Macquarie.

Our legislation also introduces a crisis management and resolution regime for cash distribution services, and that's critical to the availability of cash in Australia, not when everything's going right but when things are going wrong. Overall, the framework will support the long-term sustainability of the cash distribution system in Australia so that cash is available for those who need or want to use it. For businesses, it will strengthen confidence in their ability to access and transact in cash. The government's committed to maintaining cash for as long as Australians want to use it. Let me make that really clear: we are committed to maintaining access and availability of cash for as long as Australians want to use it. It's a key priority in the government's strategic plan for Australia's payments system. How does it all work? The regulatory framework we've established and are refining with these amendments will be administered by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, the ACCC, and the Reserve Bank of Australia, the RBA. The framework will apply to critical cash distribution service providers that have been designated by the Reserve Bank. They allow for the creation of ACCC approved standard terms covering services and pricing, and these create the baseline offer that a designated entity must provide to its customers, unless it is not reasonable or where it has specifically negotiated other terms with its customers.

Designated cash providers will be required to negotiate in good faith, such as by offering terms that are fair, transparent and non-discriminatory. Businesses using cash distribution services have access to dispute resolution and arbitration pathways where they're not happy with what is happening. The ACCC also has that power to establish mandatory minimum service level standards.

Appropriate pricing is important. You know that gets passed through somewhere in the chain, and it always lands with the consumer. We have pricing that is set in a fair and transparent way under the framework, but it also has to consider different geographies and customer types, and that's a key element of ensuring the long-term viability of the sector.

The bill provides for reporting and record-keeping requirements for designated entities in relation to service agreements and access agreements so that it supports informed, regulated decision-making and actions. The detail in this bill is what will make it a long-term, workable process. It's not a quick fix.

I want to talk a bit more about crisis management and resolution. This is where the rubber really hits the road in anything that we do in this place. When things are going as they should, there isn't a problem. When things get in the way of the normal operations, we have to have thought that through. This framework includes crisis readiness and resolution powers to ensure that critical cash distribution services continue to operate in the event of a crisis. Where legislative triggers are met, the RBA could step in to exercise resolution powers in relation to any service provider that they designated as critical to the cash distribution system. The RBA is also able to trigger their crisis resolution powers in a specified set of circumstances, including instances where an entity becomes insolvent or enters administration, or if a provider seeks to reduce or stop providing their critical cash distribution services.

Resolution powers would include directions powers, the ability to appoint a statutory manager and compulsory transfer powers. The bill also provides for moratoriums, stays, suspension of termination rights, and, if required to address the crisis, temporary government funding. Similar provisions were in place in relation to banking, insurance, and clearing and settlement facilities. If a crisis were to occur, critical service providers would themselves be expected to be ready to respond and to have plans for dealing with any potential disruption.

I want to discuss how this interacts with the cash mandate. The cash acceptance mandate, which means people have to accept cash, commenced on 1 January. It required that supermarkets and fuel retailers that meet certain criteria must accept cash between 7 am and 9 pm for transactions of $500 or less. By underpinning businesses' ongoing access to cash, the framework enables and supports these businesses' compliance with the government's cash acceptance mandate. The framework will also provide confidence that, in these circumstances, users of cash can continue to access it where they wish to.

The framework is also an important element in ensuring that regional banks and businesses can access cash on fair and transparent terms, and at a reasonable price. This does support the viability of branch networks in regional and remote Australia, and we all know how important those branches are. In February 2025, our government announced new commitments by Australia's major banks to not make any further branch closures in regional areas before 31 July 2027. Westpac has subsequently announced that it's extended that moratorium until 2030. The government has also secured from the banks increased commitment to and investment in Bank@Post, which provides greater certainty and choice to banking customers, including that ability to access cash. Bank@Post definitely plays a role in peri-urban communities like mine. The government is continuing to work with the sector to develop long-term solutions to support access to essential banking services for the regions, but this bill certainly plays a role in ensuring that the delivery of cash to those branches will be done on fair and transparent terms and at a reasonable price.

The bill itself is intended to support the ongoing sustainability of the cash distribution system, but there are additional amendments because the bill itself is not intended to supersede industrial relations laws, including the road transport contractual chain orders, which set minimum standards for people in road transport contractual chains to ensure operators are safe, sustainable and viable. In most instances, the cash distribution framework contained in the contractual chain orders will not overlap, given these regimes target different policy outcomes. However, in the event that the two regimes do have some overlap or conflict, the proposed amendments provide a pathway for resolving that conflict. These changes ensure that requirements of the Fair Work Commission set out in a road transport contractual chain order are appropriately protected and address concerns about potential regulatory ambiguity. The amendments require the ACCC to consider a relevant contractual chain order when setting, varying or revoking approved standard terms and service-level standards or when exercising interim powers. The amendments will support those outcomes. The amendments also require the ACCC to have various roles in it.

This is all about ensuring the bill we have is the most robust it can be and that it has looked at all sorts of possible interactions that might occur. This is about ensuring the certainty of the delivery of cash from the bank vault to the ATM that you take it out of. I commend the bill to the House.

Zhi Soon (Banks, Australian Labor Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm pleased to rise in support of the Cash Distribution Framework Bill 2026 and the related legislation before the parliament. The bill's aim is to ensure that Australians continue to enjoy access to cash for as long as they wish to use it, and it complements previous government actions in this area.

In 2025, the Reserve Bank found that roughly 10 per cent of Australians still use cash for most of their purchases, and around 15 per cent of payments were still made in cash. Cash plays an important role in promoting economic inclusion, supports the resilience of payment systems and acts as a store of value that is particularly useful in times of uncertainty. Furthermore, the positive effects are most pronounced in regional areas and lower-socioeconomic communities. However, the decline in transactional cash use is not only putting pressure on these functions; it is also making the economics of storing, processing and transporting cash around the country harder, especially in the communities that need it most, where the tyranny of distance dries up the associated costs.

The government is committed to safeguarding Australians by ensuring continued access to cash and recognising its essential role in our society in law. That is why the government introduced the cash acceptance mandate, which came into effect on 1 January this year. It is enforced by the ACCC and requires major grocery and motor fuel retailers to accept cash for everyday transactions of $500 or less during regular business hours. This is a commonsense measure that protects small businesses by exempting those with a turnover of less than $10 million, unless they share a trademark with a larger retailer. While the cash acceptance mandate is working as intended, we need to ensure that no-one is left behind in the payment system. With the introduction of the Cash Distribution Framework (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2026, the government is taking the next step and delivering on its commitment to maintaining cash for as long as Australians want to use it.

At its core, the bill before the House establishes a legislative framework to regulate cash distribution services in Australia to ensure that critical providers can operate fairly and with transparency within a sustainable, resilient and efficient sector. It also introduces a crisis management and resolution regime for cash distribution services, which are critical to the availability of cash in Australia. The framework will also support the long-term sustainability of the cash distribution system, ensuring that cash is available for those who need or want to use it.

Australia's landscape can heighten the challenges of ensuring that communities in regional and remote Australia continue to have access to services provided at a reasonable price. The bill before the House seeks to address this problem by allowing for the creation of ACCC approved 'standard terms'. These standard terms will cover both services and pricing, ensuring that customers of cash providers are given a simple baseline while not precluding them from negotiating a stronger deal themselves where possible. Further, the bill will require cash providers to negotiate in good faith with terms that are fair, non-discriminatory and transparent.

During the transition period to the new framework, the Reserve Bank will have heightened powers to direct designated entities in relation to cash distribution services. These additional powers are designed to be used swiftly when needed while regulators establish longer-term settings. The formulation of the long-term settings will be aided by provisions in the legislation before the House. Appropriate pricing that considers the various commercial and geographical challenges inherent to this industry is crucial to ensuring the long-term health of the sector. The reporting and record keeping requirements for cash providers in relation to service and access agreements will help ensure this. Importantly, the ACCC will also have the power to establish mandatory minimum service level standards, and input from the public will help shape these standards.

Further, the bill contains important provisions to ensure continuity of service during crisis events through the frameworks, crisis readiness and resolution powers. The framework specifies various circumstances where the Reserve Bank can step in to exercise resolution powers in relation to any service provider that they have designated as crucial to the cash distribution system, including instances where a particular entity becomes insolvent, enters administration or seeks to reduce or cease their crucial services. The resolution powers include direction powers, the ability to appoint a statutory manager and powers of compulsory transfer. The bill also provides for moratoriums and stays, suspensions of termination rights and, if required to address the particular crisis event, temporary government funding. These powers are a standard feature of crisis resolution frameworks in the financial sector. Such powers are necessary to enable a rapid regulatory response when the supply chain that so many Australians rely on for access to their own money is stretched. Finally, the bill has an impact on bank branches and bank closures. The framework is an important element of ensuring that regional bank branches can access cash on fair and transparent terms and at a reasonable price. Such a move will support the viability of bank branch networks in regional and remote areas of Australia but also in my electorate of Banks.

However, this is not the only action the government is taking to ensure continued access to banking services in regional and remote communities. In February last year, the government secured a commitment from Australia's major banks to not make any further closures in regional areas before 31 July 2027, and one bank has subsequently extended its moratorium until 2030. The government has also secured new and increased commitments from the banks to Bank@Post services. While post office closures are a problem all of their own, the availability of Bank@Post as a service provides wider choice and greater certainty to consumers that cash will be available to them. While this is all welcome news, there is more work to do and the government is continuing to work hard to develop long-term solutions that support access to essential banking services in regional communities.

The issue of access to cash and in-person banking services is one I've spoken about previously in the Federation Chamber. Indeed, the effects of bank branches closing and cash becoming less readily available are well known to many of us in this House. The Hawker inquiry into the level of banking and financial services in regional and rural communities outlined these issues quite clearly back in the 1990s. Federal inquiries and research by academics have come to the same conclusions: lower access to cash and banking services has profound negative social impacts, including socioeconomic marginalisation and financial exclusion. Research out of the United Kingdom from only a few years ago, prepared against the backdrop of proposed legislation to protect access to basic banking services, indicated that the closure of bank branches was entirely eliminating access to cash and financial services in some communities. In regional communities, the effects are also devastating for small businesses and local economies. When people travel to larger regional centres to do their banking, they do their shopping there as well, taking their business and money out of their local communities, much to the despair of those local businesses.

The same challenges can be observed in metropolitan areas at a smaller scale. Of the 26 suburbs in my electorate, only two still have a bank branch. While it might not be universal, the closure of bank branches and post offices drives a large section of consumers to larger suburban centres. This harms the business ecosystems everywhere outside of these larger suburban hubs. While it might not be possible to integrate social licence into legislation, it is something that financial institutions need to consider. The ongoing acceptance and approval of a business and its practices from the community and other stakeholders is an often unseen and underappreciated element of business success.

The legislation does not exist in isolation. As mentioned, the government has instituted a cash acceptance mandate, but we are also ensuring that Australia has a stronger payment system across methods. Following the RBA surcharging review, surcharges on debit and credit cards will end from 1 October this year. While surcharging was intended to encourage consumers to use cheaper payment methods, it is no longer achieving this goal, not least because avoiding surcharges has become almost impossible. The government also recognises that the fees paid by businesses for card payments are too high. To begin remedying this problem, the maximum interchange fee will be lowered. This will reduce card payment costs, especially for our small businesses. This follows previous government action to stop passing on surcharges from the Tax Office and Services Australia and to ensure these everyday payments don't cost Australians more.

The government has also instituted a plan for the orderly winding down of Australia's chequing system. While fewer than 0.1 per cent of retail payments in Australia are made with cheques, a rapid industry exit has the potential to disrupt both consumers and industry. The government's plan provides certainty as the system is gradually phased out in September 2029. As payment methods change, the government is making sure the system works for everyone, not just those who can easily move away from cash and towards digital alternatives. This bill keeps cash available for the people and businesses who rely on it the most while building an altogether stronger and more resilient payment system for Australia, for our country, including for my great electorate of Banks.

David Moncrieff (Hughes, Australian Labor Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

This is cash. Don't be afraid. Don't be scared. It won't hurt you. Australian cash is iconic. Our polymer banknotes are one of the country's most successful technological innovations. Following the joint development of new banknote technology in Australia by the Reserve Bank and the CSIRO, Australia issued a polymer $10 commemorative banknote in January 1988. The successful issue of the $10 commemorative banknote to mark the bicentenary of British settlement in Australia was a world first, and it set the scene for a new era of banknotes.

Especially when compared to other countries that still use fragile, indistinguishable and lifeless paper for their currency, Australians are rightly proud of the unique and recognisable cash that displays iconic Australians including one of the greatest Australians to ever live General Sir John Monash, as well as Edith Cowan, Banjo Paterson and David Unaipon. From lobsters to pineapples, cowboys and prawns and even to the Granny Smith herself, the 'hungee', the Australian Labor government is making sure that Australians can continue to use cash in all its varieties for the foreseeable future.

We know that many Australians still rely on cash for the transactions that are essential to everyday life. Last year, the RBA found that roughly one in 10 Australians still use cash for most of their purchases, especially older Australians, with about 15 per cent of payments being settled with cash. Protecting cash is not just essential for the smooth functioning of our economy; it is also about putting people first by protecting choice, inclusion an access. No-one should be left behind in the payment system.

Many of us knew, as kids, the rewarding feeling of diligently completely household chores in eager anticipation of cold, hard cash. For some, it's a core memory and a lesson about the value of work and reward for effort. Many of us have the memory of a grandparent slipping a folded $10 note into our pocket with a cheeky imperative not to tell Mum. Maybe in 10 or 15 years time—who knows?—this common childhood experience will be replaced by a pop-up notification of an electronic transfer or a buzz from a bank to the microchip in our brain. But that isn't where we are now.

For some, in the age of online banking, this may be all cash represents: a historical curiosity no less quaint than the spinning jenny, which helped us make our textiles, or the now-extinct turnspit dogs, which once turned food during cooking. But for many Australians cash remains the essential medium of exchange and store of value that gives them freedom, choice and control. Cash is critical for many households, small businesses and regional communities. A substantial portion of the Australian population would face genuine hardship or major inconvenience if cash were to become harder to access or to use as a payment method.

I used to work at the Jannali Woolworths, which, further up Box Road from where it used to be, still serves residents of my electorate. Every day I'd serve customers who were still reliant on cash for access to basic services—fresh food and groceries to ensure that they lived healthy and comfortable lives. That was a decade ago, but that reliance still exists. Any challenges to the viability of cash in Australia would not only risk locking many Australians out of obtaining the basic goods needed for life but also threaten the 15 per cent of our economy that is facilitated by cash transactions.

That's why our government took the forward-looking step of mandating cash acceptance for essential goods and services. From the start of this year, supermarkets and fuel retailers that meet certain criteria have an obligation to accept cash between 7 am and 9 pm for transactions of $500 or less. The importance of cash to many Australians and to the broader economy is abundantly clear.

But what often goes unnoticed is the hidden architecture underpinning our transactions: the cash distribution system that facilitates the movement and processing of enormous volumes of cash right across our country. Cash doesn't just magically float from the printers at Note Printing Australia's Craigieburn location to your local bank branch or ATM. Coins do not roll from the mint straight into supermarket tills. The journey from production to point of sale involves a vast distribution network incorporating transport and logistics, collection and supply services, security, and ATM servicing. It includes administration, quality control and counterfeit detection. And cash must be stored, processed and packaged before it is used.

As customers and businesses transition to using EFTPOS and digital payments more frequently, the economics of the cash distribution system are becoming harder to sustain. With demand for cash declining while downstream costs for those operating in the network remain the same, retailers often face higher costs in obtaining cash. This is especially true in regional and remote areas, where Australia's natural geography can heighten the challenges of ensuring that cash distribution services are provided at reasonable prices.

A related anxiety for many has been the closure of some regional bank branches. The viability of branch networks in regional and remote Australia is a critical part of making sure that those in the bush and smaller towns right across the country have access to the cash they need on the same terms as those in the major cities. Last year our government announced new commitments by Australia's major banks to not have any further branch closures in regional areas before 31 July 2027. Westpac has subsequently announced that it has extended its moratorium until 2030.

When cash becomes expensive for businesses to access, the ability to offer cash as a payment method to customers becomes harder to sustain. Any risk to businesses being able to access cash at a reasonable cost is a risk to the viability of cash transactions. If retailers find it too expensive to keep their tills stocked, they will find it more and more difficult to keep the requisite cash on hand to offer change as well as continue to perform complementary tasks like closing tills at the end of shifts and purchasing insurance.

Unlike other sectors that deliver essential services in the financial system, there are currently few regulatory guidelines to manage the systemic risks and sustain an efficient, resilient cash distribution. Amidst heady new developments in fintech, digital assets and agentic commerce, it is important that our authorities and regulators don't lose sight of the technology that remains essential for so many Australians: the polymer notes we carry in our wallets—that unique Australian invention that powers hundreds of billions in economic activity every single year.

Let's be clear: the viability of cash distribution services is a serious risk to the sustainability of cash in our economy, and it is absolutely an issue meriting the focus of this parliament. In light of these challenges, the government's aim is resolute: maintain cash for as long as Australians want to use it. It's a key priority in the government's strategic plan for Australia's payments system, and it is what this bill intends to address.

The regulatory framework contained in the bill is a practical and measured response to the challenges in cash distribution services. It will be administered by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and the RBA. It will apply to critical cash distribution service providers that have been designated by the RBA. This bill gives the RBA powers to designate entities that have a significant role in the cash distribution system. It promotes the efficient operation of and investment in a cash distribution system, such as the upstream and downstream markets for cash transport, collection and supply services and the stocking and servicing of ATMs. These powers allow the RBA to designate entities as significant to the cash distribution system based on whether these actors can substantially influence the market, whether the actors are of national or regional importance to the market and whether they provide services that are critical to the efficient functioning of the cash distribution system and other factors that the RBA may consider relevant.

The bill establishes an oversight framework to be administered by the ACCC. It incorporates definitions relating to service and access agreements, reporting and record-keeping requirements, obligations when entering into service and access agreements, a process for approving standard terms and a process for the ACCC in certain circumstances to determine standard terms that cover a designated entity's provision of cash distribution services and facilities access. It also introduces a crisis management and resolution regime for cash distribution services that are critical to the availability of cash in Australia. This includes price and service oversight of critical cash and distribution entities.

The amendments to this bill address concerns around potential regulatory ambiguity on the interaction of the cash distribution framework and road transport contractual chain orders made by the Fair Work Commission. We have engaged in a wide-ranging consultation with relevant stakeholders to introduce a framework that is rational, coherent and timely to the transitions under way in Australia's payments system.

In the absence of such a regulatory framework, the clear trends in Australia's payment system paint a worrying picture for the future of cash distribution services in this country. It is a trend that our government is not prepared to settle for. That's why we are taking action with a package that supports the continued long-term availability of cash as a means of payment in Australia; a package that gives our regulators the power to effectively manage and resolve threats to the distribution services that are critical to the availability of cash; a package that promotes the provision of cash distribution services and facilities access on terms and conditions, including pricing levels that are fair, reasonable and transparent; and a package that promotes effective competition at both ends of the market for cash, transport, collection and supply.

It forms part of our broader agenda to safeguard the use of cash well into the future along with reforms to Australia's payments system, the cash mandate introduced earlier this year and ongoing work to ensure sustainable access to regional bank branches. It's a bill in the best Labor traditions of inclusion, choice and fairness. I commend this bill to the House.

Daniel Mulino (Fraser, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer) | Link to this | Hansard source

Firstly, I would like to thank those members who have contributed to this debate. I acknowledge the constructive engagement by the member for Page also. These bills establish a framework to designate, monitor, regulate and, in the event of a crisis, manage entities that have a significant role in Australia's cash distribution system. Cash remains a valued payment method for many Australians, and safeguards are needed to support its ongoing availability. Together, the Cash Distribution Framework Bill 2026 and the Cash Distribution Framework (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provisions) Bill 2026—which are, together, 'the bills'—provide safeguards to sustain an efficient and resilient cash distribution system and respond to and manage threats to the ongoing availability of cash. They ensure that the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, the ACCC, and the Reserve Bank of Australia can give effect to these arrangements.

Firstly, the bills provide the RBA with powers to designate entities that play a significant role in the Australian cash distribution system. The bills create obligations for these designated entities when negotiating cash distribution service and access agreements and create a mechanism for the ACCC to approve standard terms for classes of these agreements. The bills also enable the ACCC to determine dispute resolution requirements for designated entities and establish an arbitration process to resolve disagreements over terms. Together, these elements support good-faith negotiations and the timely resolution of disputes. The ACCC is further empowered to establish service-level standards to support fair and reliable access to cash across Australia.

Under the bills, the RBA is provided with powers to ensure the continuity of cash distribution services critical to the ongoing availability of cash as well as powers that help them prevent disruption to these services in the first place. This includes the power to step in and manage designated entities, to support the continuity of critical cash distribution services and to minimise disruption in the event of a crisis. The bills also equip the ACCC and the RBA with information-gathering and enforcement powers to support compliance with the framework.

I thank the Senate Economics Legislation Committee for its inquiry into the bills and note the additional comments of coalition senators. The committee made two recommendations: to provide clarity on the interaction between the cash distribution framework introduced in the bills and on any road transport contractual chain order; and to ensure consistency in references to the Australian Crime Commission. The government has introduced amendments to the bills to clarify the interaction between the framework and any road transport contractual chain order. This will ensure that relevant Fair Work obligations are appropriately prioritised in the event of incompatibility with relevant elements of the cash distribution framework. Minor technical amendments have also been made for clarity, including to references to the Australian Crime Commission. I commend these bills to the House.

Cassandra Fernando (Holt, Australian Labor Party) | Link to this | Hansard source

The original question was that this bill be now read a second time, to which the honourable member for Page moved as an amendment that all words after 'That' be omitted with a view to substituting other words. The honourable member for Clare has moved as an amendment to that amendment that all words after 'House' be omitted with a view to substituting other words. I put the question.

Question unresolved.

As it is necessary to resolve this question to enable further questions to be considered in relation to this bill, in accordance with standing order 195 the bill will be returned to the House for further consideration.