Author Archives: Gene Tunny

International film productions such as Thor: Ragnarok unworthy of Qld taxpayer support

Posted on August 9, 2016 by Gene Tunny

Thor: Ragnarok, now filming on the Gold Coast, and which is supposedly receiving Queensland taxpayer support of $3 million (see my post from October last year), is delivering much lower benefits to locals than may have been expected, as reported … Continue reading →

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After botched 2016 Census, let’s have it every ten years and properly resource and manage it

Posted on August 3, 2016 by Gene Tunny

The compliance cost to the community of the upcoming Census has been magnified by the anxiety its botched implementation is causing Australians (see this Fairfax report on Census chaos). It appears many elderly Australians have been surprised by the letters … Continue reading →

Posted in Population, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

SEQ should note growing realisation the Olympics is a waste of money

Posted on August 1, 2016 by Gene Tunny

Forty years after the financially disastrous Montreal Olympics, cities around the world are finally realising that hosting the Olympics does not stack up. Brazilians, now experiencing a deep recession, have certainly lost much enthusiasm for the upcoming Rio Olympics (e.g. … Continue reading →

Posted in Brisbane, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Being unpredictable helps guard against collusion: a lesson from the 2016 Colin Clark Lecture

Posted on July 30, 2016 by Gene Tunny

Professor Leslie Marx of Duke University delivered the 2016 Colin Clark Lecture last Tuesday morning at Customs House in Brisbane on how to defend against potential collusion by suppliers. In industries with a small number of players who can readily … Continue reading →

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Were 80% of new Qld jobs in 2015-16 public service jobs?

Posted on July 28, 2016 by Gene Tunny

The Courier-Mail is correct to highlight the large increase in public service employment that has occurred recently in Queensland, and it is on the right track in suggesting public service jobs are a large share of new jobs created, but … Continue reading →

Posted in Labour market, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Recommended reading: Matchmakers

Posted on July 25, 2016 by Gene Tunny

It was reported in yesterday’s Sunday-Mail (24 July, p. 21) that “Baby boomers are increasingly turning to Uber, Airbnb and eBay to boost their retirement income because of stockmarket falls and minuscule bank interest rates.” That is, they are participating … Continue reading →

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Townsville’s double digit unemployment rate signifies major downturn in region

Posted on July 22, 2016 by Gene Tunny

Yesterday afternoon I had a good chat with Pat Hession on Townsville ABC Radio about the latest discouraging unemployment data for my old home town of Townsville. Readers will be familiar with the vastly different economic conditions across Queensland (see … Continue reading →

Posted in Labour market, Townsville, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 17 Comments

HILDA reveals very wealthy Canberra households, while Queenslanders much less wealthy

Posted on July 21, 2016 by Gene Tunny

The relatively high salaries of Canberra public servants are allowing them to build up healthy asset portfolios, while average Queenslanders are much less wealthy, according to the University of Melbourne’s Household, Income and Labour Dynamics Australia Survey, the latest report … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Labour market, Macroeconomy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Judith Sloan right to criticise over-reliance on renewable energy

Posted on July 19, 2016 by Gene Tunny

Judith Sloan, Contributing Economics Editor to the Australian, has a brilliant op-ed in the paper today (see Energy price reveals folly of renewables) criticising policies targeting renewable energy, following the wholesale electricity price spike that occurred in South Australia last … Continue reading →

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

IR reforms could improve employment opportunities for young Australians

Posted on July 18, 2016 by Gene Tunny

Almost eight years after the 2008 financial crisis, young Australians still face a significantly tougher job market than before the crisis. To illustrate, the employment-to-population ratio for young Australians aged 15 to 24 remains well below rates experienced prior to … Continue reading →

Posted in Labour market, Macroeconomy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments