INFRASTRUCTURE (ECONOMICS) – GOVERNMENT POLICY – AUSTRALIA

States climb $180bn debt mountain

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Original article by Michael Roddan
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 19-Jun-19

The combined net debt of Australia’s state and territory governments is set to exceed $184bn over the next four years, compared with just $81bn in 2018-19. Increased investment in infrastructure will be a key contributor to the debt blowout, and Robert Carling of the Centre for Independent Studies stresses the need for such projects to be subject to a cost-benefit analysis. He adds that New South Wales and Victoria could potentially be at risk of losing their AAA credit ratings if their net debt continues to rise, although he says this is unlikely in the near-term.

CORPORATES
THE CENTRE FOR INDEPENDENT STUDIES LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, MOODY’S INVESTORS SERVICE INCORPORATED, DELOITTE ACCESS ECONOMICS PTY LTD, NEW SOUTH WALES. THE TREASURY, SOUTH AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF TREASURY AND FINANCE

PM rolls out rail, migrant strategy

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Original article by Simon Benson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 20-Mar-19

Prime Minister Scott Morrison says the federal government’s revised migrant intake is aimed at easing congestion in major cities. The nation’s permanent migrant intake will be capped at 160,000 a year, although some cabinet ministers had favoured reducing it to 155,000. Some 23,000 skilled migrants will also be required to live in regional areas for three years before qualifying for permanent residency. Meanwhile, the April 2019 Budget is expected to include funding for three proposed fast-rail projects in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, MIGRATION COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA

Call for infrastructure boost, without tricks

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Original article by Mark Ludlow
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 1-May-18

Infrastructure Partnerships Australia CEO Adrian Dwyer has urged the Federal Government to increase its spending on infrastructure in the May 2018 Budget. He argues that infrastructure spending should be increased by $A7.5bn over four years to offset a decline in such expenditure over the last decade. Dwyer has also questioned the policy of funding infrastructure projects via financing vehicles such as the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility rather than the Budget. The Coalition and Labor both recently announced funding for major infrastructure projects.

CORPORATES
INFRASTRUCTURE PARTNERSHIPS AUSTRALIA, NORTHERN AUSTRALIA INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Australia ‘must deal with quite spectacular housing bubble’

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 28 : 1-Jun-17

A sharp downturn in the residential property market and an economic slowdown in China are among the biggest risks to the Australian economy, according to Willem Buiter of Citigroup. The investment bank’s global chief economist warns that the Federal Government’s plans to invest $A75bn in infrastructure over 10 years will not be sufficient to offset the impact of a property market downturn. He says the Government must take action to ensure that the housing market has a soft landing.

CORPORATES
CITIGROUP INCORPORATED, THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INCORPORATED, LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS, BANK OF ENGLAND, WORLD BANK, EUROPEAN COMMISSION, EUROPEAN BANK FOR RECONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

Badgerys airport plan: build, operate and sell

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 3-May-17

The Australian Government’s May 2017 Budget will include funding for the proposed Western Sydney Airport at Badgerys Creek, which is slated to cost between $A5bn and $A6bn. The Government has also signalled that it will seek a buyer for the new airport after it becomes operational. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has emphasised the airport’s contribution to the economy and growth in jobs. Australian-listed Sydney Airport has ruled out developing the airport, citing the high level of risk associated with the project.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, SYDNEY AIRPORT – ASX SYD, KINGSFORD SMITH AIRPORT, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, NBN CO LIMITED

Budget debt will finance airport, rail

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 28-Apr-17

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has identified the proposed inland rail link between Melbourne and Brisbane as a "very high priority". He has also given indications that the rail link and Sydney’s second airport will be at least partially funded by the government via "good" debt. The May 2017 Budget will make a distinction between "good" and "bad" debt. Treasurer Scott Morrison notes that while the former generates income that can be used to repay debt, the latter is still needed to provide essential services.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HUMAN SERVICES. MEDICARE AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, NBN CO LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, SYDNEY AIRPORT – ASX SYD

Turnbull turns up heat on Shorten over Adani loan

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Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 2 : 13-Apr-17

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten still opposes granting Adani a concessional loan from the Northern Australian Infrastructure Facility to build a rail line associated with its Carmichael coal project. He notes that Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull indicated in 2016 that the project would not receive financial support from taxpayers. Resources Minister Matt Canavan has also criticised Labor counterpart Jason Clare for claiming that Adani would have exclusive access to the rail line. Canavan says that several other coal miners would benefit from the rail line.

CORPORATES
ADANI ENTERPRISES LIMITED, ADANI MINING PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE, NORTHERN AUSTRALIA INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, GVK INDUSTRIES LIMITED, WARATAH COAL PTY LTD, MACMINES AUSTASIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA

PM’s ticket to deliver fast train

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Original article by Sarah Martin
The Australian – Page: 1& 4 : 11-Apr-16

The Australian Government will reveal a new infrastructure and cities policy in the lead-up to the May 2016 Budget. It will propose linking Sydney and Melbourne to regional cities via high-speed rail services, in order to promote population growth in regional areas and curb the growth of capital cities. The Government also wants to eventually develop a Melbourne-Brisbane high-speed rail link. It will also examine alternatives to taxpayer funds for financing infrastructure projects, including so-called "value capture" financing.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Infrastructure financial backing falls by $16b

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Original article by Jacob Greber
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 8-Feb-16

The "asset recycling program" that was announced in the Australian Government’s May 2014 Budget was expected to generate $A126.3bn worth of infrastructure investment by the states and the private sector. However, new figures show that this estimate has been scaled back to $A110bn. The Federal Government’s original proposal to invest $A50bn on infrastructure projects has in turn been reduced by $A1.4bn.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY. CRAWFORD SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS AND GOVERNMENT

PM explores radical road, rail funding

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Original article by Jacob Greber
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 12-Oct-15

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has signalled that the Australian Government is open to "innovative" options for funding infrastructure projects. These are believed to include capitalising on rising property values by channelling a proportion of revenue from land taxes into securities that would be sold to investors. The Australian Labor Party recently revealed plans to establish a $A10bn fund to finance infrastructure projects.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INFRASTRUCTURE AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, INFRASTRUCTURE AUSTRALIA, CURTIN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS