
25 May 2023
Latest Default Market Offers Confirm Net Zero’s Cost
“The astronomical rise in Default Market Offers is a direct result of net zero policies that hit Australian households hard, as unreliable renewables continue to push reliable and affordable baseload power generation off the grid,” said Saxon Davidson, Research Fellow at the Institute of Public Affairs. Today, the Essential Services Commission announced Victorian residential customers will see household bills rise

24 May 2023
Andrews Government’s ‘Astonishing’ Financial Mismanagement Has Come Back To Bite Them – And It’s Hard-working Victorians Who Will Foot The Bill
Tuesday’s Budget is yet another missed opportunity in the task of restoring Victoria by eliminating the toxic culture of spending, borrowing, and higher taxation “If the Victorian Government does not address the budget deficit and rising debt levels, Victoria could face a debt trap in which even more drastic action is required.” That was the key warning from research the

24 May 2023
New Zealand Migration Surge With No Plan For Housing, Infrastructure And Services
“The expected surge of New Zealand migration on the back of the Federal Government’s softening of citizenship rules will add even more pressure to Australia’s schools, roads, hospitals, and housing,” said Daniel Wild, Deputy Executive Director of the Institute of Public Affairs. New Institute of Public Affairs’ analysis of changes to citizenship laws announced by the Federal Government in April

23 May 2023
Coral Snapshot 2022-23, & All the Unanswered Questions
Full marks to David Mills, writing in the Courier Mail, for asking why the government tends to bury good news reports about the Great Barrier Reef. There are a few other questions that I would like answered. Key government ministers, marine scientists, and climate scientists have been unable to acknowledge: Q1. Overall coral cover has been increasing since at least

21 May 2023
The Liberals Need A Truth-telling Game Plan
The challenge for Peter Dutton is to be honest with Australians about the condition of the nation and still get elected, rather than blamed. Recently, a federal Coalition MP was contemplating the condition of the opposition one year on from the federal election. As a keen follower of sport from an AFL state, the politician described the situation in football

20 May 2023
The ESG Trap
While Australians have been distracted by the Voice to Parliament, nuclear submarines, and the Budget, ASIC recently followed through on its threat to crack down on superannuation funds engaged in the esoteric offence of ‘greenwashing’, launching its first prosecution. Greenwashing is the (apparently) deceptive practice whereby business organisations, or investment funds, claim that their products or services are environmentally friendly,

12 May 2023
Submission to the Select Committee on Cost of Living
Dear Committee Secretary, The purpose of this letter is to share research and analysis conducted by the Institute of Public Affairs (“the IPA”) with the Select Committee on Cost of Living (“the committee”). The findings contained in this submission are based on wide-ranging analysis published in numerous IPA research reports over the past 12 months regarding issues relevant to the

12 May 2023
It’s the Government’s Spending, Stupid
Casting an eye over the headlines from the federal budget, one may assume that the anticipated budget surplus is a direct result of the federal government tightening its belt. Do not be fooled. As is always, the devil is in the detail. The Budget Papers reveal that federal government spending is expected to reach its highest level since 1993, with

11 May 2023
Five Million Australian Families To Recieve No Reprieve From Skyrocketing Energy Bills
“Australia is in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis, with out-of-control energy price rises and inflation being made worse by reckless government spending. Yet, mainstream Australian families have been ignored in this year’s Federal Budget,” said Daniel Wild Deputy Executive Director of the Institute of Public Affairs. As reported in the Daily Telegraph, IPA analysis shows that average household energy

8 May 2023
Parliamentary Research Brief – How Federal Government Spending Intensifies The Cost Of Living Crisis
Australian families are facing acute and immediate cost of living pressures, due to rapidly rising inflation, energy costs, and rising mortgage repayments. A key cause of rising inflation is debt and deficit government spending. New IPA research examines the relationship between government spending, inflation, and mortgage repayment rates. The key findings are: Governments must tackle inflation and the cost of