From spiralling interest rates blamed on global conflicts and mounting cost-of-living pain to mounting friction inside federal Labor ranks, it’s been a seismic week in Australian politics. In this episode of The Week That Was, Mark Latham cuts through the noise to analyze the breaking stories hitting households hard—including cracks inside the government, the reality of first-home buyer negative equity, credit card surcharge crackdowns, and the big political shifts making waves across the country.

• Interest Ratest: Breaking down the controversial economic justifications linking domestic interest rate pressures to conflict overseas.

• Labor's Internal Friction: Unpacking the growing pressure on Treasurer Jim Chalmers as federal Labor MPs openly push back behind closed doors.

• First-Home Buyer Negative Equity: Examining the brutal squeeze on recent property buyers caught in a falling market amid high rates.

• Credit Card Surcharges & Government Spending: Looking at moves to ban painful consumer payment fees while runaway government spending faces fierce scrutiny.

• Political Shifts & Leadership Changes: Analyzing the fallout from the Greens electing David Shoebridge as their new leader, One Nation's rising momentum, and the latest cultural headlines—including Anika Wells landing on TIME's top 100 rising stars and the drama of the NRL Grand Final.