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The ABC's politics podcast, Politics Now, dives into the biggest political stories in Australia and around the world, giving you a balanced look inside the strategies and decisions behind the headlines. Whenever major news breaks, we'll be in your feed with coverage you can trust.
From Monday to Wednesday, Patricia Karvelas will chat to a rotating cast of the ABC's biggest political journalists about the latest news.
On Thursdays, 'The Party Room' with Patricia Karvelas and Fran Kelly will discuss the week's developments in depth with another journalist, and answer your questions.
On Saturdays, David Speers gets into the details of a major trend or issue with the help of an expert on 'Insiders On Background'.
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A blow to 'nasty' politics
The US Democrats have taken control of both the House and the Senate, in what's been labelled a "blue tsunami" and a "Republican shellacking". It was an election race watched closely across the globe, and with some possible lessons for Aust
What the US midterms mean for Australia
As the results of the US midterm elections start to roll in, Treasurer Jim Chalmers has warned there could be economic consequences for Australia. The Treasurer says Australians are "the cost‑of‑living casualties of decisions taken in D.C.
Does Labor have any 'hope' to sell?
As households brace for possible fifth interest rate rise this year, Labor ministers have been trying to manage expectations. Raf thinks the Albanese Government is struggling to sell its economic narrative, noting people inside Labor as wel
Is Albo starting to sound like Scomo?
Tensions have emerged between the Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, as cost of living pressures continue to bite. The Treasurer has played down the claims, but stability and unity have been hallmarks of the Albanes
Australia's broken mental health system
Professor Pat McGorry, Executive Director of Orygen, tells David Speers in this week's Insiders: On Background State and Federal governments share responsibility for the failing system.
Victoria: Is Dan Andrews the ex we can't get over?
South of the Murray, ghosts of premiers past loom over the current leaders. What influence are Dan Andrews and Jeff Kennett still having on the way Victorians vote? And has the media already picked a side to campaign for? Raf Epstein and He
Can anyone land the economic message?
Is Australia about to enter a period of "long economic pain"? Stubborn inflation and the prospect of another interest rate rise next week is putting fresh pressure on the Albanese government. Treasurer Jim Chalmers is facing calls to rein i
Bad inflation, a Greens tax and stinky grants
Australia's latest inflation figures are in, and it's not good news. Inflation ran hotter than expected in September, raising the prospect of another interest rate rise next week. So can the Albanese government reshape its economic narrativ
A major economic fight is brewing
The Coalition has finally put some numbers on its plans to cut government spending, identifying more than $30 billion in proposed savings. But every cut comes at a cost. So what is Angus Taylor signalling would get the chop, and who would f
A morning of tributes, a week of tension
"We look forward to the day you return to this place, and I get to say the following nine words: 'I give the call to the member for Indi.'" Parliament is back and tearful tributes to Helen Haines have brought a rare moment of unity across t
Mathias Cormann’s prescription for tackling grievance politics
Former Finance Minister and now OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann says the cost-of-living crunch is fuelling frustration and pulling voters to populist parties.
Victoria: Messiahs and naughty boys
Victoria's political leaders are fessing up to drug taking and not paying for petrol. The major parties aren't banning abortion, but instead competing to make abortion free. Politics has changed. The tectonic plates of politics are shifting
A kinder, gentler politics
The devastating alleged attack on independent MP Helen Haines has sent shock waves through Australian politics across the week. Urgent questions about the safety of our elected representatives, and the state of political debate, are being a
How do we change the political tone?
How do you keep politicians safe without shutting the public out? Following the alleged attack on Helen Haines, calls for greater protection are growing, as MPs grapple with the threats that come with public life - while the motive behind t
Has politics changed forever?
"This wasn't an accident. This was a deliberate act.” Stark words have been shared by the Prime Minister following a devastating alleged attack on Independent MP Helen Haines yesterday afternoon, who remains in a critical condition. As Aust
An ugly internal Greens war
Tensions inside the Greens are boiling over. WA Senator Jordon Steele-John says rumours about his conduct are being weaponised for political purpose - allegations he strongly denies. Now he’s taken to social media to insist he’s “not on lea
Is the government losing the trust of small business? | Insiders On Background
After prompting an intervention from the Prime Minister over the ATO's controversial credit card ban, ACCI chief executive Andrew McKellar unpacks the fallout and the government's impending trust tax changes.
Victoria! One Nation! A state election question bonanza
It’s Question Time - and not just any Question Time - a Victorian state election special! With one of the most consequential state elections of 2026 fast approaching, Victoria has been on your minds. So PK and Fran enlist friend of the podc
A sitting week with spooks and ghosts
It’s been a strange sitting week in Canberra, with the Albanese government trying to push through a packed legislative agenda - only to find itself repeatedly dragged onto political ground it hadn’t planned for. Labor was slow out of the bl
Got a problem? Just text the PM
Are the Prime Minister and his treasurer working together, or are they being played off against one other? Midway through a sitting week, the government has managed to put itself back in the firing line with small business over the ATO’s on
'Spicy' late night letters about an AI world
The political fight is moving more and more online. AI companies want to build, train and expand in Australia, but the welcome mat now comes with conditions - including from a bipartisan committee sending letters pushing for tougher rules a
Is Josh Frydenberg back?
Parliament is back for another sitting week and Jacob Greber is back on the podcast! But as Jacob tells PK, it's already looking like a "tricky" week for the Albanese government, with no clear passage for their legislative agenda. And PK th
Migration cuts: what's at stake for Australia's universities?
Professor Carolyn Evans is the Chair of Universities Australia and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Melbourne.
The 'raw politics' of immigration
While the government faces criticism from all sides over its economic management after the latest RBA cash rate hike, the Coalition is pitching dramatic cuts to immigration as a way to ease voters' economic pain. But can either major party
Labor doesn't want a fight on immigration
Opposition leader Angus Taylor has undertaken a media blitz, as he tries to sell the Coalition's immigration policy. But he's already facing significant backlash from the business sector, who are warning of the implications for economic gro
Angus Taylor tries to 'outbid' Pauline Hanson
Opposition leader Angus Taylor has unveiled the Coalition's immigration policy, promising the "biggest cut to immigration in the history of this country". PK tells Raf she sees this as the Coalition attempting to "outbid" One Nation on immi
Is the 'sensible centre' dead?
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen are in Fiji for pre-COP talks. But back home the Opposition has labelled the high-level climate talks a "farce" and criticised Labor's investment during a cost of livin
Should the Greens work with Labor or try to replace it? | Insiders On Background
Former Greens leader, Adam Bandt, now chief executive of the Australian Conservation Foundation, says working with the government is key to delivering reform.
Albanese's selfie diplomacy
It's Question Time! But first, Fran does a West Wing welfare check on PK (she's in the slump part of the series). And then it's over to your brilliant questions, including: Is it bad for brand for Anthony Albanese to snap selfies with Donal
Inflation is up. Labor's mojo is down
The economy has been the key story of the political week, with an interest rate rise and some less than rosy inflation figures compounding Labor's economic woes. A war over words emerged over a discrepancy in the "emphasis" RBA Governor and
