Budget: population porkies for Big Australia

Between now and mid 2029, the Budget programs 1.5 million net migration (highly likely) versus an extra million new homes (less likely). That should fix the housing crisis - not.

"Decentralisation" culture predates Arthur Calwell's 1945 "Populate or Perish". 1970s Labor birthed Albury-Wodonga. 1980s Labor floated a zany Multifunction Polis. Canberra, our one world-ranked decentralisation, was derided by Morrison.

A 2015 White Paper urges over-damming the "empty" north, while Rudd imagines 50 million Australians. Presently, "regional" permanent migration claims less than 10% of total.

Disregarding politicians' congestion/decentralisation theatre, Sydney-Melbourne will surge from 10 million, to 15-16 million or more by 2050.

Fib: Our greenhouse emissions can decouple from population growth

UN net zero emissions (by 2050) is the new black. Silo admires the alluring arithmetic of carbon sinks "netting" out human emissions. Eventually.

Inexorably the eight billion humans are causal in 70% biodiversity crash. Rich nations are emissions gluttons. Poor nations' surging population exacerbates environmental degradation and climate change. Stalemate.

Mugged by Matt Kean, Morrison nominally endorsed net zero. Albanese has legislated a "43%" reduction on 2005 emissions by 2030. Improbable, but EU's happy.

Omitting suss deductions re "Land-use, Land-use Change and Forestry", our emissions actually rose, most of 2005-2020. Renewables-led transition to "43%" or "net zero" is contradicted by booming population, bulldozing bush, fossil fuel extraction.

Via Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, even UN (sort of) concedes population growth and GDP-per-capita are the strongest drivers of global emissions. These two outpace offsetting reductions in energy-use per GDP unit.

Earthwise, population growth is hard to corral. Easy, for Island Australia. Albanese does the direct opposite. While tinkering with ineffectual carbon "credits".

Fib: Mass migration counters population and workforce ageing