The size of the Norfolk Island economy

Abstract

As early as the 1970s the residents of Norfolk Island had achieved a high level of income per head by international standards. The Commonwealth Grants Commission has recently estimated that in 1995?96 Norfolk Island?s per capita GDP was 70 per cent higher than Australia?s. After reviewing earlier measurements of the output of the island, this paper provides a critical evaluation of the Commission?s estimate of GDP and offers an alternative estimate. It uses the alternative to assess how Norfolk Island compares with Australia in per capita income terms and, relatedly, to question the Commission?s findings about the revenue-raising capacity of the Norfolk Island government.