February 2024
Six Australian Electoral Inventions to Be Proud Of
No modern democracy has shown greater readiness to experiment with various electoral methods than Australia.
Real-time disclosures should replace yearly political donation data dump
The Australia Institute is calling for real-time disclosures of political donations ahead of the Australian Electoral Commission’s annual release of political contributions data for 2022–23.
January 2024
Brace yourselves… US Election 2024
With the Iowa Republican caucus over, the starting gun on the 2024 US Election has fired, with the promise of a dramatic election year, and democracy itself on the ballot. This was recorded on Tuesday 23rd January 2024 and things may have changed since recording. australiainstitute.org.au // @theausinstitute Guest: Dr Emma Shortis, Senior Researcher, International &
If Trump comes back, do we want him as our ally?
“Who in God’s name does he think he is?”
Weapons of mass obstruction hurt democracy
Be it administrative incompetence, secrecy and trickery, the failure of the Morrison government to hand over Cabinet documents about the Iraq War to the National Archives should trigger serious analysis of how Australia enters conflicts, writes Ebony Bennett.
The Pink Test is a feel-good story, but does it help where it’s really needed?
With the federal government announcing a desire to double charitable donations by 2030, Stephen Long examines the potential inefficiency & inequity of relying on charities, rather than governments, to provide essential services.
Truth on Trial: War Crimes and Whistleblowers | Summer Series
Our summer podcast series brings you some of the best conversations from our webinars and live events in 2023. The first person will face trial in relation to Australian war crimes in Afghanistan is David McBride, the whistleblower on trial, not an alleged war criminal. On the eve of David McBride’s trial, a distinguished panel
December 2023
Politics in the Pub: End of Year Wrap | Summer Series
Our summer podcast series brings you some of the best conversations from our webinars and live events in 2023. This year has been a doozy in Australian politics, and we need to talk about it. We invited a panel of distinguished press gallery journalists along to our Politics in the Pub live event, to give
Biden’s Burden: Four Percentage Points, a Struggling Economy and a Fragile Democracy
In the United States, one of the men vying for the presidency faces 91 criminal charges in four concurrent criminal cases.
The Wellbeing Framework needs to come up with more trustworthy ways to measure “Trust in Institutions”
The Wellbeing Framework attempts to measure how well Australians trust their institutions. Unfortunately, the government seems to have chosen measures designed to tell a good story.
Administrative Appeals Tribunal replacement promises qualified appointments made on merit
The Australia Institute’s Democracy & Accountability Program welcomes Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus’ bill to establish the Administrative Review Tribunal and replace the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.
Australia Institute welcomes Government commitment to digital competition
The Australia Institute has welcomed the Australian Government’s response to the ACCC Digital Platform Services inquiry’s fifth interim report.
November 2023
Farmers Unite to Support Water Buybacks as Water Amendment Bill Clears Senate
Farmers and irrigators have joined the Australia Institute in a national campaign to support voluntary buybacks, with the Water Amendment (Restoring Our Rivers) Bill 2023 passing the Senate today, clearing the way for important Murray-Darling basin reforms to become law.
JSCEM report opens door to improved representation
The Australia Institute welcomes the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters’ final report for its inquiry into the conduct of the 2022 election. The report picks up several pieces of Australia Institute research and echoes key recommendations. Key committee recommendations include: A possible inquiry into increasing the size of the House of Representatives to reduce
Sweeping Changes Needed to Reduce Influence of Money in Politics: Report
Politicians and political parties would be subject to rigorous scrutiny around their political finances under sweeping recommendations in a new report released today by the Australia Institute.
Inadequate Electoral Reform Leaves Truth and Transparency Behind
Tasmanians look set to pay one of the highest rates of public funding for election campaigns with the poorest oversight of donations received by political parties, with the Liberals and Labor joining forces to pass electoral reforms in the state’s parliament.
New Report Recommends Statewide Tasmanian Marine Authority
A new Independent Marine Estate Authority with whole-of-government oversight of Tasmania’s Ocean management would be established under a new proposal released today by the Australia Institute.
Australia Institute Welcomes Walkley Award-Winning Journalist Stephen Long
The Australia Institute has today announced the appointment of Walkley Award-winning journalist Stephen Long to the newly established role of Senior Fellow and Contributing Editor.
70% of Australians want ABC Board member appointments from independent selection process
The Australia Institute surveyed a sample of 1,535 Australians about how the Communications Minister makes appointments to the ABC Board.
Green Light For Labor to Immediately Strengthen Tasmania’s Electoral Laws
Tasmania’s Lower House has demonstrated its willingness to immediately consider any amendments made by the Legislative Council to the Electoral Disclosure and Funding Bill 2022 and Electoral Matters (Miscellaneous) Bill 2022
Tasmanian Civil Society Organisations Call for Electoral Reform Before it is Too Late
Tasmania’s leading civil society organisations have today published full-page ads in The Mercury, The Examiner and The Advocate calling for both houses of the Tasmanian Parliament to strengthen the long-awaited electoral reforms and pass them without further delay.
October 2023
The Whistleblower Project | Politics in the Pub
By exposing human rights abuses, government wrongdoing and corporate misconduct, whistleblowers like David McBride and Richard Boyle make Australia a better place. Yet too often in Australia, whistleblowers are prosecuted rather than supported. This was recorded on Tuesday 24th October 2023 and things may have changed since recording. The Australia Institute // @theausinstitute Guests: Kieran
Pork barrelling, jobs for mates considered corruption in eyes of public
Australians consider a wide range of government behaviours as corruption, including cronyism, political expenditure and hobbling or ignoring integrity watchdogs, finds new polling research from the Australia Institute. People are most likely to think corruption is common among state and territory governments (69%), followed by local governments (68%) and the federal government (66%). On Monday
The Lies Have It
Following the Voice Referendum, new Australia Institute research shows that almost nine in ten (87%) Australians want Parliament to pass truth in political advertising laws before the next federal election. This was recorded on Tuesday 17th October 2023 and things may have changed since recording. The Australia Institute // @theausinstitute Guest: Bill Browne, Director, Democracy &
Overwhelming support for truth in political advertising laws following referendum
New research from the Australia Institute shows more than 60 per cent of ‘No’ voters are concerned about the misinformation and disinformation that circulated on social media during the referendum campaign, with more than 80 per cent of that cohort wanting to see truth in political advertising laws in place before the federal election, expected in 2025.
Conflicted Consultants Need Professional Standards, Parliamentary Scrutiny
The Australia Institute will attend a Senate inquiry today to discuss the conflict of interest risks associated with consultants, the need for better oversight and the case for professional standards in the consulting sector.
Is Consultant a ‘Profession?’
As the Senate Inquiry into the management and assurance of integrity by consulting services continues, Labor senator Deb O’Neill and Greens senator Barbara Pocock have been applying the pressure to consulting firms in the hotseat. This was recorded on Wednesday 4th October 2023 and things may have changed since recording. The Australia Institute // @theausinstitute
September 2023
Australia Lags USA in Transparency of Corporate Political Expenditure
A detailed and extensive examination of corporate political expenditure has found that Australia’s publicly-listed companies disclose little information about their political expenditure, lagging well behind their US counterparts.
Victoria’s Electoral Laws Need Truth in Advertising and Fair Rules for New Entrants
Victoria should adopt truth in political advertising and address the unfairness created by its donation cap and public funding model.
Weak WA Climate Bill a Blow to National Emissions Target
Details about the WA Government’s proposed climate change bill demonstrate that it is an inadequate and inappropriate response to the state’s rising energy emissions, and deal a major blow to the Federal Government’s 43% emissions target. Key points: Despite the urgency of climate action, the proposed bill fails to require the WA Government to set
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