On this episode of What’s the Point?, Richard Denniss discusses how global gas industry has pulled off the greatest con in Australia’s history, and why Australians are living with the consequences. He spells out the simple steps we need to take to fix it.
Mon 13 Jul 2026 15.00 AEST
On this episode of What’s the Point?, Richard Denniss discusses how global gas industry has pulled off the greatest con in Australia’s history, and why Australians are living with the consequences. He spells out the simple steps we need to take to fix it.
This episode was recorded on Friday 10 July.
Host: Richard Denniss, co-Chief Executive Officer, the Australia Institute
Host: Anna Chang, Managing Editor, The Point
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As state and territory governments face mounting pressure over debt and the delivery of essential services, some economists argue a flawed federal tax system – not spending decisions alone – has left them billions of dollars short.
Since the budget passed significant tax reform that is designed, among other things, to make housing more affordable, house prices were flat in May and then dropped by 0.4% in June. Some in the media have lost their minds at the very idea that house prices might not continue increasing. But rapidly rising house prices are the opposite of affordable housing.
Of all the stupidity Australians have accepted as “normal”, our relationship with house prices may be among the most ridiculous. This nation is in the grips of a media panic over a small blip in house prices. This blip apparently deserves wall-to-wall coverage and dire warnings of impending doom.
Older Australians have seen their wealth grow eight times faster than younger generations over the past two decades, but a Senate inquiry has heard housing inequality is no longer just a generational issue. The Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) told a public hearing in Sydney that the issue extended well beyond the divide between younger and older Australians.
