Follow The Money

With brave climate leadership, says former South Australian Premier Mike Rann, Anthony Albanese could leave a lasting legacy similar to Bob Hawke with Medicare, Paul Keating with compulsory superannuation and Kevin Rudd with the apology to the Stolen Generations. On this episode of Follow the Money , Mike Rann addresses the fossil fuel industry’s tobacco-like tactics, South Australia’s...

Protecting Australia’s incredible natural environment from bad policy, spurred on corporate interests and a hostile media, can sometimes feel like an impossible task. But sometimes, people power wins out. On this episode of Follow the Money , former head of the Australian Greens Bob Brown joins Ebony Bennett to discuss the irreplaceable beauty of Australia’s natural environment, the cu...

Poor governance, poor policy and decades of neoliberalism have broken Australia’s university sector, with devastating consequences for students and the country. On this episode of Follow the Money , Richard Denniss and Ebony Bennett discuss the lack of accountability in Australia’s universities, why some institutions’ claims of financial crises aren’t supported by their aud...

Australia’s natural environment is in crisis and its wealth is disappearing into the hands of a few powerful fossil fuel companies – but it doesn’t have to be this way. On this episode of Follow the Money , Rod Campbell and Ebony Bennett discuss the lack of political will to properly protect the natural environment, a proposal for a 25% gas export tax to replace the Petroleum Res...

Anthony Albanese’s meeting with Donald Trump was relatively drama-free, but the devil is in the detail when it comes to the president’s ‘commitments’ on AUKUS and critical minerals. On this crossover episode of Follow the Money and After America , Dr Emma Shortis and Ebony Bennett discuss why Australia is still unlikely to receive any Virginia-class submarines, why the &ldq...

Environment laws that don’t stop new gas and coal are like putting screen doors on a submarine. On this episode of Follow the Money , Leanne Minshull and Ebony Bennett discuss the Federal Government’s efforts to push through changes to Australia’s busted environment laws with the support of the Coalition. Dead Centre: How political pragmatism is killing us by Richard Denniss is a...

If Australia just collected the OECD average in tax, the government would have an extra $130 billion a year to spend on essential services like health and education. On this episode of Follow the Money , Matt Grudnoff and Ebony Bennett discuss the latest data from the Australian Taxation Office showing that 30 per cent of large corporations paid no company tax in 2023-24 – with the gas, coal...

With the international order changing rapidly, there’s never been a more important time for effective Australian diplomacy. On this episode of Follow the Money , Dr Emma Shortis and Glenn Connley discuss Anthony Albanese’s major diplomatic tour, the US Defense Secretary’s concerning warning to his top brass, and why the Trump-Netanyahu peace plan seems “doomed to fail&rdquo...

One and a half million Australians could be at risk from rising sea levels, yet the Government continues to approve new climate destroying fossil fuel projects. On this episode of Follow the Money , Australia Institute Executive Director Richard Denniss joins Ebony Bennett to discuss the National Climate Risk Assessment, the Government’s new emissions reduction targets, and its disastrous de...

Former Senator Doug Cameron calls on the federal government to reject “warmongering” and abandon the AUKUS deal. On this episode of Follow the Money , former Labor Senator for New South Wales Doug Cameron speaks about the Australia-US relationship, the “madness” of AUKUS, and how the federal government can prepare for peace – not war. The 2025 Laurie Carmichael Lectur...

The government’s proposed changes to freedom of information laws represent a “serious attack” on Australia’s democracy, according to former Senator Rex Patrick. On this episode of Follow the Money , transparency advocate Rex Patrick and Australia Institute Democracy & Accountability Director Bill Browne to discuss the failing freedom of information system and why the pr...

With large language models threatening to swamp Australia’s traditional media, a little bit of government funding could go a long way to protect public interest journalism . On this episode of Follow the Money , Clive Marshall, former CEO of the Press Association (UK), and Emma Cowdroy, Acting CEO of Australian Associated Press, join Australia Institute Executive Director Richard Denniss to...

The colossal price rises on the east coast, brought on by excessive gas exports, have been a disaster for Australian manufacturers and households. On this episode of Follow the Money , manufacturing industry representative Geoff Crittenden and Australia Institute Principal Advisor Mark Ogge join Ebony Bennett to discuss how governments can ensure there’s more gas available for Australians. D...

The Prime Minister hosed down expectations ahead of the economic roundtable, but a serious reform package must include changes to tax policy. On this episode of Follow the Money , Senior Economist Matt Grudnoff joins Ebony Bennett to discuss the Government’s economic roundtable, why taxing wealth more effectively would make Australians better off, and why removing as-yet-unnamed ‘red t...

The search for the “sensible centre” in Australia politics is pointless and flies in the face of evidence, says Richard Denniss. On this episode of Follow the Money , Richard Denniss joins Ebony Bennett to discuss why the constant search for the centre ground doing Australians harm, why bipartisanship can actually be bad, and his new essay, Dead Centre . Dead Centre: How political prag...

From Gaza to AUKUS, pressure for change is building on Australian foreign policy. On this special crossover episode of Follow the Money and After America , Dr Emma Shortis joins Glenn Connley to discuss the Australian protests calling for more action to protect Palestinians, the momentum against the troubled AUKUS submarine pact, and Trump’s decision to fire his chief of labour statistics af...

Nearly three decades after the Port Arthur massacre, there are more guns than ever before in Australia and there is still no national firearms register. On this episode of Follow the Money , Alice Grundy and Skye Predavec join Ebony Bennett to discuss how the Howard Government’s brave reforms in the aftermath of the Port Arthur massacre are falling short of its aims – and what federal,...

Tasmanians have returned another power-sharing parliament – it’s now up to the major parties to make it work. Australians have elected power-sharing parliaments in New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory and Tasmania – and a single party almost never has a majority in the federal Senate. On this episode of Follow the Money , Leanne Minshull and Eloise Carr join Ebony Be...

Amy Remeikis and Matt Grudnoff preview the first parliamentary sitting week. On this episode of Follow the Money , Amy Remeikis and Matt Grudnoff join Ebony Bennett discuss the political relevance of the housing crisis, the storm-in-a-teacup over some Treasury subheadings, and #NotAllEconomists. You can sign our petition calling on the Australian Government to launch a parliamentary inquiry into A...

By limiting generous tax concessions for the wealthy and collecting revenue from Australia’s natural resources, the Government could fund health and education systems that work properly. On this episode of Follow the Money , Matt Grudnoff joins Ebony Bennett discuss Government’s productivity agenda, why the GST is failing to do the job it was designed for, and how 91 millionaires manag...

Labor won big and the Coalition got “smashed”, but the major parties have never been more reliant on preferences. On this episode of Follow the Money , Bill Browne joins Ebony Bennett discuss the extraordinary scale of Labor’s victory in the May federal election, what the devastating result might mean for the Coalition, and why a large crossbench in federal parliament could be he...

Despite demands from the hawks that the Australia Government fall in line with the United States over Iran, it’s not inevitable that Australia supports illegal American military intervention. On this episode of Follow the Money , Dr Emma Shortis and Allan Behm join Ebony Bennett to discuss the American bombing of Iran, the Albanese Government’s choice to back the Trump Administration&r...

By reviewing the deal, Trump has given the Australian Government an opportunity to get out of the disastrous AUKUS agreement. On this episode of Follow the Money , Allan Behm joins Ebony Bennett to discuss the Trump administration’s decision to review the AUKUS submarine deal, why Australia doesn’t need American Virginia-class boats anyway, and why the Australian and American governmen...

A housing crisis, accelerating climate change and widening inequality all confront the re-elected Albanese Government, but the solutions exist (and often aren’t that complicated). The government is confronting major challenges in its second term. But despite what we’re often told, there is no shortage of solutions – governments just need the courage to implement them. On this epi...

The Murujuga site in north-western Australia is potentially the most important rock art site in the world, but it’s being destroyed by rampant industrial development. On this episode of Follow the Money , Walkley Award-winning journalist Stephen Long and Elinor Johnston-Leek discuss the Federal Government’s decision to sign a provisional extension to Woodside’s North West Shelf g...