This working paper examines trends in incomes, employment, and demographics across Australia over the past decade. The trends outlined have been influenced by broader economic forces: a mining investment boom that boosted investment and incomes in particular regions; and the continuing shift of consumption and employment from agriculture and manufacturing to services.

The politics of property prices are shifting rapidly beneath the Turnbull Government. After declaring that housing affordability would be the centrepiece of next month’s federal budget, the government has been backtracking. The shift in rhetoric isn’t surprising. Despite all the talk of options on the table, the government is yet to show that it’s serious...

While economic growth has been concentrated in cities for some time, the trend has really accelerated in the past decade. Half of all jobs growth is now within a 2km radius of the city centres in both Melbourne and Sydney, reflecting the increasing share of new jobs in services industries where physical proximity really matters.

The Commonwealth Government could save about $1 billion a year by winding back three tax breaks for older Australians that are unduly generous and have no sensible policy rationale. Seniors pay less tax and get a higher rebate on private health insurance than do younger workers on the same income. They do so through the...

People are spending more on services rather than goods, and so more people are working in services, generating high-value jobs in the centres of our big cities. Policy, especially in housing, is struggling to keep up, as Grattan CEO, John Daley, shows in this presentation to the Melbourne Economic Forum.