Making Australia Great Again
One subsidy at a time.
Topic
Industrial policy
A collection of 7 issues
The high cost of Xi's vision for China
Xi Jinping's state-led economic vision is crippling China's growth potential, fuelling overcapacity and wasting trillions of dollars, with far-reaching consequences for China, Australia and the world.
The dangers of neopopulism
Whether it's being sold under the banner of a "New Paradigm", "new centrism", "neopopulism", or a "Future Made in Australia", industrial policy will lead to less growth, insipid labour productivity, and a much poorer and more vulnerable Australia.
How can we afford not to?
Australia should resist Albo's "Future Made in Australia", which will make all but a few well-connected businesses and workers worse off. Instead, we should focus on boosting industry productivity through reforms such as eliminating trade barriers and zoning restrictions.
Why Australia should stop digging into industrial policy
The Albanese government's "new approach" to industrial policy is simply mid-20th century interventionism with a lick of green paint. It is wasting money on uncompetitive industries and creating a reliance on subsidies that are politically difficult to remove, burdening consumers and taxpayers.
It's a good thing we don't make cars any more
Chinese cars offer great value and affordability, but US automakers are lobbying for protection, just as they did with Japan in 70s. Fortunately, Australia's lack of auto manufacturing means that this time around, we can enjoy the full benefits of competition!
We need a lighter touch, not a heavier hand
Australia’s Treasurer, Jim Chalmers, gave his thirteenth speech on the “defining decade” this week, which he also calls the “turbulent twenties”. But other than those zingers, the speech was incredibly light on substance. So light that even a large language model was critical:
“The speech’s structure was convoluted