Watch this episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLW085RZmSQ&t=1701s&ab_channel=CentreforIndependentStudies Follow this show: https://liberalisminquestion.podbean.com/ What is ”Post Liberalism”? Do you have to be a Christian to understand it? Can the free market give us ethics? What happens when individual rights class with collect rights?Do collectives like churches, schools and other institutions even have rights? Join Dr. Joel Harrison, an expert in constitutional law and...

Watch this episode: https://youtu.be/XydmrodsVE8?si=Kw3m92yH7yWo2fWK Follow this show: https://liberalisminquestion.podbean.com/ Mr. Nicholas Sampson, the eighth headmaster of Cranbrook School, has been dedicated to preserving the school’s values and forging a vision for the future since the outset of his tenure. He emphasises the uniqueness of each headmaster’s role in maintaining Cranbrook’s diverse ethos. Sampson’s educational journey, from attending a selective school to studying...

Watch this episode: https://youtu.be/MTdzzonBhPM?si=LUaCWJTk7xOSsETs Follow this show: https://liberalisminquestion.podbean.com/ In a wide ranging and nuanced discussion Rob Forsyth questions Duncan Ivison, Professor of Political Philosophy at the University of Sydney, on his claim that the granting of indigenous rights is compatible with liberalism rather than its repudiation. They agree that the constitutional Voice cannot be justified simply on terms of closing the gap and explore how...

Watch this episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHWrdNNY0AA&t=1426s&ab_channel=CentreforIndependentStudies  Follow this show: https://liberalisminquestion.podbean.com/ Should Michael Jordan mow his own lawn? What is the role of the Reserve Bank? Is liberalism ”right-wing”? Robert Forsyth interviews CIS Chief Economist, Peter Tulip, a ”classical liberal” thinker otherwise known as a ”mainstream economist”. Throughout the conversation Peter distinguishes liberalism from...

Watch this episode: https://youtu.be/QJwN23Ih2sA?si=kI3xXsicXZkGrQgt Follow this show: https://liberalisminquestion.podbean.com/ Patrick Parkinson is a Professor of Law at the University of Sydney and an internationally renowned expert on family law. He has played a major role in shaping family law in Australia. His proposal for the establishment of a national network of family relationship centers, made to the prime minister in 2004, became the centerpiece of the Australian government’s...

In this special episode, Dr Scott Prasser and Prof John McMillan debate over the politicisation of the public sector. Dr Scott Prasser is a Senior Fellow at the Centre for Independent Studies and a former senior advisor to federal cabinet ministers. Prof John McMillan is an Emeritus Professor at the Australian National University. He has held former statutory positions of Commonwealth Ombudsman, Australian Information Commissioner, Integrity Commissioner for the Australian Commission for...

Essays on the relevance of Smith after 300 years. Adam Smith, the Scottish philosopher and economist, is one of the most significant figures to have emerged from what came to be known as ‘the Scottish Enlightenment’. His work across a number of disciplines changed the way people thought about economic theory and the field of what is now known as ‘political science’. Smith was superbly educated in moral philosophy, ancient philosophy, jurisprudence and natural theology — at a time when...

A large amount of taxpayers’ money, state and federal, is expended on large scale infrastructure that is intended to play a crucial part in Australia’s growth and prosperity — although some of it is arguably wasteful or perhaps even pork-barrelling. And as the recent federal government Infrastructure Investment Review found in axing around 50 planned projects, some “do not demonstrate merit, lack any national strategic rationale and do not meet the Australian Government’s national investment...

Bracket creep chips away at living standards, especially those of younger generations, a new Issue Analysis by Centre for Independent Studies outlines.   The paper’s authors, Matthew Taylor and Emilie Dye, point out that Australia’s younger workers have the most to lose from bracket creep because bracket creep is regressive and hits harder for those earlier in their careers and making less money.   Read the paper here:...

Increasingly there are calls for degrowth, not just to abandon the pursuit of economic growth, but to shrink economies. The call for degrowth comes from environmentalists, including activists in groups such as Extinction Rebellion, and some economists, particularly in the field of ecological economics.  It is related to concerns about climate change, pollution, species extinction, and resource exhaustion. Economic growth is to blame, proponents say, and the proposed solution is degrowth, an...

There is growing evidence across the Anglosphere that Millennials and Generation Z are not showing the same propensity as earlier generations to vote centre-right as they age. Centre for Independent Studies research, drawing on data from the Australian Election Studies, suggests this is increasingly true in Australia.  Lear what you need to know about this issues with Karla Pincott and Matt Taylor. #auspol 5YSGGR2Q2GNZSKOF

Introduction In Australia, and in education settings across the world, student behaviour and levels of student engagement are significant issues for teachers, school leaders, system administrators and the public. Student behaviour affects community perception, teacher efficacy and wellbeing, and the academic achievement of all students. When students are engaged, they learn more. This paper uses the current attention on student disruptive behaviour in Australian classrooms to offer policy...

Hosted by Karla Pincott, What You Need to Know About is the podcast that covers exactly that. Hear from CIS’ experts on the key points of their research, providing you with concise and insightful overviews of complex topics. In each episode, we break down intricate policy issues, economic trends, social challenges, and more, delivering the essential information you need to stay informed in today’s fast-paced world. Join us as we cut through the noise and dive straight into the heart of...

In a wide ranging and nuanced discussion Rob Forsyth questions Duncan Ivison, Professor of Political Philosophy at the University of Sydney, on his claim that the granting of indigenous rights is compatible with liberalism rather than its repudiation. They agree that the constitutional Voice cannot be justified simply on terms of closing the gap and explore how and if this particular form of recognition could be justified in liberal democratic...

Increasingly there are calls for de-growth, not just to abandon the pursuit of economic growth, but to shrink economies. The call for de-growth comes from environmentalists, including activists in groups such as Extinction Rebellion, and some economists, particularly in the field of ecological economics. It is related to concerns about climate change, pollution, species extinction, and resource exhaustion. Economic growth is to blame, proponents say, and the proposed solution is de-growth, an...

Below is an excerpt from Scott Prasser paper, which can be read here: https://www.cis.org.au/publication/politicisation-the-attack-on-merit-and-our-way-of-life/ Types of politicisation in government: 1. Making senior appointments based on partisanship, personal relationships, loyalty; 2. Political patronage — rewarding personal and political loyalty in appointments to government advisory boards and committees; 3. Allocating public finds for political advantage; 4. Public servants’ direct...

What you are about to hear is a CIS research paper. If you’re somebody who loves audiobooks, you can find all our research papers on audible, spotify, apple and every other podcasting app by clicking here: https://cisresearch.podbean.com/

We need to relax zoning restrictions to allow more housing. At a society level, this requires more acceptance of higher density and less opposition to new development. We need to put more weight on the interests of renters and future home buyers and less weight on the interests of nearby residents. This rebalancing will shift the incentives for elected governments to act. Societal pressure over the issue of housing affordability is growing, but needs to be encouraged. Were the Victorian...

During the Covid-19 pandemic, state and territory leaders afforded great responsibility for decisions about managing both the impact of the virus and the expectations of a fearful public to unelected public health experts. Severe restrictions imposed on movement and association at the behest of these experts — Chief Medical Officers (CMOs) — lasted for many months. The exceptional circumstances of the pandemic hardly formed part of the regular routine of government. Indeed, so exceptional...

At the time of recording, the details of the proposal are still not known in full. However, enough was revealed at the time of the government’s original March 1 announcement and in subsequent elaboration, that we are able to sketch an outline of the new tax. The proposal is that beginning with fiscal year 2025-26, every individual’s total superannuation balance aggregated across as many super fund interests as they may have will be tested against a $3 million threshold. If the government...

In this TARGET 30 Research Report CIS modelling shows that reforming the pension could deliver income gains of more than $5,900 a year to almost 98% of pensioners. These reforms would also reduce the cost of the pension by $14.5 billion a year. “With four out of every five retirees on the pension, and pensioners with over a million dollars in assets getting the same payment as those with almost nothing, the pension clearly needs reform,” says Simon Cowan, research fellow and co-author of the...

Why we must learn lessons about how we learn? CIS welcomed world-leading education researcher, cognitive psychologist and Ask a Cognitive Scientist columnist Dan Willingham to discuss how we learn and why this matters. While researchers have learned vastly more about how we learn, this isn’t always reflected in teaching within schools or in how students study. Many practices for teaching and self-study are based on outdated theories, misconceptions, neuro-myths, anecdotes, and...

On April 4, CIS hosted and broadcasted an Oxford-style debate on the motion “The Voice to Parliament is needed to address Indigenous matters.” This year Australia will hold a referendum on whether to change the constitution and ensure that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders’ views are better represented in Parliament. Is the Voice about giving Indigenous Australians a right to express their views on policy through representatives elected by their communities? Or would the Voice provide...

Andrew Neil joins Tom Switzer for a conversation about political and public-policy subjects — from British politics and the travails of the Royal family to the energy transition and the changing media industry to the Ukraine crisis and the rise of China. Andrew Neil is one of the world’s most prominent print and broadcast journalists, having been a long-time editor of the Sunday Times and chief political interviewer on the BBC. He is chairman of Press Holdings Media Group, which publishes...

Salvatore Babones returns to discuss the new CIS Intergenerational research program with Program Director Matt Taylor. Despite the 30-year economic boom that preceded the Covid pandemic, there is growing evidence that younger Australians have not shared in the benefits to the same extent as generations before them. These younger generations will bear the brunt of paying back the $617 billion of government debt incurred in the wake of the government response to Covid, debt that is set to peak...