Premium
Continuity and Change: Labour Market Programs and Education Expenditure
Author(s) -
Chapman Bruce
Publication year - 1985
Publication title -
australian economic review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.308
H-Index - 29
eISSN - 1467-8462
pISSN - 0004-9018
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-8462.1985.tb00295.x
Subject(s) - politics , public expenditure , government (linguistics) , context (archaeology) , government expenditure , position (finance) , economics , private sector , coalition government , labour economics , conservative government , public sector , public economics , political science , economic growth , macroeconomics , economy , public finance , finance , paleontology , linguistics , philosophy , biology , law
Since 1971 Australian governments have varied expenditure on labour market programs and education. This article attempts to explain these changes in the context of several straightforward hypotheses concerned with political processes. In both policy areas the evidence is generally consistent with four views: that ALP governments spend relatively more than coalition governments; that ALP expenditure is more likely to be directed to the public sector, and coalition expenditure to the private sector; that governments of both political persuasions tend to move towards their opponents' position in budgets immediately preceding elections; and that, after the marked changes initiated in the 1972 to 1974 period, the parties have become increasingly similar in expenditure terms. Apparently there have been important differences between the political parties in government, but these distinctions have become less clear–cut over recent years.