Rudd: Two Years on the Verdict – Joshua Gans on The Economy

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One thing is for sure, if there was ever a time when one cannot distinguish the soundness of economic management from things beyond control, the last two years would be it.

A year ago, I could easily have imagined writing this assessment with the conclusion, "What's the government of a small open economy to do?" Our expectation was for plummeting investment, high unemployment and a government desperately trying to get things going again. Instead, the economy is strained but otherwise fine. The global financial crisis has left hardly a dent. The Rudd Government deserves considerable kudos for that.

But this also makes me nervous for the coming two years. There was and is much that still needs reform. We have proposals…   [Read Full Text]