Analyse the extent and main ways, with examples, in which the division of fiscal powers between Australian federal and state governments has changed since federation
The type of federation found in Australia is characterised by some articles and scholarly journals as probably the most centralised as compared to the other federations in the known world. This federation is created as among the steps for Australia’s pursuit for decolonisation. ( 2000) In the issue of fiscal powers, the states and the Commonwealth tend to still have distinctions based on the powers on which bestowed by the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act 1900. Specifically, the powers of the both the Commonwealth and the individual federal states are absorbed in s51 and s52 of the Constitution. Basically, these are described as the concurrent and residual powers of these government institutions respectively. Along with the legislating powers, these concurrent and residual powers given by the constitution is also practicable in the fiscal capacities of the state and the Commonwealth. However, in the initial periods of the creation of the federation, the Commonwealth is given the responsibility to assist the individual states. This is manifested in s96 of the Constitution indicating “during the period of ten years after the establishment of the Commonwealth and thereafter until the Parliament otherwise provides” the Commonwealth has to provide assistance in terms of funding and financial aid for the states.
Eventually after the transition period lapsed, the Commonwealth and the Parliament then had the capacity to decide the amount of fiscal revenues and to which state to bestow assistance. However, there are instances where these fiscal transfers had to consult the courts on the legality or the validity. This posed a problem for vital public services in the individual states especially in areas of healthcare. This prompted the Parliament to enact a law indicating the unconditional transfers of fiscal revenues in areas like healthcare between the years of 1981 to 1985. ( 2006)
In the area of tax collection, the scheme that has been implemented since the inception of the federation has created fiscal imbalances. This spawned the Intergovernmental Agreement of Commonwealth-State Financial Relations (IGA). It is in this agreement that new system such as Specific Purpose Payments as well as a new way of handling the tax collections of the States is installed. (2006) Seeing this character of the fiscal powers in Australia, one could surmise that the inherent centralised nature of the federation has been considerably influential in the context of the spending powers of the State and the Commonwealth. This means that the latter still have considerable control over the fiscal powers of the former.
How important have tariffs been for the development of the Australian manufacturing sector? What implications would any further tariff reductions have for Australia’s Economy?
Tariffs, or tax on goods coming from foreign soil, tend to be among the major determinants of investments and certain level of performances in any nation. The rates of tariffs in Australia have been fluctuating since the creation of the federation in 1901. (2003) There are certain elements regarding the state’s control on the rate of tariffs on industries which rely highly on foreign goods. This is especially true in the industrial sector of Australia. (2003) In the same regard, the policies that govern over the manufacturing sector of the said federation have been implicated in the changes and demands of the commercial environment both within and outside the boundaries of Australia. Basically, the varying levels of liberalisation efforts in these policies tend to cover a good bulk of the responses.
There were early attempts to induce some level of protectionism on the Australian manufacturing sector. (1999) pointed out in his study that Australian companies tend to take actions against any possibility of trade liberalisation to keep the local manufacturing industry self-sufficient and sustain a viable means of profit on their part. These manufacturers claim that the industry in the Australian sphere was on its infancy stage such that it requires assistance from the government for protection. This regard of Australian manufacturers as viewed by (1999, 28) has been echoed by the findings of the study of (2003). He noted that the trade liberalisation efforts would not induce any positive efforts for the country, and in particular with the manufacturing sector of the Australia. Nevertheless, though (2003, 49) claim appear to be rather effective and powerful to sustain the arguments of the manufacturers as manifested in the (1999) study, it does not provide a clear indication that any liberalisation efforts will be detrimental to the said sector.
In any case, the findings of the two studies help establish particular facts on the effects of tariffs on the Australian manufacturing sector. Basically, the call for protectionist policies by Australian manufactures implies that the imposition of tariffs would be rather helpful for the industry. Arguing that the industry was still in its infancy stage, having to brace itself to foreign competition would be rather detrimental for local businesses. In the same regard, the findings of (2003) indicated that the industry would not exactly suffer if the government take on liberalisation efforts. This may indicate that those in the manufacturing sector in Australia already have instituted a considerable foundation in the market as of 2003. Local manufacturing companies thus have greatly benefited from the early protectionist policies held by the Commonwealth.
Analyse the roles and functions of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. How important has the ACCC been in fostering national competition policy since 1995?
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is the offshoot of the merger of two state agencies in 1995 in pursuit of implementing the Trade Practices Act 1974 (Cth). Basically, its thrust is to protect consumer rights. However, an added responsibility on its part is to avert any possibilities of anti-competitive behaviours among business entities. In the study of (2002) they noted that the ACCC have the power to arbitrate on disputes between competitors. Normally, this situation could result from breaches on possible stipulations in the TPA. It is the ACCC that enforce these penalties as indicated in the TPA. It has been noted by numerous studies that these penalties are rather severe and harsh to say the least. (2001) The study of (2002) indicated that the competition of the telecommunications sector in the country was also presided over by ACCC. (2001) on the other hand noted that the said government body has also been covering even the service sector. The study noted that even the legal practice sector was under scrutiny of the agency because of reports of anti-competitive conducts on the part of the practitioners. As a result, the area of legal practice has encountered major reforms regarding the removal of barriers to competition.
Other areas of competition that the agency covers include price regulation. For instance, (2006) looked at the actions and decisions made by the ACCC in connection with the energy sector of Australia. Basically, the report pointed out that the price regulation initiatives that ACCC have instituted in the energy generation sector have limited the propensity for companies to operate in a monopolistic level. The regulations with regards to price have encouraged competition with other small companies to compete in the same market as that of the established conglomerates in every state.
These studies have provided a clear picture of the capabilities of the ACCC in its operations. However, there have been accounts referring to the inefficiency of the agency. The most recent is seen in the report of (2006) as they noted that the state regulators have been tougher in implementing and encouraging competition in Australia. This indicates that, regardless of being a federal agency, ACCC has been displaying some level of inadequacy to the point that there are some concerns on its redundancy with the presence of state regulators available.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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