With cost of living dominating the 2025 election, it was only a matter of time before Prime Minister Anthony Albanese made a major move. Over the weekend, he announced an $8.5 billion Medicare investment, aiming to make 90% of GP visits free by the end of the decade.

But just hours later, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton matched the pledge dollar for dollar—escalating the battle over who’s to blame for Australia’s bulk-billing crisis.

So, will this massive cash injection actually make it easier to see a doctor for free? And how much of this is just election politics? In this episode of The Briefing, Chris Spyrou speaks with James Gillespie, CEO of Cleanbill, to break down what this promise really means for everyday Australians.

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Headlines: Anthony Albanese speaks about Medicare, racism and the US, New telco rules to protect DV victims announced, SAG awards recap.

Deep Dive: Three Chinese warships unexpectedly entered international waters off the coast of Sydney and fired missiles over the weekend.

Australian pilots on commercial passenger flights to New Zealand were reportedly radioed directly by the warships, advising them to immediately divert course.

So why did China send the ships, how worried should we be, and is Australia prepared?

On this episode of The Briefing, Bension Siebert speaks with international and political editor of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, Peter Hartcher.

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Pope Francis is currently battling a serious bout of double pneumonia, with his condition described by the Vatican over the weekend as “critical”.

As Catholics around the world pray for his recovery and health, you might find yourself asking; what happens if he dies? How is a new pope chosen? And did the movie currently getting Oscars buzz, Conclave, get it right?

In today’s deep dive, Sacha Barbour Gatt is joined by Oxford historian and Catholic Church expert, Dr Miles Pattenden, to find out how the church plans for the death or resignation of a pope.

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Headlines: New poll shows Labor on track to lose the election as the Coalition matches Labor’s Medicare boost, today marks the third anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Pope asks for more prayers from hospital and Federal US employees asked to list their accomplishments as Elon Musk threatens to fire them

Deep Dive: Have you heard the recent rumours that Peter Dutton might be ‘Peggy Sue’?

Creator and sex worker Kayla Jade, who boasts 1.9 million followers on TikTok, has made her fame by talking about her work with her clients – with aliases of course – including a high-profile male client who pays her thousands of dollars to peg him.

Dubbed ‘Peggy Sue’, comments underneath videos sharing her stories with him take guesses at who the high-profile client could be – with the front runner gaining most traction being the Opposition leader, Peter Dutton.

Enter TikTokker and vocal critic of the Coalition, and its leader, Holly MacAlpine, who seized upon the moment, calling on her audience to flood Dutton’s comment section on socials with the words ‘Peggy Sue’.

While rumours and personal attacks swirling ahead of an election are nothing new, there’s a clear shift in where they’re originating from, with creators and commentators leading the charge online.

And with this year’s vote the first where Gen Z and millennials will outnumber Boomers at the ballot box, who is influencing young voters and leading the discourse – will make a difference.

In this episode of The Briefing, Chris Spyrou is joined by Holly MacAlpine to explore what she thinks of the ‘Peggy Sue’ meme, politics on TikTok, and the influence of people like her.

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Resilience is a journey we’re all on - and it's the cornerstone of one of Australia’s top podcasts, The Imperfects.

Hosted by Hugh van Cuylenburg, Josh van Cuylenburg, and Ryan Shelton, the show has become a go-to for authentic conversations about life’s challenges.

In this chat with Antoinette Lattouf, The Imperfects pour themselves a cup of vulnerabilitea and get real about toxic masculinity, making friends as adults and what Americans really think of them.

Find tickets to their live show here. Tickets go on sale on Monday 24 February at 11am, local time.

Weekend list with Helen Smith

• TO WATCH: Pose on SBS on Demand
• TO READ: Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty
• TO DO: Line Dancing at your local pub or club
• TO WATCH: Mo on Netflix

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Are your noise-cancelling headphones doing you serious damage?

In ear, over-ear, for work, for working out, for study, for music festivals – removing background or outside noise has started to become an essential part of our listening experience day-to-day.

But what if we’re going to all this effort – only to be doing terrible damage to our hearing, our memory and our brains? Wayne Wilson is an associate professor in the school of health and rehabilitation sciences at The University of Queensland. He joins Sacha Barbour Gatt on this episode of The Briefing to explain how it all works.

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Friday Headlines: Luis Rubiales found guilty of sexual assault over soccer player kiss, Peter Dutton wrongly says Labor is fast-tracking citizenship for Gazans to win votes, Meta and Google pull out of sponsoring Sydney’s Mardi Gras among DEI fight in the US, and the chances of an asteroid hitting earth yo-yos.

Deep Dive: For decades now, whether you like it or not, we’ve had a desire to keep up with famous people, know their secrets and delight over their scandals.

Up until recently, we’ve relied on so-called “sources” to spill the tea to a gossip rag or for paparazzi to capture an outrageous moment. Then came social media and it felt like we were getting a little glimpse behind the curtain into the “real” lives of famous people.

But there’s no better source than straight from the horse’s mouth. Enter the TikTok lip reader, and it’s not just celebs in their sights; it’s politicians too.

On this episode of The Briefing, we speak to Nina Dellinger, or @ninacelested on TikTok, a lip reader who is sharing what she thinks celebs and pollies are saying, why she creates the content she does, and how she does it.

Further listening from the headlines:
'Asteroid hurtling towards Earth? Meet the team tasked with protecting us' is out now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

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During last year’s election, Donald Trump joked about becoming a dictator, but “only on day one” of his second term as president.

But over the past month, Trump has ignored laws passed by the US Congress, rejected the authority of US courts, forced the deletion of thousands of government websites and destroyed reams of scientific literature and public health data.

It’s starting to look less and less like a joke.

On this episode of the Briefing, Bension Siebert dives deep into whether Trump is genuinely beginning to turn the US into a dictatorship, and as Trump’s politics gain traction in Australia – most recently through billionaire Clive Palmer’s new political party – we ask what it would mean for this country if the world’s most powerful democracy slid into autocracy. On the other hand, Trump is no Hitler or Stalin – so is calling him a dictator...just a bit over-the-top?

US investigative journalist Dave Levinthal and University of Melbourne lecturer in history Dr Sarah Walsh join Bension Siebert to help unpack these questions and more.

Listen to The Briefing's episode on Trump's key cabinet picks here.

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