The Wonks' List: the best technical policy reads of 2023

This week, the Economic Reform Roundtable met to discuss how to boost Australia's productivity, where Grattan Institute's CEO spoke on four key areas for tax reform. A robust tax system plays an essential part in creating a competitive and productive economy - but how do we balance the system to create a better tax mix? In this podcast, CEO Aruna Sathanapally and Senior Associate Jessica Geraghty break down how to build a better tax system for Australia. Read the full speech: https://grattan.edu.au/news/a-better-tax-system/

22 Aug 20min

Over 1.3 million students sat the NAPLAN tests in March, which provides a health check on Australia's education system. Now, the results are in. But what do they reveal about the state of education in Australia? In this podcast, host Kat Clay is joined by education experts Amy Haywood and Molly Chapman to unpack the latest NAPLAN data. They discuss how students are tracking, and what can be done to improve the results across Australia. Donate to Grattan https://grattan.edu.au/donate

1 Aug 16min

Some people love it, some people hate it. But whatever you feel about gas, Australia urgently needs a gas strategy. Listen to our energy experts Alison Reeve and Tony Wood discuss the highly contested role of gas as Australia strives for net zero.

7 Juli 24min

The NDIS is a vital part of Australia’s social fabric, but the scheme has grown too big, too fast.  Grattan’s new report, Saving the NDIS: How to rebalance disability services to get better results, presents a four-step plan to make the NDIS sustainable. In this podcast, report authors Sam Bennett, Mia Jessurun, and Hannah Orban are joined by Senior Fellow Alastair McEwin to discuss how to rein in costs while ensuring disabled Australians get the support they need. Read the report: https://grattan.edu.au/report/saving-the-ndis/ Full podcast transcription: https://grattan.edu.au/news/how-to-save-the-ndis/

30 Juni 25min

Over decades of compulsory contributions, Australians have amassed $4 trillion in retirement savings. But behind this headline success lies a range of unresolved policy problems. The promise was a more comfortable retirement. The reality is a taxpayer-subsidised inheritance scheme. Listen to our CEO Aruna Sathanapally in conversation with Grattan’s superannuation policy experts, Brendan Coates and Joey Moloney, as they critique a system that needs reform. For more information, visit: https://grattan.edu.au/

23 Juni 23min

No one looks forward to seeing a specialist—whether it’s a cardiologist, paediatrician, or psychiatrist. A referral often signals your GP is concerned about a serious health problem: a suspicious lump, a complex condition, or a health issue that needs specialised attention. For many Australians, it can be a worrying time. And those worries only get worse when faced with high specialist fees and long wait times. In this episode, Senior Associate Elizabeth Baldwin is joined by co-authors Peter Breadon and Dominic Jones to unpack the findings of Grattan Institute’s latest report, Special treatment: Improving Australians' access to specialist care. Together, they explore why specialist care is so hard to access—and what can be done to fix it. Read the report: https://grattan.edu.au/report/special-treatment-improving-australians-access-to-specialist-care/

15 Juni 19min

Australia has a maths problem: one in three Australian school students fail to achieve proficiency in maths. When maths is taught well, children and the nation benefit. But taught poorly, students are robbed of a core life skill. Adults with weaker maths skills have worse job prospects and are more likely to struggle with routine tasks such as managing budgets and understanding health guidance. Join Amy Hayward, Education Deputy Program Director, in conversation with co-authors Nick Parkinson and Dan Petrie, about how to boost students' maths proficiency in primary schools. Read the report: https://grattan.edu.au/report/maths-guarantee/

13 Apr 21min

Whether it’s increasing rent or mortgage repayments, the surging cost of buying a house or simply finding a secure place to live, Australians are struggling more than ever with housing costs. And with a federal election around the corner, cost-of-living is one of the biggest issues facing voters. Labor is spruiking the housing policies that it legislated over its first term, including the newly expanded Help to Buy scheme. The Coalition is promising to allow first home buyers to use their super to help purchase their home. Both parties are proposing a two-year ban on foreign residents purchasing existing homes. But do the policies on offer from the major parties go far enough to help make housing more affordable for more Australians? In this podcast, two Grattan experts, Brendan Coates and Matthew Bowes, evaluate the housing policies on offer – and suggest that whoever wins the election should pursue more comprehensive reforms. Read the 2025 Orange Book: https://grattan.edu.au/report/orange-book-2025/

7 Apr 27min