Australia’s long-term economic prosperity is under threat due to a sustained slowdown in productivity growth. Structural challenges have exacerbated this and the policy responses to COVID-19 may have hindered longer-term productivity growth. Renewed reform and innovation could reverse this trend. This paper outlines the issue and explores how Australia can improve its labour productivity.

The New South Wales JobSaver program was a job retention scheme that supported businesses and workers during the 2021 COVID-19 lockdowns by subsidising a proportion of firms’ payroll expenses. But like the federal JobKeeper program, it may have preserved jobs during the lockdown at the cost of poorer future labour market outcomes for the workers...

This report analyses international and Australian evidence to understand the contribution of culture and creativity to productivity and demonstrate it can be enhanced through integrated, innovative policy design.

The evaluation of the JobKeeper payment considered both the impact and processes of the entire payment. The effectiveness of JobKeeper was assessed in terms of achieving its objectives. Lessons learned from the design and implementation were also recorded with a view to informing future policy responses. This report details the key findings of the evaluation.

The Sustainable development report reviews progress made each year on the Sustainable Development Goals since their adoption by the 193 UN Member States in 2015. Midpoint on the way to 2030, this year’s edition takes stock of progress so far, and discusses priorities to restore and accelerate SDG progress.