Financial Services

This bill forces banks and other lenders to offer farmers mediation before they can enforce a farm mortgage, giving struggling farmers a structured chance to negotiate outside of court. It also renames QRAA as the Queensland Rural and Industry Development Authority, lets industry bodies run their own biosecurity accreditation schemes, clears the way for viruses to be used as pest control, and allows Queensland cannabis growers to supply seed to medicinal cannabis producers.

This bill creates a new independent board to oversee Queensland's Public Trustee, which manages the financial and legal affairs of vulnerable people. It was introduced after the Public Advocate found significant issues with the Public Trustee's fees, charges and practices in a 2021 review.

This bill proposed turning the Queensland Rural Adjustment Authority into a new Rural and Industries Development Bank with the power to borrow money, lend commercially, and restructure debts for farmers and rural businesses. Introduced as a private member's bill by Mr R Katter MP, it was later discharged and did not become law.

This bill replaces Queensland's nearly 50-year-old Property Law Act 1974 with a modernised framework for property transactions. It introduces a statutory seller disclosure scheme requiring sellers to provide standardised information to buyers before contract signing, facilitates electronic conveyancing and electronic deeds, and simplifies rules governing mortgages, leases, co-ownership, and trusts.

This bill replaces Queensland's 50-year-old Trusts Act 1973 with modernised trusts legislation. It clarifies what trustees must and can do, makes it easier to deal with common trust problems without going to court, and strengthens protections for people who benefit from trusts.

This bill gives the Commonwealth Parliament the power it needs to establish the Help to Buy shared equity scheme in Queensland. The scheme will help up to 10,000 low to middle income Australians per year buy a home with as little as a 2 per cent deposit, with the Commonwealth contributing up to 40 per cent of the purchase price for new homes and 30 per cent for existing homes.

This bill overhauls how Queensland collects unpaid fines through the State Penalties Enforcement Registry (SPER). It creates Work and Development Orders so people in hardship can clear their fines through unpaid work, medical treatment, counselling or courses instead of paying cash, while giving SPER stronger tools against people who refuse to engage.

This bill replaces Queensland's 50-year-old Trusts Act 1973 with a modernised framework for managing trusts. It implements recommendations from the Queensland Law Reform Commission's review, updating trustee powers and duties, strengthening beneficiary protections, and making trust disputes easier and cheaper to resolve through expanded District Court jurisdiction.

This bill ensures Suncorp Group Limited keeps its headquarters in Queensland after selling its banking business to ANZ. It updates a 1996 law that was originally designed to keep the merged Suncorp-Metway group based in Queensland, applying strengthened requirements to Suncorp's continuing insurance business.

This bill facilitates the merger of QSuper and Sunsuper into Australia's second largest superannuation fund, with around $200 billion under administration. It retires the QSuper Board as trustee, moves the trust deed out of legislation into a non-statutory instrument, and ensures the merged entity stays headquartered in Queensland.