In this blog post, Owain Emslie takes a look at the child care policies of the Liberal/National Coalition and the ALP in the lead-up to the 2022 federal election.

Politicians are not supposed to spend public money to promote their private interest, including their private political advantage. This paper argues that avoiding such conflicts of interest would be more straightforward if the federal government stuck to its national role, and did its due diligence before spending public money.

This report highlights how the current temporary skilled migration program in Australia is unpopular with the public, squanders many of the potential benefits of temporary skilled migration, and enables unscrupulous employers to exploit workers.

Hundreds of thousands of the sickest and poorest Australians are missing out on healthcare because of gaps in Medicare coverage and high fees charged by medical specialists. This report proposes some reforms that could save Australians about $1 billion in out-of-pocket payments each year.

Building on research and analysis published by Grattan Institute since it was founded 13 years ago, this report identifies reforms to boost incomes, improve health and education, create better transport links, make housing more affordable, generate meaningful progress on climate change, and strengthen Australia’s political institutions.