Good morning, this is Richard Parkin bringing you the main stories and must-reads on Friday 3 July.
Top stories
Ghislaine Maxwell, a former girlfriend of the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, has been arrested at a luxury hideaway in New Hampshire, with the FBI laying a host of charges including the enticing of minors to engage in illegal sex acts. Prosecutors say they had been keeping tabs on the British socialite’s whereabouts while patiently building their case, telling media: “Maxwell played a critical role in helping Epstein to identify, befriend and groom minor victims for abuse.” Her arrest throws an uncomfortable light back on the Duke of York, Prince Andrew, who was introduced to Epstein by Maxwell in 1999. Though he eventually severed contact with the US financier, he maintained contact with his “close friend” Maxwell until last year.
China has warned the UK it will “bear all consequences” if it grants residency to Hong Kong nationals fleeing harsh new security measures, with senior Beijing officials saying Britain had no right to offer the right to settle to nearly 3 million of its citizens, asserting that “all Chinese compatriots residing in Hong Kong are Chinese nationals”. Scott Morrison called China’s imposition of draconian security laws over the formerly autonomous region “very concerning” and said Australia was working on a plan to provide safe haven for Hongkongers. One of the territory’s leading democracy campaigners, Nathan Law, has already fled, citing “unknown dangers” facing prominent activists.
Labor is marginally the favourite to win the bellwether seat of Eden-Monaro in Saturday’s byelection, with polling suggesting that Labor’s Kristy McBain maintains a 52% to 48% head-to-head lead over the Liberal Fiona Kotvojs. The uComms poll, funded by the Australia Institute, also found that ABC funding looms as a significant issue, with 56.4% of Eden-Monaro voters believing the public broadcaster should receive more money.
Australia
The ACTU has accused the federal government of “demonising young people” as part of a plan of laying the groundwork for upcoming sharp reductions in jobkeeper wage subsidies and jobseeker unemployment benefits.
Leading Australian companies, including Woolworths and Origin Energy, have been censured for failing to declare sizeable political donations, with the NSW planning department concluding that seven businesses had acted unlawfully.
A former Nationals senator is launching legal action against the beleaguered financial group Mayfair 101. Julian McGauran accused the Dunk Island developers of giving him false and misleading information that led to a $1m investment.
Australian federal police have referred a brief of evidence to prosecutors against an ABC journalist who filed reports investigating alleged war crimes by Australian troops in Afghanistan in 2017. The attorney general, Christian Porter, has said he is “seriously disinclined” to approve prosecution of journalists but has given no guarantees.
The world
A former CIA director and ex-defence secretary has said Donald Trump has “essentially gone awol from the job of leadership” during the peak of the coronavirus crisis. More than 2.6 million Americans have tested positive to the virus, which has killed more than 128,000.
Andy Warhol artworks and an apartment in Paris are to be seized by the US Department of Justice as it continues to pursue assets allegedly linked to the multibillion-dollar looting of the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund 1MDB.
More than 88 people are feared dead in Ethiopia after two days of unrest following the assassination of a musician, Haacaaluu Hundeessaa. Haacaaluu was a champion of the nation’s largest ethnic group, the Oromo, and the killing has pitted Oromo youth against Ethiopian police.
A British court has denied Nicolás Maduro access to $1bn of gold bullion held by Venezuela in the Bank of England, ruling that the UK government has “unequivocally recognised” his rival Juan Guaidó as the nation’s president.
Recommended reads
He was the towering, Machiavellian figure looming over much of colonial Australia’s early history, she the devout, unfailingly supportive wife. But what if Elizabeth Macarthur had written a blistering secret memoir – detailing the real lives of herself and her ruthless pastoralist husband? That’s the premise of Kate Grenville’s A Room Made of Leaves: “This is a kind of anti-biography, raising questions about where stories come from, and how much we should trust them.”
For restaurants pushed to the brink during the Covid-19 shutdown, news that parts of Melbourne will re-enter lockdown has been heartbreaking. For Preeti Chhabra, planning for a rosier future had only just begun: “A duck order was coming in today for $290; I had to scramble last minute and cancel it.” But whereas last time everyone was in the same boat, this time round its especially harsh on businesses that have the misfortune to be within a designated hotspot.
Overwhelmed by the sheer immensity of covering the coronavirus pandemic, the Guardian Australia site editor Alison Rourke was in the market for a new distraction: ocean swimming. “At night, my dreams were filled with the images of the pandemic I was reading and writing about during the day. I needed a circuit breaker.” And a nerve-jangling run-in with a shark aside, the bracing effect of cold-water therapy has been a game-changer for her general wellbeing.
Listen
What’s so important about Eden-Monaro? Once seen as the nation’s bellwether seat, the contest for the semi-rural/semi-urban electorate in south-east NSW looms as the first big test of the post-bushfires and post-coronavirus era. Paul Karp looks at the race, and how a loss for Labor could spell bad news for Anthony Albanese.
Full Story is Guardian Australia’s daily news podcast. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or any other podcasting app.
Sport
After months of lockdown many footy tragics couldn’t wait for AFL to return. But not like this, writes Jonathan Horn. “Many of the games have been ghastly. Scores are low. Viewers are tuning out. For generations weaned on high scores and exquisite skills, footy in 2020 is an increasingly hard sell.”
It’s been a decent month for Australian women’s football – and now the Matildas vice-captain, Steph Catley, has secured a dream move to Arsenal. The former Melbourne City skipper will join Caitlin Foord at the Gunners, with the Matildas skipper, Sam Kerr, playing for cross-town rivals Chelsea.
And, it wouldn’t be Friday without David Squires ... on Robbie Fowler’s contribution to the A-League.
Media roundup
The federal cabinet will consider an option to fast track resettlement for Hong Kong residents under the skilled visa program, claims the Australian. Passengers from Melbourne face a security blitz at Sydney airport, reports the Sydney Morning Herald, after at least five travellers from Victorian hotspots were identified on arrival on Thursday. And AMP is facing its #MeToo moment, writes the Financial Review, with leading female employees calling for the sacking of the AMP Capital boss, Boe Pahari, due to a previous sexual harassment allegation.
Coming up
NSW police are taking the organisers of a Newcastle Black Lives Matter protest to the supreme court in an attempt to halt the rally.
Peter Dutton could be found in contempt of court today if he does not respond to an order requiring him to make a decision on whether to grant a man from Iran a protection visa.
