Author Archives: Gene Tunny

Great news about Abbot Point expansion given need for royalties and boost to mining & Qld economy

Posted on March 12, 2015 by Gene Tunny

I was very pleased to see the announcement about the Abbot Point expansion going ahead yesterday, given the boost it will provide to Queensland’s ailing mining industry (see chart below), royalties revenue for the Government, and the Queensland economy. North … Continue reading →

Posted in Mining | Tagged , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Qld Govt faces big budgetary challenges from unreliable revenues and soaring health costs

Posted on March 10, 2015 by Gene Tunny

In yesterday’s post I noted that the Queensland Government has become increasingly reliant on volatile royalties revenue, and that its major revenue sources of Commonwealth grants and taxation revenue have been growing significantly slower than expenses in recent years. I … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, Health, Tax | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Ok to investigate options for Executive Building, although keeping it unlikely to be sensible

Posted on March 10, 2015 by Gene Tunny

Although I doubt it makes sense to keep the Queensland Government Executive Building, I have no problem with the Government investigating options for the future of the building, which was to be demolished to make way for the new casino. … Continue reading →

Posted in Queensland Government | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Qld Government increasingly dependent on volatile royalties revenue

Posted on March 9, 2015 by Gene Tunny

The current resources sector slowdown is resulting in hard times for many businesses and workers, and it will make the new Queensland Government’s budget management task a lot harder, especially if projected royalties revenues don’t eventuate. Over the last ten … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, Mining | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Intergenerational Report shows the problem, but offers no solutions

Posted on March 5, 2015 by Gene Tunny

The Intergenerational Report is a useful document in that it reinforces the need for tough fiscal measures to avoid ever-increasing budget deficits and debt – a need that has been apparent for some time – but alas the IGR offers … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Qld economy hit by declines in both private and public sector capital spending

Posted on March 4, 2015 by Gene Tunny

It was unsurprising that the National Accounts data released by the ABS today showed the Australian economy continuing to grow at a sub-trend rate (2.5% through-the-year), and that Queensland was enduring a large shock from a decline in resources sector … Continue reading →

Posted in Macroeconomy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Apartment & townhouse approvals double in January – catch up or over-shoot in supply?

Posted on March 3, 2015 by Gene Tunny

The massive surge in apartment and townhouse approvals in January reported by the ABS today (chart above) is welcome news for the Queensland building industry and people looking to buy or rent an apartment in inner city Brisbane, where much … Continue reading →

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

Upcoming event on Steel on Steel – inside story of privatisation of QR’s freight arm

Posted on March 3, 2015 by Gene Tunny

In a post earlier this year, I discussed Stephen Baines’s excellent insider’s account of the privatisation of Queensland Rail’s freight arm, Steel on Steel. Not coincidentally, the Economic Society of Australia’s Queensland branch, of which I’m Deputy Secretary, has arranged … Continue reading →

Posted in Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

MOOCs a game changer for universities – UQ lecture by Roly Sussex OAM

Posted on March 1, 2015 by Gene Tunny

Our very own University of Queensland is a world leader in MOOCs. (Image attribution: By James Dover (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons) Last Thursday night, at the University of Queensland’s Customs House in Brisbane, Emeritus Professor … Continue reading →

Posted in Education | Tagged , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

New Qld Government should allow plenty of time for thorough review of spending

Posted on February 27, 2015 by Gene Tunny

I noticed that former Olympian Kieren Perkins has cast doubt on Queensland’s ability to host an Olympic Games and has pointed to the Queensland Government’s lack of a clear strategy to pay down debt (see today’s Courier-Mail). While the Queensland … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments