Research

New polling shows more than two in three Australians support Australia setting up a COVID19 response committee modelled on the New Zealand model. The Australia Institute surveyed a nationally representative sample of 1,008 people between 3 and 6 April 2020. Key Findings: More than two in three Australians (68%) support Australia setting up a New Zealand style COVID-19 parliamentary oversight committee, only 13% oppose. Before it w...

New research from The Australia Institute shows that Australia’s private health insurers are set to enjoy a windfall of between $3.5 billion and $5.5 billion over the next six months. “The takeover of private hospitals by Governments, social distancing and other policies to counter corona virus mean that far fewer services will be provided to private health insurance policy holders,” said Roy Harvey, report author and health finance expert. “Visi...

Commercial aviation emissions in Australia could drop by over half in 2020 as a result of the COVID19 pandemic, according to new research from the Australia Institute Climate & Energy Program. The global effort to rein in the impact of COVID19 has seen an unprecedented and indefinite grounding of commercial aviation fleets in countries across the world. Key Findings: COVID19 related cuts to commercial air traffic has already resulted in...

A prominent group of former Australian judges who have been pursuing a federal anti-corruption watchdog have today called for the establishment of a bi-partisan parliamentary oversight committee to ensure adequate scrutiny of the COVID-19 response while the Federal Parliament is not sitting. Such a body has already been established in New Zealand to help fill the accountability gap. Known as the Epidemic Response Committee, it is an all-party spe...

A review into the Federal Government’s Climate Solutions Fund has dismissed calls by coal lobbyists to water down provisions for high-polluting facilities, like coal-fired power stations, to access dedicated climate funding for upgrades.The facilities method review by the Emissions Reduction Assurance Committee (ERAC) considered and dismissed removing the threat of criminal sanctions on coal executives who access the funding inappr...

New research shows an overwhelming majority of Australians (82.5%) support the ACTU proposal that the Government guarantee two weeks paid leave for all workers who are forced to self-isolate as a result of COVID-19. The Australia Institute surveyed a nationally representative sample of 1,723 Australians on the night of 18 March 2020.Key Findings:An overwhelming majority of Australians (82.5%) support the ACTU proposal that the Governmen...

New research from The Australia Institute has found that a majority of Australians (52%) want to see Newstart boosted to the rate of the Age Pension for the course of the Coronavirus crisis, while one in three Australians (34%) oppose the idea. Key findings: -          The maximum single rate of Newstart is currently $559 per fortnight, which is $291 less than the maximum single rate of the Age Pension...

New research by the Australia Institute shows the Government’s objective of achieving a budget surplus ignores the consequences of such an economic strategy—leaving Australian taxpayers to bear the burden of less government services, despite paying their taxes.The report reveals that the present Government commitment to return to a surplus of at least one per cent of GDP can actually be seen as a commitment to tax the average taxpayer $1,700 more...

New research from the Australia Institute Climate & Energy Program shows that the Australian Summer is getting longer and Winter is getting shorter, due to global warming. The Australia Institute analysis uses Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) data to track changes in daily temperatures that mark the beginning of each season over the sub-tropical and temperate parts of the country where most Australians live. Key findings: In the two decades...