Many of Europe’s problems were the result of complacent or, shall we say lazy, policymaking. Looking at the Australian election campaign, you get the impression that our politicians are hell-bent on repeating many of Europe’s mistakes. […]
If Germany needs an example of the human potential lying dormant in its Turkish community it should study the case of Ahmet Yaltirakli closely. And if Australians need reminding why migrants can be a great benefit to society, they should look at his case, too. […]
In many ways, Australia today reminds me of Europe in the first decades of the post-war period. We are full of optimism … our population is growing … our economy is booming. But make the wrong choices about the size of government now, ignore the challenge of population ageing, gloss over temporary problems with public deficits, and just a few decades later, we will end up like Europe – under different stars, but with the same destiny. […]
Australia should study the German “environment premium” example closely in the debate over the Prime Minister’s “cash for clunkers” proposal. It was one of the most bizarre and wasteful programs ever to be implemented by any government. Instead of scrapping hundreds of thousands of perfectly functional cars for imaginary benefits, the Prime Minister would be better advised to scrap her lunatic proposal. […]
Through their economic good luck, Australians have been lulled into a false sense of safety. They feel invincible in the wake of a recent strong economic performance. They think they can afford the luxury of saying ‘no’ to further growth. To any European still remembering the 1980s, this has the same nostalgic quality as shoulder pads, Rubik’s cubes and those daggy Rick Astley songs. But actually, we would want to see the return of none of these. […]
When comparing Australia’s growth chances to the European predicament of shrinking and decline, it should not be hard to decide which path is more tempting. Growth is not everything, but without growth everything is more difficult. […]
To any ordinary human being, modern politics must be a nightmare. No longer does it seem to have the impact on a world that politicians want to change for the better. Instead, it has become an endless chore of news grabs, pseudo debates, and media posturing. […]
Opposition politicians are acutely aware of government’s ability to fiddle the figures to their desire. No shadow treasurer would be worth his salt if he did not complain about the dodgy nature of official forecasts. It is standard practice in Australia and elsewhere. But at least in Britain this could change now, and I am happy to say that I played a minor role in it. […]
Given the choice between managing Australia’s growing population and administering the demographic decline of wide parts of Europe, there should be no doubt which of the two is the more pleasant scenario. The task of responsible politicians is not to scare the population about migrants. It should be to explain the benefits that our growing population entails. […]
Ideas@TheCentre – The CIS newsletter (Sydney), 9 July 2010 Prime Minister Julia Gillard is working hard to distance herself from her predecessor as she redefines Australia’s population policy. Kevin Rudd had famously declared that he made no apologies for supporting ‘a big Australia.’ Gillard seems to prefer a ‘small Australia,’ although she is yet to […]
Copyright © 2024 | MH Magazine WordPress Theme by MH Themes