Productivity Commission

Last updated

Productivity Commission
Productivity Commission (Australia) logo.jpg
Agency overview
Formed1998
Preceding agencies
TypeStatutory agency
JurisdictionCommonwealth of Australia
Headquarters Melbourne
Employees164 [1]
Annual budgetA$34,189,000 [1]
Minister responsible
Agency executives
Parent department Treasury
Key document
Website pc.gov.au

The Productivity Commission is the Australian Government's principal review and advisory body on microeconomic policy, regulation and a range of other social and environmental issues.

Contents

The Productivity Commission was created as an independent authority by the Productivity Commission Act 1998, an Act of the Australian Parliament. Productivity Commission reports often form the basis of government policy. However, the Commission does not administer government programs or exercise executive power and governments are not required to act on its recommendations; although in practice, many recommendations are accepted.

Functions

The Commission operates within the Treasury portfolio and its core function involves responding to references from the Treasurer, which can request a commissioned study or a public inquiry. References to the Commission stipulate the length and terms of the project and may cover any sector of the Australian economy; address a particular industry or cut across industry boundaries; and involve wider social or environmental issues.

Most projects are specified for nine or twelve-month duration, although some may be six or fifteen months. Both studies and inquiries accept submissions from members of the public, although inquiries are additionally required (under the Act) to undertake formal public consultations. All reports are publicly released.

In addition, the Commission acts as the secretariat to the intergovernmental Review of Government Service Provision, and produces annually the Report on Government Services, as well as regular reports that contribute to a better understanding of the effectiveness of government services provided to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

The Commission can undertake Commission-initiated research, and operates as the Australian Government's competitive neutrality complaints mechanism.

History

Predecessor agencies

Tariff Board (1921)

replaced by the Industries Assistance Commission (1974)

Inter-State Commission (1975)

Industry Commission  (1990)

Bureau of Industry Economics (1978)

Economic Planning Advisory Commission (1983)

Productivity Commission (1998)

Timeline

The Commission traces its lineage back to the Tariff Board, which was established in the 1920s. On 1 January 1974, the Tariff Board became the Industries Assistance Commission and then in 1989 it became the Industry Commission.

The Productivity Commission was created as an independent authority in April 1998 by the Productivity Commission Act 1998, and replaced the Industry Commission, the Bureau of Industry Economics and the Economic Planning Advisory Commission. These three bodies were amalgamated on an administrative basis in 1996.

The Commission's remit may extend beyond Australia, such as when the Commission worked jointly with the New Zealand Productivity Commission on a study into Trans-Tasman Economic Relations in 2012 [3] and in a 2019 report on Growing the Digital Economy in Australia and New Zealand. [4]

Danielle Wood became the Commission's first female Chair on 13 November 2023.

Chairs of the Productivity Commission

NameDates
Gary Banks AO17 April 1998 – 31 December 2012
Peter Harris AO 11 March 2013 – 10 September 2018
Michael Brennan11 September 2018 – 10 September 2023
Danielle Wood 13 November 2023 – 12 November 2028

Deputy Chairs of the Productivity Commission

NameDates
Richard Snape24 February 1999 – 4 October 2002
Mike Woods8 October 2008 – 22 December 2014
Patricia Scott 24 February 2015 – 8 April 2016
Karen Chester9 April 2016 – 27 January 2019
Alex Robson28 March 2022 – 27 March 2027

Commissioners of the Productivity Commission

NameDates
John Cosgrove17 April 1998 – 7 May 2002
Helen Owens17 April 1998 – 14 April 2006
Richard Snape17 April 1998 – 4 October 2002
Judith Sloan 17 April 1998 – 16 April 2010
Mike Woods17 April 1998 – 22 December 2014
Neil Byron15 July 1998 – 16 April 2010
David Robertson13 December 2000 – 12 December 2003
Tony Hinton27 March 2002 – 26 March 2007
Robert Fitzgerald27 January 2004 – 26 April 2019
Philip Weickhardt1 January 2004 – 11 December 2014
Gary Potts17 April 2006 – 30 April 2008
Steven Kates17 April 2006 – 16 April 2009
Angela MacRae19 March 2007 – 9 December 2020
Matthew Butlin1 May 2008 – 30 September 2008
Louise Sylvan1 August 2008 – 20 September 2011
Wendy Craik 4 June 2009 – 31 December 2014
David Kalisch4 June 2009 – 10 December 2010
Siobhan McKenna4 June 2009 – 3 June 2014
Patricia Scott7 September 2009 – 8 April 2016
Alison McClelland8 December 2010 – 31 March 2016
Warren Mundy8 December 2010 – 7 December 2015
Jonathan Coppel28 July 2011 – 27 July 2021
Karen Chester12 December 2013 – 27 January 2019
Melinda Cilento27 November 2014 – 25 August 2017
Paul Lindwall1 July 2014 – 31 December 2022
Ken Baxter30 April 2015 – 31 December 2020
Julie Abramson10 December 2015 – 9 December 2025
Stephen King1 July 2016 – 31 December 2026
Richard Spencer27 October 2016 – 28 January 2022
Jane Doolan8 December 2016 – 7 March 2022
Romlie Mokak25 March 2019 – 24 March 2024
Malcolm Roberts1 May 2019 – 10 November 2023
Elizabeth Gropp1 May 2019 – 30 April 2024
Catherine de Fontenay1 July 2019 – 30 June 2024
Martin Stokie1 April 2022 – 31 March 2027
Joanne Chong1 April 2022 – 31 March 2027
Natalie Siegel-Brown18 April 2022 – 17 April 2027

Operation

The Commission is headed by a Chairperson and between 4 and 12 other Commissioners, who are appointed by the Governor-General for periods up to five years. Some commissioners are required to have particular skills and experience:

(a) in applying the principles of ecologically sustainable development and environmental conservation
(b) in dealing with the social effects of economic adjustment and social welfare service delivery
(c) acquired in working in Australian industry
(d) dealing with policies and programs that have an impact on Indigenous persons and dealing with one or more communities of Indigenous persons.

Associate Commissioners can be appointed by the Treasurer on a full or part-time basis. Commission staff are Commonwealth public servants. The average number of employees in the 2021-22 financial year was 164. [1]

The Commission reports formally through the Treasurer to the Australian Parliament, where its inquiry reports are tabled. Final inquiry reports must be tabled in Parliament within 25 sitting days of the Government receiving the report.

What makes the Commission unusual among public sector institutions around the world is the combination of three core principles which it embodies:

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "Annual Report 2022–23". Productivity Commission. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  2. Productivity Commission. "Our people and structure". www.pc.gov.au. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  3. "Strengthening Trans-Tasman Economic Relations". Productivity Commission. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  4. Commission, corporateName:Productivity (14 February 2019). "Growing the Digital Economy and Maximising Opportunities for Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) – Productivity Commission Research Paper". www.pc.gov.au. Retrieved 10 December 2019.