The Economy, Stupid

We have a new government so where does it stand on the big issues like climate and industrial relations? Anna Skarbek, CEO of Climateworks Centre discusses the targets and policies but also how much more needs to be done and Andrew Stewart, Professor of Law at the University of Adelaide talks through the challenges the government has with rejuvenating enterprise bargaining mechanisms for pay rises as well as other policy commitments. And have we reached the limits of global trade liberalisation? The Financial Times, global business columnist, Rana Foroohar explores what might come next and whether we need to fix the WTO.

It has been a very long election campaign so is it possible there are areas that haven't been discussed by the major political parties? Richard Holden, Professor of Economics at the University of New South Wales Business School and Danielle Wood, economist and CEO of the Grattan Institute reflect on the policies and economics that have been forgotten.

How do you know when we're in a global recession? Well, there's no precise rule but the economies of China, US and Europe are all facing challenges and uncertainties making forecasting difficult. And as Harvard Professor of Economics Kenneth Rogoff, says, we'll know when we are in one. And this doesn't bode well for Australia where long term forecasts are showing budget deficits. With election spending promises, neither side of politics is mentioning major reform that most economists know is a major requirement. The ABC's financial journalist and editor in chief of the Eureka Report Alan Kohler discusses. And manufacturing. We've all seen the images of Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese in high viz, but what are they planning and is it enough? Jesse Adams Stein, senior lecturer and ARC DECRA fellow at the UTS School of Design talks through the possibilities.

In the wake of this weeks RBA increase in interest rates, how difficult is it to forecast in uncertain times? Former economist at the RBA and lecturer at Monash University, Isaac Gross discusses indicators and predictions. How can it be that the number of people receiving unemployment benefits is higher than the number of unemployed? Why are some people receiving benefits exempt from looking for work? Professor Peter Whiteford from the Crawford School of Public Policy at the ANU talks through these conundrums. And what's the correlation between military spend and economic growth? It's complicated as Simon Rabinovitch, The Economist's US economics editor explains.

Inflation, interest rates and the RBA. Warren Hogan economic advisor to Judo Bank provides his prediction of when rates will go up and by how much as well as what are the key questions for a forthcoming review of the RBA. As the Solomon Islands and China deal continues to dominate the election campaign what are the differences in each party's approach to foreign aid and is it economically viable? Stephen Howes, professor of economics at the Crawford School of Public Policy at the ANU discusses. Over ninety billion dollars in revenue could be collected from offshore gas projects if changes to the petroleum resource rent tax (PRRT) are made according to a recent Greens policy. So what is the PRRT, why hasn't it worked and why hasn't the Coalition or the ALP in the past done anything about it? Diane Kraal, senior lecturer at the Monash University's Business School explains.

The funding of the National Disability Insurance Scheme has always been a contentious issue between the ALP and the Coalition. Economist Dr Angela Jackson from Impact Economics and Policy outlines why the costs are so high and how to make it more sustainable. What can economic modelling tell us about who will win the Federal Election? Economist Hamish Greenop-Roberts from the University of Queensland, has studied past elections to determine which economic figures are the best indicators for a win. And what does it mean for a country to default? Eliza Wu, Sydney University's associate professor of finance discusses the consequences of defaulting and what will happen with Russia, and PhD candidate Nimna Prematilaka from the University of Melbourne shares her insights on the economic crisis facing Sri Lanka.

There's been a lot of noise around the unemployment figure of 4 percent, but that's not the only figure we should be concerned about with youth unemployment currently at 9.3 percent. How this figure can be improved is explained by Eliza Littleton, research economist at The Australian Institute and co-author of the report Youth unemployment and the pandemic . In the 2019 federal election, political parties collectively spent $433 million. We won't know the figure for this election until next February and even then, we won't know where some of this money came from. Kate Griffiths,deputy director of the Grattan Institute's budgets and government program discusses why greater transparency is needed. And as the destruction of Ukraine continues from Russian forces, estimates of the cost of reconstruction has already began. Christian Odendahl, European economics editor at The Economist explains where the money will come from and the reforms required to rebuild Ukraine.

As we all await for the Prime Minister to announce the date for the 2022 Federal Election, the Australian Electoral Commission began preparing for it the day after the last election in 2019. What is involved and what is the cost of running an election across the nation? The AEC's spokesperson, Evan Ekin-Smyth explains. And the French head to the polls this weekend in the first round of Presidential elections. In the last few weeks, polling shows a close contest with purchasing power as a number one issue, but there are other factors at play with a result that not only affects France but the EU as well. Lionel Page, Professor of Economics at the University of Queensland, discusses. And venture capital: Sebastian Mallaby, the Paul A Volcker senior fellow for international economics at the Council on Foreign Relations, charts the history and the impact of this once risky venture.

The Money continues with the Federal Budget analyses but with a difference. Four younger economists, including three recipients of the Economic Society of Australia's Young Economist award, discuss how the budget stacks up when applying their specialist lens.

If you could nominate what you wanted from next week's federal budget, what would it be? Join us on The Money as four people representing different parts of Australian life - the community, small business, employers and those under housing stress - answer this question. Cassandra Goldie, CEO of Australian Council of Social Services; Alexi Boyd, CEO of the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia; Innes Willox, Chief Executive at Australian Industry Group and Kate Colvin spokesperson for the Everybody's Home Campaign.