Perth Dialogues

Sayed Barkat Hussainizada is a Sydney-based community advocate, actor and founder of RexTech Marketing Agency, and a founding member of the Afghan Fajar Association. At 12 years old, Sayed Hussainizada fled Afghanistan with his family in the dead of night. Today he's played a lead role in a feature film about asylum seekers, founded a community organisation, built his own marketing agency, and...

A $4.2 billion WA Government bond matures October 21, 2026. WA collects $10 billion a year in mining royalties — but sends $30 billion a year to Canberra. Independent MLA Jonathan Huston joins Perth Dialogues to explain how Western Australia's tax system really works, and what one bold reform could change everything. Jonathan Huston is the Independent Member for Nedlands in the WA Legislative...

With one average salary in 2005, you could buy 2.5kg of gold. In 2025, half a kilogram. 90% of the UK's printed press is owned by three companies. 40% of American voters identify with neither major party. Author Metin Pekin (Breaking Democracy's Chains: Freeing and Fortifying Democracy Against Hidden Capture) joins Perth Dialogues to make the case that it isn't any one party letting vo...

"The state has not given them those rights yet." That's what Deng Xiaoping reportedly told a reporter after Tiananmen Square — and it's the moment that shapes how today's guest thinks about where human rights actually come from. WA Parliament has opened every sitting day with the Lord's Prayer since 1928. A WA Labor MP now wants to replace it with a moment of silent reflection. Returning guest Pro...

The United Nations calendar has 15 days dedicated to women and girls. It has zero for men and boys. That, says David Maywald, is where this conversation starts — not with grievance, but with an audit. In Australia he points to six times more public spending on women's medical research than men's, almost one million children growing up without an actively involved father, and male teachers...

In 2018, the Australian Senate ran an inquiry into dowry abuse. Among the submissions was one from an organisation based 8,000km away in New Delhi — arguing Australia should not introduce a dowry law at all. Wasif Ali co-founded that organisation. In this conversation he explains why. WHAT WE COVER - How an engineer became a men's rights activist after his own marriage broke down - What Men We...

$50,000 invested in 2011 could be worth $9.4 million today. Almost no Australian would have made that bet. Mihir Bhatt is the founder of Artha Academy, a Perth-based share-market education platform. In this conversation he makes the case — as one voice among many, not as personal financial advice — for why Australians, and migrant communities in particular, tend to put everything into one asset cl...

A Victorian court recently ruled that a vaginal examination performed without consent during labour was assault and battery. Dr Marian Dover says it's the most important case in her specialty in years — and she has strong views on why it happened. She was also told, as a child, that she was "less worthy as a human." Dr Marian Dover's family fled religious persecution in Egypt whe...

A West Australian council spent an estimated $180,000 a year on disputes it never actually resolved. One ratepayer was prosecuted for pulling weeds and planting native trees — then billed for his own prosecution. Gavin Waugh is the founder of the Melville Shadow Council, a volunteer-run "council in waiting" set up to hold the City of Melville accountable between elections. In this conver...

His maiden speech in Parliament became the first in Australian history banned from YouTube. Then it hit three million views. John Ruddick — NSW Legislative Council MLC, Sky News regular, and free speech absolutist — joins Perth Dialogues to talk about what actually got him banned, the High Court challenge he's leading against the government's under-16 social media ban, and his answer to a...

He was a team lead in India. In Australia, he had to start over as a junior developer — and rebuild his way to Chief Data Officer. In this episode, Harpreet Khalsa — Chief Data Officer at a Perth university and author of The Data Playbook — joins Nirmal Singh to trace a 20-year journey from web developer to enterprise data and AI leadership. Harpreet shares his journey of restarting a career as a...

Australia took 2 million migrants in 25 years after World War II. In the last five years alone, we've taken another 2 million. Same number — one-fifth the time. Is our multicultural framework built for that pace?"Multiculturalism has turned into a dogma — something that cannot be questioned." When the editor of a new book on immigration dares to ask the hard questions, the answers ar...

Garth Davis turned a $1,000 property deposit into $170,000 in equity — and he's spent the last 20 years helping everyday Australians do the same. Garth Davis is the Founder and CEO of Property Powerhouse, who emigrated from Zimbabwe to Perth in 2002 and has spent over 20 years helping more than 500 mum-and-dad investors build property portfolios across Australia. In this conversation, Garth an...

Australia is $1.05 trillion in debt, taxing you at nearly 47% — and the government wants more. Jordan Woodhams, President of the Libertarian Party of WA, joins Nirmal on Perth Dialogues to make the case for a 20% flat tax, smaller government, and why Australia's red tape is now worse than India's corruption. They also reveal a surprising truth: once welfare transfers are included, the bott...

His family arrived in New Zealand from India with $1,000. His mum stitched curtains. His dad took years to find work as an engineer. By 36, PK Gupta owned a $27 million property portfolio and never has to work again. Today he tells me the whole story — the banker years, the data system, the real mistakes, and why he says if the government axed every property tax concession tomorrow, he'd actua...

Western Australia is a wealthy state. It also has mothers giving birth on the side of the road after being turned away from hospital. How does that happen — and who is being held accountable? In this episode, health advocate Suresh Rajan joins us to expose the systemic failures quietly costing lives in WA's public health system: ignored bypass protocols, cultural and communication barriers, a...

Why are record numbers of Australians abandoning the major parties for One Nation — and what does that tell us about the state of our democracy? In this episode, Simon Mohiuddin joins Perth Dialogues to share his political journey, his support for One Nation, and his views on the issues he believes mainstream politics refuses to address honestly: voter trust, national identity, migration policy, a...

Australia's maternity system has one of the highest caesarean rates in the developed world — yet women still feel unheard, unsafe, and unsupported. Alicia Staines, founder of the Maternity Consumer Network, joins Perth Dialogues to explain why, and what genuine reform looks like. Whether you're pregnant, a midwife, a policymaker, or simply someone who cares about how women are treated in o...

In this conversation, Jen Fleming outlines how the current Australian Childcare system doesn’t include parents in its design, or gives any kind of choice to parents. Jen is a mum to two young daughters and has firsthand experience of the difficulty many Australian families face in trying to fit rigid childcare arrangements around work and family life. Her frustration with the existing system, whic...

In this conversation, Sergio Famiano outlines the historical roots of the rise and later unravelling of the Australian Housing Dream and how decades of decisions shape today’s problems. Sergio Famiano is an expert in Town Planning and leader in the planning and delivery of complex projects and author of the book ‘The New Australian Dream: Rethinking our homes and cities to solve the housing crisis...

In this conversation, Rash Dhanjal, a top-performing real estate agent and director at The Agency in Perth, Western Australia, delves into the current state of the housing market in Western Australia. With median house prices soaring to a million dollars and a housing crisis looming, he sheds light on the factors driving these changes and how buyers can still buy their first home. Join Rash Dhanja...

Sergio Famiano is an expert in Town Planning and leader in the planning and delivery of complex projects and author of the book ‘The New Australian Dream: Rethinking our homes and cities to solve the housing crisis’. In this conversation, Sergio delves into the Australian housing crisis, exploring its historical roots, economic impacts, and potential policy solutions. The discussion highlights the...

Professor Matthew Ogilvie is an Australian theologian and academic known for his work on Catholic identity, education, and the Catholic intellectual tradition. He serves as a professor of theology at the University of Notre Dame Australia and has previously held leadership roles such as dean within its School of Philosophy and Theology. Prof Ogilvie is also the Chair of Friends of Israel WA and a...

Vern Hughes is an Australian civil society advocate, social entrepreneur, and political organiser known for his work in community-based reform and centrist politics. He has been active for several decades in efforts to strengthen citizen participation and rebuild trust in democratic institutions. Join Vern Hughes at https://www.linkedin.com/in/vern-hughes-92341119/ Know about the host, Nirmal Sing...

Mark Ratcliff is a Communications Specialist and Educator with a background in systems thinking, content creation, mentoring and teaching. With qualifications in Sustainable Development and International Aid, and broad theoretical and practical experience, he understands the importance of honest and effective communication for any individual growth, organisational change or sustainable venture. Ma...