Government to convene a productivity roundtable

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced at the National Press Club yesterday that Treasurer Jim Chalmers will convene a roundtable in August to support and shape the government's growth and productivity agenda.

Albanese said the roundtable will bring together leaders from the business community, union movement, and civil society in what will be a "more streamlined dialogue" than the 2022 Jobs and Skills Summit, with a "more targeted set of issues."

"We want to build the broadest possible base of support for further economic reform to drive growth, boost productivity, strengthen the budget, and secure the resilience of our economy in a time of global uncertainty. What we want is a focused dialogue and constructive debate that leads to concrete and tangible actions," Albanese said.

"The starting point for our government is clear. Our plan for economic growth and productivity is about Australians earning more and keeping more of what they earn."

Albanese noted that "this work is already underway," citing the national productivity fund, which allocates $120 million to incentivise state and territory governments to eliminate red tape and drive efficiencies in construction.

He also highlighted non-compete clause reforms, set to take effect from 2027, which will prohibit employers imposing non-compete clauses on employees earning under $175,000.

"We want to expand on this approach, and I'm optimistic about the progress that we can make, because there is substantial agreement on so many of the key priorities: driving faster approvals for housing, energy, and infrastructure projects, while ensuring sustainability; making it easier for Australian innovators to commercialise their breakthroughs and create jobs in Australia; investing in the skills our nation needs and making sure those qualifications are recognised nationwide; ensuring all Australians are better prepared to capitalise on the opportunities of Artificial Intelligence..." he said.

He said some of this is "about government doing the basics better," targeting duplication, removing barriers to investment, and reducing the cost of doing business, but remarked "not every challenge can be solved by government stepping back."

"This is a time where government has to be prepared to step up to invest in education and skills and research and innovation; to build and upgrade the infrastructure that supports growth and drives productivity; to combine our Future Made in Australia plan, our critical mineral strategic reserve, and our new investment framework with a deeper and more diversified trade agenda, especially in our region; and to provide business and industry with the certainty to invest in all their assets, technology, energy, and most of all their people," he said.

The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) welcomed the announcement of a Productivity Summit, noting that productivity is critical to boosting the economy.

ACCI chief executive Andrew McKellar said productivity has been struggling for far too long and welcomed the comments by the Prime Minister about making it a priority.

"As the latest national accounts figures show poor productivity rates persist, and on an annual basis is actually going backwards. The latest quarterly data shows GDP per hour flat for the March quarter and remaining at minus 1% for the year," McKellar said.

"The business community looks forward to participating in the summit and contributing constructive and sensible ideas to address the problem."

Opposition deputy leader Ted O'Brien said Albanese has actively sought to undermine productivity by abolishing structures to drive it - such as the Australian Building and Construction Commission.

He also said that Albanese "saddled the economy with thousands of new regulations."

However, he added "we're open to being constructive."