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Archived news for April 2011 | Recent news
Mismanaging water policy can drain a budget
FOLLOWING the report into state finances by an independent committee, we are seeing the hollowness of the previous Victorian government's claim to...
Depraved UN has no right to preach
THUGGISH despot who slaughters peaceful protesters in the streets, or global guardian of human rights? The United Nations can't seem to make up its...
Hey, big spenders, look at Victoria
A new report on Victorian public finances underscores why state governments require stronger fiscal rules to promote budget responsibility. The...
Morality and humanity in the gambling debate
Opposition to gambling has always been somewhat aesthetic and moralistic. The character of that moralising has, however, changed over time. During...
Taxpayers bear the cost of dumping coal
The Commonwealth's carbon tax hits all Australians by increasing the costs of goods and services. The Treasury forecasts this cost at $863 a year...
What happened to the meat axe?
Remember when Kevin Rudd said he was "dead serious" about bringing back the razor gang to trim the public service? Two days before the 2007 federal...
Nanny state’s thriving on tax harvested from smokers
The latest move by the Federal Government to make smoking a habit of the past is the latest salvo in the rapid expansion of the nanny state....
Why bad policy can be good politics
Why would the Gillard government want to cut an unambiguously popular area of government spending - medical research? Because, perversely, it may...
Totting up carbon tax is anything but a piece of cake
When asked on ABC1's Q & A about the carbon tax we'll pay on a birthday cake Assistant Treasurer Bill Shorten joked he didn't know how many...
Plain packs pointless when smoke gets in our eyes
When the Rudd government's National Preventative Health Taskforce released a position paper on anti-tobacco measures, they titled it "Making...