Business Council of Australia

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The Business Council of Australia (BCA) is an employers' organization, which represents the chief executives of approximately 100 large Australian corporations. It was formed in 1983 by the merger of the Business Roundtable - a spin-off of the Committee for Economic Development of Australia - and the Australian Industry Development Association. Its current president is Michael Chaney who also serves as Chairman of the National Australia Bank.

Its stated reason for existence is to give the business community a greater voice in public policy debates about the direction of Australian society.

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[edit] Structure

While all members of the Business Council have equal representation, decision-making is often delegated to the Board, Council Task Forces and the Secretariat.

[edit] Board

The BCA Board has responsibility for the administration of the Secretariat and makes recommendations to the full Business Council on issues concerning membership and Task Force appointments. It is also responsible for identifying policy issues, proposing the Council's policy agenda, and general agenda-setting and policy-making.

Current Business Council Board members are:

The Secretariat comprises the Chief Executive, Deputy Chief Executive and six Directors to support, co-ordinate and facilitate the work of each Task Force. Research assistance and secretarial support is also provided. Current secretariat members are:

  • Ms Katie Lahey, Chief Executive
  • Mr Steven Munchenberg, Deputy Chief Executive
  • Ms Melinda Cilento, Chief Economist
  • Mr Patrick Coleman, Director Policy
  • Ms Allesandra Fabro, Director Policy
  • Ms Freya Marsden, Director Policy
  • Ms Maria Tarrant, Director Policy
  • Mr Mark Triffitt, Director, Strategic Communications

[edit] Policy

The BCA makes no pretence of its philosophical leanings, and openly supports many of the Howard government's more controversial policies, including its industrial relations reforms [1]. The reform agenda of the BCA ranges from industrial relations such as WorkChoices and tax reform, to the more controversial full privatisation of major national and state utilities such as the Snowy Mountains Scheme. It also advocates the privatisation and commodification of water rights.

The BCA works in close coordination with the Council of Australian Governments to effect policy changes. The BCA origins follows a similar line of organisations to that of highly centralised economies, vis a vis the Australian Council of Trade Unions which traced their origins to corporativism, due to the fall in union membership attributable to the loss of manufacturing base, the BCA has been left without a countervailing peak labour organisation to moderate its policies.

[edit] Membership

As of 2006, membership of the BCA totals 105 companies [2], and includes Australia's national telecommunications carrier, Telstra, as well as the the 4 major banks - National Australia Bank, Commonwealth Bank, ANZ and Westpac

[edit] External links

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