Legal Policy

Middle class feeding off the poor

Welfare If we stopped handing money to those who don’t need it, we’d be able to cut taxes and better look after the genuinely poor and needy. There is no government today that restricts itself to the provision of law

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The politically correct fog must be cleared with more ‘inappropriate’ speech

When I released a video containing my National Apology to Taxpayers this week, the indignation it caused in some quarters was entirely predictable. It always amuses me when people claim something I have said or done is “inappropriate” or politically

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Childcare Regulated to Death, says Senator Leyonhjelm

In a wide-ranging interview with Peter Van Onselen on Sky News, Senator Leyonhjelm stressed how the cost of childcare has exploded due to over-regulation. He also spoke about the inequity of providing childcare rebates to wealthy couples, how low interest

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Just as Labor did, the Coalition is losing its base

Would the last liberal in the Liberal Party please turn off the lights? Waves of memberships, donations and pledges of support from people who have traditionally supported the Liberals are flowing into other parties that support liberal values. We’ve certainly

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What the Senate Nanny State Inquiry taught me about public health lobbyists

The Senate nanny state inquiry, which I chaired, has ended due to the election. Its seven short reports, available on the Parliament House website, make sobering and even disturbing reading. Throughout the inquiry – during public hearings and in submissions

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Double dissolution: Crossbench ‘clearance’ will actually make it grow

When the politicians convene in Canberra in the depths of winter later this year, the headlines will read “the more things change, the more they stay the same”. Prime Minister Turnbull will flash a forced smile as he walks past

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The Port Arthur gun ban hasn’t saved lives

AUSTRALIANS may pride themselves on “telling it like it is”, but when it comes to gun laws, straight-shooting all too often takes a back seat to a determined effort at silencing debate. Twenty years ago a ­deranged individual murdered 35

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Stop treating South Australia like a charity case

POLITICIANS must believe that South Australians care less about national security than getting handouts for SA shipbuilders. Why else would politicians from the Coalition, Labor, the Greens and Nick Xenophon (who mostly votes with the Greens anyway) have all pushed

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Everyone needs a haircut: Senator Leyonhjelm’s alternative budget

This year’s budget provides an opportunity to return Australia to a path of fiscal responsibility. Rather than promising everyone some candy, the government needs to win back its credibility by demonstrating a clear plan to return the budget to surplus

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Malcolm’s tax mistake was asking the State premiers

A strange thing happened the other week. The Prime Minister had a good idea, and then asked the natural opponents of the idea for permission to pursue it. The essence of the Prime Minister’s idea was to abolish a whole

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