The Reserve Bank now forecasts real household incomes will take longer to recover than they did during the 1990s recession and is also projecting economic growth at historical lows. Australian consumers are right to feel worried about the future.

The signs are already evident that household consumption is falling despite most mortgage holders yet to feel the full effects of the rate rises. The Reserve Bank however believes more pain is needed.

This February marks an important anniversary in our nation’s electoral history – but for some reason it appears the centenary has approached with remarkably little fanfare from the enduring, occasionally fractious, political couple.

The enormous PEP-11 gas project off Sydney’s northern beaches is back in the headlines and the timing couldn’t be worse for a federal Labor government trying to rush a new climate policy through the parliament; a policy that does nothing to stop new gas and coalmines being built and doesn’t even stop major polluters increasing their emissions. Labor’s Madeline King must now remake the decision made by our undercover resources minister, Scott Morrison.

If the Albanese government were looking for some political cover to remove the chokehold of the $254 billion stage three income tax cuts on the budget, it could do worse than look to the International Monetary Fund’s latest advice.

The cost of mortgages is soaring and households are spending less in the shops – the Reserve Bank should hold off on raising rates again next week

If a pandemic killed 15,000 people and nobody seemed to notice, was it really a pandemic? In Australia last year, COVID-19 killed more people than lung cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, car accidents and drowning combined. And in addition to the 15,000 deaths directly attributed to COVID, the Australian Bureau of Statistics tells us that

Most economists believe inflation has peaked and yet the Reserve Bank is still expected to raise rates next month despite real wages falling by more than 4% last year.

Whether Treasurer Jim Chalmers reforms, restructures, or simply removes the Productivity Commission is, like the commission itself, largely irrelevant. The advisory body that once sat at the vanguard of Australia’s failed experiment with neoliberalism now sits impotently on the sidelines of Australian policy debate. Bizarrely, in rejecting calls for the abolition of the PC this week some

The unemployment rate published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics is an incredibly stable, accurate and reliable indicator of something almost entirely irrelevant. It provides us with 63 years’ worth of raw data on the number of Australians who worked for less than one hour, were actively seeking work and, because they had no caring responsibilities, were available to start work immediately.

Home loans have fallen sharply in the past year, and the rate rises are clearly having a major impact. As such the Reserve Bank needs to wait before raising them again.

The Stage 3 tax cuts will cost $300bn in their first 9 years. A new tool shows how we can spend the money better

The Chubb review talks optimistically about ‘carbon credits’, but we wouldn’t need so many if we weren’t building so many new sources of pollution.

Like Ebenezer Scrooge visiting the site of his neglected gravestone with the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, Australia’s gas industry has realised it has so comprehensively screwed Australians over with its greed that few will mourn its passing. It’s hard to overstate just how badly gas companies and governments have botched the management of

When you reduce the revenue available to fund government services, you inevitably increase inequality

Just as a fish can’t taste the water it swims in, it is hard for Australians to notice how bizarre our climate and energy policy debates have become. We have seemingly abandoned economics, climate science and even opinion polling when it comes to identifying options for reform. The only way forward is what the fossil

The anti-protest laws that have swept the country are a threat to us all, even if you’ve never attended a protest in your life. Governments are writing and passing laws which authorise companies to legally cause harm to our community and environment, while jailing individuals seeking to stop such harm through non-violent protest. The draconian

The spot price for squirrel glider credits in New South Wales last month was $425. That was down a touch from $450 in August, when koala credits were going for $600 – they’d more than tripled since June. These are real market values, reflecting performance and trading activity in a way that’s visually similar to

The build up of savings during the pandemic is over – now we need strong income growth to keep the economy going as the Reserve Bank tries to slow it.

If a flight is so short you don’t have time to finish your complementary cheese and biscuits before having your rubbish whisked away for landing, chances are there’s a more environmentally friendly and convenient way of getting to where you’re going. The French Government’s recent decision to ban short haul domestic flights between cities that

For most of this year, the warnings and news about inflation have been one of hope for the best but experience the worst. Predictions of future inflation growth have continually been revised upwards and with it has been the suggestion that interest rates need to keep rising.

The Climate Change Authority has been strengthened after successive Coalition governments stripped it of its potential, but its role and independence remain in doubt

Momentum is building to fundamentally improve the way we care for and use our coastal waters, ahead of the Australia Institute’s Tasmanian Ocean Summit today.

The latest economic outlook from the OECD highlights the precarious path for Australia over the next few years.

The latest wages price index figures show that for the first time since 2013 wages grew by more than 3% in the past year.

Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine caused a massive surge in gas and LNG prices that have enabled gas companies around the world, including Australia to make record-level profits.

Proposed reforms to Commonwealth industrial relations laws would create more opportunities for collective bargaining to occur on a multi-employer basis, rather than being limited solely to individual workplaces or enterprises. Business groups have attacked this proposal as a dramatic change that would supposedly spark widespread work stoppages and industrial chaos.

The current tightening of monetary policy is undoubtedly having an impact. While it may take some time for the slowing of inflation to flow through to the official CPI figures – especially given the level of inflation that is being imported – the economy is set to slow drastically.

Tasmanian MPs will continue to debate new political donations disclosure laws, and amendments to the Electoral Act, in Parliament next week. But will our elected representatives grab this opportunity to introduce truth in political advertising laws for Tasmania?

In the past 7 months, the Reserve Bank has increased the cash rate by 275 basis points. That is as fast as any time since the RBA became independent. Given the pace of inflation growth, the rises are not wholly without cause, but as policy director, Greg Jericho notes in his Guardian Australia column the main drivers of inflation are now easing, and wages are yet to take off. In that case, should the RBA continue to raise rates given it will only slow the economy further?