Opinion
Jobs
Budget’s unspoken message: maybe we’ll pull off the softest of soft landings
The rate of inflation will likely continue falling and should be back into the target range by this December.
- by Ross Gittins
Latest
How do I get the $300 energy bill rebate? Your top budget questions answered
From cost-of-living relief to inflation, our experts unpack your most pressing concerns from the federal budget.
- by Rachel Clun and Ross Gittins
Opinion
Federal budget
This budget will make us better off now, worse off later
It seems the top priority of Anthony Albanese’s government is not to have any priorities.
- by Ross Gittins
Analysis
Federal budget
Is this the budget we needed? Our experts deliver their verdicts
Jim Chalmers’ third budget sought to strike a balance between inflation and cost of living. Here’s what our experts thought.
- by David Crowe, Shane Wright, Jacqueline Maley, Peter Hartcher and Ross Gittins
Opinion
JobSeeker
Labor’s persistent refusal to fix the JobSeeker payment is shameful
Australia has the lowest benefits for the short-term unemployed among 34 countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- by Ross Gittins
Opinion
GDP
The economy’s just the means to an end. So, are we getting our money’s worth?
Our materialism puts us on a “hedonic treadmill”. We think buying a bit more stuff will make us happier and, at first, it does. But pretty soon the thrill wears off.
- by Ross Gittins
Opinion
National security
When politicians fire up on ‘security’, my bulldust detector goes to DEFCON 1
Using “security” as a justification for a policy initiative opens the door to interventions that are, in the words of former Treasury secretary Dr Ken Henry, “frankly, bad”.
- by Ross Gittins
Opinion
Corporate ethics
Productivity isn’t working, so why not try being more ethical?
Ethics is a set of beliefs about the right way for people – and organisations - to behave. But what’s that got to do with the economy?
- by Ross Gittins
Opinion
Productivity
Is a Future Made in Australia a good idea or a bad one? Maybe a bit of both
Why would Anthony Albanese and his smart economists, Jim Chalmers and Chris Bowen, want to reverse the bipartisan policy of the past 40 years and take us back to the future?
- by Ross Gittins
Opinion
Healthcare
It’s not perfect, but here’s why our health system is one of the best
Australians pay among the lowest taxes of all developed nations and what’s more, when it comes to healthcare, we’re getting excellent value for money.
- by Ross Gittins
Opinion
Climate policy
How Albanese can make Australia’s future the smart way
As the world stops buying our fossil fuels in coming decades, Australia must hunt around in our natural endowment to find a new comparative advantage.
- by Ross Gittins