A Senate question on notice has revealed that 11 federal public servants were paid more than $1m last year, with one receiving a $1.5m package worth more than double Anthony Albanese’s base salary. The figures were released after a question submitted by Greens senator Barbara Pocock.
Climate chief challenges coal approval
Matt Kean, chair of the Climate Change Authority, has challenged the NSW government’s approval of the largest coal mining development in the state’s history, arguing “climate change isn’t someone else’s problem”.
Other key developments
Australian scientists have identified two contributors to recurrent bacterial vaginosis infections, a common sexual health condition affecting about one in four women globally. Anthropic has urged the Albanese government to consider giving “conditional approval” for AI companies to train its models on Australian copyrighted works under an opt-out model, after conceding it would not secure a blanket copyright exemption.
Isaac Heeney says he “can’t wait” to continue his AFL career at the Sydney Swans after being crowned the club’s best and fairest player. His comments come after serving a club-imposed suspension for breaching club standards in an incident still being investigated by police.
International and domestic updates
A fast-growing protest by high-school students in France over long hours, teacher shortages and decaying facilities has escalated into “urban violence”, the French government has warned, as many schools would switch to online classes to protect teachers and pupils. Donald Trump deflected responsibility for misleading Americans about the length of the Iran war, dismissed low poll ratings as “fake numbers”, and refused to rule out declaring a state of emergency before the midterms, in an interview with Time magazine. The White House has again removed CNN as the primary television pool representative covering Trump.
The Omani co-pilot who stabbed his captain in an alleged attempt to crash an Israel-bound flight from Dubai had previously undergone radical Islamist indoctrination and was suicidal, Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has claimed. The global bond sell-off intensified overnight, driving 10-year US government borrowing costs to their highest level in 24 years. Tennessee’s governor has suspended all executions in the state until at least the end of the year and ordered an independent inquiry after a botched execution attempt.
