Annual Report 2009-10

The Productivity Commission's 2009-10 Annual Report was released on 28 October 2010 and forms part of the Commission's annual report series. Effective policy development demands careful analysis of different options, drawing on available evidence. Good process is the key to ensuring that this happens, whether in developing new policies or evaluating existing programs. Evidence-based analysis and good process matter because getting policy right matters. Public policy measures can have pervasive effects on the wellbeing of the community. The community deserves assurance that policies are designed and implemented to produce the outcomes it seeks in a cost-effective way. Reforms that raise the quality of spending can reduce taxation imposts and enable the objectives of regulation to be met more efficiently, contributing to growth in productivity, employment and income. In contrast, policies conceived without proper assessment carry risks of locking in productivity-sapping impacts and reducing the capacity to fund more worthwhile initiatives. During the 1980s and 1990s, Australia gained an international reputation for policy processes and reforms which involved the assembly of evidence and transparent consideration of options. But there is scope to do better. In the theme chapter of the Annual Report 2009-10, the Commission draws on its experience in conducting inquiries and research studies over the years to identify ways of strengthening evidence-based policy development in the future.