John Roskam
Senior Fellow
John Roskam is a Senior Fellow at the Centre for the Australian Way of Life at the Institute of Public Affairs. He served as Executive Director of the Institute of Public Affairs from 2005 to 2022. Before joining the IPA he taught political theory at the University of Melbourne. He was previously the Executive Director of The Menzies Research Centre in Canberra, has been a senior adviser and chief of staff to federal and state education ministers, and was the manager of government and corporate affairs for a global mining company.
His publications include Australia's Education Choices (with Professor Brian Caldwell), 'Terrorism and Poverty' in Blaming Ourselves, 'Liberalism and Social Welfare' in Liberalism and the Australian Federation, and 'The Liberal Party and the Great Split' in The Split Fifty Years Later.
His fortnightly column appears in The Australian Financial Review. He is a member of the Editorial Board of The Australian Journal of Public Administration, and Connor Court Publishing, and the Advisory Board of The Centre for Advanced Journalism at the University of Melbourne. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Public Administration, Australia in Victoria, and is an Honorary Fellow of Campion College.
16 November 2023
Cost-of-living Crisis Is A Social Crisis Too
This article was originally published in Australian Financial Review on or about 16 November 2023 and was written by the author in their capacity as a contributor for that publication. It has been republished on the IPA website with permission. The views expressed are those of the author alone. An economically pessimistic society finds it a lot harder to repair and renew
2 November 2023
The Right Is Out Of Love With Capitalism
This article was originally published in Australian Financial Review on or about 2 November 2023 and was written by the author in their capacity as a contributor for that publication. It has been republished on the IPA website with permission. The views expressed are those of the author alone. Prosperity is taken for granted and freedom is an optional extra. Conservatives are
19 October 2023
Voice Loss Heralds Labor’s Third Great Split
In this article, John Roskam contextualises and disseminates the findings of the IPA’s research into the Voice to Parliament. The IPA has been researching the consequences a potential Voice to Parliament would have to the political freedom, liberty, and equality of Australians since the Uluru Statement of the Heart was first being drafted. Two earlier schisms divided the parliamentary party.
5 October 2023
Bran Black Has The Hardest Job In Australia
In this article, John Roskam contextualises and disseminates the findings of the IPA’s research into the growth of red tape in Australia, and how that affects Australian businesses. The new boss of the lobby group for big business is described as “Mr Nice Guy”, but that will do nothing to push back against the government’s enthusiasm for drowning business in
26 September 2023
Such Is Politics: Josh Frydenberg Departs As Jacinta Price Arrives
In this article, John Roskam contextualises and disseminates the findings of the IPA’s research into the Voice to Parliament. The IPA has been researching the consequences a potential Voice to Parliament would have to the political freedom, liberty, and equality of Australians since the Uluru Statement of the Heart was first being drafted. Such is politics. One potential prime minister
7 September 2023
Game’s up for Qantas’ Canberra Crony Capitalism
As a Coalition MP quipped a few days ago – “the federal government once owned Qantas. Now it’s Qantas that owns the federal government.” Which isn’t bad for a company barely among the country’s biggest 40 corporations and one that’s less than a 20th the size of BHP. The political power and cultural influence of Qantas is a tribute to
24 August 2023
Labor Is boiling The Frog Of Higher Taxes
If you wanted to increase taxes you’d do it precisely the way the government is doing it. Bit by bit, step by step, avoiding anything that looks remotely “big bang” or Whitlamesque. Hopefully the ABC is wrong. According to its political correspondent the Intergenerational Report is “one of the most important documents that will help shape public policy for decades to come”.
10 August 2023
Big Business Has Lost Its Voice In Debate On Economic Reform
CEOs today are more likely to adopt social causes than policy agendas and have opinions more in common with a typical cadet journalist at the ABC than with Milton Friedman. Here’s a question. If you were Matt Comyn, the Commonwealth Bank chief executive who’s just announced a record profit of $10 billion, and whose pay has gone up 50 per cent
27 July 2023
‘Woke-washing’ Has Real Consequences
It’s difficult to spot the difference between what Coutts did to the Brexit leader and what the Commonwealth Bank does to coal miners. What NatWest bank in the UK and its boss Alison Rose did to Nigel Farage has proved a headline from Time magazine a few years ago to be absolutely wrong. According to Time, “Cancel culture is not real – at least
20 July 2023
Live Not By Lies
Australian institutions are so hostile to freedom that telling the truth is an act of resistance For too long, Australians committed to freedom have consoled themselves, believing that while their condition is desperate, it’s not yet serious. As Christians lose their jobs, as Liberal and Labor governments embrace government censorship of our speech and opinions, and as the heritage that’s
