Grattan Institute

With the 2026 federal budget just two weeks away, Grattan Institute CEO Dr. Aruna Sathanapally joins Deputy Director of Energy and Climate Change Hamish McKenzie to unpack what could be one of the most consequential budgets in a generation.

Against a backdrop of war, a global energy crisis, and rising inflation, the government faces a set of colliding imperatives: steady the ship or seize the moment for long-overdue reform. With a thumping majority and an opposition in disarray, the Albanese government has a window for change. But will it take it?

Read Aruna's article in The Australian Financial Review here: https://grattan.edu.au/news/we-need-restraint-not-a-razor

The Grattan Podcast is produced by the Grattan Institute, an independent think tank focused on Australian public policy. Subscribe for expert analysis on the issues shaping Australia's future.

Australians cannot take the future strength and resilience of our democracy for granted.

Grattan Institute's new report ‘For the people: Future-proofing Australia’s democracy’, shows that democracy is backsliding globally, and the world order in which Australia has flourished is being seriously tested.

Our investigation exposes warning signs for Australia, and underscores that it will take work to ensure our democracy is fit for these turbulent times. Reforms that show that those in power are willing to tackle our big challenges will not only deliver a better economy and society, they will build trust in our democratic system to deliver for the people.

Grattan democracy experts and report co-authors Kate Griffiths and Matthew Bowes take you through the findings from the report, and the five priority areas identified for making Australia's democracy better and more resilient .

Dive deeper by reading the full report here: https://grattan.edu.au/report/for-the-people-future-proofing-australias-democracy/

On 11 December, we celebrated the official launch of Grattan Institute’s 2025 Prime Minister's Summer Reading List at State Library Victoria.

Grattan CEO Aruna Sathanapally was joined by ABC politics and economics journalist Tom Crowley and acclaimed author Cordelia Fine for a lively discussion, as we unveiled our selection of six of the most thought-provoking, compelling, and relevant books of 2025.

It was an extraordinary year, and these are extraordinary reads – not just for the Prime Minister, but for anyone passionate about public policy and Australia’s future.

Explore the full list: https://grattan.edu.au/news/prime-ministers-summer-reading-list-2025/

On a typical school day in Australia, about 11% of students who should be at school are absent.

These absences add up quickly. Missing one day of school a fortnight is the equivalent of missing four weeks a year – and missing a whole year between the first day of school and the end of Year 10.

On our latest podcast, education experts Amy Haywood and Molly Chapman discuss how to improve school attendance, with host Kat Clay.

Read the Policy Brief: https://grattan.edu.au/news/every-day-matters-improving-school-attendance-in-australia/

Australia is failing more than 130,000 people with significant psychosocial disability – despite spending billions every year on the NDIS.

This gap is fuelling a growing problem. People without adequate supports are more likely to experience homelessness, be hospitalized, or have their needs escalate, putting pressure on systems that are already under strain.

In this podcast, Sam Bennett, Mia Jessurun, and Reilly Polaschek, discuss the latest Grattan report, Bridging the Gap: Meeting the needs of Australians with psychosocial disability. In the report, they outline a plan to build a fairer and more effective system of psychosocial supports.

Read the report: https://grattan.edu.au/report/bridging-the-gap-meeting-the-needs-of-australians-with-psychosocial-disability/