ABC News Daily

Demand for home batteries in Australia has taken off, with a generous government subsidy prompting more people to add power storage to their solar panel set up.  More people installed a battery in the second half of last year than during the previous five years.  Renewable power generation also made up half of the nation’s power supply last quarter. Today, Tony Wood from the Grattan Institute on what the surge in home batteries and renewables in the grid means for everyone’s power bills now and into the future. Featured:  Tony Wood, Energy and Climate Change Senior Fellow at Grattan Institute

The Canadian prime minister wants us to give up on the international rules based order, which he bluntly says is fiction and he’s urged middle power countries to unite.  As Donald Trump continues to up-end US foreign policy, what does Mark Carney mean and where does Australia fit in?  Today, Samir Puri, the author of Westlessness: The Great Global Rebalancing, on the significance of Carney’s words and why, even when Trump is gone, the world will have changed forever.  Featured:  Samir Puri, author of Westlessness: The Great Global Rebalancing and former director of Chatham House’s Centre for Global Governance and Security

Ever since Donald Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs were announced in April last year, the price of gold has been rising. Its price is about 80 percent higher than it was a year ago and it’s still near its all time record after a recent sell off. So, what’s been moving the price of gold and what does it say about investor’s faith in the US and global economy?  Today, business correspondent David Taylor on why Australians have been queuing to buy the shiny metal and where the price could go next.  Featured:  David Taylor, ABC business correspondent

The Reserve Bank cut the cash rate target three times last year, but already there’s a U-turn.  The RBA board is so concerned about inflation sticking around that it has increased interest rates for the first time since 2023. Today, the ABC’s finance expert Alan Kohler on the RBAs failure to bring inflation down to its target and the mistakes it made in 2025.  Featured:  Alan Kohler, ABC finance expert

There are three million files and thousands of mentions of Donald Trump.   But the US president says the latest batch of the Epstein files clears him, while the US Department of Justice says there’s no need for any further investigation.  But is that really the end of it?  Today, David Smith from the United States Studies Centre at Sydney University on what the latest files mean for Trump and others and why millions of documents are still hidden.  Featured:  David Smith, associate professor at the United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney

There’s turmoil at the top of the Chinese military with President Xi Jinping removing some of his most experienced generals.  He sacked two key figures, accusing them of corruption, raising questions about the timeline for his ambition to take over Taiwan.  Today, China expert Neil Thomas from the Asia Society Policy Institute on what Xi Jinping is up to.  Featured:  Neil Thomas, fellow on Chinese Politics at the Center for China Analysis at the Asia Society Policy Institute in Washington DC

We know he loves McDonald’s but why is Donald Trump so passionate about full cream milk? Whole milk has become an obsession for the US president and his health secretary RFK Jr who thinks everyone should be drinking it.  Today, Yasmin Tayag from The Atlantic on milk and why the Trump administration has turned the food pyramid on its head.  Featured:  Yasmin Tayag, staff writer at The Atlantic

One Nation’s support is surging. That’s according to successive opinion polls this year which have Pauline Hanson’s party with a primary vote higher than it’s ever been.  Today, Tony Barry, director at the Redbridge Group and former Liberal Party strategist on the voters expressing support for One Nation, whether it will translate into actual votes and why the major parties need to take notice.  Featured:  Tony Barry, director at RedBridge Group

Donald Trump is finally trying to temper the ICE crackdown in Minneapolis which has seen the shooting deaths of two protesters at the hands of federal agents. But why did he let it go so far in the first place?  Today, Claire Finkelstein, a law professor at the University of Pennsylvania on what Trump’s really trying to achieve and why the events mirror the lead up to a civil war.  Featured:  Claire Finkelstein, professor of law and professor of philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania

Donald Trump says he needs Greenland.  He’s suggested he could buy it and he threatened tariffs on nations that didn’t support his quest to take it.  Now he’s dropped the tariff threat after negotiations and he’s ruled out using military force.  The US president’s approach to Greenland might be erratic but it’s all in line with his foreign policy aim to reorder the world.  Today, Monica Duffy Toft from the Fletcher School at Tufts University on Trump’s bid to control the Western Hemisphere. Featured:  Monica Duffy Toft, Professor of International Politics and Director of the Center for Strategic Studies at the Fletcher School at Tufts University in Boston

Elon Musk’s AI tool, Grok, has caused global outrage after it made it really easy to virtually undress people via AI image editing.  Musk’s competitor to ChatGPT is integrated into the social media platform X and earlier this month users started asking it to do some pretty gross things.  X was flooded with images of semi-naked women, with users able to reply to anyone’s perfectly innocent picture and ask it to put them in a bikini, for example.  While Musk initially downplayed the scandal and was slow to act, he’s now put limits on the tool. But is that the end of the story and should X be banned? Today, Sam Cole, a tech journalist and co-founder of 404 Media on the Grok scandal and how it enabled the exploitation and abuse of women.  Featured:  Sam Cole, co-founder of 404 Media

For a second time since the election the Coalition has split.  The Nationals walked out after a number of its senators crossed the floor to vote against hate speech laws this week.   The Liberals and opposition leader Sussan Ley sided with the government to pass the legislation, but key Nationals raises concerns about the rushed process and the impact on free speech.  So, is this a moment of real change in conservative politics and could One Nation pick up a few more members?  Today, David Speers, the ABC’s national political lead and host of Insiders, on how the marriage fell apart once again.  Featured:  David Speers, ABC national political lead

Jessica Chapnik Kahn was there at Bondi on December 14th, shielding her daughter as shots were fired into a Jewish festival, killing 15 people. More than a month later, she’s trying to find a way to live with what she went through and she says it's her heart that’s guiding her. Today, on this National Day of Mourning for the victims of the Bondi Beach terrorist attack, we hear Jessica’s story and speak with Michael Visontay, a Sydney resident and commissioning editor of the Jewish Independent, about how the community is dealing with the aftermath of tragedy and the fractious political debate.   Featured: Jessica Chapnik Kahn, Bondi survivor Michael Visontay, The Jewish Independent commissioning editor

It’s a busy time of the year at Australian beaches, but a stretch of the NSW coast has been shut down after a surge in shark attacks.  A cluster of shark bites in Sydney has been linked to a surge in bacteria and faecal matter washed into the harbour and the ocean by recent rain.  Today, Chris Pepin-Neff, an expert in shark policy from Sydney University on what led to the uptick in shark activity and what we can do to improve safety for swimmers and surfers.  Featured:  Chris Pepin-Neff, Associate Professor of Public Policy at the University of Sydney and a shark policy expert

Greenland is one of Donald Trump’s biggest obsessions right now. If you don’t like his dream of the US taking over the self-governed island, which is part of Denmark, then you’ll be punished.  The president is now slapping tariffs on European nations pushing back against the idea.    Today, the ABC’s global affairs editor Laura Tingle on how the UK and Europe will respond and what it means for the future of NATO.   Featured:  Laura Tingle, ABC global affairs editor

Federal parliament returns early today and the prime minister has removed a racial vilification offence from Labor’s proposed hate speech laws and will now deal with restrictions on guns in a separate bill. Anthony Albanese had to change course after the bill came under huge criticism from the Greens and the federal opposition, with leader Sussan Ley describing it as half-baked and unsalvageable.  The bill came after the Bondi attack in a bid to stamp out antisemtism. So, what was in the doomed bill? And was it really that bad?  Today, Professor Kath Gelber, an expert in regulating hate speech from the University of Queensland, on the problems she saw in the government’s bill.  Featured:  Professor Kath Gelber, Deputy Executive Dean and Associate Dean (Academic) in the Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences at the University of Queensland

He’s known for relentlessly and ruthlessly pursuing Donald Trump’s agenda and for playing a big part in shaping it.  Now, with the extraordinary start to 2026, which has included the capture of the Venezuelan president and a threat to take over Greenland, there’s a renewed focus on the US president’s key advisor Stephen Miller.  Today, Ashley Parker, staff writer for The Atlantic magazine, on her investigation into Trump’s deputy chief of staff, his power and growing influence. Featured:  Ashley Parker, The Atlantic staff writer

The United States has deployed 15,000 troops and sent warships to the Caribbean in the biggest military build-up there since the Cuban Missile Crisis. It follows months of deadly US strikes on boats from Venezuela it says are smuggling drugs. Today, Latin America expert Orlando Pérez from the University of North Texas on why Donald Trump is turning up the pressure on Venezuela’s president Nicolás Maduro and why toppling him won’t be easy. Featured:  Orlando J. Pérez, Professor of Political Science at the University of North Texas in Dallas

There’s a secret US-led plan to end the war in Ukraine, but it reportedly asks a lot of the country that’s been invaded by Russia.  Media reports suggest the plan would see Ukraine would give up land, reduce the size of its army, relinquish weapons and make Russian an official state language.  At the same time, Putin’s forces have launched new strikes on Ukrainian cities and a Russian spy ship off the coast of Scotland is causing concern.  Today, Matthew Sussex, a visiting fellow at the ANU’s Centre for European Studies on why prospects for peace are looking dim.  Featured:  Matthew Sussex, visiting fellow at the Australian National University’s Centre for European Studies

The remaining Epstein files are finally set to be released after a vote in US Congress and a shift in the US President’s position.  Despite dismissing calls to release files related to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein for months, Donald Trump reversed course when it became clear a bill to compel the release would pass in the US House of Representatives.  Today, David A Graham, staff writer at The Atlantic, on how Trump was backed into a corner and what it says about his leadership and support among his MAGA base. Featured:  David A Graham, staff writer at The Atlantic