The Report on Government Services released today by the Productivity Commission examines the performance of all Australian governments in the areas of education, justice, emergency management, health, community services and housing services.

The intention of the Report is to encourage debate about comparative performance, to help identify room for improvement and promote the spread of information on how best to provide the services that account for over $120 billion in government expenditure or 13 per cent of Australia’s gross domestic product.

“The Report on Government Services, now in its thirteenth edition, is a tool for government,” the Report says.

“It has been used for strategic budget and policy planning, and for policy evaluation. Information in the Report has been used to assess the resource needs and resource performance of departments. It has also been used to identify jurisdictions with whom to share information on services.”

This edition of the report features a new ‘Early childhood, education and training’ section, recognising the links between children’s services and education.

For the first time this report includes school learning outcomes information for Indigenous students by remoteness area. The Productivity Commission also suggests there has been a significant improvement in the reporting of health data by Indigenous status, an area where data has been traditionally hard to obtain.

Produced by a Steering Committee of senior officials from Australian, State and Territory governments, the Report is chaired by Gary Banks, Chairman of the Productivity Commission.

To view fact sheets on the Report click here.

To download the Report click here.

Government News magazine will feature analysis of the Report in the March edition.