The news: The Business Council of Australia (BCA) has launched a push for deregulation ahead of the federal government’s Economic Reform Roundtable, releasing a report warning of the impact of costly red tape and calling for a reduced regulatory burden on companies.
The big business lobby group is urging the creation of a Minister for Better Regulation to oversee reforms that would “make it easier to do business in Australia”. It is also seeking a stocktake of existing rules, an “economic star rating” for each new policy based on its contribution to productivity and growth, and a Single Front Door for investment.
The BCA wants improvements to the Foreign Investment Review Board process, including recalibrating its fee structure, setting a new target for 75% of cases to be processed within 30 days, and expanding and modernising reporting.
It is also calling for federal support for the development of a corporate bond market, the removal of barriers to superannuation investment in residential property, harmonisation of long service leave, workers’ compensation and anti-discrimination laws across Australia, and the simplification of data retention requirements.
The numbers: The BCA’s 65-page Better Regulation report estimates that cutting red tape by 1% would unlock $1 billion a year for the economy.
The report estimates that compliance with 86,000 regulations costs Australians $110 billion annually.
The context: The Economic Reform Roundtable will be held from 19–21 August in Canberra. More than 900 submissions have been made to the government as part of the process.
The government has indicated there is broad consensus on the need to improve regulation.
What they said: BCA CEO Bran Black said Australia has become a “complex” country to do business in, which is a handbrake on the ability to lift productivity.
“At the upcoming Economic Reform Roundtable, we have an opportunity to address excessive and duplicative rules that impose unnecessary costs on both businesses and consumers,” Black said in a media release.
“Right now, our approvals system is holding back housing and renewable energy projects — if we’re serious about leaving Australia better off for the next generation then we need to make these systems fit for a modern economy,” he said.
“Ultimately, we need to remove duplication between the state and the federal systems. We need to be working smarter, not harder.”
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the government has “already got a big agenda” to cut red tape, but would “do more where we responsibly can”.
“Better regulation will be a big focus of the Economic Reform Roundtable,” he said in a statement.
The sources: Business Council of Australia media release and report, Treasurer media statement