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Financial advisor Olivia Maragna helps her clients feel confident to spend their retirement savings.

‘Paradigm shift’: How to switch to spending in retirement

After decades spent saving, lean into the fear, plan obsessively and let go of the guilt, experts say.

  • 14 mins ago
  • Joanna Mather

Wage growth drives inflation, average pay tops $100k

Treasury analysis shows that decade high wages growth that has pushed the average fulltime salary above $100,000 is now the biggest driver of consumer price inflation.

  • Ronald Mizen

BCA demands 12-month delay in climate reporting

The Albanese government “should be taking the time to get it right”, argues Business Council of Australia boss Bran Black.

  • Patrick Durkin

Marles rips into defence ‘culture’

Defence Minister Richard Marles has sharpened criticisms of his own department, arguing there are “issues of culture” which need challenging.

  • John Kehoe

10 big ideas in the universities shake-up

From doubling the numbers of students to a ‘Robin Hood’ tax on rich institutions: Here are some of the biggest recommendations in the universities accord and what they mean.

  • Julie Hare

Bright, poor students guaranteed a uni spot

Aspiring university students whose families earn less than $54,000 a year will be guaranteed a place in a degree if they meet admission benchmarks.

  • Julie Hare

Opinion & Analysis

University success starts with fixing school performance first

The Universities Accord social equity aspiration depends on students being ready to study at a higher level after year 12.

The AFR View

Editorial

The AFR View

The universities accord is like one giant déjà vu

The report has big ambitions. So did the 2008 Bradley review. They are not too dissimilar in scope and intent.

Julie Hare

Education editor

Julie Hare

Keating’s quaint defence of Australia doesn’t grasp regional power politics

Labor has put aside two absurd features of the Keating era: a defence policy designed to deal with direct invasion and the diminution of our US alliance

Universities accord report highlights funding shortage

If Australia is to have a world-class university system to sustain our standard of living in a highly competitive world, we are going to need to invest far more in it.

Mark Scott

Vice-Chancellor

Mark Scott
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Yesterday

Having been the first person in his family to go to university, Education Minister Jason Clare wants to extend the ladder for others.

University success starts with fixing school performance first

The Universities Accord social equity aspiration depends on students being ready to study at a higher level after year 12.

  • The AFR View
Education Minister Jason Clare with the universities report on Sunday.

The universities accord is like one giant déjà vu

The report has big ambitions. So did the 2008 Bradley review. They are not too dissimilar in scope and intent.

  • Julie Hare
Paul Keating at 80: never really understood the Indo-Pacific region.

Keating’s quaint defence of Australia doesn’t grasp regional power politics

Labor has put aside two absurd features of the Keating era: a defence policy designed to deal with direct invasion and the diminution of our US alliance

  • Alexander Downer

Atlassian pays $92m tax bill after years of ATO talks

The software developer has struck a transfer pricing agreement with the Tax Office and has agreed to retain intellectual property in Australia that it will pay future tax on.

  • John Kehoe
The key findings of the Accord make it all the more remarkable that our universities have achieved as much as they have.

Universities accord report highlights funding shortage

If Australia is to have a world-class university system to sustain our standard of living in a highly competitive world, we are going to need to invest far more in it.

  • Mark Scott
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A university education needs to be accessible to all, says Jason Clare.

‘Wealth tax’ for top unis in $10b funding shake-up

A major review of higher education has recommended a return to demand-driven funding to get more poor students into university; a $10 billion infrastructure fund; an independent tertiary education commission; and bonuses paid based on graduation.

  • Updated
  • Julie Hare
Jason Clare says ambitious targets for tertiary education are essential to ensure the future economy is robust.

Universities’ accord ‘blueprint for the next decade’: Clare

It will need political buy in, not just to get legislation passed in the coming months and year, but over the long-term – over successive governments and economic roundabouts.

  • Julie Hare

This Month

Russia invaded Ukraine two years ago, and the bombs are still falling.

The sad reality is that Ukraine is outgunned and outmanned

Strategic analysts were adamant either that Ukraine would fall or Russia would buckle. Two years later, neither has happened.

  • James Curran
Inflation is expected to moderate.

High tax rates fuelling avoidance schemes

High personal tax rates are spurring the use of trusts, companies, SMSFs and negatively geared property to minimise tax, accountants and tax practitioners say.

  • John Kehoe
Despite the media hype around “Swiftnomics” and “Swiftflation”, the Australian leg of the Eras Tour is expected to add just $10 million to the economy.

The economic boost from Taylor Swift is a lot smaller than you think

Despite the media hype around “Swiftonomics” and “Swiftflation”, the Australian leg of the Eras Tour is expected to add just $10 million to the economy.

  • Michael Read
Defence minister Richard Marles announcing surface feet plans on Tuesday.

Navy shipbuilder Austal flags settlement to avoid US litigation

The shipbuilder has enlisted the US and Australian defence departments for support in its negotiations with the DOJ and SEC.

  • Brad Thompson
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken  and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese embrace. But will the love always be there?

What’s Plan B if America never goes back to normal?

Paul Keating has once again asked whether the US alliance shapes Australia’s view of the world more than it should.

  • Bec Strating

Divorce, trusts and negative gearing: the price of high taxes

High tax-paying families are increasingly exploring extreme strategies – including divorce – to make it easier to qualify for subsidies and benefits, writes John Kehoe.

  • John Kehoe
Images of the Beaufort fire.

Firefighters battle ‘potentially catastrophic’ breakdowns in Vic blaze

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has thanked Victorian firefighters as another blaze ripped through the state’s west, forcing thousands to evacuate.

  • Gus McCubbing
Artist’s impression of Navantia’s Tasman class warship, a Tier 2 corvette or light frigate.

Bold navy plan needs backing with hard cash

Australia reaped a resources bonanza from China’s rise as the workshop to the world. Now some of that needs to be redirected as a national security insurance premium.

  • The AFR View
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Former treasurer Peter Costello said the veto power had not impaired the RBA’s independence

Pressure builds on Chalmers over his RBA veto stance

The proposal to remove the treasurer’s veto over the RBA appeared almost friendless following objections from Peter Costello, Ian Macfarlane and Bernie Fraser.

  • Updated
  • Michael Read
In India, Adani’s solar factories rub shoulders with one of the world’s biggest coal ports.

Adani’s started solar in India. So should the Nats in the regions

Rather than worry about waking up with a transmission line in your back paddock, the biggest landscape threat is not renewables but climate change.

  • Matt Edwards
Industry experts back Paul Keating’s predictions for the super industry.

Keating ‘on the money’ on super funds appointing directors

It is a “logical next step” for industry superannuation funds to seek roles on listed company boards, industry experts say, especially in the energy sector.

  • Hannah Wootton
AFR, Screenshots of Drone attack Videos,  Ukraine’s Bozha Sprava/Ukraine’s Adam Tactical Group via Telegram

Cheap drones are transforming warfare in Ukraine

First-person-view drones have achieved near mythical status on the front lines but need artillery to influence battles.

  • The Economist
Expanding the number of places for undergraduate students could cost some universities dearly.

‘Everyone will be losers’: Unis oppose success tax

The universities’ accord is yet to hit the desks of vice-chancellors, but it is already inflaming red-hot anger across the sector.

  • Julie Hare