The Commonwealth Government spends over $1 billion annually on consultancies. The advice and reports created by these consultancies should be made publicly available using a Senate order for the production of documents.

The Avoided Deforestation Method is responsible for more than 20 per cent of total Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) that have been issued under the Australian Government’s Emissions Reduction Fund. However, the method has significant integrity issues, and the ACCUs generated by avoided deforestation projects appear to represent non-additional abatement. This has implications for those

Australia’s decision to join with the United States and the United Kingdom to build Australian long-range nuclear-powered submarines (SSNs) has little to do with the defence of Australia. The aim is to make possible an Australian contribution to US battle plans against China which that country will view as profoundly threatening with implications also for

The Australia Institute made a submission on the Winchester South coal mine environmental impact statement. Winchester South is a marginal project.  The economic assessment, astonishingly, does not consider the impact of climate action on the coal market. Optimism bias and management incentives explain why mining approval is being sought despite the weak financial or economic

Welcome to the August 2021 issue of the NEEA Report, and apologies for the long delay since the last issue. Because it is nearly five months since our last issue, this new issue starts with an update in the NEEA estimate of changes in Australia’s total energy combustion emissions up to the end of June

Australia’s universities were uniquely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and recession — including the closure of borders to most international students, the implementation of new COVID-safe instruction practices, and effective exclusion from  Commonwealth support programs like JobKeeper. Now, 18 months after the borders were first closed, things are getting worse for universities, not better. New research from

Mass vaccination is needed to mitigate against the effects of COVID-19 and to help Australia start to ease restrictions. Vaccination ‘passports’ can be an effective way to track vaccination records and status within the population however some key technical, privacy and ethical considerations needs to be addressed to ensure they benefit all Australians. In developing

In July 2021 The Australia Institute surveyed a representative sample of 599 South Australians. Respondents were asked which issue they considered to be the most important in state politics right now and a series of questions on a range of political issues. Results show that the three issues most likely to be deemed important by

Despite worsening climate crises and forecasts of declining coal markets, the NSW Government is proposing to release new areas for coal exploration. New mine proposals near Rylstone would impose significant costs on the local community and be unlikely to bring any economic benefit.

Rarely, if ever, has an Australian Prime Minister relied on statistical modelling as heavily as Scott Morrison. Modelling by the Doherty Institute is the sole piece of evidence on which the Prime Minister has formed the view that it is ‘safe’ to significantly reduce the social distancing measures that have helped Australia keep its death

The Senate Economics References Committee is conducting an inquiry into Australia’s oil and gas reserves. The Australia Institute welcomes the opportunity to make a second submission to this inquiry highlighting recent research on Australia’s oil and gas that relate to the inquiry’s terms of reference published since the original submission. As such it should be

The Australia Institute made a submission to the Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Public Administration inquiry into the COAG Legislation Amendment Bill 2021. The Bill should not be passed. Instead of scrambling to maintain secrecy, the Australian Government should take this opportunity to reflect on National Cabinet: how it is structured, how it might

The current level of floodplain harvesting is inconsistent with legislation. Reducing the practice to lawful levels could be done with minimal economic impact due to the export-oriented and capital-intensive nature of cotton production. Even in cotton producing regions, cotton accounts for less than 5% of jobs. Despite a reputation for high profits, major cotton producers

The effectiveness of TTIQ is likely to be dependent upon case numbers, but current modelling does not take this into account. As cases rise to unplanned levels, current TTIQ assumptions undermine Doherty modelling of Phase 2.

Consultations are beginning around the future of social security payments in remote Australia. This is an opportunity to assess what went wrong in the existing Community Development Program, and to consider a more effective, caring and creative approach to supporting the health, wellbeing, and economic aspirations of Indigenous peoples in remote areas. Authors: Zoe Staines,

In July 2021 The Australia Institute surveyed a representative sample of 599 South Australians. Respondents were asked about electric vehicles (EVs), the government’s proposed Road User Charge (RUC) and potential purchase incentives. Results show that a strong majority of South  Australians agree that EVs are good for the environment and support government efforts to increase the uptake of EVs but would be less likely to switch to an EV if the RUC is introduced.

The Australian Government claims that Australia is leading the world in achieving climate targets and transitioning to renewable energy. New analysis finds Australia’s energy emissions continue to rise, while productivity and decarbonisation rankings fall. Since 2005 Australia has maintained, if not slipped further behind, its OECD counterparts when it comes to the energy transition.

Three in five (60%) Australian’s support requiring subscription-video-on-demand (SVOD) services, like Netflix, Stan and Amazon Prime, to spend at least 20% of their revenue on Australian content, finds new research by the Australia Institute. The Australia Institute surveyed 1,006 people in March and 1,000 in May 2021 through Dynata, with nationally representative samples by gender,

The Australia Institute surveyed a nationally representative sample of 1,006 Australians in March and 1,000 in May 2021 about their use of subscription-video-on-demand (SVOD) services, concerns about their impacts on children and attitudes towards requiring SVODs to provide more Australian content.

The Australia Institute surveyed a nationally representative sample of 1,000 Australians in May 2021 about their social and emotional states since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of these questions were first asked in 2011 and again in April 2020. By providing these polling results, The Australia Institute hopes to assist the committee in

How we tax has a big impact on our society. The decision of what and how much to tax is important. This paper provides policy makers with five principles to evaluate our taxation choices.

The Australia Institute’s submission to the inquiry into parliamentary workplaces focused on the experiences of several of our senior staff in their time as parliamentary staff.

In summary, our submission relates to the following aspects of the Strategy: Strengthening linkages with relevant legislation and policy, particularly in relation to outcomes 2, 4 and 5, and Strengthening inter-sectoral resource sharing through marine spatial planning The need for a State-wide Marine Plan for Tasmania

Unconventional gas in the Northern Territory is unpopular and uneconomic, risking water resources, the climate and taxpayer funds. It provides little revenue and very few jobs. Government-commissioned studies show this is unlikely to change under modelled production scenarios. The recommendations of the Territory’s fracking inquiry are not being met, particularly information programs for Aboriginal people

Culture is an inescapable part of what it means to be human. We can no more imagine a life without the arts than we can imagine a life without language, custom, or ritual. Australia is home to the oldest continuing cultural traditions on the planet, and some of the world’s most renowned actors, musicians and

The Australia Institute surveyed a nationally representative sample of 1,001 Australians about their attitudes towards salmon farming in Tasmania.

The Hume Coal Project is not economically viable and should be rejected. Despite recommending against approval, the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment overstates the economic case for the project.