Wake Up Australia

Listen to the full show podcast with Michael Mclaren

Michael talks to Nick Abrahim, NSW Taxi Council Deputy Chief Executive Officer with today being the 90th anniversary since the introduction of the sedan taxi cab in Sydney.

 

The taxi we know today is based on the taximeter, which was originally invented in 1891 by German Friedrich Wilhelm Gustav Bruhn. A taximeter is an instrument which measures the time or distance a vehicle travels thus allowing a fare to be determined accurately.

 

Australia adopted horse-drawn taxis once cities were established and, in the case of Queensland, Brisbane introduced the first horse-drawn taxis which plied throughout the city.

 

These also included hansom cabs, a more elaborate type with a closed-in cabin for passengers with two small front doors and glass windows and their driver sitting high at the back.

 

Motor taxis were introduced into Australia not long after they were put into service in the United Kingdom and Europe. In 1906 Sydney inaugurated motorised taxis, followed soon after by the other states.

 

Sedan taxis were added 1929 and included similar makes of vehicles. This was the case with all cars being imported into Australia until World War 11, American cars proving more suitable to Australian motoring conditions, especially for taxis.

Listen to the full show podcast with Luke Grant filling in for Michael Mclaren

Listen to the full show podcast with Luke Grant filling in for Michael Mclaren

Luke Grant talks to Peter Switzer from switzer.com.au following the Reserve Bank's decision to cut interest rates to 1%.., and what will this mean for those retirees who have their cash invested in interest-bearing investments such as bank accounts &  term deposits.

RBA governor Philip Lowe said that further cuts could be on the way if the jobless rate does not improve.

"Given the circumstances, the board is prepared to adjust interest rates again if needed to get us closer to full employment and achieve the inflation target," Lowe said.

Listen to the full show podcast with Luke Grant filling in for Michael Mclaren

Luke Grants talks to Jason Smith, fifth generation dairy farmer & former Young Farmer of the Year, about the extreme stress put on our farmers due to the effects of skyrocketing feed & water costs, inconsistent milk prices and the ongoing drought.

"If you look at the figures of the families lost to our industry in the last 18 months and the coming 12 months, you would have never seen an exodus of dairy farmers like it ever," he says.

Luke Grant talks to Rex Patrick, Senator for South Australia – Centre Alliance, who is one of the key senate crossbenchers demanding the Morrison government come up with a plan to stop Australia's exorbitant energy price rises before supporting the Coalition's signature $158 billion income tax cut.

Centre Alliance, which has two votes in the Senate, also wants measures to reduce gas prices and supports changing the Australian domestic gas security mechanism to ensure a surplus of supply in the market.

Listen to the full show podcast with Luke Grant filling in for Michael Mclaren

Luke Grant talks to Robert Gottliebsen, Business Columnist with The Australian, about his latest article in The Australia ‘Feral bank officials dampen property spark.’

He writes ‘the fire of optimism that swept Australia after the May 18 Scott Morrison election win has well and truly faded in new housing developments and retail.’

‘If you are pregnant or show any interest in having a family, you often become akin to a criminal suspect and are shown no mercy in income and expenditure questioning.’

“High Melbourne and Sydney auction clearance rates indicate that there is still spark in the May 18 embers but that will be tested when the supply of dwellings hitting the market rises as we approach spring.”