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Australia already has a housing shortage. So when new modelling says recent Budget measures could mean 10,700 fewer homes starting construction over the next four years, I think Australians deserve to understand exactly why. The same independent modelling, commissioned by four major housing and property industry groups, estimates rents could end up around $10 a week higher than they otherwise would have been. Treasury’s modelling puts the rental impact at around $2 a week and the government main

Australians paid $839 BILLION in tax across all levels of government last year. That works out to $30,633 for every Australian. Now, I’m not arguing for zero tax. Taxes pay for hospitals, schools, roads, defence and essential services we all rely on. But I do think Australians have every right to question how much we’re paying and what we’re getting in return. Because you’re taxed when you earn money. You pay tax when you spend it. Property comes with its own collection of taxes and charges. Inv

Australia already has a housing shortage. So when new modelling says recent Budget measures could mean 10,700 fewer homes starting construction over the next four years, I think Australians deserve to understand exactly why. The same independent modelling, commissioned by four major housing and property industry groups, estimates rents could end up around $10 a week higher than they otherwise would have been. Treasury’s modelling puts the rental impact at around $2 a week and the government main

Property investors aren’t waiting for the market to feel comfortable again. They understand that when buyers disappear, properties sit on the market longer and sellers become more negotiable, the conversation changes. Right now, buyers have something they haven’t had much of in recent years. BARGAINING POWER. And that’s where I think people get caught. They wait for prices to stop falling. They wait for confidence to return. They wait until buying property feels comfortable again. But by then, a

Australia’s data centre boom could be an enormous economic opportunity. More than $100 billion in potential investment means new infrastructure, construction, technology and potentially enormous productivity gains as AI becomes more important to our economy. But the headline investment number doesn’t tell the whole story. Australia doesn’t manufacture the advanced AI chips and specialised servers these facilities depend on. A significant share of the most valuable equipment has to be imported.

The Australian Public Service has grown significantly in just a few years. I don’t think the conversation should simply be about whether government employs too many or too few people. The real question is what taxpayers are getting in return. If bringing work back in-house means less spending on consultants, better services and better value for money, Australians should be able to see those results. Because public sector wages and salaries across all levels of government are now costing hundreds

Australia desperately needs MORE homes. So any housing policy that risks making new construction less attractive deserves serious scrutiny. Builders and developers are already dealing with higher financing costs, expensive construction and weaker buyer confidence. Investors are adjusting to major tax changes, and Australia is already forecast to fall well short of its 1.2 million home target. That’s why I think we need to look beyond whether a policy is achieving one immediate objective. What ha

Australia is now importing more goods and services than at any point since records began. Some of those imports are things we rely on every day. Others are machinery, servers and high-powered processors that could help build the infrastructure behind Australia’s AI economy. But the bigger question is what Australia gets in return. If billions of dollars of imported technology ultimately improves productivity, creates new industries and strengthens the economy, that’s one story. If we simply beco

New housing is supposed to help make property more affordable. But what happens when the NEW homes cost significantly more to build than the homes already standing? That’s the problem I think we need to pay attention to. Land, construction, labour, finance, taxes and government charges all have to be absorbed somewhere, and if those costs keep climbing, eventually developers either charge more or decide the project simply doesn’t stack up. Meanwhile, Australia desperately needs more housing and

Technology is giving governments and law enforcement access to information that would have been unimaginable a generation ago. Some of that can make Australians safer. But I don’t think that means we should stop asking questions about where the boundaries sit. Because every new power creates a precedent. Today it might be justified by organised crime. Tomorrow the legislation could change. The technology could improve. The circumstances where it can be used could expand. That’s why strong safegu

Australia should be a country where people WANT to build businesses, invest their money and create wealth. Because when successful people and businesses thrive, the benefits don’t stop with them. They employ people. Invest. Innovate. Pay taxes. Create opportunities. And contribute to the economy. That’s why I think we should be paying very close attention when entrepreneurs and wealthy Australians start deciding they’d rather build their future somewhere else. The question isn’t whether successf

When tax brackets don’t keep pace with inflation, more Australians are pushed into higher tax rates without becoming significantly better off in real terms. That’s why bracket creep matters. Understanding how the system works is the first step to making better financial decisions. Do you think Australia should automatically index income tax brackets to inflation?