Tim Wilson accused the treasurer of pouring fuel on the inflation flames – is he right?

This week we had some not-so-great inflation figures and also reports that there'll be another interest rate rise right before the government hands down its federal budget in May. Newly-minted shadow treasurer Tim Wilson, aka the "energiser bunny", accused TreasurerJim Chalmers of pouring fuel on …

Return of 'ISIS brides' raises many questions about what it means to be Australian

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Australia's ISIS brides - the women trying to return home with their children from Syria - are not getting help from the government, but it seems there is more to the story. Joining Jacqueline Maley to discuss is senior writer Michael Bachelard, who has followe…

The Sketch: Tony Wright on 'Nation's worst government? Jane Hume's hyperbolic historical claim' 

Tony Wright, the associate editor of The Age, has been writing for 50 years. He is the master of what we call the political sketch. Sketches are akin to a verbal cartoon, and when done well, capture a moment in politics. Today, we bring you Wright's latest sketch, titled: 'Nation’s worst government…

Anthony Albanese interview: Police prayer disruption at Herzog protest needs ‘full explanation’

We're bringing you an extra episode of Inside Politics today because Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had an opening in his diary, and he's granted us an audience. His interview comes off the back of a difficult week, with a state visit from Israeli President Isaac Herzog. Herzog's visit was welcom…

Is government spending really driving inflation?

There’s a bit going on with the Liberal Party this week, but while that unfolds we are going to look at some bigger issues.  Interest rates went up recently, for the first time in two years, and there’s a question as to whether government spending contributed to inflation. So we're testing that t…

Bill Shorten on his random, oblique reference in the Epstein files

Today on Inside Politics, we welcome back former opposition leader Bill Shorten, who is now the Vice Chancellor of the University of Canberra. It's a timely moment to have Shorten on the podcast as he obliquely (very obliquely, we stress) came up in the Epstein files this week. Strangely, in the ma…

A funeral, secret plots, and 'wayward children' — another messy week for the Coalition

The drama between the Liberals and the Nationals continued this week with what seems to be a total breakdown in the relationship between Liberal leader Sussan Ley and Nationals leader David Littleproud. Meanwhile, Ley's leadership remains in mortal peril, and in a plot twist, Littleproud faces his…

The Sketch: Tony Wright on the Coalition’s 'ship of fools'

Tony Wright, the associate editor of The Age, has been writing for 50 years. He is the master of what we call the political sketch. Sketches are akin to a verbal cartoon and, when done well, capture a moment in politics. Today, in a bonus episode of Inside Politics, we bring you Wright's sketch on …

Barnaby Joyce opens up on his defection to Pauline Hanson's One Nation

One Nation is having a bit of a moment. Pauline Hanson’s outfit, accused by both major parties of exploiting racial anxiety over her career, has faded into irrelevance at points since she burst onto the scene in the late 1990s. But two new polls have recorded record-high primary votes for One Nat…

Littleproud fired the gun, but Ley set up the circumstances: The spectacular Coalition break-up

We are back with a special episode of Inside Politics as a few things have happened this week – namely the break-up of the Coalition, a century-old political alliance. Nationals leader David Littleproud announced the split on Thursday morning, blaming Liberal leader Sussan Ley in the process. Fed…