Balancing the risk of harm with productivity in the mercurial firm: economic theory and applications to Australian policy. Australia has had at least one significant chemical spill per month for the last 30 years. While the Longford disaster fades from the news, James Hardy's asbestos problem fills its place. This project will develop a general conceptual framework in which to analyse the economics of risky firms. The framework will be used to evaluate Australian, International, and alternative ....Balancing the risk of harm with productivity in the mercurial firm: economic theory and applications to Australian policy. Australia has had at least one significant chemical spill per month for the last 30 years. While the Longford disaster fades from the news, James Hardy's asbestos problem fills its place. This project will develop a general conceptual framework in which to analyse the economics of risky firms. The framework will be used to evaluate Australian, International, and alternative policies. The end benefit to Australia will be an improvement in policy toward firms that cause accidents.Read moreRead less
Harm-minimisation policies and the economics of controlling illicit drug use. The use of illicit drugs and its consequences are of major concern in Australia. Policies seeking to directly curb illicit drug use have met with mixed success and, over time, pressure has been placed on policymakers to switch toward increased reliance on harm-minimisation policies. This switch can generate adverse incentive effects by reducing the user costs of illicit drug use which acts to increase illicit drug use. ....Harm-minimisation policies and the economics of controlling illicit drug use. The use of illicit drugs and its consequences are of major concern in Australia. Policies seeking to directly curb illicit drug use have met with mixed success and, over time, pressure has been placed on policymakers to switch toward increased reliance on harm-minimisation policies. This switch can generate adverse incentive effects by reducing the user costs of illicit drug use which acts to increase illicit drug use. Cost-effectively mitigating these adverse incentive effects can improve the effectiveness of policy by promoting harm- minimisation without seriously sacrificing drug use abstinence objectives. Read moreRead less
An Economic Analysis of Bankruptcy and Financial Reorganization in Australia. We examine the question of whether the new Australian bankruptcy law is too lenient on firms in financial trouble. We will assemble detailed economic data on a large number of bankrupt firms and use the data to measure the performance of the Australian bankruptcy system. The outcome will be a more complete understanding of how bankruptcy law saves viable firms and eliminates inefficient firms. The project will assist p ....An Economic Analysis of Bankruptcy and Financial Reorganization in Australia. We examine the question of whether the new Australian bankruptcy law is too lenient on firms in financial trouble. We will assemble detailed economic data on a large number of bankrupt firms and use the data to measure the performance of the Australian bankruptcy system. The outcome will be a more complete understanding of how bankruptcy law saves viable firms and eliminates inefficient firms. The project will assist policy-makers designing bankruptcy law. The national benefit will be a bankruptcy system that balances the need to give innovating entrepreneurs a second chance against the danger of
encouraging too many unprofitable firms to limp on and waste
resources.Read moreRead less