Rn Breakfast - Separate Stories Podcast

Spiking energy prices will be a major challenge for the new government - meanwhile, Foreign Minister Penny Wong is back in the Pacific. The Political Editor for Guardian Australia Katharine Murphy joins RN Breakfast to discuss the latest developments in federal politics.

Australia is on the verge of what some experts say could prove to be the worst energy crisis in half a century - with gas prices rising, slamming homes and businesses. Treasurer Jim Chalmers says he wants to be upfront and there is no quick fix, he says the medium term solution is an effective energy policy, which Labor is working hard to implement.

A jury has found movie star Johnny Depp was defamed by his former wife, actress Amber Heard, over a 2018 op-ed she wrote identifying herself as a domestic violence victim. The jury members found Mr Depp should be awarded $US10.35 million in damages, while Ms Heard should receive $US2 million after upholding elements of her countersuit.

GrainGrowers chair Brett Hosking says he'll be seeking meetings to press the Federal Government to direct the ACCC to investigate the grain market. He says there's a discrepancy between what Australian wheat growers are being paid and the global price of wheat, which is soaring due to smaller exports out of Ukraine.

Constitutional law expert Professor Anne Twomey has recommended NSW overhaul its grants process, to ensure pork-barrelling is prohibited. It's part of several recommendations made in a report commissioned by the state's Independent Commission Against Corruption.

A Canberra man has built a life size replica of a spaceship - in his own backyard. Baz has also built his own backyard observatory and even an Iron Man suit, inspired by Marvel Comics

The Queen's traditional birthday parade, Trooping the Colour, will be held today. It's the first royal event to officially kick off the Queen's Platinum Jubilee, marking her 70 years on the throne.

Just two years ago, Miiesha released her debut album, picking up five ARIAs and going on to win Song of the Year at the National Indigenous Music Awards Her latest work Mirrors forms a dual EP with 2021 release, Smoke - a collection of Smoke and Mirrors.

Beloved Australian comedian and writer, Josh Thomas is turning his hand to podcasts with new audible series 'How to be Gay'. Based on the words he typed into google as a teenager, it's an unflinching exploration of sexuality and the queer experience.

It's the first day of winter, but residents in the flood affected Northern Rivers region of NSW feel like they're stuck in a perpetual winter. More than three months since the first flood hit, over four thousand homes remain uninhabitable and families face an uncertain winter ahead.

Melbourne textile business owner Dr Yaron Flicker had to deal with a 400% increase in his gas costs overnight, after his retailer Weston Energy collapsed. Gas prices have soared, and the Australian Energy Market Operator has had to intervene to cap prices in three of the four markets on the east coast.

Affirmative consent laws come into effect in New South Wales today. Sexual consent can't be assumed from silence or inactivity, a person must do or say something to affirm they have consent before sex occurs.

There were a few surprises in the Labor ministry announced, but the government will start the new parliament with a majority - winning 77 seats. The chief political correspondent with The Financial Review, Phil Coorey, joins RN Breakfast to discuss the latest developments in federal politics.

The incoming Labor ministry will include a record number of women.  That includes Queensland MP Anika Wells, who will be sworn in today as the Minister for Aged Care and Sport.

Anthony Albanese is promising to waste no time in office as his ministry prepares to be sworn-in today. The incoming Labor government has had a last minute boost - retaining the NSW seat of Gilmore - ensuring the PM has a little more breathing room when parliament returns next month.

With the new federal government signalling a change in policy on a number of fronts, business is laying out their agenda. NAB CEO Ross McEwan says the government has a mandate to tackle climate change, and called for a renewed focus on migration.

After two years of enduring the pandemic, multiple lockdowns and isolation, small talk has taken a backseat. The world continues to re-open, but has the art of conversation been changed forever?

A former Australian expedition cruise vessel set sail last month, destined for some of Vanuatu's remotest islands. Its mission? to vaccinate the country's hardest to reach people against COVID-19.

It's being billed as the 'most important match in the last ten years', a 'clash of the titans' as Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal meet in the Quarter Finals of the French Open. It's the 59th time they have played and Djokovic is looking to equal Nadal's 21 Grand Slam victories.

A bipartisan group of US senators, hoping to find common ground on gun policy plans, have begun talks in the wake of the tragic school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. RN Breakfast speaks to a former gun industry executive on the NRA's role in mass shootings.