Fiona O'Malley (Progressive Democrats)

Senator O'Toole highlighted a very good point. It is not so much a problem with the legislation as we are all trying to get the best out of it. While the Minister has tried to strike a balance with regard to the guidelines on credit flow, Senator O'Toole stated correctly that the banks will do nothing until they have protected their own assets. Irrespective of what we do, we need to face that reality.

Some of the suggestions made are laudable. Senator Bacik, in particular, highlighted the French experience. While something is working there and we should not ignore it, we must realise there is a major problem. Senator O'Toole is correct that banks will not lend until they are secure. If all we are doing is giving them money to shore them up with a view to achieving security, we are doing so without obtaining any guarantees, even though the banks may be free one day to lend. We need to face up to the fact that we do not have any guarantees.