Latest news with #InstituteofPublicAffairs
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Revealed: The exact moment Australia passed 'peak woke' - as researchers uncover the plummeting popularity of identity politics among a VERY surprising age group
Australia has officially passed 'peak woke ', with the majority of Generation Z now rejecting divisive identity politics, according to new research and polling. Researchers at the Institute of Public Affairs (IPA) examined the popularity of 20 prominent words and phrases associated with social justice or 'woke' concepts over the last 20 years. They tracked the frequency of Google searches in Australia for phrases such as 'decolonisation', 'body positivity', 'white privilege', 'invasion day' and 'pronouns', discovering an explosion in popularity for these terms since 2012. However, the average frequency for all 20 woke search terms - which also included 'cultural appropriation', 'non-binary' and ' critical race theory ' - reached a peak in March 2023. It has been rapidly declining ever since, leading Brianna McKee, the IPA's National Manager of Generation Liberty, to declare that Australia has passed 'peak woke'. 'Wokeness encompasses a range of critical social justice theories which demand individuals view the world through the prism of class, race, or gender, and to place their identity within the broader societal division between two groups: oppressors and the oppressed,' Ms McKee said. 'The IPA's research clearly shows Australians have had enough of this pernicious and divisive agenda, as well as identity politics that are pushed on them in schools, universities, at work and at sporting events.' 'The cultural correction underway reflects a broader realisation that society functions best when it shares a belief in objective truth, shared values, and moral norms.' The average frequency for 20 woke search terms, including 'decolonisation', 'body positivity', 'white privilege', 'invasion day' and 'pronouns', reached a peak in March 2023. But it has been rapidly declining ever since, leading the IPA's National Manager of Generation Liberty Brianna McKee to declare that Australia has passed 'peak woke' Of course, seven months after 'peak woke' was reached, Australians resoundingly rejected Anthony Albanese's Voice to Parliament. Prominent 'No' campaigner Jacinta Nampijinpa Price had encouraged Aussies to reject the referendum as a way to stand against 'woke insidious cancel culture'. The IPA's research was backed up by a survey which showed, perhaps surprisingly, that those aged 18-24 were increasingly rejecting woke ideas, in contrast to the age group directly above them. Indeed, those aged 25-34 - an age group that straddles both Generation Z and Millennials - were far more likely to agree with 'woke' concepts than any other cohort. Abbie Chatfield, who at the age of 30 is slap bang in the middle of this age group, is often seen as the pin-up girl of the woke generation. The reality TV star-turned-podcaster recently took aim at US actress Sydney Sweeney amid the backlash to her American Eagle jeans campaign. But the research shows Chatfield runs the risk of turning off younger followers who are far less interested in woke issues and identity politics than Millennials. For example, 47 per cent of those age 25-34 said their race, gender, sex or ethnic background was an important or very important factor in their voting habits. However, only 38 per cent of those aged 18-24 agreed. The survey, which polled 1,027 Australians between 25 April and 28 April 2025, also found that only 34 per cent of Australians support affirmative action in the workplace - where some people are promoted or employed on the basis of their race of gender identity. Some 49 per cent of Australians oppose it and 17 per cent are unsure. However, a majority of those aged 25-35 - 55 per cent - support affirmative action in the workplace. Meanwhile, only 46 per cent of those aged 18-24 support it, suggesting that 'younger Australians are returning to a values system of individuality and egalitarianism', according to the IPA's Ms McKee. 'Gen Z have been berated more than past generations to see the world through the prism of race and gender, where every act is a potential trap for cancel culture police. It's no wonder younger Australians are turning away from this divisive agenda and its constant conflict,' she added. 'These findings are a lesson for our leaders that Australians understand full well that there is more that unites us and divides us. 'At a time when social cohesion is collapsing in Australia, there are welcome signs the divisive agenda of the political class is starting to be rejected.' The survey also found that 89 per cent of Australians explicitly support the principle of equality before the law, rather than making distinctions between groups to make up for alleged historical injustices. The IPA's report, entitled 'Peak Woke: The declining popularity of social justice ideas in Australia', defines 'peak woke' as the 'point at which woke ideas reach their most extreme and illogical conclusions, alienating even their original supporters'. 'This is the moment when progressive ideologies become so detached from practical realities that they become absurd,' Ms McKee adds. It highlights how the 'woke agenda' in Australia has suffered a backlash in recent years. For example, Woolworths faced calls for a boycott last year after it announced it would not stock Australia Day merchandise due to an apparent 'decline in demand'. The supermarket giant backflipped on the decision in January 2025 after the backlash. The report also highlights how this rejection of woke ideas has been evident across the Western world. 'The election of Donald Trump at the 2024 US Presidential election, the overwhelming rejection of the proposed Voice to Parliament at the 2023 referendum in Australia, and the rise of populist, anti-establishment parties in the UK and continental Europe, indicate a mainstream rejection of wokeness,' it adds. However, Ms McKee warned against complacency. 'Despite these encouraging trends, wokeness remains entrenched in much of Australia's big corporates, which are teeming with diversity, equity and inclusion departments and staff,' she added. 'It is time corporate Australia focused on productivity, not pitting their staff against one another.'
Sky News AU
6 days ago
- Politics
- Sky News AU
Protesters ‘going too far' could potentially soon be criminalised
Institute of Public Affairs Research Fellow Mia Schlicht slams the recent actions of protesters burning the Australian flag during protests, agreeing to the recent petition to criminalise the action. 'This is going too far,' Ms Schlicht said. 'It is our most unifying symbol, and it is something to be proud of.'
Sky News AU
07-08-2025
- Business
- Sky News AU
Trump ‘leading' the way in scrapping net zero after axing Biden-approved wind farm
Institute of Public Affairs Research Fellow Mia Schlicht discusses Donald Trump scrapping one of America's largest wind farms approved by former president Joe Biden. 'I think it's a fantastic decision by Trump, I mean Trump is waking up to the delusion that is net zero,' Ms Schlicht told Sky News Digital Presenter Gabriella Power. 'He is leading the way on this … there are so many companies now withdrawing their agreements to set up, particularly offshore wind farms. 'It is mainstream Australians and people all across the world who will get hit the hardest when they are the ones who are forced to pay for them.'
Daily Mail
07-08-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Pauline Hanson claims International students are taking Aussie jobs and dodging tax
has slammed the Albanese Government for boosting international student numbers, claiming many are working cash-in-hand, dodging tax, and taking jobs from everyday Australians. Labor will raise the 2026 cap to 295,000 international student places, 25,000 more than flagged for 2025, despite warnings the system is being abused. Critics, including Hanson and former Treasury economist Leith Van Onselen, say the student visa scheme is no longer about education, but about cheap labour and permanent migration. The Albanese Government brushed off mounting criticism and said it would work with universities to boost the availability of student accommodation. 'International education is an incredibly important export industry for Australia, but we need to manage its growth so it's sustainable,' education minister Jason Clare said. But Hanson says the student visa system is a racket. 'Many of these people are taking jobs that should be held by Australians – often for under-the-table cash, which is then sent home. 'The Institute of Public Affairs showed that foreign students earned $15.4 billion in Australia through part-time work in 2023, with more than $10.5 billion of it being sent back overseas. 'This puts a huge dent in the claim this "industry" is worth almost $50 billion a year to the national economy – it isn't. Hanson said any foreign student found not to be paying tax should have their visa cancelled, 'and should be thrown on the next flight back to their home'. She said Australian universities are classified as not-for-profit institutions. 'This status enables them to avoid paying tax on the upfront fees foreign students pay them, and to which they have become addicted like meth junkies. 'Australian taxpayers are being ripped off by the 'international student' racket.' In the year to May, 794,113 international students were enrolled in education across the country, with education now Australia's biggest services export and the fourth-biggest export after iron ore, coal, and natural gas. While China still leads in international student numbers at 167,147, India and Nepal have seen significant increases, moving into second and third spots with 123,456 and 57,048 students, respectively. Leith Van Onselen, a former Treasury economist, highlighted a survey by Allianz Partners Australia that found 68.4 per cent of international students plan to stay in Australia long-term. 'Students from South Asia and Africa choose a study destination based on their capacity to gain job rights, a low-cost course, and permanent residency,' Mr Van Onselen said. 'With the exception of students from China and Europe, all source nations placed a high value on the potential to work while studying and post-study employment opportunities. 'It should be no surprise, then, that Australia has witnessed the greatest increase in student numbers from nations that rely on paid employment. 'Indian students and migration agents celebrated Labor's federal election victory because they know that it means easier entry into Australia. 'Australia's policymakers and media should drop the charade and acknowledge that international education is an immigration racket.' A new Reserve Bank report found that the soaring number of international students was putting pressure on the housing market during a time of high construction costs. 'The number of international students onshore is still near record highs, and student visa arrivals have exceeded departures in recent months, suggesting the number of students onshore is growing,' it said. 'In the face of a relatively fixed supply of housing in the short term, we would expect an increase in international students to put upward pressure on rental demand and rents (all else equal),' the report said. 'Capacity constraints, high costs in the construction sector, and low levels of building approvals relative to the population may mean the housing supply response could be slower to materialise compared with in the past.'
Epoch Times
24-07-2025
- Business
- Epoch Times
Think Tank Warns Net Zero Putting Pressure on Fertiliser, Nickel, and Plastic Industries
Free market think tank, the Institute of Public Affairs, is concerned higher energy prices—due to the cost of net zero—will continue to wear away Australian manufacturing industries responsible for basic goods like nickel, plastics, and fertiliser. Deputy Executive Director Daniel Wild said blocking the development of cheaper traditional energy sources, like coal or uranium (for nuclear), was having a flow-on effect on energy reliant industries.
