THE House of Representatives Standing Committee on Tax and Revenue has commenced an inquiry into housing affordability and supply in Australia.

The chair of the committee, Jason Falinski MP said, “As data provided by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), the Treasury and the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) shows, home ownership, one of the building blocks of Australian society, has been falling for the last 30 years. In my view, this represents an urgent moral call for action by governments of all levels to restore the Australian dream for this generation and the ones that follow.

“Arguments about the impact of increased subsidies and tax concessions on housing have continued for some time. There is ample evidence that points to the small effect such measures have on supply, indeed the research points to limitations on land and restrictive planning laws as the major causes of shortages in supply. As consistently noted by the RBA and others, regulatory settings are directly responsible for the unresponsive nature of housing supply in Australia.

“The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) conducted an analysis of Australia’s housing market, particular its very high ratio of housing prices to household incomes. The OECD concluded that Australia’s unusually high level of inelasticity in housing is the major driver of this ratio. This has resulted in our country having the fourth-fastest house price growth out of the world’s advanced economies over the past 20 years.

“This is best demonstrated by the following fact: total residential private building approvals decreasing 44 percent across the nation from 2016 to 2020 compared to the previous five-year period according to the ABS. While market supply has collapsed with new home listings down to record lows according to Core Logic using the most recent five-year average," Mr Falinski said.

“It is with this context that the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Tax and Revenue will investigate the impact of tax and regulatory regimes on price, affordability, and supply of housing in Australia today as well as into the future.”

Submissions from interested individuals and organisations are invited by Monday, September 13, 2021. The preferred method of receiving submissions is by electronic format lodged online using a My Parliament account.

Further information about the inquiry including the terms of reference is available on the committee’s website.

Public hearing details

Public hearings for the inquiry will be held in due course and notified through the committee’s website.

UNIVERSITIES must bring more corporations and venture capital investors onto campus and reduce their reliance on governments and overseas students if they are to have more resilient revenues.

Stoic Venture Capital Partner Geoff Waring said there was an over-reliance on government grants and overseas students’ fees to fund Australian universities’ research activities.

Universities should trade their vast intellectual property for equity in companies commercialising their research and pave stronger links with industry who can find uses for their research, he said.

“Government and philanthropic grants fund basic research and academic publications but venture capital finances the next step of forming a company to prove the concept in the field,” Dr Waring said.

“More resilient universities work with seed venture capital to finance start-ups in sectors such as health sciences, renewables or agritech where Australia has an international competitive advantage. The pandemic has demonstrated how important Australia’s focus on home-grown medical and biotechnology solutions is.”

Once their valuable intellectual property is secured and matched to an unmet need, universities can let specialist venture capital managers take it to the next level.

“Building stronger connections with seed venture capital investors and industry through partnerships like the Cooperative Research Centres could better align research priorities to solving the unmet needs in our society,” Dr Waring said.

“This collaboration with industry helps university research translate into new start-ups that are developing critical new drugs, devices, vaccines and other important innovations.”

Dr Waring said Stoic Venture Capital was one of the few venture capital funds in Australia that focused on start-ups coming out of university research.

“Stoic Venture Capital is committed to financing translational research. We want to encourage medical and other applied science or engineering researchers to go beyond publishing their research.”

About Stoic Venture Capital

Stoic Venture Capital provides financing for early-stage companies, particularly those arising from university research. Stoic is unconditionally registered as an Early Stage Venture Capital Limited Partnership (ESVCLP). It takes a collaborative approach to investing in the highest potential companies. www.stoicvc.com.au

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FORMER UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon will keynote the virtual climate summit, Better Futures Forum on August 17-19, through which a group representing more than seven million Australians and more than $218.8 billion in economic activity will call on the Australian Government to commit to credible climate targets.

This summit will increade pressure on the Federal Government and Prime Minister Scott Morrison as global leaders prepare to gather in Glasgow in November for the UN Climate Conference, COP26.

Better Futures Australia (BFA) is a network of hundreds of climate champions, ambassadors and partners from every sector of society and the economy – finance, business, resources, agriculture, health, faith communities, local and state governments, First Nations people, unions, social services, the community sector and more. Among the hundreds of supporting organisations, over 70 have formally signed on to the Better Futures Australia Declaration, making them part of the global Alliances for Climate Action.

According to Better Futures Australia, these leaders are demonstrating scalable climate solutions and success stories as they collectively urge the Federal Government to set emissions targets in line with Australia's Paris Agreement obligations to limit warming to less than 1.5 degrees celsius. 

"Meeting these obligations means Australia has less than 10 years to halve its emissions if we are to have a chance of reaching zero emissions before 2050," a BFA spokesperson said.

BFA and BFF program manager Lisa Cliff said, “Led by former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon, US Deputy Special Presidential Envoy on Climate, Jonathan Pershing, and featuring former Irish President and UN Climate Envoy Mary Robinson, BFF will provide a platform for leaders to showcase their plans and achievements in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and publicly launch their collective commitment to ambitious national climate action.” 

Forum keynote speaker Ban Ki-Moon said, “I am looking forward to speaking at the Better Futures Forum, where diverse Australians will showcase climate solutions already underway in every sector of the economy and society. It is timely to explore the opportunities that the inevitable transition to a zero-emissions world presents for Australia, as global leaders prepare to meet at November's critical UN Climate Summit where emissions reduction targets will be set.”

Mary Robinson, former Irish President, UN Climate Envoy and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said, "Climate justice is the recognition that without urgent action, today’s leaders risk squandering the futures of our young people and those yet to be born. Climate change is an intergenerational injustice felt the most by the people who have least contributed to rising emissions. Some small island states like those in the Pacific will literally disappear unless the richer industrialised countries take action to keep temperature rises to 1.5 degrees. 

“It’s not enough for Australia’s Prime Minister to repackage a plan that was already inadequate six years ago in Paris. The good news is there is still time for radical improvement if Australia wants to keep pace with its major allies and trading partners.”

WWF’s Global Climate and Energy lead, and former Environment Minister of Peru, Manuel Pulgar-Vidal said, "Extreme weather events like wildfires, drought, heatwaves and floods, which are reported almost daily in the news these days, are a stark reminder of what is at stake if we don’t tackle the climate crisis immediately. Everyone - governments, business, cities, and citizens - must do their part to sharply reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Better Futures Australia has risen to this challenge by mobilizing companies, cities, regions, Indigenous federations, labour unions, healthcare and religious organizations to drive the net-zero emissions transition together. I applaud the launch of BFA, and look forward to its contribution as part of the global Alliances for Climate Action." 

Forum keynote NSW Energy and Environment Minister Matt Kean said, “Moving to net zero emissions will deliver a better future for everyone in New South Wales. The NSW government is committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 and we have a plan to get there, so we can secure the economic and employment benefits for our citizens and leave a more sustainable and prosperous State for future generations.”

Forum speaker Debby Blakey, CEO of HESTA superfund with $63 billion under management, and BFA champion said, “Climate change represents a clear financial risk and will directly impact our members and their communities. Leading global investors like HESTA are seeking to drive down the carbon in their portfolios and support the transition to a low carbon future. Investors have an important role to play, with global capital seeking to invest in transition opportunities. The time to act is now to ensure a just and timely transition to a low carbon global economy.”

Forum speaker Francis Wedin,fFounder and CEO of the world’s first and only zero carbon lithium resources company, Vulcan Energy, and BFA Signatory and Ambassador said,  “I think Australia has a tremendous opportunity to change. There’s been a lot of talk about the fact that Australia could be a renewable energy super power. That is true. We need to take this opportunity, and the opportunity is now."

Forum speaker Cathryn Eatock, co-chair, Indigenous People’s Organisation, a coalition of 285 First Nations organisations, and BFA signatory and ambassador, said, “Aboriginal culture is based on our obligations as custodians of country and our responsibility to our children and those yet to come. There are countless untapped opportunities to mitigate climate change. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have lived sustainably and recognise that we are all interconnected with and dependent on our environment.  The Australian Government needs to work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and step up to its global obligations to provide real leadership before it’s too late.”

Forum speaker Bishop Phillip Huggins, president of the National Council of Churches in Australia and BFA ambassador said, “Inspired, visionary leadership is needed at UNCOP26. It is a key moment in humankind’s history and must not fail. I pray there is global agreement so we sustain our beautiful planet of God’s creation. I pray we can convince our federal parliamentarians that climate ambition is a matter of love for all God’s creation and that such a noble ambition will also assure them of  political success.”

Forum speaker Jess Scully, Deputy Lord Mayor, City of Sydney, a BFA signatory said, “The world is waking up. We’re seeing more dramatic, accelerated and focussed climate action from all around the world, but we are not yet seeing that in Australia. And if we all work together and show that climate action isn't just driven by environmentalists but by business, by local government, by citizens, then we have a greater chance of putting pressure on those leaders who are not stepping up and leading."

Kim Loo, Council of the AMA (NSW) and BFA ambassador, said, “The environmental determinants of health are clean air and water, healthy soils, a safe climate and a healthy ecosystem. Climate change impacts you from the point of conception, ... to your home, to education, to your work, to how you die, with the impacts felt most by the vulnerable. We need credible emissions targets and policy that actively supports the transition to a just, sustainable, clean-energy economy and society. The key is leaving no-one behind.”

Keynote speakers at the Better Futures Forum include: 

• Ban Ki-Moon, former Secretary-General of the United Nations
• Jonathan Pershing, US Deputy Special Presidential Envoy on Climate 
• Matt Kean, NSW Minister for Energy and Environment
• Chris Bowen, Shadow Federal Environment Minister
• Meaghan Scanlon, QLD Minister for Environment and the Great Barrier Reef
• Alok Sharma, President, COP26, the UN Climate Summit, Glasgow, November
• Sandy Verschoor, Lord Mayor of Adelaide. 

The keynotes will be joined by a diverse lineup of decision-makers and influencers including:

• Dr Omar Korshid, national president, Australian Medical Association
• Rebecca Mikula-Wright, CEO, Investor Group on Climate Change ($2 trillion in assets) 
• John Hewson, former Liberal opposition leader
• Debby Blakey, CEO of HESTA, ($63 billion under management)
• Innes Willox, CEO of Australian Industry Group
• Dr Francis Wedin, CEO, Vulcan Energy, world’s first and only Zero Carbon Lithium™ miner ($1billion market cap after 18 mths) 
• Bishop Philip Huggins, President, National Council of Churches in Australia
• Cassandra Goldie, CEO of ACOSS 
• Jess Scully, Deputy Lord Mayor of Sydney; View local government leaders video here.
• Cathy Eatock, co-chair, Indigenous Peoples Organisation (peak body for 285 ATSI organisations)
• David Barnden, Equity Generation Lawyers (won landmark case by teenage plaintiffs establishing Federal Government duty of care to next generation on climate)
• Dr Anika Molesworth, scientist, farmer, deputy chair of Farmers for Climate Action.
• Susan Aitkin, Mayor, City of Glasgow (host of COP26)

www.betterfuturesforum.org.au

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NEW YORK — The Open Society Foundations has announced the immediate creation of a $10 million Afghanistan emergency fund to support Afghans in grave danger — including champions of human rights, women’s rights, and journalists — by expanding immediate protection opportunities.

The Afghanistan Emergency Humanitarian Fund will help support sponsorship for humanitarian parole programs in the US that provide a pathway to temporary refuge for those in harm’s way.

It will bolster international relief organisations in their efforts to support Afghan citizens fleeing the Taliban advance. And the fund will aid other efforts to deliver humanitarian relief to internally displaced Afghans and those fleeing to other countries taking them in. 

Open Society has invited other donors to join these efforts to address this humanitarian emergency.

“The Open Society Foundations have long worked in Afghanistan to promote human rights, culture, and freedom of expression,” Open Society Foundations president Mark Malloch-Brown said.

“We remain deeply committed to Afghans and their efforts to help the country advance toward a more open society. We call on funders to join us in our response to this urgent humanitarian crisis. There is truly not a moment to waste.”

www.opensocietyfoundations.org

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