Alice Grundy is an editor, researcher and teacher, with over 15 years’ experience working in book publishing, and a Visiting Fellow at ANU. She is the Australia Institute’s Press, Managing Editor and Research Manager.
Hilary McPhee, who has died, aged 85, was already a legend when I started working in publishing, nearly two decades ago. McPhee Gribble, the publishing house she founded with friend Diana Gribble in 1975, was the first home for some of Australia’s beloved authors, including Helen Garner, Gabrielle Carey and Kathy Lette.
The lower house in Tasmania has narrowly passed new firearm legislation, which falls well short of the agreement in National Cabinet at the start of this year. The vote for the Firearms Amendment (Strengthening Firearms Security) Bill passed 16 to 15, with Labor, the Greens and some independents opposing.
Musicians, performers and other artists may worry that being too political will alienate their audiences. But polling shows that audiences are far more likely to take action if their favourite Australian artists invite them to.
Last night, Queanbeyan local Omar Musa won the 2026 Miles Franklin award for the 'novel with the highest literary merit which presents Australian life.' He received a $60,000 prize, only he won’t get to keep it all because, like all arts prizes, it will be subject to income tax.
Claims by the Australia Institute, Senator David Pocock and others about Australia's gas industry are based on publicly available government data.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has vowed to protect Australian writers, musicians, artists and journalists, saying they “must retain ownership and control of their work. Our laws will spell that out plain as day.”
Less than two days after learning about the AUKUS agreement, then opposition leader Anthony Albanese decided to support the biggest defence procurement in Australian history. This isn’t just a quick turnaround for a massive multinational defence deal; it’s a fraction of the time it takes Australian bureaucracy to do far simpler tasks.
Australia’s total foreign aid budget was $5.097 billion in 2025-6. According to Animal Medicines Australia’s major survey and study of pet ownership, Australians spent $21 billion on their animals in the year to March 2025.
The Allan Government in Victoria has announced that it will accept 15 of the recommendations from the Rapid Review into Victoria's Firearm Laws, including introducing a citizenship requirement for firearms licence holders and tougher penalties for firearms tracking. Something they won't act on is limiting the number of firearms a licence holder can own, and they won't participate in the national buyback.
Last year the Australian National University (ANU) was getting some bad press, so they engaged a company called Bastion Reputation to help with the media fallout from restructures and the heavily criticised leadership of its Vice Chancellor, Professor Genevieve Bell. The meeting cost $6,000, which is more than ANU paid me for a full semester of tutoring in 2023. According to a response to an FOI request, the meeting did not warrant any notetaking and was “not significant”.
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