Framing the drug law debate
For anyone who’s paid any attention whatsoever to expert opinion on the issue, the Australia 21 report on illicit drug policy is profoundly unsurprising. Prohibition has failed, and imposes massive human and financial costs on all of us.
The aluminium industry, carbon pricing, and the mining tax
If you’re trying to make sense of Alcoa’s threats to close the Point Henry aluminium smelter near Geelong, you should start with the Grattan Institute’s 2010 report on the effects of the carbon tax on Australian industry. Aluminium is one [...]
Quick link: Cattle out of Alpine National Park for good
The Victorian government’s “scientific trial” of cattle grazing in the Alpine National Park has been stopped permanently by Federal Environment Minister Tony Burke under the National Heritage Act. Here’s the Ministerial press release, and here’s the formal notice of the [...]
The Big Dumb Number approach to fire hazard reduction redux.
I have previously posted about the potential pitfalls of framing the fire hazard reduction task in Australian landscapes in terms of simple numerical targets, which I characterised as a Big Dumb Number approach. Nonetheless, the Victorian Bushfire Royal Commission decided [...]
Old-school police culture strikes back
After the controversy surrounding the two past Victorian police commissioners, it seems that traditionalists are going to like Ken Lay just fine. One of his first acts as commissioner was a new dress code that bans officers from having ponytails, [...]
The politics of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation
How can the government minimize the political and financial risks of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation?
Margaret Simons on the OPI investigation
Margaret Simons at Crikey summarizes the Victorian Office of Police Integrity’s report of an investigation of the dealings between the Victorian Police Association, former Deputy Commissioner Sir Ken Jones, ministerial adviser (and former police officer) Tristan Weston, and various Victorian [...]
Summing up the Baillieu government
It’s been roughly six months since the election of the Baillieu government in Victoria. Elected on a platform of – essentially – fixing the perceived infrastructure screw-ups of the Brumby era, Laura Norder, and Baillieu coming across as less of a smart-arse than John Brumby, it was unclear what else, if anything, they stood for.
Giving away the pokies?
If you take the figures in the Victorian Auditor-General’s report on the auction of pokie licenses as gospel, it’s arguably the most single most financially costly mistake the Bracks-Brumby government made. The report estimates that a fair market value for [...]
NSW election: The bell tolls for Tony?
Lots and lots of column inches and bits and bytes are being devoured in analysis of commentary on the federal implications of the NSW election result for Julia Gillard, Labor MPs in New South Wales, The Greens, Bob Brown, the [...]
NSW election: What is the way forward for progressive parties?
Some quick observations on the New South Wales election result: The really useful guide to what occurred is The Poll Bludger’s breakdown of votes and swings by region. 1. Labor Barry O’Farrell was right to pitch part of his fairly [...]
