Today, Richard Denniss, chief economist at The Australia Institute, will be reading his cover story from the latest edition of The Monthly.
It's called 'The needle and the damage done', and in it, he argues that the federal government’s handling of the pandemic has been the worst public policy failure in Australian history. 
Guest: Richard Denniss, chief economist at The Australia Institute.
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The Weekend Read: Richard Denniss on the worst policy failure in Australian history

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There are strict rules around how drug company representatives can interact with doctors to ensure they aren’t influencing how medications are prescribed.
But when it comes to expensive medical devices inserted in our bodies during surgery – all sorts of screws, pacemakers and implants – those same rules don’t apply.
Medical device sales reps are scrubbed up and working in the operating theatre, even advising surgeons on which products to use.
Today, national correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe, on whether the pursuit of profit risks driving clinical decisions.

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Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Mike Seccombe

How sales reps infiltrated operating theatres

There’s an old adage in Canberra: every first-term government gets a second chance.
But when voters head to the polls next year, could the current Labor government be an exception?
With so many Australians feeling the cost-of-living crisis, and the government facing a slump in the polls, evidence is mounting that Labor will struggle to retain majority government.
So what’s its strategy to change course?
Today, special correspondent in Canberra for The Saturday Paper Jason Koutsoukis, on why Labor appears so calm in turbulent times.

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﻿Guest: Special correspondent in Canberra for The Saturday Paper Jason Koutsoukis

‘A race towards minority’: Inside Labor’s re-election strategy

When Australia’s eSafety commissioner issued takedown orders to some of the world’s biggest tech companies at the beginning of this week, the commissioner probably didn’t realise it would put us on the frontline of a global battle over the internet.
The orders were aimed at removing the kind of footage social media companies have agreed to remove in the past – but today things are very different, in large part because of Elon Musk.
Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno, on why Elon Musk and his fans turned on Australia and how one Senator in particular, ended up in the firing line.

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Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno.

Australia v Elon Musk: Can our politicians really take on the tech billionaire?

The wait for elective surgery in our public hospitals is longer than ever, but it seems there’s a way to jump the queue.
If you can afford to pay for private care in a public hospital, you might find yourself being offered more perks than just a free bathrobe and some slippers.
Today, lawyer and contributor to The Monthly Russell Marks, on whether our public health system is truly fair and what happens when your own child’s health is on the line.

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Guest: Lawyer and contributor to The Monthly, Russell Marks

'Outrageous and probably illegal': Offers to skip the queue at public hospitals

An attack at a Western Sydney church last week was inextricably linked to social media.
The bishop who was stabbed is a social media celebrity, the attack itself was live-streamed, and both the attack and the reaction may have been inflamed by online extremism.
The Australian government is so concerned it has picked a fight with the global social media giants X and Meta, ordering them to pull down content about the attack.
Today, counter-terrorism expert and Lowy Institute fellow Lydia Khalill, on the attack, whether it was an act of terrorism and how we can do more to prevent extremism.

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Guest: Project director of the Lowy Institute’s Digital Threats to Democracy Project and expert on counter-terrorism, Lydia Khalil

The Weekend Read: Richard Denniss on the worst policy failure in Australian history

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