Janet Albrechtsen
Chairman
19 November 2020
Five Favourite Books with Bella d’Abrera: Janet Albrechtsen
Lawyer, opinion columnist at The Australian and all round Superwoman Dr Janet Albrechtsen discusses her five favourite books with the IPA’s Bella d’Abrera. Listen to Janet and the IPA’s Bella d’Abrera use books to springboard a wide-ranging discussion on what inspires us to become the people we are, what happens when passing fads and classic literature collide, what can
2 May 2020
Coronavirus: Scott Morrison Needs to Speak to Hard-hit Young Australians
Despite the sweet-sounding idea that we are all in this together, the consequences of the COVID-19 crisis are not being shared anywhere equally. Look at the University of Sydney, where casual workers are being laid off yet the overpaid vice-chancellor, Michael Spence, has refused to shave his $1.5m salary. Some, most especially the young, are being hit harder than others.
18 March 2020
Cut The Red Tape To Set Business Free
The Germans have a long and clever word for what the Coalition government has lacked these past seven years: Vorsorgeprinzip. It means the foresight principle. Had the government shown more foresight, the economy might not need taxpayers to shell out billions to deal with the economic consequences of a spreading public health crisis. With the serious effects from the coronavirus
14 March 2020
University O-Week Censors Excel Themselves
“Free speech crisis? What crisis?” Uttered in freaky unison, this frequent denial from university vice-chancellors has allowed them to resume normal programming. That consists of VCs putting their heads in the sand rather than confronting those trying to nobble intellectual diversity on campus. It includes VCs sending long emails about how proud they are of their diversity programs, with no
13 February 2020
Intellectual freedom? Only if your values are ‘aligned’
The university year began with a rumbling noise that all is not well with intellectual freedom in this country. What started as a small story at a Queensland campus has become a very big one that demands attention if we care about the future of the current generation of young Australians, the next generation, and the trajectory of freedom in
31 August 2019
Unis Have Lost Their Way As Homes For Free Speech
In 2016, the Collins English Dictionary ranked “snowflake generation” as one of those annoying new phrases for the year. It is time to bury it. It’s a beat-up and, worse, it is an unfair slur on the current generation of students. That is the good news from a forthcoming research report by the Institute of Public Affairs into the state
7 August 2019
The Art Of Persuasion Needs More Than Abusive Language
The Institute of Public Affairs is on a unity ticket with Noel Pearson, whether he cares to admit it or not. Like the work of the respected indigenous leader, our work endeavours to help people overcome disadvantage, to enjoy the dignity that comes from work, and the human flourishing that comes from greater freedom and economic prosperity. Like Pearson, we
23 October 2017
We Risk Being Remembered As The Generation That Forgot History
Bad ideas flourish in dark places. The Rise of Identity Politics: An Audit of History Teaching at Australian Universities in 2017, released on Monday by the Institute of Public Affairs, exposes the dirty little secret about history teaching in Australian universities. Rather than rigorous learning about important historical events that underpin our democracy, history teaching in this country is drenched in
