Tag Archives: qld

Borrowing to Pay Wages

Posted on August 6, 2025 by Gene Tunny

I caught up with Steve Austin on 612 ABC Brisbane this morning to discuss Sir Leo Hielscher’s sterling record as Queensland Under Treasurer in the seventies and eighties and to compare our state’s previous stellar financial performance with the mess … Continue reading →

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Big Budget Challenge for New Qld Treasurer

Posted on April 1, 2025 by Gene Tunny

Today’s Courier-Mail article reporting that Townsville University Hospital can’t afford to fix its elevators reminded me of something a former state Under-Treasurer told me when I researched my 2018 book Beautiful One Day, Broke the Next. He told me governments … Continue reading →

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Fossil fuels to figure in Qld’s future for decades to come

Posted on March 15, 2024 by Gene Tunny

Despite the Queensland Government promoting the so-called Clean Economy, our state Treasury is still highly dependent on coal royalties, and the prosperity of our regional economies is highly correlated with coal mining. Coal prices remain at high levels and may … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate change, Mining | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

How the Qld economy has changed in recent decades

Posted on February 26, 2024 by Gene Tunny

The state and national economies have experienced similar trends by industry since 2000. The big changes have been the 2-3x increase in the mining sector’s importance since China’s economic growth started significantly influencing the global economy in the early-2000s (Figure … Continue reading →

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The Queensland Economy Post-Palaszczuk

Posted on December 30, 2023 by Gene Tunny

Summary Given its strong potential, the Queensland economy should be doing much better than it is, particularly regarding its business and housing investment levels. Furthermore, the state has not had the rebound in manufacturing that Palaszczuk suggested at her final … Continue reading →

Posted in Industry policy, Macroeconomy | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Rookwood Weir illustrates how richer countries can better protect the environment

Posted on October 30, 2023 by Gene Tunny

The nearly finished Rookwood Weir on the Fitzroy River in Central Queensland illustrates how wealthier countries can afford to look after the environment better than poorer countries. It is a good example of why calls for ‘degrowth’ should be rejected. … Continue reading →

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What’s the best measure of the Qld Gov’t budget balance? Net Operating Balance vs Fiscal Balance

Posted on June 22, 2023 by Gene Tunny

On Tuesday night I was on a panel discussing the Queensland state budget at an Australian Taxpayers’ Alliance (ATA) event held at the Paddington Tavern. One of the points discussed was the spin regarding the biggest-ever surplus for Queensland of … Continue reading →

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Over half of Qld Budget’s $60bn of revenue upgrades used for additional spending over FY21 to FY24

Posted on June 19, 2023 by Gene Tunny

Queensland general government revenues are $60 billion higher than once expected over 2020-21 to 2023-24, but debt is only $23 billion lower, with total spending revised up by around $32 billion. Some of this is understandable due to higher inflation … Continue reading →

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Qld economic outlook talk at Phil Di Bella’s Coffee Commune this Friday 19 May

Posted on May 16, 2023 by Gene Tunny

The big economic question for 2023 is how much the Australian economy will slow down in response to interest rate increases, regarding which we should expect more to come. Queensland’s economy will benefit from a high-performing mining sector, but there’s … Continue reading →

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Size and structure of the Qld economy: today vs 1939-40 using Colin Clark’s estimates

Posted on April 8, 2023 by Gene Tunny

Back in the nineties, a history-conscious Queensland Treasury official saved a 1944 chart on “Post-war Employment Planning” from the rubbish bin during an office cleanout (Figure 1). On his retirement from the public service, that official gave me the chart. … Continue reading →

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