Morning Mail: Australians reportedly escape Gaza, Abbott’s ‘climate cult’ rant, minister’s Qantas meetings
Tony Abbott #TonyAbbott
Morning everyone. Starting with some good news, Australian nationals were reportedly among those who have managed to escape from Gaza as the border crossing to Egypt opened for a limited number of people overnight.
Meanwhile, in the UK, Tony Abbott has lashed out about the “climate cult” and how voters will always put their own bottom line before any efforts to cut emissions. But our story on how South Australia has been meeting virtually all its electricity needs from rooftop solar panels shows how people are investing to cut their bills and emissions. We also have an exclusive on Catherine King’s meetings with Alan Joyce, the naming and shaming of Coles and Woolies, and another astonishing day of evidence at the UK Covid inquiry.
Australia Photograph: Bri Hammond/The Guardian
Peace prize | The actor and activist Nazanin Boniadi (pictured) has marked winning the Sydney Peace Prize today by calling for the Australian-educated Iranian minister behind internet shutdowns in Iran to be sanctioned.
Exclusive | Catherine King and the former Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce met at least twice at Parliament House in recent months amid intense scrutiny into whether the airline chief’s influence quashed a rival’s bid, documents reveal.
‘Climate cult’ | Former prime minister Tony Abbott has claimed in a speech in London that warnings of human-induced climate change are “ahistorical and utterly implausible”, criticising what he called “the climate cult” that he said would “eventually be discredited”. And as bushfires continue to rage in Queensland and New South Wales, a study shows 78% of weather-related hospitalisations in the past decade have been due to extreme heat.
Centrelink | Commonwealth prosecutors have dropped dozens of welfare fraud cases affected by unlawful Centrelink debt calculations, as Services Australia continues the cleanup of tens of thousands of doubtful debts.
Shonky awards | Coles and Woolworths have been named and shamed by consumer advocates Choice for “cashing in during a cost of living crisis” in an annual Shonky awards that also singles out rental platforms and a surprisingly warm mini-fridge.
World Photograph: Xinhua/Shutterstock
Crossing to safety | The Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt has opened for the first time in more than three weeks of fighting to allow the evacuation of dozens of injured Palestinians and hundreds of foreign passport holders. Australians were reportedly among them. In the US a leading Republican said there should be “no limit” on the civilian casualties Israel can inflict in Gaza, while at home Jewish groups held vigils in Sydney and Melbourne calling for a ceasefire.
Trump trial | Donald Trump’s eldest son is taking the stand today at the New York civil fraud trial surrounding the former president’s business empire. Follow the case live.
AI ‘catastrophic’ risk | The UK, US, EU and China have all agreed that artificial intelligence poses a potentially catastrophic risk to humanity, in the first international declaration to deal with the fast-emerging technology.
‘Hairdryer’ treatment | Boris Johnson asked his top scientists if Covid could be destroyed by blowing a “special hairdryer” up the nose, according to a statement to the UK Covid inquiry by his former adviser Dominic Cummings. A former senior civil servant has criticised Johnson for failing to act against Cummings when he used what she described as “violent and misogynistic language” against her. In her evidence, Helen MacNamara also expressed her unease at how Johnson’s team were “laughing” at the Italians when Covid hit rather than trying to work out how Britain would react. As ever, Marina Hyde nails it: “The only thing this cavalcade of know-alls didn’t seem to know is the first thing about themselves.”
‘Happy and chipper’ | The creators of Friends have recalled their last conversations with Matthew Perry, saying he was “in a really good place” shortly before he died.
Full Story Photograph: Michael Reynolds/EPA
Two presidents in two weeks: Albanese’s balancing act
Anthony Albanese will follow up his meeting with Joe Biden by travelling to China for talks with Xi Jinping with the Aukus submarine deal top of the agenda. Daniel Hurst explains how the deal could affect Australia’s superpower relationships.
Full StoryTwo presidents in two weeks: Albanese’s balancing act
Sorry your browser does not support audio – but you can download here and listen $https://audio.guim.co.uk/2023/11/01-19803-FS_TWO_PRESIDENTS.mp3
In-depth Photograph: Sia Duff/The Guardian
There can be gloom around the reporting of the climate crisis. But as part of our global series on alternatives to fossil fuels, Guardian Australia’s environment editor, Adam Morton, reports on the “absolutely extraordinary” achievement of South Australia at times this spring providing nearly all its electricity from rooftop solar.
Not the newsClaude Monet’s Meules, milieu du jour (Haystacks, midday), being hung at the Tweed Regional Gallery and Margaret Olley Art Centre. Photograph: Tweed Shire Council
When Margot and Doug Anthony donated some farmland to set up the Tweed Regional Gallery and Margaret Olley Art Centre in northern New South Wales, they never expected it to one day house a Monet masterpiece worth $174m. Susan Chenery checks it out.
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The world of sport Photograph: Richard Wainwright/AAP
Football | A home and away clash with Uzbekistan for a place in the Paris Olympics awaits the Matildas after goals from Mary Fowler, Sam Kerr and Tameka Yallop helped see off Taiwan 3-0 in Perth last night.
Cricket | New Zealand are in danger of going out of the World Cup after Quinton de Kock’s fourth century of the tournament led to a 190-run thrashing by South Africa.
Glenn Maxwell | The Australia all-rounder will miss their World Cup match with England due to concussion after falling off a golf cart this week.
Australia is about to enter a new era driven by its rising population, according to the Australian. Senior NSW Liberal women are said to be “seething” that a twice-failed candidate – Andrew Constance – is being lined up to replace Marise Payne as a federal senator, the Telegraph reports. The owners of Geelong-based retailer Cotton On are in line for a $57m payday after it reported record revenue, the Advertiser reports. A senior Territory police officer says total reform of the force is the only way to tackle “epidemic” levels of domestic violence, the NT News reports.
What’s happening today
Melbourne | Anthony Albanese and Jim Chalmers are among the speakers at the Outlook conference on policy and national issues.
Health | Vape and tobacco retailers appear before the Senate.
Sydney | Peace prize award ceremony at 6pm
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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.