RBA moves goalposts and keeps rates on hold
The Reserve Bank’s shock decision not to cut rates will hurt mortgage holders and the economy.
Their fair share: the tax debate we need to have
By limiting generous tax concessions for the wealthy and collecting revenue from Australia’s natural resources, the Government could fund health and education systems that work properly.
Negative gearing is back, baby!
Positive gearing is so FY21-22.
June 2025
Where the ACT could claw back more than half a billion dollars
The GST was supposed to solve the states and territories’ financial problems.
May 2025
Rates are down (Elinor still can’t afford a house)
Rate cuts are great, but the Government needs to make sure that housing investors aren’t the main beneficiaries.
One way to improve the “dumpster fire of dumb stuff” which is Australia’s housing policy
Everyone agrees we need to do something about housing in Australia. But first we need to ask a very obvious, but often ignored question: what is housing is for?
Five reasons why young Australians should be pissed off
1. Uni graduates pay more in HECS than the gas industry pays in PPRT University used to be free but is now more expensive than ever. After graduating with an arts degree a young Australian will now repay the government around $50,000. Meanwhile, Australia is one of the world’s largest gas exporters, but multinational gas
April 2025
Australia already spends a huge amount on defence
The debate on defence ignores that Australia already spends more than it should.
Migration is not out of control and the figures show it is not to blame for the housing crisis
Migration is not to blame for house prices rising. And neither are Australia’s borders out of control.
The talk about domestic and family violence prevention is big, the funding less so
The amount committed by both political parties to preventing domestic and family violence suggests they believe there are other, more important, priorities.
The Liberal Party’s proposed funds are just boondoggles of budgetary make believe
The announced funds are an exercise in dodgy budgeting and do nothing to properly tax Australia’s mining and gas companies.
Home economics: housing, living standards and the federal election
With housing affordability at an all-time low and the spectre of Trump looming large over our region, Australians’ standard of living will be at the heart of the debate from now until election day.
March 2025
Migrants are not to blame for soaring house prices
The problem of housing affordability is not too many migrants, but too many tax breaks for investors.
Fuel excise cut: bad policy and not worth as much as advertised
Halving the fuel excise is bad for the environment and for most Australians won’t deliver the cost-of-living benefits that are being spruiked.
Nurses pay more tax than the oil and gas companies
Over the 10 years to 2023-24 nurses paid $7bn more in tax than did the oil and gas companies.
February 2025
Stop the steel
We discuss Trump’s new tariffs on steel and aluminium imports and what they’ll mean for Australia.
What’s driving the wealth inequality crisis?
Without addressing the wealth inequality crisis, Australia’s economy and society will suffer.
January 2025
The HAFF is a small start to tackle housing affordability, but investors still get all the breaks
Increasing the number of houses is welcome, but unless the government tackles the expensive tax breaks for investors, housing will remain unaffordable for many.
December 2024
Another hold likely. So, what was the point of the RBA review?
Will the RBA cut interest rates tomorrow? Probably not. It’s Groundhog Day and they’re locked into repeatedly making to same mistake over and over again. A mistake that the recent RBA review criticised them for making just before the pandemic.
Tasmanian MPs rate of pay
Tasmanian MPs have not had a pay increase since 2018.
November 2024
Two new housing policies, both doomed to fail
The government’s latest housing affordability policies, “help to buy” and “build to rent” are the latest in a long line of policies from both major parties that will do nothing to ease the housing crisis.
Research shows people living in rural areas have a much lower life expectancy
The closer you live to the city and the richer your post code, the more likely you are to have a longer life.
How to fix Australia’s broken childcare system so everybody wins
The potential social and economic benefits of early childhood education and care are huge.
September 2024
Profits over people
Big business says wants a more productive economy, but its complaints about industrial relations are really about its profit margins, says Matt Grudnoff.
Nothing in reserve: households “smashed” by rate hikes
The Reserve Bank is home to the experts on monetary policy – but what happens when they get it wrong?
Public spending keeps the economy going as the private sector is hit by rate rises
Fast rising interest rates have slowed the economy so sharply that only government spending is keeping it growing
August 2024
Australians hate gambling ads, so why is the government tiptoeing around a ban?
A tax on the digital giants could be used to support free, public-interest journalism while implementing a total ban on gambling advertising, says Matt Grudnoff.
July 2024
Would you like a recession with that? New Zealand shows the danger of high interest rates
New Zealand’s central bank raised interest rates more than Australia and went into a recession – twice.
Australia wastes billions making housing more expensive
It’s not easy to screw up the housing market this badly – it’s taken Australia decades of bad policy and billions of dollars to get here, Matt Grudnoff says.
Supermarxist? Dutton and the duopoly
The prime minister joked that the Coalition is turning communist, but having strong powers to break up the Coles-Woolies duopoly is sensible economic policy, Matt Grudnoff says.
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