Brenton Prosser was senior policy adviser to Senator Nick Xenophon during the period when the senator first shared the balance of power in the Senate. He has previously published three books on health and education policy, as well as numerous papers in the areas of parliamentary integrity, media and politics. Currently, he is a senior research fellow at the Australian National University. Richard Denniss was Chief of Staff to Natasha Stott Despoja during the period that the Australian Democrats held the balance of power in the Senate. He is now Executive Director to the Australia Institute policy thinktank. He has recently published An Introduction to Australian Public Policy- Theory and Practice with Sarah Maddison, and is co-author (with Clive Hamilton) of the bestselling book Affluenza- When Too Much is Never Enough.