Foreign aid doesn’t come at the expense of struggling Aussies
If anything, the more generous a country is to foreigners, the more it usually provides for its own people.
AAP Image/ Darren England
A 25% gas export tax would drive down gas prices for Australians and collect billions of dollars that can be used to provide better, cheaper health and education services.
On this episode of Follow the Money, Rod Campbell and Ebony Bennett discuss the case for a 25% gas export tax and the New South Wales government’s ban on new coal mines.
This episode was recorded on Tuesday 24 March.
You can sign the Australia Institute’s petition calling on the federal government to make gas exporters pay their fair share.
Guest: Rod Campbell, Research Director, the Australia Institute // @rodcampbell
Host: Ebony Bennett, Deputy Director, the Australia Institute // @ebonybennett
Show notes:
The case for a gas export tax, explained by Richard Denniss, The Point (March 2026)
Tax gas exports, invest in health/aged care – new polls, the Australia Institute (March 2026)
What the Middle East war means for Australians and gas companies, the Australia Institute (March 2026)
‘No new coal or gas is a slogan, not a policy’: Bowen, ABC Radio National (March 2023)
SUMMER SPECIAL | President Anote Tong, Follow the Money, the Australia Institute (January 2017)
What we owe the water: It’s time for a fossil fuel treaty by Kumi Naidoo, Australia Institute Press (February 2026)
Theme music: Pulse and Thrum; additional music by Blue Dot Sessions
We’d love to hear your feedback on this series, so send in your questions, comments or suggestions for future episodes to podcasts@australiainstitute.org.au. Subscribe to Follow the Money on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts or wherever you get your favourite podcasts.
If anything, the more generous a country is to foreigners, the more it usually provides for its own people.
Labor has announced a new gas reservation policy that will require energy giants to set aside 20 per cent of exports for the east-coast domestic market from July next year. With the announcement of this policy, the Albanese government has been accused of “caving” to the gas lobby and offering a “half-baked” solution to avoid mounting pressure for a 25 per cent export tax.
