Social impact bonds and recidivism: a new solution to an old problem?

Recidivism is not a topic that has traditionally been associated with the world of high finance. Yet, in recent times, recidivism and other intractable social challenges have become the subject of Social Impact Bonds (SIBs); a novel form of investment that makes use of private funds to address pressing public concerns. In July 2016 the NSW Government entered into its third SIB and Australia’s first recidivism SIB, known as On TRACC (Transition, Reintegration and Community Correction). On TRACC funds intensive support services to parolees, particularly in the first four months after their release, in order to facilitate their successful reintegration into the community. This paper provides an overview of SIBs. It defines recidivism, and considers the extent and costs of recidivism in NSW. The effectiveness of overseas SIBs designed to reduce recidivism is examined. The paper concludes by discussing NSW’s nascent experience with SIBs, including its new On TRACC recidivism SIB

Jan Gehl stories: people, places and cities

‘If Jan Gehl did not already exist it would be necessary to invent him to rescue our cities.’ wrote Janette Sadik-Khan, former Commissioner NYC Department of Transportation.  Influential urbanist, architect and humanist Jan Gehl returns to Melbourne with more stories about observing public life and how cities can be made more liveable, humane and happier. As Gehl says, ‘A good city is like a good party. People stay longer than really necessary because they are enjoying themselves.’  The event celebrated the publication of a new book about Jan Gehl entitled People Cities – Life and legacy of Jan Gehl written by Annie Matan and Peter Newman, Island Press, 2016.   Professor Rob Adams AM – City of Melbourne Professor Jan Gehl – Architect and Urbanist  MC Professor Carolyn Whitzman – Urban Planning, the University of Melbourn

Logos to go: Brisbane’s Executive Building demolition a loss of political structure and symbolism

Commuters in Brisbane\u27s CBD will have noticed the signs of disruption, following the handover on January 1 of the Queens Wharf resort and casino site to the Destination Brisbane Consortium. Basking in a New Year glow, State Development Minister Anthony Lynham happily declared the jobs-generating project officially underway. Contractors have commenced site-enabling works, which include "soft strip-out" of three adjoining, now-emptied government buildings soon to be demolished. A focus of media attention in the last month was the coming demolition of the former Executive Building at 100 George Street. Stories highlighted the building\u27s rich internal history, tracking the public\u27s last glances inside the old Cabinet room and Premier\u27s office. Little focus was given to the building\u27s distinctive external features, and even less to the huge Beattie-era government logos adorning the top of the building. Perhaps few will lament the logos\u27 departure. With the attention given in recent times to political slogans and symbolism, it\u27s worth noting that this highly visible and recognisable legacy of the Beattie era will soon disappear from its prominent place in the city\u27s skyline

Are online and offline prices similar? Evidence from large multi-channel retailers

Online prices are increasingly used for measurement and research applications, yet little is known about their relation to prices collected offline, where most retail transactions take place. I conduct the first large-scale comparison of prices simultaneously collected from the websites and physical stores of 56 large multi-channel retailers in 10 countries. I find that price levels are identical about 72 percent of the time. Price changes are not synchronized but have similar frequencies and average sizes. These results have implications for national statistical offices, researchers using online data, and anyone interested in the effect of the Internet on retail prices

Forced adoption support services: establishing and building networks

Overview The Forced Adoption Support Services Scoping Study identified a need for support service providers to establish or contribute to local networks to enhance collaboration, referrals and support for people affected by forced adoptions. The Department of Social Services (DSS) contracted the Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS) to develop a resource to guide support services on best practice approaches to building networks. The attached paper is based on research to provide a thorough outline for managing professional networks however this is not to prescribe how Forced Adoption Support Services should establish or participate in local networks

Newspapers get a reprieve as Fairfax Media spins off Domain real estate website

After much speculation, Fairfax Media has finally confirmed it\u27s bidding farewell its digital rivers of gold. The publisher of The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and the Australian Financial Review is planning to list its lucrative real estate website Domain on the stock exchange by the end of this year. So what does this mean for the newspapers, which have been on the chopping block for the last several years

National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) costs: issues paper

The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is a new scheme designed to change the way that support and care is provided to people with profound or severe permanent disability. The scheme is currently being rolled out across Australia. The NDIS is based on the premise that individuals’ support needs are different, and those participating in the scheme should be able to exercise choice and control over the services and support they receive. The scheme is distinguished from previous approaches in a number of ways: • it adopts a person-centred model of care and support • it applies insurance principles to costs • funding is determined by an assessment of individual needs (rather than a fixed budget) • it is a national scheme. This study is a review of NDIS costs and is to help inform the final design of the full scheme. The study will examine factors affecting scheme costs in light of the benefits and impacts of the scheme on the lives of people with disability, and Australians more generally. Initial submissions are due by Friday 24 March 2017. Opportunity for further comment will be sought upon release of the position paper in May 2017

Strengthening the Asian Development Bank in 21st century Asia

The pace of change in Asia and new and more flexible sources of finance mean that the Asian Development Bank needs to continue to demonstrate its relevance to donors and borrowers. Key findings The ADB faces three challenges in the 21st century: navigating the evolving geopolitical dynamics of the region; fulfilling its mandate for economic development and poverty reduction; and remaining an important source of development finance for the region. The ADB is well placed to respond to these challenges by leveraging its history of quality projects and high standards; however, the Bank does need to reform its governance and its graduation policy. The Bank can meet the new demands of Asian countries such as protection against climate change while staying anchored as a development bank focused on alleviating poverty

Rights are few, troubles are many

The rental market in Australia appears to have become something like a war zone. According to a new national study, co-authored by CHOICE, thousands of tenants are being discriminated against and live in a climate of fear. The research, undertaken by CHOICE, the National Association of Tenants\u27 Organisations and National Shelter, found that 83% of renters in Australia have no fixed-term lease or are on a lease less than 12 months long, and 62% feel they are not in a position to ask for longer term rental security

Vision or hallucination? Some reflections on the Gonski Review

The highlight of the TJ Ryan Foundation’s 3rd anniversary event was a keynote address from Dr Ken Boston, former Director-General of Education in South Australia and New South Wales, and member of the Gonski Review panel. Dr Boston spoke on the topic of \u27Gonski Report: Vision or Hallucination?\u27 The key messages from his address are: Neither the “last two years of Gonski funding”, nor reducing overall funding to the wealthiest schools, will solve the real problem facing Australia’s schools. Nor will cosmetic changes to Commonwealth/State governance and funding arrangements with regard to education; Any long-term solution must be based on the assessment of the needs of individual schools – treating government, Catholic and independent schools in exactly the same way; The most recent iteration of the My School website gives detailed information on government recurrent funding for every school in the country. This information is validated by schools and systems, accurate, and available online. No longer need we rely on broad statements, averages or generalisations about school funding, from the Productivity Commission, the Commonwealth Government or other sources. We are now in a position to make evidence-based statements about the funding of schools, based on publicly available data at the level of the individual school; While the existence of Catholic and independent schools might be justified on other grounds, they can no longer be justified on the grounds that they are saving taxpayers’ money. Catholic and independent schools are now receiving virtually the same amount of government funding as government schools serving similar SES communities; Five years after Gonski, Australia has two virtually government-funded systems. One is open to all, takes students from all sections of the community, and has several accountabilities to government. The other – state-funded to nearly the same extent – sets and charges fees; has a selective enrolment process; has a statutory exemption from certain anti-discrimination provisions; can borrow money,  and because  the high-level of government funding covers their recurrent teaching costs, can apply their fees to servicing loans on major capital works; In suburbs and towns across Australia, adjacent schools receiving similar levels of taxpayer support now operate under quite different conditions, in facilities of sharply differing standards, and with clientele deeply divided on the basis of class, ethnicity and income; Both the Rudd/Gillard Government and the Turnbull Government failed to implement Gonski. Radical change - along lines I will discuss – is now urgent