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Mike Smithson

Mike Smithson

InDaily

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Smithson: Who’s bedding down Plan B if global climate conference bid fails?

Adelaide hotels are blocking out all available rooms for November 2026 with high hopes of cashing in on the rich and famous for COP31. But Mike...

05.11.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Smithson: Secret SA Parli Whisperer wreaking havoc

Political guru Mike Smithson unravels the fallout from another “deliberately and mischievously leaked email” from the so-called SA Parli...

21.10.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Smithson: Baptism of fire for govt’s newest MPs

Pollies are beefing up the ranks at routine media announcements as candidate hopefuls try to squeeze into picture opportunities. Mike Smithson delves...

09.10.2025 80

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Smithson: Libs AI debacle as Kouts lands Treasury driver’s seat

Political veteran Mike Smithson takes a look at a tumultuous week in state politics, raking up stories of old traffic fines, dodgy documents and a...

24.09.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Mike Smithson: Antic's conservative shrapnel draws Liberal blood

The state Liberal party’s so-called broad church has left some true believers crying in the chapel after a weekend preselection tempest. But was it...

18.09.2025 20

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Smithson: Hedging bets as anti-immigration placards march toward state election

Until recently, the sight of Aussie flags being waved as far as the eye could see would have warmed our hearts, writes Mike Smithson. It was once a...

04.09.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Smithson: Is saving our koalas too much to bear?

A leading wildlife organisation is finding it hard to survive, let alone scratch out a living, as demand for its services soars, writes Mike Smithson....

28.08.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Smithson: Time to be Frank about big reveal

An awkward moment caught on camera speaks volumes about messaging gone wrong for just an instant, writes Mike Smithson. Frank Pangallo has walked the...

21.08.2025 8

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Smithson: Govt’s blue-chip Housing Trust headache

The once-sleeping giant of South Australia’s housing crisis is looming as a possible threat to Labor’s re-election in Adelaide’s most inner...

14.08.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Smithson: Whisper warning as election looms

Less than a year out from the next state election, the rumour mill is turning, throwing up whispers about MPs stepping down, rejoining parties and...

07.08.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Smithson: Could our algae crisis sink Mali?

The Premier’s office wishes it could wind back the clock several weeks and have plonked Peter Malinauskas into the thick of it from the very early...

31.07.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

The Premier starts to feel the winter chill as storms brew

The winter chill has descended across South Australia in more ways than one and the Malinauskas government may already be reaching for the proverbial...

16.07.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

All eyes are on Kangaroo Island. Is the tourism mecca prepared?

The road to KI’s tourism goldmine is littered with potholes, writes Mike Smithson, who says the island’s infrastructure is not prepared for the...

02.07.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Why has it taken so long for authorities to take Housing Trust concerns seriously?

The new-found concern from the government about the Housing Trust tenant problem is at least 10 years too late, writes Mike Smithson. Powerful and...

28.06.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

A fairway too far

Grand plans to transform the North Adelaide park lands golf course into some kind of Caddyshack Country Club are currently hitting more of the rough...

20.06.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Addressing the elephant in the room, or not

If the Treasurer and Premier are forced to wear the boring badge for this budget, writes Mike Smithson, it means they’ll have more to splash when...

11.06.2025 9

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Council balance sheets must resemble a lawyer’s picnic

Local government resignations with claims of bullying and harassment behind a veil of secrecy continue to play out like a C-grade soap opera, writes...

04.06.2025 20

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Good, bad or indifferent: State Libs hit the phones

If the Libs are forced to conduct polling in Bragg, how worried must they be about neighbouring Hartley, Morialta and Unley? asks Mike Smithson....

28.05.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Funboxes get Burnside residents fuming

Burnside Council is wheeling around another thorny and potentially costly issue, writes Mike Smithson, which is destined to anger more ratepayers than...

20.05.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

A home-grown Liberal defeat

What role does John Olsen, the outgoing federal president of the Liberal Party of Australia, play in the wake of the federal election disaster? With...

09.05.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

SMITHSON: Cop that, Speirs

David Speirs shouldn’t be surprised or disappointed with his two drug convictions, writes Mike Smithson. The former Liberal politician who aspired...

25.04.2025 30

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Playing the numbers game for the Senate

The title fight for Senate positions is about as riveting as watching paint dry in winter but SA’s political fist fight could go all the way, writes...

24.04.2025 20

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Bizarre campaign messaging turns off voters

We’re halfway through the election campaigning and Mike Smithson wonders if any of the leaders have made any cut through, and if Labor’s secret...

16.04.2025 20

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Luring visitors to SA has never been simple

If taxpayers are ever taken for a ride with fanciful or overambitious, indulgent tourism promotion, we have a right to ask uncomfortable questions,...

11.04.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Placing the blame on the wrong person

The deepfake in the sordid David Speirs affair may just be Speirs himself, writes Mike Smithson. Former SA Liberal leader David Speirs is essentially...

02.04.2025 9

InDaily

Mike Smithson

State pollies prepare for a year-long battle

The upcoming federal election will be a yawn when compared to next year’s state election, according to Mike Smithson. He’s predicting “corpses...

19.03.2025 20

InDaily

Mike Smithson

Guarding our democracy from being corrupted

We live in a society where correct behaviour should be bleedingly obvious, writes Mike Smithson, but the reality has a far darker side. A dark cloud...

14.03.2025 9

InDaily

Mike Smithson

SA battle lines drawn even before federal election called

The spotlight will be on the federal seats of Sturt and Boothby from now until election day, whenever that may be, writes Mike Smithson. The subtle...

07.03.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

The political dust is far from settled around parched northern developments

State cabinet ministers will be armed with sunscreen and broad-brimmed hats when they head to the parched mid-north later this week in their crisply...

25.02.2025 10

InDaily

Mike Smithson

A familiar face has ‘maintained the rage’ in Florey

Just when the Malinaukas Government looked home and hosed for another voter blitz, the election needle may be wavering. Unfactored circumstances are...

13.02.2025 20

InDaily

Mike Smithson

The North Terrace dustbowl is becoming political stain for the Premier

Remember Tarrkarri? The Premier wishes you didn’t, writes Mike Smithson in the first of his weekly insights into how the halls of power operate....

07.02.2025 20

InDaily

Mike Smithson