Michael Wright and Alison Pennington

Michael Wright and Alison Pennington

Date: June 3, 2026 11:30 am

Michael Wright, Secretary of the Electrical Trades Union of Australia & Alison Pennington, Chief Economist at the McKell Institute will Address the National Press Club on “Powering Australia’s Future”.

Australia faces an uncertain path, but our opportunities have never been greater. To realise them, government, industry, and workers must navigate geopolitical upheaval, technological change, trade disruption, and supply shocks that threaten competitiveness and living standards.

Energy is the common thread linking Australia’s industrial challenges. The future of our energy systems will determine the scale of our economic success.

This provocative address argues our moment demands Australian ambition, innovation, and conviction on par with post-World War II reconstruction.

Alongside a landmark report from the McKell Institute, it makes the case for a publicly owned renewable energy platform powering Australian industry and workers to success in a shifting global economic order.

BIO’s

Michael Wright is the Secretary of the Electrical Trades Union of Australia, representing more than 70,000 electrical workers and apprentices building Australia’s energy future. He is a director of the Chifley Research Centre, Powering Skills Organisation, and Union Aid Abroad, and an appointee to several government advisory bodies.

Alison Pennington is Chief Economist at the McKell Institute. She is Adjunct Senior Research Fellow in Politics, Philosophy and Economics with Latrobe University, former senior advisor to Cabinet Ministers in the Albanese federal government and the author of Gen F’d? How Young Australians Can Reclaim their Uncertain Futures.

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Upcoming Speakers

November 2026

Michael Crosby November 10, 2026 @ 11:30 am - 1:30 pm

Denita Wawn November 11, 2026 @ 11:30 am - 1:30 pm

Ben Vasiliou, Dr Zac Seidler & Josh van Cuylenburg November 18, 2026 @ 11:30 am - 1:30 pm

Alastair Campbell November 23, 2026 @ 11:30 am - 1:30 pm

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