Connect Financial Service Brokers CEO Paul Tynan has warned the financial advice industry faces a “dark and uncertain” outlook unless lawmakers and stakeholders take urgent action to address the profession’s problems.

At the heart of the problems is the misguided belief that arbitrarily changing the past will improve the present and secure the future, he says in a statement released last week “out of genuine concern for the future of the financial services advisory sector”.

“Through no fault of their own, not breaking any rules or doing anything wrong, retrospective law-making and arbitrary changing of contractual arrangements has quite literally brought the advice sector to the point of failure.”

This approach has led to the creation of new regulations and laws that have affected almost every area of an adviser’s business such as education, remuneration and licensing.

So serious are the challenges facing advisers that many have opted to retire prematurely rather than keep up with the regulatory changes.

“The future viability of the advice sector is quite literally at the precipice!” he said. “At what point do we say enough is enough?

“It’s for this reason, that politicians and stakeholders must ensure that the decisions of the past that have brought about this scenario are not repeated or compounded going forward.”

Mr Tynan proposes a working group bringing together government and industry members to halt the demise of the industry.

But he warns that retired judges, lawyers, interest groups and individuals who have no practical experience in running an advice business should not be included in this group.

“It’s for this reason that Australia has a track record of royal commissions and industry reviews failure,” he said.

“There are many quality advisers who genuinely care about the industry and ensuring consumers receive quality advice and service that would gladly participate in a genuine and inclusive bipartisan review.”