Australia's banking and financial services sector's under intense pressure right now, after an embarrassing Royal Commission ended yesterday in 76 recommendations for change.

But the banks have been in the public glare before on similar charges, and successfully lobbied to keep the status quo.

So will this time be different?

Or was the Banking Royal Commission a fizzer?

Today on The Signal, we're teasing out the important bits from the Royal Commission.

What will change?

And what will it mean for you?

Featured:

Ian Verrender, ABC Business Editor

Genetic testing for serious illnesses is getting better and cheaper, and one day it could be standard practice.

But knowing about your genetic predispositions and even how you might die can be a heavy burden to carry.

So what’s it like to get that sort of news?

And what’s it like for the genetic counsellors who deliver it?

Today on The Signal, we dive deep into the complex world of genetic testing, and ask how it might shape our lives in the future.

Featured:

Kaitlin Ellis, genetic test recipient

Jessica Ellis, genetic test recipient

Ashley Crook, genetic counsellor

The Murray-Darling river system in south-eastern Australia is home to 2.5 million people and has an agricultural sector worth $24 billion a year, but on any fair reading it's not in very good shape.

Yesterday, the SA Government released a scathing independent report into why, which labelled the current basin plan unlawful and suggested drastic action was needed.

So how did we get here?

And if the Basin Plan is illegal, can it be fixed?

Today on The Signal, we're diving into the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.

We ask what the Commissioner found was wrong, how he thinks we got here, and whether he has any ideas for a fix.

Featured:

Michael Slezak, ABC National Science, Technology and Environment Reporter

Maryanne Slattery, Senior Water Researcher, Australia Institute

Phillip Glyde, CEO, Murray-Darling Basin Authority

Steven Marshall, SA Premier

Melbourne footballer and refugee Hakeem al-Araibi is still stuck in Thailand, after being detained there while on holiday two months ago.

Al-Araibi was tortured in Bahrain after he spoke out against the regime, which is now petitioning Thailand to send him back there to face charges.

So can Australia keep him safe?

And can FIFA and the International Olympic Committee help?

Today on The Signal, we get the latest on Hakeem al-Araibi's detention, and ask what could be in store for him next.

We also hear what the Australian Government has been doing in the background, unpack why the Bahrainis are pursuing al-Araibi, and ask why Thailand has been helping.

Featured:

James Massola, South East Asia Correspondent, The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald

Elaine Pearson, Australia Director, Human Rights Watch

Craig Foster, former international footballer

In the last few days, at least 32 people have been admitted to hospital after doing drugs at a music festival.

That's on top of five drug related deaths in Australia since September.

"Bad pills" get the blame, but what’s actually in a bad pill? And how big a part do overdoses play?

The Signal, along with triple j's Hack program, meet people at a music festival on the weekend who've taken notice of all the pill deaths and started home-testing their drugs or avoiding them altogether as a result.

Meanwhile, pill testing is firmly back on the agenda. We ask exactly how the system works and whether or not it'll save lives.

Featured:

Avani Dias, Hack reporter, triple j

Dr Alex Wodak, President, Drug Law Reform Foundation

With a string of ministers announcing early retirement and a run of bad polls, things aren't looking too rosy for Scott Morrison's government.

Senior ministers' seats are in doubt, younger MPs are planning life beyond politics, and even former Prime Minister Tony Abbott could be in trouble.

So is the Coalition doomed?

Or could it still turn things around?

Today on The Signal, we dive into the current spate of ministerial resignations, and ask who else might be next.

We also take stock of the polls since the August leadership spill, and get an update on the latest candidate trying to unseat Tony Abbott.

Featured:

Patricia Karvelas, Host, RN Drive and The Party Room podcast

Antony Green, ABC Election Analyst

Every year the push to move Australia Day grows, with thousands joining annual protests calling on the Federal Government to "change the date".

The Prime Minister Scott Morrison and the Labor Leader Bill Shorten so far aren't budging, all but guaranteeing the Australia Day debate will continue.

So have other countries who also have controversial national days resolved similar fights?

Today on The Signal, we focus on two national days overseas: Columbus Day, celebrated across the Americas each October; and Waitangi Day, marked in New Zealand in February.

We ask how those days are like Australia Day, and how they're different.

And we also ask whether there are lessons Australia could learn.

Featured:

James Valentine, Host, ABC Radio Sydney Afternoons

William Connell, La Motta Chair, Department of History, Seton Hall University

Michael Belgrave, Professor of History, Massey University

Randall Curren, Professor of Philosophy, Rochester University

The world's drinking water supply is shrinking.

A global survey of 50,000 rain gauges shows that despite heavier rainfalls, less water is making it into catchments because of drier conditions linked to climate change.

Access to water has never been more highly prized, and the dollar value of arable land is rising as a result.

Unsurprisingly, big investors have started to notice, and in one case one of the world's biggest private investors, the Harvard University Endowment Fund, has been quietly buying up vineyards in California that sit above groundwater supplies.

So is it an isolated case, or a sign of the times?

Today on The Signal, we look into the looming water resource grab, and ask whether private companies could buy up access to water here in Australia.

We also test whether Australia is ready for a world where water is increasingly valuable.

Featured:

Professor Ashish Sharma, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of New South Wales

Russell Gold, Senior Energy Reporter, The Wall Street Journal

Professor Quentin Grafton, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University

Every year, hundreds of thousands of Australians seek treatment for a mental health condition, but what if just asking for help could later be used against you?

Today on The Signal, we're diving into the life insurance industry, and drilling down into what exactly your insurance company wants to know about you, and why.

Our guide for the episode is the ABC's consumer affairs reporter Amy Bainbridge, who's been investigating why some people who have received mental health treatment in the past have had all sorts of exclusions added to their policies.

And we hear from the lawyers trying to put limits on just how far back into your medical history insurance companies can trawl.

Featured:

Amy Bainbridge, ABC Consumer Affairs Reporter

Julie Gilbert, life insurance customer

Nick Kerwin, Senior Policy Manager, Financial Services Council

Josh Mennen, Superannuation and Insurance Spokesperson, Australian Lawyers Alliance

More than one million fish have died in the Murray-Darling river system over the past few weeks, and with the drought dragging on and more hot weather expected, scientists think more die-offs are likely.

In Canberra and Sydney, federal and state politicians are stressing the mass fish deaths have been caused by drought, and they argue there's not really too much they can do.

So is that really the case?

Or is the way we're managing the Murray-Darling basin making the problems worse?

Today on The Signal, we dig into the science of what's causing the mass fish die-offs.

We also try to work out whether the Murray-Darling Basin Plan actually functions in practice.

And we ask the experts what they think could improve.

Featured:

Adjunct Professor Darren Baldwin, School of Environmental Sciences, Charles Sturt University

Professor Lin Crase, Head of the School of Commerce, University of South Australia