NSW Treasury 2021-22 NSW Intergenerational Report

[Speaker]

We've come a long way in 40 years and over the next 40 our State will see significant changes. In 1981 the average NSW workers full-time income was $282 per week, the median Sydney house price was $73 000 and average life expectancy was 74 years old. Fast forward to today we've: 

• launched the Opal card
• open the state's first metro line
• introduce the digital driver's license. 

We're building a brand new airport in Sydney's west and are rolling out the nation's largest infrastructure pipeline of more than $100 billion dollars to build a better State. 

Our incomes now average $1 750 per week, the average house price has risen to more than 1 million dollars and average life expectancy has increased to 83 years old. The next 40 years will bring exciting changes to our State as we live longer and wealthier lives. 

In 2061 the NSW economy is projected to reach $1.4 trillion, the median age is expected to be 44 years old and our population will be 40% larger, meaning NSW will need an average of 42 000 new homes each year for the next 40 years. Our workforce will continue to adapt with an estimated 76% of working-age women participating in the workforce.

Our state has always drawn people from all over the world with the UK and Italy being the top source countries in 1981 to China and India joining the UK at the top in 2016. This change in the makeup of our people is set to continue and by 2061 around two thirds of our growth will come from net migration which will be important in slowing the aging of the population. 

As we continue to recover from the impact of COVID-19, the 2021-22 NSW Intergenerational Report (IGR) will help NSW plan for the future and ensure our continued prosperity in the decades ahead.

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