Declaring Australia "overly complacent" and warning that his remarks could cause trouble, the head of the treasury has called for a fresh wave of industrial relations reform, for spending cuts deep enough to slash income tax and for land tax as a replacement for stamp duty.

Commemorating six months in the job by speaking to the Australian Conference of Economists in Brisbane, treasury secretary John Fraser said neither China nor Greece posed a significant threat to Australia's outlook.

Treasury Secretary John Fraser. Credit:Sean Davey

The financial crisis in Greece would be resolved "probably earlier rather than later". The collapse in the Shanghai stock market wasn't unusual by recent standards.

"We have seen many such flurries over the past 10 years or so," he told the conference. "And we tend to forget the Shanghai market remains well above the levels of a year ago."