Our summer podcast series brings you some of the best conversations from our webinars in 2021. This episode you’ll hear from Independent Senator Rex Patrick Rex about the huge gaps in Australia’s system of integrity and accountability mechanisms at the federal level. This in-depth discussion covers everything from unnecessary government secrecy, Freedom of Information laws

On the eve of an election, without consultation and without scrutiny, the Morrison government, with the support of the Opposition, rushed retrospective amendments into the Parliament that will squash charities’ right to advocate, effectively stomping on our democracy. The Australia Institute’s Ben Oquist unpacks what happened and what the impacts will be for the Australian

Grants with ministerial discretion skew towards Coalition seats

The Australian Senate: a unique and powerful legislative body that few people know about and fewer understand.

The Commonwealth Government spends over $1billion of public money annually on consultancies, but the advice and reports created by these consultancies is often kept secret from the public.

Extracting gas from the Northern Territory through hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) is one of the largest potential sources of carbon pollution in the world. In this episode we explore the climate cost of a potential policy backflip on opening up the NT to fracking, as well as the community opposition and the economics of it all.

When the University of Newcastle appointed the Chair of Whitehaven Coal as its new Chancellor, it prompted a swift and public backlash from students, staff, philanthropists and alumni. Join our chief economist Richard Denniss as he unpacks the problems with the university’s decision, the community who challenged that decision and why Vaile ended up resigning

Australia still has no federal anti-corruption commission, more than 2 years after the Coalition government promised to enact one. Worse, there are several serious flaws with the government’s proposed model for a Commonwealth Integrity Commission. Join two former judges, the Hon Anthony Whealy QC and the Hon David Harper AM QC as they explain why

National Cabinet was created during the pandemic to make big decisions at a fast pace, but how much do Australians know about the advice on lockdowns or hotel quarantine, or about its deliberations and decisions? Not much, it’s pretty much a black hole. But a court case could change that. In this episode we dive

When Facebook banned Australian news and information from its platform — as well as the pages of many charities, community groups and government departments — in an attempt to avoid regulation, it may have been the first time many Australians had heard of the news media bargaining code. So in this week’s episode we unpack what the code is, what it does, why it’s necessary and what happens next.

In its efforts to avoid regulation, Google commissioned economic modelling showing that Google providing tens of billions of dollars in benefits to Australia – but the figures quickly fell apart on closer inspection from the Australia Institute’s Centre for Responsible Technology. In this episode, chief economist Richard Denniss talks us through some of the assumptions

In our summer special series, we bring you some of our favourite guests from the Australia Institute’s webinar series in 2020. In this episode, Ben Oquist talks to ABC 730’s chief political correspondent Laura Tingle about her new Quarterly Essay: The High Road – what we can learn from New Zealand. Hosted by Alex Sloan.

Let’s face it, 2020 has been a bit of a nightmare. This week, in our final episode of the year, Ebony Bennett and Richard Denniss revisit some of the Australia Institute’s predictions back in March 2020 and reflect on the way Australia’s economy and politics have changed this year in response to the pandemic. Mild

In this episode we unpack what a Biden Administration means for climate and foreign policy in Australia, with Richie Merzian and Allan Behm. The Australia Institute // @theAusinstituteHost: Ebony Bennett, deputy director of the Australia Institute // @ebony_bennett Guests: Richie Merzian, director Climate & Energy Program // @richiemerzian Allan Behm, director International & Security Affairs program

Australia’s news media is one of the most highly concentrated in the world. Since 2019, more than 157 newsrooms have closed in Australia and many local, community and rural newspapers have ceased printing or gone digital only. It was in this climate that in 2018 the federal government tasked the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission

The ACT is the home of progressive politics in Australia, leading the nation on climate policy, tax reform and truth in political advertising (among other things). In this episode we explore the broader implications of the ACT election results – which saw a swing to the Greens, a swing against the Liberals and the Labor

In this episode we explain what ‘not for publication’ (or ‘nfp’) means and why it appears so often in the Budget papers, with Australia Institute research director Rod Campbell.www.tai.org.auHost: Ebony Bennett, deputy director of the Australia Institute // @ebony_bennettGuests:Rod Campbell // @R_o_d_CProducer: Jennifer MaceyTheme music is by Jonathan McFeat from Pulse and Thrum

For over eighty years, Australia and East Timor have been joined together, mostly in conflict and struggle. The latest conflict is playing out in a secret court case and involves Australian lawyer Bernard Collaery and a former ASIS officer turned whistleblower Witness K. Both have been accused of communicating protected intelligence information after disclosing an

Author of the new book ‘People without Power’ Thomas Frank explains why everything you think you know about populism is wrong. [Note: language warning, a mild one] Host: Ebony Bennett, deputy director at the Australia Institute // @ebony_bennett Guests: Wayne Swan // @SwannyQLD Ben Oquist // @BenOquist Thomas Frank // @thomasfrank_ Producer: Jennifer Macey Theme music: Jonathan McFeat from Pulse and

As part of the National Treaties Summit, this episode we bust some of the myths about Sovereignty and Treaty and the relationship between the two with Jamie Lowe, Michael Mansell and Professor Megan Davis, in conversation with the Australia Institute’s Richard Denniss. The National Treaties Summit, organised by ANTaR, the National Native Title Council, and

The Morrison government announced it will cut the JobSeeker coronavirus supplement, which had lifted a whopping 425,000 people out of poverty. We talk to Matt Grudnoff, senior economist at the Australia Institute to understand the impact this cut will have on poverty rates, now that there are hundreds of thousands more unemployed people, as well

The PM has announced big plans for deregulation, but is ‘red tape’ or ‘green tape’ really impeding economic growth or is it necessary to protect us and our environment? In this episode we talk to Executive Director of the Australia Institute Ben Oquist about the protections offered by good regulation. Host: Ebony Bennett, deputy director of

There can be no trust in government without accountability, yet its been two years since the Coalition government promised to implement a Commonwealth Integrity Commission and there’s still no draft legislation in sight. Join Independent Member for Indi Helen Haines MP, and former Supreme Court Justices the Hon. David Harper AM QC and The Hon.

Today we’re changing the pace a little, with our virtual Politics in the Pub featuring Guardian Australia’s political reporter Amy Remeikis and hosted by The Australia Institute Tasmania’s director Leanne Minshull, live from her pub the Fern Tree Tavern in Hobart.News.com.au’s political editor Samantha Maiden was also supposed to join the conversation but unfortunately couldn’t

Working from home has great potential to cushion the economic blow of the pandemic: allowing many to keep working and earning an income. But there are also many challenges and risks associated with this major shift in work patterns. So to unpack the implications of everything from Orwellian surveillance programs to the joys of working

The Australian media industry, particularly journalism, was already going through a major disruption before the pandemic hit. At least 51 news media outlets and newsrooms have closed since the beginning of the coronavirus crisis in Australia, according the The Guardian.This episode features a discussion about the crisis facing the media between Kim Williams, Chair of

In the middle of this unprecedented health and economic crisis, it is critical we do not let a crisis in our democracy emerge as well. Like Australia, New Zealand has shut down its Parliament due to COVID-19.However, NZ has found a non-partisan alternative to maintain accountability while Parliament is not sitting.Australia Institute executive director Ben

First there were dead fish and towns running out of water, then #Watergate and now Four Corners have done an investigation into the Murray Darling Basin — again. Big picture…what’s going on? Host: Rod Campbell, research director at The Australia Institute // @R_o_d_C Contributors: Maryanne Slattery, senior water researcher at the Australia Institute // @MaryanneSlatte1 Producer: Jennifer Macey // @jennifermacey Title

There’s mass confusion about the new Senate voting system. Follow the Money unpacks how to get the most out of your Senate ballot paper. Host: Ebony Bennett, Deputy Director at The Australia Institute // @ebony_bennett Contributors: Richard Denniss, chief economist at the Australia Institute // @RDNS_TAI  Tom Swann, senior researcher at the Australia Institute // @Tom_Swann Producer: Jennifer Macey // @jennifermacey //