Interest, Usury and the Common Good
Introduction: Is there a problem with interest? Making money out of lending money has generated moral controversy since ancient times. …
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Less Crowded Houses. NZ’s housing policy success and implications for Australia
Introduction Many Australians are increasingly concerned by deteriorating housing affordability and its implications for socio-economic outcomes. In a recent survey, …
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CIS Impact Report
Publications reached a record this year, with the release of 37 research papers plus 20 submissions to government and official …
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Gorillas In The Mist. How government obscures its spending
Executive Summary Government overreach: The federal government’s planned $78 billion of off-budget measures over the next four years reflects an …
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Land Use Restrictions and the Australian Housing Policy Debate
Planning restrictions are a major reason why housing in Australia is so expensive. For example, they are estimated to raise the price of the average apartment in Sydney by 37%.
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Submission to the Inquiry into financial regulation and home ownership
Regulation of the financial system is needed to protect depositors and avoid financial crises. However, current financial regulations go beyond these legitimate objectives to prevent mutually advantageous loans.
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Government spending and inflation
That government expenditure in Australia has grown apace in recent years is well-known. The growth became gargantuan during the coronavirus pandemic. However, to a less dramatic extent, it was happening before the pandemic — and has continued since it ended.
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Business Means Business. Why Corporates Should Avoid Social Activism
Senior management should be concerned they are putting their companies at risk of reputational harm if they associate with movements that are, or become, viewed negatively by the general public.
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Budget Fails Important Policy Tests
The deficit budgeted for 2024-25, amounting to over $28 billion ($28,000 million), translates to a willingness to borrow and spend over $1,500 per Australian voter to secure an election victory.
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From Measuring to Merely Meeting: Productivity Commission misses mark on Closing the Gap
Why, despite decades of expenditure on Aboriginal affairs, do solutions to ‘Closing the Gap’ in life outcomes for Indigenous and non-Indigenous people remain elusive?
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Are we prepared for the next pandemic?
Australia has taken steps to prepare for avian flu. But preparedness isn’t a one-time event. Are we doing enough? Or will we once again find ourselves reacting too late?
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Amid all the hype about DOGE, we should be watching closely
We should all be very watchful, given what governments would get up to with our money if the lights go out. However, many fans are going too far.
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This is pure snake oil. And a diversion from policies that made our lives better
There was much sound and fury in Australia, and among our allies, when China introduced trade sanctions on Australia in …
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Blame bigger government for falling living standards
Many people roll their eyes at the mention of the word, but productivity matters. Simply put, productivity means output per hour worked; and without growth in productivity, our living standards deteriorate.
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Make large-scale reforms to super or leave it alone
The Treasurer’s announcement that the government remains committed to its terrible super tax changes is unwelcome news for many. The …
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Yes, the public service can be more efficient. But it won’t solve all our woes
Even though the words of Auld Lang Syne have disappeared once again into the leaking sieves of our collective memory, …
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Mining industry foes would leave us with fewer roads, hospitals and schools
Coal and gas royalty payments from mining companies are a major revenue stream for state governments; and those royalties help …
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Voters across the world are resentful, angry and lashing out
This year’s biggest losers have been political incumbents. Across the world, voters have been punishing governments, booting out long-term and short-term governments alike.
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This childcare overhaul will actually do very little for parents
The news this week that the Prime Minister has committed to abolishing the activity test for subsidised childcare is yet …
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The true lesson Aussies should learn from Trump’s victory
Since the US election result confirmed Donald Trump would re-enter the White House in triumph, Australian commentators and politicians have …
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Solving the housing crisis | Stuart Donovan
How can Australia tackle its housing affordability crisis? What lessons can we learn from New Zealand’s successful upzoning policies? In …
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Government spending and inflation explained | Emilie Dye
Government is shooting itself in the foot when it comes to inflation. While the RBA works to lower inflation by …
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The simple solution to FIX the housing crisis | Emilie Dye
What is behind the housing crisis in Australia and across the world? Research Analyst Emilie Dye, drawing on the work …
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How to tackle Australia’s housing crisis one state at a time | NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey
Sydney is home to some of the least affordable housing in the world, placing immense pressure particularly on young people …
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Has Easy Money Destroyed the Free Market? | Ruchir Sharma
Watch as Tom Switzer sits down with renowned financial analyst, commentator, and investor Ruchir Sharma for a thought-provoking discussion on …
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Support CIS Research in 2024
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The NDIS is out of control | John Kehoe
The Australian economy has performed better than most economists predicted a year ago. However, probe deeper and things look disturbing. …
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Will economic growth destroy the planet?
Will economic growth destroy the planet? The debate over whether economic growth will ultimately lead to the destruction of the …
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Decoding Science: Navigating Imperfections, Truths, and Challenges in COVID
CIS welcomed Matt Ridley for a thought-provoking discussion on the critical role of Government in shaping climate, health, and energy …
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Bracket Creep Explained: The hidden tax cutting into your earnings
Bracket Creep Explained: The hidden tax cutting into your earnings. Bracket creep chips away at living standards, especially those of …
Frequently Asked Questions
The Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) structure makes mistakes likely. It concentrates responsibility on one fallible individual, the Governor, answerable to a Board of non-experts, with little requirement to explain or defend decisions in detail. Arguments are subject to little scrutiny, either internally or externally. More fundamentally, the RBA has a culture that places a low priority on getting the answers right. As a result, mistakes are frequent, persistent and costly. Among several examples, the RBA recently placed higher priority on stabilising household debt than on its conventional goals of unemployment and inflation. Previously, it targeted the current account deficit. Read more ...
Inflation is rising around the world, the sting in the tail of the pandemic economic stimulus packages unleashed by governments in 2020. The narrative thus far is that this inflation spike is transitory, even if a little more persistent than first thought. It is expected to moderate as consumer price pressures ease and markets rebalance after the large positive demand shock and surge in consumer spending of the past 18 months. Read more ...