The benefit from bringing forward personal income tax cuts would mostly go to high income men. Despite recession job losses affecting women more than men, $2.19–$2.28 of the tax cut will go to men for every $1 that goes to women.

There hasn’t been any wide-ranging public discussion concerning the need for reform of the Tasmanian state taxation system, or what such reform might look like, since the State Tax Review Panel process initiated by then-Treasurer Michael Aird in 2010, and which was abruptly terminated in November 2011.  Tasmania’s state tax system contributes a smaller proportion

New research from The Australia Institute has shown more voters want to see Government spending going towards supporting those looking for work and spending on infrastructure and services than for it to be used to hand out income tax cuts.

The failure of the Commonwealth to confirm that it will maintain funding for community service organisations could threaten up to 12,000 jobs in that sector, at a moment when those services are critical to Australia’s pandemic-damaged economy. That’s the conclusion of new research on the economic importance of Commonwealth pay equity funding, conducted by the

Bringing forward personal income tax cuts would see more than 50% of benefits go to the highest 10% of income earners and 79%-91% of benefits to the top 20% of earners. Just 3%-4% of the benefit would go to the lower half of all income earners. High income earners would save some or all of

Workers in most industries and occupations worry about the effects of accelerating technological change on their employment security and prospects. New digital technologies are being applied to an increasingly diverse and complex array of tasks and jobs – including artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies which can exercise judgment and decision-making powers. Some studies suggest that as many as half of all jobs may be highly vulnerable to automation and computerisation in coming decades. The NSW Legislative Council has established a Select Committee to examine the impact of technological and other change on the future of work in NSW. The Centre for Future Work has lodged a submission.

Submission to the Select Committee on the Impact of Technological Change on the Future of Work

Startling new research from the Centre for Future Work has shown that Australia’s economy is now regressing in its use of new technology, with negative implications for productivity, incomes, and job quality.

The COVID-19 pandemic has ushered in an era of unprecedented disruption and transition. Increased public investment in the skills and earning capabilities of Australians will be critical to our post-pandemic recovery.

New research from the Centre for Future Work reveals that Australia ranks last among all OECD countries for manufacturing self-sufficiency. The COVID-19 pandemic has reminded Australians of the importance of being able to manufacture a full range of essential equipment and supplies; and the COVID recession has created a large economic void that a revitalised manufacturing sector could help to fill in coming years.

Rather than dumping JobKeeper, we can reform it in such a way that more of the payment is clawed back by the government and that can be done by making it taxable at a much higher rate than other business income. This can be achieved very quickly, merely by increasing the rate at which JobKeeper

The Australia Institute modelled the impacts that removing the coronavirus supplement would have on the number of people in poverty. The national results and an explanation of the modelling are available in Poverty in the age of coronavirus. State specific figures can be found in the following reports: Poverty in the age of coronavirus –

Removing the coronavirus supplement in September will push over 600,000 people into poverty including 120,000 children and half a million people who rent or have a mortgage. This will have a profound impact on the lives of many children for the rest of their lives and significantly impact housing and banking in Australia.

Fossil fuels were the worst performing sector in the ASX 300 over the last decade. $100 invested in the fossil fuel dominated S&P ASX 300 Energy index in 2010 was worth just $104 by January 2020, dropping to $51 with COVID. $100 in the wider market peaked at $237, falling to $169 with COVID. Excluding

The health response to COVID-19 has resulted in large increases in measured unemployment and underemployment as well as large falls in the total number of hours worked. While the size of these labour market effects has been widely discussed, the gender distribution of these impacts has not.

The provision of free childcare provides the rarest of economic policy opportunities – it’s both an effective form of fiscal stimulus in the short term and has the capacity to boost the long-term participation rate and, in turn, the long run rate of economic growth.

New research from The Australia Institute has found that the economy and climate change are the two most important issues for voters in the seat of Eden-Monaro, with a majority of voters saying economic stimulus following the COVID-19 crisis should also address and build our resilience to climate change.

Treasury forecasts unemployment rising to 10 per cent in the June quarter and that without the JobKeeper allowance unemployment would be 5 per cent higher at 15 per cent. The Government responded with a series of spending packages with a cumulative total of $193.6 billion. That inevitably means more deficit spending over and the next

Note: This report was edited on 11 February 2025 to fix typos. No significant content has been changed.

COVID-19 had an immediate economic and social effect on all Australians. As businesses shut, state borders closed and millions of Australians lost all or part of their income, State Governments stepped in and provided immediate relief. This report compiles state government spending in support of existing businesses and community organisations in response to the COVID-19

The Australia institute is pleased to make the present submission to the Senate Economics Committee Inquiry into foreign investment proposals. This submission begins with some general thoughts based on earlier work at The Australia Institute. We note that Australia’s history has included rigorous debates about foreign ownership of the Australian economy. Sometimes that debate has taken

With disruptions in international supply chains for essential products (like medical equipment and supplies) disrupted in the current COVID pandemic, Australians have a new appreciation for the importance of retaining a flexible, high-quality, domestic manufacturing capacity. And the ongoing transformation of Australia’s energy industry, with rapid expansion of renewable energy sources, would add momentum to the renaissance of Australian manufacturing.