It is commonplace in Australian policy debates for groups who think they will be adversely affected by proposed policies to provide estimates of the undesirable consequences of change. A popular and fashionable form relates to predictions of job losses for the groups affected, usually accompanied by counter-claims made by the government of the day or

Independent ideas can only come from independent funding, so last month we asked you to help fund such ideas by making a tax-deductible end of financial year donation to the Australia Institute. In exciting news, the Institute has been offered a ‘Challenge Grant’ from a wonderfully generous supporter who is willing to give us $20,000

Help us conduct more ‘research that matters’ with an End of Financial Year donation Richard’s reflections on the federal budget Recent publications Recent media Help us conduct more ‘research that matters’ with an End of Financial Year donation The Treasurer has just done the books for Australia and many of you will be preparing to

Why the obsession with a budget surplus?, The Drum, 9 May ‘Green jobs’ won’t save the debate, Climate Spectator, 6 May Retailers battered by online shopping, ABC Radio National Breakfast, 9 May Dick Smith’s foreign food fightback, A Current Affair, 12 May Go back to Between the Lines

Surplus fetish: The political economy of the surplus, deficit and debt, D Richardson, 9 May The industries that cried wolf, R Denniss, 18 April The price of disloyalty: Why competition has failed to lower ATM fees, J Fear, 17 February Complementary or contradictory? An analysis of the design of climate policies in Australia, R Denniss

Once upon a time the justification for delivering the federal budget speech at 7.30pm was so that the stock market and money market would have time to absorb the information before the next day’s trading began. But these days, with many Australian shares listed on international stock exchanges and the Australian dollar traded just as

The Treasurer has just done the books for Australia and many of you will be preparing to do your own as the end of the financial year approaches. Don’t forget that all donations of $2 and above to The Australia Institute are tax-deductible. Independent ideas can only come from independent funding. While you will be

Australia: a low-tax country The industries that cried wolf High stakes in gambling reform Recent publications Recent media Australia: a low-tax country  The federal budget will be handed down in a fortnight’s time and the Treasurer Wayne Swan has taken to the airwaves to warn us it will be lean and “unpopular”. Predictably, the Government

The high price of ATM promiscuity, ABC The National Interest, 8 April Hiding $50b: down periscope, The Canberra Times, 29 April Revealed: banks escape tough rules, The Age, 27 April Go back to Between the Lines

The industries that cried wolf, R Denniss, 18 April The price of disloyalty: Why competition has failed to lower ATM fees, J Fear, 17 February Complementary or contradictory? An analysis of the design of climate policies in Australia, R Denniss and A Macintosh, 9 February Go back to Between the Lines

No doubt inspired by the success of the mining sector in its fight against the Government’s Resource Super Profits Tax , ClubsAustralia recently tried to flex its muscles by launching a $20 million campaign against the Government’s proposed gambling reforms instigated by Independent MP Andrew Wilkie . The blokey ‘It’s un-Australian’ ad warned punters that

 As a child, the story of the boy who cried wolf would have kept many of us from telling fibs or raising a false alarm. Yet, in the adult world of business it seems Aesop’s fable doesn’t carry much weight, or at least when it comes to discussing the impact of putting a price on

 The federal budget will be handed down in a fortnight’s time and the Treasurer Wayne Swan has taken to the airwaves to warn us it will be lean and “unpopular”. The recent natural disasters have cut $9 billion from economic output and tax collections are down this financial year by $4.5 billion. But, the Treasurer

Nuclear industry hedging its bets on safety Just how important is the mining sector to Australia? The hidden unemployed Do you or your colleagues need to know more about economics? New contact details for The Australia Institute Nuclear industry hedging its bets on safety As Japan faces the aftermath of the triple tragedies of earthquake,

New courses offered by The Australia Institute The Australia Institute offers tailored courses on understanding economic concepts and how they apply to your specific circumstances. Whether you’re involved in the creation of policy, advocacy or you just need to understand some economics to better do your job the Australia Institute can provide a course to

Level 1 Endeavour House, 1 Franklin St  ManukaACT 2603 AUSTRALIA  Tel +61 2 6130 0530

The official (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate now stands at 5 per cent and there is talk again that Australia has virtually attained full employment. However, other labour market data released in March shows that the official figures hide the real extent of unemployment in Australia.  For example, while the number of unemployed at the moment

Just how important is the mining sector to Australia? Sure, we all know that Australia is in the midst of a mining boom but does it deserve to be considered the darling of the economy? New figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) show that in the year to February 2011 305,700 jobs were

As Japan faces the aftermath of the triple tragedies of earthquake, tsunami and nuclear pollution the world is again forced to confront the consequences of the faith it has placed in nuclear energy. While the public is largely united in its desire to move away from nuclear energy the uranium industry remains upbeat in its

This edition of the Institute’s newsletter looks at the foundations of Australian attitudes to boat people, patenting human genes, the politics behind the carbon tax, what “Made in Australia” really means and the consequences of high ATM fees. It also examines gambling revenue and the consequences that gambling reform will have on state and territory

Between the Lines is the Institute’s selective analysis of the policies and politics affecting the wellbeing of Australians. This edition looks at ATM fees, children in detention and the prime ministership of Kevin Rudd.

We start the year by considering what the role of government ought to be. Despite some spectacular failures of government policy in 2010 there is still a valuable and important place for bold ideas and the ambition to act collectively.

What a year it has been! We’ve witnessed the fall of a Prime Minister, the rise of a woman to the top job, a hung Parliament, a drawn AFL final, a visit from Oprah, the Wikileaks exposé and supposedly a ‘new paradigm’. 2010 has had something for everyone. For The Australia Institute it has been

This edition of the Institute’s newsletter looks at 2010 in review, the consequences of ongoing work-life imbalance, the recent mortgage rate rise, Christmas public holiday pay, poverty traps and an article by Georgia Miller from Friends of the Earth on why we should approach nanotechnology with circumspection.

Between the Lines is the Institute’s selective analysis of the policies and politics affecting the wellbeing of Australians. This edition looks at reforming the banking sector and financial behaviour.

A new network of community groups has been launched calling for all stakeholder voices to be heard when it comes to reforms to banking and finance. The Australian Financial Integrity Network (AusFIN) has launched the following Charter that they say should guide the Government and the industry in implementing changes to banking and finance that

Between the Lines is the Institute’s selective analysis of the policies and politics affecting the wellbeing of Australians. This edition looks at work-life balance and national Go Home On Time Day.

Between the Lines is the Institute’s selective analysis of the policies and politics affecting the wellbeing of Australians. This edition looks at Anti-Poverty Week, in particular the number of people missing out on government assistance they’re entitled to, and the poverty traps that exist in Australia’s tax system. It also considers whether the self-regulation of

This edition of the Institute’s newsletter looks at the 2010 federal election, the market power of Australia’s big four banks, green jobs, income quarantining, the case for a carbon price and a review of Nobel-prize winning economist Jospeh Stiglitz lecture at the Sydney Opera House.

Between the lines is the Institute’s selective analysis of the policies and politics affecting the wellbeing of Australians. This edition looks at the 2010 federal election and the history of referenda in Australia.