Getting the Best out of Federalism – The Role of the Productivity Commission and the Limits of National Approaches¹

The failure to learn from others: Vertical fiscal imbalance, centralisation, and Australia's metropolitan knowledge deficit

“…Further to the point, in its Smart Cities Plan , the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (, p. 4) aims to ‘rethink the way our cities are planned, built, and managed’ . It is no wonder that Helen Silver (, p. 326), former Secretary of the Victorian Government Department of Premier and Cabinet, observes that VFI ‘creates a perverse incentive for the Commonwealth to operate in areas of state and territory responsibility, without due regard to the principle of subsidiarity’. Government commitments to subsidiarity notwithstanding, prior to the 2016 elections, in the Eden‐Monaro electoral division the Liberal Party federal electoral manifesto included replacing a roundabout with a signalised intersection; a matter surely best left to local government.…”

The Productivity Commission Inquiry into Aged Care: A Critical Review

“…The Productivity Commission, an 4 Inquiry into Aged Care independent agency, was formed in 1998 from the Industry Commission, which played a key part in determining how the 1993 Hilmer Report on National Competition Policy would be implemented (Silver, 2010). Its primary role is to hold inquiries and provide advice to Federal and State Governments on microeconomic reform.…”

“…Notably the Commission has sought to develop an economic analysis of social and cultural issues (Silver, 2010), drawing on a neoclassical economic framework while also utilising the latest techniques in economic modelling (Banks, 2007). Thus recommendations handed down by the Productivity Commission typically support the ongoing transformation of the Australian welfare state into a mixed economy with free market principles being promoted wherever possible.…”