A major rewrite of Australia’s tax rules is needed to make them fairer and more efficient, one of the nation’s top economists has warned. Former Treasury secretary Ken Henry, who led a 2010 review of taxes, said the current system could be streamlined by imposing a...
Higher levels of inflation will stick around for several months, the treasurer has warned, as new figures put pressure on the Reserve Bank to lift interest rates further. Underlying inflation ticked up for January, coming in at 3.4 per cent, up from 3.3 per cent the...
A “cartel” of vested interests is stymying crucial tax reforms which could help free up more homes, a former boss of the Reserve Bank says. Bernie Fraser, the only person in Australian history to have served as both RBA governor and Treasury secretary, said tax concessions...
Australians have leaned into debt ahead of the central bank’s pivot to hike interest rates, with applications for mortgages and credit cards doubling in the recent quarter. Mortgage credit demand grew 12.3 per cent, while credit card applications jumped more than 15 per cent in the...
Ongoing strength in the nation’s jobs market has lifted the change of another interest rate rise in the coming months, experts warn. Australia’s unemployment rate held steady at 4.1 per cent for January with nearly 18,000 jobs created, according to Bureau of Statistics data released on...
Australia must urgently ramp up its spending on AI and research and development to avoid a generation of young people being “sacrificed for the profits of big tech”. In an address to the National Press Club in Canberra on Wednesday, UNSW Professor Toby Walsh will say...
Australia has its best chance at finally getting high-speed rail, as the federal government splurges almost $700 million to make the project shovel-ready within a few years. A two-year development phase started on Tuesday, ensuring work on the long-awaited transport project can begin. The development phase will...
Artificial intelligence companions might alleviate loneliness in aged care, but they can’t offer the vital physical touch or address social isolation, experts warn. Research from Monash University argues new AI ‘digital companions’, marketed as a solution for loneliness, are profoundly unethical, and could even increase social...
Expensive gas, unreliable coal plants and a retailer “loyalty tax” are the primary drivers of Australia’s soaring power bills, a climate think tank report says. While the Climate Council analysis largely blames fossil fuels for wholesale spikes, it also exposes systemic retailer misconduct. Fourteen energy companies breached...
Hundreds of tradies will be trained in a bid to tackle the South Australian housing crisis, building on a billion-dollar election pledge to boost home construction and supply. A $29 million scheme to create 1000 new traineeships in the construction workforce has been promised by Premier...