Van Badham (on her own while Ben’s away!) explores Australia’s new parliament, a record-breaking Labor majority, and freshly shuffled cabinet - but the real news? Susssssan Ley may be the Liberals’ new leader, but is she flying the Liberal plane straight into the glass cliff? Meanwhile, the Greens are fighting amongst themselves (again) about putting the “landlord” into “leadership” and Captain Carry On - aka, Andrew Hastie - role plays as the Aussie Pete Buttigieg… if Pete were right-wing, alle...
May 14, 2025•45 min•Ep. 304
Van Badham and Ben Davison deliver an unmissable post-election edition of The Week on Wednesday , unpacking one of the most extraordinary federal election results in Australian history. With Anthony Albanese securing Labor’s biggest win since WWII, defeating not just Peter Dutton but also Greens leader Adam Bandt, Van and Ben bring deep analysis, biting wit, and raw insight into: - What led to Labor’s sweeping mandate - Why the Coalition suffered such a brutal collapse - The spectacular fall of ...
May 07, 2025•1 hr 31 min•Ep. 303
Van Badham and Ben Davison launch into analysis of the Australian election campaign so far, with Ben barely emerged from a three-day strategy lockdown at his job but happily reunited with faithful hound, Germanicus. Van has been keeping an eye on the election, and a couple of perturbing recent twists: parents from Catholic schools in key marginal seats received thinly-veiled “We’re not saying vote Liberal, but…” letters from the Catholic education authorities and publishing them on the internet,...
Apr 30, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 302
Van Badham and Ben Davison are back - with new tech, new producer (welcome, Casper!), and a jam-packed episode on everything that matters . After three debates and polling momentum seeming to flow to Labor, Van and Ben pick apart three defining (and revealing) policy conversations of the election campaign: housing, health and education. From the ideological shockwaves of Dutton’s Trump-flavoured Coalition to Albo’s pitch for a Big Labor Legacy, it’s the election campaign Australians have to pay ...
Apr 23, 2025•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 301
On her own today (yes, poor Ben is STILL unwell), Van takes you through some highlights of Dr Jim's 2025-26 Australian budget, the insane, almost-unbelievable story of the Trump administration's "group chat" scandal, and some good news for African penguins. Yes, the budget includes actual money for women's health (hello menopause clinics!), green iron, and schools. Yes, a real journalist got added to a U.S. government Signal chat where they were planning airstrikes. And YES — for once — somethin...
Mar 26, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 300
Van Badham and Ben Davison devote an episode to pulling apart the world’s most uncharismatic populist, Peter Dutton, as well as his energetic attempt to make Australia as dysfunctional as it was last time he was in government: with plans to reduce workplace pay and safety gains, sack 38,000 public servants, end fee-free TAFE, strip universal childcare provisions and dance for Gina Rinehart and the fossil fuel industry like an auditionee for a “Fame” revival. While Dutton promises a suite of poli...
Jan 15, 2025•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 299
Van Badham and Ben Davison are FINALLY back! Today, they take "Auspol 2025" head-on. As a federal election looms, the episode explores reality versus hyperbole around the Australian economy and considers the role of disinformation warping the view. The good news is about the growth of Australia's renewables infrastructure set to energise MILLIONS of homes. Ben shares his expert insights on the economic landscape, highlighting the strength of Australia's fundamentals and dissecting the misinforma...
Jan 08, 2025•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 298
Van Badham and Ben Davison (and Germanicus the dog) HAVE RETURNED! As Ben recovers from twelve months of illness, this long overdue return to The Week on Wednesday begins with heartfelt gratitude for the Medicare system, as you’d expect. Our delighted duo then analyze the first U.S. presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, highlighting Harris's effective preparation and Trump's off-chops - and certainly weird - shouty rants about pet-eating in Ohio. They also explore news from...
Sep 11, 2024•56 min•Ep. 297
Van Badham and Ben Davison journey into the heart of Australia's Federal Budget 2024. Our hosts dissect Dr Jim’s reintroduction of nation building into macroeconomic management in a discussion that spans the breadth of the budget from fun nuance to big-picture policy decision and rejects the screaming-banana response of the Murdoch media. Join our hosts as they examine how the media has been conditioned since Howard to expect budgets that are little more than lists of marginal seat give aways an...
May 15, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 296
Van Badham and Ben Davison have rescheduled Wednesday to a Monday this week, to delve into the labyrinth of policy complexities surrounding the fight to end violence against women and children, highlighting the frustrations and challenges faced and dissecting the terrifying implications of a private school’s latest misconduct scandal. As the Albanese government makes a string of announcements wiping student debt, funding practical placements and increasing fee free TAFE, we discuss why funding p...
May 06, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 295
Van Badham and Ben Davison start their Wednesday on a Thursday with discussion of the federal government’s “Future Made in Australia” policy suite, and just what a policy dedicated to local jobs exposes about the people who criticises it and why unions are supporting it. Join your union at australianunions.org.au/wow SPOILER ALERT: trickle down economics gets the rightful kicking from Ben that it deserves. Next, Van’s horror at the massacre in Bondi Junction, turns to rage about the carnage oppo...
Apr 18, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 294
Baby, we are BACK! Van and Ben return after a super frustrating hiatus to discuss the issues of the day in their inimitable style. The recent Tasmanian election has thrown up a complex and divided result, delivering more crossbenchers to the parliament than opposition members, and the Liberals forming minority government with nothing to guarantee the passage of legislation but wild hope. Ben and Van discuss this in the context of Tasmania’s unusual electoral system and the politics of independen...
Apr 07, 2024•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 293
Ben Davison returns to take a look at a week in parliament that saw the Closing Loopholes bill pass the lower house, the greens and coalition team up to block the new shared home equity scheme, the mess that Labor is trying to clean up from Dutton's unlawful immigration detention scheme and Julian Hill's inquiry into Employment services. The Employment services inquiry has found a huge amount of waste, an ideological system that punishes people and fails to actually help people get work. Ben tak...
Dec 03, 2023•34 min•Ep. 291
Van Badham and Ben Davison give and update on the For Every Child public school funding campaign ( www.foreverychild.au/postcard ) , the Maritime Union campaign to stop wage theft in shipping and take a deeper dive into the progress on Closing the Loopholes for labour hire, casual and gig workers. it is Go Home on Time Day! Workers are losing billions in unpaid overtime and through the corporate exploitation of loopholes. Van and Ben discuss how the union movement is tackling this problem and wh...
Nov 22, 2023•1 hr•Ep. 290
Ben Davison returns with the weekend wrap to look at how corporate share buy backs are further evidence of profiteering driving inflation and why the Closing the Loopholes legislation is needed asap. You can join your union at www.australianunions.org.au/wow to add your voice to the millions calling for wage increases instead of profit payouts. The Australian Education Union has released new research that shows our public schools are underfunded by the almost the same amount as the share buy bac...
Nov 19, 2023•31 min•Ep. 289
Van Badham and Ben Davison dig into the best wage rise numbers in more than 20 years, discuss why many people will still be going backwards and, as the ACTU Price Gouging Inquiry wraps up, what we can do to help stop the profiteering. The union movement wins on minimum wage, awards, for aged care workers and improved collective agreements are lifting wages so if you want to see your pay get above the cost of living join your union at australianunions.org.au/wow Peter Dutton is back on the disinf...
Nov 15, 2023•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 288
Van Badham and Ben Davison dish the latest on the Optus outage chaos that has swept across Australia - and argue why key national infrastructure should be in public hands. They discuss why another interest rate rise is yet another painful example of an economy outgrowing the neoliberal zealots who insist on running it, and they take a tour into the history of abusive welfare policy. The good news is from America - with key victories for Democrats (and the rights of women) in Ohio, Virginia and K...
Nov 08, 2023•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 287
Van Badham and Ben Davison shine on a spotlight on the attempts by corporate giants BHP, Qantas and Doordash to keep the labour hire, forced casualisation and sham contracting loopholes open at this week's senate committee hearings. Van lays out what is wrong with capitalism in Australia and why being in your union, join at australianunions.org.au/wow, has never been more important with over $9,000,000,000 that could become wages if the loopholes close. Jason Clare, federal Education Minister, a...
Nov 01, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 286
Ben Davison gives a breakdown of Anthony Albanese's successful state visit to the United States and places it in the context of what has been happening in the US, the Biden administration demonstrating the "imperial presidency" while the Republican bicker over the speakership and some of the tangible positives for Australia. Insiders seemed unable to grasp how international politics and domestic politics actually interact so Ben explains what being a "middle power" actually means and why the int...
Oct 29, 2023•36 min•Ep. 285
Van Badham and Ben Davison are back with a new podcast episode that tackles why anyone would want to keep making a product that kills the workers who create it, how corporations have done just fine during high inflation and why they are spending millions to stop the government closing the loopholes that let them pay people less than their entitlements. The union movement has said it will ban the use and transport of engineered stone if the government does not act and it has called for stronger w...
Oct 25, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 284
Ben Davison takes a look at some of the stories form this week that Insiders missed given their focus on the Middle East. While the situation in Israel and Gaza is horrendous, Ben gives a brief synopsis, there is lots happening in Australia. The new National Skills Agreement is a win for the Australian Education Union, workers and employers who will benefit from the $30 billion investment in TAFE including another 300,000 fee free places in 2024. 1,400 United Workers Union diary workers took a 4...
Oct 22, 2023•36 min•Ep. 283
Van Badham joins Ben Davison for this post referendum special edition of the Weekend Wrap. Our co-hosts look at what the results of the referendum tell us so far, why there is such sadness, how we can respond and what it might mean for the future. The rise of misinformation in the referendum is examined, how electoral politics and referendums are different, why we need to be kind and how we can reengage with solidarity. Send your message of solidarity to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders at...
Oct 15, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 282
Van Badham and Ben Davison take a deep dive into the murky waters of American politics as the Republican Party conspires to unseat one of its own from the role of Speaker. It is the first time in history that a Speaker of the House of Representatives has been deposed. Van breaks down why it has happened, what it means for American politics and the kind of markers we need to watch for in our own political system. Prepoll voting has opened around Australia for the referendum with recent polls show...
Oct 04, 2023•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 281
Ben Davison looks at the established research which shows the NO campaign is leveraging misinformation and a global network of disinformation campaigners. In a shock admission Ben admits that he agrees with Phil Coorey and Chris Kenny that the No campaign has become a grab bag of grievances. The disability royal commission report has been handed down with 222 recommendations from over 10,000 submissions. Ben looks at how it intersects with the current NDIS review and why reform will take time bu...
Oct 01, 2023•33 min•Ep. 280
Van Badham and Ben Davison open by congratulating the workers who won their struggle with Inghams chicken, the artists in NSW who won restored funding and by sending international solidarity to the writers, screen actors and auto workers in the USA, who were joined on the picket line by Joe Biden. Making Biden the first ever sitting President to join a picket. You can win better pay, better conditions and better management by joining your union at australianunions.org.au/wow Dan Andrews departs ...
Sep 27, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 279
Ben Davison RETURNS with his weekend wrap! Instead of breaking down Insiders he compares and contrasts the difference the Walk for YES last weekend and the far right rallies for NO this weekend. Ben also reads a message from a listener in Arnhem Land who is talking with local first nations people about the referendum. With less than three weeks until the referendum and a week until pre-poll Ben is urging people to get involved at yes23.com.au The Alan Fels price gouging inquiry kicked off this w...
Sep 24, 2023•21 min•Ep. 278
Van Badham and Ben Davison are BACK! Having, almost, recovered from their illnesses Van and Ben dissect the disinformation that is swamping the Voice referendum. They break down what the Voice is, why the disinformation is happening, where it is coming from and what we can all do to make sure it doesn't taint our democracy. The Labor government in NSW has handed down its first budget following a range of wins by workers in unions there are pay increases, more teachers, more healthcare and less o...
Sep 20, 2023•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 277
Ben Davison takes a look at Noel Pearson's Insiders interview and how he managed to cut through the misinformation, fear mongering and misdirection to remind Australia that the referendum is an opportunity to accept the hand of friendship by recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders as our first people and embrace the opportunity of reconciliation by guaranteeing an advisory body. Nothing more, nothing less. The crossbench teamed up with Peter Dutton's Noalition to delay the closing loo...
Sep 10, 2023•39 min•Ep. 276
Van Badham and Ben Davison examine the government's bill to close the loopholes that are letting corporations take $9 billion from workers through forced casualisation, sham contracting, gig exploitation and legal chicanery. With $9 billion on the line corporations are fighting back with some of the weirdest and most easily disprovable lies imaginable. Van and Ben breakdown why the corporate bosses are investing millions in ads to attack the improvements for workers. Workers are fighting back to...
Sep 06, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 275
Ben Davison dives into the detail of the new workplace reforms that will give more rights to everyday working people who are casuals, gig workers or engaged as labour hire by setting some minimum standards. Tony Burke went on Insiders to explain how the new approach will work and David Speers still hasn't wrapped his mind around the idea that Labor is governing from a people first perspective as opposed to a corporate first approach. Qantas, the company that has unlawfully sacked workers, abused...
Sep 03, 2023•33 min•Ep. 274
