Productivity Commission to assess where Australia’s economy can make gains post-pandemic

The Productivity Commission will undertake a review of Australia’s productivity performance, in the second such assessment since the agency was directed to do the reviews every five years.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has tasked the commission with looking at what productivity improvements are available for the economy as it recovers from the coronavirus pandemic.

“Lifting our productivity will require policy settings that foster a flexible and dynamic economy, that is able to adapt in the face of economic challenges and opportunities,” he said.

The review will identify priority areas for reform, including data and digital innovation and workforce skills.

It will consider how the pandemic has shaped Australia’s productivity challenges and opportunities.

The minister has also tasked the commission with prioritising and quantifying the benefit of potential policy changes to improve Australian economic performance.

The review is the second of its kind since the government directed the Productivity Commission to do the Shifting the Dial report, released in 2017.

However, the Productivity Commission says “there has not been a government response to this inquiry yet” in reference to the 2017 report on its website.

The new report is expected to be received by the federal government in February 2022 and will consult widely with the public as well as federal, state and territory governments.

This article was first published by The Mandarin.