Research
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Economics
- Banking & Finance
- Employment & Unemployment
- Future of Work
- Gender at Work
- Gig Economy
- Industry & Sector Policies
- Inequality
- Infrastructure & Construction
- Insecure & Precarious Work
- Labour Standards & Workers' Rights
- Macroeconomics
- Population & Migration
- Public Sector, Procurement & Privatisation
- Retirement
- Science & Technology
- Social Security & Welfare
- Tax, Spending & the Budget
- Unions & Collective Bargaining
- Wages & Entitlements
- Young Workers
- Climate & Energy
- Democracy & Accountability
- Environment
- International & Security Affairs
- Law, Society & Culture
July 2015
Submission: Report on proposed Watermark Coal Project
The Australia Institute made written and in-person submissions to the Planning Assessment Commission on Shenhua’s Watermark coal project in June 2014. The economic and agricultural assessment in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Watermark project is flawed. It is based on biased modelling techniques and ignores the risks the project presents to the region’s
The goon show – How the tax system works to subsidise cheap wine and alcohol consumption
This paper presents an overview of the Wine Equalisation Tax (WET) in Australia and compares the current system with some reform alternatives and systems in other countries. When the GST was introduced in July 2000, wine products were given special tax status. While beer and spirits attract an excise based on the volume of alcohol
Submission: Warkworth and Mount Thorley Continuation Projects
The Australia Institute made a presentation to the Planning and Assessment Commission for the Warkworth Continuation Project in Singleton on December 18 2014. Independent assessment has shown several times that the benefits of the Warkworth Project do not outweigh its considerable environmental and social costs. Judges, peer reviewers and the wider community have found deep
Power down II – Australia’s electricity demand
Power Down, Australia Institute Paper 14, analysed the changes in electricity demand in Australia’s National Electricity Market (NEM) between 2006 and 2013. Since 2010, electricity demand has been characterised by an entirely unprecedented steady fall in the total quantity of electricity consumed each year. Power Down concluded that a number of different factors had contributed
How does sustainable banking add up?
This report examines both the sustainability in the Australian and global banking sectors and the assessment indicators. Specifically, it assesses self-regulatory and voluntary measures aimed at producing socially and environmentally responsible banking.
June 2015
Submission on 2015 Tax Discussion Paper
The Tax White Paper is an opportunity to look at areas where the tax system is failing and how to improve it. There are many ways Australia can tax smarter and reduce distortions that the current tax system creates. The Australia Institute has identified a number of areas for reform, outlined in our recent paper
Submission to the Inquiry into Home Ownership
Housing affordability is a complex issue with many moving parts. While some parts of the problem are beyond the domain of the federal government, in particular the supply of land, the federal government can play an important role in helping make housing more affordable. Loans for residential rental property have expanded rapidly, increasing from 16
Climate of the Nation 2015: Australian attitudes on climate change
Since 2007, The Climate Institute has produced Climate of the Nation research, which captures the nation’s pulse on climate change, its impacts and solutions. This year’s results show increasing awareness of the cause and impacts of climate change, strengthening support for renewable energy and carbon pollution regulation, and a greater call for government action.
Get Regular Excise:The case to reindex the fuel excise
The Howard Government decision in 2001 to cut indexation has cost the budget more than $46 billion in tax revenue to date. If no change is made the total cost to the budget is projected to top $160 billion by 2025. Additional carbon dioxide emissions attributable to the policy are projected to reach 16 million
Outclassed: How Queensland’s schools and social services are affected by mining industry assistance and lobbying
Queensland spends less on social services than the rest of Australia in per capita terms, despite being a large state with a growing population. In the major areas of health and education, Queensland spends less per person than any other state except NSW and Victoria – both of which benefit from large populations in relatively
Powers of deduction: Tax deductions, environmental organisations and the mining industry
Donations to environment organisations in Australia are tax deductible as long as the organisation in question is listed on the Commonwealth Register of Environmental Organisations. This listing gives an organisation Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status. A parliamentary inquiry is looking into the Register, largely at the behest of the mining industry. Parts of the mining
Leading by Degrees: Universities and Fossil Fuel Divestment
This report begins by outlining the fast growing campus divestment movement, globally and in Australia, and explores the debate about the ‘moral university’ and fossil fuels. It then explores the first national poll to assess public attitudes towards universities’ ethics and investments, conducted following the national controversy around the ANU divestment decision. The survey data
Submission: Springvale Planning Assessment Commission
The Australia Institute made a submission to the Planning Assessment Commission on the Springvale Colliery Extension Proposal. Our submission relates to the various economic assessments and reviews of economic assessments in relation to this project. Controversy has surrounded the economic assessment of the Springvale project, resulting in various assessments, submissions, responses and reviews. None of
May 2015
Tax: the need for change
Prior to the 2014 Budget the Government asked the Shepherd Commission of Audit to report on public spending. They did not include in its remit the cost of tax expenditures – money which could be collected but, because of concessions, is not.
Pensions and superannuation: the need for change
The Abbott Government, as part of its ‘budget repair’ efforts, wanted in the 2014 Budget to increase the pension age to 70 and to restrict pension indexation to the price index, meaning that the pension will fall relative to general community standards. It has now walked away from CPI indexation in the face of overwhelming
Do we need to burn forests to save the environment
The Renewable Energy Target (RET) requires electricity retailers to purchase a specified amount of renewable energy (the target) from certified generators of renewable energy. At present burning native woodchips or other biomass, is not a certified form of renewable energy under the RET. Including biomass burning in the RET will cause a number of direct
A super waste of money: Redesigning super tax concessions
Super tax concessions are increasingly being used by high income earners as a way of minimising their tax. This is not their original purpose. They were designed to encourage people to save for their retirement so they would be more self-reliant and less dependent on taxpayers. Assistant Treasurer, Kelly O’Dwyer, describes Super Tax Concessions as
It’s the revenue stupid: Ideas for a brighter budget
The government has claimed there are no alternatives to its budget vision and called on the senate crossbenchers to stop blocking its budget measures or find alternatives that stack up. This paper aims to do just that. In order to help the government out and shift debate back to good budgetary policy, The Australia Institute
April 2015
Who’s getting negative? The benefits of negative gearing by federal electorate
While a large number of people take advantage of negative gearing for residential investment properties in Australia, the majority of the benefits are more narrowly focused. A previous paper by the Australia Institute looked at how the benefit of negative gearing was distributed by income and aged groups. It also looked at how negative gearing
Top Gears: How negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount benefit drive up house prices
Modelling from NATSEM featured in a new report from The Australia Institute, commissioned by GetUp, reveals that more than half (55%) of the benefit of capital gains discount and negative gearing goes to the top 10% of income earners. Australia is one of only three OECD countries with this type of negative gearing regime. Working
Franking Credits Briefing Paper
Franking credits are worth about $30 billion per year in Australia. About $10 billion go to households and another $10 billion go to superannuation funds, trusts and charities. The remaining $10 billion go to other Australian companies. The international evidence shows that Australia is extremely generous when it comes to franking credits. But which are
Corporate tax avoidance inquiry: Submission
‘Now of course I am minimizing my tax and if anybody in this country doesn’t minimize their tax they want their heads read…’ – Kerry Packer giving evidence to the 1991 House of Representatives Committee of Inquiry into the Australian Print Media Industry when questioned about his tax payments. On 2 October 2014 the Senate referred an
Closing the tax loopholes: A Buffett rule for Australia
The report examines merits of a “Buffet rule” for Australia. The rule is named after billionaire investor Warren Buffett, who commented that his secretary should not pay a higher average rate of tax than he does. This paper is the first in a series of policy proposals that would not only reduce Australia’s budget deficit,
March 2015
The great Australian lockout: Inequality in the housing market
A new research paper from The Australia Institute reveals that home ownership rates in Australia are falling across all age groups, most significantly for people in their 50’s. Middle income earners are experiencing the sharpest decline in ownership rates. Housing affordability issues have changed the makeup of the housing market over the last decade. Not
Australia’s Tobin Tax: Arguments and evidence
The Australia Institute Policy Brief outlines: A tax on financial transactions, known as a “Tobin” tax, could protect superannuation, investors, and improve the operation of Australia’s capital markets and provide a source of tax revenue of over $1 billion per year. Tobin taxes or some form of financial transaction tax are in effect in over
Population Growth in Australia
The new report from The Australia Institute, Population Growth in Australia, reveals: · Population growth rate has increased above historic trends, largely due to immigration. · The ABS predicts population will be around 40 million in 2061 and up to 70 million by 2101. · Almost all of these people will live in major cities.
Not ‘how high’ but ‘for what’?
Submission to Senate Inquiries on the Higher Education and Research Reform Bill 2014 The debate about how high fees could go under deregulation has largely missed a more important question. When students pay more, what will they be paying for? If the HELP system is a way to pay for a service, shouldn’t higher HELP
Everyday Sexism
New research, released on the eve of International Women’s Day, finds that nine in ten Australian women have experienced street harassment and modify their behaviour in response. Actions women are taking for their personal safety include everything from crossing the street to avoid strangers, to pretending to have a conversation on their phone, to grasping
Coal in the Southern Highlands economy
Mining plays a small role in the economy of the Southern Highlands. The major employing industries are service industries, manufacturing and construction. While tourism is not separately counted in most statistical publications, the strong employment numbers in retail, accommodation, food and transport industry categories suggest it plays a strong role. Agriculture is a relatively small