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This week, the wholesale energy market was suspended. It’s the first time the Australian energy market operator has ever had to take that step to keep electricity flowing to homes and to businesses.But this crisis has been decades in the making, caused by a policy vacuum that both sides of politics share responsibility for.So the question now is, how do you fix over a decade of political inaction?Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno, on the suspension of the energy market and the political blame game that's followed.Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.Stay in touch with us on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As new Labor ministers begin their jobs in earnest, they say they’re discovering an unexpected challenge — the depth of disarray left behind.According to some ministers that looks like negligence, delayed decisions, and a demoralised workforce.Today, senior reporter for The Saturday Paper, Rick Morton on the state of the public service, and the task of the new government to fix it. Guest: Senior reporter for The Saturday Paper, Rick Morton.Background reading: ‘Negligent in the extreme’: Labor inherits crises across portfolios in The Saturday Paper.Stay in touch with us on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are power interruptions forecast around Australia and gas prices are skyrocketing.But the strange thing about high gas bills arriving at Australian households is that we’re one of the biggest gas exporters worldwide. So why are we paying so much for it? Do we need even more gas? Or would that be learning the wrong lessons from this current crisis?Today, journalist Jesse Noakes on eye watering energy bills and why the one state that’s avoiding them is not necessarily the example the rest of us should follow.Guest: Contributor to The Saturday Paper, Jesse Noakes.Stay in touch with us on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week, a legal battle involving the Australian YouTube sensation Friendlyjordies and the former deputy premier of NSW John Barilaro came to an end, with a judge finding the YouTube videos from 2020 were ‘replete with racist, hate-filled rants’.But it wasn’t the comedian Friendlyjordies who was in court this time. It was the owners of YouTube, Google.So what did we learn about how Google runs YouTube? How does it police speech? And how does that stack up with Google’s public image?Today, defamation lawyer Hannah Marshall, on Barilaro versus Google and what the outcome of the case reveals about one of the most powerful companies in the world.Guest: Lawyer and contributor to The Saturday Paper, Hannah Marshall.Stay in touch with us on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tasmanian senator Jacqui Lambie is known as one of the most outspoken conviction politicians in the country. Now, she’s poised to add to her influence in the senate, with her former office manager Tammy Tyrrell likely to claim a seat under the banner of the Jacqui Lambie Network.  But Jacqui Lambie’s political success hasn’t always been assuredIn fact, when she entered politics - via a housing commission, the army and eventually Clive Palmer - her speeches on Sharia law, and her op-shop outfits, marked her out for ridicule. Today, we revisit our episode from March this year with Contributor to the Monthly, Chloe Hooper, on the political rise of Jacqui Lambie. Guest: Writer and contributor to The Monthly, Chloe Hooper.Stay in touch with us on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A fully independent commission to investigate federal corruption was one of the biggest issues for voters at the recent election.Now, the new Labor government has given us a first glimpse of how they plan to set one up.Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno, on the first steps towards integrity.Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.Stay in touch with us on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What does standing by while bad things happen do to us?That’s the question Father Rod Bower has been asking himself.For almost 10 years, Father Rod, wrote messages in support of refugees, climate action and same-sex marriage on the sign out the front of his Gosford Church.But, according to him, years of political point scoring on these issues has done more than just delay action – it’s injured us all.Today, Archdeacon Rod Bower on Australia’s moral injury and how we can begin to heal.Guest: Archdeacon Rod Bower.Stay in touch with us on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

University students don’t read detailed feedback, so what’s the point in paying academics to give it?That’s the position of some of the management at one of Australia’s most prestigious universities.Now, staff are striking and battlelines are being drawn in one of the biggest industrial disputes in the history of the university sector.So is there an end in sight to the crisis in universities? What does it mean for students? And can universities reconcile the tension between pursuing cuts and pursuing excellence?Today, senior reporter for The Saturday Paper, Rick Morton on the battle for the soul of a university. Guest: Senior reporter for The Saturday Paper, Rick Morton.Stay in touch with us on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The new Opposition Leader, Peter Dutton, has been keen to say he wants Australians to get to know him better.He’s acknowledged making some mistakes in the past, including walking out of the 2008 apology to the Stolen Generation.But now, an exclusive report by Karen Middleton has revealed that last year, Peter Dutton intervened to cancel an Australian Defence Force plan to give military bases dual English and Indigenous names.Today, chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Karen Middleton on Peter Dutton’s decisions as Defence Minister and what they tell us about his approach to change.Guest: Chief political correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Karen Middleton.Stay in touch with us on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Right now, the UK government is deliberating on whether to sign-off on the extradition of Australian Julian Assange to the US. If that happens, Assange — who was charged with espionage offenses in relation to material published on Wikileaks — faces charges that could result in a 175-year sentence.But the Australian election has given Assange’s family and supporters renewed hope. So, will a change in government change the fate of the wikileaks founder?Today, journalist Amy Fallon, on the extradition of Julian Assange and the test it sets for our political leaders.Guest: Journalist, Amy Fallon.Stay in touch with us on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.