The picture that emerges from this assessment is not positive. Whereas Australia was once a leader in the global struggle for gender equality, this report makes clear that in recent years Australia has resiled from this commitment and many of the achievements of an earlier period have now been undone. This is most obviously true...

The Australian Labor Party (ALP) has been re-elected as the party of government in Victoria, with its leader, Steve Bracks, to return as premier with an only slightly diminished lower house majority of 22 seats. Arguably the most interesting aspect of the election was the use of the Single Transferable Vote (STV) proportional representation electoral...

In this speech for Centre for Independent Studies, Kevin Rudd discusses the philosophical division within the political Right, pointing out the conflict between conservative values such as the family and Hayek's concept of the market.

Preaching democracy abroad is a mistake because democracy is not the essence of good government writes Harry Evans. It is a necessary but not a sufficient condition. To the extent that government in the West has been a more civilised business, it has not been due to democracy but to something far older: constitutionalism, subjecting...

How have those involved in the political process, including government, political parties, MPs and civil society groups used new technology ask Peter Chen, Rachel Gibson and Karin Geiselhart. On the one hand there is the potential for increased big brother surveillance of citizens, on the other for broader citizen participation and interactivity in the policy...