IPA Review – Winter 2022

Energy expert Vaclav Smil clearly explains why ‘net zero by 2050’ is simply impossible, writes public policy analyst Tristan Prasser. Have you ever wondered how the world will transition to an all-renewable future? Or whether it is even possible? Have you ever thought about why we have fewer famines today despite there being more people than ever before, and what

We must defend Western Civilisation so all of humanity can continue to be enriched, argues author and former intelligence analyst Paul Monk. Douglas Murray is a wonderfully free spirit who lucidly tackles the manias of political correctness with erudition, panache and limpid reasoning. At just 43 years of age, he is a ‘conservative’ and courageous author in the era of

Calling Australia the ‘lucky country’ is far from ironic—especially for grateful migrants like me, writes recently retired academic Christo Moskovsky. Three stories about the migrant experience in Australia span several decades: They’re a Weird Mob (1957), Looking for Alibrandi (1992), and The Lucky Country: Reflections and Reminiscences of a Long-Term Immigrant (2022). The first was a novel which became a

A cost–benefit analysis clearly shows far more harm than good came from Australia’s oppressive COVID lockdowns, economics professor Gigi Foster has found. It is possible that lockdown[s] will go down as one of the greatest peacetime policy failures in modern history. – Douglas Allen, Professor of Economics at Simon Fraser University The world has been shaken by the response of

The big plan that Australia can build enough wind farms, transmission lines, and back-up storage to power a renewable energy future is deluded and unachievable at any realistic cost, argues IPA Executive Director Scott Hargreaves. As a modern industrial economy with a growing population, affordable and reliable electricity is central to everything Australia does. It allows our cities to work,

Threats to our national security remain as real right now as they were last century, writes IPA Future Leaders Program intern Jacob Watts. Spies and Sparrows: ASIO and the Cold War attracted my interest because although I was not even born when the Cold War ended, I am keen to learn more about Soviet spies in Australia and work done

The ‘teal’ phenomenon highlights the contest of values within Australia’s liberal tradition, argues IPA Research Fellow Andrew Kemp. On the election night of May 21, 2022, I like to think that a ghostly chuckle quivered down the upper hallway of the Auburn Hotel, above the euphoric roars of Monique Ryan’s victory party as the independent candidate claimed the federal electorate

Scares over carbon emissions and the Great Barrier Reef are driving red tape that hits regional communities across Australia, reports IPA Research Fellow Kevin You. Red tape has rightly been described by the IPA as Australia’s biggest industry, costing this country more than 10 per cent of our national output every year. Our analysis shows that in only one year

This is the first IPA Review since the recent Federal Election. The result was of course a source of joy for the ALP and a deep disappointment for the Liberal and National Parties, who lost office after three terms. The election campaign generally was a disappointment for us at the IPA, too. We were ready to play a role in