As 2025 draws to a close, the temptation is to look for neat summaries and settled conclusions. But in the latest episode of our podcast Pearlcast, that impulse is firmly resisted.

In this Pearlcast Year in Review panel discussion, Pearls and Irritations Editor Catriona Jackson hosts a conversation with Founder and Editor-in-Chief John Menadue, political journalist Karen Middleton and barrister and commentator Greg Barns.

It’s a frank assessment of a year that delivered political power without reform, global upheaval without clarity, and growing unease about where Australia is heading next.

The conversation opens with the re-elected Labor government and its unexpectedly large majority. Rather than heralding a bold new phase of reform, the panel argues that the government’s caution has become a defining weakness.

As Karen Middleton puts it, the majority may be “wide but shallow” – a result that carries serious implications for how confidently power is exercised.

Across issues ranging from Freedom of Information to lobbying reform, the panel returns repeatedly to concerns about transparency and trust.

“People start to form a picture that you’re not what you said you were,” Middleton says, warning that incrementalism and delay come at a political cost.

Attention then turns to the opposition. The Liberal–National coalition is described as being in an existential crisis, riven by ideology, poor leadership and the distorting influence of right-wing media. Its weakness, the panel argues, is not just a party problem but a democratic one.

From there, the discussion widens to the global stage. John Menadue argues that the moral authority of the West has been badly damaged in recent years, particularly by the genocide in Gaza.

“The West hasn’t collapsed yet,” he says, “but I think it’s being eclipsed steadily by other forces around the world.”

Australia’s strategic alignment with the United States also comes under sharp scrutiny. Both Menadue and Barns argue that AUKUS entrenches a dangerous dependence on an increasingly unreliable ally, and that Australia should be pursuing a more self-reliant defence policy.

The episode closes with a pointed discussion of the government’s social media ban for under-16s. Greg Barns is blunt: “This is a form of prohibition – and we’ve learned nothing.” The panel questions the policy’s legality, practicality and likely effectiveness, warning that moral panic is once again crowding out evidence-based decision-making.

It’s a thoughtful, provocative discussion that doesn’t pretend to offer easy answers, but insists on asking harder questions – about power, competence and Australia’s place in a world that is changing so fast than many of our institutions are struggling to keep up.

Note: This episode of Pearlcast was recorded before the tragic events at Bondi.

🎧 You can listen to the full episode of Pearlcast wherever you get your podcasts.