Red tape reductions held back by red tape

30 September 2009

The NSW Government’s attempts to cut red tape and reduce the burden on business have been held back because of the Government’s media strategy and red tape, a Freedom of Information request lodged by the NSW Business Chamber has revealed.

The FOI request was made in response to a 5 June memorandum from Premier Nathan Rees, which said department heads had to report on their efforts to cut red tape by 24 July 2009.

After years of lobbying by the Business Chamber the Rees Government recently set a target of reducing red tape by $500 million.

The Premier’s memo said: “Progress in achieving the $500 million target will be reported publicly and regularly on the BRO [Better Regulation Office] website.”

To date no progress updates have been made on the BRO website.

The NSW Business Chamber’s request for the responses to the Premier’s memo was refused because “many of these initiatives are subject to Cabinet approval or have been approved by Cabinet but are yet to be announced”.

NSW Business Chamber CEO Stephen Cartwright said it was outrageous that businesses in NSW were being unnecessarily burdened by red tape because ministers were waiting for the right time to make announcements or because proposed changes were caught up in the Cabinet process.

“The NSW economy is bringing up the rear of all the states and territories, and yet the State Government is holding back on announcing much-needed changes while it waits for the right time in the media cycle,” Mr Cartwright said.

“Our unemployment rate is higher than the national average, our projected economic growth is the lowest of all mainland states, and figures out last week show that while in the rest of the country new housing sales surged, in NSW they dropped considerably.

“With statistics like these it’s clear we need to cut red tape now to support a thriving private sector for the benefit of NSW as a whole and everyone who lives here.

“We cannot wait for ministers to pick a slow media day or for these long overdue reforms to work their way through Cabinet.

“The Premier must order his ministers to gazette these changes today – they can then officially announce them whenever they like.”

The six-page response also stated there was “strong public interest against disclosing the information you have sought at this time.”

“How can the public interest be met by not disclosing efforts to cut red tape?” Mr Cartwright said. “It really defies belief, and if it wasn’t so serious it would be funny.”

According to the FOI agencies yet to report on their red tape reduction efforts include:

• ·         NSW Transport and Infrastructure
• ·         Department of Local Government
• ·         Department of Environment and Climate Change
• ·         NSW Health
• ·         DoCS
• ·         RTA
• ·         NSW Food Authority

As part of its NSW – Reclaiming 1st campaign the NSW Business Chamber is today running a symposium on Reducing the Burden on Business.

Speakers at the Symposium will include former NSW Treasurer Michael Costa, Australian Financial Review economics commentator Alan Mitchell, Angela MacRae from the Productivity Commission, and Standards Australia’s Colin Blair.

“We continue to be let down by regulations that are overly prescriptive, redundant and costly, and by taxes that are too complex, too numerous and much too onerous,” Mr Cartwright said.

“We must reduce the burden on businesses by reforming our tax system, cutting red tape and reducing regulation.

 “In 2007, the Productivity Commission found NSW had over 1,200 acts – the highest of any State or Territory, and nearly 400 more than the ‘runner-up’ Victoria.

“The Productivity Commission also found that NSW enacted 653 new Acts and regulations in 2006-07, more than any other state or territory and 442 more than Victoria, the next most frequent regulator.

“While the NSW Business Chamber stands with the State Government in rejecting the Commonwealth’s proposal to strip NSW of $2 billion of GST revenue, we should remember that state governments have been complaining about being ripped off by the other states since federation.

“The GST redistribution should not and must not be used as an excuse to squib on state tax reform.

“It is business, not government, which drives the economy of NSW.

“Reducing the burden on business is a first-order issue for all of NSW.”