The Briefing LiSTNR

Pills, powders and liquids that might be harbouring deadly substances will be able to be legally tested across Victoria, following a major policy change announced by Premier Jacinta Allan this week.
Pill testing will become permanent after an 18-month trial starting this summer, with a mobile service to attend up to 10 music festivals. In Victoria, paramedics responded to more drug overdoses at festivals in the first three months of 2024 than during all of 2023. 
The announcement is a change from Labor's previous stance against pill testing, and comes alongside the party choosing to not support a second safe drug injecting room in Melbourne’s CBD despite experts' advice saying it would help reduce fatal heroin overdoses in the state.
In this episode of The Briefing, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan joins to explain the reasoning behind the change of heart in the Victorian government, and Animal Justice Party MP Georgie Purcell gives her take on the proposed rollout.
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The Albanese government has announced sweeping new changes to Australia’s vaping laws, which will see the products continue to be sold – but only in pharmacies.
To secure the support of the Greens in the Senate, Labor has agreed to backtrack on its prescription-only model.
It means vapes will be made available at pharmacies across the country – but they will be regulated and subject to plain packaging requirements, with flavours limited to mint, menthol or tobacco.
In this episode of The Briefing, we’re joined by Greens leader Adam Bandt to find out why the Greens negotiated the new laws and what the new regulations mean for vapers and smokers wanting to quit cigarettes.
Headlines:
Julian Assange will face court at 9am today on a US island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean
Senator Fatima Payman crosses the floor
Jarryd Hayne won’t face a fourth trial  
Listeners respond to vaping story
 
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Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks, has agreed to plead guilty to a single felony count in relation to charges over disseminating national security material. 
The plea deal was in exchange for his release from a British prison, clearing the way for him to return to Australia, and avoiding the need to face charges in the United States. 
It brings to an end the 14-year ordeal that saw him spend seven years in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London and a further five years in a British prison fighting US attempts to extradite him. 
In this episode of The Briefing we’re joined by Kym Staton, documentary filmmaker and Director of ‘The Trust Fall: Julian Assange', to find out how and why Assange has finally decided to end his campaign for justice and return home. 
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Bird flu – or Avian flu – has been detected at a number of chicken farms in Victoria and NSW. The discovery comes in the wake of an outbreak in the US and tests that found humans had symptoms associated with bird flu.
How safe is Australia’s poultry industry, and how safe are our chickens and eggs to eat?
In this episode of The Briefing, we’re joined by Enzo Palombo, Professor of Microbiology at Swinburne University to learn more about how badly our poultry industry will be affected and if humans – like Covid – could be impacted by the growing global crisis.
Headlines:
Government waters down vape ban
Victoria to launch pill testing trial this summer 
Princess Anne in hospital
Picassos hung in ladies toilets at Mona
 
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Weaponised incompetence is a term that's gaining some traction at the moment.
It's a passive-aggressive pattern of behaviour where someone in a relationship, whether it be professional or intimate, either deliberately performs a task poorly or pretends not to know how to do a task in order to avoid responsibility.
Imagine the dynamic of person A is able to iron shirts/stack dishwashers/ do spreadsheets so much better than person B - which leads to Person A doing all the work, often reinforcing the unequal division of labour at home and in the office.
In this episode of The Briefing, psychologist Jocelyn Brewer shares how it can manifest, and how to tell if you might be an unknowing victim.
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Tax time is right around the corner and this year the ATO are cracking down on working from home expenses.
Last year more than 8 million Australians claimed work- related deductions in their tax return, with working from home expenses making up more than half of those claims.
In this episode of the Briefing Ashley Debenham from Etax Accountants joins Katrina Blowers to unpack everything you need to know before you lodge your tax return.
Headlines:
Tough new penalties coming for supermarkets
First poll shows voters split on nuclear
Adelaide Westfield sent into lockdown after teen brawl  
2024 Logies nominations announced
 
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