Australia at a Fiscal Crossroads: New Journal Warns of End of "Easy Choices"

The Institute of Financial Professionals Australia Research Foundation has released its Tax Policy Journal 2026, a comprehensive analysis warning that Australia is approaching the limits of its current revenue model and that governments can no longer avoid the difficult…

The Institute of Financial Professionals Australia Research Foundation has released its Tax Policy Journal 2026, a comprehensive analysis warning that Australia is approaching the limits of its current revenue model and that governments can no longer avoid the difficult trade-off between higher taxes, rising debt, or tighter public services.

Drawing on analysis from the International Monetary Fund's 2024 Article IV consultation, Deloitte Access Economics, the Productivity Commission's 2018 inquiry into Horizontal Fiscal Equalisation, and former Productivity Commission Chair Michael Brennan (now of the e61 Institute), the Journal concludes that "the era of easy fiscal choices is ending, and the country is running out of simple ways to fund the level of government Australians expect."