Tomorrow, I’m heading to Brisbane to interview Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.

As always, I’d love any question suggestions you have.

Just hit reply to this email!

The quote
"At this point in history, I can't be proud of my nation and I feel honour bound to return [it]." – Musician Shane Howard, in a statement announcing he is returning his Order of Australia following the result of the referendum.

The stat
$1
The price it will cost per year to sign up for an unverified X account in New Zealand and the Philippines, under a new trial. Verified accounts cost $84 per year. The change will not affect existing accounts.

Today in history
1979: The Australian Federal Police was established.

Some headlines from this morning:

More than a million gambling advertisements aired on TV and radio between May 2022 and April 2023, according to new data from the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).

This amounts to about $238 million spent by gambling companies to advertise their product.

Online gambling companies spent the most on ads (64%) compared to other gambling services like lotteries and horse racing.

Ad restrictions:
Currently, there are restrictions to airing gambling ads from 5am to 8:30pm to reduce exposure to children.

ACMA reports that the hour from 9pm to 10pm had the highest number of gambling ads on air.

Gambling in Australia:
Nearly three in four adult Australians gamble at least once a year, according to the Australian Gambling Research Centre.

A parliamentary report from June this year noted that Australians lose $25 billion a year, making this country the world's biggest gamblers per capita.

Gambling Helpline: 1800 858 858

Lifeline: 13 11 14

A clinic offering ketamine treatment for depression has opened in Victoria this month.

Ketamine is now being used in three clinics nationwide, to target treatment-resistant depression — a type of depression that doesn't respond to anti-depressant medication.

Low doses of ketamine have been found to "quickly and significantly" improve depressive symptoms.

According to the Black Dog Institute, one-third of patients with depression do not respond to antidepressants.

What is ketamine?
Ketamine is commonly used in medicine and by vets as an anaesthetic.

It's a dissociative drug, meaning it acts on brain chemicals, and can stop the brain from interpreting pain messages.

Ketamine is also used and sold illegally as a hallucinogen, often in white powder form.

Clinical treatment:
The Advanced Interventions in Mood Disorders Clinic (AIM) recently opened at the Royal Melbourne Hospital.

It provides intravenous (into the vein) treatment to eligible patients who haven't responded to antidepressants or other treatments, as well as people who can't take medication due to side effects.

Over a three-week period, patients receive two ketamine treatments per week, lasting 40 minutes each.

AIM clinic director Professor Chris Davey told TDA that while responses vary, the clinic has been treating patients "who have tried everything," with several reporting "really good responses to ketamine".

"I don't think that ketamine is the magic answer to depression, it's not a cure-all. It's just another option and it's good for people who are running out of options."

Risks:
Researchers at the Black Dog Institute say ketamine treatment is safe with adequate care and ongoing psychiatric support.

Common side effects of low-dose ketamine treatment can include feeling drowsy or disoriented and changes to blood pressure and heart rate.

However, these symptoms usually resolve in the hours after treatment.

AIM patients are monitored for 90 minutes after receiving treatment.

Accessibility:
AIM's ketamine treatment is not available to patients under 25.

Ketamine is not currently listed as an approved Therapeutic Goods Administration drug, meaning it's not eligible for Government support.

Black Dog Institute researcher Professor Colleen Loo said some patients can access the treatment privately, with significant out-of-pocket costs.

What’s next?
Clinical studies of ketamine treatment are currently in progress for younger people, aged 16 to 24.

Two other clinics currently offer ketamine treatment, in NSW and QLD.

Professor Loo acknowledged access to the treatment is limited, and described "responsibly" ensuring more people can access "high-quality" care as the "next challenge".

For more on this, you can listen to today’s podcast below.

Get all the news you need to know today in your ears on The Daily Aus podcast!

The Socceroos have won the ‘Soccer Ashes’ following a 2-0 victory against New Zealand in London.

The Soccer Ashes is a trophy containing the ashes of cigars smoked by the captains of Australia and New Zealand after a match in 1923. The trophy disappeared in 1954 and was rediscovered in a suburban garage earlier this year.

The Socceroos will play their next match in Melbourne in one month.

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Yesterday I saw a TikTok that I have to share. It’s from the ‘You Wouldn’t’ pod, and it’s the hosts discussing names that would be cool if they weren’t already a word. I loved their suggestions. They included:

I love them. I see them all as cute babies. I therefore crowd-sourced TDA’s own list of baby names we think could work if they weren’t real words:

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