The Economics References Committee examined:

Incentives to privatise state or territory assets and recycle the proceeds into new infrastructure, with particular reference to:

(a) the role of the Commonwealth in working with states and territories to fund nation-building infrastructure, including:

(i) the appropriateness of the Commonwealth providing funding, and

(ii) the capacity of the Commonwealth to contribute an additional 15 per cent, or alternative amounts, of reinvested sale proceeds;

(b) the economics of incentives to privatise assets;

(c) what safeguards would be necessary to ensure any privatisations were in the interests of the state or territory, the Commonwealth and the public;

(d) the process for evaluating potential projects and for making recommendations about grants payments, including the application of cost-benefit analyses and measurement of productivity and other benefits;

(e) parliamentary scrutiny;

(f) alternative mechanisms for funding infrastructure development in states and territories;

(g) equity impacts between states and territories arising from Commonwealth incentives for future asset sales; and

(h) any related matter.