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Voters strain at paying for even small carbon cuts
The carbon tax and similar measures involve us making sacrifices to forestall what the government says will be catastrophic human-induced climate...
The unhappy compromise of European 'austerity'
Has austerity worked in Europe? Well, if "austerity" means savage cuts to government spending, then there has been no austerity. Figuring out...
Great expectations vanish
The federal budget was entirely predictable. The dodgy accounting. The flimsy "surplus". The higher taxes on the wealthy. The bribes to the...
We can't stop climate change - it's time to adapt
The release of the Productivity Commission's draft report into climate adaptation at the end of last month could have been a spark that changed the...
Despite the tough talk, spending is on agenda
Victoria's Budget documents lay into the previous government's spending profligacy. They point out that spending has outpaced state product for...
Nudge nudge, wink wink, nanny soaks the poor to fatten the budget
As the "beer up, cigs up" headlines of yesteryear illustrate, governments have long imposed taxes on consumer products as a quick fix to plug...
Rules distort energy market
The recent Council of Australian Governments meeting called for policies to promote greater competition in electricity, a coded call for retail...
Manufactured crisis
Australian manufacturing isn't in trouble, it's just obsolete in a richer, more modern country. Ford has announced a week-long production halt in...
China's stance could send climate policy up in smoke
Changes to China's climate change policy will make it even harder for political leaders to secure a new global deal to cut greenhouse gas emissions...
Banks to get a green sheen
Soon there will be something else to beat up the banks about. Politicians will have more than just interest rate rises, billion-dollar profits and...