When the carbon tax came in many people were very worried about the extra cost driving manufactures offshore. However, since this time the exchange rate has risen over 30 per cent and is doing far more damage to manufacturers than the carbon tax ever would. Richard talks to Radio National Sunday Extra about why the

How much do we need to live on? As a society we have a lot of different categories of poor. Both political rhetoric and the implicit assumption in many people’s minds focus on how a person has gotten into that position rather than the state or the need of that person, before we decide how

Richard Denniss talks with Channel 10’s The Project about the price difference for goods bought in Australia compared with many other parts of the world, and why this is causing more and more Australians to shop online.

Richard Denniss talks with Channel 10’s The Project about the price difference for goods bought in Australia compared with many other parts of the world, and why this is causing more and more Australians to shop online.

What is stealing? Is it ok to eat a grape without paying for it but not an apple? What is the dividing line between fairly sampled goods, readily available goods and stealing items to which you have no right? In the third installment of Richard’s ‘Economics and Ethics’ chat with ABC666, he discusses the point

Should Australians spend more on preventative medicine or should they address the shortages in acute care the system faces today? Were the hundreds of millions of dollars spent buying vaccines for bird flu a waste of money or a modest precaution? In the second instalment of Richard’s ‘Economics and Ethics’ chat with ABC666, he discusses

Which industries do you think are the most politically powerful in Australia? This paper examines the influence of the superannuation, mining, banking and gambling industries and concludes that perhaps the real test of power is the ability to get things done without anybody even noticing.  To download the paper, click here To read Ross Gittins’

Human life is often described as ‘priceless’ yet in practice economists regularly estimate the ‘value of a human life and policy decisions are often made with such valuations in mind. In a wide ranging interview with ABC666, The Australia Institute’s Executive Director Dr Richard Denniss discussed how and why economists attempt to value human life

According to the Western Australian government’s own economic assessment, the Browse LNG precinct proposed for James Price Point is likely to have a significant adverse impact on the state’s budget, will employ few local workers and harm the region’s reputation as a tourist destination, a new analysis by The Australia Institute has found. While there

 The macroeconomic case for slowing down the mining boom This paper considers a feature of the mining boom which has been barely considered in the Australian policy debate to date, namely, how fast should the mining construction boom be allowed to develop? To read the paper, click here To read media coverage of the paper,

Since 1973, the system of legal aid in Australia has provided legal assistance for people who would otherwise not be able to afford access to justice. Unfortunately, for much of the time since then the legal aid system has been underfunded. In a new paper, Justice for all: Giving Australians greater access to the legal

We take it for granted: cold, hard cash on demand. Any time. Any place. And if we can’t find an ATM operated by our own bank, then we’re prepared to throw money — big money — at whatever we can find. Whether it be a hole in the wall at our laundromat, or a free-standing

Contrary to popular belief, the policies that are most effective in driving down greenhouse gas emissions actually raise revenue rather than cost the budget money. The Gillard Government has recently scrapped, or wound back, a range of policies designed to help reduce greenhouse gasses in order to ensure the budget returns quickly to surplus. These

Eighty-one per cent (81%) of Australians believe that the idea of a banking super profits tax should be discussed at next year’s Tax Summit, according to a new opinion poll conducted by The Australia Institute. “The Government, the Opposition and the Greens have all supported the need to rein in the excessive profits of the banks.

A new report by The Australia Institute reveals that around one in three Australians are regularly putting one or more everyday bills like utilities, car rego and groceries on their credit card but not paying the balance off in full each month. Categorised as ‘playing catch-up’, these people face higher rates of interest on household

The Australia Institute today welcomed the admission by the Australian Bankers Association that our analysis of banks’ funding costs and how they affect interest rates is accurate. An analysis by The Australia Institute of Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) data shows that despite claims from the banks that their funding costs have been rising faster

Principles for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and improving the wellbeing of most Australians Despite much of the election being allegedly fought on ‘economic management’ neither the ALP nor the Coalition were asked to explain how it was that they simultaneously claimed to be ‘good economic managers’ yet were determined to ignore all economic evidence about

The behaviour of Australia’s biggest banks isn’t getting better. Instead the Australia Institute claims banks have emerged from the financial crisis with more market share and the opportunity to make too much profit.

 Research Fellow and co-author of The case for a universal default superannuation fund, Josh Fear, talks to Life Matters about superannuation fees and how the system could be improved. To listen to the interview, click here.