Productivity Commission: Australia’s productivity performance – Call for submissions

CPRC believes that the Productivity Commission should take a broader view of how to improve productivity, ensuring that benefits are spread evenly across all consumers. Applying a wellbeing approach to its inquiry and any recommendations to improve productivity in Australia will reduce consumer harms especially for people who experience vulnerability.

When embedding reforms that encourage openness and access to digital technologies and business innovation, CPRC recommends that these need to be implemented in a way that reflects the values and expectations of community so that economic benefit flows to all citizens. Taking a holistic approach to data and digital innovation is imperative as it is the effective use, sharing and collection of data and the active engagement of consumers and citizens that will lead to the economic benefit and in turn enhance the country’s productivity.

CPRC recommends that the Productivity Commission:

• clearly define wellbeing, consider options to measure wellbeing and apply a wellbeing lens to the inquiry
• introduce principles to guide data and technology reforms to truly deliver consumer and productivity gains
• call for the Federal Government to prioritise reforms to protect consumer data and build trust in further data and technology advances, including reform to the Privacy Act, an introduction of an unfair trading provision and the introduction of a general safety provision.