The mining industry, not Australian workers, should be shouldering the blame for Australia’s flagging productivity growth, according to a new analysis by The Australia Institute. In a speech last night Dr Martin Parkinson, the new head of Treasury, quoted figures showing that Australia’s annual productivity growth slipped from 2.1 per cent in the 1990s to

The online retail boom is overwhelmingly being driven by people wanting to save money despite concerns it hurts local jobs, a new paper by The Australia Institute reveals. The rise and rise of online retail confirms many of the assumptions made about consumer attitudes and behaviour in relation to online shopping. 85 per cent of

The threat by big tobacco companies to slash cigarette prices if the Government presses ahead with its plan to legislate for plain packaging is proof that smokers in Australia are being ripped off to the tune of $500 million per year, according to analysis conducted by The Australia Institute. “The tobacco companies are saying that

The bipartisan obsession with returning the federal budget to surplus has provided a convenient distraction from the genuine debate which is needed in Australia about when we will invest in infrastructure and social welfare, according to a new paper by The Australia Institute released today. Surplus fetish: The political economy of the surplus, deficit and

The Senate Economics Committee report into the banking sector, released today, is a disappointing missed opportunity to initiate much-needed reform to rein in the power of Australia’s big four banks which exploit their market power at the expense of consumers and small businesses, according to The Australia Institute. Senior Research Fellow David Richardson said the

In October 2009 the Australia Institute conducted an online survey of 1,807 main grocery buyers in Australia and New Zealand. Respondents were asked about the food they throw out and their attitudes and behaviour in relation to food waste.

The announcement today that the Gillard Government and the Greens have agreed on the broad architecture of a carbon price mechanism for Australia is a welcome sign of progress on what has been a long march towards a comprehensive approach to tackling climate change in Australia, according to The Australia Institute. The Australia Institute’s Executive

Australian consumers are still spending more than $750 million per year on ATM fees despite attempts by the Reserve Bank to reform the ATM system, a new paper by The Australia Institute reveals. The price of disloyalty: Why competition has failed to lower ATM fees finds that while an overwhelming majority (82%) of Australians believe

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia’s half year report released today shows that interest expenses have increased but by substantially less than official interest rates, an analysis by The Australia Institute has found. This is in contrast to evidence the bank provided to the Senate Economics Committee in December that their interest expenses were increasing by

Confirmation today that Treasury has considered a banking super profits tax is further evidence of the need to discuss such a proposal at the Tax Summit to be held later this year, according to The Australia Institute. Recent polling by the Institute found 81 per cent of Australians want the idea of a bank super

Nearly one in two Australian adults cannot identify their State or Territory flag, according to new survey results released by The Australia Institute. The Australia Institute’s Deputy Director Josh Fear said the survey results add an extra dimension to the recent push by Former Australians of the Year to change the national flag. While 52

In October 2010 the Australia Institute conducted an online survey of 1294 Australians. Survey respondents were asked questions about a range of social issues, including their views on the labelling of products made in Australia. A media release commenting on these findings is also available.

Three in four Australians are confused about the meaning of the term ‘Made in Australia’, despite a new advertising campaign to encourage people to buy locally-produced goods. Survey results released by The Australia Institute show that people’s desire to buy Australian made is often not matched by their understanding of how to do so.

In November 2010 the Australia Institute conducted an online survey of 1,294 Australians. Survey respondents were asked questions about a range of social issues, including their views on voluntary euthanasia.

The Australia Institute today welcomed the Government’s shake up of the superannuation system. “Common sense has finally prevailed,” said the Institute’s Deputy Director Josh Fear. “The overwhelming majority of super fund members want more simplicity not more choice. Since the Howard Government introduced Choice of Fund in 2005, many people have been forced to make

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.

Last year six million, or one in three, Australians received one or more Christmas presents that they never used or later gave away, a new survey by The Australia Institute reveals. Asked about their Christmas gift habits, more than one in four respondents also expect that some of the presents they give this Christmas will

The Government’s announcement of its much anticipated banking reform package is only a small step on the long journey towards a better deal for the customers of Australia’s banks, according to The Australia Institute.

Proponents of a new debate about the role of nuclear power stations in Australia should start with a discussion about their location, said The Australia Institute.

Today is national Go Home On Time Day – the day Australia bucks the trend of working the longest hours in the western world and says no to last-minute meetings and unpaid overtime.

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

The latest round of interest rate rises beyond the Reserve Bank has added $1.2 billion to the big four banks’ profits, according to analysis by The Australia Institute.

Government subsidies for residential solar photovoltaic (PV) energy systems are ineffective, costly and unfair, new research published by The Australia Institute shows. The research, by Andrew Macintosh, Associate Director of the ANU Centre for Climate Law and Policy, and Deb Wilkinson, evaluated the outcomes from the Australian Government’s decade-long residential solar PV rebate program. It

Only one in five Australians are working the hours they want to work, according to new research by The Australia Institute. A survey conducted for national Go Home On Time Day found that half of all survey respondents wanted to work fewer hours than they had worked in the previous week. For those working overtime,

Half of all Australians are suffering from time pressure, with overwork preventing us from keeping healthy and spending time with family, according to new research by The Australia Institute. The research was conducted for this year’s national Go Home On Time Day, which will be held on November 24. Go Home On Time Day is

The Australia Institute welcomes the Federal Opposition’s recent statements about the behaviour of Australia’s banks. “This is a healthy debate to have about the super profits of the big banks and what we should do about them,” said Senior Research Fellow David Richardson.

Today’s class action filed against ANZ is a welcome shot across the bow of the banking industry, which has been gouging customers through exorbitant fees for too long, according to The Australia Institute. Reserve Bank figures show banks charged $1.2 billion in penalty fees alone in 2009, at a cost of approximately $150 per household.

The Coalition’s plan to cut 12,000 jobs from the Commonwealth public service will have a significant impact on regional economies, according to a new analysis released by The Australia Institute today. “Cutting the public service by 12,000 jobs as Tony Abbott has proposed to do via a hiring freeze will have a major impact on

Today’s announcement by the National Australia Bank that it made a cash profit for the June quarter of $1.1 billion, up from $0.9 billion in the same quarter of 2009, shows that the big banks were able to exploit the global financial crisis to increase their profits, according to The Australia Institute. “A 22 per

Australian banks are aggressively encouraging customers to take on more debt regardless of their ability to pay it back, a new survey by The Australia Institute has found. The survey results, published in Money and Power: The case for better regulation in banking, reveal the extraordinary extent to which Australian banks promote consumer debt through