Australia is on track to “obliterate” last year’s record immigration levels as record population growth sends living standards into “terminal decline”, an economist has warned. Leith van Onselen, co-founder of MacroBusiness and chief economist at MB Fund and MB Super, said the latest figures from the Australian Bureau of StatisticsContinue Reading
Just about everywhere you look, there are worsening signs that Australia is no longer the lucky country. From record-high rents to skyrocketing mortgages, a cost-of-living crisis to the alarming emergence of a ‘working poor’ population, the country faces an unprecedented storm of factors putting pressure on millions of people. AndContinue Reading
In 2001, when Australia’s population was 19.3 million, then-Treasurer Peter Costello released the inaugural Intergenerational Report (IGR). The 2001 IGR forecast that Australia’s population would grow to 25.7 million people by 2050, driven by annual net overseas migration (NOM) of 90,000. The following year in 2002, a Senate Inquiry putContinue Reading
Earlier this month, Treasurer Jim Chalmers announced that Australia’s first national “wellbeing framework” would soon be released that will comprise around 50 indicators showing how Australians are tracking over time. Dr Chalmers said the wellbeing framework “will help us track our journey towards a healthier, more sustainable, cohesive, secure andContinue Reading
The federal government wants to tighten the lock on superannuation funds to make it more difficult for Australians to access their savings early, ensuring they have a comfortable retirement. According to Treasury, 78 per cent of Australians have money in their superannuation account. The pool has grown from around $148Continue Reading
An Australian professor and his colleagues have been taken hostage by an armed group in Papua New Guinea. PNG’s Prime Minister, James Marape, told reporters on Monday his government has been in contact with the kidnappers, with missionaries living in the remote forested area acting as intermediaries. “I want toContinue Reading
Rebel fighters in Indonesia’s Papua region have released eerie photos and footage of a New Zealand pilot they took hostage last week. Captain Philip Mehrtens — a former Jetstar pilot — was kidnapped after touching down in Paro village on February 7. The Susi Air pilot was there to pickContinue Reading