Research // Industry & Manufacturing Policy
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Economics
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February 2022
Rebuilding Vehicle Manufacturing in Australia
Global automotive manufacturing is rapidly transitioning to the production of Electric Vehicles (EVs) in line with technological advancements and the global community’s commitment to addressing climate change. This transition presents an enormous opportunity for Australia to rebuild its vehicle manufacturing industry, taking advantage of our competitive strengths in renewable energy, extractive industries, manufacturing capabilities, and
November 2020
On the make
July 2020
A Fair Share for Australian Manufacturing
December 2019
Airports
November 2019
Danish Design and Australian Jobs
Submission to an inquiry into nationhood, national identity and democracy
The Australia Institute made a submission to the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee’s inquiry into nationhood, national identity and democracy. The submission outlines how the Australia Institute’s existing research applies to each of the committee’s terms of reference.
January 2019
The Costs of Market Experiments
June 2018
Advanced Skills for Advanced Manufacturing
Australia’s manufacturing industry is at a crossroads. After years of decline, the sector has finally found a more stable economic footing, and many indicators point to an expansion in domestic manufacturing in the coming years. Manufacturing added almost 50,000 new jobs in the last year – making it one of the most important sources of
March 2018
From Consensus to Action: Report from the First National Manufacturing Summit
The first National Manufacturing Summit was held at Australian Parliament House, Canberra, in June 2017, organised by the Centre for Future Work and the Australia Institute. The event was attended by over 100 delegates from the full range of stakeholders concerned with the future of Australia’s manufacturing sector: including businesses, industry peak bodies, trade unions,
Executive Pay in Australia
On the 10 year anniversary of Bear Stearns collapse, Wayne Swan, with the GFC+10 project, launches report on executive pay in Australia. GFC+10 is a research program and series of events marking the ten-year anniversary of the Global Financial Crisis. It was launched by then Economic Secretary to the Treasury in the UK, Ed Balls,
Submission to the review of the rate of return guidelines
The Australia Institute made a Submission to Review of the rate of return guidelines. As an appendix we have attached a paper, The equity premium in Australia, that should be read in conjunction with this submission. This paper was prepared for the 2017 Conference of the Society of Heterodox Economists at the University of New
June 2017
Export Finance and Insurance Corporation Amendment (Support for Commonwealth Entities) Bill 2016 [provisions]
The Jubilee Australia Research Centre and The Australia Institute welcome the opportunity to make a submission on the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation Amendment (Support for Commonwealth Entities) Bill 2016. The primary purpose of Efic under the original Export Finance and Insurance Corporation Act 1991 is to “assist the development of Australian export trade.” Efic
Manufacturing: A Moment of Opportunity
In conjunction with the National Manufacturing Summit, titled “From Opportunity to Action,” at Parliament House in Canberra on June 21, 2017, the Centre for Future Work has released a new research paper on the opportunities to sustain and expand manufacturing jobs in Australia. Our new report, Manufacturing: A Moment of Opportunity, by Jim Stanford and
April 2017
Do No Harm: Procurement of Medical Goods by Australian Companies and Government
A new report conducted by the country’s largest union, the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF), in conjunction with The Australia Institute has revealed high-levels of exploitation and human rights abuses suffered by low-wage workers involved in the overseas production of every-day medical goods used by Australians.
December 2016
The Economic, Fiscal, and Social Importance of Aluminium Manufacturing in Portland, Victoria
The unit price of aluminium is more than 50 times greater than the unit price of bauxite. Yet Australia is growing its presence at the lower-value end of this industry – while perversely shrinking its presence in an industry whose output sells for 50 times as much. In recent years, Australia’s downstream capabilities in aluminium
October 2016
Auto Shutdown Will Deliver Another Economic Blow
We’ve known for over two years that this day was coming. But that won’t ease its economic and social pain. The shutdown of Australia’s mass motor vehicle assembly industry is now upon us. Ford’s assembly plant in Broadmeadows, Victoria, was the first to go dark: the final Aussie-made Ford has already rolled off the assembly
September 2016
Human Rights in the Supply Chain of Australian Businesses: Opportunities for Legislative Reform
Australian businesses have recently been implicated in serious labour abuses, both within and beyond Australia’s borders. Recent examples to capture public attention are slave labour in the production of surf products by Australian brands in North Korea, human trafficking and labour exploitation in Vietnamese, Chinese and Thai fishing industries (the top suppliers of prawns to
Penny Wise and Pound Foolish
The state government of New South Wales recently awarded a contract for the purchase of 512 new intercity passenger rail cars to a consortium that will manufacture the equipment in South Korea. The contract is worth $2.3 billion, including an unspecified sum to cover maintenance of the double-decker cars over an initial 15-year period. The
June 2016
Manufacturing (Still) Matters
The problems in Australia’s manufacturing sector are well-known, and many Australians have concluded that the decline in manufacturing is inevitable and universal: that high-wage countries like Australia must accept the loss of manufacturing as an economic reality. But international statistics disprove this pessimism. Worldwide, manufacturing is growing, not shrinking, including in many advanced high-wage countries.
February 2013
Corporate power in Australia
Some industries have far more political influence than others, and some political systems are more susceptible to the influence of industries than others. In Australia, the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) is currently investigating evidence of the links between the previous NSW Labor Government and the mining industry. In the words of Geoffrey Watson, QC,
August 2012
The liquor industry
This study aims to present a broad outline of the liquor industry in Australia and the influences on it.
September 2011
The Australian wine tax regime: Assessing industry claims
There has been much debate recently about the way that wine sold in Australia should be taxed. The proposal by the Henry Tax Review to move from the current ad valorem tax to a volumetric tax, bringing wine in line with other types of alcoholic drinks, has been fiercely challenged by some in the wine
February 2010
Submission to the ACCC on Telstra’s price control arrangements
Senator Stephen Conroy, the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, has asked the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to review Telstra Corporation Limited’s (Telstra) price control arrangements and has called for public submissions. The ACCC is to report by 12 March 2010 and the ACCC has asked for written submissions by 12
October 2007
Climate Change and Australian Coastal Shipping
This report investigates how coastal shipping compares to the other major freight transport modes in terms of energy and emission intensity. It further considers the extent to which increasing shipping’s share of the domestic freight task could reduce Australia’s emissions.
January 2002
The Aluminium Smelting Industry: Structure, market power, subsidies and greenhouse gas emissions
The industry in Australia and throughout the world is dominated by a handful of multinationals that have obtained highly favourable arrangements from governments. This paper analyses the structure, ownership, energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions of the aluminium smelting industry to examine the likelihood of its relocating offshore and test the consequences, both economic and
November 1999
Subsidies to the aluminium industry and climate change
A submission to Senate Environment References Committee Inquiry into Australia’s Response to Global Warming