A deal to strengthen taxes on empty homes has been struck between the Victorian government and the Greens. An upper house vote on changes to Victoria’s vacant residential land tax was put on ice earlier this month when the Greens and the coalition refused to back...
Spending weakened last month and by more than expected as consumers hung back to pounce on deals during the Black Friday sales. Retail sales as measured by the Australian Bureau of Statistics fell 0.2 per cent in October, a softer result than the 0.1 per cent...
Thousands of Australians seeking to buy a home will soon get assistance with laws due to go to federal parliament. The “help to buy” laws to be introduced this week will support 40,000 eligible home buyers with an equity contribution of up to 40 per cent...
Australia’s gender pay gap has had its biggest single-year drop in almost a decade, but women are still earning much less than their male colleagues. In its annual update, the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) revealed the average total gender pay gap this year had dropped...
Early results from a $14 million program to test the real-world efficiency of cars on Australian roads has found more than half use more petrol than lab tests indicate, with some exceeding promises by 13 per cent. Two vehicles also produced more than double the carbon...
Free-to-air channels will be guaranteed front of place on smart TVs under new laws designed to “level the playing field” of Australia’s media landscape. Communications Minister Michelle Rowland brought forward prominence laws which would allow for catch-up TV services to be prioritised on smart TVs over...