Last weekend – demands for more action to keep women safe – spilled onto the streets.

Barely a week goes by when the great energy transition isn’t making news of some sort. This week the government announced feasibility licences for a bunch of developers to work on plans for Australia’s first offshore wind zone in waters off Gippsland in Victoria. At the same time, Energy Minister Chris Bowen was talking up the need to seek new supplies of gas to support renewables. The government’s been making all sorts of announcements under its new Future Made in Australia policy – to...

In the lead-up to this year's budget announcement, the Albanese government is struggling to maintain the public's focus and clear air to announce their plans. 

The crisis of male violence against women in this country is escalating, as an average of one woman every four days is killed so far in 2024. The murder of NSW woman Molly Ticehurst allegedly at the hands of her former partner has sparked community outrage and calls for governments to act urgently to protect women against intimate partner violence. We’ve seen these calls before, but the numbers of dead women continue to be a national shame, so what can and should be done? The panel Bridget...

While Anthony Albanese says we're in a "race for jobs" with other countries offering big government subsidies and can't afford to be "left behind", Productivity Commissioner Danielle Wood isn't sure it's a race we should even be in.

The Prime Minister has already made it clear what will be the centrepiece of the next federal budget. His second term agenda centres around a Future Made in Australia. Everyone loves the idea of more stuff being made in Australia, particularly Labor Prime Ministers - but the question is at what cost to taxpayers and to consumers. Now, we still don't know all of the details of this plan for a future made in Australia. But we do know it will involve government subsidies and tax incentives aimed...

The Insiders panel of Samantha Maiden, Phil Coorey, and Lenore Taylor discuss the judgement in the Bruce Lehrmann defamation trial, with Justice Michael Lee ruling that on the balance of probabilities Lehrmann raped his colleague Brittany Higgins in a ministerial suite inside Parliament House in 2019. The judgement was hailed by journalist Lisa Wilkinson as a vindication of her story, but it also included strong criticism of key parts of the The Project’s broadcast – particularly the...

Sydney has been reeling this week from two horrific attacks. Both the Bondi Junction and the Wakeley attacks have raised all sorts of questions about terrorism, mental illness, the spread of misinformation on social media, and community cohesion.There’s also a big question over the safety of women. The Bondi Junction attacker – Joel Cauchi – killed 5 women and one male security guard. The majority of those injured were also women. The NSW Police Commissioner says it’s obvious he was targeting...

Given these two horrific attacks happened within days of each other in the same city, the debate over how they've been differently labelled is perhaps inevitable.

Visiting a shopping centre on a Saturday is such a familiar thing to do. The horrific attack at Westfield Bondi Junction has understandably shocked many. And given heightened community tensions – there were fears over what might have motivated such an attack. The NSW police commissioner was last night confident enough to say she did not believe this was an act of terrorism. David Speers interviews Treasurer Jim Chalmers about the latest, as well as getting his take on Iran’s attack on Israel...

Just how far should the government go when it comes to trying to keep manufacturers in Australia and attract new ones? In a significant pre-budget speech this week, the Prime Minister has suggested the role of government needs to evolve as he flagged a much more interventionist approach and what he's calling a future made in Australia. But why should Australian taxpayers be funding local production of things like solar panels? And how far do you go with this? Where does it end? What or who...

The prime minister sees an agenda to grow local green manufacturing as not only economically and strategically vital, but a political no-brainer. But that's only if it all works.

Not good enough.  Australia is demanding more answers and greater transparency – over how Israel managed to launch deadly air strikes on an aid convoy in Gaza. Israel is blaming poor visibility and a communications stuff-up. That hasn’t satisfied the Albanese Government. David Speers interviews Shadow Foreign Minister Simon Birmingham about the Coalition’s view of the incident, and how the Opposition believes the government should proceed in their relations with Israel. The panel Paul...

Israel's airstrike on a convoy in Gaza earlier this week quickly sparked international condemnation, anger, demands for answers and a lot more pressure on the Netanyahu government over its conduct in this war. The attack on the World Central Kitchen convoy killed seven people, including an Australian aid worker Lalzawmi "Zomi" Frankcom. Joe Biden says he's outraged and heartbroken. Rishi Sunak has called it an appalling attack. Anthony Albanese is demanding accountability from Israel. But...

There have been many moments described as "tipping points" since the war in Gaza began nearly six months ago. But this week's deadly Israeli air strike on an aid convoy may prove to be one of the most significant.

Navigating differences with China. All in with the British on nuclear submarines. And buckling up for a potential return of Donald Trump to the White House. In one week - the directions, difficulties and dilemmas of Australian diplomacy have all been on show. David Speers interviews Defence Minister Richard Marles about the new submarines funding, China, Trump and more. The Insiders panel, Clare Armstrong, Anthony Galloway, and Shalailah Medhora have plenty to discuss on the domestic front...

An unhappy experience with the Voice referendum explains the Albanese government’s reticence to push ahead on religious freedoms. Even if that means failing to deliver on an election promise.

Housing affordability has been one of the biggest political issues over the last two years since inflation, mortgage rates and rental prices started spiralling. The plight of those trying to buy a home or struggling to pay the rent has focused the attention of many politicians. But what about those who don’t have a roof over their head at all? The housing crisis has forced some – even with full-time jobs – to sleep in their cars or in tents in local parks. And then there are kids with low or...

A lot of younger Australians don’t think much about aged care. Let’s be honest – if they do think about growing old – it’s usually dreaming of a comfortable retirement when they can stop working and tap into their superannuation – not necessarily what their aged care might involve. But that superannuation we’re all contributing to – could end up being critical to the sort of aged care we ultimately receive. The government has been grappling with how to properly fund aged care – to fix some of...

How many older Australians is the government willing to squeeze to help fund a bigger and better aged care sector? And how hard is it willing to squeeze them?

The Albanese Government’s latest effort to meet its climate targets is focused on the vehicle industry. It wants to bring Australia into line with the rest of the developed world – with a new emissions standard. Under the plan – car makers would have to sell more electric and low emissions vehicles from next year. If they’re only selling gas guzzlers – they would have to pay a price. Consultations closed on Monday night – and unsurprisingly the industry is split between those who sell diesel...

The Liberal Party this week preselected its candidate for the safe seat of Cook – vacated by former Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Simon Kennedy is a management consultant. He doesn’t currently live in Cook and ran unsuccessfully for the party in another seat at the last election. Still – he won a thumping majority when branch members voted on Monday night. Gwen Cherne – the only woman in the race ran a distant third – despite living on the border of the electorate, despite an impressive...

Peter Dutton is confident of his ability to turn public opinion around — but can he convince Australians that nuclear energy is the best way to transition to net zero emissions?

Insiders takes the stage for a special live show – with an audience – from Adelaide Writers Week. David Speers' guest is South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas, while a panel of returning favourite Sarah Martin, Mark Kenny and Clare Armstrong discuss the washup of the Dunkley by-election.