The commissioned study research report into the ‘Economic Implications of an Ageing Australia’ was released April 2005. The Commission found that one quarter of Australians will be aged 65 years or more by 2044-45, roughly double the present proportion. This gives rise to significant policy...

The Productivity Commission’s research report into ‘Public Support for Science and Innovation’ was released March 2007. The Australian Government asked the Commission to evaluate the economic, social and environmental returns on this investment. The main message from the Commission’s...

Most urban households face severe restrictions on their use of water. These impose hidden costs that could amount to billions of dollars each year. Australia’s urban water shortages are only partly due to low rainfall. An important contributor has been inadequate institutional arrangements for...

This report provides information on the financial performance of 85 Australian, State and Territory Government trading enterprises (GTEs) and also examines the influence of different asset valuation methods and rate of return measures on performance comparisons and capital management (2004-05 to...

The Productivity commission research paper, ‘The Role of Non-Traditional Work in the Australian Labour Market’ was released on 25 May 2006. There is continuing debate in Australia about the effects of labour market changes on the wellbeing of workers and their families. One such change has...

The Productivity Commission has released its update on the financial performance of 85 Australian, State and Territory Government trading enterprises (GTEs) in July 2006. The report also examines the capital structures of GTEs and capital withdrawal by State and Territory governments. The 85...

This research paper examines some of the key trends in Australia’s agriculture sector over the last 20 years or so. While continuing to grow in absolute terms, the size and importance of agriculture has declined relative to the rest of the economy. Within the sector, there have been marked...

The Productivity Commission released an update on the financial performance of 83 Australian, State and Territory Government trading enterprises in July 2005. The study provides data on their financial performance over time and includes comparisons of performance among GTEs in the same industry....

In April 2005, the research paper into ‘Assistance to Tourism: Exploratory Estimates’ was released. It is the first comprehensive attempt to quantify the extent of assistance to tourism on a comparable basis to that for other industries in Australia. While care is needed in interpreting the...

This report is the latest scorecard on the financial performance of 86 government trading enterprises (GTEs). The report examines the impact on capital management of inadequate compensation for community service obligations and of the persistent poor performance of some GTEs. The 86 GTEs...