The nominally “Australian” think tank behind the widely reported accusations that China is using its Uyghur Muslim minority as forced labour is itself sponsored by American and British arms companies that have profited from forced prison labour.
A Parliamentary inquiry into diversifying trade and investment is an excellent opportunity for a public discussion of the immense benefits of a national development bank.
The recent fracturing of the neoliberal consensus that drove both major parties to mass-privatise national assets and hand control of the economy over to private banks is accelerating into a full-blown breakdown.