The Government today released the Terms of Reference for the White Paper on the Reform of the Federation.
Australia’s Federation has great strengths but duplication and overlap between different levels of government results in waste and inefficiency.
The Federation has stood strong for 114 years, but Australia today is a very different nation, facing new challenges.
We need to reduce and, if possible, end duplication and make interacting with government simpler. We need to clarify roles and responsibilities for States and Territories so that they are, as far as possible, sovereign in their own sphere.
The Commonwealth will continue to take a leadership role on issues of genuine national and strategic importance, but there should be less Commonwealth intervention in areas where States have primary responsibility.
The Terms of Reference have been developed in collaboration with States and Territories, as agreed at the last meeting of the Council of Australian Governments, and the White Paper will be a standing item on the COAG agenda.
The White Paper process will be overseen by a Steering Committee comprising the Secretaries and Chief Executives of the Commonwealth Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, State/Territory First Ministers’ departments and the Australian Local Government Association.
The Federation White Paper will be coordinated with the White Paper on the Reform of Australia’s Tax System.
The White Paper will be delivered by the end of 2015.
TERMS OF REFERENCE
WHITE PAPER ON THE REFORM OF THE FEDERATION
The Australian Constitution established Australia’s system of government as a federation comprising the Commonwealth Government and State governments.[1] One hundred and fourteen years later, Australia is a very different nation facing new challenges.
We remain a small population dispersed over a large land mass, but changes in technology and transport have connected us more to one another and to the world.
As a result, we are increasingly integrated into the global economy and society, and in particular the economic expansion and social transformations underway in Asia.
Our industries are undergoing significant and necessary restructuring, and the make-up of our population is changing: we have a greater proportion of people in older age groups, and a greater mix of people from across the globe choosing to make their home and their contribution here.
These new challenges mean that we need to make sure our federal structure is working. Our Federation is not, as some argue, a relic from the past, broken beyond repair and ill-suited to the times. Rather than seeking ever greater centralisation of power in the national government as a way of dealing with increasing complexity, now is the time to strengthen the way our federal system works by being clear about who is responsible for what.
According to the Australian Constitutional Values Survey 2012, the Australian public is generally supportive of a federal structure of government, but does not believe our Federation is functioning as well as it could be. Around two-thirds of Australians do not believe governments work well together, and believe the Federation needs reform.
A major part of the problem is that over time, the Commonwealth has become, for various reasons, increasingly involved in matters which have traditionally been the responsibility of the States and Territories. The States and Territories have become increasingly reliant on revenue collected by the Commonwealth to deliver services in the areas they are responsible for, with around 45 per cent of State and Territory revenue now coming from the Commonwealth.
Objectives
The Commonwealth Government has committed to produce, working with the States and Territories, a White Paper on the Reform of the Federation. The White Paper will seek to clarify roles and responsibilities to ensure that, as far as possible, the States and Territories are sovereign in their own sphere. The objective will be to:
- reduce and end, as far as possible, the waste, duplication and second guessing between different levels of government;
- achieve a more efficient and effective federation, and in so doing, improve national productivity;
- make interacting with government simpler for citizens;
- ensure our federal system:
- is better understood and valued by Australians (and the case for reform supported);
- has clearer allocation of roles and responsibilities;
- enhances governments’ autonomy, flexibility and political accountability; and
- supports Australia’s economic growth and international competitiveness.
Issues to be considered
Within the constitutional framework, consideration will be given to:
- the practicalities of limiting Commonwealth policies and funding to core national interest matters, as typified by the matters in section 51 of the Constitution;
- reducing or, if appropriate, eliminating overlap between Local, State and Commonwealth responsibility or involvement in the delivery and funding of public programmes;
- achieving agreement between State and Commonwealth governments about their distinct and mutually exclusive responsibilities and subsequent funding sources for associated programmes; and
- achieving equity and sustainability in the funding of any programmes that are deemed to be the responsibility of more than one level of government.
Consistent with this, the White Paper will present the Commonwealth Government’s position in relation to:
- the values and goals that should underpin the Federation so it becomes more efficient and drives national productivity;
- principles and criteria to be applied when allocating roles and responsibilities between different levels of government, such as:
- subsidiarity, whereby responsibility lies with the lowest level of government possible, allowing flexible approaches to improving outcomes;
- equity, efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery, including a specific focus on service delivery in the regions,
- ‘national interest’ considerations, so that where it is appropriate, a national approach is adopted in preference to diversity across jurisdictions,
- accountability for performance in delivering outcomes, but without imposing unnecessary reporting burdens and overly prescriptive controls,
- durability (that is, the allocation of roles and responsibilities should be appropriate for the long-term), and
- fiscal sustainability at both Commonwealth and State levels;
- practical application of these principles in the allocation of roles and responsibilities in the areas of health, education, housing and homelessness (Issues Papers will be produced on these areas) and other areas within scope, to a lesser degree, including transport infrastructure, Indigenous affairs, justice, disability, welfare services, settlement services, family and parental support, disaster recovery, environmental regulation, adult and community education and youth transitions;
- how to address the issue of State governments raising insufficient revenues from their own sources to finance their spending responsibilities;
- the most appropriate approach for ensuring that horizontal fiscal equalisation does not result in individual jurisdictions being disadvantaged in terms of the quality of services they can deliver to their citizens, noting that this principle needs to be implemented in a way that avoids creating disincentives for them to improve their own revenue generation or to make the reforms necessary to improve the operation of their economies;
- effectiveness and governance of the current Intergovernmental Agreement on Federal Financial Relations, including the appropriateness of associated requirements in respect of inputs, outputs and outcomes;
- improvements to the Council of Australian Governments’ (COAG) operations so it is a strategic, consultative and co-operative decision-making forum, including for facilitating mutual recognition (as opposed to harmonisation) of State and Territory regulation; and
- performance reporting, transparency and data arrangements.
The Federation White Paper will be closely aligned with the White Paper on the Reform of Australia’s Tax System.
The White Paper will also draw on any relevant findings and recommendations of the Commission of Audit and other White Papers and review processes currently underway.
Governance and Consultation
The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has established a Taskforce to develop the White Paper.
The White Paper will be a standing item on the COAG agenda and the Federation White Paper Steering Committee, chaired by the Commonwealth and involving all States and Territories and the Australian Local Government Association, will oversee the development of the White Paper.
The White Paper will be developed with extensive consultation with business, non‑government experts and the community. The Prime Minister’s Business Advisory Council will play a key part in providing advice to assist the development of the White Paper.
Timing
Issues papers will be released in the second half of 2014. The Green Paper will be released in the first half of 2015 and the White Paper by the end of 2015.
28 June 2014
[1] The Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory were conferred with self-government in 1978 and 1988 respectively.