Politics
Rock star economists
Suddenly, economists have become the luminaries we turn to for a direct line to the meaning of everything.
Doing an unemployment number on us
This month’s unemployment rate figure has been questioned by some experts.
Self-serving regulation
The economics of deregulation is supposed to be straightforward; business groups support it, community groups oppose it, and governments “get the balance right”.
O’Farrell stuck in the slow lane
Editorial | NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell’s landslide victory last March delivered him a very substantial mandate. But after more than 12 months, he doesn’t have much to show in terms of substantial reform.
Labor perpetuates Howard handouts
The debate about the 1 per cent cut in company tax is inane, risible, ludicrous and embarrassing, particularly as it relates to small and medium companies.
Qantas within its rights on Air Pacific
I would like to provide the facts on “Fiji hits out at Qantas over Air Pacific sale”.Qantas acquired its 46 per cent interest in Air Pacific in 1998. We have always been aware that Air Pacific needed to be “substantially owned and effectively controlled” by Fiji nationals and there is no doubt that it has been substantially owned and controlled by the Fiji government.
Truckers use road threat
State and federal transport and infrastructure ministers are to meet on the national agenda for transport. High on the agenda is the continuation of a national scheme for heavy vehicle registration charges, a system that guarantees the user pays for the road infrastructure they use.
Costello’s legacy short on fight
As a confirmed Liberal it is disappointing that the dilemma of Peter Costello and internal bickering has surfaced.
Baird looks west for office stock
The NSW government will pre-commit some of its agencies to tenancies in western Sydney office developments as part of a decentralisation push spearheaded by the Treasury and finance departments.
St Hilliers chairman hoped it could ride out storms
Property group St Hilliers was born in the ashes of the last property crash but its construction arm has bitten the dust after seeming to survive the worst of the global financial crisis.
Language studies a vexed business
The hard lesson of cuts in funding and declining student numbers is that not everyone accepts the business case for a greater focus on teaching Asian languages.
Bias on interest rates is to the downside
The upshot of commentary from both the Federal Treasury and Reserve Bank of Australia is that the bias on official interest rates remains very much to the downside, and the Gillard government will have a very hard time meeting its budget surplus commitment.
Australia – a tough place to do business
This an edited transcript of a panel discussion to open The Institute of Chartered Accountants, NSW Business Forum 2012.
Gillard commits $300bn to Afghanistan recovery
Australia will contribute $US100 million annually for three years from 2015 as part of international efforts to help sustain and support Afghan National Security Forces beyond the transition process.
Business upset at phoenix law plans
The federal government is pushing ahead with reforms to crack down on phoenix companies, despite an outcry by directors and business groups.
National briefs
Tax commissioner Michael D’Ascenzo has warned against schemes using New Zealand trusts to evade tax, by providing services for a fee marked well above cost.
Protests mark Newman’s first week
The Newman government’s first week of Parliament was overshadowed by angry protests and arrests when police dismantled an unofficial Aboriginal tent embassy from a park in South Brisbane.
Greens push for integrity commissioner
The Greens are in confidential discussions with independent MPs in a bid to win support for legislation to introduce a national integrity commissioner to rebuild confidence in parliament following the allegations against Craig Thomson and Peter Slipper.
MPs show little interest
One in five federal MPs have not updated a public register of their financial interests since the 2010 election.
Keating, Hawke agree on one thing
When Paul Keating took the stage to anchor an ACTU salute to Bill Kelty last night he calmed the crowd with the admonition that they should not “give him a big head”. But a bit of applause was okay.
Energy head’s policy warning
The federal government’s key adviser on the national energy market says the renewable energy target and carbon price uncertainty could delay investment in lower-emission generation and lead to supply volatility.
PM off message on postcard from a war
Julia Gillard has missed the meaning behind a seemingly flattering postcard from Afghanistan that is in fact a silent protest emulating a German army sleeve patch.
Union fund too close to Labor
Editorial | The ACTU believes its campaign fund will address declining union membership, but the real danger is that it will be used to support the Labor Party in its quest for re-election.
Cabinet cops a blast down south
The carbon tax is nothing but a socialist redistribution of wealth, according to Matthew Kaneda-Hession, who challenged Prime Minister Julia Gillard and much of the federal cabinet last night.
Hockey comes up empty again
The federal opposition has passed up another chance to spell out how it will meet its commitments to debt and deficit reduction.
DJs backs same-sex marriage
The CEO of retailing giant David Jones, Paul Zahra, has urged federal MPs to back legal changes to recognise same-sex marriage saying the current ban sends a message that “it’s OK to treat gay people differently”.
Tarnished unions to fix image
The ACTU will create a specialist panel headed by a former Federal Court judge to report on “best practice” governance for the union movement after the financial scandal surrounding Craig Thomson and the Health Services Union.
BHP fires salvo on industrial relations, tax
BHP Billiton chairman Jac Nasser has launched a broadside at the Gillard government, calling for a halt to tax changes that have unsettled investors, and for an industrial relations system that balances the needs of companies and employees to stem a fall in competitiveness.
Future Fund chairman backs broader super choice
The intense debate over whether investors are overexposed to the sharemarket ignores savers’ individual circumstances, according to the new chairman of the Future Fund, David Gonski.
PM rules out Aussie Rules election clash
Prime Minister Julia Gillard has assured Aussie rules fans there won't be a federal election on AFL grand final day 2013.
