Down Goes Tariffs and With It, Our Living Costs

Commentary One man’s tariff is another man’s tax. That economic fact needs to be comprehended by all of us. For too long, Australia suffered behind a wall of tariffs foolishly thinking it protected local jobs. Thankfully, they are being abolished and reduced. Tariffs may protect particular jobs, but prejudice many other jobs. Take, for example, the tariffs which applied to imported cars. They were designed to protect Australia’s car manufacturing jobs. The tariffs helped the car industry to limp along. But every single Australian family had to pay more for their family’s car and every workplace had its production costs commensurately increased with the extra cost of the motor vehicles required in the cost of production, be it building, agriculture or mining....