When the Abbott government was elected last September, one of the most intractable problems it faced was the flow of boat arrivals on Christmas Island, just off the coast of Java, by people from the Middle East seeking refugee status in Australia. During the period of the Rudd and Gillard Labor governments, the trickle had…
Since the election of the Abbott government last September, it has reoriented Australia’s foreign policy away from China towards Indonesia. While the immediate challenge of Middle Eastern asylum-seekers using Indonesia as a transit point was an important factor, the economic and strategic importance of Indonesia, a democracy of 250 million to our near north-west, clearly…
The announcement of a royal commission into union-related corruption, particularly in the building industry, marks the fourth such inquiry into this industry. Earlier inquiries in New South Wales and federally had unearthed much illegality, but led to few prosecutions, and their recommendations were reversed when Labor governments later came to power. The response by union…
The federal Coalition government’s decision not to contribute $25 million to upgrade the struggling SPC Ardmona factory in Shepparton, Victoria, after its earlier decision not to contribute a requested $150 million to Holden, makes clear that the federal government is not willing to bail out struggling industries, despite the prospect of the loss of thousands…