What happens when a state begins to rely on a private company to fight wars?
We’ve seen it before, but not like this – the power that Russian President Vladimir Putin has granted private military company the Wagner group is unprecedented. 
And Putin may be discovering its drawbacks the hard way – as the public face of Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin feuds with his generals and embarrassing stories have emerged in the Western press.
Today, expert in Russian foreign policy and fellow at the ANU Strategic and Defence Studies Centre Matthew Sussex on how the Wagner group – and its leader – are changing the face of modern war. 

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Guest: fellow at the ANU Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Matthew Sussex

It’s almost a year since Anthony Albanese did what no Labor leader had done in 15 years: win an election from opposition.
It was a momentous time for him personally, and one that shifted the political landscape after a decade of conservative government.
Just how much has he accomplished? Is Albanese living up to the promises he made on election night? And is he willing to go beyond them?
Columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno spoke to the prime minister about his year on the job, and what’s next.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.

How Anthony Albanese’s doing a year after winning

How Putin’s henchmen started fighting with each other

Australia can claim a significant world first: a special government adviser on Women’s Affairs.
Fifty years ago, Elizabeth Reid stepped into the newly created role in Gough Whitlam’s government.
Abortion access, workplace rights, contraception and education – it was a time of huge change in gender parity and access. But the reaction to Reid and the new position was vicious in some circles. She resigned just two and a half years into the job.
What motivated her? How did the job change her? And why did she leave Australia once it was over?
Today, Elizabeth Reid, on being first – and a lifetime of lessons.

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Guest: Women’s affairs adviser to Gough Whitlam, Elizabeth Reid.

Australia’s first women’s advisor on why she left the country

The trial of Bruce Lehrmann for the alleged rape of Brittany Higgins never reached a verdict – and Lehrmann still strenuously maintains his innocence.
When the most high profile sexual assault trial in Australia was called off, and any hope of a retrial abandoned, there was one question: how did it come to this?
The actions of one juror might have led to the mistrial, but there was more to the story: concerns about how the media covered the trial were followed by explosive allegations against the ACT police and how they handled the case.
Now, an inquiry is trying to get to the bottom of how justice failed to reach a verdict.
Today, contributor to The Saturday Paper Claire Connelly, on the first week of stunning revelations, backflips and whether this inquiry can deliver answers.

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Guest: Contributor to The Saturday Paper, Claire Connelly.

Inside the inquiry into the Lehrmann trial

There comes a time when politicians say ‘enough is enough’ and they leave parliament.
Often they depart the stage without anyone really noticing, other times it’s worth pausing and marking their storied parliamentary careers.
That’s the case for Stuart Robert, who has called time on politics after 16 years – during which time he presided over the robo debt scandal, a bag of Rolexes, and made his name as Scott Morrison’s ‘brother Stewie’.
Today, senior reporter for The Saturday Paper Rick Morton on the incredible parliamentary life of Stuart Robert and the last scandal hanging over his departure.

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Guest: Senior reporter for The Saturday Paper, Rick Morton

Farewell, Stuart Robert. We hardly knew ye.

Since the budget dropped on Tuesday night, the Coalition and some parts of the media have begun to pick a very strange fight.
It’s over whether some of the most vulnerable in the community should really get more help than middle-class Australian households with two incomes.
It pits the two against each other and ignores a much bigger cost coming down the pipeline: tax cuts that will benefit the wealthiest Australians the most.
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno on the strange politics at play and why there are bigger questions we should be asking.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.

The middle class vs. the poor: Why the Coalition wants them to fight

There’s one relationship the Liberal Party has always prized: its relationship with business.
Other support bases for the party have ebbed and flowed, but the party has always drawn from the ranks of corporate Australia, and advocated for their interests.
Now, strangely as the party finds itself in electoral crisis, its federal leader, Peter Dutton, is speaking out against heads of business on a surprising topic: the Voice to Parliament.
Today, former Liberal MP and contributor to The Saturday Paper Julia Banks, on how the Liberal Party is losing corporate Australia.

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Guest: Former Liberal MP, lawyer and leadership consultant, Julia Banks.

Peter Dutton’s Liberal party is turning on its closest ally

Treasurer Jim Chalmers promised a responsible budget, and one that helped Australians as costs soar.
There was some relief, but it wasn’t as generous as some advocates hoped.
So, has this Labor government threaded the needle, or did it avoid the most difficult challenges we face?
Today, chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper Karen Middleton, on Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ first full May budget.

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Guest: Chief political correspondent, Karen Middleton

Budget 2023: Explained

Tonight’s budget promises relief for Australia’s single parents, who will receive extra income support until their youngest child turns 14.
It’s a reversal of a controversial decision made by the Gillard government. 
So does this signal a broader attempt to address the standard of living for the most vulnerable Australians? Or, is it a rare bit of relief in an otherwise tough budget?
Today, Finance Minister and Minister for Women Katy Gallagher on how her own time on the single parent payment shaped her views and what the government is doing about the housing crisis. 

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Guest: Minister for Finance, Katy Gallagher.
Host: Scott Mitchell.

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher reveals the toughest budget decisions

If, over the weekend, you watched the coronation of King Charles, stood up in your living room and read out a pledge of allegiance – you were probably in the minority of Australians.
But that was the invitation from the palace in the lead-up to Saturday evening’s coronation ceremony.
So, how relevant is King Charles III? Is a republic now possible? And how quickly could another referendum be upon us?
Today, co-chair of the Australian Republican Movement and human rights activist Craig Foster on the coronation, Anthony Albanese’s decision to attend and the path to a republic.

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Guest: Co-chair of the Australian Republican Movement, Craig Foster

So, the coronation was pretty weird – with Craig Foster

Today, writer Quentin Sprague, with his piece from The Monthly. 
He examines the recent revelations of “white hands on black art” – reports of White gallery figures instructing and even working on the canvases of Indigenous artists – and examines how white Australia applies the idea of ‘authenticity’ onto the work of Indigenous artists.
Quentin will read his story, ‘White privilege and black disadvantage in the Aboriginal art industry’ after a short conversation.

The Weekend Read: Quentin Sprague on shocking reports in the Aboriginal art industry

The economic news got worse this week, with the RBA unexpectedly raising interest rates and some dire economic forecasts.
So far, it looks like the economic assistance the government will offer in the upcoming budget will be targeted. It probably won’t raise JobSeeker — except for over 55s — and it’s unlikely to pause rising HECS debt.
So, after a decade or more of young people falling behind economically, will we see any help at all on budget night? And what are the political risks if the government doesn’t offer something?
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno on the priorities going into budget night – and what Anthony Albanese is thinking as he visits London.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.

Is Albanese going to ignore young people?

Missiles that can precisely target enemy forces 500 kilometres away are the future of the Australian defence forces, according to the recent defence strategic review.
What we are defending ourselves with today is woefully inadequate for our strategic circumstances, the review found.
But other big questions are emerging: how will we pay for the changes it’s proposing? Can we save money on purchases we’ve already agreed to? And how will our neighbours react to a more capable Australian military?
Today, chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper Karen Middleton on how military spending lost its way and the challenging path towards making our forces fit for purpose.

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Guest: Chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Karen Middleton.

Why is the ADF ‘not fit’ to deter China?

If you went to university, there’s an increasing likelihood you could be carrying HECS debt for several decades.
There are now more than 300,000 people carrying HECS into their 50s — six times more people than just over 15 years ago.
And, this June, HECS debts are set to rise again at a historic pace.
Today, senior reporter for The Saturday Paper Rick Morton on how HECS went from a promise of opportunity to threatening a generation with a debt spiral.

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Guest: Senior reporter for The Saturday Paper, Rick Morton.

How HECS became a debt trap

Imagine being arrested, put into custody – and in desperate need of medical care.
Who is responsible for helping you? Who are you meant to turn to for healthcare?
For Veronica Nelson, who died in custody in 2020, a private company was responsible – Correct Care.
Today, contributor to The Saturday Paper Denham Sadler takes us inside how a contract to look after the health of prisoners was taken away then put into some very similar hands.

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Guest: Contributor to The Saturday Paper Denham Sadler

From fatal negligence to a new $33 million contract

‘We don’t have enough money.’
That’s what governments always say this time of year. But the case is being made for the poorest and most disadvantaged among us to get more support in the upcoming budget.
But is it true? And if it is, are there ways to repair the budget that would leave enough money to help raise people out of poverty?
Today, economist and CEO of the Grattan Institute, Danielle Wood, on how we can afford to raise the rate, and more ways to fix the budget.

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Guest: Contributor to The Saturday Paper, Danielle Wood.

How to fix the budget to lift people out of poverty

This week, the way the government chooses to spend its money was put into sharp focus.
On Monday, it announced a bold new plan for military spending, but soon after, it found itself besieged by calls to raise the rate of JobSeeker – for Australians struggling with poverty.
So, why can we afford to spend money on one, but not the other? And is it a question that voters will start asking?
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Chris Wallace on the question that is turning up the heat on Anthony Albanese ahead of the budget.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper Chris Wallace.

Why can the government spend money on weapons but not welfare?

Criticism of the Voice to Parliament from the conservative side of politics has ratcheted up ever since Peter Dutton’s decision to oppose it.
The main accusations are: the proposal for the Voice is coming from elites and not ‘regular’ Indigenous Australians, and it won’t achieve practical change.
Today, union organiser and member of the referendum working group, Thomas Mayo, on the loudest voices against the Voice.

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Guest: Contributor to The Saturday Paper, Thomas Mayo.

Just how ‘elite’ are the people behind the Voice?

From settling the biggest payout in US libel history, to the abandoned defamation claim against Australian website Crikey – It’s been a tumultuous week in the courts for the Murdochs.
By avoiding open court, they have tried to draw a line under the furore around Fox News presenters’ claims the 2020 US election was stolen.
But will the Murdoch empire be able to move on? Will the Murdochs be forced to testify before a jury? And what does the Dominion settlement say about the strategy Fox News is taking under Lachlan?
Today, writer and contributor to The Saturday Paper, Paddy Manning, on why there was a last minute change of heart – to keep the Murdochs away from the stand.

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Guest: Author of The Successor, Paddy Manning.

Why the Murdochs settled Dominion and abandoned Crikey

Something going on far above us, in orbit, might be doing more to shape the future of humanity than any events here on earth.
Up there is one of the most powerful tools humans have ever had to hunt for the origins of our universe – and for alien life.
The James Webb Space Telescope has the ability to look so far and with such clarity that we can get an insight into a period of time that our best scientists have only ever speculated about: the cosmic dark ages.
Today we revisit our conversation with the director of the Space Technology and Industry Institute at Swinburne University, Dr Alan Duffy, on why the last year marked a new beginning for our understanding of the universe.
This episode was first published on January 11, 2023.

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Guest: Director of the Space Technology and Institute at Swinburne University, Dr Alan Duffy

Spotlight: The search for the very first star

He published secret documents that gave us damning insight into the West’s military conduct inIraq and Afghanistan, and for that Julian Assange will likely be extradited to the US to face charges that could add up to 175 years in prison.
In the last couple of weeks, Assange has received his first visit from an Australian high commissioner in London, and foreign minister Penny Wong is publicly saying that he has been locked up for far too long.
But is there more the Australian government could be doing? Or is this really a matter for the courts alone? And what are the limits of diplomacy?
Today, lawyer for Julian Assange Jennifer Robinson, fresh from meeting Penny Wong – on what this government still needs to do if it wants to free him.

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Guest: Human rights lawyer, Jennifer Robinson.

When Julian Assange’s lawyer met Penny Wong

Today on the show, writer Richard King, with his piece ‘Machine Learning’ about the AI chatbot ChatGPT.
He begins his story with discourse sweeping a university campus as AI reaches the hands of ordinary students and teachers.
How will this technology – still only a few months old – change not only teaching and marking, but the very nature of the transfer of knowledge?
This is the question he sets out to answer, and it’s a compelling one as we stand on the precipice of a new age of technology.
Richard will read his story from the latest edition of The Monthly after a short conversation.

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Guest: Writer Richard King.
Background Reading: Machine learning

The Weekend Read: Richard King on how ChatGPT is changing how knowledge is shared

It’s independent of government, has enormous power over our lives and hasn’t been reformed in 25 years.
But yesterday, the Reserve Bank bowed to a scathing review and even Governor Philip Lowe conceded parts of the RBA had been out of step with modern expectations.
But will a new board of experts improve the way interest rates are set? Can workers have a seat at the table? And what does it mean for the future of Philip Lowe?
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno, on why the government took such bold action on the RBA, but won’t stop it inflicting more pain.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.

51 ways the RBA has to be better

After a week that forced a reshuffle on the Coalition front bench, Peter Dutton had to announce a new spokesperson for Indigenous Australians – he needed someone who would enthusiastically support his ‘No’ position on the Voice to Parliament.
His choice was Jacinta Nampijinpa Price – a first-term senator.
So who is Dutton’s new pick? How did she rise so quickly through the ranks? And what does she really believe about Indigenous Affairs?
Today, chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper Karen Middleton, on why the Liberal party is betting it all on Jacinta Nampijinpa Price.

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Guest: Chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Karen Middleton.

Who is Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price?

Australia has a body that’s supposed to look after all of our mental health, and make recommendations to the government on how to make the situation better. It’s called the National Mental Health Commission.
But inside the commission, some of the staff that are supposed to be coming up with solutions have faced layoffs, stress, anxiety, and worse.
So, how did a commission set up with the best intentions turn into such a struggle for staff?
Today, senior reporter with The Saturday Paper Rick Morton on how the commission spent its money on a lavish tour around Australia and the ongoing mental toll for its workers.

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Guest: Senior reporter for The Saturday Paper, Rick Morton.

A mental health crisis at Australia’s mental health commission

Kate Jenkins has wrapped up a distinguished term as Australia’s sex discrimination commissioner.
In her seven years in the job, we’ve seen the global Me Too movement, along with the reckoning in Canberra sparked by allegations from former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins. 
So how have these cultural moments impacted the push for gender equality in this country? 
And what still needs to change?
Today, Kate Jenkins on how far we’ve come – and the work that’s still not done. 

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Guest: Outgoing sex discrimination commissioner Kate Jenkins

#MeToo and Canberra’s reckoning: how a mix of scandals and leadership led to change

It was meant to transform the way we deal with waste.
Australians were told to sort through their bins, and take plastic bags and packaging to drop-offs at the country’s biggest supermarkets to have them recycled.
But instead of being recycled, tonnes and tonnes of this plastic was shoved into storage. Now, authorities are still trying to track it all down. So how did it all go so wrong?
Today, national correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe, on the impossible promise of REDcycle and what we do now with tens of thousands of tonnes of plastic that has nowhere to go.

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Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Mike Seccombe

We were told to recycle plastic. Now it’s stockpiled around the country.

If the Liberal Party’s announcement that it would oppose the Voice to Parliament was meant to take attention away from fractures in the Liberal Party – the result has been very different.
This week, the party’s spokesperson on Indigenous Australians resigned his post, and the party’s most high-profile Indigenous figure tore up his party membership.
So how did it come to this? And have these splits torpedoed Peter Dutton’s case just as he’s begun to make it?
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno, on the consequences of saying ‘No’ for the Liberal party.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.

How Peter Dutton’s ‘No’ is tearing the Liberals apart

Cost of living pressures and interest rate rises mean that millions of Australians are struggling.
But what often isn’t acknowledged by the Reserve Bank, its governor, or many of our political leaders, is that some people are doing just fine in these economic conditions – in fact, they can benefit from them.
Those people are the wealthiest Australians – in particular, people who have paid off their houses and are debt free.
Today, national correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe on why financial pain isn’t distributed evenly and how rate rises can make that inequality worse.

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Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Mike Seccombe

Forget inflation. Inequality is the real economic problem.

Australia isn’t the first country to ban TikTok from government devices.
In fact, all of our closest allies have already taken steps to keep the app away from government secrets.
So how justified are these fears? Is the next step a forced sale? Or even a total ban?
Today, associate editor of The Saturday Paper Marty McKenzie-Murray, on how the company behind TikTok learned to walk the party line.

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Guest: Associate editor of The Saturday Paper Marty McKenzie-Murray

Why Australia won’t ban TikTok before the US does

Penny Wong has assumed the Foreign Affairs portfolio at a crucial time in Australian history.
For years China has been on the rise, but now it’s challenging the United States’ dominance in the Pacific.
World leaders and military planners are openly weighing the risk the two superpowers could stumble into war.
How does Australia navigate a path to peace? That question now rests on Penny Wong’s shoulders.
Today, contributor to The Monthly and Emeritus Professor of Strategic Studies at ANU Hugh White on how she is approaching the challenge.

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Guest: Contributor to The Monthly and Emeritus Professor of Strategic Studies at ANU, Hugh White

Can Penny Wong stop us from going to war?

In recent weeks, we’ve covered an appearance by neo-Nazis at a rally in Melbourne, as well as ASIO’s decision to steer away from labels like ‘right’ and ‘left’ when talking about radicalisation in Australia.
The issue of far-right extremism has often been covered in Australia as a political issue, but what about as an issue of safety and security?
Today, we revisit our conversation with the author of ‘Rise of the Extreme Right’, Lydia Khalil, on the far-right in Australia, its connections around the world and the best way to stop it from growing.
This episode first aired on 12 January this year.

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Guest: Author of ‘Rise of the Extreme Right’, Lydia Khalil

Spotlight: ​​How counter-terrorism turned a blind eye to the far right

Today on the show, author of ‘Sundressed’ and fashion editor for The Saturday Paper Lucianne Tonti reads her piece on confronting the hundreds of thousands of tonnes of clothing condemned to landfill every year. 
The Australian fashion industry is a major cause of the 227,000 tonnes of waste clothing generated each year — much of it never worn before being discarded.
Non-profits are attempting to curb the issue, redirecting and recycling the waste clothing – but the problem lies at the source: overproduction.

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Guest: Fashion editor for The Saturday Paper and author of ‘Sundressed’, Lucianne Tonti

The Weekend Read: Lucianne Tonti on the battle to stop wasting brand-new clothes

Australia is one of just a handful of countries around the world that have legislated in favour of euthanasia. 
Every Australian state has now legalised voluntary assisted dying – and the territories are expected to follow after the federal government granted them freedom to legislate. 
That situation would have been hard to imagine when Andrew Denton first joined the campaign for voluntary assisted dying. Known for his penetrating television interviews, Andrew found a debate where progress had been stymied and the voices of those affected most – the dying – weren’t being heard.
Today, we revisit our conversation with voluntary assisted dying campaigner Andrew Denton, on how to change a debate, combat misinformation and the voices that really changed the law across Australia.

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Guest: Andrew Denton

Spotlight: How death became the fight of Andrew Denton’s life

The Liberal Party has finally come to a position on the Voice to parliament: No.
Opposition leader Peter Dutton’s announcement comes in the wake of two election defeats for the Liberal party in two weeks, first in the NSW state election and then in the Aston by-election in Victoria.
So is opposing the Voice out of step with the electorate? And what lessons is Peter Dutton taking from his election losses?
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno on the future of the Liberal party.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.

No Voice and no votes: the future of the Liberal Party

Renting or buying a home is not getting any easier in Australia – and the future could get even worse if we don’t do something.
With the population growing, homes are going to be in short supply, particularly affordable homes.
The government wants to build new houses with an investment fund, the Greens want a rent freeze and more guaranteed funding for affordable homes – and negotiations are becoming the latest flashpoint in a bitter dispute between the two parties.
Today, chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper Karen Middleton on the political games that could decide the future of Australian housing.

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Guest: Chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Karen Middleton

Can a deal be done to get us affordable homes?

One state in Australia locks up more children than any other: Queensland. And new laws will send more children into custody than ever before.
The laws go against its Human Rights Act, but the state has chosen to override those protections in response to growing media pressure about youth crime.
Today, Queensland Human Rights Commissioner Scott McDougall on the rights of children in a state that’s going to lock up more of them – and how his office has been sidelined.

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Guest: Human Rights Commissioner of Queensland Scott McDougall.

The state locking up more children than any other

A scare campaign is gathering momentum in the conservative media.
Will the Voice to Parliament dictate policy? Are elite interests behind the referendum? And does it threaten the integrity of the constitution?
These are the questions being asked by conservative commentators, mostly in the Murdoch-owned national newspaper.
But The Australian wasn’t supposed to be opposed to the referendum – there was a time when it was one of the Voice’s biggest allies.
Today, contributor to The Saturday Paper and author of a book on the Murdoch empire, Paddy Manning, on how the dream of conservative support for the voice is in troubled waters.

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Guest: Author of The Successor, Paddy Manning

Is Murdoch media about to turn against the Voice?

The Liberal Party is in a state of disarray.
After the NSW election loss, powerbrokers and former strategists were airing dirty laundry – has the party forgotten the traditional values it stands for? Has it failed to offer younger voters anything? Or is there just not enough talent in its ranks?
Well, this weekend these questions could multiply as the federal party faces the ballot box under Peter Dutton’s leadership for the first time, at the Aston by-election.
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno, on the must-win contest in Aston and how pressure is mounting inside the Liberal Party.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.

Inside Peter Dutton’s leadership test in Aston

Donald Trump officially launched his campaign to be president again on a stage in Waco, Texas.
Despite the likelihood of an imminent arrest and a campaign in disarray he is still, somehow, the frontrunner to face Joe Biden at the 2024 election.
So, how can Trump still command the Republican base? Can the party, and America, ever be rid of him? And will he be the first former president to be indicted?
Today, senior fellow at the US studies centre and former Democratic staffer Bruce Wolpe on Trump’s first steps on the election trail.

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Guest: Senior fellow at the US studies centre, Bruce Wolpe

Trump 2024: Why Republicans want to vote for him, even if he’s arrested

Adam Bandt stood in front of TV cameras this week and announced a decision that could define the future of the Greens.
The party will support Labor’s climate policy, after winning a series of concessions, even though it means new coal and gas can go ahead and it doesn’t meet the pleas of climate scientists around the world.
So what does the deal mean? Will it make a difference? And is something better than nothing?
Today, national correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe, on why Australia’s new climate policy is still behind the science. 

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Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe

It won’t stop climate catastrophe. So why are the Greens voting for it?

When you think about a bank run, you might think of lines around the block – of regular workers eager to get their hard-earned wages out of a troubled bank.
But recently there’s been another kind of bank run, one that plays out over group chats and email threads involving Silicon Valley billionaires and cryptocurrency investors.
The panic among this group of depositors has already led to the collapse of several small and medium-sized banks in the US, and now that anxiety is hitting other banks as well.
Today, associate editor of The Saturday Paper Martin McKenzie-Murray on the trouble in the banking sector and whether it could spread to Australia…

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Guest: Associate editor of The Saturday Paper, Martin McKenzie-Murray.

Banks are failing around the world. Could it happen here?

A speaking tour claiming to quote ‘let women speak’ has been at the centre of disturbing scenes across Australia.
Last week in Melbourne, neo-Nazis stood on the steps of Victorian parliament and openly performed the nazi salute. Meanwhile in Canberra, Senator Lidia Thorpe was tackled and held to the ground by police as she tried to protest the tour.
So, who is the British woman touring Australia, provoking these scenes? And why is she here?
Today, contributor to The Saturday Paper and co-editor of the book Nothing to Hide: Voices of Trans and Gender Diverse Australia, Sam Elkin on the woman who calls herself Posie Parker and why Australia is importing anti-trans activists.

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Guest: Writer and host of Triple R’s Queer View Mirror, Sam Elkin

Why is Australia importing anti-trans activists?

Today on the show, author Sophie Cunningham on why we’re still logging native forests.
She begins her story with the last sheafs of white office paper to ever be produced in Australia – the final sheet rolled off the mill in January of this year before it closed for good.
What follows is her reporting on how and why native forests are still being cut down, despite our knowledge that this is not the best or most efficient way for us to source timber in this country.

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Guest: Author Sophie Cunningham

The Weekend Read: Sophie Cunningham on the cost of native logging

Australia’s AUKUS deal was meant to have unanimous support, but it has thrown up unexpected challenges for the Labor government — with senior party figures breaking ranks to criticise its scope, price and impact on our relationships. 
Will there be a showdown over the $368 billion dollar plan? And if so, how will the Prime Minister handle it? 
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno, on the increasing political cost of the AUKUS deal.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno

The dissent in Labor ranks over the US alliance

This Saturday, the longest-reigning Coalition government in the country heads to the polls.
Dominic Perrottet hasn’t been premier of NSW for long, but he’s hoping to extend the Coalition to a historic 16-year term in office – despite a torrent of scandals and resignations dogging his government.
Today, national correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe, on every scandal and resignation we could fit into a single episode.

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Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Mike Seccombe.

We tried to fit all the NSW scandals into 20 minutes. Here's how far we got.

Last year, Deanna ‘Violet’ CoCo was standing on top of a truck on Sydney Harbour Bridge with a flare in her hand.
She was prepared to be arrested; prepared to face harsh anti-protest laws – but she wasn’t prepared to be the target of national angst and passion about climate protest.
She was given a 15-month prison sentence for her actions — with the magistrate calling her ‘childish' and ‘emotional’ during the sentencing. 
Today, fresh from beating that prison sentence on appeal, Violet CoCo on protest, justice, and the future of the climate movement. 

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Guest: Climate protestor Deanna ‘Violet’ CoCo.

The climate protestor who beat a 15-month prison sentence

A few weeks ago, Independent MP Andrew Wilkie stood up in parliament and dropped a bombshell on the Australian megachurch Hillsong.
He tabled a cache of documents that alleged staggering misconduct and outrageous spending at Hillsong, including details of extravagant personal purchases made by some of its leaders, including former global senior pastor Brian Houston, using church money.
Now, several days after the speech, we have access to these documents and the potential damage to the church is becoming clearer.
Could Hillsong have broken charity regulations? What does the new leadership at the church have to say? And what does it all mean for the future of Hillsong?
Today, associate editor of The Saturday Paper Martin McKenzie-Murray on how Hillsong spent its money, and why a whistleblower came forward.

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Guest: Associate editor of The Saturday Paper, Martin McKenzie-Murray

‘Treating private jets like Ubers’: Inside the Hillsong papers

Bob Brown, the founding leader of The Greens, is ready to make a plea to Tanya Plibersek: stand up in cabinet and be a voice against coal and gas.
While the party Brown used to lead is locked in a tense battle with the Labor party over the safeguard mechanism, he believes Tanya Plibersek could become the best environment minister Australia has ever had – she just needs the support of the prime minister.
Today, former leader of the Australian Greens, Bob Brown, on the promise of Tanya Plibersek and why the government’s environmental credentials are at stake.

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Guest: Former leader of the Australian Greens, Bob Brown

Bob Brown on the fight Tanya Plibersek needs to have

The AUKUS agreement has brought a rare political sight this week: the government and the opposition are agreeing with each other.
Both major parties support the deal and if anything they’re competing to show who can support it more strongly.
But how will we pay for it? Will we cut spending on other services? Or try to increase tax revenue?
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno, on how $368 billion dollars in spending is inevitably getting political.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno

Will Albanese and Dutton agree on the $368 billion question?

The single biggest defence spend in Australian history was announced this week, with the government committing up to $368 billion over the next 30 years to acquire nuclear submarines.
Former prime minister Paul Keating has called it “the worst decision by a Labor government in a century”.
And big questions remain about whether these subs will ever be delivered at all. So, what could a misstep in the rollout mean for our security as tensions rise between China and the United States?
Today, emeritus professor of strategic studies at ANU, Hugh White, on why the AUKUS submarines might never be delivered.
You can read his article on the deal on The Saturday Paper website, published in conjunction with Australian Foreign Affairs.

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Guest: Emeritus professor of strategic studies at the Australian National University, Hugh White

Why the AUKUS submarines will never arrive

John Hughes was once hailed as a young literary genius, and won a scholarship to Cambridge.
Yet he found himself back in Australia working as a librarian and a teacher before his writing found acclaim.
Hughes was shortlisted for some of the greatest honours in Australian writing. But under the scrutiny of greater acclaim, a strange web of inconsistencies and copying struck one reader: Anna Verney.
Today, writer, reporter and lawyer Anna Verney and contributing editor to The Monthly Richard Cooke, on how they first discovered the borrowings of John Hughes and the revelations that followed.

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Guest: Writer Anna Verney and contributing editor to The Monthly Richard Cooke

Being John Hughes: Inside literature’s plagiarism scandal

The royal commission hearings into robo-debt are over.
With over 100 witnesses and nine weeks of hearings, the commission into one of the greatest failures in the history of the Australian government has already given us unforgettable insight into the thinking of our public servants and leading politicians.
But there are still questions to be answered: like how could so many — find themselves in lock-step behind a policy that was unlawful?
Today, senior reporter for The Saturday Paper, Rick Morton on what we learned from inside the commission’s hearings.

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Guest: Senior reporter for The Saturday Paper, Rick Morton

‘Web of cowardice’: What we learned from the final robo-debt hearings

Australia has to act fast to help cut emissions and avoid a global climate catastrophe.
After decades of inaction, the Labor Government has brought their proposal forward, adjusting the awkwardly named safeguard mechanism.
But this bets our climate future heavily on emission offsets – or carbon credits. They’re a convoluted way of making up for emissions, by doing good elsewhere.
Are they actually a scam?
Today, contributor to The Monthly Nick Feik, on the dodgy trades for our climate future.

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Guest: Contributor to The Monthly, Nick Feik

How we’re betting our climate future on a scam

Today, a tribute to publisher, poet and memoirist Robert Adamson.
Robert died late last year and to mark that moment, The Monthly decided to posthumously republish two of his essays on a subject very dear to him: fishing.

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Guest: Publisher, poet and memoirist, Robert Adamson.

The Weekend Read: The late Robert Adamson on fishing the river he loved

Australia’s climate future is again hanging in the balance.
And, once more, it could all depend on a Labor government negotiating with the Greens.
As it stands, they’re at loggerheads. The Greens want no new coal and gas developments to be approved; the government is accusing the Greens of being unrealistic.
But should the Greens be expected to pass whatever Labor is proposing? And where’s the science in all of this? 
Today, contributing editor of The Politics, Rachel Withers, on the impossible choice facing the Greens.

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Guest: Contributing editor of The Politics, Rachel Withers

Why can't Labor and the Greens get along?

The family court is a place of last resort for spouses and parents, to settle the legal, financial and parenting disputes that can sometimes arise. 
But lawyers and mothers have been warning that when abuse or violence is part of the equation, the court is failing. 
Today, author and contributor to The Saturday Paper Jane Caro on the women who feel silenced by the family court, and the changes the Federal government now wants to make. 

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Guest: Author and contributor to The Saturday Paper, Jane Caro.

How the family court is failing traumatised women

We now have the clearest insight into the inner workings of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire.
The mogul was forced, under oath, to answer questions about Fox News in a $1.6 billion dollar lawsuit against the company.
What’s been revealed is that Murdoch and some of his most famous hosts knew they were putting lies to air, and allowed it anyway.
Today, author of a book about the Murdoch media empire ‘The Successor’, Paddy Manning, on the culture at Fox News that put profits before the truth.

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Guest: Author of ‘The Successor’, Paddy Manning.

It's all about money: Rupert Murdoch's Fox News deposition

Whether it’s floods or bushfires, climate-related disaster is something Australia will have to contend with more and more.
But so far, Australia isn’t recovering from disaster. It’s one year since the Lismore floods, but the scheme to get people back into homes, and to move those homes away from the floodplain, is taking far too long.
And in the absence of real recovery, what’s happening in Lismore is being described as “disaster capitalism” – houses on the floodplain are being sold to investors looking for a bargain.
Today, contributor to The Saturday Paper Royce Kurmelovs on what happens when the government doesn’t step up, and the market steps in.

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Guest: Contributor to The Saturday Paper, Royce Kurmelovs

‘Disaster capitalism’: What’s happening after climate catastrophe

Our intelligence community used to believe terrorism was the greatest threat to Australians.
But today, Australia’s domestic intelligence agency, ASIO, says the biggest threat we’re facing is actually from foreign spies.
According to the agency, it’s not just politicians and military officers who are being targeted – it’s everyday people, who might not know they’re giving away information that could cost lives or threaten national security.
Today, chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper Karen Middleton, on why ASIO is worried about Australians getting caught up in dangerous spy games.

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Guest: Chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Karen Middleton

ASIO is worried you’re helping foreign spies 

A week ago, superannuation reform was just an idea, a national conversation — the prime minister certainly wasn’t proposing anything.
But the conversation was brief, and a decision was swift.
Australia’s wealthiest people will not get tax breaks on wealth being stored in their super accounts.
So what convinced Anthony Albanese that his government had to act? And why was it worth the risk of being accused of breaking a promise?
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno on how Albanese made his decision, and why we could be talking about it for years to come.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.

What convinced Albanese to tackle superannuation

It's being called the most important case for reproductive rights in the United States since Roe vs Wade was overturned.
A judgement in a court case in Texas that could ban access to a non-surgical abortion medication is due any day now.
Closer to home, the exact same medication could become more widely available. The Therapeutic Goods Administration is currently considering appeals to widen its accessibility, with a decision expected in the next few weeks.
Today, contributor to The Saturday Paper Esther Linder, on the barriers to early non-surgical abortions in Australia, and whether it's time for a change.  

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Guest: Contributor to The Saturday Paper, Esther Linder.

Abortion is legal in Australia, but is it accessible?

Australia has seen a series of record corporate profits posted in the last few weeks.
They come as millions of average Australians are being squeezed. Mortgage repayments, rent, and the cost of almost everything is going up – but wages aren’t keeping up.
So, how are corporations posting record profits right now? What’s the impact of profits on the prices we’re paying? And why is it that the only answer to inflation is interest rate hikes?
Today, national correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe, on how corporate profits are driving the cost-of-living crisis.

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Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Mike Seccombe.

How corporate profits are making inflation worse

Rhys Cauzzo was one of hundreds of thousands of Australians who received unlawful and false debt notices under robodebt.
The 28 year old died by suicide in January of 2017, as debt collectors pursued him for $17,000 dollars.
After his death, his mother Jenny began to unravel just how many debt notices Rhys had received, and she decided to go public – speaking to The Saturday Paper about what happened to her son.
Now, she’s given evidence to the royal commission into robo-debt – and the hearings have exposed more details about how senior government figures reacted to reports of her son’s death.
Today, Jenny Miller, on her son Rhys and her search for the truth. 

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Guest: Mother of Rhys Cauzzo and contributor to The Saturday Paper, Jenny Miller.

Exposing robo-debt: Why Rhys Cauzzo’s mother never gave up

Zaki Haidari is one of 19,000 people who Australia has kept in limbo, but will now get the certainty of a permanent place in Australia.
Temporary protection visas allowed people who arrived by boat to come to Australia, but denied them the rights of other visa holders, and hanging over them was the threat that they could be sent back to where they came from.
The Labor party promised to put an end to the visas, and now, nine months after the election they’ve finally delivered. For many, it’s a life changing relief – but the change is uneven and over a thousand remain trapped in temporary status.
Today, former refugee and advocate Zaki Haidari, on his journey to Australia, life as a temporarily protected person and why the fight continues for refugees in Australia.

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Guest: Former refugee and advocate, Zaki Haidari

‘My existence is not temporary’: The refugees who are finally allowed to stay

As housing becomes less affordable and the search for adequate accommodation more desperate, Erin O’Dwyer investigates how we can escape from the urban sprawl.
Erin looks at how the best intentions can go awry, as we try to build better homes.
She makes the case that designing our homes doesn’t have to be a luxury and that as we build more and more of them to address the housing shortage, happiness for the people living in them shouldn’t be an afterthought.
Listen to Erin read her piece, ‘Tree Change’, from The Saturday Paper.

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Guest: Journalist and writer, Erin O’Dwyer

Weekend Read: Erin O’Dwyer on how to design housing for happiness

For the last 30 years, Australian retirements have been tied to superannuation. It’s the nest egg that most of us spend decades building up.
While it might not be a perfect system, any changes to it have usually become stuck in controversy; whether that’s increasing compulsory contributions, or allowing people to raid their super to buy property.
This week, the treasurer said he wants to start a national conversation about super – but will it lead to reform, or will this conversation end up in the political graveyard?
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno on the future of super.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.

Superannuation: Is the government breaking a promise?

Once the United States military started looking for them, they couldn’t stop finding them. Unidentified balloons were everywhere.
The military and President Joe Biden decided the best course of action was simple: to shoot these unknown objects out of the sky.
But weeks later, we’re finally learning that only the first of these balloons to be shot down has anything to do with China – the others, likely belong to scientists and hobby clubs. 
Today, former director of war studies at the Australian Army Research Centre and adjunct professor at UNSW Canberra Albert Palazzo, on how balloons became a threat.

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Guest: Former director of war studies at the Australian Army Research Centre and adjunct professor at UNSW Canberra, Albert Palazzo.

Balloons attack!

In recent years, Labor governments have swept into power in most states across the country… with the exceptions of NSW and Tasmania.
But that might be about to change.
Chris Minns, the leader of the opposition in NSW, looks likely to lead the Labor party to its first victory in the state since 2007 – but many voters still don’t know much about him.
Today, national correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe, on who Chris Minns really is…and why he ditched brashness for caution.

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Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Mike Seccombe.

Chris Minns' recipe for a vanilla victory

Violence and vandalism in Alice Springs became a national fascination this year.
First Peter Dutton, then Anthony Albanese flew into town, after rates of alcohol-related assault rose by 68 per cent in 2022.
One community meeting, held by a group calling itself ‘Save Alice Springs’, became a focal point of the media’s coverage.
But another meeting took place as well. On the edge of town, hundreds of Indigenous leaders and community members came together to discuss the crisis.
Today, Gunaikurnai/Wotjobaluk writer and contributor to The Saturday Paper Ben Abbatangelo on the real issues facing Alice Springs. 

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Guest: Contributor to The Saturday Paper, Ben Abbatangelo.

What's really happening in Alice Springs

Philip Lowe, the governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia, has already had to apologise for his forecast that interest rates were unlikely to rise until 2024.
He now acknowledges that people may have taken his prediction as an assurance, and as a result they might have bought homes and saddled themselves with debt that’s more expensive than they thought.
So, the pressure was on Lowe as he made his way to Canberra last week to answer questions about his decision making.
Today, chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper Karen Middleton on what Philip Lowe said in Canberra, and whether his job is on the line.

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Guest: Chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Karen Middleton.

The day the Reserve Bank got grilled

The announcement that former Liberal minister Alan Tudge will resign from the parliament marks the end of a controversial political career, but it's also throwing open new challenges for the party, and opposition leader Peter Dutton.
Speculation is swirling about who will be selected to run for Tudge’s seat in Melbourne at the upcoming by-election, and while the pressure is on for the Liberal party to pick a woman, factional infighting means nothing is guaranteed.
So, can the Liberals retain the seat of Aston, which it barely clung on to at the last election? Or is the seat within Labor’s grasp?
Today, Columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno, on the political test looming in Aston. 

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.

The by-election that will define Dutton’s opposition

Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation is cutting 5% of its jobs around the world, with over a thousand employees in the newspaper business about to be let go.
But it’s not the only upheaval within the Murdoch media empire. Plans to merge Fox Corporation with the newspaper side of the business have recently been shelved.
So what does that mean for Rupert’s successor, eldest son Lachlan?
Today, contributor to The Saturday Paper and author of the biography of Lachlan Murdoch The Successor – Paddy Manning, on the merger that could define Rupert Murdoch’s legacy and whether he’s really abandoned it for good.

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Guest: Contributor to The Saturday Paper and author of the biography of Lachlan Murdoch The Successor, Paddy Manning

Has Rupert Murdoch actually given up on his legacy deal? 

He was one of the most senior members of the Anglican Church, then became the governor-general of Australia.
But last week, Peter Hollingworth sat in secret hearings which could decide his legacy.
Those hearings are investigating his handling of child sexual abuse claims – with several complaints being heard about his decisions while he ran the Brisbane diocese.
As a result, he could be stripped of his status as an Anglican minister. Plus, there are questions about his generous public pension, which over the years has added up to 12 million dollars. 
Today, national correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe on the future of Peter Hollingworth. 

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Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Mike Seccombe.

‘I complained about abuse and the governor-general vilified me…’

Youth crime has become a national issue once again – front page stories from Queensland, to the Northern Territory, to Western Australia are all raising the alarm that young people in regional towns are making the streets unsafe.
The WA Premier Mark McGowan said last week: “parents and families need to parent”... and people shouldn’t point the finger at governments.
But his government’s only youth detention facility, Banksia Hill, has unlawfully locked down children for 23 hours a day, thousands of kilometres from family and friends.
Today, contributor to The Saturday Paper Jesse Noakes on the children who get caught up in the criminal justice system and what happens when they’re locked away.

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Guest: Contributor to The Saturday Paper, Jesse Noakes.

What’s behind the youth crime blame game?

He’s reportedly the world’s third richest man. But perhaps not for much longer.
Indian businessman Gautam Adani is best known here for the controversial Carmichael coal mine – but his empire also spans airlines, media networks and, crucially, what he is best known for in Australia: coal.
But now, Adani’s fortune is tumbling, questions about whether he has been protected by powerful political allies in India are being raised – all because of a single report.
Today, associate editor of The Saturday Paper Martin McKenzie-Murray on Gautam Adani’s rise and how it’s built on silencing his critics.

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Guest: Associate editor of The Saturday Paper Martin McKenzie-Murray

How the Adani empire keeps critics silenced

Clem Bastow reads her piece about borrowing teen magazines from the library.
As a kid, Clem couldn’t afford the monthly price of Girlfriend Magazine, or Seventeen, or my personal favourite, Dolly. So the library became her gateway to fashion trends, makeup advice, and the hottest Home and Away stars. 
As Clem got older and earned her own money, her relationship to libraries evolved. In her piece, Clem writes about class and shame, teen magazines and hope, and the always alluring sealed section.
Clem’s article Library learning with ‘Dolly’ was written for The Saturday Paper.

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Guest: Writer and critic, Clem Bastow
Background reading: Library learning with ‘Dolly’

Weekend Read: Clem Bastow on borrowing life lessons from Dolly, Girlfriend and Seventeen

If you think you might have ADHD, it can take months, maybe even a year to get a diagnosis.
A public conversation about the condition, led by advocates, has meant more people are seeking help — but the system for getting assessed is laborious and costly.
Now, Greens Senator Jordon Steele-John, a key force behind getting the disability royal commission set-up, is taking on ADHD and will use a parliamentary inquiry to advocate for an overhaul in how the condition is treated.
In an article tomorrow in The Saturday Paper, he makes the case for the NDIS to be expanded to cover ADHD as a primary diagnosis — a decision that could impact half a million people.
Today, Jordon Steele-John on why it’s time for Medicare and the NDIS to include ADHD.

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Guest: Greens health and disability rights spokesperson, Senator Jordon Steele-John.

‘We can change 500,000 lives’: Jordon Steele-John’s ADHD mission

Tension in the Greens over the Voice to Parliament has culminated this week in the abrupt defection of high-profile Senator Lidia Thorpe.
Publicly, Greens leader Adam Bandt is calling her resignation ‘sad’. Privately, other Greens members are reportedly calling it a catastrophe.
As for Lidia Thorpe, the newly-Independent Senator says her focus now will be on representing a grassroots Blak sovereign movement — and she hasn’t said whether or not that means supporting a Voice to Parliament.
Today, chief political correspondent at The Saturday Paper Karen Middleton on what happened in the days leading up to the resignation, and what it means for the government — and the Greens. 

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Guest: Chief political correspondent at The Saturday Paper, Karen Middleton.

Lidia Thorpe and the Greens: How did it come to this?

Making a living in Australia as a writer, musician, or artist has become an increasingly tenuous proposition. 
In recent years the arts sector has been transformed — lockdowns and streaming services have radically changed the market, with work becoming more insecure and lower-paid.
Now, the federal government has unveiled the first major injection of funding in a decade: under a new national cultural policy it’s calling “revive”.
So, what will it mean for artists? Will arts work finally be treated like real work? And will this policy help Australia create good art?
Today, Editor of The Monthly Michael Williams on whether the Albanese government’s arts policy can revive the sector. 

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Guest: Editor of The Monthly, Michael Williams.

Can artists finally eat?

You would expect that when you give your personal data to the government, that data remains safe.
But that’s not how it was for some people who were sent debt notices under therobo-debt scheme – and in at least one case, that information was released after the person had suicided.
So who should take responsibility when private data is used to protect an unlawful system? And how do we stop that from happening again? 
Today, senior reporter for The Saturday Paper Rick Morton on how the robo-debt royal commission is revealing one of the most shameful chapters in the history of the Australian government.
Warning, this episode includes discussion of suicide.

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Guest: Senior reporter for The Saturday Paper, Rick Morton

Robo-debt: Minister leaked dead man’s data

On Australia’s doorstep, one country has taken the global war on drugs to the extreme.
When Rodrigo Duterte became president of the Philippines in 2016 he promised to slaughter drug dealers – and his hardline anti-drug regime lasted until last year, when he was beaten in elections.
But has the end of Duterte really ended the slaughter? Has the new government lived up to its promises? Or do the bodies in Manila’s morgues tell us the war has gone underground?
Today, contributor to The Monthly Margaret Simons on what happens when you unleash violence on the streets – and why it’s so hard to end.

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Guest: Contributor to The Monthly Margaret Simons

The war on drugs’ worst slaughter is going underground

Australia is supposed to be reducing its emissions at a rapid pace, and last year, the Albanese government put a new target into law.
Now, we will finally get to see exactly how Labor plans to force our biggest polluters to reduce their emissions.
But will the proposal win the support it needs? And how will it shape the political year to come?
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno, on why next week could either end the climate wars, or start a whole new chapter.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.

Thought the climate wars were over? A sequel’s out next week

More and more people have to pay to see a doctor, GPs are leaving the profession, and the cost of seeing a specialist is rising at an alarming rate.
That’s why the government is promising the biggest overhaul to Medicare in its 40-year existence – the details of the plan could be released any day now.
Everything is on the table for consideration: increasing the Medicare rebate, giving pharmacists the power to prescribe drugs and more.
But how do we make sure we get changes to Medicare right?
Today, associate editor of The Saturday Paper, Martin McKenzie-Murray, on why Medicare is being overhauled, and the people responsible for deciding the future of Australia’s public health system.

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Guest: Associate editor of The Saturday Paper Martin McKenzie-Murray

Why it’s so expensive to see a doctor

Between his death, two weeks ago, and his burial tomorrow, a furious battle has raged over George Pell’s legacy.
If you happen to read The Australian newspaper, though, you probably wouldn’t be aware there are two sides to the debate.
The Murdoch newspaper has been glowing about Pell’s influence.
Why is the Murdoch media so invested in how the former Catholic cardinal is remembered? And what are they willing to ignore to make their case?
Today, legal affairs editor for The Saturday Paper Richard Ackland on how Pell built his influence with journalists, and how he wielded it.

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Guest: Legal affairs editor for The Saturday Paper Richard Ackland

'Catholic Mafia': How George Pell won over Murdoch

Australian law is far from perfect.
Not only can it be unjust, it’s sometimes simply no longer fit to do what it was intended to.
The person responsible for maintaining our federal laws is the attorney-general. And, since the last election, that’s Mark Dreyfus.
Today, national correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe – on Mark Dreyfus, what drives him, and why he says Australia’s treatment of refugees has been “deliberately cruel”.

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Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe.

The attorney-general on ditching outdated and “deliberately cruel” policy

Tony Windsor was a politician and, as an independent, he helped hand minority government and the prime ministership to Julia Gillard.
He says that at the end of the day, politicians are, by their nature, weak.
And if there’s any example that’s taught him that, it’s the decades-long fight over our water and how we protect it.
Today, former Independent MP Tony Windsor on our water, how gas developments can threaten it and how grassroots campaigns can force politicians to back down.

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Guest: Former independent MP Tony Windsor.

‘Politicians are naturally weak’: Tony Windsor versus the gas industry

A crime wave in Alice Springs grew into a national crisis this week, with politicians jumping on planes in a last-ditch effort to listen to a community whose concerns have fallen on deaf ears.
But how did the crime rate in Alice Springs become an issue for Anthony Albanese? And how could the situation have deteriorated so far?
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Chris Wallace on how giving communities a voice could force politicians to face complex challenges.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Chris Wallace.

Alice Springs: The crisis that shouldn’t have happened

It’s been over 30 years since the high court acknowledged that terra nullius was a lie, that this country was not empty – that Indigenous Australians had an ongoing claim to the land beneath our feet.
But still today, officially, large swathes of Australia are held as what’s called ‘crown land’.
What is it? And what do the assumptions about crown land say about the attitude to land ownership in modern Australia?
Today, author and Noongar woman, Claire G. Coleman on the case for returning crown land.

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Guest: Author and Noongar woman, Claire G. Coleman.

The case for returning crown land

Jacinda Ardern’s decision to resign as the Prime Minister of New Zealand shocked her country and the world. 
She had seemed almost universally beloved. And the young, empathetic and energetic politician was the most world-renowned prime minister New Zealand has ever had.
So what made Ardern unwilling to continue? And does she leave her country with the kind of meaningful change she set out to make?
Today, freelance correspondent Charlotte Graham-McLay, who is writing a book about the 2019 Christchurch terrorist attack.

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Guest: Freelance correspondent, Charlotte Graham-McLay

What made Jacinda Ardern unique might also explain her shock exit

The Ukrainian region of Zaporizhzhia has been a battleground for months – and now, it’s the target of Russia’s newest offensive. Fighting there could be about to get a lot worse. 
Ukrainian forces are readying a defense, but the war effort in this part of southeastern Ukraine involves more than fighting back on the frontlines.
Dr Natalya Mosol is a psychologist, and for the past year, she’s been working with people who have seen the worst of the war.
Today, Dr Natalya Mosol, who features in Jane Caro’s article in the latest edition of The Saturday Paper, ‘Treating trauma in Ukraine’s children’.

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Guest: Psychologist at the National University of Zaporizhzhia, Dr Natalya Mosol.

Trauma therapy for children in Ukraine

The premier of NSW, Dominic Perrottet wore a Nazi uniform to his 21st birthday party.
Since the revelations, Jewish groups in NSW have told journalists that they have fielded calls, particularly from elderly members of the community, in tears after hearing about the incident.
But why did Perrottet come out and admit the scandal? Does it have anything to do with the looming election? And who was circulating the rumours about the premier’s 21st birthday?
Today, national correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Mike Seccombe on what’s going on behind the Perrottet scandal and what links it may have to the gambling industry.

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Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Mike Seccombe.

The premier, the Nazi costume and the pokies

Summer has provided everyone with a respite from politics, even our politicians.
But as they return, they’ll need to face up to problems that have been long in the making.
The pandemic is still with us, and clues from the northern hemisphere point towards variants that authorities will have to keep a close eye on.
And in the meantime, this week, we have been warned that inequality got worse throughout the pandemic.
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper, Chris Wallace on how Covid-19 made the wealthy richer and why we can’t be complacent about the virus.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Chris Wallace.

How Australian billionaires got richer during the pandemic

When Liberal MP Julia Banks quit the Morrison government in 2018, her resignation was cited as an example of how hostile the political environment can be towards women.
But Banks’ story and her resignation happened to coincide with a landmark report: Respect@Work.
That report, and the changes it recommended, languished on the desk of the former government. But reform is now finally coming into effect and, in theory, should change the workplace for women.
Today, former politician Julia Banks, on the report she watched be pushed aside, and her hope that this year it’s finally going to change our workplaces for the better.

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Guest: Former Liberal MP and the author of Power Play, Julia Banks.

Julia Banks on how politics fails women

George Pell’s body is returning to Australia after last weekend’s funeral service in the Vatican. He will be interred in the crypts below St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney.
To his supporters, Pell was a guardian of traditional faith and doctrine, whose conviction on charges of child sexual abuse was overturned by the High Court.
To thousands of survivors of child sexual abuse perpetrated by priests across Australia, Pell was the leader who oversaw an era when the Church moved too slowly, and protected itself rather than children.
Today, freelance investigative journalist and the author of a book about the trial of George Pell, Fallen, Lucie Morris-Marr on Pell and the questions left for thousands of survivors after his death.
If this episode has raised issues for you, for support you can contact Blue Knot on 1300 657 380 and The Survivors and Mates Support Network on 1800 472 676.

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Guest: Author of Fallen: The inside story of the secret trial and conviction of Cardinal George Pell, Lucie Morris-Marr.

George Pell could have helped. He made it worse.

This year Peter Dutton has begun to spread doubt about the Voice to Parliament. His question is: where’s the detail?
One woman has spent years fleshing out the proposal. Marcia Langton co-authored a report on The Voice, and briefed every party room in Canberra about what the model could look like.
Today, Professor at the University of Melbourne Marcia Langton on the details of the Voice to Parliament, and what’s at stake if Australia gets this moment wrong.

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Guest: Foundation Chair of Australian Indigenous Studies at the University of Melbourne, Professor Marcia Langton.

The detail on the Voice is right here

Elon Musk has lost more money than any human being who has ever lived.
It’s not because of his purchase of Twitter – well, not directly, anyway. It’s because in the last 12 months, the share price of his other company, Tesla, has plummeted.
But why is Elon Musk, the erratic entrepreneur, so intertwined with Tesla? How has the company become an extension of one man’s ideas? And is that healthy?
Today, veteran Tesla-watcher and financial journalist, Antony Currie, on the unshakeable faith in Elon.

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Guest: Financial journalist for Reuters, Antony Currie.

Elon Musk’s guide to losing $US200 billion in net worth

On this Weekend Read, chief political correspondent for the ABC’s 7.30 program Laura Tingle, with her piece from the summer issue of The Monthly.
It’s called ‘A patch of land’, and in it she writes of the joys of tending and surrendering herself to a native garden, before bidding it a fond farewell after nearly 20 years.

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Guest: Chief political correspondent for the ABC’s 7.30 program, Laura Tingle
Background Reading: A Patch of Land

Weekend Read: ‘A patch of land’: Gardening with Laura Tingle

Australia’s domestic security agency, ASIO, says right-wing extremism now makes up half of its priority cases. And the far right, while still fringe, has capitalised on division and social media to push its message during the pandemic.
So just how big a risk is this movement today? And how did we allow this discredited and dangerous ideology to get a foothold once again?
Author Lydia Khalil discusses how counter-terrorism turned a blind eye to the far -right and how we all need to solve that problem.

How counter-terrorism turned a blind eye to the far right, with Lydia Khalil

When we talk about the most significant events of the last year, the one that might have the biggest impact on humanity actually took place far above the Earth’s atmosphere.
Up there, in orbit around earth, is one of the most powerful tools humans have ever had to hunt for the origins of our universe – and for alien life.
The James Webb Space Telescope has the ability to look so far and with such clarity that we can get an insight into a period of time that our best scientists have only ever speculated about: the cosmic dark ages.
Today, Director of the Space Technology and Industry Institute at Swinburne University, Dr Alan Duffy on why the last year marked a new beginning for our understanding of the universe.

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How Putin’s henchmen started fighting with each other

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