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• Economic Policy

CIS is guided by the philosophy of global free markets and individual responsibility. Our economic policy research centres on ideas for continuing reform that will strengthen Australia’s economic independence and prosperity, and challenge the over-reach of big government.

Taxing the family : Australia’s forgotten people in the income spectrum
Lucy SullivanAugust 22, 2001PM50

Over the last two decades, the tax burden has shifted from taxpayers without to taxpayers...

Knowledge is a costly affair
July 3, 2001The Australian Financial Review

The Knowledge Nation Taskforce’s comprehensive agenda for upskilling Australia was widely welcomed yesterday. But the...

Tax and the Family
Lucy SullivanMay 1, 2001PM50

Foreword The average family with dependent children today faces critical financial problems. Mothers increasingly find...

State of the Nation 2001: A Century of Change
Jennifer Buckingham OAM, Lucy Sullivan, Helen HughesApril 5, 2001SP04

The first edition of State of the Nation in 1997 showed in graphs and statistics,...

State of the Nation 2001: A Century of Change (CD ROM)
Jennifer Buckingham OAMApril 5, 2001SP04CD

A CD version of a major report that finds Australia is in the midst of profound...

GDP stands the test of time
Helen HughesMarch 15, 2001The Australian Financial Review

Ed Mishan, a leading English economist, writing when Simon Kuznets was complaining about the shortcomings...

Humankind and the infinite resource base
Marian L. TupyApril 2, 2026OP212

This paper examines the human ability to expand our resource base into infinity. Given human...

Why We Should Not Increase Capital Gains Tax
Robert CarlingMarch 11, 2026PP64
Debate about capital gains tax rarely occurs in isolation. It typically emerges during periods of...
10 CGT Myths Busted
Robert CarlingMarch 11, 2026IA155

The criticisms and characterisation of the 50% capital gains tax discount over many years have...

Growth that Builds: Beyond the immigration blame game 
Marian L. TupyMarch 5, 2026PP63
This paper argues that Australia’s housing crisis is primarily a supply failure, not simply a...
Reform of Heritage Legislation
Peter TulipFebruary 26, 2026PP62

Introduction Several states have recently overhauled their planning legislation. However, the flaws in their heritage...

Hours, Not Dollars: Rethinking the cost-of-living debate 
Marian L. TupyFebruary 23, 2026AP102

Executive Summary Public debate about the ‘cost-of-living crisis’ often confuses nominal price increases with declining...

Franking credit debate is about fairness, but not in the way you think
Simon CowanMarch 2, 2019The Sydney Morning Herald

If you strip away all the rhetoric, the complexity and the politics, Labor is right...

At the end of the road to serfdom
Robert CarlingFebruary 22, 2019Ideas@TheCentre

Venezuela in social and economic collapse provides a contemporary case study of where socialism takes...

Principle vs revenue in dividend tax furore
Robert CarlingFebruary 15, 2019Ideas@TheCentre

The furore over dividend franking credit refunds is bringing out the worst in our politicians....

Neglect of young people a super problem
Eugenie JosephFebruary 15, 2019Ideas@TheCentre

Once again, politics in Canberra has triumphed over good policy — with young Australians the...

Franking refunds a principle, not a perk
Robert CarlingFebruary 12, 2019Financial Review

It may just be misplaced nostalgia for a bygone era of rational policy debate that...

Bank culture must be built on moral fibre
Eugenie JosephFebruary 10, 2019The Newcastle Herald

Treating your customers fairly can’t just be a legal obligation, it must become a moral...

“The 50% discount is unfair” and other CGT myths | Robert Carling & Michael Stutchbury
Robert Carling, Michael StutchburyMarch 11, 2026

The criticisms and characterization of the 50% capital gains tax discount over many years have...

The Case for Optimism: More People, More Ideas, More Wealth | Marian Tupy
Marian L. Tupy, Michael StutchburyMarch 6, 2026

Marian Tupy — editor of HumanProgress.org, senior fellow at the Cato Institute, and co-author of...

Old buildings and the housing crisis with Peter Tulip
Peter TulipMarch 4, 2026

Peter Tulip explains how several states have recently overhauled their planning legislation. However, the flaws...

Angus Taylor at CIS: Economic Reform, Immigration, and Australia’s Cost of Living Crisis
Angus Taylor, Michael StutchburyFebruary 19, 2026

Speaking at his first address outside Canberra since being elected Leader of the Opposition by...

Reflecting Back: John Howard and Alexander Downer on Power, Alliances and Australia
John Howard OM AC, Alexander DownerFebruary 6, 2026

Alexander Downer and former Prime Minister John Howard join author Tony Parkinson and CIS Executive...

‘NIMBYism is a cancer’: Bragg outlines housing policy vision with Peter Tulip & Michael Stutchbury
Andrew Bragg, Peter Tulip, Michael StutchburyDecember 12, 2025

Senator Andrew Bragg and economist Peter Tulip join Michael Stutchbury for a wide-ranging conversation on...

Submission to Senate Inquiry into Illegal Tobacco Crisis in Australia
Michael StutchburyJanuary 15, 2026
The federal government should pause increases in tobacco excise to weaken the profit of the...
Submission to Senate Education and Employment References Committee
Michael Wu October 22, 2025CIS

Despite good intentions, Australia’s Early Childhood Education and Care system has expanded well beyond its...

Submission to Productivity Commission’s Investing in cheaper, cleaner energy and the net zero transformation Interim Report
September 15, 2025

The Productivity Commission’s statement that careful emissions reduction policy design will enable gains in productivity...

Submission to Heritage NSW
Peter TulipJuly 18, 2025CIS

This submission argues that NSW’s heritage legislation has serious flaws. In particular, costs of listing...

Submission to Victorian Legislative Council Select Committee Inquiry
Peter TulipMay 5, 2025CIS

Victoria Planning Provisions Amendments VC257, VC267 and VC274: Submission to Victorian Legislative Council Select Committee...

Submission to the Inquiry into financial regulation and home ownership
Peter TulipOctober 15, 2024
Regulation of the financial system is needed to protect depositors and avoid financial crises. However,...
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