David Bartho News Today

It took a lot of nerve to cut the Australian dollar loose, but former PM and treasurer Paul Keating says it was the moment the Australian economy grew up.

The historical narrative from the late Bill Hayden to Paul Keating holds lessons for today’s Labor Treasurer Jim Chalmers.

Of several people seen as likely prime ministers of Australia who didn’t make it, Bill Hayden probably came closest.

The former Labor leader and long-serving governor-general leaves a legacy of reform, including as one of the key architects of universal healthcare in Australia.

The biggest political meeting in Australia, this week’s meeting of ALP heavyweights is a carefully stage-managed affair.

The questions that drive any reforms to the Reserve Bank should also drive the way the rest of us think about the economic debate.

Jim Chalmers may be considering following the playbook of his political hero, Paul Keating, and tapping an experienced Treasury official to lead the RBA.

Former Labor leader Simon Crean could have become a great prime minister, but never really took off with the public.

Simon Crean is being remembered for his principled opposition to Australia’s involvement in the invasion of Iraq.

Treasury secretary Steven Kennedy is less concerned about a wage-price spiral and could give more weighting to achieving low unemployment - closer to the desires of the Labor government and trade unions.