Liberty

19 August 2020

On this special episode of the IPA’s Looking Forward, co-host Chris Berg interviews Russ Roberts from the Hoover Institution, known to most as the long-standing host of Econtalk, and also Professor Mike Munger from Duke University, who is well known as a libertarian economist and political candidate. Is the Pandemic just the perfect example of Hayek’s Knowledge Problem, that knowledge

10 April 2020

On March 30, New South Wales went to bed in a liberal democracy and woke up in a police state as with a stroke of a pen Brad Hazzard signed into law an Orwellian directive. The Public Health (COVID-19 Restrictions on Gathering and Movement) Order 2020 was signed into law on that day and was in full force by the morning. This

15 November 2019

Religious freedom and its challenges in Australia The freedom to hold a religious conviction and to live a life according to deeply held religious beliefs is a fundamental aspect of the humanity of every individual. It is the hallmark of a civilised society that individuals are able to tolerate each other’s beliefs and live together in harmony. Even in a

7 October 2019

In nineteenth-century Australia, the early colonists had to decide what sort of institutions they were going to choose, if they going to be a protectionist or free trade set of colonies, if they were they going to focus on individual liberty or if they were to continue as a military outpost. The research presented in this film shows the early

20 July 2018

There is no right not to be ­offended. Yet dozens of provisions on the commonwealth statute books make it unlawful or illegal to ­offend. There is a right to freedom of speech, and each of these laws is an attack on that right. The existence of these laws is an embarrassment to Australia as a country that holds itself out

4 April 2018

“Religious and other beliefs and convictions are part of the humanity of every individual. They are an integral part of his personality and individuality. In a civilised society individuals respect each other’s beliefs. This enables them to live in harmony. This is one of the hallmarks of a civilised society.” Lord Nicholls Beliefs and convictions – whether religious or otherwise

9 February 2018

Rahm Emmanuel, one-time Chief of Staff in the Obama Administration, once said: ‘You never let a serious crisis go to waste… It’s an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before.’ It would seem that the Turnbull government is using the perceived crisis of ‘foreign influence’ in our political system to tweak federal electoral regulations in its

19 August 2017

Recently I attended the Centre for Policy Studies’ Margaret Thatcher Conference on Security 2017 at the august Guildhall in the heart of the City of London. The theme of the day was threats to the West – including tensions with Russia and China, terrorism, as well as emerging issues like bio-warfare and cyber-warfare. The keynote address came from Henry Kissinger, at the

31 May 2017

All Australians are equal. This principle is the basis of our freedoms and a cornerstone of the Australian constitution. Our nation’s founding document should unify us – not divide us. Any proposal that seeks to enshrine division between Australians on the basis of race should therefore be rejected. And it is why any suggestion of a treaty between Indigenous and

23 May 2017

There has already been much debate about British Labour’s election manifesto commitment to re-nationalise the UK’s energy, rail, water and postage networks as well as Conservative promises to increase the minimum wage, introduce new protections for workers in the ‘gig economy’ and support the domestic shale gas industry. Are Labor’s plans a retreat to the 1970’s or a preview of