The nation’s peak financial services advisory bodies have formed taskforces to work with regulators and the Federal Government amid close scrutiny of the financial services sector.

It follows a Federal Government commitment to launch an inquiry in the wake of the collapse of high profile companies including Storm Financial and Opus Prime. The inquiry will examine issues including conflict of interests, commissions and the quality of advice provided to average investors.

The Association of Financial Advisors (AFA) last week launched a government and policy committee, which AFA President Jim Taggart says will help “ensure good outcomes across the marketplace for consumers and advisers”.

The committee will bring together AFA members and industry experts to provide advice and lobby the Federal Government.

Mr Taggart says the financial crisis has created a “crisis of confidence” and “the need for common sense and practical responses from advisers to Government and the regulator are now more important than ever”.

The AFA taskforce follows a similar move from the Financial Planning Association (FPA), which set up its own taskforce at the end of February.