This paper introduces an inquiry into the effectiveness and sustainability of Australia’s natural disaster funding arrangements, and invites submissions from the public. Summary This inquiry is about the effectiveness and sustainability of Australia’s natural disaster funding arrangements. The Commission has been asked to assess the full scope of current Commonwealth, state and territory expenditure on...

Treasurer Joe Hockey is the "Masterchef of cooking the books" according to his Opposition counterpart Chris Bowen, who has repeatedly accused the Coalition of using "voodoo economics" to create a sense of crisis to justify dramatic spending cuts in the bu

Unprecedented infrastructure spending by states and territories is largely responsible for a $106 billion decline in their finances since 2006, argues this report. Overview Australian government budgets are under pressure. Without tough decisions, they risk posting deficits of around 4½ per cent of GDP within 10 years. The problems have got worse since our first...

This policy brief presents a number of scenarios to illustrate the impact on the budget from the Emissions Reduction Fund and removing the carbon price. Summary The Government proposes to remove the current legislated carbon price and replace it with its taxpayer-funded Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF). Over the four years of forward estimates, this is...

This case study focuses on gender responsive budgeting at the federal level of government in Australia. Gender responsive budgeting is an analysis of the impact of the budget on gender equality and a process of changing budgetary decision-making and priorities. The annual publication of a gender budget statement by government is a vital component of...