Victoria’s donations shambles puts rest of country “on notice”

Six months out from an election, Victoria has been left with no political donation laws after the High Court ruled them unconstitutional.

On this episode of Follow the Money, Bill Browne joins Ebony Bennett to discuss why the High Court voided Victoria’s undemocratic political donations laws. They examine what this could mean for other jurisdictions and why a principled, transparent approach to political donations reform is needed – not legislation that skews the system in favour of major parties.

This episode was recorded on Tuesday 19 May.

Visit The Point for research, analysis, explainers and factchecks from experts at the Australia Institute and beyond.

Guest: Bill Browne, Director, Democracy & Accountability, the Australia Institute // @browne90

Host: Ebony Bennett, Deputy Director, the Australia Institute // @ebonybennett

Show notes:

Victoria’s donation restrictions are unconstitutional – what happens now? by Bill Browne, The Point (April 2026)

Open letter calls on Victorian Parliament to make election donation laws fair and transparent from Australian Democracy Network, Accountability Round Table, Transparency International Australia, Human Rights Law Centre, the Australia Institute and many other integrity and community organisations (May 2026)

High Court shines a light on how major parties have stacked the system in their favour by Bill Browne, The Point (April 2026)

High Court gives Victoria a chance to rethink its unconstitutional, undemocratic political donation laws, the Australia Institute (April 2026)

Theme music: Pulse and Thrum; additional music by Blue Dot Sessions

We’d love to hear your feedback on this series, so send in your questions, comments or suggestions for future episodes to podcasts@australiainstitute.org.au. Subscribe to Follow the Money on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts or wherever you get your favourite podcasts.

Support Australia Matters: https://nb.australiainstitute.org.au/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(100)

The housing crisis is far from over

The government took on housing investor tax concessions to bring prices down, but more action is needed to address the rental affordability crisis. On this episode of Follow the Money, Maiy Azize and ...

26 Aug 28min

Will the midterms be NOT NORMAL? with Chas Licciardello

What might the midterms mean for an historically unpopular president? On this episode of After America, Chas Licciardello joins Dr Emma Shortis to discuss the latest from the midterm primaries, the “c...

24 Aug 31min

What’s the point of the crossbench?

On this episode of What’s the Point?, Richard Denniss explains how the crossbench works and the politics of deal-making in federal parliament. This episode was recorded on Friday 21 August. More Fool ...

24 Aug 25min

Wage earners falling behind as major corporations rake it in

The latest data show real wages are going backwards, but Reserve Bank keeps seeing ghosts. On this episode of Dollars & Sense, Greg and Elinor discuss another quarter of no “wage-price spiral”, plus t...

20 Aug 35min

How the gas industry tricked Australia with Richard Denniss

Australians have been dudded by the gas industry. It’s past time governments admitted it. Dr Richard Denniss, Australia Institute co-CEO and author of More Fool Me: How the gas industry tricked Austra...

19 Aug 40min

USS Lincoln exposes fundamental flaw at the heart of Australian defence policy

If the United States government isn’t caring for its own military personnel, how could policymakers expect the US to come to Australia’s aid? On this episode of After America, Dr Emma Shortis and Angu...

17 Aug 32min

What’s the point of gambling reform?

On this episode of What's the Point?, Richard Denniss explains the lack of strong gambling reform, and why gambling losses continue to climb despite widespread calls for change. Host: Richard Denniss,...

17 Aug 17min

Should superannuation be used to control inflation?

Interest rates are the bluntest, sharpest tool. Is there a better way? On this episode of Dollars & Sense, Greg and Elinor discuss why superannuation could be a better way to control inflation than i...

13 Aug 34min