The Nationals’ Barnaby Joyce is running for New England in the House of Representatives, which he is expected to win comfortably. AAP/Lukas Coch

New England: an independent seat in more ways than one

The seat of New England, stretching from the Queensland border in the north, through the New England region and the north-west slopes and to the Liverpool plains in the south, would have been on everyone’s…
Wayne Swan tells journalists the government’s promised budget surplus is now unlikely to be delivered. ABC News

Swan says budget surplus now unlikely: experts respond

Treasurer Wayne Swan has acknowledged it’s unlikely the government will deliver the budget surplus it had been promising for next year, following the release of a disappointing monthly financial statement…
Political, rather than economic: economists say there is no direct link to surpluses and lower interest rates. AAP

Can surpluses lead to lower interest rates?

The Federal Government is continuing its pre-budget surplus sell, with Prime Minister Julia Gillard directly linking its plans to return the budget to surplus to lower interest rates. Gillard will use…
Policy or populism? Wayne Swan may be locking himself into a misguided stance on returning to surplus. AAP

Why is Wayne Swan locking himself into a return to surplus?

It is just possible that the Federal Government’s public statements about the need to get back, at all costs, to a budget surplus for the 2012-13 year are based on a grim view of the intelligence of the…
“And then children, we returned the budget to surplus…” AAP

Why Wayne and Julia are hooked on ‘deficit fetishism’

If pre-budget statements by Julia Gillard and Wayne Swan are an accurate guide, this year’s Federal Budget is shaping up as marking a change in the direction of Commonwealth taxing and spending priorities…

Contact Tim for

  • General
  • Media request
  • Speaking request
  • Consulting / Advising
  • Research collaboration
  • Research supervision