It’s standard in Australia now: big businesses demand “reform”, but the moment they face a genuine national-interest reform that doesn’t help their bottom line, they warn that the sky is going to fall in. So it is with the Reserve Bank’s long-awaited conclusion of its review of surcharges on credit cards and debit payments, which will see them banned from October this year, saving consumers an estimated $1.6 billion. The changes won’t need special legislation.