The South Australian Business Chamber Chief Executive Nigel McBride said the 2018 Charter for a more Prosperous South Australia established 10 policy priority areas which, if implemented, would make South Australia a more competitive state in which to do business.
“We need to grow our economy and ensure there are jobs for our children, in what should be a thriving state with a bright future,” Mr McBride said.
“Instead, we have a morbidly obese public sector, payroll tax rates which penalise our successful small and medium-sized businesses, the most expensive power in our nation, and an ageing population and slow growth.”
A key plank in the 2018 Charter is on public sector efficiency and outcomes, with the South Australian Business Chamber commissioning a report by the South Australian Centre for Economic Studies on the need to reform the public sector.
Recommendations include reducing the number of ministers, electorates and the size of the Legislative Council, reviewing services offered by the State Government and the role of the Local Government, and investigating efficiencies in the public sector.
SACES Associate Professor Michael O’Neil said South Australia had a significantly larger public sector in comparison with other states and market economies overseas.
“But there is no evidence that South Australia has a more dynamic, wealth creating economy than other states, or that we have a more effective or efficient public sector,” Mr O’Neil said.
“This is not a debate about small or big government. It is a debate about improvements in the quality of government policy and service delivery to ultimately advance community welfare of all South Australians.”
The South Australian Business Chamber’s 2018 Charter priorities include:
Energy: Increase funding to the Energy Productivity Program and extend coverage to include gas; assess future conventional and unconventional gas exploration on a case-by-case basis; work with COAG, AEMO, electricity networks and retailers to redefine NEM pricing jurisdictions
Tax: Lift the payroll tax threshold from $600,000 to $1.5 million; reduce the rate from 4.95% to 4.5% by 2020 to make South Australia the most competitive state; introduce a payroll tax incentive for businesses employing STEM PhD graduates; re-introduce the payroll tax exemption for apprentices and trainees
Public Sector: Review the public sector and State Government operations, including departmental structures; reduce the size of the Upper and Lower houses, and cut the number of ministers; amalgamate councils in metropolitan Adelaide; address the wages gap between the private and public sectors
Infrastructure: Establish an Independent Infrastructure Authority to assess all proposals; widen the Outer Harbor Channel; ensure regional projects are not over-looked including the Mount Gambier Airport expansion, the Joy Baluch Bridge and the Penola bypass Workplace Relations: Introduce a medical assessment panel into the Return to Work Scheme to assess 30 per cent Whole Person Impairment claims; introduce an independent system of comprehensive investigations and administrational first review for disputed cases in the Return to Work Scheme; push for a national approach to labour hire licensing
Population: Commit to a state population growth target of 1.5% per year; lobby the Federal Government to improve skilled occupation lists and to review changes to eligibility requirements for international students applying for skilled migrant visas Industry: Continue the public debate on nuclear waste storage; remove the $5m annual turnover limit of the Late Payment of Government Debts Act (2013); increase the Convention Bid Fund; deregulate shop trading hours Skills and Training:; Fast track the opening of the training delivery market; modernise and streamline the system of registration for employers to employ an apprentice or trainee; facilitate pathways between the secondary, VET and higher education sectors
Trade: Review overseas trade representation, including the Middle East and the US; continue State Government-led trade missions Water and Environment: Commission ESCOSA to update its 2014 Water Pricing Options Inquiry report; ensure accountability and oversight for use of the Waste to Resources Fund collected by the solid waste levy; ensure water efficiency and conservation remain a key consideration to ensure higher marginal-cost water sources.
To hear more about the 2018 Charter, including our public sector and smaller government recommendations, Nigel McBride and Anthony Penney will be holding a press conference at midday today.
When: 12pm, Thursday 22 February
Where: the South Australian Business Chamber
Level 1, 136 Greenhill Rd
Unley, SA 5061
