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Two centuries on, what would Adam Smith make of Australia?

The father of economics, championing competitive markets, free trade and a narrow role for government, would be perplexed by what’s happening in...

latest 5

Financial Review

Joseph Healy

Greenland is why Rudd’s DC replacement must be a diplomat not ALP mate

This is not the time to send a Les Patterson type figure or drag an old Labor mare from the stables for one last trot on the diplomatic circuit.

latest 6

Financial Review

James Curran

Ley’s has no credibility after not lifting a finger on hate speech laws

The Coalition’s complaint that the government’s legislation was “rushed” is utterly childish, given its incessant demands for parliament to be...

latest 5

Financial Review

Lidija Ivanovski

Second Bondi backdown leaves the PM diminished. So, too, Sussan Ley

This is a government that applies a crass political calculus to almost every action. Mostly it works. Not this time.

yesterday 40

Financial Review

Phillip Coorey

Albo turned the Bondi tragedy into a political stunt

The hate speech bill’s real purpose appears to be for use as a platform for the prime minister to settle scores with the Coalition and his real...

previous day 10

Financial Review

John Black

Big retailers risk losing their souls in the rush to AI

The key will be to ensure the new retail experiences are better and more efficient without inadvertently bungling the rollout or alienating loyal...

previous day 10

Financial Review

Joyce Moullakis

I’m a lawyer. Religious freedom shouldn’t hinge on hate speech law

If the law passes, the freedoms of speech, conscience and religion in Australia would thereafter pivot on a novel, imprecise and arbitrary “...

previous day 20

Financial Review

Mark Fowler

Abdel-Fattah doxxed me. Outrage over her removal exposes hypocrisy

The Adelaide Writers’ Festival hypocrisy is glaring. When Jewish people come together to engage in support and activism, double standards seem to...

previous day 10

Financial Review

Lee Kofman

Why Australians can’t see their MPs’ conflicts of interest

Ignorance of disclosure rules feeds into a broader “Canberra bubble” culture that is increasingly complacent about the integrity it is sworn to...

previous day 5

Financial Review

The Afr View

The Trump lesson Australia cannot ignore about RBA independence

Attacks on the US Federal Reserve’s impartiality are truly worrying. If they succeed, they could damage not just America but also the global...

previous day 10

Financial Review

John Simon

Trump’s war on the Fed shows why RBA independence matters

While political interference in the RBA is far less insidious here, we shouldn’t be complacent about the potential for undue influence.

thursday 10

Financial Review

The Afr View

Writers’ boycott shows just how broken our culture has become

The seriousness of the change that has overcome this country lies in the sudden waning of the taboo on antisemitic thought that had prevailed for...

thursday 10

Financial Review

John Carroll

The war on hate must be fought online

Whether it’s a Labor or Coalition bill that become law, our politicians are fighting a 21st century problem with a 20th century solution.

thursday 10

Financial Review

Ronald Mizen

Fighting antisemitism with sloppy hate laws is a dangerous gamble

When dealing with laws that substantially affect our rights and freedoms, getting the wording right is not a technicality – it is the substance.

thursday 10

Financial Review

Lorraine Finlay

Australia’s universities are talking about antisemitism, not stopping it

Action in relation to the now normalised antisemitism at our universities is lacking a sense of urgency.

thursday 10

Financial Review

David Knoll

Anti-Trump posts caught up with Rudd in Washington

Rudd’s successor will need to have more than exceptional credentials. They must also have the “X-factor” that gets them meaningful access to the...

14.01.2026 6

Financial Review

The Afr View

Rushed vilification laws risk overreach on free speech

When governments seek to regulate speech, we should be cautious, sceptical and wary of possible overreach that would compromise Australia’s liberal...

14.01.2026 9

Financial Review

The Afr View

How Labor became the party of handouts for the rich

It is an upside-down world when Labor, traditionally the working-class party, is using tens of billions of dollars in taxpayer funds to help the...

14.01.2026 10

Financial Review

John Kehoe

Fear after Bondi is putting free speech on trial

Instead of rushing to add new laws to an already swollen statute book, we should enforce rigorously and without hesitation the laws already in place.

14.01.2026 10

Financial Review

Peter Kurti

AI is killing grad jobs and making MBAs matter more

The challenge is not to add fashionable modules on AI tools, but for education to build judgement and decision-making capabilities, and to...

14.01.2026 10

Financial Review

Jenny George

Your super is footing the bill for someone else’s gamble

The CSLR was intended to give basic protection to mum and dad-type investors. It should not be a collectively funded vehicle for removing...

14.01.2026 7

Financial Review

Simon Birmingham