Climate change is expected to have severe adverse impacts on the majority of Commonwealth countries, especially developing country members. Australia has displayed a callous disregard for the future well-being of the poorest and most vulnerable members of the Commonwealth.

A report last year by the Allen Consulting Group has played a pivotal role in reinforcing perceptions that cutting greenhouse gases would result in large economic costs and extensive job losses, especially in regional and rural Australia. The first part of this paper exposes a number of serious errors in the Allen Consulting report on

This paper documents the development of the vertical and horizontal integration of the healthcare services sector. It argues that in the Australian context, the private (including the corporate) provision and ownership of health service facilities is more costly than public provision. The paper also demonstrates that, contrary to popular belief, competition does not necessarily benefit

This paper shows that instead of encouraging private provision, concessions for private health insurance have been a financial windfall for wealthy households. The existing cash incentives and tax rebates for private health insurance are in urgent need of reform.

Proceedings of a conference organised by Manning Clark House and The Australia Institute, held on 26 July 2001. The paper includes nine presentations by speakers at the conference, and is edited by Pamela Kinnear.

Analysis of IPCC data from 1998 evidencing Australia remains the highest per capita emitter of greenhouse gases of Kyoto countries, due principally to a large agricultural sector and continued land-use change as a source of emissions.

This study considers the rationale for estimating tax expenditures, and the conceptual basis for measurement. It assesses the current approach to accounting for the surcharge in the TES against international practice and against the stated aims of tax expenditure reporting in Australia.

Submission No.2: Full fee-paying students and standards

This is an exploratory study of social scientists’ perceptions and experiences of academic freedom in the new commercial realities of Australian higher education. Focusing specifically on the social sciences this study gives cause for concern about the future of academic freedom.

The system of labour market statistics in Australia is in urgent need of reform. In addition to calling for the collection of new data on the desired amount of work for all workers, this report outlines the benefits of work sharing, and suggests mechanisms for achieving a fairer distribution of work.

This paper reports an updated version of the GPI published by The Australia Institute in 1997. The paper is in two parts, the first providing the rational for the GPI and raising some methodological issues. The second part provides a comprehensive discussion of each component making up the GPI.

This paper examines the effectiveness of the Green Power scheme in encouraging the use of low-emission forms of electricity.

This study examines the different form of industry assistance provided by government in Australia; assesses the extent to which information is publicly available; outlines the criteria upon which assistance is made available, and evaluates the monitoring procedures adopted by governments where assistance is provided.

This study breaks new ground by examining how the benefits of tax concessions for health expenditures, such as the rebate for health insurance, have been distributed amongst taxpayer income groups. It shows for the first time the value of the tax relief arising from the Medicare levy surcharge for those with private health insurance.

This paper is a philosophical investigation of the mutual obligation principle and its application to current welfare policy.

This paper looks back at the achievements and failures of Landcare after ten years. The authors put forward a set of proposals for the future that goes much further than anything previously suggested.

Submission Number 6 to The Senate Reference Committee Inquiry into Australia’s Response to Global Warming

This paper examines the relationship between recessions and the size and duration of long-term unemployment. The results should leave us in no doubt that just a few poor years of economic growth have very significant medium-term implications for long-term unemployment.

This discussion paper is part of the Australia Institute’s work program on measuring quality of life. The Institute has formed a collaborative partnership with Newcastle City Council to build an indicator series against which the Newcastle community’s progress towards sustainability can be measured.

Submission No. 5 to the Senate Environment References Committee Inquiry into Australia’s Response to Global Warming

The Commonwealth Serum Laboratories (CSL) was sold in 1994 by the Commonwealth and became a privately owned company, tasked with the processing of blood. Since its privatisation it has been accused of allowing hepatitis-C and CJD to infect the blood. This document focuses on the $400 million given to CSL by the Commonwealth between 1994

The Prime Minister has given a guarantee that charities will be no worse off under the GST. This paper argues that this guarantee can only be met if substantial changes are made to the definition of what constitutes a charity and its “non-commercial” activities.

Submission No. 4 to the Senate Environment References Committee Inquiry into Australia’s Response to Global Warming

This paper is the first comprehensive investigation of the relationship between population growth and greenhouse gas emissions in Australia. There are four parts to the analysis each of which reaches some striking conclusions.

Submission Number 2 to The Senate Reference Committee Inquiry into Australia’s Response to Global Warming

A submission to the Senate Environment References Committee Inquiry into Australia’s Response to Global Warming

A submission to the Senate Environment References Committee Inquiry into Australia’s Response to Global Warming

A submission to Senate Environment References Committee Inquiry into Australia’s Response to Global Warming