SYDNEY: Restoring borders to pre-pandemic settings and maintaining a flow of
migration to fill jobs and skills gaps are among recommendations in the
Australian Investment Council’s 2022-23 Pre-Budget submission.
“Australia’s economy relies on a dependable and steady flow of non-citizen
skilled migrants, tourists and students to drive economic growth, consumer
spending and job creation so it is critical that visas and skills lists
focus on expediting immigration that will fill skills and jobs gaps where
they are most needed,” said Yasser El-Ansary, Chief Executive of the
Australian Investment Council.
“Introducing visas for foreign students who graduate from Australian
universities in disciplines where there are skills shortages and which
allow them to stay and work in Australia, would make a meaningful
contribution to the development of Australia’s post-pandemic
knowledge-based economy,” Mr El-Ansary said.
Growing digital capability is another policy priority in the Council’s
submission.
“All Australian businesses need to build a strong digital capability to
increase their productivity and competitiveness in both domestic and
international markets. We are recommending a simpler direct additional tax
credit is introduced to enable Australian companies to re-tool through
investment in software and other digital capabilities,” Mr El-Ansary said.
Recommendations put forward in the Australian Investment Council’s
submission focus on regenerating growth across every sector of the
Australian economy through creating jobs, driving innovation, increasing
productivity and maintaining a stable flow of foreign and domestic
investment capital.
Key recommendations in the Council’s submission are outlined below.
Ensure a stable future economy
- Maintain housing pricing growth that is sustainable and in line with real
wages growth.
- Assist first home owners bridge the funding gap on their first home
deposits.
- Work with State Governments to identify impediments to new housing
creation and on targeted programs which don’t place additional pressure on
existing housing prices.
Keep borders open
- Consider the flow of non-citizen skilled migrants, tourists and students
as critical to Australia’s economic recovery and take steps to restore
Australia’s border controls to pre-pandemic settings as soon as possible.
- Extend visas for foreign students who graduate from Australian
universities in disciplines where there are skills shortages, allowing them
to stay and work in Australia to build a pipeline for a new,
knowledge-based economy.
Grow digital capability
- Introduce a simpler direct additional tax credit to enable Australian
companies to re-tool by investing in software and other digital
capabilities.
- Support the working from home economy through investment into further NBN
upgrading of premises from FTTC and HFC to FTTP.
Support innovation
- Introduce matching grants for R&D to boost innovation and growth.
- Implement a ’gold standard’ Patent Box to support the innovation economy.
- Continue to work with industry and government to develop closer
collaboration between industry and universities to accelerate research
commercialisation.
- Fast-track the commitment outlined in the Statement of Principles for Australian Innovation Precincts Report
recommendations to create a future where innovation precincts are an
integral part of the broader national innovation economy by 2030.
Maintain a steady flow of investment capital
- Fast-track the implementation of a new Limited Partnership Collective
Investment Vehicle as the main outstanding component of a globally
competitive fund vehicle regime.
- Consider recommendations for the improvement of the operation of the
Foreign Investment Review Board approval regime to enhance decision
turn-around times.
- Improve existing VCLP and ESVCLP vehicles - The Council recommends the
outstanding technical and interpretative issues in the ESVCLP and VCLP
regimes be adopted and implemented as a priority.
- Work with industry to reduce the uncertainties in the tax treatment of
private capital investment into Australian businesses.
Remove tax inefficiencies
- Consider further reductions to the Australian corporate and individual
tax rates in line with global trends and in order to attract talent to
Australia.
- Work with State and Territory governments to remove inefficient taxes
such as payroll tax and stamp duty.
Build better retirement outcomes
- Provide ASIC with a mandate to conduct a post implementation review of
the RG97 regime to enable any market-facing issues to be identified and
resolved.
Work towards Net-Zero
- Reduce red tape for businesses investing in new technologies to support
the transition to clean energy.
- Support clean energy initiatives for businesses and households.
Secure supply chains
- Continue to invest into national infrastructure to reduce bottlenecks and
ensure goods can flow through domestic ports, rail and road networks
safely, quickly and efficiently.
- Fast-track digital transformation to gain more visibility over supply
chain data.
- Invest in Australian manufacturing and component sourcing capability in
essential products which may be susceptible to global supply chain
disruption.
Protect the economy
- Consider a tax credit or instant asset write-off for expenditure on
enhancing cyber-security capability.
Preparing for future pandemics and disruption
- Create a new Commonwealth agency to specifically deal with future human
biohazards, similar to the US Centre for Diseases Control and Prevention,
to provide a uniform approach across the country, and to provide national
tracking and tracing capability for infections.
- Build additional, dedicated quarantine facilities in close proximity to
all major international airports and health facilities to deal with any
future variants of COVID-19 or any other infectious diseases that may
emerge in the future.
Read the Australian Investment Council’s submission here.
ENDS
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About the Australian Investment Council
The Australian Investment Council is the voice of private capital in
Australia. Private capital investment has played a central role in the
growth and expansion of thousands of businesses, which when combined
represents a multi-billion-dollar contribution to the Australian economy.
Our members are the standard-bearers of professional investment and
include: private equity, venture capital and private credit funds,
alongside institutional investors such as superannuation and sovereign
wealth funds, as well as leading financial, legal and operational advisers. www.aic.co
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