If preparing teachers for New South Wales schools during an ongoing teacher shortage isn’t a public good, what is? Something is rotten in tertiary education – not in the classrooms, but in the boardroom. Every glossy announcement masks the same reality: cuts, closures and a hollowing-out of the very institutions meant to serve the public good. I am a lecturer in education at University of Technology Sydney. My colleagues are outstanding, the students dedicated. And yet, despite newly developed and accredited teacher education courses and courses that have been delivered for 35 years, our education programs are being “temporarily” suspended from autumn 2026. Continue reading...

Countries such as Canada, Germany and the UK have already made reforms and are reaping the productivity benefits of fairer and faster skills recognition * One Big Idea is a new series on how to transform Australia’s economy ahead of Jim Chalmers’ economic roundtable * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast It’s time to reduce barriers so more qualified Australians who started their careers and education overseas can fill skill shortages crippling the economy. Making overseas skills and qualifications recognition faster, fairer and more affordable would enable more people to fully use their skills, unlocking immediate productivity gains. We can realise this productivity boost right now – no need to wait years for trickle-down effects from new infrastructure or large investments. Continue reading...

NSW police initially estimated the crowd at 90,000 but organisers say the figure was closer to 300,000 – and an independent expert agrees * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The number of people who joined a pro-Palestine march across Sydney Harbour Bridge on Sunday exceeded everyone’s expectations. But just how many braved the rainy weather to urge the Australian government to do more to pressure Israel to stop the death and destruction in Gaza? That’s been a sticking point. Continue reading...

The failures of our environmental protection laws mean we are not only failing nature but also undermining productivity – at a huge cost Left to their own devices, humans often make stupid choices. This is, perhaps, most amusingly summed up in the viral public safety video “Dumb Ways to Die” launched by Melbourne Metro more than a decade ago. Far more seriously, human treatment of the environment represents possibly the dumbest choice we have collectively made – and consistently been making for decades. Economics is about making choices, as Dr Ken Henry, one of Australia’s most eminent economists and public servants and now chair of the Australian Nature and Biodiversity Foundation, told the National Press Club in a passionate speech about both the environment and economy: in a world of finite resources, we can’t have everything we want. Yet, as the landmark Dasgupta review into the economics of biodiversity tells us, humanity’s demands on nature far exceed its capacity to supply our needs (or perhaps, wants). Nicki Hutley is a consulting economist Continue reading...

Surcharges on Eftpos, Mastercard and Visa card payments would be eliminated from July 2026 under proposal from Reserve Bank * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Card payment surcharges should be eliminated for debit and credit payments, the Reserve Bank has said, saving customers an estimated $1.2bn each year. Surcharges on Eftpos, Mastercard and Visa card payments would be eliminated from July 2026, while fees for businesses using card payments systems could also be lowered, under a new RBA proposal. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email Continue reading...

This week Australia’s federal court is due to make a decision in a landmark climate case that could safeguard the future of the island communities * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Uncle Paul Kabai and Uncle Pabai Pabai are afraid for the future of their ancestral homelands. Their country on the outer islands of Zenadth Kes (Torres Strait), less than 10km off Papua New Guinea, is under siege from the impacts of the climate crisis. Continue reading...

Key selections from On Tyranny, for viewing and sharing

John Lithgow👏.

“Columbia students told ‘these are dangerous times’, LBC presenter recounts Students at Columbia University have been advised by the Dean of the Journalism School, Jelani Cobb, to keep their social.....