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Articles on Infrastructure

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Anthony Albanese says a returned Labor government would invest in urban rail. AAP/Daniel Munoz

Labor would give rail its proper place: Albanese

Shadow infrastructure minister Anthony Albanese is already mapping out policy for a future Labor government, challenging in particular the priority Tony Abbott has given to roads and stipulating greater…
Right idea, wrong execution: the Ord River irrigation scheme needed better surrounding infrastructure. isthatdave/Wikimedia Commons

To grow agriculture in Australia, farmers need to think like miners

It’s perhaps fitting that mining magnate Andrew Forrest is in the vanguard of a move to position Australia as a major food supplier to China. Fitting, because if the plan is to work, Australian agriculture…
Bombardment of the Gaza Strip is having devastating effects. Mohammed Saber/EPA

The Israeli assault on Gaza: a public health perspective

It is three weeks since the current Israeli offensive against Gaza began on July 8. But it is now eight years since Israel began its blockade of Gaza. Since then unemployment has risen, public infrastructure…
Xi Jinping’s tour through Latin American countries signals the time is right to reassess Chinese investment in Australia. AAP/EPA/Cubadebate

Xi Jinping’s Latin American tour harbours insights for Australia

Chinese President Xi Jinping has just returned from his second state visit to Latin America, having achieved what no other leader could. His dash through Argentina, Brazil, Venezuela, and Cuba has breathed…
Stuck in the past: Sydney’s rail system is crying out for investment, but Australian approaches to fares and funding are out of date. Chris Hale

Public transport has been let down by our reluctance to pay for it

Public transport has a problem with money. Campaigners often argue that mass transit is a public good in its own right, and hence should be very cheap or even free. Mainstream media and even many self-proclaimed…
The government is hoping asset recycling will lead to major infrastructure investments, but its success could lie elsewhere. Stefan Postles/AAP

Asset recycling no dream for Hockey, but efficiency boost likely

UPDATE: This piece originally said the Asset Recycling Initiative had been passed by the Senate. Subsequent to publication, the amended legislation was rejected by the House of Representatives. The piece…
Referring long-term issues to ‘depoliticised’ processes such as commissions of audit does not solve the challenges of political management for governments. AAP/Lukas Coch

To revive long-term democratic thinking we have to innovate

The 2014 federal budget was informed by the need to think long term and was accompanied by austerity rhetoric. Regardless of where you stand on the merit of austerity policy in affecting economic recovery…
A formal, transparent and public assessment of infrastructure benefits and costs is the only way to ensure the right decision are made. Dan Peled/AAP

Realising Abbott’s infrastructure dream will need state support

One of the many challenges facing the Australian economy over the next decade or two concerns investment in transport, electricity, water, communications, health and education, and other infrastructure…
The new Royal Adelaide Hospital, due for completion in 2016, is being built using BIM. RoboSparrow/Flickr

Explainer: what is BIM and is it the future of construction?

It is often argued that Australia’s construction sector productivity is lower than most other developed countries, such as the US. While there are many factors involved, Australia’s overall productivity…
Infrastructure in the Pilbara is a mixture of private and public owned assets. AAP/Will Russell

As slowdown looms, Pilbara will need networks to thrive

The Pilbara has had a remarkable boom in recent years, but with the current slowdown comes questions about its long-term future. The need to diversify the local economy is obvious, but how do you do this…
Industry assistance cuts will have long-term impacts on Australia’s international competitiveness. Image sourced from www.shutterstock.com

Corporate Australia wasn’t really the budget winner after all

The 2014 Budget has been variously celebrated and reviled as a “budget for corporate Australia”. But this assessment is based on the premise that corporate tax cuts and infrastructure spending will provide…
Infrastructure Australia does not rate even one of the budget’s newly funded projects as ‘ready to proceed’ or ‘on the threshold’. Dean Lewins/AAP

Changes help the budget but not the economy

Treasurer Joe Hockey’s first budget creates a clear path almost to a surplus. Our children will pay much less for current spending. Real political courage was required to get this far. But the budget also…
Roads are the way to go for the 2014 federal budget. tim rich and lesley katon/Flickr

Federal budget 2014: infrastructure experts react

The Abbott government has committed an additional A$11.6 billion for an “infrastructure growth package” that is heavy on roads, but aimed at fast-tracking what it considers critical infrastructure. The…
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Infographic: federal budget at a glance

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.
Sydney’s WestConnex will be a big winner from the budget, but Sydney’s infrastructure problems need more than ribbon cutting. Paul Miller/AAP

The budget will be big on infrastructure, but we need more than just roads

The Abbott government is preparing to give Sydney’s WestConnex road project a A$2 billion boost in this week’s federal budget, part of a broader $10 billion infrastructure package aimed at boosting productivity…
The states have signed on to a capital recycling deal but finding projects to apply it to could prove challenging. Alan Porritt/AAP

Capital recycling plan good in theory, difficult in practice

The provision of new infrastructure is a high priority for the Abbott government. It is a worthy cause. New infrastructure will ensure we remain competitive in the international market. Reducing logistics…
Tony Abbott wants to be known as the ‘infrastructure prime minister’. David Crosling/AAP

Infrastructure spending to blame for budget shortfalls

The “massive infrastructure gap” prime minister Tony Abbott has set out to fix does not exist, according to new analysis of state and territory budgets by the Grattan Institute. The analysis found states…

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