The reforms of the 80s and 90s, often sentimentalised by people who were not there, came about through a mixture of policy intelligence and political rat cunning.

Increasing the tax rate on superannuation balances above $3m would affect less than 1% of the population – and yet it is still unlikely to pass

It’s been argued the election would have had a different outcome with first-past-the-post voting. I cannot overstate how unsound this assumption is * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The Coalition’s lopsided defeat in the 2025 federal election has been followed by a new round of attacks on preferential voting. No longer do anti-preferencing campaigners have the excuse that Labor “lost” the primary vote, with Labor currently 2.6% ahead. Nor can they say preferences won Labor the election, with Labor leading the primary vote in 86 of 150 seats. The latest complaint is just the scale of Coalition casualties. The Coalition will win at most 44 seats (29.3%) off a primary vote of about 32%. This will be the first time since 1987 that the Coalition parties’ seat share has been substantially below their primary vote. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email Continue reading...

Even the Productivity Commission is backing away from the for-profit model. We need to ensure that our human services serve humans

The Plymouth Brethren Christian Church don’t vote but are sending hundreds of their people to hand out how-to-vote cards.

Welcome back to Instagram. Sign in to check out what your friends, family & interests have been capturing & sharing around the world.