Govt gives itself high marks
From AAP
01feb02
A FIVE-year snapshot of the NSW government's performance has shown strong job growth, big tax cuts and large spending increases, Treasurer Michael Egan said.
But Opposition treasury spokesman Peter Debnam dismissed the report as an avalanche of data that buried the fact NSW taxes were "going through the roof".
The Council on the Cost and Quality of Government report, commissioned by the government, examined services across all sectors between 1995 and 2000.
Its release was accompanied by statements from every minister applauding its findings.
"The report finds that jobs were boosted in NSW in the five-year period by 298,000," Mr Egan said.
The report also showed a $10 billion reduction in state debt, he said.
The NSW economy grew by about 4.7 per cent annually during the five years, from $189 billion to more than $225 billion, the report said.
But Mr Debnam said the council's resources would be better utilised on "hard-hitting analysis".
"They've just spewed this out knowing it won't get critical analysis in the short term," he said.
"I will certainly be looking through this data in the next year and looking forward to ripping it apart when they issue the pre-election edition in February next year."
The report said there were cuts in tax rates including payroll tax, the stamp duty rate on general insurance, stamp duty exemptions for first home buyers, land tax and reductions in tax rates for racing/sports betting and gaming operations.
But the data showed state tax revenue had increased from $10.9 million to $15.2 million in the five-year period.
"Buried in the back of the report is evidence of [Premier] Bob Carr's rapidly increasing tax take," Mr Debnam said.
"In NSW, we are the highest tax state and we get less value for money than other states."
The report said NSW's unemployment rate fell from 7.8 per cent in 1995/96 to 5.8 per cent in 1999/00, while workers compensation premiums paid by the state government increased from $243 million to $328 million.
Social spending rose by 23 per cent in real terms, and spending on education increased by 14 per cent in the four years to 1999/00, compared with 12.7 per cent for health.
NSW Police Minister Michael Costa said the report showed spending on law and order rose by more than 20 per cent in the four years to 2000, to almost $10 billion.
But the percentage of police at the frontline was up by only five per cent between 1997/98 and 1999/00, the report said