Recommendations

The Government should strengthen the analysis and sectoral input made available to decision-makers in relevant domestic policy processes to ensure the impacts on trade and investment are able to be properly taken into account.

The Government should develop a program of national regulatory reform to deal with domestic regulatory impediments and inefficiencies.

The Australian Government should drive national consistency in business requirements for professional services providers in partnership with professional services peak bodies. Consideration should be given to working with one professional services sub-sector first to create a model approach that could then be adopted by other professions.

Recognising that there is no one Minister responsible for most professions, the Government should identify a champion to prosecute national consistency in business requirements for professional service providers through National Cabinet.

The Government should drive a coordinated approach among states and territories to regulation and standards in the resources sector.

The Australian Government should provide ongoing funding for the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) to undertake regular services exports surveys and produce a national dataset, including earnings of Australian foreign affiliates.

The Australian Government should work with industry to build on other activities (such as the Australian International Business Survey) and conduct a services sector specific survey to provide a snapshot that can be combined with existing ABS data to build a better picture of services exports and international practice.

The Australian Government should examine how alternative data sources could help to better understand Australia’s services exports, with the view to developing a robust data asset that provides timely insight into the true value of the services sector.

The Australian Government and Industry should improve data on current creative services exports, impacts on other industries, and research on creative services export potential.

Commission an independent review of Australia’s skilled visa regime. Such a review should consider how to improve processes to engage business and education sector representatives in designing the skilled migration system, and how to better align visa rules with the service sector’s skills requirements.

Lift the restrictions on skilled migration to include people over the age of 50 to improve Australian services firms’ access to qualified personnel.

Continue to streamline the visa system to reduce complexity and costs for services firms when accessing international talent.