Australia’s economy faces grave threats from climate change, but the greatest threat is if we do not make a serious effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It’s not just the physical impacts of climate…
As Queensland Treasurer Tim Nicholls released the state budget yesterday, one could be excused for not really noticing. Long the poor cousin of Australian Federalism, state budgets rarely get much press…
With the release of a plan to sell and lease $33 billion worth of assets after the next election, the state government has shifted attention away from its budget. Though in truth, it would have been quite…
The key battleground for Labour in tomorrow’s local elections, and indeed in the run-up to next year’s general election is the “cost of living crisis”. With the Conservatives able to claim the credit for…
The Abbott-Hockey government is continuing to budget for a deficit. This means it is pumping more spending into the economy than it is taking out. The amount of this stimulus is being reduced; the size…
Charis Palmer, The Conversation and Emil Jeyaratnam, The Conversation
Since publication this infographic has been amended. The original version stated the NDIS was scaled back. There are no planned cuts to the funding of the NDIS.
The Abbott government has laid out its path to reach a budget surplus near the end of the decade in the face of continued below-trend growth. Stopping short of making deep cuts in the coming years, Treasurer…
In the lead up to the budget, the story of crisis has been hammered home, but there’s more to a country than its structural deficit. So how is Australia doing overall? In this special series, ten writers…
Why does the economic policy pursued or proposed by the Left in Europe often seem so pathetic? The clearest example of this lies just across the channel. France is subject to the same fiscal straitjacket…
Ed Miliband’s goal in addressing the Scottish Labour conference in Perth was straightforward: to promote the campaign for the No vote on the forthcoming referendum on Scottish independence. There are all…
There is good news for George Osborne as he approaches his latest budget speech. The Bank of England is predicting the economy will grow by 3.4% per cent this year and the Office of Budget Responsibility…
When Australia hosts the G20 Leaders’ Summit in November, a top agenda item for its “Brisbane Action Plan” will be “practical actions to improve productivity and competitiveness”. So here’s a good place…
The debate about the future of Australia’s Renewable Energy Target (RET) has largely focused on the issue of immediate costs to business. But if we’re thinking about Australia’s long-term economic interests…
Another record trade deficit for Japan is raising doubts about Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s “Abenomics” strategy for economic revival. The new figures follow poor manufacturing sentiment numbers earlier…
So the International Monetary Fund has revised its economic growth forecast for the UK upwards. It now expects 2.4% growth in the UK this year, up from the 1.9% they predicted a few months back. Cue celebratory…
Tim Mazzarol, The University of Western Australia and Antoine Musu, The University of Western Australia
Last month Queensland Premier Campbell Newman called for expressions of interest to develop a major integrated resort casino precinct within the Brisbane CBD. The vision is for a new casino surrounded…
In both the US and UK, policymakers have been excited to see a small but significant increase in manufacturing activity and exports. While growth in manufacturing jobs has been sporadic, the creation of…
Recent reports would have you believe that Tasmania is a basket case and in desperate need of another bailout. The Fairfax-owned Launceston Examiner recently ran a story headlined “Tasmania’s economy is…
“We have among the lowest of budget deficits and debt to GDP of any other major economies in the developed world… If it’s so bad, Mr Abbott, why have we been given by the three ratings agencies a AAA credit…
Lie (v.) (1) To make a politically unpopular statement; (2) [retrospectively applied] To make a statement which appears inconsistent with a more recent statement, indicating that its maker has changed…