AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY 2007 ANNUAL REPORT & BUSINESS REVIEW
ECONOMICS & TAXATION REPORT q financial regulation: The IMF considers that Australia is ‘well placed’ to deal with the current financial turmoil. The direct impact of the turmoil on Australia is ‘modest’. ACCI reported on this survey to members. Index of Economic Freedom In January, the Heritage Foundation and Wall St Journal released their 2007 Index of Economic Freedom, showing Australia is ranked as the third freest economy in the world, a large improvement from ninth last year. However while the index does not include a number of important changes that would improve our situation (particularly tax cuts), ACCI believes that it overstates Australia’s labour market freedom.
STATISTICS
q reducing business compliance costs through standard business reporting; q the quarterly business indicators survey; q the Australian fertility rate; q industry measures of multifactor productivity; q the effect of bananas on inflation; q annual hours worked; q the development of a business longitudinal database, which looks at the performance of businesses over time; q proposed revisions to definitions for the national accounts (GDP) and balance of payments; q measures of the quality of the national accounts; q the ABS publication of underlying measures of inflation;
2006 Census The first results from the 2006 Census were released during the year. ACCI was a 2006 Census partner and provided a statement of support for the Census which was featured prominently in Census campaigns. “The Australian Census is essential to knowing who we are. It forms the centrepiece of all economic and social statistics, and without it Governments and businesses would find it immeasurably harder to plan for the future. Governments would struggle to know where to put schools, hospitals, and police stations; and businesses would struggle to know where to build shops, houses and factories. Therefore ACCI strongly supports the Census and encourages you to complete the Census form accurately” Meeting with the Head of the ABS ACCI met with the new head of the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), Brian Pink, in May. Issues discussed included: q government plans to reduce red tape on business, particularly through the Simplified Business Reporting framework and improving electronic communication with business; q the need to improve statistics for agriculture; and q the development of the business longitudinal database (a database showing the performance of business over time). ABS Survey of Contract Work and Labour Hire On 22 August, ACCI made a submission to the Australian Bureau of Statistics on their planned 2008 survey of contract work and labour hire. ACCI’s submission indicated support for the survey, presented ACCI’s preferred definition of independent contractor, and argued that surveys of patterns of work and work hours should make clear distinction between employees and contractors. ABS Economic Statistics
q ABS access to tax returns of individuals with strict privacy controls; q measures of retail margins; and q the number of businesses in Australia and different definitions of small business. ACCI was also involved in various discussions with the ABS about productivity, including measuring productivity by industry. Labour Statistics ACCI is a member of the ABS Labour Statistics Advisory Group, where the following issues were discussed in 2007: q the presentation format of the monthly unemployment figures; q the availability of data for examining work and family balance; q the availability of data for examining the effect of WorkChoices on the labour market; q the availability of data for examining the effect of welfare to work; q surveys of persons not in the labour force; and q improving estimates of hours worked (it has long been assumed that Australians work amongst the longest hours in the developed world. ABS re-examination of this data shows this belief to be incorrect).
MEETINGS ACCI continued to conduct regular meetings with key policy makers during the year, including with representatives from: q the Treasurer’s Office; q the Assistant Treasurer’s Office; q the office of the Shadow Treasurer; q the Shadow Assistant Treasurer;
ACCI is a member of the ABS Economic Statistics Advisory Group, where the following issues were discussed during 2007: q statistics relating to venture capital;
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