Better skills, infrastructure and competition are central to lifting Australia’s productivity, Dr Andrew Leigh MP says. Speaking to Craig Hill on Pub Politics, the Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury backed investment in education, transport and broadband, alongside restrictions on non-compete clauses that prevent workers changing jobs.
Leigh said productivity gains needed to translate into higher wages. He argued that stronger workplace bargaining and greater freedom to move between employers would help workers secure a fairer share of economic growth.
He defended the right to disconnect, saying breaks from work could improve employee engagement and productivity. Leigh said his own staff were not expected to answer emails at all hours, and he sometimes delayed messages to avoid disturbing their weekends.
Higher productivity could also allow shorter working weeks, Leigh said, although arrangements such as four-day weeks should be negotiated between workers and employers. He said the government’s role was to support choice, including through better access to childcare.
Leigh backed denser housing near public transport, saying cities helped people exchange ideas, establish businesses and find opportunities. He supported walkable neighbourhoods that allowed people to live closer to work and spend less time commuting.
In Canberra, Leigh supported a new National Convention Centre, saying the Commonwealth had provided $31 million towards feasibility work. He argued that an improved venue would attract conferences and deliver wider tourism and economic benefits.
Responding to concerns about red tape, Leigh said a 2026 budget package aimed to reduce regulatory burdens by about $10.2 billion. He highlighted efforts to simplify interstate business operations and reduce reporting requirements for charities.
Leigh called for more rigorous testing of government policies through randomised trials. He said the Australian Centre for Evaluation had trained more than 1,000 public servants, with evaluations helping improve services and reduce wasted time.
Artificial intelligence was only one part of the productivity agenda, Leigh said. Education, mechanisation, trade and competition reform remained important, and he said AI accounted for a minority of projected productivity gains in the Intergenerational Report.
Leigh said AI should help people perform their jobs rather than replace them. He cited tools supporting radiologists and handling repetitive legal document searches, while acknowledging the need to monitor risks to employment.
On competition, Leigh said updated merger laws would help the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission scrutinise potentially harmful deals. The aim was to approve low-risk mergers faster while stopping transactions that reduced competition and disadvantaged consumers.
Leigh said online marketplaces already had obligations under Australian Consumer Law. He highlighted stronger penalties and work on consumer guarantees, unfair trading practices, drip pricing and shrinkflation, but did not announce the specific marketplace safeguards sought by the questioner.
Asked about raising the GST to 15 per cent with a compensating rebate, Leigh said his priority was income tax relief for households facing cost-of-living pressures. He argued that any push to increase the GST should come from states and territories, which receive its revenue.
Leigh also questioned charging a higher GST rate on purchases above $500, warning that shoppers could split transactions to avoid it. He said targeted taxes were more practical for large, indivisible purchases such as luxury cars.
He defended distributing GST revenue according to states’ needs rather than where it was collected. Differences in income, geography and service-delivery costs justified fiscal equalisation, he said, alongside arrangements protecting Western Australia’s minimum share.
Asked about increasing the tax-free threshold, Leigh instead pointed to what he described as a new Working Australians tax offset benefiting lower-paid workers. He also highlighted income tax cuts and small-business tax measures, without announcing a threshold increase.
On cannabis, Leigh said Labor had no plans for further federal law reform. He described the issue as a matter for states and territories, noting that views differed across the country.
Leigh listed the push-up challenge, CEO Sleepout and Ironman triathlons among his fundraising activities. However, he ruled out growing a Movember moustache, joking: “I don’t think anyone needs to see me with a moustache.”
For entertainment, Leigh nominated Jimmy Barnes’s Working Class Man and said he and his wife were enjoying Ted Lasso and Nobody Wants This. He named Barbie as a favourite recent film and also praised The Odyssey.
You can see the full interview with Dr Andrew Leigh MP on the Pub Politics Video Podcast at:
This is the latest in a series of interviews with Australian politicians and political commentators. The questions are sourced from the general public through online Q&As on the Australian community of Reddit (AMAs): https://www.reddit.com/r/australian/comments/1xllkcb/ama_video_podcast_andrew_leigh_assistant_minister/
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