Bert Van Manen (Forde, Liberal Party) | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that:

(a) under the current Government, labour productivity growth has slumped to a historic low of minus 4.6 per cent; and

(b) the collapse in labour productivity represents a loss of almost half of the growth achieved during the Coalition's time in office;

(2) acknowledges that the Government's:

(a) excuses and blame shifting on productivity are no substitute for the lack of a growth plan for the economy; and

(b) indifference to the productivity challenge should alarm all Australians because it shows indifference to the challenges Australians are facing; and

(3) calls on the Government to take real action to address cost of living pressures and labour productivity growth.

Australians are hurting. Whether it's households or businesses, they are currently facing incredible cost-of-living or business-cost pressure, coupled with rising interest rates and rising energy bills. In the midst of this crisis, the government has utterly failed to address the policy pressures curtailing growth in our economic output. Under the Albanese Labor government, labour productivity growth has slumped to a historic low of -4.6 per cent. This collapse in labour productivity represents a loss of almost half of the growth achieved during the coalition's time in office. Productivity growth is vital not just to our economic outlook but to the standard of living for all Australian households. To keep our current standard of living in a global environment where competitiveness is ever increasing, we must be able to either produce more output from the same inputs or increase the outputs over time.

Instead of taking responsibility and providing real action to turn the tide on reductions in our national productivity and other vital economic growth indicators, the current government has done nothing but provide excuses and shift the blame. As stated by the Chair of the Productivity Commission, Mr Brennan, following the release of the recommendations of their five-year productivity inquiry in March this year, productivity policy is central to a modern economy. Productivity requires smarter spending, not more spending, and this government's indifference to the productivity challenge should alarm all Australians because it shows an indifference to the challenges Australians are facing.

I want to remind the House of the coalition's track record on improving productivity in our time in government. To improve productivity, you must invest in skills and new and emerging technologies, and remove regulatory and tax burdens on business. The coalition government understood that, and the proof is in its record through its time in government, with productivity growing by 11.4 per cent through this period. On policy, our deregulation reforms were expected to generate benefits exceeding $21 billion over 10 years, cutting red tape for business, individual and community groups. Our stage 3 tax cuts, reductions in small business company tax rates, the small business tax offset for sole traders and trusts and the R&D tax incentive reforms helped business to focus on what they do best by reducing their financial and administrative burden. We simplified the business activity statements and implemented single-touch payroll, which automates the ATO reporting requirements, further reducing compliance costs, improving processing times and supporting small business cash flow. We made it easier for businesses to employ their first employees, with the online hiring employees checklist and the employment contract tool that guides employers through a series of questions to generate an employment contract in as little as five minutes. In addition the GDP uplift rate, which applies to pay-as-you-go instalments and GST instalments, was lowered from 10 per cent to two per cent. Importantly, this measure alone injected some $1.85 billion of cash flow for more than 2.3 million taxpayers, including many small businesses. A significant hindrance to the growth of small and medium businesses was the delay in receiving payment for invoices, and through the payment times reporting register we ensured small business were paid on time.

All of these measures and many more went to directly improving the ability of small-to-medium business to do what they do best, and that is make high-quality product and employ Australians. It allowed future generations of Australian families and small businesses to enjoy better business opportunities and a better quality of life, and it must continue to improve under this government. But we're not seeing that. This government needs to make productivity growth a top priority. You cannot expect to compete in a global economy with the current inefficient, overregulated economic growth agenda we're seeing from those opposite. I commend this motion to the House.

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