Dave Sharma (NSW, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Competition, Charities and Treasury) Share this | Hansard source

Earlier today my colleague Senator Bragg proposed the establishment of a select committee to look into productivity in Australia. This committee would have included members of the government and the opposition, it would have been wide ranging and far reaching, and it would have examined what the government itself concedes is a profound national challenge facing Australia, which is the collapse in our productivity. Productivity levels in Australia are currently sitting at 2016 levels. Unless we get productivity growing again, we have no hope of improving living standards, we have no hope of modernising and re-equipping our Defence Force, we have no hope of upgrading our infrastructure and we have no hope of continuing to fund generous social services or look after the needy in our community.

That's why this side of the chamber, the coalition, has welcomed the government's Economic Reform Roundtable, to be held later next month, and we will be participating in it in good faith. But, I have to say, the early signs are not good. We have had the Prime Minister and now the Treasurer rule out industrial relations reform. We've had them rule out substantive tax reform. We've had them give trade unions one in five seats at the productivity roundtable, and one of the signature suggestions of the trade unions for this roundtable is to abolish the Productivity Commission. The trade unions want to abolish the professional, expert, independent body that is advising the government on how to improve productivity.

That is why I was so genuinely disappointed to see that Senator Bragg's motion was not supported. This is an opportunity for bipartisanship. This is an opportunity for us all to recognise that productivity faces profound national challenges. Senator Bragg's motion was an opportunity for the parliament to address this issue, and that is why the government's opposition to it was so disappointing.