A busy month
My June newsletter
It’s been a busy month for me. We’ve just moved into our new apartment in Maroochydore, which is very pleasant. We are still finding our way around, dealing with all the usual minor problems of moving house, but very happy with our choices
In sporting terms, the month was bookended by the MS Brissie to the Bay ride, where I cycled 130km to raise funds for MS Queensland, and the Gold Coast half-marathon, which I completed in a respectable 2 hours, 5 minutes. I was pleased in both cases that I pushed hard without exhausting myself.
I’ve been very busy on policy as well. I just completed a big paper on the case for renationalisation of the electricity industry, commissioned by the ACTU. Hopefully, that will be out soon.
And my big academic contribution for the year so far was a plenary address to the Foundations of Utility Research conference, held for the first time in the Southern hemisphere. My talk based on joint work with Ani Guerdjikova was on the topic of Financial markets and differential awareness. You can download the slides here.
Newspaper articles
Peter Dutton has promised to solve our energy problems – but his nuclear policy still leaves Australians in the dark Conversation 19 June
Achieving net zero with renewables or nuclear means rebuilding the hollowed-out public service after decades of cuts Conversation 27 June
ANZ’s $4.9 billion Suncorp takeover will now go ahead. Is the government sending mixed messages on business competition? Conversation 28 June
Low inflation targeting is such a dubious idea. Why did the Reserve Bank adopt it in the first place? Guardian 3 July
Sex, lies and Videotape: What to do when we can't trust our own eyes (or at least, the videos we are looking at), Notes for a panel discussion organized by McPherson independent, 7 July
Media
My media report for June, password quiggin (Thanks as usual to Alysha Hilevuo for preparing this)
Visit my Substack blog
Some time ago, the big coal generators were alarmed by the shift to renewables, triggered by the serious climate risks of fossil fuels. These big generators had considerable influence on the market, and at first sight, renewables were a risk to their domain, a disruption if you like.
Unsurprisingly, this group has moved significantly to retain control of the power supply market, effectively restoring their position as market managers. We seem to be right back to where we started, except that power prices have increased significantly.
Another concern. ANZ wants to take over Suncorp Insurance. Will that be good for those who use Suncorp? Not so long ago, seven "free-enterprise" banks would advertise the benefits of competition. That no longer happens, banks have consolidated and I'm not sure that we have benefited from that change.
The common element is the concentration of power and the reduced options available to citizens.