The government faces a paradox, writes Tim Colebatch. It needs to stop the tax debate from running out of control but that means making unpopular decisions. Malcolm Turnbull’s honeymoon with the Australian electorate has felt like a liberation; but it can’t last forever. His government, rightly, has allowed the tax debate to roam far and...

This paper provides the distributional household impact of the existing Goods and Services Tax (GST) and a range of alternatives for expanding the rate and breadth of the GST.

Increases in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) are being advocated to help fund services provided by the States such as health care; to replace other indirect taxes such as Stamp Duties or Payroll Taxes; or to pay for income or company tax cuts. Many people are concerned about the impact of a higher GST...

Treasurer Scott Morrison claims Australia has a spending problem, not a revenue problem.

An outsider view offers important proposals to help Australia navigate stormy economic weather Few of the International Monetary Fund’s annual reports on Australia have created any ripples in the national debate. This time is different. In two reports released last week, IMF staff weighed in boldly on everything from house prices to tax reform and...