Good morning, this is Helen Sullivan bringing you the main stories and must-reads on Wednesday 16 January.
Top stories
Theresa May has sustained the heaviest parliamentary defeat of any British prime minister in the democratic era after MPs rejected her Brexit deal by a resounding majority of 230, plunging the UK’s exit from the EU into crisis. May made a last-ditch plea to colleagues to support her, warning them not to break their promise to the British people: “Together we can show the people we serve that their voices have been heard, that their trust was not misplaced.” Earlier in the day, as one Conservative backbencher after another stood up to slam her painstakingly negotiated withdrawal agreement in the House of Commons, it became clear that few had changed their mind. Speaking just before the vote, the Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, called the government’s efforts to steer Brexit through parliament “one of the most chaotic and extraordinary parliamentary processes” he had experienced in 35 years as an MP. Moments after the historic defeat, Corbyn tabled a no-confidence motion, which the government has confirmed will be debated and voted upon tomorrow.
New South Wales is “well behind” on developing water-sharing plans and is operating its rivers on old plans that are not accredited, according to a report from the Murray Darling Basin Authority. The NSW primary industries minister, Niall Blair, said on Tuesday that the fish kills in the Darling River were not as a result of over-allocation of water, pointing to the water-sharing plans as proof. The revelation that only eight of NSW’s 20 water-sharing plans are expected to be accredited by the middle of the year put that claim into doubt.
Public health experts are bemoaning the lack of evidence-based policy making when it comes to drug use, following the suspected pill-related deaths of five young people at music festivals since September. The deaths have left public health experts grappling with the question of whether the substances themselves are becoming more dangerous. “There are definitely elements about the drug market that have changed in the last decade or two that have made it more hazardous,” the emergency doctor and pill-testing advocate David Caldicott told Guardian Australia.
Despite a recording of the incident, Queensland police could find “no evidence” that an officer spoke inappropriately to a domestic violence victim. The recording of the conversation was broadcast on national television. Guardian Australia reported in September that the officer told Julie (not her real name) she could find other police to “harass” about her “petty domestic violence matter”. After the Guardian Australia story, South Brisbane police began investigating the allegation that the officer spoke to Julie inappropriately. But Julie was sent a letter earlier this month informing her that “there is no evidence to support the allegations made”.
World
Police and anti-terrorist forces in Nairobi have been fighting to regain control of a hotel and office complex after it was seized by gunmen. There are reports that three people have been killed.
At least 15 children have died in Syria amid freezing temperatures because of a lack of medical care and inadequate living conditions for displaced people, the UN has said, warning that more deaths are likely to follow.
Climate change could be kept in check if a phaseout of all fossil fuel infrastructure were to begin immediately, according to research. It shows that keeping global warming to less than 1.5C above pre-industrial levels is still possible.
A small green shoot is growing on the moon after a cotton seed germinated in an “earth chamber” onboard a Chinese lunar lander.
The sleepy world of pétanque has been rocked by claims that Belgian players are turning to stronger stimulants than shots of pastis and drags of Gitanes cigarettes when bowling on the international stage.
Opinion and analysis
Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful wall” has become the trademark of his presidency. Build it tall, build it wide – he has pledged 1,000 miles (1,600km) of it – and America will be safe again. But how does that uncomplicated notion compare to the complexity of the border itself? Taken as a whole, the 1,954 miles (3,150km) of US-Mexican border is a place of astounding diversity – of terrain, of land use, of city and countryside, of ethnicity. There is diversity, too, of political view among the 7.5 million people who live in US border counties. Some are ardent backers of Trump’s wall. Others see their future, and the future of America, as being inextricably linked to that of their neighbour to the south.
The cast and crew of Sydney’s In The Heights have an enormous night ahead. The local production of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s pre-Hamilton musical opened in 2018 at the Hayes – a 110-seat venue. And now, with two brand new male leads, they’ve had only a few months to work out how to upscale to the country’s most prestigious stage. The Concert Hall at the Sydney Opera House seats 2700. But that age-old adage applies: the show must go on. And it opens tonight.
Sport
Tom Rogic scored deep into injury-time in last night’s Socceroos match, ensuring that the Australian team emerged from a nervy game against Syria with the win, 3-2, they needed to progress from Group B in second place. Here’s the match as it happened.
Nick Kyrgios has been guilty of not giving his best several times in his career, but at the Australian Open yesterday, he was simply outplayed by a better player.
In the cricket, another Virat Kohli masterclass propelled India to a six-wicket win against Australia to square their limited overs series at one-all.
Thinking time: Dapper little birds
Guarding the nests of Australia’s hooded plovers is a job for all of us. These “dapper little birds”, in the words of Birdlife Australia’s Sean Dooley, “skitter across the sand of our southern surf beaches. With dainty orange legs that whirr underneath as if they were a child’s wind-up toy, hooded plovers seek out small bugs and tiny sea creatures hidden among the seaweed on the tideline or venture into the wash left by the crashing waves.” But the hooded plovers nest on the beach too, though nest is a relative term. “It’s more a shallow scrape in the sand with perhaps a sprinkle of seaweed or shells here for disguise.”
Birds, dogs and humans pose a threat to the nests on crowded beaches, but a team of volunteers has assembled to monitor nests and erect fences, signs and shelters to shield the seriously adorable chicks from the blazing sun once they have hatched. The program has increased the chances of hooded plovers successfully raising a chick tenfold – but every beach-goer has a role to play in their survival.
Media roundup
Bill Shorten has been warned by “Labor legend” Bill Kelty, the former secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions and one of the architects of compulsory superannuation, that he must stand up to industry superannuation funds, the Sydney Morning Herald reports. Companies with large franking credit balances are likely to pay early dividends to shareholders in anticipation of a Labor government, according to the Australian. The Courier Mail reveals that Queensland farmers are spending up to $40,000 a week trucking water from NSW as a result of the drought.
Coming up
A 26-year-old man accused of murdering 22-year-old British tourist Grace Millane in New Zealand will make his first appearance in the high court at Auckland today.
Students for Sensible Drug Policy will launch their #BeHeardNotHarmed campaign today. It’s the the first national, youth-led campaign in support of pill testing.
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