A week into the job and I am deeply impressed by the strength and vigour of the community John has built around Pearls and Irritations. So many of you have sent very generous messages and I feel very welcome, and busy!

I will write a short message every week, keeping readers informed on how we see the week ahead, and reflecting on the seismic changes that swirl around us. As always, we will focus on matters of substance that are under-reported, or simply absent, in mainstream outlets, and provide factual analysis from leaders at home and in our region.

This week, we will pay some attention to the federal budget, but with a view to the longer term. Stepping back from the charts and numbers, it is important to remember that budgets are about priorities, about the choices government is making demonstrated by where it puts our money, and should be assessed as such. This close to an election, it will be interesting to see how the government shapes its narrative, and what Opposition Leader Peter Dutton chooses to include in his set-piece address in reply.

This week, we will look also at the World Meteorological Organisation telling us that 2024 was the hottest in 175 years of records, and counter the opposition leader’s assertion that renewables are increasing power prices. We ask: what factors are you taking into account when deciding your vote, beyond cost of living? Also we look at whether current forest management practices are really preventing wildfires. That and much more.

One thing we will not be focussing on in the coming week is footwear. Last Friday, my local paper, The Canberra Times, featured a story on the Vice-Chancellor of the Australian National University, Professor Genevieve Bell. Fair enough, she runs an important institution in a small town. Professor Bell has attracted significant attention during her 14 months in the job for, among other things, her handling of protesters on campus, her very low public profile with staff students and media, staff cuts and financial problems. But this story chose to spend a paragraph talking about the “trainers” she wore to work. And it included an inset photo of the “trainers”.

I don’t intend to waste any more space discussing what a woman decides to wear on her feet on an average workday. But, every column centimetre (and photograph) dedicated to this non-issue is space that could be dedicated to serious matters. This nonsense came in a week where the ANU was one of six Australian universities to be stripped of research funding for projects the US administration doesn’t like. Also an eye-wateringly inappropriate questionnaire was circulated to the ANU and other universities by that same administration. There are clearly plenty of more important things to discuss, and that is what we will be doing at Pearls and Irritations.