Good morning. Environmental activists are in the firing line of the resources minister, Keith Pitt, today. Covid testing centres are providing relief for burnt-out nurses and hope for queue jumpers who are finding few obstacles to getting jabbed, despite not being eligible.
Australians under 40 are receiving a Covid vaccine despite not being eligible. Some are being encouraged to do so by some nurses who say they want to see vaccines in the arms of people willing to receive them as soon as possible others are finding theres no one checking their eligibility. It comes as exhausted nurses are opting for shifts in vaccination hubs instead of emergency departments and GP surgeries for the higher pay and so they can get some much-needed respite from overcrowded public hospitals and clinics. Meanwhile, Victoria halted new bookings for the Pfizer vaccine and locked down a large block of units in central Melbourne after two more people tested positive to Covid, while in Sydney authorities are investigating a possible spread of the virus in the quarantine system. Abroad there has been another grim milestone as the US passes 600,000 Covid-related deaths.
Ben Roberts-Smith hired a private investigator to spy on his girlfriend at a Brisbane abortion clinic after they had agreed to terminate a pregnancy a woman he later allegedly punched after a dinner at Parliament House, a court has heard. He also later commissioned the same private eye to find the home addresses of former comrades whom he believed were behind a whispering campaign to the media discrediting him. The defamation case brought by the Victoria Cross recipient against three newspapers continues in court today.
Israeli police fired rubber-tipped bullets at Palestinians protesting against a march by Jewish ultranationalists through Arab neighbourhoods of Jerusalem, a provocative parade that threatened to damage a fragile Gaza ceasefire. At one point, several dozen young men and teenagers, jumping in their air, chanted: Death to Arabs! Palestinian medics said Israeli police had wounded more than 30 people protesting against the parade.
Australia
Nades Murugappan arrives in Perth with his daughter Kopika after a charter flight from Christmas Island, to be reunited with his wife Priya and younger daughter Tharnicaa. Photograph: Richard Wainwright/AAP
After more than 18 months on Christmas Island, the Tamil family from Biloela will be moved into community detention in Perth but what comes next? Heres what we know so far.
The resources minister, Keith Pitt, will use a speech to the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association today to attacks green activists for trying to cripple fossil fuel companies, and urge oil and gas producers to fight back against groups such as Greenpeace by quantifying the sectors contribution to the economy.
Australian farmers will gain greater market access to the UK in a phased manner over the next 15 years while working visas will also be liberalised under a new free trade deal between the two countries. The free trade deal is Britains first bilateral agreement since Brexit.
The Commonwealth Bank reaped superannuation profits to the tune of $1.4bn over four years, even when fund members balances fell.
Members of an elite all-male gentlemens club in Sydney have voted against allowing women to join their ranks. The Australian Club said on Tuesday that a record turnout of members at the special general meeting had voted on the resolution.
The world
Donald Trumps White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows, instructed justice department officials at least five times to investigate false allegations of voter fraud. Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
Donald Trump tried to enlist top US law enforcement officials in a conspiracy-laden and doomed effort to overturn his election defeat, a campaign they described as pure insanity, newly released emails show.
The Metropolitan police have been described as institutionally corrupt and its commissioner, Cressida Dick, personally censured for obstruction by an independent inquiry reviewing the 1987 murder of a private detective, Daniel Morgan.
Ikea has been ordered to pay 1.1m (A$1.74m) in fines and damages by a French court after being found guilty of spying on staff, and an elaborate scheme to gather information on hundreds of employees, job applicants and even customers.
Hungarys parliament has passed a law banning LGBT content in schools and on TV. The legislation outlaws sharing information seen as promoting homosexuality with under-18s.
Recommended reads
When young children battle anxiety, parents dont need to feel like helpless bystanders,writes Sarah Ayoub. Tantrums, clinginess and fussy eating could all signal your childs emotional cup is full. Regulation depends on the emotion being validated and then released. We need to acknowledge that children have stress and that children can and do experience anxiety and panic, says a psychologist, Donna Cameron. Identifying these early symptoms and working with professionals in a team approach will give parents and guardians the best opportunity for management of this anxiety and therefore relief for the child. Anxiety can be treated and managed and it is not your fault as a parent, so never feel scared about reaching out for help.
The first step to creating a solid cashflow plan is to have the right banking structure in place. Dividing money up lets you keep track of it, says a financial adviser, Victoria Devine, and while six bank accounts may seem a lot, each has a purpose. Together, they create an automatic system that helps you save, without feeling deprived. If you dont have a plan, you are likely to lose funds to seemingly small expenses that add up significantly over time. Multiple bank accounts make you pay attention to those small things.
You can throw out the carrots because researchers have developed a transparent metallic film that allows a viewer to see in the dark, which could one day turn regular spectacles into night-vision goggles. The ultra-thin film, made of a semiconductor called gallium arsenide, could also be used to develop compact and flexible infrared sensors, scientists say. It works by converting infrared light which is normally invisible to humans into light visible to the human eye.
Listen
Woodside Petroleum is planning to expand a liquefied natural gas project in a plan it claims will reduce emissions by 30% by 2030. But analysts say the project will cause emissions to skyrocket. Guardian Australias environment editor, Adam Morton, explains why the project is being approved and what could it mean for Australias emission targets.
Full Story is Guardian Australias daily news podcast. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or any other podcasting app.
Sport
The Wallabies coach, Dave Rennie, has overlooked overseas-based Australian players for the 38-man squad for the three-Test series against France next month but the only way this parochial selection policy can continue is for the national team to start winning again. The locals-first approach risks further eroding the national teams capacity to fund the rest of the game.
The US 1,500m and 5,000m record holder Shelby Houlihan has been banned for four years for doping after her claim that she ate a contaminated pork burrito was rejected.
Media roundup
Travel bans in Victoria and other Covid restrictions may be lifted from Friday if proposed changes are accepted in a cabinet meeting this morning, according to the Herald Sun. The Queensland premier is pushing for a really strong vaccine education campaign to encourage more people to get the jab when supply is available, so that international borders can be opened safely sooner than mid-2022, the Courier-Mail reports. And the billionaire media mogul Kerry Stokes has been reappointed as a member of the council of the Australian War Memorial for a further 12 months amid ongoing controversy over its $500m redevelopment and expansion, says the Sydney Morning Herald.
Coming up
The Dark Mofo festival begins in Hobart today.
And if youve read this far
Antidepressant drugs in water can make crayfish bolder and more outgoing, researchers have found. Unfortunately these traits also make them more vulnerable to predators.
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