Cutting Red Tape in Infrastructure Services

The Productivity Commission's latest report, Annual Review of Regulatory Burdens on Business:Social and Economic Infrastructure Services Sector – identifies ways to reduce the regulatory burdens on businesses in aged care, health, child care, education, information media and telecommunications, energy and transport.

The Commission found that much of the regulation in the sector has the desirable objective of managing risk and ensuring service quality. But it can have the unintended consequence of reducing businesses' flexibility in responding to consumer and user requirements, as well as adding a cost burden to their operation.

Inconsistency of regulations across jurisdictions in the transport, education and energy sectors remains also a continuing concern, despite governments' agreements for reform. There needs to be a movement beyond these high level agreements to substantially reduce the regulatory burden faced by businesses, according to the Productivity Commission.

'Reducing red tape in these sectors is not just a matter of reducing business costs – it will improve business flexibility and allow for better, cheaper and more responsive services for consumers and users of those services', Commissioner Angela MacRae said.

The Commission identified several key areas where regulations can be made less burdensome for business while maintaining or improving services. These include exploring options to free up the supply constraints on aged care services. Also the responsibilities between regulatory bodies should be clarified and a more targeted risk-management approach adopted in administering regulations in aged care and child care.

The Commission has concluded that significant benefit would arise from increased regulatory flexibility of local presence and content requirements for radio, and reducing the TV sports antisiphoning list. Similarly, the announced reforms in the education sector should include approaches to streamline reporting requirements across the sector.

The concerns with regulations raised by business to this review are varied, but many stem from broader ongoing deficiencies in regulatory processes. The Commission has recommended that there be greater transparency and consultation with stakeholders when developing and administering regulations.