Andrew Leigh

This morning I spoke with Fairfax Media's Breaking Politics program about the government's harsh new Work for the Dole requirements and the inequality in Joe Hockey's budget. You can watch the full conversation here:

I recently sat down with Jonathan Pryke from the Development Policy Centre to talk about inequality and how developing countries can manage this important challenge as their economies grow. Here's a quick summary, but you can also listen to the full discussion here: 

Inequality: should developing countries be worried? An interview with Andrew Leigh MP

by Jonathan Pryke and Andrew Leigh

I began by asking Andrew why he sees inequality as such an important issue:

I think inequality is a public good… I’ve always liked the John Rawls Veil of Ignorance way of thinking about this, where he asks you to imagine what sort of an income distribution you’d want if you were in utero and about to be born into a society where you didn’t know if you’d be born into the top 5^th or the bottom 5^th. Would you want the kind of Australia where the top 5^th has 62% of the wealth and the bottom 5^th has less than 1% of the wealth? If you knew that there was an equal probability of you ending up in either of those two quintiles, would you maybe want a more egalitarian distribution of income?

My latest opinion piece in The Australian looks at how increased diversity in our community can enrich Australians socially, culturally and economically. Here's the details:

Urgent case for a diverse nation, The Australian, 24 July 2014

This is no longer enough. Our ideas must expand beyond platit­udes about multiculturalism giving us good places to eat. We need to recognise the real economic and social benefits that flow from diversity and acknowledge the challenges so we can find ways to maintain cohesive societies in the face of these.

To see the positive impact of diversity, go to Silicon Valley. Half of all start-up teams include a first-generation migrant, from Russian-born Sergey Brin at Google to Hungarian-born Andy Grove at Intel.

Overnight I gave a speech to the Progressive Policy Institute in Washington, DC, exploring how the increasing diversity of our communities creates both opportunities and challenges for Australia and the USA. Here's the full text:

SPEECH

PROGRESSIVE POLICY INSTITUTE

WASHINGTON DC, USA

WEDNESDAY, 23 JULY 2014

Thirteen years ago, in summer 2001, I worked as a fellow here at the Progressive Policy Institute. Here I was lucky enough to co‑author reports on digital government and the digital divide, attended stimulating seminars by resident and visiting experts, and even helped put on an ‘Aussie breakfast’ of bagels and vegemite.

I knew Americans tend to be pretty self-assured, but even so I was particularly struck by the confidence that the Progressive Policy Institute had a fresh idea to contribute to just about every policy conversation in this city – and you were right! Like a Gaul in Caesar’s Rome, I drank it all in.

Think-tanks play a vital role in our democracy. Located at the intersection of academia and politics, you help to make university research accessible, and forge new policy proposals based on the best available evidence.

The Progressive Policy Institute (with, at that time, the Democratic Leadership Council) has played a special role. After Democrats lost Presidential elections in 1984 and 1988, your organisations were crucial in reclaiming the notion that governments could lead from the ‘radical centre’.

You showed that a belief in tackling poverty and inequality could best be realised by a commitment to open markets, a culture that fostered entrepreneurship, a commitment to strong economic growth, and rigorous evaluation of social programs. You reminded progressives that values must come first.

My op-ed in today's Canberra Times is on the importance of improving access to university.

We Can't Cut Our Way to Being a Clever Country, Canberra Times, 18 July 2014

Inhabiting planet earth just isn’t enough for Nicholas Badullovich. He dreams of working for NASA with space as the new frontier. As a Star Wars fan, the former Moruya High student is the youngest of five children and the first in his family to go to university. He is now studying science at the Australian National University.

My Chronicle column looks at how software is changing our lives.

Software Revolution Enters Our Livelihood, The Chronicle, 8 July 2014

Nestled in the heart of Braddon, between car dealerships and funky cafes, is one of Australia’s largest computer game design companies. Employing nearly 50 people, 2K Australia make games such as BioShock and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel.

To visit 2K’s offices is to be reminded of how complex computer games have become. Today’s game designers include people who previously worked as architects, artists and artificial intelligence programmers. As he showed me around the office, CEO Tony Lawrence talked about how they’d just had a team of actors in to record the voices for their latest game.

17 July 2014

Today I spoke in the Parliament about Labor's national public consultation on the banning of cosmetics testing on animals.

In March, federal Labor made a commitment to run a national consultation on phasing out the importation, manufacture, sale and advertising of cosmetics or cosmetic ingredients tested on animals. Recently federal Labor established a caucus subcommittee that will conduct public hearings on this subject right around the country. Cosmetics testing on animals is not banned in Australia but industry says that it stopped many years ago. However, products that have been tested on animals overseas or which contain ingredients that have been tested on animals overseas are sold in Australia.

Tonight I spoke in the Parliament about the vital role and work of the Global Fund in keeping up the fight against AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

16 July 2014

I rise to speak about the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria for the third time since entering this parliament. The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria was established at the start of the 21st century. It is one of the most efficient international aid organisations. It has been estimated that, for every $4,000 it spends, the global fund saves a life. Internationally, the global fund accounts for two-thirds of spending on tuberculosis and malaria and a fifth of all public spending on HIV. The global fund works, through a market driven approach, to bring down the price of drugs. The prices of first-line antiretrovirals and malaria treatments for children have fallen substantially thanks to the work of the global fund.

Tonight I joined Sky PM Agenda host David Speers and Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer Steven Ciobo to discuss the need for a carbon price, the federal budget and the Abbott government's reforms to financial advice.

E&OE TRANSCRIPT

TV INTERVIEW

SKY NEWS PM AGENDA

WEDNESDAY, 16 JULY 2014

SUBJECT/S: Carbon price repeal, Budget, Changes to Financial Advice, Senate.

David Speers: You’re watching PM Agenda, good to have you with us, let’s bring in our panellists this afternoon. We're joined by the Shadow Assistant Treasurer Andrew Leigh and the Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer Steve Ciobo, welcome to you both.

Andrew Leigh, Shadow Assistant Treasurer: Thanks David.

Speers: Let’s start on the Carbon Tax, a lot of people, not just me I'm sure, are wondering when is this finally going to be voted on in the Senate? Um, we know where you stand, we know where you stand, we know where I think everybody stands.

Steven Ciobo, Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer: We know where the Australian people stand, David.

Speers: Well, when is there going to be a vote?

Leigh: The great thing about Parliament which really surprised me before I came in David is the disconnect between the House of Reps and the Senate. I spend far more time with Steve's beautiful face then I do with my Labor Senate colleagues. So the Senate is a beast unto itself, and this Senate seems to be even more unusual.

To help explain why Joe Hockey's cuts to the tax office will mean a massive hit to the budget bottom line, I took to Guardian Australia's famous office whiteboard. Here's the video: