Explore every episode of the podcast 4BC Mornings with Bill McDonald

Join Bill McDonald each weekday from 9am-12pm on 4BC Mornings.

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Join Bill McDonald each weekday from 9am-12pm on 4BC Mornings.  

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QLD’s former Labor government will finish up the year licking their wounds and preparing for the grueling years to come in Opposition.

Deputy Opposition Leader Cameron Dick told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, 'It's been a big year for all Queenslanders no matter where they live or what they do.'

'We are working very hard now as an opposition, I've never had more energy, I've come out of the election really energised to do my job well, to represent my community of Woodridge, but also to learn the lessons of the election, to rebuild our team in opposition.

'But then of course, importantly, do our job properly, and that's to hold the new government of David Crisafulli to account,' the Deputy Opposition Leader continued.

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It’s so far, so good for the new LNP government but the honeymoon could be over once the 100-day benchmark expires in early February.

Political scientist Paul Williams, Associate Professor at Griffith University told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, 'Apart from making Queensland safer laws, what we've only heard from the LNP is the mess that labor left Queensland in.'

'Queenslanders from the new year will be [thinking] what's the LNP going to do for me, so, more proactive and less reactive politics,' Williams continued.

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Leading into Christmas nostalgia is at an all-time high.

Are today's children missing out on the magic of old toys?

Owner of Crackerjack Toys in Builimba Jo Wallace told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, "Old toys are very popular."

"That's where the advent of social media actually comes into it, because the trend will come around again because someone cool will play with a yo-yo on TikTok and then all the kids will want one," Ms Wallace continued.

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Yesterday Alan Jones spoke out for the first time since being charged with historical sexual assault after the 83-year-old fronted Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court on fresh charges relating to at least 10 alleged victims.

He declared he will be emphatic in his defence of every one of the 34 charges of indecent assault against him, and yesterday he entered a not-guilty plea in court.

Represented by a top legal team - renowned defence lawyers Chris Murphy and Brian Wrench, one can only imagine how much the case will cost.

Taurus Legal Management practice manager Jodie Engerer told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, 'So the cases that my firm's seen, it can rack up easily into the hundreds of thousands.'

'Alan's matter gets probably in the millions. The specialty of the lawyer, the intense court process, and time restraints on when things have to be filed. The tons of witnesses that will need to be interviewed, and again, the specialty of the lawyer.'

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In 1983 in Melbourne, some friends gathered to form one of the most celebrated bands of the 80s - Pseudo Echo.

Their second album, ‘Love An Adventure’ is now celebrating its 40th anniversary.

The record saw the band gain worldwide success and a global fan base spanning Australia, USA, Canada, Europe, and Asia, and now, the multi-award winning band are set to tour the country across February and March 2025 in honour of their biggest album.

Lead singer, songwriter and guitarist Brian Canham joined Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings ahead of the tour.

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Residential care has been in the spotlight recently - the homestay accommodation where troubled kids have been sent in place of detention.

The case of Emma Lovell brought a portfolio in disarray sharply into focus and today the LNP state government is conducting a round table to overhaul the system. 

Minister for families, seniors and disability services, and Minister for child safety and the prevention of domestic and family violence Amanda Camm told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, 'We have over 2,000 children now in the state in residential care. That exceeds any other state jurisdiction. It's the highest number we've ever seen in Queensland.'

'Without a doubt, it is a system that is in crisis and it is a system that we are committed to reforming,' Camm continued.

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It’s been a busy start to the tenure of the LNP state government. 

The BPIC was paused last month and government departments have pulled construction tenders and sent them back to market, QLD Health pulled the contract for the $530m rebuild of Townsville Hospital after a $1 billion blowout and finally, its understood the Department of Transport and Main Roads are considering doing the same with some of their tenders.

Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, 'We're saving projects.'

'I suspect that without the CFMEU tax, it's going to be a lot easier for government to get on with the job and build these projects and infrastructure that Queensland so desperately needs,' Bleijie continued.

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Cross River Rail builder CPB has finally won the backing of its workers for a new workplace agreement.

The new agreement gives workers a 5% pay rise – with back pay for at least part of the 14 months the dispute has been going on. But it won't include the heat policy woven into the controversial BPIC that the former government inflicted on the sector.

Under that heat policy, workers downed tools if it reached 29C with 75% humidity. Those sorts of conditions saw productivity in our construction industry plummet. 

CEO of the Australian Construction Association Jon Davies told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, 'it's certainly what's required as an industry here in Queensland. We've got a huge amount of work that needs to be constructed and the only way it's going to get done is if we get far more productive.'

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In the May budget, the Treasurer abandoned future surpluses in favour of the “unavoidable” spending on deals with the states worth tens of billions of dollars. 

It’s reported Finance Minister Katy Gallagher will also reveal the mid-year economic and fiscal outlook includes $16.3bn to cover the cost of increased welfare payments and pensions, cost-of-living supports, and childcare subsidies.

The Unconventional economist Leith Van Onselen joined Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings to discuss what could be in store for us with the incoming update.

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There’s no doubt 2024 has been a huge year in many ways.

The Bronco’s form and change of leadership, the Brisbane Lions premiership, a change in government here in Queensland after 3 terms under labor.

From Raygun’s cringeworthy turn at the Olympics, to Donald Trump’s election win, the year has brought us many highs, lows and more than a few surprises. 

Media Commentator, Nic Hayes - Managing Director of Media Stable joined Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings to unpack 2024. 

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Join Bill McDonald each weekday from 9am-12pm on 4BC Mornings.  

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Join Bill McDonald each weekday from 9am-12pm on 4BC Mornings.  

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The 61st Wheels Car of the Year has been awarded.

Wheels magazine is now in its eighth decade, having first published in 1953. The 'Car of the Year' is the longest-continuously running new car trophy on the planet.

This year’s judging panel was well represented by five past editors as well as current editor, Andy Enright.

Mr. Enright told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, 'all the cars get judged against 4 key criteria of value, safety, how they drive and execution.'

The 25-car shortlist was cut down to a top 6, including the Ford Mustang Dark Horse, Hyundai Santa Fe Calligraphy, Kia EV5 Earth AWD, MG4 Essence 64 and Toyota Camry Ascent Sport, with the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N taking out top spot.

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The five remaining members of the Bali Nine have returned to Australia after being incarcerated for two decades in Indonesian prisons.

Scott Rush, Matthew Norman, Martin Stephens, Si-Yi Chen and Michael Czugaj were previously serving life sentences after their participation in a botched drug smuggling scheme in 2005.

Bishop Tim Harris has spent significant time supporting the family of Scott Rush.

Bishop Harris told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, 'The journey's just begun because these guys have got to come back now and be reintegrated into a country and a society that they left 20 years ago.'

'What we're going to have to do now is work out a way to receive Scott again.'

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The price of the federal opposition’s nuclear plans are out, and they’re billions cheaper than expected.

According to an analysis by Frontier Economics, between now and 2050, the price would be $331 billion versus $594 billion for Labor’s approach.

The Shadow Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Ted O’Brien, told Bill McDonald the nuclear plan is aimed at ensuring the government is "using taxpayers' money to own long-term infrastructure assets that will help the average consumer save a buck.

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The LNP’s new 'adult time, adult crime' laws were passed in State Parliament yesterday. 

It was a tension-filled day for both the new state government and the opposition. 

The laws will come into effect on December 20 and ensure young criminals found guilty of certain offenses face adult punishments.

LNP Leader, David Crisafulli told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, "It's important that every part of Queensland knows we are serious about this, you're never going to have a perfect situation, you're always going to have an element of crime, but I don't accept that victim numbers have to increase every single year."

"Victims matter. The rights of the victims should come before the rights of the offender and that's been written into the legislation," Mr. Crisafulli continued.

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The Brisbane City Council has struck almost 1000 properties off its list of flood-prone properties, and changed the status of several thousand more, in an update to mapping for its City Plan.

The properties are in areas including Kedron Brook, Brighton Creek, Toowong Creek, Sandy Creek and Witton Creek catchments. 

One resident who is affected by the changes is Stephen Green, a resident of Gordon Park, who had a flood overlay added to his property.

Mr Green told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, "It seems like our front yard is now potentially flood effected."

"We've looked back at the history and there's never been a flood that impacted the block," he said. 

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A new book from one of Australia's most prolific and successful authors, The Big Book of Australian Yarns, compiles a comprehensive collection of factual and fascinating stories and Aussie humour. 

Author of the book, Jim Haynes OAM told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, "It is a 500 page blockbuster."

Mr. Haynes told Bill McDonald it has been a joy writing the book, and it contains plenty of quirky Australian anecdotes, oddities and characters.

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The Sono Lumo event hosted by The Star Brisbane, has put the Bicentennial bikeway in the crosshairs. 

The casino has requested that cyclists and scooter riders dismount for 100 metres, to keep families safe whilst they enjoy the show. 

Bicycle Queensland CEO, Alton Twine, told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, "There's ways of dealing with this that are better than what's being applied."

"Some of the cyclists are wearing cleats, it's dangerous to walk on their cleats."

"The problem here is an ongoing one because there is going to continue to be events in this space." 

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An AI-powered 'smart farm' on the Gold Coast is set to revolutionise the Australian agriculture industry.

Environmental company Earthfix unveiled its cutting-edge indoor smart farm last week in Luscombe. The facility produces great-tasting produce with a longer shelf life, which can grow all year regardless of season and weather. 

Michele Cooper, Chief Operating Officer of Earthfix told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, "With out strong focus on restoring and preserving the natural environment, it made sense to start shifting our focus into farming and food security."

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The Crisafulli government has revealed the Cross River Rail has blown out to a whopping $17 billion and will have years-long delays.

Former Transport Minister Bart Mellish has responded saying the LNP has included things they shouldn't have such as adding 25 years of maintenance costs to the total cost of the project.

Transport Minister Brent Mickelberg told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, "2.6 billion dollars is what it's going to cost Queenslanders, and they deserve to know that."

"It's a real cost that Queenslanders are going to have to pay and I think its entirely reasonable that it be included in the cost of cross river rail," Mickelberg continued.

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Here on 4BC Mornings, we have been following the journey of powerhouse ultramarathon runner, Sal Powell.

Sal Powell has just handed back in Brisbane after running 250 kilometres across Antarctica as part of her quest to become the first Australian to run all five “Racing the Planet” desert ultramarathons in the same year.

Ms. Powell told Bill McDonald, "I cannot put into words what an extraordinary experience it was, you just have to see it to believe it. It is just untouched nature at its best."

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Passengers were told, “Stay down, heads down” as the flight came to landing back in Brisbane.

One of the passengers aboard the flight, Tudor Vasile told Bill McDonald that about 40 minutes into the flight, the Captain told passengers "the brake lights had been triggered meaning that the brakes are locked in place."

Qantas has released a statement saying “A flight from Brisbane to Adelaide returned to Brisbane shortly after take-off due to a mechanical issue. The aircraft landed normally and is being checked by engineers.”

“We recognise that this may have been concerning for customers and we thank them for their understanding.

“We are working hard to get customers on their way as quickly as possible.”

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Last week on 4BC Mornings, we heard from Andrew Tett from Deception Bay after his Christmas lights display was destroyed in a heartless act.

With the generous assistance of some 4BC listeners, Mr. Tett has successfully replaced his lights, and his beautiful display is now back up and running.

Mr. Tett told Bill McDonald, "We've managed to make it nice and bright again."

"Everyone's been pitching in, I've had people in my street stopping in their cars and offering a hand, it's been pretty overwhelming to be honest."

"There's a lot of good people out there, I've got no words," Mr. Tett told Bill McDonald.

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As much as Christmas Day brings joy and celebration to the holiday season, it is not unknown that the logistics of planning, preparing, and executing Christmas Day celebrations can be stressful.

Many families are opting to eat out for their Christmas day feast in order to negate the stressful nature of the day however Bill McDonald is not convinced.

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The Crisafulli Government has directed Queensland Health to conduct a Part 9 investigation into major breaches at the state's virology laboratory.

This comes as it was revealed that infectious virus samples stored at the lab are unaccounted for.

Samples of Hendra virus, Lyssavirus, and Hantavirus were discovered to be missing in August of 2023 in a major breach of biosecurity protocols.

There is no evidence of risk to the community from this breach.

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Research forecasts that 16.7 million Australians will buy Christmas gifts in 2024. 

In total, we spend around $11.8 billion dollars in the process. 

Unfortunately, some gifts just don’t hit the mark.

Gift and Gift-Wrapping Expert, Vivienne Anthon joined Bill McDonald to break down the worst gifts to give on Christmas.

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Last night the Elders of the Juru peoples in the Burdekin met to discuss the Welcome to Country. 

A motion to ban the Welcome to Country was put to the Elder Council, and the motion was passed.

Juru Elder and Chair of that meeting Randal Ross told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, "It is well and truly being abused".

"Welcome to Country has become a business that supports certain individuals and that's where they are losing the cultural insight or sight about what the Welcome to Country's are about."

"This is a stand that we are taking in our particular area, and I think it's been long overdue."

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Local charity, Rosies Friends on the Street raises awareness of issues affecting vulnerable women across the state.

Thanks to a partnership with Queensland-based women’s health brand Ostelin, Rosies has been able to add a new van to their fleet, which was unveiled this morning. 

Long-time Rosies volunteer Cathy Barber told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, " [Rosies] gives them someone, a friendly face and a friendly conversation to have with as well."

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Australia is stuck in a per capita recession – barely avoiding an official recession.

What’s gone wrong in 2024? And has anything gone right?

The Unconventional Economist, Leith van Onselen, told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, "I'll be quite frank, it was absolutely shocking data that came out yesterday."

"The growth figures that came out yesterday were well below the Reserve Bank's forecast."

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Former Greens Lord Mayoral candidate Jonathan Sriranganathan and his band Rivermouth have released new music after three years. 

However, the lyrics may be controversial. 

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Yesterday we heard that both the foundation launched by the widow of Apple founder Steve Jobs, and the Albanese Government have inadvertently co-funded long litigation against energy projects across the country.

Millions of dollars in overseas donations to the Environmental Defenders Office are just the tip of the iceberg. 

The EDO came under fire in the Federal Court for concocting Indigenous songlines to block Santos’s $5.7bn LNG pipeline in the Timor Sea. 

The EDO was last week ordered to pay Santos’s entire costs totalling more than $9m.

In reference to the EDO, Federal Opposition environment spokesman Jonno Duniam, told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, "They are going to go out there, they are going to look for cases to fight, they are going to look for projects to stop."

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Queensland is facing its first credit rating downgrade in 15 years. 

The LNP government has likely inherited a credit rating downgrade after a decade under the Labor government.

The new Treasurer, Hon. David Janetzki, has warned the downgrade would deliver the consequence of the state’s debt burden becoming even more expensive.

David Janetzki told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, "The magnitude of the project overruns and blowouts has been surprising."

"Particularly what's been surprising was how deceitful the former government had been in hiding them."

Mr Janetski will deliver his keynote address at around 1.30pm this afternoon, on 4 December 2024.

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Today marks three years since then-Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese promised power bills would be $275 a year cheaper by 2025 if he was in charge of the country.

Anthony Albanese is now Prime Minister, we are 29 days from that deadline, and our power bills have only gone up.

Shadow Energy Minister Ted O’Brien told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, "we've got to stop this garbage of prematurely closing baseload power stations."

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The Grinch has stolen Christmas in Deception Bay.

A poor family has had their Christmas lights display destroyed in an act that goes completely against the spirit of the festive season. 

Andrew Tett, the victim of this senseless crime, told Bill McDonald on 4BC Mornings, the reason for his light display. Mr Tett said, "It's for all the kids, everyone's going through a tough time, and it's just to make everyone feel better."

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