Welfare State



Prior to the pandemic, the Australian Government’s policy approach to unemployment was to keep people attached to the labour market. The focus was on changing… Read More ›

Rethinking the Welfare-Work Nexus in Light of Australia’s COVID-19 Response

Shame is a well-trodden theme in studies of life on social security payments. Attention to shame is part of a wider recognition that there is… Read More ›

Is Welfare Receipt Always Shameful?

The rise of super-computing and improved data linking capabilities have presented new opportunities for policymakers to draw on ‘big data’ to guide social policy development.… Read More ›

Big Data as Evidence for Social Investment: A Need for Critique and Caution

For a brief period when the JobSeeker unemployment benefit was increased to $550 per week and conditionality was relaxed, Australians had access to a type… Read More ›

Has COVID-19 Opened the Door to an Australian Basic Income?

Scott Morrison got a bit tetchy at a press conference last week when asked about the reform inspiration that Treasurer Josh Frydenberg was drawing from… Read More ›

Advance Australia Fair? To Recover From COVID, Reset Social Policy

The fundamental role of government is to secure the welfare and safety of its people. The COVID-19 crisis coming so soon after the summer’s extraordinary… Read More ›

The Government’s Fiscal Tool Kit for COVID-19

Unexpected bills can be a challenge for any household, but particularly for low-income families relying on social security payments. When the unexpected bill is a… Read More ›

Policy Choices and Automation: How Benefits Systems Can Create Unjust Debts

Income inequality in most high-income countries has increased considerably since the 1970s, creating interest in the drivers of this trend. One factor that has attracted… Read More ›

Winners of the UK Tax-Benefit Reforms over Five Decades

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