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7 February 2026
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Demographer Bernard Salt on the Middle Class in Australia (16 mins).
Has the present Australian Federal/State system reached its “use by date”?Can Australia continue with the unproductive State and Territory Legal System that it inherited from the Constitution in 1901?With a population of around 25 million, we have approximately 1,000 State and Territory politicians! Is this now Sustainable? No.Now is the time to review this unsustainable situation. The present COVID-19 situation further demonstrates the Federal/State differences. There are marked differences in the actions recommended by the Commonwealth and those taken by the States.The advantage of acting now means that none of the existing State or Federal politicians will still be in office on my suggested start date of 2051. The current ones will not be in a position of having to do themselves out of a job.Time is short as many amendments will have to be made to the Constitution for this plan to work.As an existing Veterans’ Affairs pensioner, I will not live to see a fully-united Australian legal system. My hope is that my five grandchildren will.Alistair Allan
What are the best ways to build a simple portfolio from scratch? I’ve addressed this issue before but think it’s worth revisiting given markets and the world have since changed, throwing up new challenges and things to consider.
At this time last year, I forecast that 2025 would likely be a positive year given strong economic prospects and disinflation. The outlook for this year is less clear cut and here is what investors should do.
Treasury has released draft legislation for a new version of the controversial $3 million super tax. It's a significant improvement on the original proposal but there are some stings in the tail.
The renowned investor says 2025’s real story wasn’t AI or US stocks but the shift away from American assets and a collapse in the value of money. And he outlines how to best position portfolios for what’s ahead.
The predictions include dividends will outstrip growth as a source of Australian equity returns, US market performance will be underwhelming, while US government bonds will beat gold.
We don’t have a housing shortage; we have housing misallocation. This explores why so many bedrooms go unused, what’s been tried before, and five things to unlock housing capacity – no new building required.
Our cost-of-living pressures go beyond the RBA: surging house prices, excessive migration, and expanding government programs, including the NDIS, are fuelling inflation, demanding bold, structural solutions.
The latest draft legislation may be an improvement but it still has the whiff of a wealth tax about it. The question remains whether a golden opportunity for simpler and fairer super tax reform has been missed.
Your super isn’t a bank account you own; it’s a trust you merely benefit from. So why would the Division 296 tax you personally on assets, income and gains you legally don’t own?
Inflation consistently undermines wealth, even in low-inflation environments. Whether or not it returns to target, investors must protect portfolios from its compounding impact on future living standards.
Global equity markets have experienced stellar returns in 2024 and 2025 led, in large part, by the boom in AI. Which sector could be the next star in global markets? This names three future winners.
The case for listed infrastructure is built on stable earnings and cash flows, which have sustained 4% dividend yields across cycles and supported consistent, inflation-linked long-term returns.
The US stock market sits in prolonged bubble territory, driven by AI enthusiasm. History suggests eventual mean reversion, reminding investors to weigh potential risks against current market optimism.