Fiscal Policy
It is well past time that Australian politicians stop thinking about the economy as if we still live under the gold standard. Reclaiming our national sovereignty must begin with recognising our currency sovereignty.
The Eureka Party supports a reorientation of government fiscal policy to reflect the insights of Modern Monetary Theory (MMT), with the implementation of the following baseline policies:
Capital Controls
The Eureka Party supports the immediate Day-1 implementation of a temporary ‘Capital Lockdown Bill’ preventing private capital from leaving Australia, to prevent a capital flight haemorrhage during fiscal transition and economic restructuring, with capital controls gradually wound back as economic stability allows.
Place the Reserve Bank under the control of the Treasury
The economic orthodoxy of ‘central bank independence’ has failed Australia, has left government monetary policy up to the whims of nominally independent bureaucrats that serve the private banks, and restricted the ability of the Treasury to direct state investment towards public purpose and sovereign economic development.
The Eureka Party supports abandoning the failed project of central bank independence, and bring the Reserve Bank of Australia under the direct control of the Treasury for the purpose of long-term fiscal planning.
Socialise the Banks
In 1948, an attempt by the Chifley Labor government to nationalise the banks was struck down by the High Court on the basis of faulty valuation per Section 51(xxxi) of the Australian constitution, and an interpretation of Section 92 of the constitution which is now considered outdated by present High Court opinion. This was the last attempt to bring the banking sector under public control, and since then, the Commonwealth Bank was privatised.
The banks are largely to blame for Australia’s financialisation crisis that has hollowed out our real economy, inflated property prices, and straddled Australians in debt. It’s time to try this again and restore banking to public purpose.
The Eureka Party supports the socialisation of Westpac, ANZ and NAB in addition to the socialisation of the Commonwealth Bank, all at a baseline of 110% of market cap, along with the fusion of the Big Four Banks and the Reserve Bank of Australia into a new and united Commonwealth Bank of Australia under the direct control of the Treasury, reversing the Menzies-era breaking-up of the RBA from the CBA and fulfilling Ben Chifley’s vision of a single public bank serving both central and retail functions with democratic accountability.
The Eureka Party supports the rollout of new CBA banking functions in every Australia Post branch across the country, echoing “Aussie Post Bank” proposals to meet demands for banking services in remote areas without starting from scratch on infrastructure.
Permanent Zero-Rate
Interest rate adjustments by the Reserve Bank have proven a useless means of controlling inflation during times of crisis, only worsening the condition of Australian working families, small businesses and farmers.
The Eureka Party supports the reduction of the official cash rate to 0%, permanently, to free Australians from usurious interest debts.
Debt Jubilee
The Eureka Party supports the immediate repayment of all sovereign bonds to free our nation from the need to pay interest on servicing bonds for private and foreign creditors.
The Eureka Party supports the proclamation of a nationwide Debt Jubilee, immediately and unilaterally wiping all outstanding debt from the balance sheets of the public bank and government agencies, to be preceded by a year of consolidation within which debtors may refinance all other debts to the state for forgiveness, with no credit checks or expectation of repayment prior to the Jubilee. No more shall Australians be enslaved by debt!
The Eureka Party supports the immediate, unilateral forgiveness of all debts owed to Australia by Global South nations which are denominated in Australian Dollars, to free debtor nations from debt slavery and coercion.
Tax Reform
The Eureka Party supports the abolition of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
The Eureka Party supports the abolition of the income tax.
The Eureka Party supports pivoting from the present focus on blanket taxation, towards a focus on targeted commodity excise taxation for demand-side inflation control in line with government fiscal priorities.
The Eureka Party supports the nationwide introduction of a Land Value Tax (LVT, see section below in the Housing & Infrastructure Policy section).
The Eureka Party supports implementing these tax reform measures after (not before) the Debt Jubilee.
Establishment of a National Sovereign Development Bank
The Eureka Party supports the establishment of a National Sovereign Development Bank to act as the owner of all publicly-owned assets, and as a vehicle for the investment of sovereign credit towards productive ventures.
Cash Guarantee
The Eureka Party supports the increased production of physical cash, both coins and notes, to maintain an anonymous payment option for purchases. We will not create a CBDC – that is our pledge.
Download the Pamphlet
For an accessible introduction to modern monetary theory and a deeper breakdown of the sequencing of the policies in this subsection, download the first Eureka Paper, Modern Monetary Theory: A New Australia-First Economics, for free now.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. This is the unfinished business of Ben Chifley's Labor government, which attempted to socialise the banks in 1948 before being blocked by the High Court. The ALP's own 1921 Socialist Objective committed the party to "the socialisation of industry, production, distribution and exchange." We're completing what the ALP abandoned. Communism involves a one-party state and the abolition of private property. We maintain multi-party democracy, protect small private businesses, and expand individual property ownership through land redistribution. Wiping debts is simply freeing Aussie families from the consequences of decades of austerity.
The Debt Jubilee is preceded by a year of consolidation and accompanied by temporary capital controls to prevent financial instability. Bondholders are fully compensated. Private debts are wiped from the balance sheets of banks that have already been socialised, meaning the public, not private creditors, absorbs the adjustment. This is a reset, not a collapse.
Under Modern Monetary Theory, a sovereign government that issues its own currency doesn't need tax revenue to spend. The Land Value Tax generates demand for the currency and curbs land speculation. Targeted commodity excise manages inflation. Income tax and GST are abolished because they punish productive work and consumption. For a full explanation, see our MMT pamphlet "Modern Monetary Theory: A New Australia-First Economics."
Interest rate adjustments have proven useless for controlling inflation—they hurt working families without addressing the real causes. Inflation is controlled through real resource management: the Supply Chain Self-Sufficiency Matrix (in the Industrial Policy section) directs investment toward domestic production, the Land Value Tax absorbs excess speculative capital, and targeted commodity excise addresses demand-side pressure in specific sectors.