"Perestroika” and “glasnost”, the two words that first come to mind when you think of Mikhail Gorbachev. But what was the former president of the Soviet Union’s legacy?

Gorbachev has died, at age 91, and to help us remember this giant of world politics… is national security expert at Curtin University… Alexey Muraviev.

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Don’t know about you, but I don’t know many competent 13 year olds.

Sure, there are some kids that are mature for their age, but the majority are exactly what you’d expect a 13 year old to be. Mostly useless. And I say that with love.

So you know the national skills shortage is getting dire when the peak body for retail in this country thinks the solution is filling shops with 13 year old workers.

The Australian Retailers Association has released a submission to the federal government calling for businesses to be able to tap into willing school-age workers.

I’m glad they added the willing caveat, because the alternative would sound a lot like slavery.

Inconsistency in minimum age regulations across the country should be addressed on a national basis says the ARA.

And their ideal model would allow kids as young as 13 to enter the work force.

What about school, you say?

Well, the ARA does state that there’d have to be some rules in place to prevent this cohort from working during school hours.

So why is this something we should consider?

That’s pretty obvious…

The ARA reckons there are 40 thousand job vacancies in the retail sector right now.

And there’s currently no viable plan for filling them.

So is hiring 13 year olds the answer?

Barnaby Joyce certainly thinks so… because it’ll teach those young uns about the value of hard work… dang it. Thanks, Barnaby.

Well, if it is the answer, there better be some pretty amazing protections for these children.

Because we know how young workers can be exploited in the workplace.

And that exploitation can come in many different forms.

And how well do you think a kid as young as 13 would go at protecting themselves from a dodgy employer, or reporting one.

If you said not very well at all, I reckon you’re probably in the ball park.

But I guess things are so desperate in the jobs market right now… that no strategy can just be dismissed.

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Two teenagers will front court on Wednesday after sending police on a wild pursuit through multiple southern suburbs overnight.

Police claim a 17-year-old and 15-year-old boy were driving a stolen car through multiple suburbs to evade officers, just after midnight on Wednesday morning.

Sunrise correspondent Matt Tinney has the details.

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Work is set to being on the $100 million Eglington Village, as more delays are possible for the Yanchep rail extension.

Sunrise correspondent Matt Tinney has the details.

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The State Government’s claims that Perth Children’s Hospital was properly staffed on the night Aishwarya Aswath died have been proved “patently wrong”, according to AMA (WA) president Dr Mark Duncan-Smith.

As the inquest into the death of the seven-year-old last April continued on Tuesday, evidence of chronic staff shortages — leading to exhaustion and despair — have continued to pile up.

Doctors and nurses on duty that night have all said the shortage of staff had been a major issue for months, raised with hospital bosses — and apparently ignored.

Sunrise correspondent Matt Tinney has the details.

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State and Territory Premiers and Chief Ministers will meet at national cabinet on Wednesday, and one of the topics on the agenda is whether the mandatory COVID isolation period should be cut from seven days to five.

Joining the show to give us an expert opinion on that is head of epidemiological modelling at Monash University Professor James Trauer.

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Five days after WA delivered Anthony Albanese his election victory, The West's federal politics reporter Kimberley Caines asked the new Prime Minister if he would hold his Jobs and Skills Summit in the State.

It made the most sense.

WA’s resources sector keeps the national economy ticking over and the State is one of the worst-impacted by the skills crisis.

To her surprise he told her the summit would “most likely be in Canberra” — a place full of public servants and government bodies.

But now what is even more surprising is only seven West Australians will be in attendance.

That’s seven out of 143 government, industry and union leaders from around the country — so just 4.9 per cent.

WA has been robbed of a fair seat at the table.

And she joins the show to explain what this could mean for WA

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Cameron Smith has gone from hero to villain in the golf world after confirming he's defecting to LIV Golf.

He's expected to get $145 million for the deal

Rumours have been circulating for months that the World No.2 and recent British Open champion was poised to join the Greg Norman-led rebel series, which is controversially funded by $3 billion from Saudi Arabia.

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Nelson Mandela’s grandson has led an international backlash against the Duchess of Sussex over her latest swipes at the Royal Family.

Mr Mandela’s grandson Zwelivelile Mandela said he was “surprised” at Meghan’s claims that a South African actor had told her: “When you married into this family, we rejoiced in the streets the same way we did when Mandela was freed from prison.”

The West Live producer Kate Ryan has the details.

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Airlines often hark on about cleaning their aircraft to the highest standards but a video from a man travelling from Sydney to Perth onboard QF643 on August 10 tells a different tale.

A video shows a Qantas passenger travelling to Perth repeatedly whacking his hand on the seat which causes massive plumes of dust to dislodge from the upholstery. 

A Qantas spokesperson reassured their fleet of aircraft, including the seats, are cleaned after every flight.

The West Live producer Kate Ryan and Ben discuss other places where the seats are gross.

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