NSW Treasury is undertaking an independent evaluation of the 2021-22 COVID-19 business support programs: the COVID-19 business grant, the 2021 JobSaver payment, and the micro-business grant provided during the Delta lockdown from late June 2021 until October 2021.
The independent evaluation, led by John Pierce AO, will examine the efficiency, effectiveness and appropriateness of the three grant programs to determine whether the programs were implemented as intended, were value for money, achieved their outcomes and delivered the programs’ anticipated economic benefits. Lessons learned will be used to inform future policy responses.
The evaluation will explore questions including:
- Given the health, fiscal and economic circumstances at the time the COVID-19 business programs were developed, were the objectives of the programs appropriately defined, targeted and understood by stakeholders?
- To what extent did the program meet its aim of helping NSW businesses preserve jobs and survive the impact of COVID-19 restrictions?
- Did the COVID-19 business support programs get the right balance between the speed of implementation and integrity of the programs given the uncertainty at the time?
- If there was a pandemic again in New South Wales, what would it need to look like in terms of design, delivery and roll out?
Who should provide feedback?
Feedback on the lived experiences of businesses (recipients and non-recipients) as well as from the community will inform the evaluation.
Consultation
Consultation will commence late March 2024 and run until June 2024 and will involve:
- in-person consultations, including roundtables
- written submissions
- online surveys.
Why evaluate?
The NSW Government’s 2021-22 COVID-19 business support programs provided a package of financial support to help ensure a sustainable economic environment in New South Wales at the time of a public health crisis.
Given the size of the grants programs being around $10 billion*, the involvement of multiple NSW Government agencies and the Australian Government in its development, funding and implementation, a comprehensive evaluation of the support programs is being undertaken. The insights and lessons learnt from this will inform future program design in the event of a crisis response, such as a natural disaster or pandemic.
The evaluation will be undertaken in line with NSW Government evaluation guidelines (TPG22-22).
*includes Australian Government contribution to JobSaver
