ESA (ACT): How can economic policy get us out of this COVID mess?

COVID-19 has hit the Australian economy hard. GDP is expected to have fallen by 7% in the June quarter, and unemployment forecast to hit 9.25% by December. As the outbreak in Victoria continues and NSW nervously considers the possible need for new restrictions, economists are asking themselves: How do we dig our way out of this? How do we shape the policy environment to support employment and incomes growing again, when the worst of COVID is behind us?

Professor Frank Jotzo and Professor Bob Breunig of the ANU have answers to this question. Professor Jotzo and his team at the Centre for Climate and Energy Policy have identified ways to stimulate the economy to create lasting economic value, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and bringing broader social benefits. Professor Breunig will explain how Australia’s current tax-transfer system puts the heaviest burden on those who have been hit hardest by the economic impacts of COVID, and how a fairer tax system can encourage jobs growth to offset the hit from COVID.

Come and join us at our first face to face event since before pre-COVID times! Enjoy a stimulating discussion of economic policy over some wine and canapes, in the company of fellow economics professionals you haven’t seen since February.

Canapes and drinks will be served

Event Details:

Date: Thursday 20 August 2020
Time: 6.00pm for a 6.30pm start to 7:30pm 
Location: Hellenic Club in the City, 13 Moore Street Canberra City 
Cost: Members: $10  Non-Members: $25.00
Register: Please register by 6 August 2020 for catering. 
Unfortunately we will not be able to accept guests who attend without registering.

This will be the Economic Society of Canberra’s first face to face event since the COVID outbreak. To protect the health of our members and to comply with to ACT Government social distancing regulations, this event will be a little different to our previous events. These changes are designed to reduce the risk of virus transmission while ensuring that as many people as possible can attend.

• Guests will be seated at tables with food and drink served at the table, to minimise the number of close contacts by each attendee
• Attendees will need to be strictly limited to ensure that there is a minimum of four square metres of space per person. For this reason, members will be charged a small fee for attendance. If you register and cannot attend for some reason, please let us know as soon as practicable so we can refund your fee and allow another person to attend instead.
• Please do not attend if you feel at all unwell.
• We will need to provide the Hellenic Club with a list of names and numbers of people who will be attending this event, in case contact tracing is needed.
• Unfortunately we will not be able to accept guests who attend without registering.

Speaker bios:

Professor Bob Breunig is the director of the Tax and Transfer Policy Institute at the Crawford School of Public Policy. From 2015 to 2016 he was the Director of the Crawford School of Public Policy. Professor Breunig is one of Australia’s leading Public Policy Economists. He has published in over 50 international academic journals in economics and public policy. Professor Breunig has made significant policy impact through a number of his research projects: the relationship between child care and women’s labour supply; the effect of immigration to Australia on the labour market prospects of Australians; the effect of switching to cash from food stamps in the U.S. food stamp program and the inter-generational transmission of disadvantage. Bob is an expert on the Australian tax and transfer system. He is working on policy solutions around tax reform that will help Australia’s post-pandemic economic growth. His focus is on the inadequacy of the current tax system to place Australia in a strong position for recovery from COVID-19. He is working on broad-based tax reform grounded in empirical evidence and cutting edge economic theory.

Professor Frank Jotzo is the Director the Centre for Climate and Energy Policy at the Crawford School of Public Policy at ANU. He is an environmental economist. His research focuses on policy for climate change and energy, in the context of economic reform and development. Frank Jotzo is joint editor-in-chief of the journal Climate Policy and a Lead Author of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 5th and 6th Assessment Reports. He has been involved in many policy research and advisory exercises, and has advised national and state governments, international organisations and businesses. He frequently writes and comments in the media and tweets @frankjotzo. Frank recently published research on recovery from the COVID induced economic slump. The focus is on opportunities for low-carbon investment in Australia’s energy, industry, transport and housing sectors, including through government stimulus packages. He and his collaborators also analyse trends in energy use and emissions, and government policy and investment responses around the world.