Forget the prospect of a 15% GST hike, tinkering with superannuation, or the everyday struggle with housing affordability - political tragics know the biggest story coming out of Canberra in recent days.
Last week, the Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Legislation Committee heard all about how bee semen is harvested.
Yes, you read that right.
The examination of Department of Agriculture and Water Resources first assistant secretary Tim Chapman about the biosecurity risks associated with importing bee semen into Australia started out mundane enough.
"How do you get bee semen into the country?" asked South Australian Liberal Senator Sean Edwards.
"The bee semen gets collected in the exporting country and it gets sent in in little vials," answered Mr Chapman.
So far, so good.
But then veteran NSW Liberal Senator Bill Heffernan went where other politicians fear to tread.
"How do you get the semen out of the bee - do you have to kill the bee to get the semen?" he inquired.
Without missing a beat, Mr Chapman replied: "So, that's the most common question we get asked, Senator.
"It’s part of the vernacular; everyone wants to know how you get semen out of a bee."
As the room filled with laughter, the first assistant secretary pressed on, explaining that while he was "no expert" there were "videos of this on YouTube."
"Basically, you squeeze the bee, which overts its endophallus, and then the semen is collected from the end," he told the senate committee.
"Are they still alive when you're finished?" asked Senator Heffernan.
"No, but ... bees also die when they mate naturally," Mr Chapman responded.
"In fact, they explode."
Some politicians took to social media to express their surprise.
Let it never be said that senate committees aren't educational.
