Australia wants G20 to do more for growth

Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott today called on member nations of the G20 group to push harder on reforms and step up growth rather than waste time on making promises and indulging in shadow fights.

Addressing over 380 business leaders from the G20 grouping – an association of the world's biggest economies which includes India – Abbott said the world is yet to recover from the after-effects of the 2008 financial crisis and what is needed is action and not talk.

Australia is the current president of the G20 grouping.

In February, finance ministers from the world's richest countries had agreed to lift economic growth by two per cent over current projections over the next five years, but has not done much to achieve that goal.

Abbott said while several hundred proposed measures had been put forward by member countries, quantity does not always equal quality.

"It's our call to action I'm happy to say signs have been promising," Abbott told the B20 – a meeting of business leaders from G20 countries, on Thursday.

Current estimates suggest these proposals would deliver just over half the extra growth required. But, he said, more is required and that he was confident that all countries would be serious about boosting growth as that meant more prosperity and more jobs.

"We are going back to each country asking them to be a little bit more ambitious," Abbott said on the sidelines of the meeting.

The G20 economies, which together account for more than 85 per cent of the world's GDP, had projected an incremental global growth rate of 2 per cent over the next five years, but the growth strategies put in place by member nations so far will only be able to deliver a less than 1 per cent boost to growth – under half the targeted level – over the period.

Australia, which will host the G20 heads of government summit later this year, has been targeting to ''return the budget to balance'' within four years and, Abbott said, has been pushing the same agenda on other G20 members.

He also made a pitch to the B20 leaders to invest in Australia, citing the country's growing economy – Australia has had 22 years of positive growth and was the only developed economy not to shrink during the financial crisis – and ease of doing business as advantages.

Australia has committed to reducing red tape and 'green tape' – environmental and other non-financial regulations – by 20 per cent over seven years. This year alone, Abbott said, his government had managed to axe over 50,000 pages of ''unnecessary'' laws and regulations.

He also made a strong pitch for further opening up of world trade, asserting that ''no country has ever taxed or subsidised its way to prosperity.''