Government Responds to Productivity Commission Report

 The Rudd Government has welcomed the Productivity Commissions final report into the contribution of the Not for Profit sector, but without commenting on the report’s recommendations.

The Minister for Community Services, Jenny Macklin, says the important report will help the government identify ways to improve their partnership with the sector to ensure they maximise its contribution to Australia.

Macklin says the report identifies barriers which prevent Not for Profit organisations from getting on with the job. She says it is critical we overcome these barriers, particularly for those organisations that deliver services in the community on behalf of the government.

Parliamentary Secretary for Social Inclusion and the Voluntary Sector, Senator Ursula Stephens, says the report underlines how important the work of volunteers is to the sector.

Senator Stephens says according to the Productivity Commission, more Australians are volunteering, with strong growth in culture and recreation organisations, with nearly 5 million volunteers contributing an additional $14.6 billion in unpaid work.

The Productivity Commission received a terms of reference from the Rudd Government asking it to undertake a study on the contribution of the Not for Profit sector in Australia on 17th March 2009. The final report was handed to the government, on 11th February 2010, and also made publicly available

To view the Productivity Commission report visit - www.pc.gov.au/projects/study/not-for-profit/report