• All aboard the caravan

    Michelle Grattan     |      February 7, 2025

    The battle to contain antisemitism in Australia has seen some swift changes of political opinion as new laws are passed to punish antisemetic incitement and violence.

  • Presidentialism is a fly in the ointment of 21st century democracy

    Fergus Neilson     |      February 1, 2025

    A comparison of performance between countries with Presidential, Parliamentary and Hybrid political systems suggests that any constitutional change in Australia should absolutely preserve Parliamentary predominance, and avoid any possibility of electing a president by popular mandate. Follow the German, rather than the American, model.

  • Albanese on the back foot on antisemitism

    Michelle Grattan     |      January 24, 2025

    Anthony Albanese points to the array of measures his government has taken to tackle the scourge of antisemitism but he can’t escape the impression of seeming perennially on the back foot and often lacking adequate empathy and sensitivity in dealing with the issue.

  • Preparing for Trump

    Malcolm Davis     |      January 19, 2025

    How should Australia react to the likely geo-political priorities of Donald Trump’s second term in power?

  • Oligarchy in the USA

    Benjamin Jones     |      January 18, 2025

    Outgoing US President Joe Biden warned “an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy” in his farewell address.

  • On the road again

    Paul Williams     |      January 15, 2025

    Anthony Albanese’s pledge of $7.2 billion to revamp the Bruce Highway looks like an early bid to buy votes in Queensland in what may be a tight Federal election campaign.

  • Albanese hits the campaign trail

    Gregory Melleuish     |      January 10, 2025

    Anthony Albanese has hit the campaign trail ahead of the forthcoming Federal election, although the election date has not been announced and no sitting Prime Minister has won re-election since John Howard.

  • The golden age of the gaffe

    Frank Bongiorno     |      January 8, 2025

    Though trivial in themselves, a politician’s “gaffe” can hint at much greater political failings, but the media’s eagerness to pounce on missteps rather than analyse policy substance may be a bigger problem.

  • Fickle friends

    John Quiggin     |      December 16, 2024

    The world looks a lot less friendly for Australia than it did at the beginning of 2024 and this is unlikely to change any time soon. Australia needs to face its situation realistically rather than relying on the illusion that ‘great and powerful friends’ have its best interests at heart.

  • Te Tiriti o Waitangi

    Dominic O'Sullivan     |      December 10, 2024

    As New Zealand’s controversial Treaty Principles Bill goes to a Parliamentary Select Committee Hearing it’s worth considering whether te Tiriti o Waitangi really does undermine liberal democracy as the Bill’s proponents say.

  • Sausages and cauldrons: Making law and policy in 21st Century Australia

    David Rowe     |      December 2, 2024

    The divergent fates of proposed federal legislation to restrict social media use by children and online gambling adverts for everyone highlight the complex interplay of public concern, political convenience and vested interest lobbying which shapes policy making in contemporary Australia.

  • The perils of regulating free speech

    Hugh Breakey     |      November 27, 2024

    The Federal government has withdrawn its misinformation bill, not least because regulating speech in a democracy will always be an ethical minefield