Monthly Inflation Gauge and Cost of Living report

The Melbourne Institute Monthly Inflation Gauge recorded a rise in monthly inflation during November. The monthly cost of living rose for age pensioners and self-funded retirees, but fell for other government transfer recipients and employee households.

Published 02 Dec 2024

Maintaining momentum in defining and measuring poverty in Australia

Published 02 Dec 2024

Economics

Watch: 2024 Freebairn Public Lecture

Professor Renée Fry-McKibbin, Australian National University, presented the 2024 Freebairn Public Lecture at the University of Melbourne on Thursday, November 21, 2024.

Published 28 Nov 2024

Money may make the world go round, but what is it exactly?

Professor Stuart Kells explains that we need to talk accurately about money because understanding it means we can all hold governments and banks to account.

Published 25 Nov 2024

Decarbonising the Australian Economy

Public Economic Forum highlights need for Australia to invest in green technology.

Published 18 Nov 2024

The 6th Melbourne Macro Policy Meeting

After a 4-year break the Macro Policy Meeting returned in 2024, with two distinguished keynote presenters from overseas joining us at the Melbourne Business School for our two-day event.

Published 29 Oct 2024

Medicare is covering less of specialist visits. But why are doctors’ fees so high in the first place?

In many cases, patients are unable to shop around or make informed decisions about their care due to a lack of information about the true cost and quality of services, writes Dr Susan J. Méndez.

Published 04 Oct 2024

Why measuring poverty matters

The Defining and Measuring Poverty project is a collaboration between Melbourne Institute, the School of Social and Political Sciences and the Brotherhood of St. Laurence, designed to break the cycle of persistent poverty in Australia.

Published 03 Oct 2024

A sensible path towards high-quality early childhood education in Australia

Vale Duncan Standon Ironmonger (1931–2024)

It is with great sadness that we mark the passing of Associate Professor Duncan Ironmonger AM, FASSA, whose life’s work advanced economic research and analysis in Australia, with a distinguished career closely tied to the Faculty of Business and Economics at the University of Melbourne.

Published 12 Sep 2024

Economics

‘Doing nothing is not an option’ – top economists back planning reform and public housing as fixes for Australia’s housing crisis

None of the 49 leading economists polled in the latest Economic Society of Australia survey said they believed the market was delivering good outcomes. Read the responses from University of Melbourne economists via The Conversation.

Published 21 Aug 2024

Less about climate change, more on reducing migration: here’s what matters most to Australian voters

We asked thousands of people what issues are most important to them. While the top priorities are the same as in 2022, if we look a bit deeper, what Australians care about is shifting, write Dr Ferdi Botha and Professor A. Abigail Payne.

Published 15 Aug 2024

Indigenous

We found opposition to the Voice is linked to poorer Indigenous health. And in some regions, the link is striking

Indigenous Australians living in areas with stronger opposition to the Voice have poorer health and are less likely to access health care, write Dr Karinna Saxby and Professor Yuting Zhang from the Melbourne Institute.

Published 07 Aug 2024

Stigma around same-sex marriage affected Australians’ health. Here’s what happened in your electorate

Our new study is a reminder of how stigma and the stress that comes with it can have long-term consequences for people’s health, writes Dr Karinna Saxby, Professor Yuting Zhang and Dr Zoe Aitken for The Conversation.

Published 05 Aug 2024

Researchers and advocates set to track the true extent of poverty

In July, the Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic & Social Research and Brotherhood of St. Laurence co-delivered a roundtable discussion co-funded by the School of Social and Political Science.

Published 05 Aug 2024

Professor Elizabeth Webster returns to the University of Melbourne to lead the Melbourne Institute

After a decade of impactful research and leadership at Swinburne University of Technology, Professor Elizabeth Webster will commence as Director of the Melbourne Institute: Applied Economic & Social Research in late July 2024.

Published 25 Jul 2024

Research

Loneliness in the workplace is greatest among men with traditional views about being the breadwinner

Society’s expectations of how a man works and what he earns is a key contributor to how lonely he feels in the workplace, writes Dr Ferdi Botha for The Conversation.

Published 18 Jul 2024

Indigenous

Indigenous people can get cheap or free medicines. But we show access depends on your postcode

When we mapped where Indigenous Australians are using a program to access free or discounted medicines, we found huge variation around the country. Here’s why that’s a problem, write Dr Karinna Saxby and Mike Stephens for the Conversation.

Published 10 Jul 2024

Economics

Closing the gender gap in unpaid domestic duties requires more from men, particularly fathers

The latest ‘Taking the Pulse of the Nation’ (TTPN) survey, conducted by the Melbourne Institute and Roy Morgan shows women spend just over 22 hours a week carrying out unpaid domestic duties, which is seven hours more than men.

Published 17 Jun 2024

Australia can afford to bulk bill all GP visits. So why don’t we?

The aim is to make health care affordable and sustainable. Our new research shows how, writes Professor Yuting Zhang and Dr Karinna Saxby for the Conversation.

Published 04 Jun 2024