Thread by @docbaty

We’ve had a few important pieces of economic data released recently and it’s worth just walking through them:
* GDP growth is up, with economic activity increasing by 3.4% in the Dec quarter;
* CPI increased by 1.3% in the Dec Quarter;
* Wages grew by 0.7% in the Dec quarter

* Company profits rose 2% (nearly triple the growth in wages)
* Property prices grew 22% nationally in 2021
* The ASX increased in value 13.6%
* The average rent in Australia increased 7.6%

Despite relatively low unemployment (4.2%) wage earners and renters in Australia went backwards in 2021. Rents rose; prices rose; and wages didn't come close to keeping pace.

But company profits did. And house prices did. And the sharemarket did.

In fact, wealth inequality in Australia got much worse in Australia last year. And the proposed Stage 3 tax cuts will make income inequality much worse as well.

Over the past 2 years, Australia's 47 billionaires doubled their wealth. Wage earners went backwards.

We need to think about the kind of society we want, and judge our economy against whether it is delivering that society or moving us further way. I don't believe a society that takes from the majority in order to further line the pockets of a few is what we need.

But that is exactly what our economy currently delivers: a system of wealth extraction that takes money from most Australians and redistributes it - through corporate welfare, tax breaks, rebates, and lax enforcement - to a small number of very rich.

The drag on our economy and our society is not the recipients of social benefits, but the insatiable appetites of the very wealthy. We really need to start addressing this fundamental inequality in our society.