Economic reform roundtable: Commbank boss, teal MP among 13 more names added to Jim Chalmer’s invite list

The Government has announced the next invitees to its upcoming roundtable for economic reform, including business leaders, major investors, and a mix of state and independent politicians.

The event, to be held from August 19 to 21 in the cabinet room at Parliament House, will focus on broad reforms to boost productivity, strengthen resilience and improve long-term budget sustainability.

The latest invitations include Commonwealth Bank CEO Matt Comyn, Atlassian co-founder Scott Farquhar, and former Mirvac CEO Susan Lloyd-Hurwitz. Also attending are teal independent MP Allegra Spender, NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey, and former Treasury Secretary Dr Ken Henry.

“The latest round of invitees includes expert voices on economic policy, leaders with broad industry and policy experience, and important perspectives from regulators, the public sector and the states,” Treasurer Jim Chalmers said in a statement.

“It’s an outstanding group of people who we believe will make a big contribution to the future direction of economic reform. They are thought leaders chosen for their ability to contribute meaningfully across a broad range of areas and over each of the three days.”

The Government had already announced invitations to trade union leaders, peak industry groups and the head of the Australian Council of Social Service. Attendees will be briefed by Reserve Bank Governor Michele Bullock and Productivity Commission Chair Danielle Wood, with Treasury Secretary Jenny Wilkinson and Prime Minister’s Department Secretary Steven Kennedy also attending.

With only 25 seats at the table, the event will be tightly held, though officials are expected to observe from the perimeter. Further session-specific invitations are likely to follow, and Treasury is accepting public submissions.

The roundtable comes as Dr Chalmers signals a willingness to revisit politically sensitive issues, declaring the Government has a “mandate for change” despite not campaigning on tax reform at the last election.

“No sensible progress can be made on productivity, resilience or budget sustainability without proper consideration of more tax reform,” he said at his National Press Club address last month.

Dr Chalmers cited intergenerational equity, demographic change and the energy transition as drivers of long-term fiscal pressure, with persistent deficits of up to $40 billion and ballooning debt and interest costs projected over the decade.

While peak business groups have called for a five percentage point cut to the corporate tax rate, Commonwealth Bank’s Mr Comyn told The Nightly in June he did not believe it was necessary to spark business investment.

“Personally, I wouldn’t make changes around the corporate tax,” he said. “Obviously it would be in CBA’s interests, but I think there are higher priorities.”

Instead, he called for simplification of the tax system, greater support for small business and innovation, and a shift in the tax burden away from labour and towards wealth.

“We’ve got to look at the balance between the imposition on labour versus perhaps on wealth,” he said.

Mr Comyn welcomed the Government’s shift in focus from short-term inflation control to long-term reform, and urged business leaders to support difficult policy changes. “Part of the role of business leaders is to advocate for sensible long-term reforms,” he said. “We should be encouraging the Government and hopefully making it easier for them to bring those reforms through, because change isn’t easy.”

He noted business lending had grown strongly but that uncertainty remained a key drag on longer-term investment. He said artificial intelligence held “huge potential” to lift productivity—if both businesses and workers were equipped to adapt.

The roundtable comes amid sobering data from the Productivity Commission, which shows labour productivity at its lowest level in 60 years. Structural budget pressures from an ageing population, decarbonisation and rising public spending are also mounting.

Dr Henry’s invitation was issued just a day after he addressed the National Press Club, where he called for sweeping reform of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. He warned that regulatory delays in approving renewable energy and critical minerals projects were undermining investment and economic resilience.

Of 124 renewable energy projects submitted under the Act, only 28 have been approved or rejected—a bottleneck he said was “a dead weight” on national productivity.

Now chair of the Australian Climate and Biodiversity Foundation, Dr Henry also highlighted the cost of Australia’s declining productivity, estimating it had left the average full-time worker $500,000 worse off over the past 25 years.

As the architect of the 2010 Henry Tax Review—most of which remains unimplemented—Dr Henry said the tax system had become increasingly unfair, placing a growing burden on younger Australians through bracket creep and protection of untaxed wealth held by older cohorts.

“Young workers are being robbed by a tax system that relies increasingly upon fiscal drag,” he said, describing the worsening imbalance as “wilful acts of bastardry.”

Dr Henry said he had worked closely with Ms Spender on her tax policy proposals and attended the Treasurer’s National Press Club address focused on productivity and intergenerational fairness.

The full list of attendees so far is:

• Sue Lloyd-Hurwitz AM, Chair, National Housing Supply and Affordability Council
• Kerry Schott, Chair, Competition Review Expert Advisory Panel
• Matt Comyn, Chief Executive Officer, Commonwealth Bank of Australia
• Scott Farquhar, Chair, Tech Council of Australia
• Cath Bowtell, Chair, IFM Investors
• Ben Wyatt, Board Member, Woodside, and former Treasurer of Western Australia
• Ken Henry AC, Chair, Australian Climate and Biodiversity Foundation
• Andrew Fraser, Chair, Australian Retirement Trust, Chancellor, Griffith University and former Treasurer of Queensland
• Allegra Spender MP, Federal Independent Member for Wentworth
• Daniel Mookhey MLC, Chair, Board of Treasurers and NSW Treasurer
• Gina Cass-Gottlieb, Chair, Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
• Steven Kennedy PSM, Secretary, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
• Jenny Wilkinson PSM, Secretary, Department of the Treasury

Plus those initially invited:

• Danielle Wood, Chair, Productivity Commission
• Sally McManus, Secretary, Australian Council of Trade Unions
• Michele O’Neil, President, Australian Council of Trade Unions
• Liam O’Brien*, Assistant Secretary, Australian Council of Trade Unions
• Joseph Mitchell*, Assistant Secretary, Australian Council of Trade Unions
• Bran Black, Chief Executive Officer, Business Council of Australia
• Andrew McKellar, Chief Executive Officer, Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry
• Innes Willox, Chief Executive Officer, Australian Industry Group
• Matthew Addison, Chair, Council of Small Business Organisations of Australia
• Cassandra Goldie, Australian Council of Social Service