Recent projections of higher than expected population growth in Australia over the next 40 years has refocused the attention of governments and communities on population policy, according to this paper, and yet a focused policy response has not yet emerged. With concerns about climate change, water availability, land degradation and urban growth increasing, there are...

As part of the scoping study for a national not-for-profit regulator, this paper seeks comment from stakeholders on the goals of national regulation, the scope of national regulation and the functions and form of a national regulator. This paper seeks initial views in relation to design options for a national (not-for-profit) NFP regulator. It does...

The 2010 federal election resulted in the first hung Commonwealth parliament and minority government for almost 70 years, though hung parliaments are common at the state and territory level. This background note provides a discussion of the hung Commonwealth parliament and associated matters including forming the minority Labor Government, voting dynamics in the House of...

The Government is committed to empowering regional Australia to reach its full potential and become even stronger and more sustainable in the years ahead. The 2011"12 Budget supports strong, resilient and creative regional communities through measures targeting health, education and skills, workforce participation, infrastructure, environmental sustainability and improved delivery of government services.

This paper argues that paternalist policies may be considered justifiable under circumstances where high stakes decisions are involved, the decisions being made by individuals are irreversible and it is possible to identify failures in people’s reasoning. It is further argued that if paternalist interventions are able to be justified in terms of people’s own values...