Opinions
May 2024
Those calling for higher interest rates in Australia should be careful of what they wish for
It seems that some people really want a recession.
Six ways the government can reduce inflation in next week’s budget
It is often said that the only way to reduce inflation is by higher interest rates. That’s not true – the government can also reduce inflation and cost of living pressures
The debate about inflation, interest rates, and the cost of living is broken.
Spreading fear about inflation not falling fast enough distorts the true picture
Poverty is a policy choice – it is time for the government to choose better
If the government decided to make raising Jobseeker a priority in the Budget it would not talk about not being able to afford it, writes Greg Jericho.
.April 2024
NZ started discussing AUKUS involvement in 2021, newly released details reveal
Details released by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet under the Official Information Act reveal New Zealand officials have been considering involvement in AUKUS from the outset.
WA’s gas shortage is a joke – at the public’s expense
Can you imagine Qatar or Saudi Arabia panicking about a gas or oil shortage?
Project 2025, the policy substance behind Trump’s showmanship, reveals a radical plan to reshape the world
In April 2022, conservative American think tank the Heritage Foundation, working with a broad coalition of 50 conservative organisations, launched Project 2025: a plan for the next conservative president of the United States.
The government shouldn’t boast about Australia’s latest CPI figures, but it shouldn’t panic either
Despite what the fearmongers would have you believe, the latest inflation figures showed that inflation remains well under control.
Could the Israel-Gaza war hurt Joe Biden’s chances of re-election? History might provide a guide
When big questions about American foreign policy collide with an election, it’s rarely good news for a sitting president.
Funding Australia’s renewable transition isn’t ‘picking winners’ – it’s securing our future
Last week Anthony Albanese finally announced the government’s major plan for the transition to a renewable energy economy.
Private schools, public subsidies: with $50k fees per child per year, how can tax breaks be justified?
Private schools are competing to see who can boast the most luxurious accoutrements, and the tax-deductions they can claim on constructing buildings are helping them do it. The Scots College is awaiting construction of its new library, which will resemble a Scottish Baronial castle. At one point, they had a hypoxic chamber for altitude simulation sports training. Newington College
Nuclear power in Australia is a really bad idea. The ban ensures that is all it is
You can’t prevent people from having bad ideas and you can’t prevent people from talking about their bad ideas.
Politics could provide a real and long overdue result for Julian Assange
As President Joe Biden walked along the West Colonnade of the White House with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kushida this week, a reporter shouted a question: Did he have a response to Australia’s request that he end Julian Assange’s prosecution?
The Cruelty Is The Point: Australia and the Politics of Empire
Watch Dr Emma Shortis’ address to ‘Night Falls In The Evening Lands: The Assange Epic’ at RMIT University, Melbourne, on 9th March 2024.
Talk of interest rate cuts soon is optimistic – here’s why the RBA may decide doing nothing is safer
Australians are hurting from rate rises more than anyone. But that doesn’t mean the Reserve Bank is about to start cutting.
The carbon con killing koalas
The NSW Labor Government took office promising to create a vast koala sanctuary on the state’s mid-north coast – the Great Koala National Park. Despite the threat of koala extinction in the state, more than a year later the Great Koala National Park is yet to be established.
Video: The Right to Disconnect is NOT Bad for Productivity
The Right to Disconnect legislation being passed recently has attracted criticism from Opposition leader Peter Dutton and business groups, who say it’s bad for productivity. They may need to learn some basic maths, because they couldn’t be more wrong. Centre for Future Work Director Dr Jim Stanford explains. Research indicates the average Australian worker performs
Whether Australia’s budget has a surplus tells us little about the government’s worth – it’s all on the choices made
We are now a month away from the 2024-25 budget. And as with all budgets, the choices made matter much more than any big numbers that get the media attention.
Labor’s pledge to depoliticise the public service is undermined by the government only hearing what it wants to hear on climate change
While last year’s robodebt royal commission exposed a shocking lack of ethics among senior ranks of the Australian public service, the systemic condition still largely seems to be regarded as an aberration.
Don’t worry about a budget surplus, care about the choices in the budget
Budget, Julia Gillard rightly said, are about choices. And those choices are a lot more important than whether or not the budget is in surplus or deficit
Whether you tune in or not, journalism’s a public good that benefits us all
For three years, Meta and Google have paid hundreds of millions of dollars to Australian publishers in exchange for using news content.
Who will Trump pick as his running mate? In 2024, the ‘Veepstakes’ are higher than usual
Being second in line for leadership of the most powerful country in the world is not an easy job.
March 2024
Why the Carbon Myth Industry is bad for farmers
Jigsaw Farms, long held up as a shining star of carbon neutral farming, is no longer carbon neutral, although only just.
The Coalition’s nuclear power crusade is a futile distraction
Nuclear energy really is remarkable.
Who Pays the Piper…Universities Dance to the AUKUS Tune
When AUKUS was announced, the ANU was quick off the mark to cash in.
Fire extinguishers, not guns
The Australian Government should be using its unique position to leverage our close relationship with the United States over the ongoing conflict in Gaza, writes Dr Emma Shortis.
The academic publishing rort
As much as $1 billion in taxpayer funding may be being funnelled into the pockets of for-profit academic publishers every year, writes Dr Kristen Scicluna.
It’s a good thing if Trump doesn’t like us
Instead of worrying about whether Trump hates us, we should be thinking, together, about how to forge a world which remains free of his demagoguery, writes Dr Emma Shortis.
Tasmania’s fear of government debt is hurting the state
Tasmanians have been badly served by its government’s exaggerated fears about the condition of the state budget.
Fixing the work and care crisis means tackling insecure and unpredictable work
The Fair Work Commission is examining how to reduce insecurity and unpredictability in part-time and casual work to help employees better balance work and care. The Commission is reviewing modern awards that set out terms and conditions of employment for many working Australians to consider how workplace relations settings in awards impact on work and
General Enquiries
Emily Bird Office Manager
mail@australiainstitute.org.au
Media Enquiries
Glenn Connley Senior Media Advisor
glenn.connley@australiainstitute.org.au