Pitch Engine
The Times Real Estate

.

What I learned from Bob Hawke: economics isn't an end itself. There has to be a social benefit

  • Written by Tim Harcourt, J.W. Nevile Fellow in Economics and host of The Airport Economist, UNSW

When I was growing up in Adelaide in the 1970s I wanted to be like Bob Hawke.

Other kids generally wanted to be cricket, football or rock stars. I wanted to be a research officer with the Australian Council of Trade Unions. That’s what Hawke had been in the 1950s and 1960s, working on national wage cases advocating for Australian workers.

Whe...

Read more: What I learned from Bob Hawke: economics isn't an end itself. There has to be a social benefit

More Articles ...

  1. It's the only way to save Australia from a deep hole, but innovation policy is missing in action
  2. Shock. More investment isn't necessarily better. Those instant asset write-offs are bad tax policy
  3. Real estate agents targeting tenants is the lowest of the low blows during election 2019
  4. Cutting penalty rates was supposed to create jobs. It hasn't, and here's why not
  5. Danger. Election 2016 delivered us Robodebt. Promises can have consequences
  6. Labor's idea of an Evaluator General could dramatically cut wasteful spending
  7. At last, an answer to the $5 billion question: who gets the imputation cheques Labor will take away?
  8. Small, but well-formed. The new home deposit scheme will help, and it's unlikely to push up prices
  9. The next government can usher in our fourth decade recession-free, but it will be dicey
  10. The brutal truth on housing. Someone has to lose in order for first homebuyers to win
  11. That election promise. It will help first home buyers, but they better be cautious
  12. Trick question: who's the better economic manager?
  13. Labor's costings broadly check out. The days of black holes are behind us, thankfully
  14. Egging the question: can your employer sack you for what you say or do in your own time?
  15. Giving workers a voice in the boardroom is a compelling corporate governance reform
  16. Mine are bigger than yours. Labor's surpluses are the Coalition's worst nightmare
  17. Unions do hurt profits, but not productivity, and they remain a bulwark against a widening wealth gap
  18. Confirmation from NSW Treasury. Labor's negative gearing policy would barely move house prices
  19. There's nothing unfair about dividend imputation -- it refunds tax that shouldn't have been paid
  20. It's hard to find out who Labor's dividend imputation policy will hit, but it is possible, and it isn't the poor
  21. 5 tips on how to be a good mentor to someone twice your age
  22. Bill Shorten's promise of a living wage is both realistic and necessary. But it's not enough.
  23. On rate-cut Tuesday, here are four reasons why the Reserve Bank shouldn't jump
  24. After a dark decade for Australia's regional newspapers, a hopeful light flickers
  25. Why Labor's childcare policy is the biggest economic news of the election campaign
  26. Why the Reserve Bank shouldn't (but might) cut interest rates on Tuesday
  27. What a local newspaper means to a regional city like Newcastle
  28. Vital Signs: policies come and policies go, but surely we shouldn't be subsidising inheritances
  29. $20 billion per year. That's how much higher superannuation could take from wages
  30. Blockchain can help break the chains of modern slavery, but it is not a complete solution
  31. It's time to vote for happiness and well-being, not mere economic growth. Here's why:
  32. How 'flags of convenience' have shrunk Australia's merchant fleet
  33. Are too many corporate mergers harming consumers? We won't know if we don't check
  34. How the decision to paywall NZ's largest newspaper will affect other media
  35. The newest election faultline isn't left versus right, it's young versus old -- and it's hardening
  36. It's the luxuries that give it away. To fight corruption, follow the goods
  37. Election tip: 23.9% is a meaningless figure, ignore the tax-to-GDP ratio
  38. Labor's crackdown on temporary visa requirements won't much help Australian workers
  39. Vital signs. Zero inflation means the Reserve Bank should cut rates as soon as it can, on Tuesday week
  40. House prices and demographics make death duties an idea whose time has come
  41. Media Files: Investigative journalist Adele Ferguson on the 'disappointing' banking royal commission and how she works with whistleblowers
  42. The budget's dirty secret is the hikes in tax rates you're not meant to know about
  43. Vital Signs: the 'ball-tampering' budget trick they don't want you to know about
  44. The IKEA effect: how we value the fruits of our labour over instant gratification
  45. Constructively tough? Neither side has committed to fully adopting perhaps the most important recommendation of the banking royal commission
  46. Grattan Orange Book. What the election should be about: priorities for the next government
  47. Your income tax questions answered in three easy charts: Labor and Coalition proposals side by side
  48. Memories. In 1961 Labor promised to boost the deficit to fight unemployment. The promise won
  49. A simpler tax system should spark joy. Sadly, the one in this budget doesn’t
  50. View from The Hill: Frydenberg up to Bowen's old tricks