Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has outlined coalition plans for government, vowing to outdo the Howard administration in cutting business red tape.
Mr Abbott told the Committee for Economic Development of Australia conference in Canberra on Tuesday a coalition government would get spending and taxes down, and increase productivity.
“Not easy, but do-able,” he said.
The opposition is promising to reduce red tape costs of business by at least $1 billion a year by replicating a Victorian program.
In that state every government agency is required to quantify the costs of its compliance and regulatory requirements.
They also are given a target for reducing those costs in order for public servants to receive bonuses.
“So we can and we will do it,” Mr Abbott said.
“I think we can and will do a better job than the Howard government was able to do between 1996 and 2007.”
The coalition would not make vast infrastructure spending commitments such as the national broadband network without published cost-benefit analyses.
There also will be improvements to the workplace relations regime.
“They’ll be careful, they’ll be cautious, they’ll be responsible,” Mr Abbott said, adding changes would be based on an analysis of problems, not on ideology.
“But nevertheless, they will be real.”
A coalition government’s first act would be to fully restore the Australian Building and Construction Commission, axed by the Gillard government.
Mr Abbott said there would be closer engagement with Asia.
“We won’t close down the live cattle industry,” he said.
“We won’t fail to sell uranium to India. We won’t drop the ball when it comes to the study of Asian languages.”
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