An Australian perspective on reforms

COLOMBO (News 1st) - A public lecture on "Securing Successful Reform: The Role of Institutions" was delivered at the Central Bank of Sri Lanka yesterday (May 9). The lecture was delivered by Prof. Gary Banks, the Former Chairman of Australia's Productivity Commission, who spoke about the Australian perspective on reform. Prof. Gary Banks said even Australia once faced issues on reform in the 70s and 80s. Responding to questions, Prof. Gary Banks also spoke about the independence of commissioners. "Formal independence I think could be guaranteed by statute which meant that commissioners could not be sacked on a whim by the government simply because they were saying things perhaps that the government didn't like or industry was lobbying the government hard because they didn't like what that commissioner was saying," Prof. Gary Banks said.