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The Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion had a rough birth. Brought into being after weeks of pressure on Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, an existing inquiry into the role of key security agencies in the Bondi terror attack was rolled in with the commission.
But the security agency investigation, known as the Richardson review, already had an April 30 deadline. The commission stuck to that deadline, meaning the interim report released yesterday came out before any hearings have been held.
As terrorism and national security expert Keiran Hardy explains, the report’s 14 recommendations are largely about government procedures. While they might help, they don’t begin to answer the many questions Australians have about how the Bondi attack occurred.
And as chief political correspondent Michelle Grattan writes, the government has seized the opportunity to respond, immediately accepting all recommendations. But with royal commission hearings starting next week, there’s a lot more to uncover in the months to come.
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Erin Cooper-Douglas
Public Policy Editor
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Keiran Hardy, Griffith University
More akin to an intelligence review, the 14 recommendations in the interim report might help government agencies, but don’t yet reckon with the biggest questions.
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Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra
Perhaps no one should be surprised the report leaves a lot unsaid. The decision to have this report was a case of putting the cart before the horse.
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Josh Sunman, Flinders University
By preferencing and emulating One Nation, the Coalition is likely enhancing, rather than limiting, Pauline Hanson’s political influence.
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Andrew Norton, Monash University
Only the federal government can fix the problems created by the Job-ready Graduates scheme. Ahead of the budget on May 12, it shows no interest in doing that.
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Victoria Rasmussen, UNSW Sydney
Intimate partner violence increases women’s risk of suicidal thoughts and actions two- to five-fold.
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Kelly Garton, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau; Boyd Swinburn, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
New research shows how human behaviour and biology are harnessed to create feedback loops that drive people to buy and eat more ultra-processed foods.
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Daniel Angus, Queensland University of Technology
Email is as much about performing competence as actually communicating information. What happens if humans leave the system?
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Karen Stollznow, Griffith University; University of Colorado Boulder
‘Typoglycemia’ is often shared online as a quirky insight into how our brains work. But this viral claim is only part of the story.
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Politics + Society
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Kate Griffiths, Grattan Institute
A formal government response to a federal inquiry into online gambling harm may be tabled while the parliament is looking elsewhere.
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Se Youn Park, The University of Queensland
The government is outsourcing the risks and logistics of returning ISIS families instead of taking a more proactive, humane approach.
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Carwyn Jones, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
Legislation changing Treaty provisions within the law is due to be introduced before this year’s election, with legal challenges and protests likely.
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Health + Medicine
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Susan Rowe, Bond University; Amy L. Kenworthy, Bond University; Daniel Brennan, Bond University
NeeDoh is the latest squishable toy to go viral. But not all sensory objects are toys. Here’s the difference and why it matters.
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Samuel Cornell, The University of Queensland; UNSW Sydney
Don’t be a selfie tragic. Avoid dead whales, rock ledges and hungry sharks. Oh, and the carcass might explode.
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Business + Economy
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Kevin Morrison, University of Technology Sydney
As gas prices soared in recent years, Queensland actually earned more money – for less gas – than the federal government. Here’s why.
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Environment + Energy
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Tina Soliman-Hunter, Macquarie University
An energy law expert explains what makes this group of oil-producing nations so influential.
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Julie Old, Western Sydney University; Brian Dixon, University of Waterloo
When animals are outside their preferred temperature range, their immune systems can’t fight pathogens well.
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Science + Technology
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Rob Brooks, UNSW Sydney
The future of artificial intelligence might not be as much a story about engineering as a story about evolution.
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Christopher Hastas, Western Sydney University; Irena Veljanova, Western Sydney University; Julia Kantek, Western Sydney University; Mick Houlbrook, Western Sydney University
Online gaming acts as a valuable space of empowerment for people with disability.
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Arts + Culture
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Alexander Howard, University of Sydney; Alexa Scarlata, RMIT University; Lisa French, RMIT University; Oscar Bloomfield, Deakin University; Stuart Romeo-Richards, Adelaide University
May’s streaming highlights span Watergate-era journalism, an Aussie kids’ heist caper and new works from Timothée Chalamet and Richard Gadd.
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Books + Ideas
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John Keane, University of Sydney
The strange alliance between demagogues and despots ought to puzzle and worry every thinking person, and it needs to be understood.
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Amber Gwynne, The University of Queensland
The Ruiners is an unsettling literary eco-thriller set on a Greek island which could be a bohemian utopia – if it wasn’t the site of illegal dumping.
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Interest rate hikes on the table
“Why can't industry absorb some of the pain by the Reserve Bank instead of householders. Every time they raise interest rates in the name of inflation, who, if anybody, scrutinises/justifies their level of cost increases? A bit of lateral thinking by the bank or more consultation with expert economists might help. They are too RESERVED in their approach!”
Paul Dexter
Which generation had it worse
"I agree with Elizabeth Harris – boomers are seen to have it all. But younger generations fail to appreciate that we had no childcare centres, few kindergarten or services to assist us and/or our families, and there was no NDIS or assistance to help our older family members etc. We did benefit from a strong employment culture, but not everyone was paid well, especially women. So please don't think that all boomers had good times – some things were better for us, but not everything is worse now."
Name withheld
We'd love to hear from you. You can email us with your thoughts on our stories and each day we'll publish an edited selection.
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