Headlines about public funding in an election year are generally accompanied by hi-vis vests, the promise of more jobs and occasionally a bit of Top Gun theme music thrown in for good measure. So it was unusual to see a beachside photo-op with Scott Morrison to announce a “record” $1 billion investment (over nine years)

New research from The Australia Institute shows that virtually no tax or royalty is paid on two thirds of the gas exported from Western Australia. Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) worth $27 billion was exported from WA last year, while only $430m went to the State Government, just 1% of state budget revenue. Twice as much

The return of Summernats to Canberra reminds us the Prime Minister promised Australia would be going into 2022 ‘looking through the front windscreen, not the rear vision mirror’. In reality, National Cabinet seems to be doing the policy equivalent of a burnout (or a doughnut as I called them growing up), spinning its wheels furiously

An unprecedented alliance of irrigation representatives and environment peak bodies have called on the NSW Premier, Treasurer and Environment Minister to oversee changes to Murray Darling water rules. The groups include representatives of a majority of NSW irrigators and the environmental peak bodies of all Basin states. The practice of diverting floodwater, known as floodplain

New research from the Australia Institute and Quit Nukes reveals most major Australian superannuation funds have holdings in nuclear weapons companies, such as Airbus, Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. While many exclude so-called ‘controversial weapons’, they do not include nuclear weapons in the definition and continue to invest in nuclear weapons companies. Nearly one year into

The Australia Institute welcomes the decision by Victorian State Minister for Planning Richard Wynne to reject the Fingerboards Mineral Sands project proposed by Kalbar Resources. Rod Campbell, Research Director at The Australia Institute, was an expert witness in the planning hearings that led to the rejection. He was called by community group Mine-Free Glenaladale. “We

The Fossil Fuelled 5 examines five wealthy nations – the US, Canada, Norway, Australia and the UK – that have a widening gap between their rhetoric on climate action and their plans to expand the production of fossil fuels. The paper gives a snapshot of how each is undermining global efforts to address the climate

“The Federal Government’s new Future Fuels Strategy will struggle to drive up electric vehicles sales and drive down transport emissions. Norway, the global leader on EVs, has driven the transition to cheaper, faster, and cleaner vehicles through credible policies and regulations,” said Richie Merzian, climate & energy program director at the Australia Institute. “The Prime

The COP26 Presidency has stated Monday 8 November in Glasgow will focus on the theme of adaptation, to ensure all countries enhance their resilience in the face of unavoidable climate impacts. Despite updating its National Climate Resilience and Adaptation Strategy ahead of Glasgow, Australia remains especially at risk and lagging significantly behind other countries in

New research from the Australia Institute Climate & Energy Program reveals that planned new gas and coal projects in Australia would result in almost 1.7 billion tonnes of CO2e emissions annually – equivalent to building over 200 new coal power stations. This would be four times the amount of new coal power stations planned by

The Morrison Government’s Net Zero by 2050 deal is a fraud while the Government plots to double coal exports, open vast new gas fields and prop-up coal generated power. Furthermore, the budgetary cost of persuading the National Party to support Scott Morrison’s net zero target are trivial compared to the costs to the economy of

With the impacts of climate change already being felt in the Northern Territory, new research shows the Northern Territory Government’s draft Greenhouse Gas Emissions Offsets Policy should be abandoned or at least heavily revised. A submission from The Australia Institute’s Climate & Energy Program shows that the proposed offset system would undermine existing NT Government

Climate of the Nation 2021 Benchmark Report – Tasmanian supplement Amid the Tasmanian Government’s announcement to legislate net zero by 2030, new research shows Tasmanians have expressed their support for stronger action to prepare for and adapt to the impacts of global warming (61%, compared to 55% nationally), and six in ten (62%) oppose any

In the lead-up to Glasgow COP26, concern about climate change is at an all-time high (75%) and 8 in 10 Australians (82%) support the phase-out of coal fired power stations, according to a new benchmark report released today by the Australia Institute’s Climate & Energy Program. Launched by Chris Bowen MP, the Shadow Minister for

Sometime this month Scott Morrison will announce a net zero by 2050 emissions-reduction target for Australia. This announcement will be made with the expectation of praise. However, much like the world was indifferent when Australia signalled it would no longer be using Kyoto credits to meet its Paris targets, so too will this announcement be

If a tree doesn’t fall in a forest, was the climate really saved? Sadly, such esoteric questions have become the main game in the topsy-turvy world of Australian climate policy, where rising emissions from the oil and gas industry are ‘offset’ by not chopping down trees. The polite term for the creation of dodgy carbon

Fundamental questions of integrity have been raised by the Australia Institute and the Australian Conservation Foundation in regards to the Emissions Reduction Fund’s avoided deforestation method. Rather than investigate the method in question, the regulator has sought to discredit the analysis, and revealed an alarming lack of understanding of its own methodology. A full statement

One in five carbon credits issued by the Federal Government’s $4.5 billion Emission Reduction Fund (ERF) do not represent real abatement and are essentially ‘junk’ credits, according to new research by the Australian Conservation Foundation and the Australia Institute Climate & Energy Program. Key Findings: Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) generated by the ‘avoided deforestation’

The Australia Institute welcomes the WA Government’s decision to end native forest logging and calls for independent inquiries into native forestry in other states. “The end of native forest logging represents not just good environmental policy, but good economic policy,” said Rod Campbell, economist and Research Director at The Australia Institute. “Australia Institute research has

Correspondence between Resource Minister Keith Pitt and civil society groups involved in the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) shows that the Australian Government is walking away from its promise to join the tax transparency initiative for the mining, oil and gas industry. The move comes despite major mining companies and civil society groups supporting Australia’s