Author Archives: Gene Tunny

Government should throw out Queensland Plan – it was a poor guide to future policy

Posted on March 24, 2015 by Gene Tunny

I noticed that Mike Kaiser, labelled by the Courier-Mail as a “Queensland Labor stalwart,” has urged the new Queensland Government to retain the Queensland Plan that was developed by the previous Government. I disagree with Mr Kaiser that the Queensland … Continue reading →

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PwC Budget breakfast tickets on sale – business sees need for budget repair, even if politicians don’t

Posted on March 24, 2015 by Gene Tunny

Former PM John Howard, who will speak at PwC’s Federal Budget Breakfast in Brisbane on 13 May On the morning after the night the Federal Budget is delivered, the most desirable tickets in Brisbane are to PwC’s Budget Breakfast, which … Continue reading →

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Addressing youth unemployment requires reform of workplace relations policies

Posted on March 23, 2015 by Gene Tunny

Youth unemployment has re-emerged as a significant problem in recent years (see chart above), partly as a result of the general economic sluggishness since the financial crisis. Also, Australia’s inflexible workplace relations regulations are likely playing a role, and youth … Continue reading →

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Cafe culture prevents employment slump

Posted on March 20, 2015 by Gene Tunny

I recall Alan Kohler observing a while ago that everyone is eating out for breakfast on the weekends nowadays. It’s a good thing that people are, from an employment perspective, given that employment growth in cafes, restaurants and hotels has … Continue reading →

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Qld Government will find it a big challenge to achieve its fiscal strategy

Posted on March 19, 2015 by Gene Tunny

Queensland Treasurer Curtis Pitt has rightly labelled the upcoming 2015-16 Budget as “no frills” (see ABC news report). The Government cannot afford any frivolous expenses, because the budget challenge it faces is massive. The major problems the Government has are: … Continue reading →

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Queensland Treasury’s forecasting record on royalties

Posted on March 18, 2015 by Gene Tunny

I’ve written before about the big fiscal challenges facing the Queensland Government, and about how concerning it is that the Queensland Treasury is now as reliant as it is on volatile revenues such as royalties (see Qld Govt increasingly dependent … Continue reading →

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New SUV sales surge – pent-up demand possibly playing a role in pick up in new motor vehicles sales

Posted on March 17, 2015 by Gene Tunny

New motor vehicle sales in Queensland were 4.7% higher in February than in January in seasonally adjusted terms, driven by a surge in SUV sales, which could eventually overtake sales of passenger vehicles (see chart below based on ABS data … Continue reading →

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Upcoming event on drivers of Qld economy – presentation by James Keating from QCA

Posted on March 16, 2015 by Gene Tunny

The French-Australian Chamber of Commerce has organised an interesting event for Wednesday evening, 1 April in Brisbane CBD, featuring a presentation by James Keating from the Queensland Competition Authority: Which industries are currently driving the Queensland economy? I’m very interested … Continue reading →

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Urban sprawl filling in the 200km City

Posted on March 15, 2015 by Gene Tunny

In the first seven months of financial year 2014-15, the top five suburban areas in Queensland for residential building approvals were: Newstead-Bowen Hills (1,358 approvals), Southport (1,305), North Lakes-Mango Hill (612), Caloundra-West (406), and Jimboomba (401) (see map below based … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

State & local govts need to allow development to boost housing supply – Gap mega-suburb would be a good start

Posted on March 13, 2015 by Gene Tunny

Now that likely future PM Malcolm Turnbull has highlighted the “big supply side issue” in Australia’s housing market (see yesterday’s Australian), it would be timely for State and local governments around Australia to review their regulations and charges, which many … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments