A flat 40 per cent discount on non-property assets is far better for investment, risk-taking and productivity than indexation plus the Innovative Business CGT concession.
We should be wary of unions that set the terms for the construction industry given the experiences with the CFMEU.
Four key design principles point to a specific set-up: progressive price-linked royalty on LNG exports, with a volume-based floor.
Tightening the purse strings is great, but it won’t solve our economic problems. The scale of the challenge means a review of the tax system is critical.
After antisemitic attacks in my electorate, I proposed to introduce stronger hate speech laws addressing vilification. Both major parties declined to back these.
Labor’s approach has been erratically interventionist, slow and piecemeal. The Coalition could capitalise on that by offering a credible pro-market alternative.
The key areas where we should aim for near-term actions and longer-term commitments are regulation, tax, government spending and the energy transition.
History shows that well-structured tax reform packages with clear goals can succeed both economically and politically.
Our next parliament must be ambitious. That doesn’t mean ideology or utopianism – it means pragmatism, evidence, and commitment to the national interest, even when it’s politically inconvenient.
The challenge to the major parties is there. Both of them could work with independents to guide meaningful reforms through parliament.
We cannot afford a repeat of the last election when the major parties said don’t worry, we won’t change anything.
Despite having one of the largest pension schemes in the world, the start-ups that can drive productivity aren’t getting the financial support they need.
We should be honest about failed housing policy, thoughtful about changing the international student mix, and not shunt blame onto migrants.
Industrial relations and overbearing regulators are making life harder for Australian businesses, but it doesn’t need to be that way.
Robbing workers of flexible casual and gig work will hurt many households battling the mortgage squeeze by working extra hours.
That’s why I have set up a process, where economists, business leaders, unions, social and environmental leaders can come together and discuss their goals for a better tax system.
The politics, the processes and even the layout of parliament itself do not make for open-minded or brave policymaking.
The changes to the superannuation concessions are no substitute for the taxation system review that we need.
When the treasurer talks about “partnering with business” and “making markets better”, there is simply scepticism and nervousness among the business community.
Reforming the ‘better off overall test’ won’t be enough to unlock the productivity and wage gains of enterprise bargaining.
