Competitive neutrality is the principle that a government business should not have a competitive advantage (or disadvantage) as a result of its government ownership. Competitive neutrality policies aim to promote fair and efficient competition between public and private businesses.
In its 2021 White Paper, the NSW Productivity Commission recommended that the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) review the NSW Government’s competitive neutrality policy and processes (recommendation 4.14).
IPART commenced the review in November 2021 and handed its Final Report to the NSW Government in May 2023. The Final Report makes 30 recommendations to address the issues they raised and improve NSW’s competitive neutrality policies and processes.
The policies and processes reviewed include:
- TPP 02-1 – Policy Statement on Competitive Neutrality (PDF 454.71KB)
- TPP 01-2 – Guidelines for pricing of user charges
- Part 4C of the IPART Act (NSW) (1992)
- Section 173 of the Public Works and Procurement Act (NSW) (1912)
- Part 3 of the Public Works and Procurement Regulation 2019
- Pricing and Costing for Council Businesses – a Guide to Competitive Neutrality, July 1997
- NSW Government Policy Statement on the Application of National Competition Policy to Local Government, June 1996
- Department of Local Government - Guidelines on the Management of Competitive Neutrality Complaints, c. 1997
Further information about the review is available on the IPART website.