Dodgy Dealings From The Gold Coast Mayor, The New Gas Bill that Does NOTHING, & Albo's Deflection + I Called the Guy Who THREATENED me + Politician CRASHES OUT When Asked About THIS
Dodgy Dealings From The Gold Coast Mayor, The New Gas Bill that Does NOTHING, & Albo's Deflection
THE SCAM: The government promised a 20% gas reservation policy, a guarantee to keep Australian gas at home and lower prices. The exposure says it's "up to" 20%, meaning it could be zero. The legislation contains no binding target, no floor, and only vague promises of "downward pressure on prices." The minister retains sweeping discretion to water it down further or exempt companies entirely.
THE DAMAGE: Australian households and businesses continue paying inflated gas prices while multinationals export record volumes overseas. The policy was designed to protect gas lobby interests, not punters. Santos's poor business decisions, selling contracts overseas then buying back domestic gas, are effectively underwritten. Western Australia's similar 15% reservation scheme has delivered just 8%, with no enforcement and rising prices. The east coast's existing emergency mechanism has never been triggered in nine years.
THE OUTCOME: The commencement date is pushed to mid-2028, after the next federal election. The bill employs deliberate ambiguity: "modest over-supply," ministerial "get out of jail free" cards, and the power to quietly reduce targets later. The media spotlight focuses on distraction, a mayor swearing at a journalist, a Sky News "gotcha" moment, while this catfish of a bill slides through.
Punter Citations:
ABC - Does the gas reservation plan go far enough?
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I Called the Guy Who THREATENED me
THE ISSUE: We launched a new podcast segment, "Gift or Slap", cold-calling people who leave hateful comments. Death threats and violent language against online commentators are becoming normalised. Anonymous abuse can poison public debate, intimidate voices and distract from holding government to account.
THE COMMENT: Konrad calls a commenter who labelled him a "condescending prick" and a "C-word" (Champ), and he actually answers the phone.
THE CONVO: To Konrads surprise, instead of a troll, the commenter is a fan who disliked a previous hit-back segment. He reframes his comment as a quote, 'being a condescending prick gets you nowhere', and says 'champ' meant encouragement. He forfeits the prize, praises Punter's work, and backs policy over party.
Politician CRASHES OUT When Asked About THIS
THE SCAM: The Gold Coast mayor is a developer who has been running the council that approves developments while holding controlling stakes in nine-plus companies. He bought a Surfers Paradise bowls club site worth $6.46 million for just $4.17 million, and took an undeclared free trip to China from a Chinese developer whose tower he then voted on.
THE DAMAGE: Taxpayers footed the bill for his rorting — $21,000 in inflated expense reimbursements across five separate claims, luxury baggage and $500 headphones on the council tab, and a $33,000 airfare to Mar-a-Lago. That trip came just before a developer signed a $1.5 billion deal with the Trump Organization for a Surfers Paradise tower.
THE COVER-UP/OUTCOME: The corruption commission has investigated him at least three times since 2017, yet he's still in office. The tribunal found he broke the rules but stopped short of calling it a deliberate scam — he 'genuinely thought it was okay.' His punishment for rotting $21,000 of taxpayer money? A $2,000 fine.
Punter Citations:
ABC - Calls for corruption probe into completion of mayor's Surfers Paradise Bowls Club site purchase
