Insights

Insights
April 2, 2026

Talent We Already Have: Unlocking Productivity Through Migration

By Dr Wesa Chau, Executive Director Yesterday I listened to Violet Roumeliotis AM and Dr Martin Parkinson speak at the National Press Club about skills shortages, productivity, and the persistent underutilisation of migrant skills in Australia. Their discussion highlights a fundamental contradiction in Australia’s labour market: at a time of acute workforce shortages and slowing ... Read more
Insights
March 2, 2026

New Zealand shows austerity and interest rate hikes won’t cure Australia’s sticky inflation

By Osmond Chiu, Research Fellow The recent interest rate hike to address inflation drifting above the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) target band has reignited debate about the Albanese Government’s economic management. Critics argue excessive government spending and the RBA’s initially slow response are to blame for rising prices and slower economic growth, despite the ... Read more
Insights
February 16, 2026

Moltbook and the Moment We Let AI Act on People

Moltbook is being treated as a novelty. A curious, Reddit-like forum where AI agents post about their users, trade productivity advice, and banter with one another in ways that feel playful, even endearing. Much of the public reaction has framed it as harmless fun, a glimpse of quirky machine behaviour rather than a serious development.  ... Read more
Insights
February 16, 2026

If facts don’t change minds, how should think tanks think?

By Meredith Eldridge, Director of Operations at Per Capita We humans like to think that we are rational beings who make up our minds based on facts. Unfortunately for us, it is well-established that the vast majority of the time, people’s decisions are actually driven by emotion and subconscious mental shortcuts (see the work of ... Read more
Equitable Housing
February 9, 2026

Inclusionary Zoning: Four principles for a targeted, consistent, and balanced policy

By Dr Kate Raynor and Lucas Lewit-Mendes The Planning Amendment (Better Decisions Made Faster) Bill 2025 passed both houses of parliament last week. The amendment will streamline building approvals, including allowing low-risk building permits to be processed faster. Changes also include a provision that enables councils and state government to make the use or development ... Read more
Insights
January 19, 2026

The Way In: Representation in our Parliament – Wesa Chau

By Dr Wesa Chau, Executive Director “Everyone gets a fair go” is one of Australia’s most cherished values. We often pride ourselves on being a country where diversity is a strength and where anyone — with enough passion, hard work and persistence — can rise to leadership. But The Way In, Per Capita’s latest analysis ... Read more
Insights
January 14, 2026

Reforming the Capital Gains Tax Discount

Why reducing the 50 per cent discount would improve the tax system  By Lucas Lewit-Mendes Capital gains tax (CGT) was introduced in 1985 as part of reforms to broaden the income tax base and reduce the rate. CGT is leviable on the increase in the value of an asset, such as property or shares, and ... Read more
Insights
December 17, 2025

Impact Report 2025

2025 was a year of many milestones and achievements for our small but mighty team. In 2026 Per Capita plans to: • Expand our team to enable us to work on more projects • Expand our work on diversity to enhance social cohesion • Ramp up our tax reform advocacy • Explore new avenues in ... Read more
Insights
December 9, 2025

Inclusionary Zoning Cheat Sheet: Key Points to Email Your MP

Subject: Please support mandatory inclusionary zoning in Victoria Dear [MP Name], I’m writing to express my concern that the current planning reforms do not include any mechanism to secure affordable housing. Victoria urgently needs mandatory inclusionary zoning to ensure new developments contribute to addressing our housing crisis. Why this matters Victoria is planning huge housing ... Read more
Insights
December 8, 2025

Australia’s Public Sector Is Far Smaller Than Debates Suggest

By Osmond Chiu, Research Fellow Over the past year, a chart by The Economist from April 2025 has gone viral – circulating heavily on LinkedIn and cited by conservative thinktanks and parliamentarians to argue that Australia has a “bloated” government. The chart claims that, adjusted for population, Australia has 143 public sector employees per 1,000 ... Read more
Insights
November 24, 2025

Economic shock resilience: the wealthy hand to mouth effect

By Michael D’Rosario Government policies that incentivise property investment do so at ever increasing personal debt levels resulting in Australia evidencing the second highest level of personal debt after the Swiss. This means that Australian households while wealthy in net wealth and asset terms, carry far more risk than nearly all other individuals within advanced ... Read more
Insights
November 17, 2025

AI’s Next Safety Test: looking beyond performative protections

By Dr Michael D’Rosario When OpenAI announced its latest wave of safety improvements in ChatGPT’s mental-health responses, the company framed the development as a major ethical advance. Working with more than 170 clinicians worldwide, it reported that the model now handles conversations about psychosis, mania, self-harm, and emotional dependence with up to 80 per cent ... Read more
Insights
October 28, 2025

The super tax system will now be fairer, but there’s plenty of work left to do

By Lucas Lewit-Mendes The federal government has taken a significant step to improve the equity and sustainability of the superannuation system, by increasing the earnings tax rate on large super balances. The October 13 announcement means the changes will bring in less revenue, but they will support low-income earners and protect against liquidity issues for ... Read more
Insights
October 27, 2025

Navigating the Complexity of Economic Mobility: Why Systems Thinking Matters

By Dr Michael D’Rosario  Ensuring equality of opportunity in support of economic mobility remains one of the most profound and enduring challenges facing modern societies. The pursuit of genuine mobility, where an individual’s prospects are not dictated by birth or circumstance, is central to any vision of a fair and dynamic society. Yet the path ... Read more
Insights
October 13, 2025

The Wrong Balance in AI: Protecting Machines While Failing People

The ethics of artificial intelligence are increasingly being framed in ways that risk missing the real point. Written by Michael D’Rosario, Director of Econometric Research and Analysis at Per Capita In recent years, some companies have begun to speak of “model welfare,” as though machines themselves might be entitled to dignity. Proposals include allowing chatbots ... Read more
Insights
September 10, 2025

CTS Partners’ Submissions to the Economic Reform Roundtable

Following our 2025 Community Tax Summit, the federal government announced an Economic Reform Roundtable. Per Capita and the organisations who partnered together for the Community Tax Summit each added their submissions to the Economic Reform Roundtable in the lead up to the event to help push for meaningful and effective tax reform. The overwhelming consensus ... Read more
Insights
September 5, 2025

Multiculturalism in Australia: A Deliberate Success, Not an Accident

When Pauline Hanson declared in her infamous maiden speech in the 1990s, “I believe we are in danger of being swamped by Asians. They have their own culture and religion, form ghettos and do not assimilate,” it was a statement driven by fear and division. I remember the impact it had—not just on public discourse, ... Read more
Equitable Housing
June 6, 2025

The housing disaster is a national emergency – good thing Australia is excellent at navigating emergencies

Sarah McKenzie, Acting Executive Director   The National Housing Supply and Affordability Council’s State of the Housing System 2025 Report, published in May this year, paints a grim picture of the state of Australia’s housing system. It is more than a housing crisis, it has become a full-scale national disaster. It is chronic and worsening, ... Read more
Insights
June 4, 2025

Impact Report – EOFY 2025

View our 2025 End of Financial Year Impact Report here. Our 2025 End of Financial Year Impact Report looks summarises Per Capita’s work over the past 12 months, including policy changes we have helped secure, the Community Tax Summit we hosted, research projects we have worked on, our media coverage and public events. May 2025 ... Read more
Gender Equality
May 28, 2025

A Question of Quotas

By Sarah McKenzie Acting Executive Director, Per Capita Gender quotas in the Australian Labor Party have transformed not only the make-up of the party, but that of our entire Federal Parliament. Australia is now on the verge of opening its first gender-equal Parliament, driven in large part by Labor’s landslide victory at the 2025 Federal ... Read more
Insights
May 7, 2025

Vale Race Mathews

We at Per Capita are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Race Mathews, a dear friend of Per Capita. We offer our heartfelt condolences to Iola and family.   Race was truly a giant of Australian politics. His contributions to public policy in this country have been enormous, and his wisdom, advice and experience ... Read more
Insights
May 5, 2025

A Future of Bold Reform

Australians have decisively given the Labor government a second term, emphatically demonstrating that they want a future of action defined by equality, fairness, social justice and evidence-based policy.  In their first term, Labor achieved a lot: reforming the stage three tax cuts, introducing tax evasion laws for multi-national corporations, investing more in social housing than ... Read more
Insights
April 28, 2025

Future Proofing the Australian Care Economy

With the 2025 federal election fast approaching, there have been many discussions around campaign promises and how either party plans to invest in Australia’s future.   Much of the focus has been on housing and the cost of living. And while these are undoubtably important talking points, this election presents an opportunity to highlight a sector ... Read more
Insights
December 16, 2024

2024 Progressive Summer Reading List

As the days get longer and the nights warmer, find yourself a cool place to lounge back and immerse yourself in some of the books we have picked out for our annual progressive summer reading list. Here are our favourite books from 2024 to keep you entertained over the summer. Power and Progress: Our 1000-Year ... Read more
Insights
December 2, 2024

Per Capita’s 2024 Impact Report

“This organisation is making a profound contribution to public policy in our country.” The Hon Clare O’Neil MP, Minister for Housing and Homelessness   Read our 2024 Impact Report here Per Capita’s research and relentless advocacy over many years has secured many progressive policy changes this year across tax, gender equality, industry policy, education, housing, ... Read more
Insights
October 23, 2024

How the Federal Government represents you – The Way In

In The Way In, Per Capita’s researchers look at the 47th Australian Parliament and ask whether it represents the Australian society it is meant to reflect. Representation matters. Diversity in Parliament is important as it helps ensure those in power pursue an agenda that addresses the various and unique needs of the many different groups ... Read more
Insights
September 23, 2024

‘Housing and human rights’ – The Hon Kevin Bell AO KC

This is the transcript from the Hon Kevin Bell’s speech, “‘Housing and human rights”, recorded 19 September 2024 at Per Capita’s John Cain Lunch. I thank Per Capita for inviting me to speak at the September 2024 John Cain Lunch on the important subject of housing and human rights.   I have very strong memories ... Read more
Insights
August 6, 2024

National Housing and Homelessness Plan: Realising Human Right to Adequate Housing.

This week is Homelessness Week, an annual event hosted by Homelessness Australia aiming to raise awareness and build commitment towards ending homelessness. The theme of this year’s Homelessness Week is “Homelessness Action Now”. It must serve as a reminder of the urgent need to change the future state of housing and homelessness in Australia. In ... Read more
Insights
July 31, 2024

No-grounds evictions; leaders and stragglers

In July 2024, New South Wales Premier Chris Minns announced that a ban on “no-grounds” evictions would be introduced to Parliament in the following month. Under the proposed changes, landlords would have to meet “common-sense and reasonable” grounds for eviction, including the sale of the property and instances of misconduct by tenants.   What are ... Read more
Insights
January 26, 2024

On Whose Account – What’s going on with government spending on housing?

Do you know how much the Federal Government spends on housing each year? How about where that funding goes? And to what end? Turns out, no one does.   Every year, billions of dollars are dispensed through the Federal Budget on direct support to households and housing service providers. This includes Commonwealth Rental Assistance Social ... Read more
Insights
December 28, 2023

Progressive Summer Reading List 2023

It’s time for the annual Per Capita Progressive Summer Reading List! Here are our favourite books from 2023 to keep you entertained over the summer.   The Welcome to Country Handbook – Professor Marcia Langton AO The Welcome to Country Handbook is an approachable guide to First Nations Peoples cultures and history. Covering language, arts, ... Read more
Insights
December 14, 2023

2023 Impact Report

Per Capita’s research and advocacy has had a big impact on government policy in 2023. Here are some of our policy wins from this year: Full employment For the last five years Per Capita has been pushing our Government to re-embrace full employment. Both the review of the Reserve Bank and the Employment White Paper ... Read more
Insights
December 12, 2023

The Centre of the Public Square

The Centre of the Public Square has a simple focus: to build better models of citizen collaboration and strengthen civil society by imagining new methodologies and alternate technologies to anchor this public space. Around the world we can see the challenges to democracy from the business models that propel the current platforms: whether it’s Musk’s ... Read more
Insights
October 26, 2023

Per Capita Statement on the Voice Referendum Result

Per Capita was disappointed by the result of the recent referendum on the Voice to Parliament.   To the First Peoples of this country, we mourn with you.   The Voice was conceived by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as part of the Uluru Statement from the Heart at the First Nations National Constitutional Convention in ... Read more
Insights
October 3, 2023

Welcoming the government’s new definition of Full Employment

Last week the Albanese Government released its White Paper on Employment, announcing that it is “placing Full Employment at the heart of our institutions and policy frameworks.” After years of advocacy, Per Capita welcomes the Albanese Government’s new definition of ‘Full Employment’ and celebrates the commitment to an economic policy that can now be understood ... Read more
Insights
October 3, 2023

“The economic benefits of labour law / workplace relations reforms” – A New Work Relations Architecture Book Launch

Senior Economist for Per Capita, Margaret McKenzie, spoke at the launch of the AIER’s latest book, New Work Relations Architecture,  in Melbourne (September 2023).   “I feel like a very privileged interloper as the economist amongst the lawyers – can’t say ugly duckling any more! – in contributing to the New Work Relations Architecture edited ... Read more
Insights
August 30, 2023

Per Capita Statement on The Voice Referendum

In 2017 First Nations delegates gathered at Uluru and issued a Statement from the Heart, calling for Voice, Treaty and Truth. We at Per Capita believe, as Professor Marcia Langton put it, that people’s lives improve when they get a say.  We therefore unreservedly support a Yes vote in the coming Referendum for a First Nations’ Voice to Parliament ... Read more
Insights
August 11, 2023

You could be homeless – National Homelessness Week 2023

Can’t find somewhere to live? Can’t pay for it? Get out! That means you! Who? As many renters and mortgage holders grapple with rapidly rising housing costs, the thought that you might join the 1 in 200 who are homeless is increasingly on people’s minds: 122,000 of us were recorded as homeless on census night ... Read more
Insights
July 14, 2023

2022-23 End of Financial Year Impact Report

This financial year, Per Capita helped achieve several significant policy wins: Single Parenting Payment  Per Capita has long advocated for the reversal of the decision to push single parents on to JobSeeker once their youngest child turns 8. The Labor Government’s decision to reinstate the single parenting payment until the youngest child turns 14 reflects ... Read more
Equitable Housing
July 3, 2023

When it comes to housing wealth, being a man pays dividends

By Matt Lloyd-Cape and Lucy Tonkin. Open a newspaper on any day and you’ll be met with a new story about Australia’s housing crisis. How older women are the fastest growing cohort to experience homelessness, or that female heads of lone parent households are most likely to experience significant and prolonged housing stress. But we ... Read more
Insights
June 19, 2023

Aus/US partnership for an energy revolution

When I arrived in the US a few weeks ago to begin a study tour on the opportunities that Australia has to build our industrial profile within the American renewable supply chain, I was filled with optimism and excitement. Not only because this was my first international trip in nearly a decade but also because ... Read more
Insights
May 25, 2023

Gaslighting and Negative Gearing: Why calls for the irrelevance of negative gearing are greatly exaggerated

By Matt Lloyd-Cape Director, Centre for Equitable Housing at Per Capita It has become something of a trend among some economists to ask that we all please get over negative gearing. Last week the economist Chris Richardson wrote in The Age that reducing tax breaks for investors are “distractions much more than they are solutions” ... Read more
Insights
December 1, 2022

2022 End of Year Impact Report

“So much of this agenda reflects the work we have done at Per Capita over the last four years. The focus on foundational workers, on reconstructing and diversifying our industrial base, on achieving genuine full employment, and delivering a stronger, fairer future for all – this is the heart of the Per Capita project, and ... Read more
Insights
November 29, 2022

Progressive Summer Reading List 2022

  It’s time for the annual Per Capita Progressive Summer Reading List! Here are our top 10 books from this year to keep you entertained over the summer or find their way under the Christmas tree. And you have a chance to win them all! To go into the draw to win all 10 books ... Read more
Insights
November 25, 2022

Radical IR agenda? Not really…

Attaining bipartisan approval on reforms to Australia’s industrial relations system has proved a colossal feat, marred by a tortuous parliamentary history. The passage of the Conciliation and Arbitration Act, which established Australia’s first industrial relations system, was a great destroyer of governments. The bill took three years to make its way through parliament, precipitated the ... Read more
Insights
September 9, 2022

A truly progressive local agenda needs community wealth building

Local councils aren’t often at the forefront of thinking when we talk about a progressive economic agenda in Australia. While there is a lot of talk about what councils can do on climate change or how they can lead on social issues, economic discussion tends to default to rates, red tape and redevelopment. That’s why ... Read more
Insights
August 29, 2022

Our skills shortage has been years in the making

As Australia emerges from the long tail of the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated economic crisis, the fault lines in our economy resulting from a decade of mismanagement and neglect have been exposed. However, long after the lockdown ended and the economy ‘snapped back’ to life, the enduring scarring effects of the labour market contraction ... Read more
Insights
July 10, 2022

2021-22 EOFY Impact Report

Over the past 12 months Per Capita’s research and advocacy strongly influenced the ALP’s election winning policy framework. Our 2020 book What Happens Next? Reconstructing Australia after COVID-19, featured chapters from Prime Minster Anthony Albanese, Treasurer Jim Chalmers, and Labor front-benchers Mark Butler, Clare O’Neil and Andrew Leigh. Our new government’s stance on investing in ... Read more
Insights
June 14, 2022

Informal Votes in Culturally Diverse Electorates

While racial discrimination in Australian election processes is mercifully nothing like that in the USA, Australian voters from ethnically diverse backgrounds are nevertheless significantly more likely to have their votes discarded on election night. Take Fowler, as an example. In the 2022 federal election more than one in 10 votes were ruled invalid and scrutineers ... Read more
Insights
January 21, 2022

Kids in forklifts? How about some actual solutions to labour shortages

By Shirley Jackson As someone who spent many years working in warehouses across Melbourne, I was truly baffled to see the Prime Minister’s announcement that he was attempting to address labour shortages across the logistics industry by encouraging the states to allow under 18s to drive forklifts. This was baffling for a number of reasons. ... Read more
Insights
January 17, 2022

Boundless benefits of smart industry policy

We live in uncertain times. Our economy is slowing, our planet is warming, and our trust in our political system is at an all time low. Political trust is a difficult thing to pin down, but at its core, there is a belief that in uncertain times political institutions will provide certainty. It’s no accident ... Read more
Insights
December 16, 2021

Progressive Summer Reading List 2021

Well that was another interesting year… especially for those in Melbourne and Sydney! But we’ve made it to the holiday season and an excellent time to sit outside with a tea and a book. The time has come again for us to share our top 10 progressive reads released over the past year. And you ... Read more
Insights
December 21, 2020

2020: A Year in Review

A quick letter from the team In many ways, 2020 is the year most of us would rather not look back upon, but for once it’s not hyperbole to say that this has been one for the history books. Great disruptions of the kind wrought by the COVID-19 virus occur infrequently, but when they do ... Read more
Insights
December 7, 2020

Progressive Summer Reading List 2020

It’s December and the sun is out even in Melbourne (or at least, it was yesterday). With the promise of a few weeks of respite from a hellish year just around the corner, the time has come again for us to share our top 10 progressive reads released over the year. And, for the third ... Read more
Insights
June 1, 2020

Jobs for Australia online symposium

We’d very much like to extend our thanks to everyone who attended our Jobs for Australia online symposium on Friday 29th May. The event marked the 75th anniversary of the Curtin White Paper on Full Employment and the launch of our own project on full employment: Jobs for Australia. Taking inspiration from the postwar Labor ... Read more
Insights
May 5, 2020

An open letter to our political leaders

The extraordinary public health measures taken to address the COVID-19 pandemic have resulted in the biggest economic shock Australia has ever experienced. Unemployment is expected to rise to levels not seen for more than a generation, and the government has rightly taken on significant public debt to support jobs and incomes while a large proportion ... Read more
Insights
March 25, 2020

Capitalism is broken. This crisis is our chance to fix it

To the followers of Per Capita and the readers of our work, This letter is being written at my dining room table, as I and the rest of the Per Capita team are in our second week of working from home to avoid spreading the terrible virus that has upended our world. The devastation to ... Read more
Insights
December 5, 2019

Progressive Summer Reading List 2019

It’s that time of year again. The sun is shining, the beach is inviting and hopefully you’ll have a little bit of downtime to spend with your loved ones over the holiday period. If you’re looking for something to read, then we’ve got you covered! The Per Capita Progressive Summer Reading List is released in ... Read more
Insights
August 8, 2019

Speech: John Falzon at the Don Dunstan Foundation’s Homelessness Conference

Homelessness and the house of lies Don Dunstan Foundation’s Homelessness Conference, Adelaide, 07 August 2019 Dr John Falzon Senior Fellow, Inequality and Social Justice I remember learning an important lesson From a young woman experiencing homelessness in Melbourne. Everyone was walking past her, refusing to meet her eyes. She wasn’t asking for somewhere to live. ... Read more
Insights
July 12, 2019

Winners: Per Capita Young Writers’ Prize 2019

Our deepest thanks to all the young people who entered the Per Capita Young Writers’ Prize 2019. We had more entries this year than ever before, from young people aged 16-24 in school, university, and work. It’s time to announce the winners! First Prize – $1500 First prize was awarded to Alexander North, aged 24, ... Read more
Insights
June 17, 2019

Speech: The Economic Impacts of Ageism

Speech to the COTA Australia National Policy Forum National Press Club, Canberra, 13 June 2019 Emma Dawson, Executive Director, Per Capita I begin by acknowledging that we meet today on the land of the Ngunnawal people, and pay respects to their elders past, present and emerging. This is, and always will be, Aboriginal land, land ... Read more
Insights
June 11, 2019

Per Capita calls on Opposition and Senate cross bench to #StopStage3

MEDIA RELEASE: Per Capita calls on Opposition and Senate cross bench to #StopStage3 Having won the election, the Coalition government will be pushing hard to legislate its tax plan when Parliament sits again in July. That tax plan comprises three stages: Stage 1 increases the low and middle income tax offset (LMITO) from $530 to ... Read more
Insights
June 3, 2019

Election 2019: Do we really want to be like the United States?

Warwick Smith is our Senior Economist. On twitter he’s @RecoEco. At the 2019 federal election Australians were offered a starker choice than usual. The differences between the policies and rhetoric of the major parties was greater than it has been for decades. One way to characterise the two major parties is that the Coalition want ... Read more
Insights
May 29, 2019

Election 2019: Another dose of fear

Dr John Falzon is our Senior Fellow, Inequality and Social Justice. He was national CEO of the St Vincent de Paul Society from 2012 to 2018. Those who breed insecurity are quick to prey on the insecure. We saw this writ large in the Australian federal election of 2019. As political economist William Davies explains: ... Read more
Insights
May 7, 2019

The right to hope: John Falzon’s May Day Dinner speech

The right to hope May Day Dinner Speech, Adelaide, 01 May 2019 Dr John Falzon Senior Fellow, Inequality and Social Justice   I would like to begin by acknowledging that we are reflecting on inequality and social justice On land that always was, and always will be, Aboriginal land. I pay tribute to the First ... Read more
Insights
April 11, 2019

Andrew Leigh MP’s address to the Reform Agenda Series

I acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation and pay respect to their elders. My thanks to Per Capita, particularly Executive Director Emma Dawson, for the chance to speak with you today. Last month, journalist David Speers asked senior Liberal Party frontbencher Linda Reynolds a reasonable question: ‘Do you agree that flexibility in wages ... Read more
Insights
April 2, 2019

Per Capita’s 2019 Budget Response

Federal Budget 2019: A Missed Opportunity to Address Inequality in Australia by Emma Dawson, Executive Director Treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s first budget fails to grapple with the big challenges facing our nation. The centrepiece of the Government’s pre-election budget is personal income tax cuts aimed at middle-income earners, but real measures to address the growing inequality ... Read more
Insights
March 14, 2019

Per Capita Young Writers’ Prize 2019

The prestigious Per Capita Young Writers’ Prize is now open for submissions. Do you have an idea for fighting inequality in Australia? Do you want to win $1500? We can’t wait to hear your thoughts. HOW TO ENTER: Answer the following question in under 3000 words (no lower limit): ????Imagine you have the opportunity to ... Read more
Insights
March 8, 2019

Tanja Kovac joins Per Capita

On International Women’s Day 2019, Per Capita is thrilled to announce that Tanja Kovac is joining our team as Senior Fellow, Gender Equity. Tanja is a renowned activist for gender equality, and a policy and advocacy leader with decades of experience working in government, law and the non-profit sector. Most recently she was Chief of ... Read more
Insights
February 20, 2019

Money For Jam Graduation

https://www.facebook.com/PerCapitaAustralia/videos/2205280076355749/ December saw the completion of Per Capita’s flagship social innovation project Money For Jam. Generously funded by Equity Trustees and Gandel Philanthropy, with further support from Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation, Melbourne Women’s Fund and Reichstein Foundation, Money For Jam engaged with more than 40 older women to empower them to earn through microenterprise. Working with ... Read more
Insights
February 6, 2019

Hayne: an expert diagnostician, but a lacklustre surgeon

Tim Lyons is a Fellow at Per Capita and Deputy Chairman of a large industry superannuation fund. In 2013, soon after taking office, then Treasurer Hockey announced a plan to “make his senior public servants spend more time in the world of executives, bankers, bond traders and corporate investors” or what he called “the real ... Read more
Insights
December 6, 2018

Per Capita 2018 Progressive Summer Reading List

Win the full set here
Insights
October 24, 2018

Dr John Falzon joins Per Capita

Per Capita is delighted to announce that Dr John Falzon OAM will join our team as Senior Fellow, Inequality and Social Justice on 1 November 2018. Dr Falzon is a sociologist, poet and social justice advocate, and was national CEO of the St Vincent de Paul Society from 2006 to 2018. He has written and ... Read more
Insights
October 1, 2018

International Day of Older Persons

International Day of Older Persons (IDOP) celebrates the contribution older people continue to make to societies across the world. It also provides a regular opportunity for advocates to raise awareness around key areas of concern in ageing: poverty, the pandemic of loneliness, and the growing incidence of elder abuse. The theme of 2018’s IDOP is ... Read more
Insights
September 18, 2018

Who Cares: Our Reflections on the Four Corners exposé

Last night’s Four Corners program exploring residential aged care was one of the ABC’s largest, crowd-sourced investigations. The ABC received more than 4000 submissions from concerned staff, families, sector advocates and insiders. It resulted in a compelling account of failure upon failure in our aged care sector. Chillingly, there were no real surprises. Tales of ... Read more
Insights
September 6, 2018

The 2018 EJ Craigie Award winner: Warwick Smith

“Last night Warwick Smith, Senior economist at Per Capita was awarded the EJ Craigie Writing Award for his piece The big spending Victorian state budget is built on Australia’s worst tax. Warwick quickly laid out the damaging effects of stamp duties and then moved on to show another innovative ACT policy move, with the transition away ... Read more
Insights
July 19, 2018

Emma Dawson’s address to the 2018 ACTU Congress

Address to the 2018 ACTU Congress Panel Discussion: Ending Trickle Down Economics John Kenneth Galbraith once described trickle-down economics as the theory that “if you feed enough oats to the horse, some will pass through to feed the sparrows”. In Australia today, as in so many other developed nations where trickle-down economics has been ascendant ... Read more
Insights
June 26, 2018

Event recap: David Madland

Please note: this event recap is taken from the proceedings of the Melbourne event. Per Capita also held an event with David Madland in Sydney, where different topics may have been discussed. The latest guest at Per Capita’s Reform Agenda Series was David Madland, in conversation with Tim Lyons. David Madland is a Senior Fellow at ... Read more
Insights
June 26, 2018

Per Capita announces new appointments to Board of Directors

Per Capita has today announced the appointment of two new directors to its board, and the retirement of two members who have served the think tank for many years. Dee Madigan, Director of Campaign Edge, and Tim Kennedy, National Secretary of the National Union of Workers, will join the Per Capita board. With over 20 ... Read more
Insights
May 24, 2018

Turnbull and Morrison’s budget sell relies on a single big lie

Treasurer Scott Morrison is working hard to sell his make or break 2018 budget, which is centred around tax cuts. The big picture purpose of these tax cuts is keeping the federal government’s tax to GDP ratio (the proportion of the economy the government takes in tax) at or below 23.9%. His ultimate justification comes ... Read more
Insights
May 17, 2018

A “Boomer Budget”? Not so fast

The 2018 federal budget included some welcome initiatives for older Australians such as $105m in increased funding for aged care for indigenous peoples in remote areas, $33m extra for nursing home palliative care and a $23 million fund to support the development of physical activity programs for over 65s. This year’s Budget was said to ... Read more
Insights
May 15, 2018

The big spending Victorian state budget is built on Australia’s worst tax

The Victorian state budget revealed a government flooded with cash. Big spending on infrastructure, health, education and regional development, all while running a budget surplus, has largely been made possible by record revenue from stamp duties on housing. Thanks to record house prices and high population growth in Melbourne, stamp duty revenue is expected to ... Read more
Insights
April 18, 2018

The Economics of Inequality

This speech was given by Per Capita Senior Economist Warwick Smith at an event held by the Victorian Fabians on 18 April 2018. Warwick tweets @RecoEco. Transcript: I’d like to begin by acknowledging the tradition custodians of this land, the Wurrundjuri people of the Kulin nation and pay my respects to their elders; past, present, ... Read more
Insights
March 22, 2018

On company tax cuts, business actions speak louder than words

As the Turnbull Government pushes hard to secure the votes needed to pass its company tax cut for large corporations, minor party senators would do well to heed the actions of big business when it comes to local investment and wage increases for workers, rather than listening to their well-crafted words. On Tuesday, Pauline Hanson ... Read more
Insights
February 1, 2018

Progressive Summer Reading List 2017

Due to technical difficulties, we were a little late sending out our annual Progressive Summer Reading List, and even later getting it up on the website, but here it is. We’ve got some terrific suggestions to ease you back into the working year ahead. Our thanks to staff, Research Fellows, Research Committee Members and Board ... Read more
Insights
October 26, 2017

2017 Per Capita Young Writers’ Prize

Thank you to all those who entered the 2017 Per Capita Young Writers’ Prize. We had a strong field of entries, from Victoria, New South Wales, Western Australia and Queensland, writing essays on subjects as diverse as mental health and wellness, political education, taxation policy, energy and environment policy. In 2017, the judging panel decided that ... Read more
Insights
December 16, 2016

2016 Per Capita Young Writers’ Prize

Thank you to all those who entered the 2016 Per Capita Young Writers’ Prize. We had a strong field of entries, from every state in Australia, with our entrants tackling subjects as diverse as our ageing population, university funding, challenges to our democracy, rights and our Constitution, and environmental issues. The winner of the 2016 Per ... Read more
Insights
August 19, 2016

Social Democracy in Focus, Issue 10

Through our Social Democracy in Focus series, we try to go beyond the theory of public policy, and look at real life outcomes of government decisions. We want to take a closer look at the real world consequences when specific policies, concepts and ideas are implemented. It’s been a while since our last edition, but ... Read more
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July 19, 2016

Social Democracy in Focus, Issue 9

Malcolm Turnbull – a new kind of progressive politics for Australia? Our Social Democracy in Focus Series is designed to look closely at the policies of progressive governments, and see how they translate into practice to implement a progressive policy agenda. Given the change in federal leadership, we thought we’d take a moment to evaluate ... Read more
Insights
January 30, 2016

Progressive Summer Reading 2016

  We’ve got some great progressive reading suggestions to keep you busy over summer. Our thanks to Research Fellows, staff, Research Committee Members and supporters for these suggestions.​   Time for a New Consensus Tom Bentley and Jonathan West (2016, Griffith Review 51) In an in-depth and insightful analysis of the Australian political and economic landscape, West ... Read more
Insights
December 23, 2015

Progressive Summer Reading 2015

We’ve got some great progressive reading suggestions to keep you busy over summer. Our thanks to Ideas at Per Capita subscribers and the Per Capita Circle for these suggestions. An Economy is not a Society Winners and losers in the new Australia, Dennis Glover (2015, Black Inc books) A wonderful and personal account of the “winners and ... Read more
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December 17, 2015

2015 Young Writers’ Prize

First Prize awarded to Euan Brown for his compelling essay: Dispelling Ageism’s Myths. Population ageing presents significant challenges, but these should not be overstated and the economic opportunities this demographic shift offers should be equally emphasised. Governmental research has up until this point inadequately identified those opportunities instead preferring a doomand-gloom prognosis of Australia’s future economic performance ... Read more
Insights
August 31, 2015

Social Democracy in Focus, Issue 8

31 August 2015 Social Democracy in Focus – The Future of Social Democracy Welcome to our 8th edition of Social Democracy in Focus. In this edition we’re doing something a little different. We’ve received such great feedback on Dennis’ book, An Economy is Not a Society, that we thought we’d recap some of the discussion ... Read more
Insights
July 28, 2015

Social Democracy in Focus, Issue 7

28 July 2015 Matters of conscience Anyone who has sat through a senior school politics class knows about the concept of party discipline. Parliamentarians are required to vote in accordance with the position of their party. They can “cross the floor” to vote against their Party, with personal consequences. Then there are matters, often matters ... Read more
Insights
July 10, 2015

Social Democracy in Focus, Issue 6

10 July 2015 Infrastructure and Planning Reform in Victoria and Queensland The Andrews Government is developing plans to overhaul the way infrastructure is developed and built in Victoria. It is establishing two key non-partisan bodies, Infrastructure Victoria and Projects Victoria, both of which are drawn from Labor’s 2014 Policy Platform. The particular political impetus for ... Read more
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April 20, 2015

Social Democracy in Focus, Issue 5

20 April 2015: Roundup of the NSW election, plus addressing the gender gap in Victoria.
Insights
March 20, 2015

Social Democracy in Focus, Issue 4

20 March 2015: NSW election, East West Link & WestConnex, federal-state relations.
Insights
February 20, 2015

Social Democracy in Focus, Issue 3

20 February 2015 We began this Per Capita series to track the evolution of a new social democratic government in Victoria. Since that time, a new Labor government has, quite unexpectedly, come to power in Queensland. Accordingly, the commentary we provide here will have a broader focus on social democratic government in Australian states and ... Read more
Insights
December 19, 2014

Social Democracy in Focus, Issue 2

Real-world interpretation of the new government’s policies: What they mean for quality of life, prosperity and fairness in Victoria. Road to nowhere? On Monday, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews fulfilled his election commitment to publish the business case documents for the previous government’s $6.8 billion contract to build stage one of the East-West link road. Rebuilding ... Read more
Insights
December 5, 2014

Social Democracy in Focus, Issue 1

A New Government: A New Opportunity for Social Democracy Per Capita is dedicated to developing a credible and practical agenda for social democracy in Australia today, whether it is at the local, state or national level of government. Keeping in touch with what is actually happening on the ground is crucial to this endeavour. Indeed ... Read more
Insights
October 21, 2014

2014 Young Writers’ Prize

The winner of the 2014 Young Writers’ Prize: The labour market crisis and the welfare burden: towards a universal basic income by Henry Ward “The implementation of a universal basic income would not only eliminate poverty and liberate workers from the shackles of a failing labour market and from the stigma of current income support ... Read more
Insights
January 5, 2014

Progressive Summer Reading 2014

Recommendations from the Per Capita Circle to keep you busy over summer.
Insights
January 1, 2014

Because Everybody Counts: Per Capita Launch

Australia faces new challenges. Fragile prosperity built on a boom. Far too many kids left behind. A changing climate. A divided culture. Knee-jerk responses to real security threats. The underlying causes are also new: increased mobility, interdependence, and the breakdown of old economic structures. Year after year conservatives have failed to tackle these threats. Current ... Read more

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