Politics + Society – Articles, Analysis, Comment – The Conversation

View from The Hill: Budget week punctuated by distractions

Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

For Morrison, budget night itself had been soured by an extraordinarily strong, personal attack on him by one of his backbenchers.

Politics with Michelle Grattan: Next step for Morrison is visit to governor-general

Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

Word from The Hill: Next step for Morrison is visit to governor-general

Michelle Grattan discusses politics with politics + society editor, Amanda Dunn

Politics with Michelle Grattan: Jim Chalmers on the budget Labor can’t oppose

Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

Politics with Michelle Grattan: Jim Chalmers on the budget Labor can’t oppose

Michelle Grattan speaks with shadow treasurer Jim Chalmers about the Morrison government's recent budget.

Budget 2022: the government spends big on its ‘khaki election’ strategy, but neglects diplomacy and other ‘soft’ power

Peter J. Dean, The University of Western Australia

While there has been a big spend on cyber capabilities, many other aspects of defence and security have been neglected. The budget highlights the lack of a comprehensive national security policy.

Budget cuts to the Australian Human Rights Commission couldn’t have come at a worse time

Amy Maguire, University of Newcastle

The Australian Human Rights Commission now faces twin crises of insufficient funding and threats to its global standing.

Protesters rally against against gendered violence and domestic violence in Newcastle on Tuesday. Darren Pateman/AAP

There’s $1.3 billion for women’s safety in the budget and it’s nowhere near enough

Kate Fitz-Gibbon, Monash University and Marie Segrave, Monash University

There is a crisis in women’s safety but the commitments are piecemeal and some aren’t even new.

The coming storm for New Zealand’s future retirees: still renting and not enough savings to avoid poverty

Claire Dale, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau

Old age poverty is looming for thousands of New Zealanders who are going into retirement without a house, without savings and facing high costs of living.

View from The Hill: if money talks, the government has megaphone out

Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

This is a budget for the instant – unashamedly an election bribe, and unconcerned when that involves pursuing some poor policy.

Cheaper petrol, cash handouts in Morrison government’s vote-buying budget

Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

Weeks out from a possible election, the federal government has delivered a voter-friendly budget filled with giveaways

A view of the bow of the Endurance. Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust/National Geographic

Now Shackleton’s Endurance has been found, who determines what happens to the famous shipwreck?

Rebecca Hingley, University of Tasmania

Earlier this month, one of the most famous shipwrecks in history was discovered in a part of Antarctica claimed by multiple nations.

Racism is still an everyday experience for non-white Australians. Where is the plan to stop this?

Fethi Mansouri, Deakin University

Australia is billed as the ‘most successful’ multicultural nation in the world. But almost half of non-white Australians regularly experience racism at work.

Our population is expected to double in 80 years. We asked Australians where they want all these people to live

Julian Bolleter, The University of Western Australia and Robert Freestone, UNSW Sydney

Our survey found strong opposition to Australian megacities, with most people preferring population growth to be in satellite cities and rail hubs outside the capitals.

Calgardup Bushfire burning in Margaret River. DFES Incident Photographer Sean Blocksidge/AAP Image/

Indigenous peoples across the globe are uniquely equipped to deal with the climate crisis – so why are we being left out of these conversations?

Janine Mohamed; Pat Anderson, Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education, and Veronica Matthews, University of Sydney

The urgency of tackling climate change is even higher for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and other First Nation peoples across the globe. They need to be part of the solution.

Budget gives $49.5 million for aged care training, but what about wages?

Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

Tuesday’s budget will provide $49.5 million for aged care training for existing workers and people who want to work in the sector.

Speeding is more common among people regularly exposed to content encouraging speeding

Kayla Stefanidis, University of the Sunshine Coast; James Freeman, University of the Sunshine Coast; Michelle Nicolls, University of the Sunshine Coast, and Verity Truelove, University of the Sunshine Coast

Our findings suggest many people believe they are regularly exposed to pro-speeding content online or via friends, and this might increase their risk of speeding in the real world.

New Zealand’s health restructure is doomed to fall short unless its funding model is tackled first

Robin Gauld, University of Otago

The New Zealand government is set to introduce sweeping reforms to the country’s health system. But without changes in how the system is funded, will the reforms achieve their goals?

Why the Australia-India relationship has nowhere to go but up, despite differences on Russia and trade

Ian Hall, Griffith University

Thanks to a shared wariness over China, Australia and India have grown much closer in recent years. Now, can a free-trade agreement be finalised, as promised, this year?

Morrison wins battle to head off rank-and-file preselections, as government readies to deliver vote-bait budget

Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

Scott Morrison finally got his way at the weekend when the Liberal federal executive agreed to candidates for several key NSW seats being picked by a three-person committee rather than the rank and file having their say

Is banning Russian tennis players from Wimbledon the right call?

Daryl Adair, University of Technology Sydney

The global angst against Putin has been so profound that sport has been compelled to come out behind its customary veil of ‘neutrality’ in political matters.

New bill in NSW could prove crucial to helping reduce numbers of First Nations children in out-of-home care

Terri Libesman, University of Technology Sydney; Eloise Chandler, University of Technology Sydney, and Wendy Hermeston, Swinburne University of Technology

A new bill in NSW seeks to reduce First Nations children in out-of-home care. Before the bill can become law, it must pass the lower house.

The Kumanjayi Walker murder case echoes a long history of police violence against First Nations people

Alison Holland, Macquarie University

In the Northern Territory, fatalities by law enforcement is part of an historic cycle of policing in the north which includes police reprisal and then acquittal for murder.

VIDEO: On budgeting and barnacle-scraping

Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

Michelle Grattan discusses the political week that was with Professor Paddy Nixon, Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Canberra

Saying China ‘bought’ a military base in the Solomons is simplistic and shows how little Australia understands power in the Pacific

Joanne Wallis, University of Adelaide and Czeslaw Tubilewicz, University of Adelaide

A leaked draft security agreement seemingly proves Chinese spending ‘bought’ enough influence to get the Solomon Islands government. But such an interpretation misses two key issues.

Politics with Michelle Grattan: Sarah Ferguson on reporting from Ukraine

Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

Politics with Michelle Grattan: Sarah Ferguson on reporting from Ukraine

Michelle Grattan speaks with ABC journalist Sarah Ferguson about her experiences reporting from Ukraine, how she was able to capture this story, and her views on where the conflict is likely to go from now

UN committee rules anti-lesbian sex laws breach human rights in landmark decision

Paula Gerber, Monash University

All countries that criminalise women having sex with other women should immediately repeal these laws.