Articles

Published in The Saturday Paper

Productivity policy is often imagined as a search for the next big breakthrough.

Adam Smith saw it 250 years ago. ‘We rarely hear,’ he wrote, ‘of the combinations of masters, though frequently of those of workmen’.

Australia will be more productive when good ideas travel faster.

In My Brilliant Career, Miles Franklin gave Australia a portrait of frustrated talent in the figure of Sybylla Melvyn.

Published in The New Daily

Published in the Australian Financial Review

Australians know the feeling.

Artificial intelligence is everywhere. It is drafting marketing plans, writing code, preparing legal briefs and advising small business owners on pricing strategy.

At a pharmacy in Belconnen or Tuggeranong, the moment is easy to miss. A card is tapped, a receipt prints, and the price is lower than it would have been a few years ago.

In the early days of electricity, households judged its value by how brightly it lit their homes. Few imagined it would reshape manufacturing, healthcare, communications and entertainment.

Until mid‑2022, many Australian drivers discovered that owning a car did not always mean controlling who could repair it.

You know the moment. You click ‘buy’, feeling quietly pleased with yourself for finding a decent deal. Then, at the final screen, the price jumps. A service fee appears from nowhere.

After a decade of Coalition inaction, grocery prices soared while competition was left in the bargain bin.

The Christmas shopping rush has settled into its familiar rhythm. Shopping centres packed at odd hours, parcels stacked on doorsteps, inboxes filling with discount codes and expiring offers.

When a tractor breaks down in the middle of harvest, every hour counts.

Published in The West Australian

Published in The Australian

Mining has helped shape modern Australia. It has supported regional communities, strengthened our export earnings and contributed to the public services Australians rely on.

Published in SmartCompany