Recent publications
Regulator lets the cat out of the bag: data retention not just about national security
"The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's demand to access Attorney-General Nicola Roxon's proposed data retention regime reveals how dangerous this regime could be," said Simon Breheny, Director of the Rule of Law Project at the free...
Roxon's data retention scheme worse than Australia card
"Attorney-General Nicola Roxon's proposal to force internet service providers to log details of every Australian's internet usage is one of the most significant threats to individual liberty in Australian history," said Simon Breheny, director of...
Submission to the Inquiry into potential reforms of national security legislation
The Institute of Public Affairs believes many of the national security proposals contained in the Attorney-General's Department's Equipping Australia against Emerging and Evolving Threats Discussion Paper are unnecessary and excessive. Many of the...
Be like Gough: 75 radical ideas to transform Australia
If Tony Abbott wants to leave a lasting impact - and secure his place in history - he needs to take his inspiration from Australia's most left-wing prime minister. No prime minister changed Australia more than Gough Whitlam. The key is that he did...
Class in America
One of the great strengths of American society has been its social mobility. But according to the American Enterprise Institute's Charles Murray, that social mobility and the connection between average Americans and a new uber-intellectual and...
The totalitarian urge to censor
Like many a journalist past, Nick Cohen has raised the battle flag against censors. The reason is simple; people who love language should never salute its executioners. Five-time author and resolute liberal, Cohen hedges his bets by writing for...
IPA says 'no secret deals' on free speech
Media executives and the federal government have no right to secretly negotiate and agree to curbs on free speech, according to the free market think tank the Institute of Public Affairs. "Freedom of speech is a right that belongs to all...
Gillard government internet surveillance laws unprecedented threat to civil liberties
"The Gillard Government's proposed internet surveillance laws will fundamentally erode civil liberties and should be rejected outright," said Simon Breheny, director of the Rule of Law Project at the free market think tank the Institute of Public...
Poll: Media goes too far in attacks on rich
A new poll conducted by Galaxy Research for the Institute of Public Affairs shows that a majority of the Australian people is fed up with attacks on rich people by the media. Galaxy asked 1,053 respondents across Australia from 15-17 June 2012:...
Real conservatives
This is a marvellous book. It has many things to recommend it. A list of the book's many merits would go something like this (in order of importance): it's interesting; it's opinionated; it's extremely readable; it explains why John Major and...