Report “Inequality: The Facts and the Future”

The Inclusive Prosperity Commission is a major policy project of the Chifley Research Centre, the think tank of the Australian Labor Party. Since its launch in 2014, the Commission has been exploring the threat to Australia’s future economic growth presented by growing inequality – and new policies to respond.

At the heart of the matter is a simple premise: economies grow faster when everyone shares in the growth. More and more evidence now shows that rising inequality is a threat to economic growth, while only broadly shared prosperity can be sustained in the long-term. Inclusive prosperity means embracing the economic opportunities of our time and finding ways to ensure they serve the vast majority of society.

The Commission’s task has been to develop a new economic policy framework to guide Australia beyond the global financial crisis and the peak of the mining boom.

Co-chaired by Wayne Swan MP and Michael Cooney (Executive Director of the Chifley Research Centre), the Commission’s membership includes Cameron Clyne, David Hetherington, Dave Oliver, Peter Whiteford, Rebecca Huntley, Stephen Koukoulas, Tony Nicholson and Verity Firth. Amanda Robbins of Equity Economics has led the Commission’s staff.

This report will sit alongside new analysis from the IMF, World Bank and influential publications such as Thomas Piketty’s ‘Capital in the Twenty-First Century’ which point to the need for action against rising inequality.

The Chifley Research Centre is grateful for the contribution of the Center for American Progress as a project partner.

Download a free PDF of the Report here