Bruce Chapman
Bruce Chapman is Professor of Economics, College of Business and Economics, Australian National University.
Bruce's articles (7 total)
13 March 2026
Ending native forest logging subsidies need not cost jobs
Claims that environmental reforms will destroy jobs in native forest logging are overstated. Labour market dynamics and the growth of plantation forestry point to a manageable transition.
16 February 2026
John Mitchell, David Lindenmayer and Bruce Chapman: Keeping the farm in the family can come at a high cost
As Australia’s farming population ages, poorly planned succession can destroy wealth, fracture families and leave no one better off.
8 January 2026
Best of 2025 - A smart productivity play: Stop subsidising loss-making native forest logging
On 7 September 2025, NSW set the proposed 476,000-hectare boundary for the Great Koala National Park and halted native-forest logging within it (plantation harvesting continues), with formal gazettal slated for 2026.
24 November 2025
A rare win-win for climate, farming and biodiversity – if policymakers act
Restoring Australia's farm dams could slash emissions, improve water quality, boost livestock productivity, and enhance biodiversity – all at low cost.
18 September 2025
A smart productivity play: Stop subsidising loss-making native forest logging
On 7 September 2025, NSW set the proposed 476,000-hectare boundary for the Great Koala National Park and halted native-forest logging within it (plantation harvesting continues), with formal gazettal slated for 2026.
28 May 2025
The drought is back – we need a new way to help farmers survive tough times
Australia in 2025 is living up to Dorothy McKellar’s poetic vision of a country stricken by “drought and flooding rains”.
20 July 2020
A pilot Revenue-Contingent Loan for the JobKeeper Transition
Several months ago we argued the case for the use of revenue-contingent loans (RCLs) as part of the transition from JobKeeper. An RCL is a debt for business, with the defining characteristic being that repayments occur when the firm is able to do so comfortably in the future. The concept is closely related to the Higher Education Contribution Scheme (HECS) pioneered in Australia in the 1980s.