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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-07-29 Daily Xml
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BUSINESS REGULATION

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO (15:19): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before directing a question to the Minister for State/Local Government Relations.

The PRESIDENT: On what subject?

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO: On government regulation of business.

Leave granted.

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO: I understand the federal government recently announced that the Productivity Commission will be looking into the role of local government as a regulator.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. T.J. Stephens: When was 11 to 7 not a spanking?

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO: The Hon. Terry Stephens does get very excited, doesn't he? Shall I start again?

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. T.J. Stephens interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: The Hon. Mr Stephens, it's a good job I don't allow the press to put their cameras on people who are sitting down talking nonsense. The Hon. Ms Zollo.

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO: Thank you, Mr President. I will continue. I understand the federal government recently announced that the Productivity Commission will be looking into the role of local government as a regulator. Can the minister advise what role the state government will play in forming the study?

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY (Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for State/Local Government Relations) (15:21): I thank the honourable member for her question. I am pleased to advise the council of an important national study to be undertaken by the Productivity Commission which will be of great significance for local government and the business community. The federal government has recently announced that the Productivity Commission will carry out a benchmarking study which will examine the costs to business of regulation within and between local government jurisdictions.

As part of the study, the Productivity Commission will identify the nature and extent of local government's regulatory responsibilities, including the extent to which local governments implement and enforce national, state and territory policies and where these responsibilities are likely to impose material costs on business, and significant variations in the distribution of these responsibilities between jurisdictions.

It will also develop indicators and use them to assess whether different regulatory responsibilities and the way these responsibilities are exercised have a material effect on the cost of local government regulation on business and identify best practice local government regulatory approaches that have the capacity to reduce unnecessary costs incurred by business while sustaining good regulatory outcomes.

I understand that following initial consultations with governments, business organisations and other interested parties, the Productivity Commission will publish a discussion paper. This paper will contain further information about the study and seek input from participants on how the commission might best proceed in benchmarking the performance of local government authorities in their exercise of regulatory responsibilities. The commission will present its final report to government in July 2012.

As part of its initial consultation process, the Productivity Commission will be taking submissions in Adelaide in late July. A senior officer of the Department of Planning and Local Government will be meeting with the commission at that time. The federal Minister for Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government (Hon. Simon Crean), in announcing this project, said that this benchmarking study is a timely exercise as it will improve the capacity of local governments while meeting the government's commitment to the business community to keep the costs of doing business to the minimum.

Local government has a direct bearing on the productivity outcomes of the nation, and this study will be valuable in identifying the impact of its regulatory activities on business. Virtually all businesses deal with local government regarding their regulatory obligations in a wide range of areas from food safety to development assessment. By identifying best practice regulation, this study will help spread effective and innovative regulatory practices among local government and shape future reform initiatives in this area.

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