Grattan Institute

The serious problem of migrant worker exploitation shot to prominence in 2015, when a joint Fairfax Media and Four Corners report uncovered widespread underpayment of 7-Eleven employees. Recent governments have taken some steps to reduce exploitation, such as increasing maximum penalties for firms that knowingly underpay their workers and making improvements to the small claims process. But these changes don’t go far enough, and progress has stalled since the pandemic. Our new report, Short-changed: How to stop the exploitation of migrant workers in Australia, provides solutions to stamp out the exploitation of migrant workers. Trent Wiltshire, Deputy Program Director, discusses the report with co-authors Brendan Coates, Program Director, and Tyler Reysenbach, Associate. Read the report: https://grattan.edu.au/report/short-changed-how-to-stop-the-exploitation-of-migrant-workers-in-australia/

Housing is in crisis. Rents are surging. Interest rates continue to go up, with fears of another rate rise on the horizon. The 2023 federal Budget went some way to address the rising cost of living. But despite the increase to Rent Assistance, these policies don’t go far enough to address the long-term lack of housing supply. Host Kat Clay is joined by Brendan Coates, Economic Policy Program Director, and Joey Moloney, Senior Associate, to discuss why housing was the biggest missed opportunity in the federal Budget. Read Grattan's previous work on the Social Housing Future Fund: https://grattan.edu.au/news/a-place-to-call-home-its-time-for-a-social-housing-future-fund/ Donate to Grattan: https://grattan.edu.au/donate/

This year, the Budget is officially back in black. On Tuesday, Treasurer Jim Chalmers announced an expected budget surplus, the first in 15 years. The budget included measures to address the cost of living, provide more support to vulnerable Australians, and healthcare reforms. Watch Iris Chan, Fellow, discuss the federal Budget with Grattan's CEO, Danielle Wood. Donate to Grattan: https://grattan.edu.au/donate Read the Back in Black report: https://grattan.edu.au/report/back-in-black-a-menu-of-measures-to-repair-the-budget/

The federal government recently released their Review of the Migration System. The review has revealed a broken system in dire need of reform. To quote the report, “Australia now has a migration program that fails to attract the most highly skilled migrants and fails to enable business to efficiently access workers.” But how to fix it? Discussing the report and their policy recommendations are Brendan Coates, Economic Policy Program Director, Tyler Reysenbach, Associate, with host Kat Clay. Donate to Grattan: https://grattan.edu.au/donate/ Read the Review of the Migration System: https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/reports-and-pubs/files/review-migration-system-final-report.pdf

Last week, the federal government released their long awaited National Electric Vehicle Strategy. At the heart of the policy is a fuel efficiency standard, which sets a limit for carbon emissions from vehicles, to incentivise the sale of electric vehicles. Listen to Marion Terrill, Transport and Cities Program Director, Lachie Fox, Associate, and host Kat Clay, discuss this new strategy, and whether it goes far enough. National Electric Vehicle Strategy: https://www.dcceew.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/national-electric-vehicle-strategy.pdf The Grattan Car Plan: https://grattan.edu.au/report/grattan-car-plan/ The Grattan Truck Plan: https://grattan.edu.au/report/grattan-truck-plan/

The Australian Government is on track for more than 25 years of budget deficits. It’s a record that points to major structural issues with the budget. Tough decisions on spending and tax reform will be needed to avoid pushing the cost of today’s spending onto future generations. Grattan’s latest report offers a ‘menu of options’ to repair the budget. Host Kat Clay discusses these recommendations with report authors Danielle Wood, Kate Griffiths, and Iris Chan. Read the report: https://grattan.edu.au/report/back-in-black-a-menu-of-measures-to-repair-the-budget/

Less tax is paid on super savings than other forms of income. But if we want a fair and sustainable superannuation system, reform to super tax breaks is essential. On a recent podcast Grattan addressed the question of super tax breaks for balances with over $3 million. But reforming super is a much broader task, that if successful, will result in a fairer system which could repair the budget by billions. Brendan Coates, Economic Policy Program Director, and Joey Moloney, Senior Associate, discuss their new report with host Kat Clay.

Every five years the Productivity Commission releases an inquiry into Australia’s productivity, with their latest five-year report released just last week. In it, they outline the case for advancing prosperity through building an adaptable workforce and creating a more dynamic economy, just to name a few. But Australia is facing a number of productivity challenges in the face of an uncertain world, which may hamper our economic growth in the years to come. Listen to host Kat Clay, in conversation with Grattan’s CEO, Danielle Wood, on why productivity matters. Read the report: https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/completed/productivity/report

In the past year, Australians have been navigating the rising cost of living, including increased electricity and gas bills. One tool which gives us an insight into electricity prices for the next financial year is the default market offer (DMO), a draft of which has recently been released by the Australian Energy Regulator. The DMO suggests electricity prices will rise by an average of 20 per cent in the coming year. In this podcast, Tony Wood, Energy and Climate Program Director, and Alison Reeve, Energy and Climate Deputy Program Director, discuss what the DMO means for electricity prices and consumers, in a conversation facilitated by Esther Suckling, Associate.

The Albanese government has declared that they will increase the earnings tax rate on super accounts with a balance of over $3 million, much to the chagrin of the wealthy. While this has made prime fodder for comedians to mock the rich, there’s a more serious issue at play here. Super tax breaks need reform, and the budget deficits need to be repaired. Watch Economic Policy Program Director Brendan Coates, Senior Associate Joey Moloney, and host Kat Clay, discuss whether the government should be cutting tax breaks on multi-million dollar super balances. Read the Money in Retirement report https://grattan.edu.au/report/money-in-retirement/