Responsibly investing in health and education

Hospitals

The Government is continuing to invest in hospitals to support essential services provided by the States and Territories.

At the April 2016 Council of Australian Governments meeting, the Commonwealth and the States and Territories signed a three year Heads of Agreement for public hospitals. This agreement preserves important parts of the existing system, including activity based funding and the national efficient price.

The Commonwealth will provide an estimated additional $2.9 billion between 2017-18 and 2019-20 with growth in Commonwealth funding capped at 6.5 per cent a year. This additional funding links to reforms which focus on improving patient safety, boosting the quality of services and reducing avoidable hospital admissions.

This investment is on top of the more than $18 billion a year already budgeted for public hospitals over 2017-18 and 2019-20.

* National Healthcare Specific Purpose Payments and National Health Reform Funding.

Schools

The Government is continuing to provide record levels of financial assistance to State and Territory governments and the non-government schools sector to support all Australian students.

The Government will provide an additional $1.2 billion between 2018 and 2020 for schools, contingent upon reform efforts by the States and Territories and the non-government schools sector to improve education outcomes.

This investment is on top of the more than $17 billion a year already budgeted for schools over 2018 to 2020.

* National Specific Purpose Payments for schools.

Sustainable funding

This funding for hospitals and schools provides an opportunity to develop longer-term funding arrangements and further reforms that focus on quality and sustainability into the future.

Responsibly investing in social services

Providing a platform to improve our quality of life

Priority investment approach to welfare (Try, Test and Learn Fund)

The Government's new $96.1 million ‘Try, Test and Learn Fund’ (the Fund) will finance innovative policies to help the Government identify groups at risk of long term welfare dependency and assist them to move off welfare to employment. This approach aims to ensure that the Government funds programmes that actually deliver outcomes and cease or reform programmes that are shown to be ineffective.

The policies will be aimed at addressing barriers to participation and supporting people with the capacity to work to do so.

The Fund will be based on actuarial and other analysis that supports an investment approach to welfare. It builds on an initial $33.7 million provided in the 2015-16 Budget to develop a detailed annual actuarial valuation of the lifetime liability of Australia's welfare system and maintain key longitudinal surveys.

ICT projects

The Government understands that effective digital infrastructure and systems are critical to reaping the benefits from today's digital economy. The Government continues to deliver the National Broadband Network faster and at less cost, to enable all Australians to connect to transformative services online.

The government has established a Digital Transformation Agenda, investing $254.7 million from 2015-16, to put people and business first in digital service delivery. The Government is investing in the digital capabilities of those agencies and systems that touch on all Australians. Investments in the Welfare Payment Infrastructure Transformation programme, Australia's e-health record system, and the data and analytics capability of the Australian Taxation Office represent the Government's commitment to front and back-end changes that will improve Australians' engagement with government on a daily basis.

A stronger financial system

Regulatory costs to strengthen the Australian Securities and Investments Commission will be paid by those in the industry

Strengthening the Australian Securities and Investments Commission

The Government has announced a $127 million package of reforms to strengthen the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), providing new powers and surveillance capabilities to combat misconduct in Australia's financial services industry and bolster consumer confidence in the sector.

The Government will cost recover through a new industry funding model for ASIC, to commence in the second half of 2017. Industry funding ensures that the costs of regulation are paid by those entities rather than ordinary Australians who tend to bear the brunt of financial sector misconduct. Banks will be the largest contributors reflecting their large market share of the financial system.

The package includes: $61.1 million to enhance ASIC's data analytics and surveillance capabilities; $57 million to boost ASIC's surveillance and enforcement; and $9.2 million to accelerate the implementation of measures recommended by the Financial System Inquiry.

An improved financial system

A resilient and innovative financial system is an essential part of our dynamic, modern economy. The strength of our financial sector underpinned Australia's relatively smooth passage through the global financial crisis. The Government's October 2015 response to the Financial System Inquiry further strengthens Australia's financial system.

The Government endorsed the Inquiry's recommendations that the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority set capital levels such that our banks are unquestionably strong. Higher levels of capital strengthen investor confidence and reduce the cost to taxpayers in the event of a financial institution's failure.