Mr. Rob Wright:

I think there was some really important value in social partnership. The amazing potential of it was realised in the 1990s. This was a forum for social cohesion on what the country needed to do to move forward together. It was extraordinary and powerful. Even when it was not moving forward in terms of the framework for enhanced competitiveness, it was still a valuable forum for social cohesion. I would say this is a strength of our two countries, that we listen rather than just talk.

The point I was making in the report is that, particularly after the turn of the century, there were some real risks from that process. It stopped building a stronger economy and became an effective forum to engage on spending more money. Looking back, which is always helpful, it created some real challenges. I think it led to a huge increase in the public sector payroll that went beyond what could reasonably have been expected under any other scenario, when pay was benchmarked to private sector wages in an overheated economy. It contributed to that overheating.