Despite the adoption in early May this year of a new development plan by the last Timorese government, incoming Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão has declared that his government will implement the Strategic Development Plan adopted when he was Prime Minister in 2011. His calls for unity ring very hollow when he ignores the serious work Continue reading »
politics
Criticism of Kathryn Campbell’s appointment a year ago to a $900,000 a year job to assist with implementation of the AUKUS agreement is mostly based on hindsight following the adverse comments about her performance in DHS and DSS by the Robodebt Royal Commission. To be fair to those who made that decision, it is important Continue reading »
The appointment of Chris Barrett to head the Productivity Commission puts its Trade and Assistance Review under the spotlight. While it has become commonplace in recent years to ignore the PC’s regular evisceration of anything that smacks of market intervention, it has this year chosen to target the very policy platform on which the Albanese Continue reading »
“One of the most extraordinary moments in politics in the last five years has been watching Anthony Albanese, notionally from the left of Labour, adopt, without any internal democracy within the Labor Party, without any public investigation of it, adopt wholeheartedly Scott Morrison’s AUKUS plans… It’s perhaps one of the most extraordinary betrayals of the Continue reading »
Australia must carefully monitor US domestic developments as a barometer of longer term risks to the reliability of our “great and powerful friend”, and to avoid being drawn into a US war against China. But the biggest lesson from the political polarisation in the US is that it is better to have lower overall economic Continue reading »
In 2017, Pearls and Irritations had a half a million views. By the end of 2022 we had more than 5.3 million views and we have already surpassed 3.3 million views heading into the second half of 2023. We receive more than 400,000 monthly views, and frequently many more. Our voice and reach is expanding. Continue reading »
Qin’s replacement has been named, ending weeks of speculation, but it’s still not clear what prompted the former foreign minister’s removal. Wang’s appointment makes him the most powerful person to hold the position in decades. China has replaced its foreign minister Qin Gang with his predecessor Wang Yi in an unprecedented move that leaves more Continue reading »
Senior Australian “conservative” figures continue to attend conferences backed by illiberal Hungarian leader Viktor Orban. The Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC) hosted its 2023 London Summit in late June, featuring Alexander Downer and Greg Sheridan as two of the five speakers. Australians must focus on connections between our Right and Hungarian fascistic politics. Peter Browne of Continue reading »
The Reserve Bank is transferring wealth from working Australians to retired baby boomers; Liddell Power Station has closed; and, apart from Sussan Ley, who wants the Commonwealth Games? Read on for the Weekly roundup of links to articles, reports, podcasts and other media on current political and economic issues in public policy. Economics University education Continue reading »