The Economists' Corner

Australia is facing a shortage of at least 110,000 direct aged-care workers within the next decade, unless urgent action is taken to boost the workforce.

That’s one of the findings of our latest report, which also found the shortage will balloon to more than 400,000 workers by 2050 unless we take dramatic action now. Australia has failed to prepare for this challenge, but there ARE steps we can take to improve the system.

To discuss CEDA’s findings and potential solutions, CEDA Chief Economist Jarrod Ball is joined by Aged & Community Services Australia CEO Patricia Sparrow; Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation Federal Assistant Secretary Lori-Anne Sharp; and the author of our report, CEDA Senior Economist Cassandra Winzar.

But first, Jarrod is joined by CEDA's Chief Executive Melinda Cilento to discuss some of the issues we’re thinking about at CEDA this week.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has rejected repeated requests from New South Wales to reintroduce a wage subsidy like JobKeeper, as businesses face tough times due to the latest round of COVID-19 lockdowns across NSW, Victoria and South Australia.

The restrictions come just months after the Federal Government handed down a big-spending budget, with more than 30 billion dollars in tax and investment incentives for business.

To discuss how business and the economy are tracking, CEDA Chief Economist Jarrod Ball is joined by Patrick Coghlan, the chief executive of business credit research firm CreditorWatch, which tracks a range of data that takes the pulse of Australian companies both big and small.

But first, Jarrod is joined by CEDA Chief Executive Melinda Cilento to discuss some of the issues we’re thinking about at CEDA this week.

The past 18 months have required unprecedented levels of public trust in government. During COVID, we’ve relied on clear and consistent guidance to protect our health and livelihoods.

Yet a survey out today by public relations firm SenateSHJ has found trust in government communication has dropped significantly over the past year.

So, what’s gone wrong? And how can government regain this trust? I spoke with Managing Partner of SenateSHJ Darren Behar for his insights on these questions and more.

But as always, first I’m joined by our Chief Economist Jarrod Ball to discuss some of the issues we’re thinking about at CEDA this week.

As the Federal Government ramps up its digital economy strategy, the safety of our cyber assets is back in the spotlight.

We know cybercrime is rising in scale and prevalence, and recent attacks on major infrastructure across the world show how high the stakes can be. At the same time, experts are warning of the rising cyber-espionage threat posed by state actors; the latest warning came just this week from the head of the UK spy agency MI5.

So, how serious are these threats? And are Australian business and governments doing enough to protect our digital assets?

For some answers to these questions, CEDA CEO Melinda Cilento spoke with CyberCX Chief Strategy Officer Alastair MacGibbon. He’s a former National Cyber Security Advisor and was hand-picked as special adviser on cyber security to Malcolm Turnbull when he was Prime Minister.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has just released the five-yearly Intergenerational Report. The report was delayed by a year due to COVID-19, and it finds it’s the pandemic population freeze that’s set to have the biggest economic impact over the next 40 years.

That means productivity is going to have to do all the heavy lifting to drive our future growth and prosperity, and fund the essential services we value so much.

But does the report get it right on the key issues shaping our future?

To get a view on this, CEDA CEO Melinda Cilento is joined by ANU demographer Dr Liz Allen, public sector governance and finance expert Stephen Bartos, and Social Outcomes Economics Consultant Nicki Hutley; she’s also on the Climate Council.

CEDA's 42nd State of the Nation has come to an end, and with three days of insightful conversations under our belt, we look back on the interviews our CEO Melinda Cilento and Chief Economist Jarrod Ball led with some of this year's speakers.

Speakers:

After the sustainable infrastructure session at CEDA's 2021 State of the Nation conference, CEDA Chief Economist Jarrod Ball spoke with Romilly Madew of Infrastructure Australia to gain insights on trends in infrastructure since COVID-19 has hit Australia.

Tax reform and the Intergeneration Report are the hot topics in this conversation between Su McCluskey (Commissioner, National COVID-19 Commission Advisory Board) and CEDA CEO Melinda Cilento at CEDA's 2021 State of the Nation conference.

To talk about Australia's relationships with Indonesia and India, CEDA CEO Melinda Cilento had a brief chat with His Excellency Y Kristiarto S Legowo, Ambassador for Indonesia and His Excellency Manpreet Vohra, High Commissioner of India to Australia.

Sam Mostyn of Citi joins CEDA CEO Melinda Cilento to speak about being less risk-averse from a policy point of view, and fostering a more diverse economy.