Politics Now

A nationwide Telstra outage has caused chaos for commuters and businesses and prompted Communications Minister Anika Wells to return early from leave.
And artificial intelligence is back in the spotlight, with Assistant Minister Andrew Charlton suggesting now is the time to embed safety into AI. It comes ahead of the Labor Conference where an internal debate over AI is set to get "messy".
Meanwhile, a stoush is brewing between drug-makers and the Federal Government.
Patricia Karvelas and Clare Armstrong break it all down on Politics Now.
Read Clare's piece here — Critical Drugs could be pulled from PBS amid pricing stoush
Got a burning question?
Send a short voice recording to PK and Fran for Question Time at thepartyroom@abc.net.au

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has condemned China's missile test in the Pacific as a "provocative act", suggesting it destablises the region.
It comes as the PM holds bilateral talks with his Solomon Islands counterpart and continues his regional diplomacy blitz.
And back home, as preparations get underway for the Federal Labor Conference, there are already some clear battlelines taking shape.
Melissa Clarke and Tom Crowley break it all down on Politics Now.
Got a burning question?
Got a burning political query? Send a short voice recording to PK and Fran for Question Time at thepartyroom@abc.net.au

Australia has a new military alliance, signing a mutual defence pact with Fiji.
Australia has long had a defence alliance with the US and New Zealand. Last year, an historic pact with Papua New Guinea forged a new direction for Australia and now a similar pledge has been made with Fiji.
The "Ocean of Peace" alliance leaves the door opened to a multilateral pact that could see Australia, PNG, Fiji, New Zealand and Tonga form a military alliance.
But while riding high on the success of Pacific diplomacy, the Prime Minister has been forced to apologise "unequivocally" for remarks he made on a podcast.
Melissa Clarke and Jacob Greber break it all down on Politics Now.
Got a burning question?
Send a short voice recording to PK and Fran for Question Time at thepartyroom@abc.net.au

Today marks 250 years since America's declaration of Independence. 
As the United States struggles with domestic divisions and its role as a global superpower, is the Founding Fathers' "Great Democratic Experiment" over?  
Former Australian Ambassador to the United States Arthur Sinodinos sat down David Speers to discuss whether the United States can pull back from the brink.

It's Question Time! And there are no Dorothy Dixers in sight!
But before Fran and PK tackle your "top-notch" queries, Fran checks in on PK after TV series Ponies was cancelled after just one season — luckily she still has The West Wing to rewatch. But they both agree the best thing on our screens at the moment is The World Cup, go the Socceroos (otherwise known as the 'Mantildas')!
Then it's time for Partyroomers questions, including: the politics of house prices, do people follow how-to-vote cards? Have politicians undervalued the arts? And what lower house seat could Pauline Hanson run for?
Patricia Karvelas and Fran Kelly answer your clever questions The Party Room: Question Time edition.
Listen to Thursday's episode here 🎧 Labor cleans off the barnacles
Listen here to 🎧 Antony Green on the tests ahead for One Nation
Got a burning question?
Send a short voice recording to PK and Fran for Question Time at thepartyroom@abc.net.au