The 2016 Australian Infrastructure Plan identified several areas for water reform.2 Many of its recommendations have progressed over the past five years, although some remain on Infrastructure Australia's reform agenda.
The 2016 Plan recommended that the Murray-Darling Basin Authority investigate issues inhibiting the efficient functioning of the Basin's water markets. In 2019, the Australian Government asked the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to make recommendations that support markets for tradable water rights in the Murray-Darling Basin.
The ACCC released their final report on 26 March 2021. It addressed enhanced operations, transparency, regulation, competitiveness and efficiency.
One area where progress has been slow since the 2016 Plan is the recommendation to transfer state-owned metropolitan water businesses to private ownership. Infrastructure Australia continues to acknowledge the important role of contestability in supporting innovation and reform, and the important and growing role of the private sector in enabling operations across the sector. Public Private partnerships and collaborative partnerships between water utilities have delivered significant value to consumers and taxpayers.
We recognise that some governments are reluctant to prioritise these reforms against a backdrop of other policy challenges in the sector.