| | | 14/02/2024 Dutton’s visa call, $100bn fossil fuel tax proposed, Kremlin adds to most wanted list |
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| Martin Farrer |  |
| | | Morning everyone. Peter Dutton has attacked Labor’s handling of the release of people from unlawful immigration detention, but his own record as home affairs minister has also come under the microscope. This morning our lead story looks at how he personally intervened to extend the stay in Australia of someone with criminal convictions. Today we’re also looking at how supermarkets penalise some farmers who ask for their bills to be paid quickly, the antisemitism scandal rocking the UK Labour party, and why the Kremlin wants to arrest Estonia’s prime minister. |
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 | Australia | | Farm fees | Australia’s biggest supermarkets are charging some farmers hefty fees to receive quicker payments for their produce, heaping financial pressure on growers already under strain from cashflow problems. | Dutton doubt | Peter Dutton intervened to allow a person with criminal convictions to stay in Australia for a further two months when he was home affairs minister despite his department refusing on three previous occasions, Senate inquiry documents show. | ‘Restoration taskforce’ | The New South Wales government has announced a new “restoration taskforce” to oversee efforts to return as many Aboriginal children to their families from the child protection system as is safe. | Fossil fuel tax proposal | A $100bn tax on fossil fuel production could help fund Australia’s transition to becoming a carbon-free energy giant, lower the cost of living and assist the world to cut greenhouse emissions, veteran economists Ross Garnaut and Rod Sims will tell the National Press Club today. | Water warning | Health authorities are urging people with diarrhoea to avoid swimming pools as cryptosporidiosis infections surge across NSW and Queensland. |
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| World | | Russia’s wanted list | Moscow has put Estonian prime minister Kaja Kallas (pictured) and other Baltic states officials on a wanted list for “destroying Soviet monuments”, as Tallinn warns of an imminent Russian military buildup along its border. | Medellín alert | Authorities in Medellín will meet representatives of embassies and popular dating apps this week after five foreigners were found dead in the Colombian city in the past seven days. | Ceasefire talks | Israel and Hamas are making progress towards a deal that would bring about a ceasefire and free hostages held in the Gaza Strip, amid reports that CIA director William Burns was flying to join the talks in Cairo as international pressure cranked up on both sides to find an agreement. | Tractor trouble | A tractor blockade has seriously disrupted operations at the Belgian port of Antwerp, Europe’s second largest, authorities said, as angry farmers continued their protests in half a dozen European countries. | Plague pet | A pet owner in Oregon has caught the bubonic plague from their cat in a rare example of the potentially deadly illness surfacing in the US, local authorities have said. |
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| Full Story | | Dog resumes? The lengths we’re going to for a rental property What happens when you can’t find a rental in your budget and you own a dog? Caitlin Cassidy and Cait Kelly tell Gabrielle Jackson how it’s a common problem during the rental crisis. | |
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| In-depth | | With just two and a half weeks to go until a key byelection in the northern English town of Rochdale, the Labour party headquarters should be a hive of activity. But on a drizzly Tuesday morning the shutters were down and there was no one to be seen after the party’s candidate Azhar Ali (pictured) was suspended for antisemitic remarks he made after the 7 October Hamas attacks. Labour leader Keir Starmer has defended the decision, which could turn a safe seat into a potentially damaging loss, but followed it up by suspending a second candidate as the scandal rocks his leadership. |
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| Not the news | | In a new monthly column, one of our music critics celebrates a local artist more people should know about, complete with some suggested listening. To start us off, Michael Sun enthuses about Melbourne’s Daine, whose latest offering, Shades On, he describes as a “lurid ode to bloghouse”. |
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| The world of sport | | T20 cricket | A knock of 81 by David Warner was in vain as the West Indies powered their way to a 37-run victory over Australia in the third and final T20 clash at Optus Stadium in Perth. | Champions League | Copenhagen take on holders Manchester City in the last 16, while Leipzig host the mighty Real Madrid. | Premier League | Crystal Palace have failed in their bid to persuade Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna to replace Roy Hodgson, who is under pressure after a series of poor results. |
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| Media roundup | The main news in the Age is the shocking disruption caused by the huge storm that hit Melbourne yesterday, and the bushfire threat in Victoria. Private schools are threatening to hike fees unless the Albanese government drops plans to strip donors of their tax breaks, the Australian claims. |
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| What’s happening today | Courts | Shane Drumgold’s application for a judicial review of the Sofronoff inquiry into the Lehrmann case continues in Canberra, while Lisa Wilkinson continues a two-day hearing to fight Ten over the costs of their related legal action. | Canberra | Rod Sims and Ross Garnaut address the National Press Club. | Education | ABS schools data for 2023 is released. |
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| Brain teaser | And finally, here are the Guardian’s crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day – with plenty more on the Guardian’s Puzzles app for iOS and Android. Until tomorrow. | |
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| | | Lenore Taylor | | Editor, Guardian Australia |
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| | I hope you appreciated this newsletter. Before you move on, I wonder if you would consider supporting Guardian Australia. As we look ahead to the challenges of 2024, we’re aiming to power more rigorous, independent reporting.
In 2023, our journalism held the powerful to account and gave a voice to the marginalised. It cut through misinformation to arm Australians with facts about the referendum and exposed corporate greed amid the cost-of-living crunch. It sparked government inquiries and investigations, and continued to treat the climate crisis with the urgency it deserves.
This vital work is made possible because of our unique reader-supported model. With no billionaire owner or shareholders to consider, we are empowered to produce truly independent journalism that serves the public interest, not profit motives.
And unlike others, we don’t keep our journalism behind a paywall. With misinformation and propaganda increasingly rife, we believe it is more important than ever that everybody has access to trustworthy news and information, whether they can afford to pay for it or not.
If you can, please support us on a monthly basis from just $2. It takes less than a minute to set up, and you can rest assured that you’re making a big impact every single month in support of open, independent journalism. Thank you. | | |
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