The Grattan Institute argues that NSW could make 1 million additional homes feasible to build by copying Victoria’s planning rules that allow terraces and three‑storey apartments “as of right” across most residential zones. This would remove councils’ ability to block low‑rise infill housing that already meets clear design standards. Victoria now allows terraces, townhouses, and
The ferrous complex closed the jaws again yesterday. However, the first major data dump post-LNY was bad. CISA mid-February output was up but far below last year. Worse, steel inventories skyrocketed 20% and are far above 2025. Some of this will be CNY and Two Sessions distortion, but with a weak demand outlook in H1,
The usual suspects are putting the boot in as One Nation has proposed a new royalty on Australian gas production, aiming to raise $10bn–$13bn annually by charging producers $1.70–$2 per gigajoule based on output rather than profits. Economists say that even though the party says the plan will “end the rort” on natural gas supplies,
9:00 – The draft redistribution of Tasmania’s five federal electorates is due to be published later today. I expect it to come out before midday.
Tasmania is guaranteed five federal electorates even though its population currently only justifies the entitlement to three electorates. For this reason, Tasmania will be unaffected by any parliamentary expansion.
When the final tally of results for the last federal election was released, it revealed that One Nation received 6.4% of the primary vote in the lower house. This result was well within the ballpark of its previous results, with an all-time peak of 8.4% of the primary vote at the 1998 election and 5.0%
One Nation leader Pauline Hanson says she will push for a referendum to create a right to free speech that would make it harder for her widely condemned remarks about Muslims to fall foul of the law.
Cuba’s Interior Ministry has released new findings from its investigation into the deadly gunfight between Cuban border guards and a US‑flagged speedboat, saying the vessel was carrying ten armed men who allegedly intended to execute a “terrorist infiltration.”
