Niall Ferguson slams Australian immigration policy
ONE of the world's leading economic historians has slammed Labor's "needless pseudo stimulus" spending.
Niall Ferguson has also criticised the election campaign's "pathetic" debate over capping immigration and population growth.
The visiting Harvard history professor said yesterday Australia's budget stimulus -- the third biggest in the developed world -- had not been justified by the size of the global financial crisis hit to this country's economy.
As well, Labor's budget stimulus had been weighted too much to increased spending rather than tax cuts or on rationalising the tax system.
It was "inconceivable" that Labor's budget stimulus had delivered significant macro-economic benefits, while it probably involved large macro-economic costs. "I think the whole thing was an over-reaction," he told a Centre for Independent Studies lunch in Sydney.
Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar.
End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar.
Professor Ferguson said the quality of Australia's election debate on immigration and population was "strongly reminiscent of the quality of debate in (Scotland's) Strathclyde region council".
Read entire article at The Australian
Niall Ferguson has also criticised the election campaign's "pathetic" debate over capping immigration and population growth.
The visiting Harvard history professor said yesterday Australia's budget stimulus -- the third biggest in the developed world -- had not been justified by the size of the global financial crisis hit to this country's economy.
As well, Labor's budget stimulus had been weighted too much to increased spending rather than tax cuts or on rationalising the tax system.
It was "inconceivable" that Labor's budget stimulus had delivered significant macro-economic benefits, while it probably involved large macro-economic costs. "I think the whole thing was an over-reaction," he told a Centre for Independent Studies lunch in Sydney.
Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar.
End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar.
Professor Ferguson said the quality of Australia's election debate on immigration and population was "strongly reminiscent of the quality of debate in (Scotland's) Strathclyde region council".