7am

Donald Trump and Xi Jinping have met face-to-face for the first time in six years.  The meeting, on the sidelines of the APEC summit, comes at a time of deep tensions between the world’s two largest economies. Tariffs are soaring, critical minerals are being weaponised and the battle over tech dominance is reshaping global supply chains.  Trump likes quick wins, while Xi likes playing the longer game – and for Australia the stakes couldn’t be higher, as we rely on China for our prosperity and the US for our security. Today, host of the ABC podcast Global Roaming, Hamish Macdonald, on the fallout from the meeting between the world’s two superpowers, and what it means for Australia.   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Host of the ABC podcast Global Roaming Hamish Macdonald Photo: AP Photo/Mark SchiefelbeinSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Anthony Albanese’s $13 billion critical minerals deal with Donald Trump has been touted as a huge win – one that strengthens our relationship with our most powerful ally – and delivers massive US investment in our national interest. But while Australia and the US talk it up as a blow to China’s stranglehold on these important commodities, questions remain about the cost: to our communities, to our environment, our health – and the economy. Today, Professor Susan Park from the University of Sydney, on what’s actually in our critical minerals deal – and how Trump’s quest for rare earths will come at Australia’s expense.   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Professor of Global Governance in International Relations, University of Sydney, Susan Park Photo: AAP Image/Lukas CochSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tech giants have invested billions into AI – and are looking for ways to get a return.  So when Microsoft offered its customers its new AI function “co-pilot” recently, it told them they’d need to pay a higher price for their subscription – or cancel. AI was now part of the deal, whether they wanted it or not. Except it wasn't. Now, the ACCC is suing Microsoft – alleging they intentionally misled customers to make them believe they had to pay more. It’s part of a bigger campaign to crack down on big tech’s subscription tactics. So can the regulator take on a 6 trillion dollar company and win?  Today, principle of Good Company Law Hannah Marshall on the ACCC’s David and Goliath battle to make Microsoft pay – and what needs to change to protect customers from tricky price hikes. If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support. Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Principle of Good Company Law Hannah MarshallSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Joshua Brown was arrested for allegedly abusing children at childcare centers across Melbourne, it exposed a horrifying reality: patchwork regulation and an understaffed, profit-driven industry is failing children. Months on, as state and federal governments try to deal with the fallout – and as the Albanese government pumps record investment into the early childhood sector – experts say children still aren’t safe in childcare. Today, crime reporter at The Age Sherryn Groch on the tension between rapid business growth – and child safety – at the heart of the childcare sector. And just a warning this episode discusses allegations of child sex abuse.  If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support. Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Crime reporter at The Age Sherryn Groch Photo: AAP Image/Joel CarrettSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The National Anti-Corruption Commission has over 200 employees, an annual budget of $60 million, and has received more than 5,000 referrals. It also hasn’t made a single major corruption finding in the two years it’s been operating. And adding to questions around performance and credibility, it was recently revealed that the NACC’s Chief Commissioner, Paul Brereton, has been consulting for the Defence Force while leading the federal watchdog – which has oversight of the ADF. Today, journalist Nick Feik on the missteps and mismanagement of the NACC, and whether it has any hope of regaining public trust.   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Journalist Nick Feik. Photo: AAP Image/Mick TsikasSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Anthony Albanese met with Donald Trump, the two leaders cut a deal on critical minerals worth $13 billion. And as we settle into a new phase of the relationship with our most important ally – this is Australia’s crucial bargaining chip, as the US tries to break China’s grip on the supply chain of critical minerals.China’s global domination has been in the works for decades – a grand plan that gives China ready access to materials essential for everything from fighter jets to wind turbines. It also gives Beijing extraordinary leverage over Western economies and defence forces.Today, columnist for Australian Foreign Affairs Ian Verrender, on China’s long game on critical minerals domination – and the old pile of mining waste in Western Australia which could upend it. This episode was originally published in July 2025. If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Columnist for Australian Foreign Affairs, Ian VerrenderSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Barnaby Joyce has announced he would not recontest his seat of New England, saying his “relationship with the leadership of the Nationals in Canberra has unfortunately, like a sadness in some marriages, irreparably broken down”. People are now guessing whether his flirtation with One Nation will turn into marriage. So does the former Nationals leader belong in Pauline Hanson’s party – and will he be any happier there? Today, journalist and founder of Rampart News, Joe Aston, on whether this is the end of Barnaby’s turbulent career in politics – or the start of a new chapter.   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Journalist and founder of Rampart News, Joe Aston Photo: AAP Image/Lukas CochSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“We are in this together… we’ll play some more soon.” That’s what Prince Andrew wrote to Jeffrey Epstein in 2011 – the day after a photo of Andrew with accuser Virginia Giuffre hit the papers. The email undercuts the prince’s claim that the two had cut ties in 2010, and is part of a new stream of documents surfacing as US Congress releases tens of thousands of pages from the Epstein files. And as the revelations about Prince Andrew keep coming – he’s now dropped his titles and royal honors. Today, reporter and author of The Lasting Harm: Witnessing the Trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, Lucia Osborne-Crowley, on the scandals enveloping Prince Andrew, and whether we should expect more to come out about people in Epstein’s orbit.   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Author of The Lasting Harm: Witnessing the Trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, Lucia Osborne-CrowleySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Professor Christian Downie appeared before a Senate inquiry into climate and energy misinformation, he warned that Australia is facing coordinated campaigns designed not to debate climate solutions, but to stall them. Professor Downie has spent years inside boardrooms and the lobbying world studying how these campaigns are built – tracing the billions spent on messaging by lobby groups, PR firms and think tanks – and outlining what he calls “the climate obstruction playbook”. It’s a strategy refined in Washington and increasingly echoed in Australia. Today, Professor at ANU’s School of Regulation and Global Governance and Director of the Governing Energy Transition Lab, Christian Downie, on how the obstruction playbook has been so successful in stopping action on climate change. If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support. Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Professor at ANU’s School of Regulation and Global Governance and Director of the Governing Energy Transition Lab, Christian Downie Photo: REUTERS/Pascal RossignolSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Anthony Albanese was so chuffed with his meeting with US President Donald Trump that the prime minister joked he’d use Trump’s endorsement in his next campaign ads. While Trump is used to a procession of world leaders coming through his door, there was more at stake for Albanese, who is trying to manage an increasingly difficult relationship. In the end, the two leaders struck a major critical minerals agreement that will see billions in US investment pumped into Australia, and made assurances the AUKUS deal is on track. But there are lingering questions about what that deal will mean for our relationship with China and whether AUKUS will really go ‘full steam ahead’. Today, press gallery journalist Karen Middleton on what went on inside the room when the two leaders met, and what it all means for the Australia–US alliance. If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support. Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Press gallery journalist, Karen Middleton Photo: AP Photo/Evan VucciSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Donald Trump met Vladimir Putin in Alaska back in August, he rolled out the red carpet, talked up his ability to end the war, but ultimately came away with no deal. Now, high off his recent Middle East peace deal, Trump is saying he’s “gotta get Russia done”. He met with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky last week – and he’s preparing another face-to-face with Putin. So what would it take to end the war? Today, associate professor of political science and international affairs at George Washington University David Szakonyi, on the offers Putin is making Trump and what they’ll mean for the people of Ukraine.  If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support. Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Associate professor of political science and international affairs at George Washington University David Szakonyi Photo: GRIGORY SYSOEV /SPUTNIK / KREMLIN POOLSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Charlie Lewis writes about politics for Crikey.  He’s been a close observer of Tony Abbott – from his time as a Liberal Party bomb thrower, to his face-offs with Julia Gillard, to his short ‘Prince Philip-themed’ time as prime minister. Now, Charlie’s tracking Abbott’s political afterlife: which brings him to Sydney’s affluent Northern Beaches, and the launch of the former prime minister’s new book: Australia – A History.  The book is seen by many as Abbott’s attempt to counter a “black armband” view of our country’s history – and give a more celebratory take. It’s part of a broader effort by Abbott to continue shaping Australia, which he does through his connections in some parts of the media and his behind-the-scenes manoeuverings within the Liberal Party. You can read Charlie Lewis’ reporting here.   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Crikey reporter Charlie Lewis  Photo: Nina Liashonok/Ukrinform/Sipa USASee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From afar, Alice Springs is a whirlpool of myth and truth. A town with competing interests and few solutions, marked by chaos and decades of government overreach.  That all came to a head earlier last year, with what’s been described as a “youth riot” in town. The violence led to the Northern Territory government imposing an emergency curfew.  This is when the headlines started: in cities and towns across Australia, we read about a “crisis” about “rampages”. One newspaper described the kids here as “tiny menaces stuck on a turnstile of trouble”. In this first episode of our three part series This is Alice Springs Daniel James visits the town at the heart of our nation, to find out how all the interventions, big and small, by governments of all persuasions have led to this chaos. What he finds is that almost all of it leads back to one thing. This series was originally published in October 2024. Socials: Stay in touch with us on Twitter and Instagram Guest: Hosted and reported by Daniel James See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Police are everywhere in Alice Springs. You see them driving pursuit vehicles and caged vans on the streets, or stationed outside the bottle shop checking IDs. But more police doesn’t mean less crime – it just means more people are getting locked up. As Alice Springs reels from the police shooting of Warlpiri teenager Kumanjayi Walker, and in the wake of an apology from the Northern Territory Police Commissioner Michael Murphy for systemic racism, Daniel James wants to find out whether it's possible to mend the broken relationship between the coppers and the Indigenous community. In the second episode of our three part series, Daniel visits the police headquarters to meet the Arrernte woman tasked with one of the most challenging jobs in Alice Springs – to fix the culture inside the police force.  This series was originally published in October 2024. Socials: Stay in touch with us on Twitter and Instagram Guest: Hosted and reported by Daniel James See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Alice Springs is littered with “For Sale” signs as those who can afford it are packing up and leaving. Punitive government curfews made daily life more challenging, and families struggle to see a future for themselves if things continue the way they are. With the Country Liberal Party elected on a promise to be even tougher on crime – and lowering the age of criminal responsibility to 10 years old – more government interventions are on the way. But there’s also the story of those who stay to help set young people on a different path and reconnect with Country. In the final instalment of the three part series This is Alice Springs, Daniel James heads to a station in the MacDonnell Ranges that offers an oasis of calm amid the chaos. But even here the cycle of incarceration and violence is never far from children’s lives.  This series was originally published in October 2024. Socials: Stay in touch with us on Twitter and Instagram Guest: Hosted and reported by Daniel James See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, the federal government dramatically re-wrote its signature tax policy.  The changes mean that a small section of people with very high super balances will pay less tax. That backflip has big consequences – for the government's budget, and for its commitment to addressing wealth inequality in this country.  Today, press gallery journalist Paul Bongiorno, on why the government caved to pressure from outside, and within, its own ranks.   If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Press gallery journalist Paul Bongiorno Photo: AAP Image/Darren EnglandSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Australian Parliament Sports Club has been attracting a lot of unwanted attention lately – for registering as a lobbying group, accepting sponsorship from the gambling lobby, and for kicking out ex-Wallabies captain David Pocock for having a problem with all that. Daanyal Saeed is Crikey’s media reporter and he broke the story in the first place. Since then, he’s been following it up – revealing that despite the Prime Minister’s insistence he wasn’t at all involved, he had in fact spoken at one of their events and chronicling the swift de-registration from the lobbying register that came after scrutiny of the club. Today, Daany takes us through all the biggest developments and tells us why David Pocock isn’t rejoining the club – despite being welcomed back. You can read Daany’s reporting here. If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support. Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Crikey’s media reporter Daanyal Saeed  Photo: AAP Image/Mick TsikasSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a desert camp in northeast Syria, behind razor wire, with thousands of other people, live 12 Australian women and 25 Australian children. They are the wives and children of men who went to Syria to join ISIS. With Australia unwilling to help bring them home, they’re living in danger – and in limbo. The recent arrival of two women and four children who smuggled themselves out of a Syrian camp and found their way back to Australia has sparked fresh debate over the Australian government’s obligations – to Syria, to Australians worried about a security threat, and to these women and children, who are Australian citizens.  Today – Greens senator David Shoebridge on the Australian children trapped in Syrian camps – and the politics of the so-called ‘ISIS brides’. If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support. Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Greens senator David Shoebridge Photo: EPA/AHMED MARDNLISee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When the Taliban retook Afghanistan in August 2021, the country’s embassy in Canberra stayed open. It’s an embassy in exile – staffed by diplomats from the former administration – and advocating on behalf of Afghans here in Australia. Until now, there have been 17 embassies of its kind around the world – in countries that don’t formally recognise the Taliban. But recently, Germany decided to expel its embassy’s exiled staff and instead invite representatives of the Taliban regime.  Today, press gallery journalist Karen Middleton on diplomacy in exile – and life under the Taliban for the people of Afghanistan. If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support. Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Press gallery journalist Karen Middleton  Photo: AAP Image/Mick TsikasSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Melbourne photojournalist Alex Zucco was cleaning her camera lens when a police officer hit her directly in the face with a stream of capsicum spray at a protest outside the Melbourne Land Forces International Land Defence Exposition last year. In July this year, a police officer allegedly punched former Greens candidate Hannah Thomas in the face at a pro-Palestine rally, seriously injuring her eye. Lawyers and activists say these incidents fit a pattern of increased police force against protesters –  including so-called ‘less-lethal’ tools such as baton rounds, flash-bang devices and capsicum spray. Today, journalist and author Ariel Bogle on how decades of restricting the right to protest have created a permissive environment for the use of force by police. If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support. Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Journalist and author, Ariel Bogle Photo: Alex Zucco / SOPA Images/Sipa USASee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.