Articles
How parliaments share power | Fact Sheet
Parliaments are made to share power.
September 2024
Australia is a low-tax country | Fact sheet
Australia is one of the lowest-taxing countries in the developed world. While it is sometimes suggested that Australian governments spend too much, the reality is that Australia raises very little tax revenue compared to similar countries. Insofar as Australian governments have a problem balancing revenue and spending, that problem lies in the level of revenue
Extract: Black Witness by Amy McQuire
This is an extract from Black Witness by Amy McQuire, published by University of Queensland Press.
Introducing Policy School!
Join The Australia Institute’s Policy School to learn from experts about key public policy issues and gain tools to effectively advocate for change.
LULUCF explained: Why Australia’s emissions aren’t actually going down
Australia’s emissions reduction claims simply don’t add up.
August 2024
The billboard they didn’t want you to see
While the gas industry has been busy trying to tell you that we need more gas, we’ve been busy countering their spin with facts, especially in Western Australia and the Northern Territory. However, not everyone is as enthusiastic as we are for the message to get out. A billboard too far? We wanted to let
Taxes on tampons, tax breaks for luxury utes: gender in the budget
Last week, the federal government announced plans to define menstrual products as “lifestyle-related” and exclude them from NDIS funding.
Worth a Punt – 2% Levy on Gambling Revenue Could Replace Free-To-Air Advertising Spend
There is widespread public support for banning gambling advertisements on free-to-air media because of the harm caused by gambling. The main objection is that Australia’s free-to-air networks, hit by declining revenues and fragmenting audiences, can’t afford to lose the money. But there’s a simple solution. A small levy on the many billions of dollars gambling
Greedflation: what’s really causing inflation | Joseph Stiglitz on Q+A
Is government spending inflationary?
July 2024
Three glaring holes in the Energy Minister’s Press Club speech
Energy and Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen spoke for an hour at the National Press Club last week in a speech titled “Australia’s Energy Choice in the Critical Decade.” Despite the title, and despite taking questions from Australia’s top journalists, most of Australia’s energy choices didn’t even rate a mention.
Why we need a parliamentary inquiry into South Australia’s proposed new political donation laws
Replacing political donations may sound good in theory, but in practice what matters is who gets the money – and how much they get.
Over 30 organisations urge the Rockliff government to release Tasmania’s decade-overdue State of the Environment Report
Tasmania’s Government has failed to publish a State of the Environment Report since 2009,
despite having a legal obligation to do so every five years.
June 2024
What Assange means for the AUS/US relationship – Dr Emma Shortis on ABC News | Video
“The US-Australia alliance is consistently described as being based on shared democratic values.”
The Minerals Council REALLY wants you to feel good about coal: Spin Bin | Video
The Minerals Council recently released an ad promoting the coal industry in Australia, which uses some figures that don’t stack up.
Webinar: Stop passing the buck -Workers’ compensation and ‘gig’ workers
Workers’ compensation and rehabilitation are amongst the most important legal issues facing the ‘gig’ economy. This reflects the potential vulnerability of these workers and their families, co-workers, and community to harsh and long term consequences from injuries. For a while, it looked like federal industrial policy might ‘solve’ the workers compensation problem by redefining ‘gig’/platform
“I studied economics to better understand the world and equip me with better tools to serve society”
Prof Anis Chowdhury, an Associate of the Centre for Future Work, was recently appointed Emeritus Professor at Western Sydney University, in honour of his decades of influential work in progressive macroeconomics and development economics. Prof Chowdhury’s address on occasion of his installment provides an overview of his evolution as a progressive economist and significant impact on global policy:
The Seamless scheme and developing an Australian circular textiles industry
Every single year in Australia over 200,000 tonnes of textile waste go to landfill, and more than 100,000 tonnes are shipped overseas. Australia must somehow scale this 300,000-tonne mountain of clothing if the nation is to make the textile industry circular by 2030.
Australians buy more clothes than any other country | Video
“We are recommending a tax on fast fashion to protect Australian businesses and also protect the environment.”
“Shocking” near-zero growth a sign that rates are hurting the economy – Jericho
High interest rates have dramatically slowed the economy, pushing many households to their limits, says Greg Jericho.
The fatal flaw in Australia’s renewable energy superpower plan | Video
Digging into details of the Future Made in Australia plan, does the Government’s actions match their rhetoric?
Trump Already Weaponising Guilty Verdict | Video
“This is a narrative that Trump has been running for a long time, saying that the Department of Justice is in particular, but the entire security state is completely corrupt.” “Trump has been really effective at weaponising that narrative and in galvanizing his base in particular.” – International & Security Affairs Senior Researcher Dr Emma
No need for panic over ‘sticky’ inflation: Jericho
Inflation has stopped falling, but there’s no need for a further rate hike, says Greg Jericho.
The future of journalism at stake in Assange case
The United States Government’s indictment of Julian Assange has major implications for the future of public-interest journalism, according to his legal advisor.
May 2024
Majority of Offshore Gas Projects Paid ZERO Royalties | Video
“The Australian public thinks the gas industry should be paying for the gas.” “We can keep doing dumb things if we want to. But if this Government wants to have more money for schools, more money for hospitals…there is a simple tax reform opportunity here.” – Executive Director Richard Denniss on ABC The Business
Great Gas Giveaway Press Conference | David Pocock, Monique Ryan, Richard Denniss
Australia Institute research has found that 56% of gas exported from Australia attracts zero royalty payments, effectively giving a public resource to multinational gas corporations for free. Around 80% of Australia’s gas is exported as liquefied natural gas (LNG). Most of this gas is extracted from gas fields in Commonwealth waters, but the Australian Government
“Extraordinary” No royalties paid on 56% of gas exported from Australia | Video
Gas companies are meant to pay royalties for the right to extract and sell Australian gas. But no royalties are paid on 56% of gas exported from Australia. Report author Mark Ogge joined ABC News to discuss. A new report from the Australia Institute, Australia’s Great Gas Giveaway, shows that over the last four years,
2024 is Election Year
While we could be forgiven for thinking 2024 will be all about American democracy, this year is in fact a big one for democracies across the world, writes Dr Emma Shortis.
These nine popular policies launched in Canberra, so where are they now?
In 2019 the Australia Institute identified ambitious, progressive policies from the Australian Capital Territory, most of which are overwhelmingly popular among all Australians. Five years on, we have an update on how these policies have progressed in Canberra and around Australia.
Video Report: Native Logging continues in the Great Koala National Park
An on-the-ground video investigation into native forest logging and the people trying to protect the last refuges of some of Australia’s most iconic wildlife.
“Smash and Grab”: Backwards Carbon Credits Logic Incentivises Native Forest Logging
Ongoing logging within the boundaries of the proposed Great Koala National Park threatens the survival of endangered species and contradicts conservation efforts, writes Stephen Long.
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