As Donald Trump moves to impose tariffs on Australian aluminium and steel imports this week, the government is still hoping for an exemption. So, how should we be dealing with the US president? The former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, for one, isn’t holding back. His criticism of Donald Trump has landed him in the president’s firing line. But the real casualty of Trump’s trade policies can be seen on the stock markets, which are suffering heavy falls as the president refuses to rule out a rec...
Mar 11, 2025•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast The world was shocked by Donald Trump’s oval office clash with the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The US president has been aligning himself with Russia’s view of the war in Ukraine and pressuring the Ukrainians to start negotiating, without any iron-clad security guarantees. As Donald Trump takes a less adversarial approach to Vladimir Putin, who else wins? Today, Dan Blumenthal, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a centre right think tank, on what it all means for ...
Mar 10, 2025•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast Just before midnight on Friday millions of people living in south-east Queensland were told to take shelter, to go to the strongest room and stay there. Tropical Cyclone Alfred was coming their way and for most residents it was the first time they’d faced such a threat. By the next morning Alfred would be downgraded to a tropical low, even before it reached the mainland. So what happened? How did it unfold and how should we assess the warnings, preparation and response? Today, we speak to a cycl...
Mar 09, 2025•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast For so many experts and politicians, the answer to Australia’s housing crisis is simple. Rejig zoning rules, build more homes and get Australians into increasingly dense developments. But is the supply ‘solution’ the cure-all it’s made out to be? In this final episode of our series, ABC business editor Michael Janda looks at what really needs to be done on supply and demand to make it just a little bit easier for people to buy a home. We’ll also take you to Melbourne, where apartment prices have...
Mar 06, 2025•26 min•Transcript available on Metacast Has a housing bubble ever burst without devastating pain across the economy and society? New Zealand is in a recession and home values are more than 17 per cent lower than the post-COVID peak. In Ireland, a massive house price surge and crash in the 2000s saw house prices in Dublin more than half. So, does Australia need a crash and what would that mean for all of us? Some economists think recessions are needed occasionally to reset the economy. In this episode ABC business editor Michael Janda ...
Mar 05, 2025•26 min•Transcript available on Metacast How did Australia go from a place where most middle-class people could own their own house, to one where even a small apartment is out of reach for so many? You can pick your villain. Is it immigrants, investors, Howard and Costello, the big banks, or something else? In this episode, ABC business editor Michael Janda identifies the key moments and policies that cemented property as a lucrative investment, creating a mismatch in supply and demand and sending house prices to extraordinarily high l...
Mar 04, 2025•26 min•Transcript available on Metacast Imagine it’s 2050 and the housing bubble in Australia never burst. Where do we live, how do we pay for it and what is day to day life like? Exorbitant home prices not only keep Australians in the crowded and expensive rental market, but they also change life plans and society. In this episode, ABC business editor Michael Janda explains why housing crisis is the country’s biggest issue. It locks people into debt, delays retirement, creates stress and insecurity, contributes to falling birth rates...
Mar 03, 2025•25 min•Transcript available on Metacast Housing has become a dream for investors and a nightmare for those struggling to get a slice of the pie. We find ourselves increasingly mired in a debt trap at both an individual and economy-wide level. This is Housing Hostages; a five-part series from ABC News Daily. With the help of ABC business editor Michael Janda, we’ll get to the heart of the housing crisis and explain why we’re all hostage to housing. Imagine owning dozens of properties at once. In this episode, investing expert Margaret ...
Mar 02, 2025•25 min•Transcript available on Metacast It was Donald Trump’s first cabinet meeting of his second term, sitting at a table with his controversial picks, all dressed in suits and smiling for the cameras. But it was a man dressed all in black, wearing a T-shirt, jeans and a black MAGA cap who dominated the room. Elon Musk is the man of the moment, as he goes about slashing government spending and jobs. Today, Tom Nichols, staff writer at The Atlantic, on what Musk and Trump are really trying to achieve. Featured: Tom Nichols, staff writ...
Feb 27, 2025•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast At 4.1 percent, Australia has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the world. That should mean that most people who want a job, have a job. But for anyone looking to switch jobs or climb up the ladder it’s really hard. Experienced professionals who have decades of experience are being overlooked for cheaper, younger talent. Today, business reporter Nassim Khadem on why job hunting’s become like online dating, where hirers ‘ghost’ applicants. Featured: Nassim Khadem, ABC business reporter...
Feb 26, 2025•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast US President Donald Trump insists that Russian leader Vladimir Putin would allow peacekeepers into Ukraine as part of a deal to end the war. But how would that work and would it be risky having soldiers from European nations on Russia’s doorstep? Today, Russia expert Matthew Sussex on the three-year anniversary and what version of peace the US and Russian leaders are aiming for. Featured: Matthew Sussex, associate professor at the Centre for European Studies at the Australian National University...
Feb 25, 2025•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast Labor and the opposition are in furious agreement, each committing to boost funding for Medicare to stop the decline in the number of GPs bulk billing. But what was behind the fall in the first place and can $8.5 billion fix it? Today, health economist Stephen Duckett on how the bulk billing incentive policy could work and whether your GP is about to offer bulk billing. Featured: Stephen Duckett, Honorary Enterprise Professor in the School of Population and Global Health at the University of Mel...
Feb 24, 2025•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast You’ve heard of IVF, now scientists are working on the next generation of reproductive technology, called IVG or in vitro gametogenesis. It’s technology to produce eggs and sperm in a lab, possibly from just the skin cells of a prospective parent. It would, in theory, allow three people to create a baby or even just one person, alone. Today, Dr Alexandra Harvey, a senior research scientist with Melbourne IVF on the science behind it and the ethical dilemmas it will bring. Featured: Dr Alexandra ...
Feb 23, 2025•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast Donald Trump declared Ukraine had started the war with Russia and labelled its leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a dictator. Trump’s vice president JD Vance has thrown his support behind far-right parties in Germany. At the same time, talks on ending the war in Ukraine began with only the US and Moscow at the table. It was a week where we saw an extraordinary shift in American foreign policy, which led to European leaders holding crisis talks. Today, Samir Puri, director of Chatham House’s centre for ...
Feb 20, 2025•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast The RBA’s interest rate cut has been largely welcomed but it won’t make much difference to the family budget. So, why is there speculation that the Prime Minister Anthony Albanese might call an early election because of it? Today, we speak to someone whose life was upended by the 13 interest rate rises and to a pollster about why Labor’s finding it hard to convince voters it’s not to blame for the financial pain. Featured: ‘Jane’, former home owner Kos Samaras, former Labor strategist and direct...
Feb 19, 2025•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s almost three years since the Reserve Bank began the most aggressive cash rate hiking cycle in its history to combat surging inflation. Now, Australia’s central bank has delivered a slight reprieve to borrowers, taking 25 basis points off the interest rate for mortgages, once the banks pass it on. Today, the ABC’s finance expert Alan Kohler on what it means for households and when the next cut might be. Featured: Alan Kohler, ABC finance expert...
Feb 18, 2025•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast Within hours of its release, the Chinese-owned AI chatbot called DeepSeek became one of the most downloaded apps in the world. Most commentators say it performs just as well as the market-leader ChatGPT, but should we be wary of it? Each time users open it up and type something into that box, the app is gathering information and sending it back to servers in China. Today, ABC technology reporter Ange Lavoipierre on why the Australian government has banned it on its devices and whether the rest o...
Feb 17, 2025•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast Emily’s son loved sport, animals, reading and music, but when he turned 16, everything changed. He started to get obsessed by politics and thought the country was headed in the wrong direction. It wasn’t until his mother saw a photo of her son on the news that she realised he’d joined a neo-Nazi group. Emily hopes a deradicalisation program will keep her son safe from extremists, but there’s concern about the availability and quality of the services. Today, Four Corners reporter Avani Dias on Em...
Feb 16, 2025•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast Donald Trump says negotiations to end the war in Ukraine have begun and both Russia and Ukraine want peace. The US president chose to call the instigator of the war Vladimir Putin first to discuss a potential deal, raising fears he’ll push Ukraine to the sidelines. The US is already insisting that Ukraine can’t restore its territory to what it had in 2014 and it says Ukraine won’t join the NATO military alliance. Today, international relations expert Rajan Menon on what peace might really look l...
Feb 13, 2025•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast Two nurses from a Sydney hospital have been stood down while police and the health department investigate them for making threatening comments about Israelis. One says they’ll refuse to treat Israeli patients and the other even claims he’s killed Israeli patients. NSW Health Minister Ryan Park said the comments made by the pair were "vile, dehumanising and unacceptable". Today, Deborah Stone from The Jewish Independent news website on the footage and the response to it. Featured: Deborah Stone, ...
Feb 12, 2025•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast Donald Trump says no nation will be exempt, although there’s a prospect of Australia winning a rare reprieve from hefty tariffs being imposed on all steel and aluminium imports to the United States. Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been on a phone call with the US president, urging him to exempt Australia from the 25 per cent import tax. The key argument is that Australia imports a lot more from the US than it sells there. Today, economist Susan Stone on the latest front in the tr...
Feb 11, 2025•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast Elon Musk thinks the peak US foreign aid agency is ‘evil’ and so in his powerful position as Donald Trump’s cost cutter he’s getting rid of it. USAID was set up by President John F. Kennedy and supports humanitarian projects across the globe. Already there are reports of people dying on the Thai-Myanmar border when a US supported hospital in a refugee camp was abruptly shut down. So, what’s Mr Musk up to and why? Featured: Matthew Maury, interim CEO of The Australian Council for International De...
Feb 10, 2025•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast BMI, or body mass index, has long been used as a simple calculation to determine if someone is underweight, a ‘healthy’ weight or obese. But when it was devised by a Belgian mathematician almost 200 years ago, it was never supposed to be a tool to measure health. Now, researchers are challenging the way obesity is defined and diagnosed. Today, a look at the new approach and why there’s a global push away from BMI. Featured: Willow Moscarda, Perth studentDr Louise Bauer, Professor of child and ad...
Feb 09, 2025•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast The police bodycam vision has been beamed around the world after being played in a London court. It shows Sam Kerr calling a police constable ‘f***ing stupid and white.’ Now the Matildas captain is on trial over allegations she racially harassed him. Today, host of The Sports Ambassador podcast Tracey Holmes walks us through the case. Featured: Tracey Holmes, The Sports Ambassador podcast host
Feb 06, 2025•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast Donald Trump wants America to take over Gaza and for all Palestinians to leave so it can be turned into a “Riviera of the Middle East.” The idea, unleashed in a joint press conference with the Israeli Prime Minister at the White House, is a complete upending of decades of Middle Eastern policy that could involve American troops on the ground. Today, Hussein Ibish from the Arab Gulf States Institute on the implications of Trump’s words and what might come next. Featured: Hussein Ibish, senior sch...
Feb 05, 2025•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast Donald Trump says he loves tariffs but just hours after he slapped massive levies on Mexico and Canada he’s taken them away. The surprising U-turn has rattled financial markets and revived fears of a global trade war. So, what on earth is the US President up to and how will the global economy respond? Today ABC TV’s finance expert Alan Kohler on what Trump’s tariff moves mean for Australia. Featured: Alan Kohler, ABC TV finance expert...
Feb 04, 2025•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast The raids and deportations have begun and undocumented migrants in the United States are being rounded up by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. President Donald Trump is making good on his threats to target those accused of crimes first, with plans to send tens of thousands of people to Guantanamo Bay detention centre. Today, an immigration attorney from Texas explains how the new policy is playing out on the ground. Featured: Ruby Powers, immigration attorney in Houston, Texas...
Feb 03, 2025•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast From this week all Australian kids will be back at school for the year, but what can we do to improve their results? There has been a concerning decline in performance in numeracy and literacy tests over the past two decades. Today, education reporter Conor Duffy on why Australian students underperform and how one group is bucking the trend. Conor Duffy explains that the most recent NAPLAN tests show one third of students not meeting minimum benchmarks. He says students from language backgrounds...
Feb 02, 2025•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast The caravan was carrying enough explosives to cause mass casualties if detonated, so why did police keep its discovery secret for 10 days? A note found in the van indicated that Jewish sites were the targets. Today, terrorism expert Greg Barton on what we know about the case and if anything can be done now to stop the rise in anti-Semitism. Police say the explosives could have had a blast zone radius of 40 metres. Professor Barton explains that the use of explosives usually used in mining sugges...
Jan 30, 2025•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast When Donald Trump returned to the US presidency, he unveiled DOGE, the Department Of Government Efficiency. It’s a cost cutting body for government spending run by the world’s richest man Elon Musk. Last weekend, the opposition leader Peter Dutton unveiled the Coalition’s brand-new spokeswoman for government efficiency, supposed to cut wasteful spending here in Australia. Today, host of The Party Room podcast, Patricia Karvelas on why Mr Dutton will only go so far down the Trump path. She highli...
Jan 29, 2025•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
