New Politics: Australian Politics, News, Analysis & Commentary

The resignation of NACC commissioner Paul Brereton has reignited debate about whether Australia’s federal anti-corruption watchdog is capable of delivering the accountability it promised. Created by the Albanese government in response to scandals including Robodebt, sports rorts and growing distrust in politics, the NACC was meant to restore integrity to public life. Nearly three years later, it has become a secretive, risk-averse institution that has avoided major political investigations while securing only a handful of lower-level convictions. We examine Brereton’s controversial tenure, the structural limitations built into the NACC, and whether Australia’s anti-corruption framework is too weak to confront political power, influence and government misconduct.

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Song listing:

• ‘La Femme d’Argent’, AIR.

The teal independents transformed Australian politics by offering moderate urban voters an alternative to the Liberal Party’s culture-war politics under Scott Morrison and Peter Dutton, combining climate action, integrity and economic conservatism outside the traditional party system. But as discussion grows about forming a formal “Teal Party of Australia”, we examine whether the movement could lose the very independent appeal that made it successful. We also explore the collapse of traditional party loyalties, the rise of outsider movements like One Nation, growing voter dissatisfaction with both Labor and Liberal, and how housing affordability, cost-of-living pressures and economic insecurity are reshaping the future of Australian politics.

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Song listing:

• ‘La Femme d’Argent’, AIR.

The debate surrounding Australia’s 2026 Budget has rapidly evolved into a broader political battle over housing affordability, negative gearing, wealth inequality and the future direction of the Australian economy. In this episode, we examine how Labor’s housing reforms have triggered an aggressive backlash from the Liberal Party, conservative media and vested property interests, with warnings about attacks on “aspiration”, investment and wealth creation increasingly crashing into the reality facing millennials and Gen Z Australians locked out of home ownership. We explore whether the media-driven outrage over the Albanese government’s reforms reflects genuine public concern or a deeper attempt to protect a decades-old economic model built on property speculation, tax concessions and rising inequality, and ask whether Australia’s political and economic consensus is beginning to unravel. #AUSPOL

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Song listing:

• ‘La Femme d’Argent’, AIR.

Australia’s Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion is becoming a major political flashpoint over free speech, Israel and Palestine, civil liberties and political dissent. We examine how accusations of antisemitism are increasingly being linked to criticism of Israel, Zionism and support for Palestinian rights, the controversy surrounding the IHRA definition of antisemitism, and whether Australia is moving toward tighter limits on political debate and protest. As tensions over Gaza continue to influence public discourse, the debate is raising larger questions about democracy, social cohesion, racism, censorship and who gets heard in Australian politics. #AUSPOL #Antisemitism #Palestine #Israel  

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Song listing:

• ‘La Femme d’Argent’, AIR.

The shock result in the Farrer byelection has exposed a deep crisis inside Australian conservatism, with One Nation winning its first ever federal lower-house seat as the Liberal Party’s vote collapsed from 43 per cent to just 12 per cent in barely a year. We examine the growing backlash against the Liberal and National parties across regional Australia, the long-term rise of Pauline Hanson and One Nation, and how housing stress, stagnant wages, culture wars and political disillusionment are reshaping Australian politics. As conservative voters abandon the Coalition in growing numbers, we discuss whether the biggest threat to the Liberal Party now comes not from Labor, but from the forces emerging inside its own fractured political base. #AUSPOL

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Support New Politics:

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Song listing:

• ‘La Femme d’Argent’, AIR.

• Subscribe to New Politics for weekly briefings and full analysis: www.newpolitics.com.au

Labor’s 2026 federal Budget has sparked fierce backlash from conservative commentators, with critics labelling it everything from a “Whitlam budget” to “Marxism” after modest reforms to negative gearing and capital gains tax. We examine Australia’s worsening housing affordability crisis, the political legacy of the 2019 election scare campaign, and why Labor remains caught between addressing inequality and preserving the neoliberal economic system that has dominated Australian politics for decades. Plus, we unpack the contradictions in the Budget itself – including limited cost-of-living relief, NDIS cuts, defence spending, mining profits, corporate tax concessions, and the Liberal Party’s response led by Angus Taylor – as Australia’s political debate shifts in ways the conservative establishment increasingly struggles to contain. #AUSPOL #Budget2026

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Support New Politics:

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Song listing:

• ‘La Femme d’Argent’, AIR.

• Subscribe to New Politics for weekly briefings and full analysis: www.newpolitics.com.au 

In this episode, we examine the interim findings of the Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion following the Bondi Beach attacks, exploring major questions surrounding ASIO, the Australian Federal Police and intelligence failures in Australia. We discuss allegations that the Bondi attackers had been monitored by ASIO since 2019, the parallels with the 2014 Lindt Café siege, and growing concerns about national security secrecy, surveillance powers, democratic accountability and civil liberties. We also analyse whether the Royal Commission’s focus on antisemitism and social cohesion risks shifting attention away from deeper institutional failures, while examining the broader debate around protest rights, free speech, pro-Palestine activism and the balance between security and democracy in Australian politics. #AUSPOL  

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Support New Politics: 

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Song listing:

• ‘La Femme d’Argent’, AIR.

• Subscribe to New Politics for weekly briefings and full analysis: www.newpolitics.com.au 

In this episode, we examine the latest incident involving Donald Trump, framed as an assassination attempt but unfolding in an era of “fake news”, disinformation and collapsing public trust, where conspiracy theories and official narratives blur into one. We explore how Trump’s crisis-driven political strategy weaponises chaos, using events to attack Democrats and justify controversial policies, including a $400 million White House ballroom project raising concerns about surveillance and executive power, while placing this within the broader context of aggressive US foreign policy. We also analyse the global fallout, from rising tensions within NATO to growing uncertainty around AUKUS, highlighted by the high-stakes White House visit of King Charles III. As the United States approaches key midterm elections, we ask whether constant political instability, voter fatigue and the normalisation of chaos will push American democracy toward a breaking point. #AUSPOL  

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Support New Politics:

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Song listing:

• ‘La Femme d’Argent’, AIR.

Subscribe to New Politics for weekly briefings and full analysis: www.newpolitics.com.au   This week, we discuss the growing Anzac Day culture war in Australia, from booing at Dawn Services and Welcome to Country ceremonies to the rising influence of right-wing groups like Advance Australia and Fight for Australia, and ask how a solemn commemoration of the 8,700 Australians who died at Gallipoli has been reshaped into a platform for right-wing political messaging, identity politics and nationalist rhetoric. We examine the role of Gina Rinehart and the impact of media power, political donations and organisations such as the Institute of Public Affairs, the Liberal Party and One Nation in redefining Anzac Day, while contrasting this with the working-class origins of the original Anzacs and the often-overlooked service of more than 1,300 Indigenous Australians in World War I. As Anzac Day becomes increasingly politicised and resistant to criticism, we explore whether it can remain a respectful national day of remembrance or if it has been captured by ideological interests shaping Australia’s political and cultural debate.  #AUSPOL 

www.newpolitics.com.au  

Support New Politics: 

• Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/newpolitics
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Song listing:

• ‘La Femme d’Argent’, AIR.
• ‘No More Heroes’, Asgeir (The Stranglers).

• Subscribe to New Politics for weekly briefings and full analysis: www.newpolitics.com.au

Today on the New Politics podcast, we examine Australia’s stalled debate over a 25% gas export tax and why major tax reform continues to be blocked despite strong economic evidence and growing public support, with many experts warning the nation is getting a poor return on its natural resources. A gas export tax could raise around $20 billion a year to fund health, education, the NDIS, housing and essential public services, yet remains politically sidelined due to the influence of the gas lobby and entrenched vested interests. We explore the ongoing failure to deliver structural reform, including hesitation around negative gearing, and assess whether the Albanese government has the political will to act ahead of the federal Budget, or if Australia will once again miss its chance to secure a fairer tax system and ensure Australians benefit from their own resources. #AUSPOL

www.newpolitics.com.au

Support New Politics:

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Song listing:

• ‘La Femme d’Argent’, AIR.