Executive summary The rising trend of government expenditure in Australia has long been present but has received new impetus from …
The re-elected federal government faces a long list of economic challenges, some of them created or exacerbated in its first …
Introduction The Albanese Labor government’s new tax geared to individuals’ total superannuation balances was unveiled in March 2023, failed to …
Royalty payments by mining companies for extracting resources, including large volumes of fossil fuels, are major revenue streams for state governments.
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.
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.
While the focus is usually on income tax paid to the federal government, the reality is that individuals and businesses are constantly paying a wide range of taxes; not only to the federal government but also to state and local governments.
Tax increases are built into Australia’s personal income tax policy by default. In fact, in any year in which the government does not provide tax cuts, pay increases push up (average) tax rates.
Adam Smith, the Scottish philosopher and economist, is one of the most significant figures to have emerged from what came to be known as ‘the Scottish Enlightenment’.
For those on lower incomes, even a small increase in nominal income leads to a larger increase in their overall tax rate.
As we get closer to the productivity roundtable that the government hopes will solve all problems, various players are tipping their hand as to what they want the focus to be.
Jim Chalmers’ economic reform roundtable must confront Australia’s entitlement mindset – which governments have fostered.
The government’s upcoming Productivity Roundtable risks being yet another fest of short-term electoral thinking.
With the current Treasurer jumping on the tax reform bandwagon, assuring the public that reform of the taxation system is …
The CIS has been warning about the risks of debt and deficits for some time.
Productivity must trump politics in Labor’s second term
The state’s debt levels remain high, with net debt currently around $110 billion and projected to grow to $137 billion by June 2028. Without stronger spending restraint, it will only grow.
It must have been a surreal experience for some this week. The Prime Minister was at the Press Club bemoaning …
As the pressure to rapidly phase out fossil fuels increases, the states will face an unexpected fiscal risk.
The simple reality is that major parties across the world need to start measuring their success or failure by more than just whether they won the last election.