The supply of formal childcare has expanded in many developed countries. There is ambiguity, however, in the theory that the entry of care providers increases consumers’ surplus and the welfare of households in a market with differentiated services, such as childcare. This study empirically...

In this paper Peter Dawkins argues for the "wage-tax trade-off" proposed by the "Five Economists" as part of their policy package for reducing unemployment. As he explains, the trade-off involves using an earned income tax credit (EITC) scheme "as a way of increasing the incomes of low-wage...

In October 1998, I was one of five economists who wrote a letter to the Prime Minister, suggesting a suite of policies that could help to substantially reduce the unemployment rate to around 5 per cent. The other four were John Freebairn, Ross Garnaut, Michael Keating and Chris Richardson. This...