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The Sounding Board

S11 E15 - Question Time

12 May 2026

Transcription

Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?

5.92 - 13.412 Craig Hutchison

This is the Sounding Board Podcast with Hutchie and Damo. Thanks to DrinkWise. If you're choosing to have a drink, choose to DrinkWise.

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13.612 - 29.177 Damian Barrett

Question time on the Sounding Board for DrinkWise. If you're choosing to drink, choose to DrinkWise. We'll start with an email question from Alex who writes, I recently discovered that Victorian Treasurer Jacqueline Symes graduated in law from Deakin University while Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers holds a PhD in philosophy.

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29.157 - 44.052 Damian Barrett

Neither has any formal financial qualifications or professional experience in finance prior to entering politics. It raises the broader question of how individuals without extensive financial or economic backgrounds come to hold such critical positions in parliament.

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44.072 - 65.177 Damian Barrett

Why don't ministerial positions offer higher remuneration in order to attract candidates with deeper expertise and stronger private sector experience relative to what we currently have? Trusting such underqualified career politicians is, in my view, the key reason why we find ourselves in the current mess we're in. I reckon that's a ripping email from Alex, aren't you?

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65.477 - 69.262 Damian Barrett

And I'm just trying to find it myself. What page is that on? It's on page six. Have you jumped the page on the question?

Chapter 2: What qualifications do politicians like Jacinta Allan and Jim Chalmers have?

69.403 - 77.594 Damian Barrett

No. You missed page five. Page five was a carry-on themed part of our question. We can get back to carry-on if we want to have this conversation that we should have had off here.

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78.275 - 84.223 Unknown

You and I speak the same language, Alex. I've been on about this for years, about how underpaid politicians are. We don't attract the right people enough.

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84.203 - 106.632 Damian Barrett

But specifically, Hachi, the treasurer of this state, which is going just beautifully on every level, financially and everything else, and the treasurer of the federal operations, they don't have tertiary education in that space. That's the point of what Alexis was saying. And they often end up in remits that are not specialist in. I agree, Alex. I agree.

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107.053 - 129.495 Damian Barrett

And I think politicians just expect to just find a new tax, Alex, but that's probably getting a bit political. But I think it's a really good point Alex raises. Jacqueline Symes is not qualified under that situation to do what she's about to do or has done last week. Lenny on X is you too. Is you too. Is you too. Refusing to break your silence last week on the Mitch Cleary hot mic.

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Chapter 3: Why is there a lack of financial qualifications among key politicians?

129.916 - 132.098 Damian Barrett

An egregious example of rules for some.

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132.078 - 137.13 Unknown

I think we spoke about it briefly last week. We'd spoken recently around the microphone is always on.

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137.451 - 137.631 Damian Barrett

Yeah.

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137.771 - 139.094 Unknown

And not to speak around a microphone.

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139.195 - 155.908 Damian Barrett

I thought we spoke about it. I mean, there wasn't anywhere to take it, was there? He said what he said. I thought we did speak about it. Maybe we didn't, but I wasn't avoiding it. I feel like we did. Maybe it was in question time that we did discuss it. What we did say, what I said, was clearly it was an accident. It should not have gone to air.

155.968 - 172.108 Damian Barrett

Mitch was under the impression it was a prerecord, and that doesn't excuse use of language. Don't make that out. But equally, he had no intent for that to go to air, and it went to air. And I think he's come out of it looking better. Yep. I think it's softened his brand, weirdly enough. Relatable. Yep.

172.088 - 190.888 Unknown

We've broken our silence, haven't we? There you go. Nick on email. I'm hoping this is a topic. It's the only boy back's former producer in Hot Mike Moment. Nick on email. Mitch, comma, who's an outstanding reporter, but probably wasn't the level of Jane as a producer, comma.

190.908 - 191.008

Yeah.

190.988 - 210.793 Damian Barrett

I texted Jane last night, actually, Hutchie. I was actually, Janine was watching the ABC News and Jane had a piece of the camera. Oh, really? Yeah. I think it was called Earth House. It was a good piece about people making houses out of the earth, basically. Jane's in the course tomorrow. She's every week to update the voiceovers for the sounding board. Nick got email.

Chapter 4: How does Jacinta Allan's recent decision regarding Fed Square impact public perception?

546.109 - 561.28 Unknown

Huge week. Does it work better being at the one venue as opposed to several like the AFL? It's different to Gather Round. I think Gather Round has got the benefit of confined space. Yep. But Magic Round's fabulous.

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561.682 - 580.608 Damian Barrett

All right. Might leave it there, Hutchie. Question time. That's it. Well, we could go to one more. Ash on email. Curious as to why people who are paid, and that's in capitals, to call sports don't do basic research like find out how to pronounce players' names. Has happened since the dawn of time, and it's not just AFL, but it's respectful and professional to say names correctly, in my opinion.

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581.009 - 583.993 Damian Barrett

I'd agree. I agree with you, Ange. I think it's...

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585.492 - 592.045 Unknown

I got it, Archie. Ash, I think it's a fair point in, in keep driving those standards.

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592.446 - 600.401 Damian Barrett

Yep. Like sometimes when you do actually get the athlete in and ask him or her how you pronounce it, they actually say they don't care. And if you say, is it this way? Yeah, go with that.

600.482 - 610.778 Unknown

Is it this way? I saw an interview yesterday where you asked O'Sheen Mullen that question on the Sunday foot show, and he had four different answers, four different parts of the country. That's a really good point. So sometimes even the athlete doesn't know.

611.078 - 620.933 Damian Barrett

And he clearly didn't care, did he? No. He did not care. That's a good answer to Ash's question there to round up the question time on the sounding board for DrinkWise. If you're choosing to drink, choose to DrinkWise.

621.841 - 636.762 Craig Hutchison

Thanks for listening to The Sounding Board Questions with Hachi and Damo. Send us your questions via Twitter or Facebook at Sounding Board EP. Hit the sign up button on Facebook to receive our weekly email and subscribe to, rate and review the show wherever you listen to podcasts.

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