A decision to hand planning about sea-level rise to local council has opened up a war around science, property values and influence. Bronwyn Adcock on how the future of the Australian coastline will be shaped by disagreement over climate change. This is part one of a two-part episode. Guest: Writer for The Monthly and The Saturday Paper Bronwyn Adcock. Background reading: Rising tide in The Monthly The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . ...
Oct 27, 2019•14 min
As the Liberal Party celebrates its 75th anniversary, the Nationals are brawling with each other about drought. At the same time, concern grows over press freedom. Paul Bongiorno on the party to which you were never invited. Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno. Background reading: The shadowy corridors of power in The Saturday Paper . The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out ...
Oct 24, 2019•15 min
Australia is almost alone in the world in its willingness to lock up primary-school-age children for criminal offences. But the “tough on crime” rhetoric that pervades politics means there is little will to change this. Mike Seccombe on the push to lift the age of criminal responsibility. Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe. Background reading: Children in the criminal justice system in The Saturday Paper The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today...
Oct 23, 2019•17 min
As Labor waits for a review of its election loss, and another into the operations of its NSW branch, Anthony Albanese is wrestling with divisions inside the party. Karen Middleton on the crisis they face out of office. Guest: Chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper Karen Middleton. Background reading: Albanese juggles Labor frictions in The Saturday Paper The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au. See acast.com/privacy for privac...
Oct 22, 2019•17 min
An error at the Department of Human Services caused the original robo-debt algorithm to restart, issuing thousands of unchecked debt notices. Royce Kurmelovs on how the program operates and why the government persists with it - in spite of its flaws. Guest: Freelance journalist and author Royce Kurmelovs. Background reading: Robo-debt restart affects thousands in The Saturday Paper The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/pri...
Oct 21, 2019•14 min
The boom in international education has seen students become commodities. It has also changed the way universities operate - chasing rankings and casualising teaching staffs. Margaret Simons on what would happen if the bubble burst. Guest: Journalist and academic Margaret Simons. Background reading: China dependence by Australian Foreign Affairs The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out informat...
Oct 20, 2019•16 min
As Scott Morrison attempts to control the message on how his government is handling the drought, there is bad news for his claims to strong economic management. Paul Bongiorno on slow growth and big dries. Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno. Background reading: The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Oct 17, 2019•15 min
New legislation will restrict the way Australians use cash. But there are concerns the laws could jail people for using legal tender. Karen Middleton on the future of money. Guest: Chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper Karen Middleton. Background reading: Crackdown on large cash transactions in The Saturday Paper The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. See omnystudi...
Oct 16, 2019•15 min
From anti-protest legislation to funding cuts, this government has waged war on dissent. In recent weeks, its rhetoric has intensified. Mike Seccombe on the erosion of democratic freedoms under the Coalition. Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe. Background reading: The decline of political freedoms in Australia in The Saturday Paper The Monthly The Saturday Paper For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and...
Oct 15, 2019•15 min
The NDIS was meant to provide better care to people living with disabilities. But a stalemate over funding responsibilities has forced 500 families to forfeit their children into state care. Rick Morton on the unintended consequences of a flawed system. Guest: Senior Reporter for The Saturday Paper Rick Morton. Background reading: Exclusive: 500 children forfeited to state in NDIS standoff in The Saturday Paper. The Monthly The Saturday Paper For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampod...
Oct 14, 2019•14 min
Australia’s relationship with international investment, especially from China, has been remade in the past six years. What was once a question of business has become one of national security. David Uren on how ASIO helped transform the Foreign Investment Review Board. Guest: Journalist and author David Uren. Background reading: Our Sphere of Influence in Australian Foreign Affair The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au. See acast.com/privac...
Oct 13, 2019•17 min
The Liberal Party is sliding further on climate change, claiming it will meet targets but without policy to do so. At the same time, the Labor Party is fighting an internal push to abandon its climate platform. Paul Bongiorno on the politics of doing less. Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno. Background reading: The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. See omnyst...
Oct 10, 2019•16 min
Each year, The Monthly assembles a panel of critics and artists to nominate 10 standout pieces of Australian culture from the past 12 months. These works are named as the winners of The Monthly Awards. We spoke to the magazine’s editor, Nick Feik, and critic Alison Croggon, who was one of the judges. Guest: Editor of The Monthly Nick Feik and critic Alison Croggon. Background reading: The Monthly Awards 2019 in The Monthly The Monthly The Saturday Paper For more information on today’s episode, v...
Oct 09, 2019•16 min
The latest IPCC report says current farming practices are unsustainable. But there are solutions, if farmers want to change. Matthew Evans on how the way we grow food could change the world. Guest: Farmer, chef and former restaurant critic Matthew Evans. Background reading: The need for sustainable farming in The Saturday Paper The Monthly The Saturday Paper For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. See omnystudi...
Oct 08, 2019•17 min
The aged-care sector is on the brink of collapse. The major providers have been propped up by a government bailout, but without reform they cannot keep operating. Rick Morton on how a string of nursing homes became too big to fail. Guest: Senior reporter for The Saturday Paper Rick Morton. Background reading: Exclusive: Aged-care sector at risk of collapse in The Saturday Paper . The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/priva...
Oct 07, 2019•17 min
Scott Morrison shares a rhetorical lineage with Robert Menzies and a suburban one with John Howard. Like Menzies, he has no clear policy agenda. But, as Judith Brett points out - what worked in the post-war boom might not work now. Guest: Author and emeritus professor of politics at La Trobe University Judith Brett. Background reading: John Howard’s heir in The Monthly The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for priv...
Oct 06, 2019•15 min
As Scott Morrison tried to shift Australia’s focus to the drought, and the cash rate fell below 1 per cent, Donald Trump’s paranoia followed the prime minister home. Paul Bongiorno on the week Alexander Downer became a Clinton spy and the phone call that might haunt The Lodge. Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno. Background reading: The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out in...
Oct 03, 2019•15 min
Penny Wong is the intellectual leader of the Labor Party. Her politics is shaped by her experiences of difference and her belief in compassion. Her biographer, Margaret Simons, on what drives the most guarded woman in politics. Guest: Associate professor of journalism at Monash University and author of Penny Wong: Passion and Principle Margaret Simons. Background reading: Penny Wong: Passion and Principle by Margaret Simons, published by Black Inc. The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more informa...
Oct 02, 2019•17 min
The Murray–Darling Basin is being ruined by cronyism and incompetence. Entire towns are running out of water. But a new crop is exploiting the system even further: almonds. Mike Seccombe on how a tree nut boom is drinking the river dry. Guest: The Saturday Paper ’s national correspondent, Mike Seccombe. Background reading: NSW farmers’ class action on water in The Saturday Paper The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privac...
Oct 01, 2019•16 min
The judge who sentenced Jaymes Todd for the rape and murder of Eurydice Dixon was asked to consider mitigating factors that included Todd’s age, his autism diagnosis and his early guilty plea. Sarah Krasnostein on the legal argument that preceded that decision. A warning: this episode contains discussion of sexual assault and pornography. Guest: Writer and sentencing law expert Sarah Krasnostein. Background reading: A man who hates women in The Monthly The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more inf...
Sep 30, 2019•19 min
One of the terrible facts about the day Jaymes Todd killed Eurydice Dixon is that for him it was almost all very ordinary. Sarah Krasnostein on a crime that made the country pause and ask how these things can happen. A warning, this episode contains a detailed description of sexual assault and pornography. Guest: Writer and sentencing law expert Sarah Krasnostein. Background reading: A man who hates women in The Monthly. The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, vis...
Sep 29, 2019•15 min
When former Anglican dean Graeme Lawrence was found guilty of child sexual abuse, his victim, Ben Giggins, made the unusual decision to request that the court name him publicly. Anne Manne on the case that convicted a key figure in the Newcastle clergy. A warning, this episode contains detailed descriptions of sexual assault. Guest: Writer and author Anne Manne. Background reading: The Newcastle trial of Graeme Lawrence in The Monthly . The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on toda...
Sep 25, 2019•18 min
As a royal commission into disability care begins, it emerges that key emails relating to the NDIS are held on a private bank server and cannot be accessed. Rick Morton on governance, transparency and a failing system. Guest: Senior reporter for The Saturday Paper Rick Morton. Background reading: Exclusive: Key NDIS emails held on private bank server in The Saturday Paper . The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for...
Sep 24, 2019•16 min
The death of Graham Freudenberg comes at a time when politics has all but abandoned speech making. Don Watson on how the loss of big narratives denies us the possibility of bold policy. Guest: Author and speechwriter Don Watson. Background reading: Graham Freudenberg’s time in The Monthly The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Sep 23, 2019•17 min
Tanya Day was a 55-year-old Yorta Yorta woman. She died after being arrested on a train for public drunkenness. Madeline Hayman-Reber on how a coroner is now asking whether systemic racism contributed to her death. Guest: NITV journalist Madeline Hayman-Reber. Background reading: Waiting for justice in The Saturday Paper . The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today's episode, visit https://7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. See omnyst...
Sep 22, 2019•17 min
Tomorrow, Scott Morrison will be received in Washington on a state visit. The trip highlights the special relationship he has with Donald Trump. At the same time, it underscores the difficulty he has with Beijing. Paul Bongiorno on the prime minister’s diplomatic wedge. Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno. Background reading: The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out informati...
Sep 19, 2019•16 min
Philip Lowe is the governor of the Reserve Bank. By all accounts, he is a conventional person who’s been pushed by the economy to make unconventional choices. Mike Seccombe on how rate cuts no longer stimulate growth, and how Lowe’s office became political. Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe. Background reading: Philip Lowe and Australia’s economy in The Saturday Paper . The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.a...
Sep 18, 2019•16 min
Twenty years after Timor-Leste’s vote for independence led to bloody retaliation from Indonesia, the country’s relationship with Australia remains fraught. John Martinkus on what happened after the ballot and what is happening now. Guest: Foreign correspondent John Martinkus. Background reading: Remembering Timor-Leste’s independence in The Saturday Paper The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-ou...
Sep 17, 2019•15 min
As Scott Morrison announces plans to expand the cashless welfare program and drug test dole recipients, questions are raised over the effectiveness of his approach. Rick Morton on what happens when you treat poverty as a moral problem. Guest: Senior reporter for The Saturday Paper Rick Morton. Background reading: Newstart: the human cost of Morrison’s plan in The Saturday Paper The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy...
Sep 16, 2019•17 min
Spiro Boursinos was the impresario behind the rave music phenomenon Earthcore. When he died last year, he left behind a legacy of paranoia, intimidation and financial mismanagement. Martin McKenzie-Murray on tracing the threads of his strange, short life. Guest: Writer and author Martin McKenzie-Murray. Background reading: All tomorrow’s parties in The Monthly The Saturday Paper The Monthly For more information on today’s episode, visit 7ampodcast.com.au . See acast.com/privacy for privacy and o...
Sep 15, 2019•19 min
