Policy Monographs
Policy Monographs (PM) are pieces directly commenting on government policy, new programs or legislation.
Categories
The New Leviathan: A National Disability Insurance Scheme
The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) has been touted as the biggest social reform since Medicare. Currently, there is only a naive understanding of the scheme. This report makes the case that... Read More
Future Submarine Project Should Raise Periscope for Another Look
Australia should not spend $40 billion to repeat the mistakes of the Collins Class submarine. Nuclear submarines, such as the US Navy’s Virginia Class submarine, would provide a much greater capability... Read More
Indigenous Education 2012
Indigenous Education 2012 reviews the lack of progress by states and territories in improving Indigenous literacy and numeracy. It examines causes of Indigenous students’ success and failure, and the... Read More
Australia’s Angry Mayors: How Population Growth Frustrates Local Councils
To understand the effects of a growing population on Australia’s councils, CIS surveyed local authorities from all over the country. The results are alarming. The level of frustration with inadequate... Read More
Why Does Government Grow?
This paper examines some of the stylised facts in relation to the growth of government in the Western world generally, and Australia in particular. It then reviews some of the main theories advanced to... Read More
Populate and Perish? Modelling Australia's Demographic Future
Since the publication of the 2010 Intergenerational Report, Australia has been debating its demographic future and whether it is desirable for the nation to grow to more than 35 million people by 2050.... Read More
Like the Curate’s Egg: A Market-based Response and Alternative to the Bennett Report
The National Health and Hospital Reform Commission (NHHRC) has acknowledged the need to ensure health services are responsive to the needs of patients, and has recommended some very limited market-based... Read More
Fiscal Rules for Limited Government: Reforming Australia’s Fiscal Responsibility Legislation
The paper outlines the rationale for fiscal responsibility legislation and a rules-based approach to fiscal policy. It examines the shortcomings of the existing CBH, showing how it has failed to prevent... Read More
Radical Surgery: The Only Cure for New South Wales Hospitals
Wolfgang Kasper argues that the hospital malaise can only be remedied by removing the central, bureaucratic control of hospitals and creating opportunities for spontaneous, decentralised and customer-oriented... Read More
A Streak of Hypocrisy: Reactions to the Global Financial Crisis and Generational Debt
Dr Jeremy Sammut says that ‘household savings have collapsed due to an unnecessary dependence on welfare handouts. A new era of thrift is overdue!’ Read More
The False Promise of GP Super Clinics: Part 1: Preventive Care
Dr Jeremy Sammut examines the evidence for preventive care programs to help make the Medicare system sustainable, given the demands of the ageing of Australia’s population, the rising chronic disease... Read More
The Coming Crisis of Medicare: What the Intergenerational Reports should say, but doesn’t, about health and ageing
The demographic and medical realities of the twenty-first century mean that Medicare can no longer provide every citizen with ‘free’ access to all the new medicine. Without reform, healthcare in... Read More
The Organisation of Residential Aged Care for an Ageing Population
At the heart of this new paper is the re-assertion of the need for a system of accommodation bonds. Hogan reiterates that a key factor limiting the supply of extra beds is the high cost of developing new... Read More
State Taxation and Fiscal Federalism: A Blueprint for Further Reform
This paper identifies major structural flaws in our current taxation system and develops a set of radical proposals to put them right. The flaws it identifies lie in the fiscal relation between the Commonwealth... Read More
Poverty in Australia: Beyond the Rhetoric
This report challenges prevailing definitions and measurements of poverty, and calls for an alternative strategy for poverty alleviation based on American-style welfare reform, lower taxation and job creation. Read More
The Unchained University
Australia's universities are not preparing students adequately for their futures. Report author and higher education expert Andrew Norton argues that universities are failing students in several ways. Read More
Lessons from the Ord
The Ord Scheme, indeed, offers ample ammunition for those who take the extreme view that responsibility is directly proportional to the taxing power. Certainly even those who hold a less extreme position... Read More
