Purpose 3: Simplifying doing business
This purpose aims to facilitate competition and innovation by making it easier for businesses to interact with government and reduce the cost of doing business. Achieving Purpose 3 will boost productivity and enhance Australia’s international competitiveness by reducing the burden on industry of inefficient regulation and improving the delivery of government programs and services.
In 2019–20, the department worked to achieve Purpose 3 through two activities:
- Activity 3.1: Reducing the burden on industry of inefficient regulation
- Activity 3.2: Providing better services and information for business.
Performance criteria and results Table 11 presents the results measured against the performance criteria for Purpose 3 and its associated Program 1.1 and Program 1.2 (refer to Figure 3), set out in the former Department of Industry, Innovation and Science’s Corporate Plan 2019–20, page 22.
Table 11: Purpose 3: Simplifying doing business
Intended outcome | Performance criterion | 2019–20 target | 2019–20 result |
Reduce regulatory congestion to improve ease of doing business in Australia | Australia’s ranking on the World Bank’s ‘ease of doing business’ scorecard | Maintain or improve Australia’s top 20 ranking | Australia improved four places to reach 14th position in the world for ease of doing business in 2020. |
Australia’s ranking on the World Economic Forum’s ‘business dynamism’ | Maintain or improve Australia’s top 20 ranking | Australia achieved a global ranking of 16 out of 127 countries for 2019. This was down one position from the previous report, where Australia was ranked 15th. |
Activity 3.1: Reducing the burden on industry of inefficient regulation
Key achievements This activity consists of initiatives and projects that are intended to reduce the burden on industry of ineffective regulation. It does this by implementing regulatory reform across all levels of government, and ensuring the regulatory environment strikes the right balance between efficient markets and community expectations.
The department led work enhancing standards and regulations, advocating for nationally consistent responses. We facilitated Commonwealth, state and territory agreement to a revised Australian Building Codes Board Intergovernmental Agreement, providing an additional $4 million over 2019–21 ($2 million from the Commonwealth matched by the states and territories) and represented the Commonwealth in ongoing programs to update the National Construction Code, including developing provisions for fire safety in early childhood centres and commercial energy efficiency. We have also commenced the review of the Disability (Access to Premises – Buildings) Standards 2010.
Regulations enacted in December 2019 restored access to ‘Australian Made’ claims for complementary medicines manufactured in Australia, and legislation introduced into Parliament in June 2020 will provide further certainty to the sector. These reforms deliver on the government’s pledge to support an industry with exports in excess of $1 billion.
The department also led the delivery of amendments to the Franchising Code of Conduct to strengthen protection for automotive dealerships, which took effect from 1 June 2020. These seek to establish clear and fair commercial dealings in the new car retailing sector.
Performance criteria and results Table 12 presents the results measured against the performance criteria for Activity 3.1 and its associated Program 1.1 and Program 1.2 (refer to Figure 3), as set out in the former Department of Industry, Innovation and Science’s Corporate Plan 2019–20, page 22.
Table 12: Activity 3.1: Reducing the burden on industry of inefficient regulation
Strategic objective | Performance criterion | 2019–20 target | 2019–20 result |
Reduced burden on industry of inefficient regulation | Working effectively with other portfolios and with state and territory governments to help simplify the process of operating a business in Australia and improve business regulation and services | The department continues to engage with state and territory governments and the Deregulation Taskforce to simplify the process of doing business in Australia. Initiatives implemented by the department over the past 12 months to reduce burden include:
The department will deliver two solutions of the first tranche from Taskforce activities (making it easier for sole traders and microbusinesses to employ their first person and reducing export burden for food manufacturers). | |
Reduce the regulatory burden to resource projects | Number of regulatory and administrative improvements identified and implemented | On track. On 24 March, the Productivity Commission released its draft report into regulation affecting the resources sector and highlighted best practice. The department will support the Australian Government’s response to the final report. The House of Representatives has passed legislation, which has been introduced to the Senate, that will allow effective title administration and regulation of greenhouse gas storage that is located across boundaries between state or territory coastal and Commonwealth waters. | |
Analysis The department has undertaken a portfolio-wide assessment of opportunities to address inefficient regulation. This process involved legislative review, program evaluations and stakeholder engagement. The process resulted in a significant deregulation program, which focuses on: making it easier for businesses to engage with department programs; improving regulation to support investment; and reducing regulatory cost and improving regulator performance. This is in line with the Government’s deregulation agenda.
Reforms implemented over the past year included phasing out the innovation patent system and updating business.gov.au to make business interactions more efficient and productive. Additionally, legislation was passed to allow for effective title administration and regulation of greenhouse gas storage located across boundaries between state or territory coastal and Commonwealth waters.
The department has also been working closely with the Deregulation Taskforce. AusIndustry will be the delivery service for two solutions of the first tranche of Taskforce activities (making it easier for sole traders and microbusinesses to employ their first person and reducing export burden for food manufacturers).
Activity 3.2: Providing better services and information for business
Key achievements This activity consists of initiatives and projects to improve the delivery of services and programs by streamlining and simplifying business services and programs. It includes providing information to assist businesses to grow and improve the ways in which it is delivered.
In 2019–20, the department provided better services and information for business by rapidly responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and recovery phases. This included:
- expanding business.gov.au and the 13 28 46 Contact Centre. We provided whole-of-government support for businesses by extending service hours and specific information related to COVID-19 on business.gov.au, including the COVID-19 Resource Hub
- supporting the expansion of business.gov.au and the 13 28 46 Contact Centre services and undertaking over 180 customer contacts in response to Ministerial requests through the Contact Centre and the National Outreach Network of 29 regional managers and business development officers
- using the COVID-19 Resource Hub to provide information on financial assistance, eligibility and timing for government support, and other relevant information. The hub recorded 4 374 588 sessions between 23 March and 30 June 2020. The COVID-19 content was curated in consultation with lead government agencies and updated daily. The COVID-19 hotline responded to 57 769 contacts from businesses needing assistance
- designing and rolling out a COVID-19 Rapid Response service through the Entrepreneurs’ Programme in late March 2020 to help businesses through the immediate effects of COVID-19. Expert advisers had helped more than 2500 businesses by the end of May 2020. By comparison, approximately 3500 businesses accessed the program’s advisory services annually in previous years
- proactively using the department’s national networks to regularly collect business intelligence and circulating this across government to inform COVID-19 policy and response measures. This included providing regular updates that covered the effect of COVID-19 on supply chains and industry across Australia.
The department also launched a rapid response to the severe impact on businesses of the Black Summer bushfires by:
- using our national service delivery networks, including AusIndustry’s National Outreach Network, the Entrepreneurs’ Programme, business.gov.au, the 13 28 46 Contact Centre and the Business Grants Hub, to provide ongoing support, advice and information to businesses and other customers
- developing and implementing the Entrepreneurs’ Programme’s new Strengthening Business offering, which is providing 21 business experts for bushfire-affected businesses in NSW, South Australia and Victoria. These experts help businesses to recover, rebuild and become more resilient. They listened to what business owners needed and collaborated with expert facilitators, the program’s delivery partners and government bushfire recovery organisations.
Performance criteria and results Table 13 presents the results measured against the performance criteria for Activity 3.2 and its associated Program 1.1 and Program 1.2 (refer to Figure 3), as set out in the former Department of Industry, Innovation and Science’s Corporate Plan 2019–20, page 23.
Table 13: Activity 3.2: Providing better services and information for business
Strategic objective | Performance criterion | 2019–20 target | 2019–20 result |
Deliver better services for business to allow them to get on with business | Phone calls and webchats received by the Contact Centre continue to be answered within 10 seconds | ≥90% | 82% Due to COVID-19, the Contact Centre experienced a fourfold increase in demand between 20 March and 30 April 2020, which resulted in longer wait times. The Contact Centre redirected and recruited agents quickly to meet demand and reduce wait times. Overall service levels would be at 94% if we took out the peak COVID-19 period of 20 March to 30 April 2020. |
Reduce the number of businesses that waste time submitting ineligible applications for business services programs | ≤4% year on year | 13% While overall eligibility for the majority of programs was low, the presence of three large grants with high rates of ineligibility pushed the total percentage that were ineligible much higher. Excluding data for these three outliers from the calculation reduced the percentage of ineligible applications to 7%. We are considering enhancing our new grants management system to help businesses identify early on in their application process whether or not they are eligible for a grant, and stopping them from progressing where they are not. | |
Increase the number of applicants experiencing a digital end-to-end business services application process | 55% | 55% The Business Grants Management (BGM) system is an end-to-end platform used to onboard all grant opportunities into the Business Grants Hub. Around 55% of grant applicants applied through the BGM platform in 2019–20. In 2020–21, it is expected that 95% of applicants will apply for grants through the BGM platform. | |
Applications for registration of R&D activities are processed within:
| 95% of applications for registration of R&D activities are processed within timeframes | 99% of applications for registration of R&D activities were processed within the timeframes. | |
Simplify grants administration, in line with the Streamlining Government Grants Administration Program | Total number of program opportunities onboarded through the Business Grants Hub | 80 | 108 A total of 112 were launched in the financial year, although four were expressions of interest and were not included in the figure. Any programs migrated from the previous Strategic Grants Management System (SGMS) are also excluded from this figure. |
Make it easier for businesses to access government services by improving the efficiency and business experience of program delivery | From late 2019, the department has been migrating programs from the SGMS. This activity is due to be completed by early 2021. It will mean that the department is operating via a single IT system that allows all applicants to manage their grants through one digital end-to-end portal. The Business Grants Hub has also formalised its benefits management framework, which will provide key metrics relating to efficiency and business experience from next financial year. | ||
Analysis The department was well positioned in early 2019–20 to support the design and delivery of internal programs for business, external programs for other government portfolios through the Business Grants Hub, and support/information services via the outreach and business advisor network, Contact Centre and business.gov.au website. We also undertook projects to streamline these services to Australian businesses. Additionally, we began developing a key deregulation agenda component: the Employing Your First Person checklist.
The department quickly pivoted to respond to the severe impact on businesses of the Black Summer bushfires in early December 2019, delivering a range of services to inform and support their immediate needs. The bushfire support services were rapidly repurposed and expanded to address the COVID-19 pandemic that immediately followed. These circumstances changed our ability to deliver our pre-COVID-19 agenda. Based on our deep working relationships with and understanding of business, we acted quickly and flexibly to assist businesses and prepare them to grow beyond the crisis. We shared our industry intelligence across government to support and advise businesses. We collaborated with industry to:
- address critical supply issues
- support local production and manufacturing of personal protective equipment and other medical supplies.
We showcased innovative business responses to the COVID-19 crisis, including through social media and videos.
The changes we made while pivoting to manage the recent crises are now shaping the department’s approach to program development and delivery.
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https://www.transparency.gov.au/annual-reports/department-industry-science-energy-and-resources/reporting-year/2019-20-14