The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry has congratulated Senator Arthur Sinodinos on his appointment as Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science and Greg Hunt on his appointment as Minister for Health and Sport.
James Pearson, CEO of the Australian Chamber, said: “I congratulate Senator Sinodinos and Minister Hunt on their new appointments and look forward to working with them to make Australia a better place in which to do business and for people to get jobs.
“Senator Sinodinos will have several significant policy responsibilities as the new Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science.
“We need policy settings that help Australian industry be more competitive and create job opportunities at a time that innovation is transforming the Australian and global economies.
“On major projects – including in Defence, other parts of government and the private sector – we need to make sure Australian companies have full, fair and reasonable opportunity to compete for work. We need to look for ways to facilitate local content as a significant part of major projects without resorting to distortionary and protectionist policies.
“The arrangements for research and development support are being reviewed, and we encourage the Government to set in place a program that offers suitable incentives to businesses to invest in additional R&D while also protecting the budget.
“The program developed should not require frequent future change, because businesses need stability to plan their R&D activities, which can take years before commercialisation.
“As Minister for Health we encourage Mr Hunt to continue the Government’s efforts to make our health system more sustainable as our population ages. That includes considering the contestability of services funded and provided by government.
“We thank Mr Hunt for his engagement with the Australian Chamber during his time as Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science.
“We also congratulate Senator Scott Ryan on his appointment as Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Cabinet, Ken Wyatt on his appointment as Minister for Aged Care and Indigenous Health and Michael Sukkar on his appointment as Assistant Minister to the Treasurer.”