Last night I attended the Melbourne City Council’s Future Melbourne Meeting to speak on the dangers the Andrews Government rating cap has placed on council revenue raising. Cr Stephen Mayne had an interesting motion that caught my eye via twitter: Future Melbourne...
BLOG: Commentary
Privatise at your own peril Premier
Queensland's weekend election saw the largest turnaround in Australian political history. A landslide against the ALP at the last election, now one back their way this time spells an electorate concerned with the economic vision for their future. With much of the...
The property holdings of members of the Queensland Parliament
The Queensland election this Saturday has the nation holding its breath. Will the Liberal/National Party government of Campbell Newman with 78 of the 89 seats in the parliament be displaced by a very angry electorate, or merely have their huge majority...
Rating System Undermined
Have u signed up to our Evolving Economics Enews yet? Subscribe here. If you are already a subscriber and noticed some of the links were missing in 'The Private Earth' section, they've been fixed below so you can connect to the interview with Michael Hudson. Having...
Land – A New Paradigm
Martin Adams debut book Land: A New Paradigm for a Thriving World is out today. The book asks what if we lived in a world where everyone had enough? A world where everyone mattered and where people lived in harmony with nature? What if the solution to our economic,...
Victoria considers ‘Value Capture’
Victorian Labor in its November 2014 election transport manifesto Project 10,000 boldly announced it would “Remove our 50 worst level crossings” at a cost of $5-6 billion. They are now the government. Grade separation of rail – elevating the track or, preferably,...
Stiglitz to Piketty: its the land!
Joseph Stiglitz's recent interview with Lynne Parrymore of the Institute for New Economics demonstrates the difference between land and capital: My paper begins with the observation that in fact, you cannot explain what has happened to the wealth/income ratio...
Fifty grades of shade: A story of enclosures, power and native title
By Cameron Murray Romance novels seduce you into feeling for their characters, drawing you into their exhilarating world where eventually, and predictably, the protagonists overcome their seemingly intractable obstacles and are united together. The story of property...
Sydney Swans and Melbourne Demons
What passes for analysis or commentary on property matters in Australia's media is bloody woeful. Robert Gottliebsen is out this morning on Business Spectator Why Sydney won't mirror Melbourne's apartment glut supposedly comparing Sydney and Melbourne apartment...
Vic Govt need for policy integrity
The new Andrews Government provides a fresh opportunity for reviewing the role of state revenues. The current property bubble has provided a windfall in Stamp Duty revenues allowing for considered reform. The hot topics the State government must address to enhance its...